BIBLE-IN-SCHOOL BOUNCE.

NZ Truth, Issue 234, 18 December 1909, Page 5

BIBLE-IN-SCHOOL BOUNCE.

Arid Agitators Active.

Those who desire that some form of.' religious teaching should -be given m our schools bring up the matter on every conceivable^ occasion, and thereby make all rational and right-thinking citizens .heantily sick of their melancholy monomania and of themselves personally. These acrid agitators ,(*or they carry on : their propaganda as if the giviing of religious lessons m the schools were bound lip indissoliibly with the material and moral welfare of tho Dominion) are, no doubt, of the opinion- that they are male- j ing martyrs of themselves, and that they are putting up a fight which will be unparalleled for pugnacity and perseverance. While we have to admit that they are vigorous and insistent, we have also to "express the hope that they will see the error of their Ways m attacking a question at the wrong end, and' make an endeavor to get the country regenerated (to their minds) by means at present m their power, which are sufficient to enable them to achieve their i object with half •■■■the pugnacity and patience at present used uselessly m misplaced effort. .Parliament has laid it down and has continually re-affirmed that our system of education must he secular >; and any but a pretemnturally pervertedmonomaniac would be contest tt> let that-; aspect of the religious question well alone awd wouid concentrate all his energies on some more vulnerable point m the armor of the' giant of Sin and Sorrow which (according to the Bible-in-Schools fanatics) has reared itself m New Zealand and is surely and quickly underminine; ..the moral and material, stamina, of the people of the Dominion. ■ ♦ ♦ ♦.

This flaw m the armor of Sin has been pointed out to the Bible-in-Schools monomaniacs many times, but if they eternally bring up their grievance^ much m the manner of the child who thinks that if. he asks often enough for the moon he will ultimately get it, it devolves upon the champions of the strict secalaDity of . our education system to eternally reiterate the obvious answer. The answer is : "Ths province ol the clergymen and religious workers of the Dominion is to care for the souls of all citizens — the State only undertakes to educate children m such matters as form no iuteg- < ral part ot religion and would not be-, enhanced m value if studied m conjunction with religion. Therefore the ques-. tions of general and religious training should be carefully separated, and tbe Church should provide for the religious training of children by their own efforts and not nullify the State's work) by toefogging the education issue." II the Bible-; in-Schools fanatics would only look at the matter m its true Mght they would see that the perpetual airing of their alleged grievance is merely an admission that as a body they are weak— weak m inverse ratio to the vehemence and. insistence of their agitation. In effect they admit: "We (a large body of workers) have lost all control of a people of only average wickedness m a department of training which m tho past we have endeavoiea" to ma^e exclusively our o wn i and as we cannot compel the people to render to the Church that kind df respect which is her bread of life, we DEMAND that the State shall take a. part of our biurdcn, which, though not increased, it is beyond our power to bear." The religious- workers will perhaps Rain honor by discreetly, honorably and valiantly working out their ends by the channels which are open to them and which are fully adequate to the occasion ; but they can gain little respect by cultivating a monomania m regard to an object which, even if it were possible to attain, would be a stain on their honor and true valor, while their energies should be concentrated m tbe legitimate channels 'of their calling. .

The School Committee is made the instrument of the Bible-in-scliools party,, who always display great jubilation when they manage to elect! on the committee a majority of men who favor their particular hobby. The latest catispaw of the party is '{he Masterton Committee, from whom a letter was read at the last meeting of the Wellington Board asking that they be allowed to devote half an hour on one day, m the week to religious instruction. The~" committee said they could find nothing m the Act to make it impossible, and brought up all the old arguments m favor of their request. The Chairman of the Board stated that the regulations of the Board demanded that 25 hours' secular education be given, and Mr Vile, m moving to inform the committee that its regucst could not be granted, stated that the Act precluded the giving of . religious instruction m school hours. Mr J. G. W. Ait Ken spoke m favor of the request, and moved that sympathy be expressed with the conmiittes, bnt this was not carried. The Board (not a full one) was equally divided on the motion refusing the request, and the chairman gave' his casting vote m favor of the motion. Mr Aitken gave notice to move that the regulations be altered to allow the request being acceded to ; and it is to be hoped that when this motion is debated three months hence the Wellington Education Board will still bo found fighting the good fight of our present free compulsory and secular education. As with many another, important question, the issue o£ the Bible-in-schools question is frequently wilfully befogged by zealoys but bigoted religious workers ; and all those wtio have i.he welfare of our education system at heart, should set their faces against religious instruction m State schools, "for, if no other reason than that advanced by the Helens vi lie (Worth Auckland) committee, who refused a request by a clergyman bo give relig-. ious instruction after school hours, "for ths peace of this small community."