SUNDAY COLUMN.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXIX, Issue 116, 8 July 1911, Page 2

SUNDAY COLUMN.

BIBLE TEACHING IN STATE SCHOOLS. AN UP-TO-DATE REVIEW AND APPEAL. (By the \Archdeacon Willis, Ca m bridge.) Ai Dele 111. HIE USELESSNESS OF THE PRESENT I AGILITIES. ’ In the second article of this series I dealt with the necessity for the school function. It may now l.e said if the school function is so necessary) why then do not the clergy. Lm churches use the “facilities ’ o lered ])y the education law ior_ voluntary Bible teaching in the schools? But lei us see what the facilities are. they are at best most misers ole and entirely of a negative kind. By Hi* use of the word secular, and the interpretation given to it by most auministrators, the education law pu> vents any Bible or religions teaching being given by teachers, or anyone else, during school hours. The law only admits •■■tie bare possibility of religious or Bible teaching being given but of school hours oy. saying nothing to forbid it. But if a clergyman or other teacher should wish to teach in any school he can claim nothing as a right even out of school hours. The matter is practically in the hands of the various school committees, to grant or refuse —and though refusal is not the rule it is common enough to make it quite uncertain what answer may he given to any application. Yet miserable as is this negative provision, honest efforts have been made to turn it to account, and efforts are still being made. The fact remains, however, that not a tithe of the work has ever been touched; and the verdict of the clergy as a whole has been from the beginning that success is impossible. A Clergyman’s Experience.—l myself was amongst those of the clergy of the Anglican Church who gave the matter a fair trial. For a large portion of three years spent by me in a former cure, I taught regularly in three schools once a week. 1 taught before school, and after school, and in the dinner hour. I must not write of all the difficulties connected with my efforts—suffice it to say that I only had the attendance of a small proportion of the chcildren, and only that of those who least required teaching. But from the beginning I deeply Sympathised with, and pitied, those children who had to stay and be taught the Bible while the most, of their fellows were in the playground. Moreover, I resolved at tnc termination of my work in that cure that I would never again use facilities which could only foster dislike of religion. Anyone must see that those of the' children who think at all can only think badly of religion, the Bible and the parson, if they all alike are considered unworthy of any proper place in the economy of the school.

Cannot be Everywhere.-—But even if the case were entirely different and the clergy were allowed to enter the schools during school hours, and even if the clergy did all they could do, in all the schools they could reach, only a very partial success would be attained. There must still remain a very large number of schools which could not be visited; and an immense number of children who could not be given any, Bible teaching ; whatever. This fact alone should be sufficient to condemn the system. Nothing can be satisfactory that will not reach all who are willing to be taught, and by no possibility can the clergy attend all the schools in their, parishes or districts, even on one day eacli in the week, which would be the barest starvation allowance. The Field to bo Covered.—l am privileged to live in one of the most easily worked country parts of the diocese of Auckland. But in my parish there are already twelve schools. To pay a visit to each of these schools even once a week, would keep the two Anglican clergy in this parish continually on the road. One or other of ns would have to visit four schools on one day of the week, and two schools on each of the other school days. The distance to a (id from each school, including the school nearest our doors, averages sixteen miles per school. Thus, to get through the work, one or other of us would have to travel daily thirty-two miles, and on one day of each week sixtyfour miles. We should, in fact, have to give the most of our time to the work.

Lay Help Unobtainable.—We sometimes hear it said that the clergy should get tho laity to help them. The answer to this is simple: We cannot get anything like the lay help wo waiit for our Sunday schools. This being so on Sundays when lay people may be expected to be most free of engagements, there is no prospect whatever of getting the needfid help on week days, when for the most part the laity are occupied with their businesses. T ought not to close without some mention of Bishop Neligan’s gallant effort. The Bishop, with his splendid optimism, thought he would try to do something, notwithstanding the fact that so many had failed already. I will let the Bishop spenk for himself: “At the general synod this year (1904) ’ I stated that personally I should not wait for legislation before trying to do something for the children in our

schools. . . Immediately after general synod I went on an extended northern tour. In most country districts it was quite evident that, if any religions instructions were to bo given, the only person possible for tho purpose was the teacher. Accordingly, whenever 1 could, I saw the teacher, told him that, for my immediate purpose, I was indifferent to his religions persuasion, the only tilings 1 wanted to know were: —(l) Was the teacher a professing Christion ; (2) if permission were given by the Committee, would the teacher give

\ Bible lesson for half an hour, daily if possible, prior to Government time. . The result has been what any one who knows the teachers would expect—glad and ready acquiescence. . . . Request was made by some teachers for organisation into a society, and for being supplied with a syllabus for Bible instruction. The outcome was the formation of the Bible Instruction in Schools League. Bibles were provided, school committees and school teachers in town and country all up and down the Dominion furthered the scheme, school teachers themselves in many instances undertook to give the lessons, tho '•lergy or devoted men and women of different Christian bodies undertook the work in many other instances, a

fimpit; syllabus was generally adopt"'ll, and every passible advantage was availed of.” Three years later (1907) Hie flisiini) made a full statement as to what had I men done by the League; and the result of the judgment -which he was obliged to deliver after his own practical experience was simply this Under the existing conditions of religion being an “extra,” the “facilities are. to any general extent, of n o benefit to the children of to-day—-die men and women of to-morrow. The facilities are futile, they have ,v tried and found wanting.”

I think I have now shown conclusively the uselessness of the “facilities”" at present afforded. In my next article i shall deal with the need for a change in the law, and shall give a reasonable answer to all objections.