ARE WE HEATHENS?

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1792, 3 July 1913, Page 8

ARE WE HEATHENS?

BIBLE IN SCHOOLS.

DISCUSSION BY THE SYNOD

SOME REMARKABLE SPEECHES.

A discussion on tho question of thfc Bible-in-Sohools took placo at last evening's session of the Anglican Synod. Tho subject was introduced by Mr. G. Flux, headmaster of tho South Wellington School, who iuoved tho following resolution:— "That this synod reaffirms its adherence to the proposals of ..the Bible-in-State-Schools League to which the Church as a whole is committed by tho decision of'Genbral Synod; and expresses the conviction that as the system now proposed has elsewhere proved to the vast majority of churches and people a satisfactory and permanent solution of religious instruction in Stats schools, it presents to the people o{ Now Zealand a method by which religious instruction can bo restored to the public schools on terms of equal opportunity to all. Tho- 6ynod expresses tho conviction that if tho proposed system of\ religious instruction is ; made law national education wjll boplaoed thereby on a firmer basis. v The synod requests that a referenduff on tho single issue be taken of the whri.rf people of tho Dominion to allow an opportunity , to every elector of voting thereon as th« mqst suitable and convenient method oi determining the issue. That this resolution bo forwarded to the Primo Minister and the members of Parliament for tho electoral districts within the diocese." Duty 'of tho Stats. • Religion, said Mr. Flux, had been it* fined as a "feeling after God," and he thought this definition might very well to tho Bible-in-Schools movement.. Even savage nations had a yearning for something higher, and it would not be creditable to Christian peoples if they did not aspire to higher things, and to .lead their children up. For twenty years they had been like men gropine ih tho dark to open a door outside of which' was light. They must open that door, • and'keep, it open, for tho benefit of their children.. Ever'since ho came to NewZealand, 30 years ago, he had been anxious to use. tho Bible in his school.' He would like to uso tho Bible in its entirety, but that seemed to bo impossible, and' they should do tho next best thing, and uso a book of extracts. - They took great pains to give' their children tho best education intellectually and physically, but if the children wero to turn out good citizens, care must also be taken of their spiritual welfare. Turning .to the means by which the objects of the League were to be achieved, the speaker stated that he oould not think of anything but the referendum. It had recently been' stated in Wellington that' nino-tonths of the teachers in tho State schools were opposed to tho Bible-in-Schools.' This was not true. At tho New . Zealand Educational Conference at New Plymouth, a motion had been carried inimical to tho ' movement. He could say, however, that several niombers of tho conference who voted with the majority had dons iso because their hands wero tied by their district institutes, although 'they were personally in favour of the movement. The Christian Spirit, . Mr. W. J. Birch seconded the motion*: He said that if men were more imbued with, the Christian' spirit in their dealings with one another the world would bo . much better. If , they w,ere to deny to their children the privilege of Christian training, how could they expect the' coining generation'to have that Christian spirit? Christian ideals should bo pieced, before tho children, and where could it be done better than in tho national schools? It had been said that tlio proper place for religious instruction was at tlio mother's knee;' Tho. teaching of ft' mother ivas, of course, most valuable, but many njothers were not capable of imparting'faith' iifstruiitibii r a£ Muld lie given in tho schbols. ! ' A Discordant Note. Tho Rov. R. H. Hobday said that previous speakers had continually referred to Now Zealand as a Christian country. Was it really Christian, and was England Christian? Ho.thought that ninny of thoso who had studied the question had como to the aiuclusion that England was no longer a Christian. country; it was really a heathen country, with a few Christian missions .working .here and there in it. (Cries of "No!") Tho assertion was quite true, and, so far as ho could see, a similar statement might bo made about New Zealand. Tho lack of Christianity in tlio public life of tho Dominion was exemplified in many cases in our legislation. The divoroe laws, for instance, wero not based on Christian morality. Some time ago a proposal camo before Parliament to'enable a man, if he so wished, to marry'his own niece. Only one member—and all honour to him —had darodl to quote the authority and the law's of the Christian Ch-urch against the proposal, and •ho was held up to scorn. That immorality was rife in tho Dominion was asserted by numerous medical men, and it was notorious that ocnvictions could be obtained only with tJio greatest difficulty in a certain class of case whiih was flagrantly common in New Zealand. Our legalised gambling laws wero anothor example of the lack or , Christianity. The country might bo nomi- 1 nally Christian, but many people mado only a pretence of Christianity. - They could all see that in their own congregations. What was needed, moro than anything'olso in the Dominion was a Christianity which would bo an example to tho people, not a half-hearted Chris-, tianity. What was the attitude of the great body of the workers? There wero many which tho Wbour people know wffich did not inspire them .with confidence in tho Christian' Church. They knew", for instance, that the clergy in -England supported a certain great etoro which htia been proved to be a notorious sweating-don. (Loud cries, of "Question.") I Ven. Archdeacon Harper: My lord, if (Mr. Hobday is to make such sweeping statements about the clergy generally, he should surely give his authorities.' Mr. Hobday: I could name one firm, but I should rather not be eoinpolli?d to do so here. I- will give it_ to the Synod in private,, if necessary. The speaker went on to say that tho working classes knew that, in any Church people mere supporters 'of the liquor traffic, which they wero boginmntf to sco was one of the. greatest , curses, of their lives:' ' The}' saw ohnrchmen war and armaments and preparations for .war. They held up against the Church its "sentimental. obscurantism," which, caused it to use versions <>f the Biblf and Prayer Book 300 and W()yoirs oi'n.-'-specitivelr, and to ignore the centurirj. i scholarship which had foKoxwd' I heir, adoption. The fruits shown l-.y ClirUtinnitv thr?y held to be' not. worth bavin:?. Tlio Church should show by ocular demonstration that it had >a real interest in the problems of, the day. Then it would not be long before they hid- the Bible in the schools. Tf a-referendum were taken and it-wero defeated, it won'-d show that New Zeaiandrrs had derided .against Christian morality. Perhajis . thoy. had so decided already. -Th* speaker; concluded by saving that he suppokd lis was in-the ■minority in- the Syird. Pn 'asked-that lie and those who thought like him should' not be regarded as opponents of' Christianity as Mich, but that.if thev were wrong, members of the Synod shou'd prav thai'their eyes would be. enoncd. -Loud applause greeted the. conclusion of an eloquent speech. , „ , Mr, T,. F. Martin, the Rev. G. A. Sole, Mr. C. Pr'Powles, and Mr. G. F. IladfielH and Canon also spoke. The motion was carried unanimously, amidst loud applause.