BIBLE READING IN SCHOOLS.

North Otago Times, Volume CVII, Issue 17167, 25 March 1927, Page 5

BIBLE READING IN SCHOOLS.

ADDRESS BY HON. L. M. ISITT. | There was a very moderate attendance at St. Paul's Hall last jvening to hear an address on the subject of religious exercises in schools by Hon. L. M. Isitt, M.L.C. The chair was occupied by Rev. . 1, Bertraim, who, in introducmg tne speaker, wished him every success. in his efforts to pecure legislation to provide suo^ n oourse in the schools. Mr Isitt said R-'Was never harder to get men to realise that religion did not merely mean saying prayesr and reading the Bible. Christ came to the world so that they could get his spirit. For 5Gyyears they had allowed the block vote of the Roman Catholic Church and a handM of sceptics to bar the entry oi ■'eligion into the schools. When the Bill was narrowly defeated m theg Upper House they were subject to nnfair treatment by their opponents. who refused to give pairs m return for those freely given. The people in Oamaru could be roused if the proper work was undertaken by those interes-tgd. The Bill, said Mr Isitt, provided that 15 miriutes on four days a week would be given to the singing of a hymn, the Lords Prayer and the re.ading of a passage from the Scriptures, without any comraent. If any parent did not want his child to attend he had only to inform the teacher and the child could stay away. The speaker referred to the opposition the Catholic Church had shown towards the Bill and said a majority of the House of Representatives favoured it, but the only danger was m the Upper 'House. There were aiaiiy members of Parliament just as conscientious in their opposition 0 the Bill as he was in suppor of l, but the trouble was the block iatholic' vote. Mr Isitt stressed that he Bill would not result in sectar- ? nism. It had heen statcd that it •/as not the duty of the \tate tc. ^aclt religion. but he woulcl say the tate was "esnonsihle for the preent Jack of religious education.. Re.erring to the Nelson system, Mr Isitt said it discriminated more freely than the one he proposed, Were 1 hey getting along very nicely withutt religious exercises in schools? f they read the newspapers they ■/ould see a great increase in juenile crime. "The people are teasure made," said the speaker, "i(| if it goes on for another gen'ation there will be an alarming 'clension in the moral character." ie absence of religious instruction homes was conimented upon by .r Isitt. who rplated incidents to ">nw the anpalling ignorance of qme people on religious matters. "nless they realised their respon'hRitv tq the children of the land 'heir reliffion was liot worth talk'pg about. They had heen too apa-u-iotip to do anything to end the xis+ina hideous state of things. 1,1 °rr was gre»t diflicultv in getting '"oole to work for God, but there -onld be no trouble in "organising s azz Parf^r or nacking a picture thppfra jf they made it a matter of wnvor ?nd pnthusiastic effort they 'o^Trl do it. Fe asked them to form 'ippnch of the New Zealand B.ihle •ti g.ohools League in Oamaru. The ;Ce"w V'anipf] *0 he able to sav to ooP'^infans that thev had 300.000 ">r 100 000 neonlp demanding religipvereis°s in schools, The vote >n •»' nppfled organising and if they wnld f?el' 70 or 80 per ppnt. of the oerents to ask fo^ Bihle reading /O Gfivp-^ent in the world would mmni'tir enough to r^fuse them. p asked th°m to consider the ne"sRjty nf chilfiyen who were de--ivpo of anv home influence and • «ha-ke the people out of their -"»+nv. On tpp pwvtion of Archneacon ^r'd Rev. Stork welT. it was ," "'7 Orm hranrh of the afid ?iT?n "f1:"e made to further 'ha