BIBLE READING IN SCHOOLS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 151, 17 June 1908, Page 3

BIBLE READING IN SCHOOLS.

HIE NELSON' SYSTEM. DISCUSSED AT NEW I'LYMOCTH.

! About sixty people attended the pub lie meeting held last night in the Council Chambers lo consider the question 1 adopting in New Plymouth the X'elson system of liible-reading in M-hools. I!ev. < K. O. Kvans presided, Apologies were ' 'received for the alienee ni' licv. M. •). Lewis, Kcv. .1. 'iny. and -Mr- C. Carter. The chairman explained that the meeting had been called by the Xew l'lymotith .Ministers' A-.-Ociatiou with tiie di'sirv or securing the assistance of parj ents and friends of the school children in i providing for some systematic teaching jof the liibie in our schools. Jt was said i that the ministers of the town already I had an opportunity to give religion- m- | Struetiou at the Central School after the ordinary school hours on Thursdays. I Ministers naturally thought that lo take advantage of this offer would be to penalise the children, for were not all the football matches played on that afternoon! He would not attempt to compel his children to take extra lessons OT . such an afternoon. Rev Evans said tli't his own feeling— and it was endorsed • y the great majority of Christian people j in New Zealand—was that unless thev :

I gave the rising generation a knowledg | of God's word there was no guaran!" that they would grow up to exercise n tin' community those gift* and \irtir which were required to build up a :,i tion. The words that "liighteou>ne. i: cxalteth a nation" were as true now : when they were written. I'nfortunate ly a very large proportion of children i'i this town never entered a Sutnhn

School, and to this lack of religious in struetion he attributed the preponderance of juvenile crime iu this Dominion.

There would be less young men iu the gaols if they had been given an opportunity of realising their rcponsibilitv to Almighty God. The idea, was that on one morning in the week, instruction should he given in the schools, lie considered that no public school should be opened without prayer and the reading of a passage of Scripture, and the singing of a hymn of praise to Almighty Cod. (Hear, hear). Rev. S. t>. Osborne moved: "That as the Bible is looked upon by the large majority of the people of New Zcalu d as a Divine revelation, and needful for the implanting and developing of principles of righetousuess, and as too many of onr young people, through parental indifference and neglect, are growing up in ignorance of God's laws and His claims upon them, this meeting judges that some effort should be made I

Iby ilible-reading or Scriptural instruction in the public schools to remedy the defect, and this meeting requests the Hoard of Education to alter its legal school hours one day per week from live to four and a-lialf hours; the school that morning to open half an hour later than usual, so that the ministers of the town may attend and give Scripture lessons." Speaking to the resolution, he said that it was the general impression that something required to be done I to supply a lack in the present primary schools system and this could only be supplied by doing .something ill the direction of securing Bible-reading in schools. There were difficulties in the way, but if they were going to be knocked "back by difficulties they would never accomplish anything, and there was no difficulty here that could not be easily surmount ed. There was one objection nosed concerning the Roman Catholics, but he was sure there would be absolutelv no distinction on the part of either" the school committee or the Board—all denominations -would be placed on the same footing. He explained what had

come to be known as "the Nelson scheme," which was that on one morning a week the ministers and other Christian workers were allowed to give half an hour's religions instruction before school, without denominational teaching. Referring to the Central School committee's permission for the clergymen I to pive .Scripture lemons from :!.;io to I 4 o'clock on Thursday afternoons, the -peaker said: "The committee must i think we ministers arc soft-headed men, hut I for one am not as soft-headed r.s that. If they thought we were going Ui ask the !>oy"s to slay away from their football matches oil Thursday afternoons tliev never made a greater mistake in their lives. I'm a wi«e enougn parent for that. I like to identify myself with boy nature. ... I ain not such a fool as to embrace such an opportunity." He considered it would be dishonoring to God to give this last halibour of the day. and if lie couldn't have what was reasonable and right he woul-l have nothing. lie himself was prepared to attend at the school even - morning and open it with family worship, wlti.-ii would occupy only a few minutes. Hut it was simply lunacy to think ministers would adopt the offer made by the committee. Quoting an Australian writer, lie averred that '•where the Bible is not found in the public schools the nation will develop not into a democracy T>,it into a ■inob-ocracy.'" Ilev. T. G. Brooke expressed his lieartv syinpathv with the remarks of tile previous speakers, aftd said he would gladly avail liimself of au opportunity of giving prayer each morning at tile opening of the schools. H t . did not agree with those who said ours was a God less system. He had gone through his children • books and found that tlierc were many opportunities for the teacher, if chose, to inculcate good moral lesso-is But there was still something lacking in our system of education. Whilst.educating the brain, they should also educate the moral nature at the same time. There mu-:t be behind that an authority, a nd the word of God was the greatest authority 011 righteousness that was known to man. To be successful the system of education must develop the moral as well as the intellectual nature. I'ev. Brooke said he had tried teaching scholars after school hours, and had found it a failure. He had also found bv Studying his own children that it was not fair to ask them to take Biblereading after five hours' ordinary school work. It would be looked upon as a I hardship, and more likely to create t distaste for and opposition to the Bible than a love of it. He gave a brief review* of a successful system of morning iu-trnction in Mornington. The motion was unanimouslv carried, and a deputation consisting of Revs. Oi borne, Evans, and Brooke, and Messrs. Collis. MacDinrmid, and A. Anibury. appointed to carry out the intentions of the meeting. A further diseuS,ion aro«e as to tae neeessity for moving in the direction of obtaining the same concession for cM the schools in the Taranaki education district, but the meeting decided to work for this one step first. The fresh -sjieakers 011 this matter were Messrs. Collis. Weller, Enroth, and Drew. A vote of thanks to the chairman concluded the proceedings.