CHURCH SCHOOLS

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 244, 3 July 1918, Page 6

CHURCH SCHOOLS

A BISHOP'S ADVOCACY

EDUCATION OF CHILDREN

LENGTHY ADDRESS

The subject of denominational education was spoken of at length by Bishop Sprott yesterday in his address to tho Anglican Synod. As to the work of the diocese, His Lordship said that the success of the Diocesan Girls' School continued. The Diocesan Schools Board had been steadily carrying on its work during the year. It had now six schools under its control viz.. St. Mark's (Wellington), St. Matthew s (Musterton), St. Mary's (Ilawera). St. Stephen's (Marlon), St. Margaret's (Taihape), and St. Stephen's (Waverlev). All thesj schools had been inspected by the State inspect tors, and had been well reported of. "'l'crhaps," continued tho Bishop, "I shall best commend this work to onr people if I point out what principles umlerlio the Church's theory of moral and religious education. Many, even of our own people, may not be aware that the Church has any particular theory. Well, it has; and it may bo somewhat surprising to learr. that it is to be found in tho catechism. That familiar document, Which occupies not more than six [ages of an ordinary sized prayer book, is almost unique as a manual of moral and religious education. I think it is the wisest thing of its kind ever written. Let us see the principles which underlie it. 'Lhis manual recognises that if .vou are to educate successfully, you must know tho nature of the child— what kind of creature it really is. So it begins with tho child's nature. The child, it teachcs, is the child of God; it is. a member oi the Christian Society— the Body of Christ; it is an inheritor of the Kingdom of God. This is a noble I conception of what we really are, none nobler can be conceived. But, now observe the nature, so described, is manifestly and essentially social. The child is taught that it is not a mere isolated individual. Its nature is defined in terms of social relations. It stands in a relation to God, to the Christian society, to the whole organised universe of rational and ■spiritual existences in heaven and in earth—the noble living and the noble dead—tho Kingdom of Heaven.

Duties and Rights. "Thus, at the very outset, tho Church's educational manual rules out that wretched, self-centred, self-regarding individualism which, though a figment ot the imagination, is yet the bane of our modern life, the corrupt fountain ot international wars, class wars, private tends, tyrannies, injustices, exploitations,' from which not even world-wide war has vet availed wholly to set us free, lhiuk now different the world would have been, how different our own Empire and country would have been, if each of us had grown up with the. conviction that ho was essentially a social being, bound by a network of rjlationships In all other rational and spiritual beings, -and ultimately to the one God and I'ather of all. Hhving ascertained the true nature of tho child, our manual goes on to speak of the kind of t life which is proper to a being so constituted. This is manifestly the true order of educational procedure. Ascertain the true nature of any living thing, and you know tho kind of life it ought to live. Not otherwise. JS*o,w, since tho human creature is essentially a social thing, related by many ties to otliei beings, its proper lite is a life of social duty. This is the true foundation ot duty. All duties, are simply the fulfilment of relationships. "It is to be noted that our manual has not a word to say about men's 'rights,' but only about their duties. | This omiss.on, 110 doubt, detracts Irom 1 its popularity in this day of ours, when peoples and classes and individuals art | loudly demanding, and violently asserting, tneir l'iglits. And this unpopularity | is augmented when the Catechism is mis- \ quoted, as it almost always is, so as to | teach that it is a part of eacli man s! duty to remain in that state of life ■ into which it has pleased God'to cah 1 him. Nevertheless, our manual is rigla 1 in speaking only of duty.' For our manual is inculcating morality, and tilt mere desire to assert one's rights is not moral at all. It is an elemental passion whibh we share with the tiger. Ihe fact is, rights and duties are but differ-! ent 6ides of one and tho same shield. Your 'right' is my duty; my 'right 1 is your duty. If I do my duty, i.e., if I, fulfil all the relations in which I stand ! to you, you will gut your rights, as far as I am concerned. If you do your duty, I shall get. my rights, as far as you are concerned. If we each and ah do our duty, wo each and all shall get ; our rights. Moreover, 'rights' and duties j avo correlative in another sense, viz., in ■ tho sense that every right carries with | it a corresponding duty. ■ Eights, like i duties, arise out of our social nature. T'Jiey are guaranteed to us by society in order that we may discharge certain duties to society; because it is belioved to be for tho common good that we should ' possess and exercise them. "It is of great importance to notice that in its teachings regarding duty 0111 manual makes no use of tho motives ol hope and fear—reward and punishment. It simply says to the child, God has given you such and such a nature and lias placed xou in such and such relations; and tor a being so constituted this life of duty is the truo life. Need of Church Schools. "Such then is the scheme of moral and religious education which the Church of Kngland has laid down for the guidance of her teachers. I have considered it thus fully, because the present is the only' opportunity I have of addressing the whole dioceso, and because 1 feel that the only way to secure the help of our ■ people in our educational work is to show them that we have somewhat to teach and that it is wortli teaching. 1 think education 011 these lines is what is needed in this day of ours. That our systems of education need to be moralised can no longer bo disputed by any who know the facts. The assembling oi the youug manhood of the country into camps has enabled us to obtain a knowledge of the .moral condition of our country, which could only be surmised before. And. 1 affirm that tho knowledge so obtained is in some respects most gravely disquieting. I do not go into details, but I do not speak without authority. It is certainly a matter which concerns nil the Christian Churches. It these arc not moral educators, what are they? Lot 110 one go away and say that the president of the Wellington Synod prescribes the Church Catechism as the romedy for our moral diseases. Not at all. Jt is the principles of education in that manual, not its phraseology, that I am insisting upon. I believe tliev are the principles upon which any ' real moral education must be based. As you know, the clergy of the Church have been willing to 'enter the schools ol the Dominion, and, to tho ljesi of theiir ability, teach our own children on the basis of these prhnipbs. You know also that this right of entrv has hitherto been refused. Whether ii, will yet be granted 1' cannot say. But in the fact of what we have learnt during the past four years we cannot wait indefinitely. The half-hour of the weekly Sunday school, valuable as it is, is wofully inadequate. It remains that those of our people who are alive to I lie importance of this educational question 6hould help us to establish schools nf our own. That is tho tapir lo which this synod committed itself when it established the Diocesan Schools Board. T balievo thai at 110 distant time nil oriir dioceses will have adopted similar measures. Doubtless we shall meel with | opposition. Alreadv there are signs of such opposition. There is a section of people in this country which is determined that tho total education of il;i ' upople shall be secular. I do 1101 know what form this opposition will ultimately take. Some there are, 1 doubt not, [ who would wish to suppress the entire voluntary school movement by legisla- ' (ion. I do net think the danger wholly imaginary. I think that owing lo the t war tho ideal of the Absolutist State is ■ beginning to attract sune of us. Wo . aro hoping and striving for a material vlotory over the Germanic Powers, and

