RELIGIOUS TEACHING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XVIII, Issue 5995, 3 February 1881, Page 6

RELIGIOUS TEACHING.

i ~ ~ TO THE EDITOR. • Sir,—The Rev. E. N". Bree's letter upon this sixbject, ia Monday's ;Hbrald, lias suggested, a,.- fow thoughts to my niiud which I ;would like to express, not to censure,tlie • writer,' but to ventilate the subject. Haying known for a long time that !Mi-. Bree.was au advocate of ( religious ■ teaching. in cbuimoh schools,.! was glad to learn thai he had, in ; company Svith the Rev.' Mr., Runeiman, • put his belief into practice, and' "attempted to give religious instructioai' for some .week's." Bujt having ; once.'put' their hands..to the plough,', what' !a-, pity 'they looked back'! 'Wje. to people thirsting for xeligious knowledge, especially afier'hp,viiig, b.een pent up in a close school-." room!f,oi; t)Y,6'jibur3. TS r e. may, mpre reaspiiT., ably 'expect boisterousness and! .the utmost^

I indifference,-about .the teacher andwr^ , i indifiep c^i 3 ii young people,, or to .the JOth «SapA we i reaithat;ofpld,people,, 3 of .reasons to-be excused. An<l flLbur these rebuffs ■ : ar e,K s escape,,them ; ?; and,>yiU, they obey ' and V compel,'.' : children "to " ■' , just quietly, let |th'e case go ; O v defaatt If ■ success., does, not .attend their-" first-effirt-Tr Two .courses... are, : open io'. all of f us wV" say so.. ;niueh .. about the'' "-««^Jr,■ system " : .; and,, the -danger '"it entla - upon the :; yonng. ;;W e ;. can\,eith er ; £n merely prattling about religious' teaching : yet doing nothing; or we can desist froS" n *° WOrk in gOocl . In the-first of these cases ;we shall • add Sei to.the scorn of our;antagonists; and w>•■eKal!'allow, the present -generation -to '■ groV n!v ' . comparatively igaoraiit of religious ■ and of the very outline-of "that ideal lift which might' constrain children to ; adnS* ■ the ; beauty of "holiness. ;Tn the Second S'■ these cases- we can !dc all the work-- and' overcome all the obstacles, if .the ?lergy -vrili : lead us.. In/Ruskin's letters it is well said • 4-"The clergy;have- all : before them if they > could but see it;; and.no power can compare with-theirs, from, the inqment"they -call forth, the .latent forces of .Christiadfev »'.- I have always felt that ;reUgious;,teachiiic"is.'" the duty ,of the .Church, and ;by the Church I mean all properly ; organised Christian asseni- ' -blies. ; Let .the : jclergy..only ; utilise : this mighty organisation,, and ,they inay.break ' ; through : any ;! opposition. -Let> them pit" us. ; ; to. the test,; and " prove to ~ world that we are either .'■ hypocrites ■6r.,that;\vlien we say the present education system is. ruining the : young, we are \vildo! something to save;tHeni: j Until the clergj" have' appeiilpd in vain to thelaity' :to stand " shoulder', '/to . ; shoiilder ; Avith them ' -liieii nnist hold them responsible for present inactivity.'; It is 'what the laity" will go", through' if.;. led by the clergy. . Scorn,' " contumely, toil, and self-sacrifice have never daunted them vet; and if- only, some master-hand could weld together existing forces in Auckland, the clergy would operate' through a society as ,c}auntless as a forlorn hope. The secularists ] , are awake and in earnest, but they'will have ; ; their work cut out if the Church awakes. If iiiie" mere . nanie of Napoleon rallied the ! shattered soldiers of the name of Christ on pure lips should rally all sections of the-Church in a .holy crusade against ignorance and irreligion. We should not then give , up the contest till we had" carried our' point. But' we must be practical;' We must try to get-parents, by personal intercourse, to realise their children's welfare, and command, their, children ; to attend on religious; teaching;-we must see that the clergy do not go unassisted amongst.a crowd Of boistrous children. ; must: adopt means to make the religious teaching attractive by singing and other means, and should generally! infuse into the method a little of the .wisdom of the world; we .should give the present system a fair trial, and if it is found .-impracticable, raise heaven and earth , to ;.upset it, Of course: this means labour,; ,but if souls, are at stake, the work should not appall us, and if it does appall us, then we don't believe that souk are at stake, and; should not say another word about it.— ; I am, &c, ' ■:■...■.: P. G-. &VINGTON.