Bible in Schools.

Huntly Press and District Gazette, Volume 3, Issue 6, 26 June 1914, Page 3

Bible in Schools.

The Rev. H. H. Robjohns, B.Sc., General Secretary of the Bible in Schools League for the Auckland Province, addressed a meeting of the members of the Local Branch of the League in Huntly, on Wednesday evening, and spoke on the present position of the movement. The speaker commenced by reminding the members of the League that the fjeague was constituted by official action of the Anglican, Presbyterian and Methodist Churches and the Salvation Army to secure the introduction into New Zealand of the system of Bible reading and religious instruction which had been in operation in the State Schools of New South Wales for 47 years, of Tasmania for 45, Western Australia for 10 years and Queensland for 2, years. The Hon. Digby Denham, Premier of Queensland, staved recently in Auckland that he was not in favour of Bible in schools when the movement ’started to get it into the schools of Queensland, but after making careful inquiries into the working of the system, he could say that it worked successfully and that if he had to give his vote again it would be for the Bible in the school and the ministers’ visits. The Australian system rests on three broad principles—first, the right of the parent to say whether liis child should or should not have Bible reading and religious instruction; second, that reading lessons should be read by the children under the supervision of their teachers ; and third, that ministers of all churches should have the right to go into the schools to give definite religious instruction to the children of their own people. In fact, the League was working to have the Christian religion and Bible placed on an equality in the state schools with heathen religions and the sacred books of other peoples. The life of Mahomet and his teachings of the sayings of Confucius, stories of Japanese gods are admitted to the pages of the official publication of the Education Department. Why not the life of Jesus and liis sayings ? The highest courts in New Zealand of the churches constituting -the League— the General Synod of the Anglican Church, the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church, and the Methodist Conference had asked the Government to introduco a Referendum Bill into Parliament and allow the people to settle this important matter which hid nothing to do with party politics and concerned the welfare of their children. This request was backed up by the individual request of 140,000 of the electors of New Zealand, one quarter of the whole electors. Surely this request was reasonable and legitimate and with such a backing, one would have thought that the Government would at once have stated its intention of acceding to the request and bringing in the Referendum Bill. Mr Denham, Premier of Queensland, was opposed to Bible in schools and yet at the request of his electors, he not only brought in a Referendum Bill, but when the Referendum went for Bible in schools, he got the necessary amendment to the Education Act passe l ti legalise the changes. Yet our Government is apparently undecided what to do in the matter and because of their hesitation it seems almost certain that the Bible in schools question will be a question seriously interfering with party politics at the next general election. The League could not be blamed if this were the case — the responsibility lies with the Government for not unhesitatingly acceding to the legitimate demand of the electors. The League had tried and is still trying its hardest to keep this question out of party politics —• the only way to do this is to let the people settle the matter themh'es. Evidently there is very derable opposition in some to the granting of the Re iidum. To strengthen the hands of those members of the Government who are prepared to accede to the people's wish and to enable them to resist pressure, from whatever source it may come, to deny the Referendum, members of the League are pledging themselves all over the Dominion, to place Bible in schools above party politics at the next general election in the ent of the Referendum not ing granted this session of rrliament. The League is not a political ganisation- it contains memo's of all parties as well as of ...1 churches, but it is determined that this question, which has agitated New Zealand for 37 years, shall be settled once and for all and as the majority of the people desires. The following resolution was carried. Resolved, —“ That this meeting of the Bible in School League in and around Huntly, regrets that the Government has not acceded to the request made by the highest Courts in New Zealand, of the Church of England, the Presbyterian Church, the Methodist Church, and the Salvation Army, and endorsed so generally by their constituencies, and moreover supported by the individual request of 140,000 electors asking for nothing more than a Referendum on the proposal of the Bible in State Schools League, and also that opponents of the League should claim that the Prime Minister is in sympathy with them, without any disclaimer being made.

We desire to emphasise the fact that the League does not ask either Government or Parliament to decide upon the merits of the League’s proposal, but simply to provide the machinery to allow the people to settle that question for themselves. We again pledge ourselves to support the Executive of the League in its endeavours to ensure 0 that this most important question shall be referred to the electors at the next General Election.