RELIGION IN SCHOOLS

Southland Times, Issue 21429, 25 June 1931, Page 7

RELIGION IN SCHOOLS

CATHOLIC HIERARCHY’S ATTITUDE. STATEMENT BY ARCHBISHOP. (Per United Press Association.) New Plymouth, June 24. The denials made on Tuesday by Bishop Brodie, of Christchurch, that any agreement had been entered into by the Catholic Hierarchy and the Bible in Schools League were the subject of a statement made in a interview to-night by Archbishop O’Shea. “Ihe denial from the south of any agreement between the Catholic Hierarchy and the Bible in Schools League is somewhat belated,” said the Archbishop. “It is nearly a year ago since a public statement was made by Archbishop Redwood to the effect that if the Bible in Schools League complied with the conditions which were first laid down by the Catholic Bishops many years ago, Catholic opposition would be withdrawn. 'lhe executive of the Bible in Schools League on the same date announced that it was prepared to draft a bill which would meet these conditions; consequently the only honourable course for the Archbishop was to announce that an agreement was in sight. Until now no public protest was made against his action. 'lhe conditions laid down by the Catholic Hierarchy 17 years ago have been published time and again, not only by the Bishops who drew them up and of whom I was one, but as late as 1929 when in Parliament Mr Carrington, with the full approval of Bishop Cieary and myself, again repeated them. No protest whatever was then made by anyone from our side against his statement that we would withdraw our opposition to a Bible in Schools measure which would meet these conditions.” LEAGUE’S PROPOSALS OFFICIAL ACCEPTANCE CLAIMED. REPLY TO BISHOP BRODIE. Wellington, June 24. A sub-committee of the New Zealand Bible in Schools executive considered in Wellington to-day Bishop Brodie’s disclainir er of any agreement between the Roman Catholic Hicrarachy and the league and approved of a statement issued by the secretary to-night through the Press Association quoting official acceptance oi the league’s proposals by the hierarchy. The committee states "that only one letter had previously come to the secretary from Bishop Brodie dated June, 1930, and it acknowledged receipt of a copy of a circular letter and paper. Tlie secretary’s statement is as follows: —■ "As I understand his Grace Archbishop O’Shea will reply on behalf of the hierarchy it will not be necessary to comment on the circular of which you sent me a copy. A continuous correspondence was carried on last year, however, with the Archbishop. He has been the recipient of all official correspondence and from him all official communications from the hierarchy have been received by the league. If therefore, any withdrawal from the position taken up last year by the Roman Catholic Hierarchy had been decided on, it would have been notified to the official secretary of the league by the official representative of the hierarchy, but as no word of any such position had ever been mentioned by Archbishop O’Shea, although a letter was received from him by the same mail as that which brought the letter from Bishop Brodie, no official notice can at present be taken by the executive with relation to Bishop Brodie’s interpretation. It will be necessary to await an official communication from Archbishop O’Shea. ‘.‘From the standpoint of the league the present position is quite definite. There has been no suggestion of any withdrawal by the league nor any hint of the kind from Archbishop O’Shea, and consequently the league's official letter of April 14, 1930, conveying definite proposals, the hierarchy’s acceptance of the proposals on May 12, 1930, and the league’s acknowledgement of acceptance in a letter of May 21, 1930, remain unaltered. A general statement of the position was issued to the Press on July 24 for the Roman Catholic bishops by his Grace, Archbishop Redwood . and for the league by the Dominion executive. These were quite independent statements and harmonized in essential points. These statements stand as the official reports of the agreement.”