I trust that our hope's will he realised. But it would not bo tho first timo in history if tho people materially defeated should prove to havo won a moral victory by permeating tho conquerors with its own spirit. It is a possible issue of tho war that needs to be guarded against. Some people in our midst might rather welcome the advent of tho Absolutist Stato after the German pattern, as furnishing an effective weapon against voluntary schools. If so, it might 1» well for such people to remember that Absdutism is a weapon with more than one edge, Whom it shall 6mite depends upon those who, for the time being, aire manipulating it. If today it is available, to suppress voluntary schools in the interests of secularism, to-morrow it might be used tu silence—shall we sny r—university_ professors or other public teachers in the interests of some social or economic theory. State Aid Ityt Sought. "I conclude this portion of my address by emphasising three points, .in my • judgmunt it is essential that we should make it quite clea.v that we do not intend to seek any State aid for our schools; that, be they lew or many, we shall maintain them out of ou.r own pockets. All such aid would be a restriction upon our liberty; and we desire to be free to give our children the fullest moral and religious education that we can. We desire, too, to keep liee from, all politioil entanglements. At least such is my judgment. It cannot 1)6 too often or too staongly emphasised that our schools niu.st lie in every wa.v efHceiut; they must be efficiently equipped; they must be efficient, in their teaching of those gvreral subjects which tho State requires; ilioy must be efficient, above nil, in their own special lino of moral and religious education. Without this last they will be church schools in name only. But if they are t: be morally and religiously efficient, then tho teachers must be morally enrnost und devout men and women, un-1 less this ca.n be secured, tho whole movement will be futile. To see arc a supply of such teachers we shall need training colleges. The Diocese of Cliristchurch has already established such a college for women. It is a noble endeavour, and I wish it all success. But wo want a college for the whole Dominion, and for men "as well as for women. We shall need, further, to provide pensions for onr teachers. I believe this to bo quite possible. I think that at no distant timo tho General Synod may see its way to establish a provincial pension fund, to the benefits of which teachers as well as clergy might be admitted. As we pursue this subject of education it begins to assumo alarming proportions, does it not? Undoubtedly. But ive must not, therefore, shrink- from it. My brothers, the Church has reached a crisis, perhaps the greatest in her history. I enhaps also she has readied her greatest opportunity. Tho question of questions for the Church to-day .s, What is to be the foundation of the civilisation which is to succeed tho civilisation which, 'ivitli confused noiso and garments rolled in Wood,'' is passing away? Is civilisation. at long last, to be built upon that which St. Paul doclawl to be the onlj foundation of human eooiety—ov-ii Christ? Or is the ioundation to be the samo old conglomerate of much paganism and little Christiauity, which has lirovcd so insecuive to-day? As it answeit. that question so will the future of the Church bo. And education is an essential part of the answer.