"EVIL UNMASKED"

Evening Post, Volume CXXIII, Issue 117, 19 May 1937, Page 7

"EVIL UNMASKED"

CRIMINAL ABORTION

A CALL TO ACTION

The following, statement has been handed to the Press by the Moderator of the Presbyterian General Assembly of New Zealand, the Right Rev. T. H. Roseveare: — "In common' with all Christian people throughout the length and breadth of New Zealand 1 am deeply concerned about the revelations recently made in the report of the Government Commission on the incidence of septic abortion. That upwards of bUOO potential lives are criminally destroyed every year in our land is a fact which should make us as a Christian people hang our heads in shame.; The most serious side of the whole matter is that the present position indicates a definite subsidence of the moral foundations oi the nation. The falling numbers in our schools and our declining birth-rate in an economically fortunate land are indicative of an unhealthy state oi affairs. Something must be done to arrest what must eventually lead to national decadence and death. FUNDAMENTAL FACTOR. "A number of factors undoubtedly contribute to the present serious situation. The economist and the medical man have their parts to play in solv ing them. But the most fundamental factor is a moral and religious one. Religion and. morality in national life are inextricably bound up together. History shows clearly that when reverence ftfr.God and His'laws is neglected 'moral standards sag' badly. The root cause of our trouble is, 1 believe, the cultural paganism and religious indifference of a large section o^ our people, and the neglect of religious training in so many of the homes of the land. Religion never really permeates the life of a nation until it becomes domestic —until the fires of faith burn on-the hearth-stones of' our homes. Unless God is enthroned in -domestic relationships those standards of conduct which mark men off from free-loving pagans, and make civilised life possible, can never be maintained. "I realise just how easy it is to criticise the times, particularly the rising generation, but. as Moderator of a national Church, 1 am prepared to accept my own share of responsibility for a great national shame: 1, therefore, advance some suggestions which may help us all to co-operate in remedying the present statJ of affairs. "First, as Christian people we musi emphasise the Christian duty resting upon our young people of absolute chastity before marriage, and discipline within the marriage bond. Some modern dance halls, with their lack of supervision .and their drinking practices, are a menace to the well-oeing of. our growing youth. Church people who: are responsible for the conduct of community social functions should see that they are properly chaperoned, and parents should discourage their sons and daughters from-attendance at social functions where drinking; is countenanced. By so doing ; tliey will save them from insidious temptations to which young people should not be exposed. "Secondly, parents should not allow their young people to go out into life wholly ignorant of the facts of sex. The Scriptures teach that the body is the Temple of the Holy Spirit and that; sex is a. necessary and sacred part of God's creation. ' "Thirdly, as Christian^ people we should ever seek to present to our young people a high ideal of Christian marriage. New Zealand's, greatest asset today are the Christian homes of the. land. . The State may build houses, but only love and a common religious loyalty can create homes. "Fourthly, in fighting this sapping' evil of sexual laxity the State must co-operate with the Church. 1 agree with the sections in the Commission's report > v.hich declare that the indiscriminate sale and advertising of contraceptives should be prohibited by law, and that the giving of necessary advice on sex matters to married people could well be made a function of the Public Health Department. I believe, too. that the State has a clear duty to perform in grappling with those social conditions which make it difficult for parents to rear families of reasonable size. Our best immigrants should certainly be our own nativeborn citizens. "Furthermore, the State, through its Education Department, should give every reasonjble- facility to the churches working In co-operation to instruct the young people of New Zealand in the truths of the Gospel and in the ethics of the Christian religion upon which true democracy restsi CLEAR CALL TO ACTION. "In conclusion, let me add that the present position is a clear call to action or the part of all loyal New Zealanders. The evil has been unmasked and must be tackled at its source, and this is found primarily in the low spiritual condition of a section of our people. A real revival of vital religion, and more attention to the Christian nurture of our young people, are necessary stages in a permanent solution of a difficult problem I would urge Christian people to stand firm for that reverence for God and His laws which made our forefathers stout defenders by precept arid ex ample of the sanctity of the home and promoters of that 'righteousness which alone exalt'eth a nation.'"