FIRST PRINCIPLES

Evening Post, Volume CVII, Issue 140, 14 June 1924, Page 13

FIRST PRINCIPLES

TO THE EDITOR.

Sir,—lt is a very sad thing to see so many children and young men brought up before the Court. It is a reflection upon secular teaching only, and it does not seem fair to the children to keep the fear and knowledge of God from them, and then to punish them for their ignorance of the laws He set before us. We cannot expect them to grow up good citizens if they do not. know the "first principles of law and order—duty to God and our neighbour. Upon these hang all the laws and the prophets. God, knowing mankind, gave ten Commandments, which were to be taught diligently, and great blessings were to follow obedience; curses disobedience. It is a fearful responsibility to keep our children in ignorance of the Supreme Being, as well as being unfair, for they are _ not properly equipped to battle against temptations.

Parents who have had no teaching or training themselves cannot teach their children, nor would they trouble about sending them to Sunday schools. The simplest way seems to me to teach the Ten Commandments only in daily schools. No denomination could surely object to that. One or two could be said by tho whole school first thing, all to■gether, tho pupils learning the part the night before with home lessons. That would take no time, and would impress the lesson on their minds, while the parents, hearing it conned over, at home, might benefit too. This would do away with all the controversy over the Bible-iii-Schools—just the Ten Commandments, which cannot be ignored without grave danger, morally and spiritually. It would be very easy for all tho children to assemble in one big room, repeat a few sentences after their master, and then file off to their classes. The Commandments could change with the duty on alternate days. If the children knew and imbibed tho principles embodied in the duty to God and neighbour, it would help to influence their whole outlook on life.—l am, etc., . ..•■.■ "G."