Church and Education.

Timaru Herald, Volume XIC, Issue 13355, 3 August 1907, Page 3 (Supplement)

Church and Education.

Principal Henderson, president of the Baptist Unicn Assembly (England), in the course of his addiess on ' The Guidance and Inspiration of the Cross,' said, among other things : The churches cannot wisely delegate their duties to the civic authorities. Even if all our resources were exhausted, there would be tha gravciJl objection to llu principle that the State, as such, should determine what prayers are to be addressed to God, and what -religious ideas are ro be taught the people, old or young. Weshall land ourselves in deeper and deeper bogs if there is persistence in the present course. It is in the interests of religion that the civil power should leave it entirely alone. Non-ititerference is the best service that Parliament can render to the Christian cause, and the best service- the Church can render to the nation is to be true to itself, to abide by its own ideals, and to discharge its own duties. After all, are we Christians so very eager for the children to !>:• taught 'to accept Jci.us as Saviour and Lord? Why, then, do we not. spend more money and employ more agents? Very much more can be done, and will be done, if the sacrificial spirit of Him who, though rich for our sake, became poor, pr.itses from the Cross to those who ara under obligation for everything to Him who wrought the great redemption. Can anyone deny that if Episcopalians and' Isqnconformists pleased they could raise an army of ministers and others ready toj teach hundreds of thousands of young .people'? " And are there not buildings by the thousand erected at immense cost, and used scarcely at all during the w-eek? An extended use, of churches and chapels would probably be regarded as sacrilege; but I doubt nox thatNHe'in whose honour they, avo.wedly exist- holds the children to be more sacred than the bricks and mortar. Would"'fh's children come? My answer is that wherever efforts have been made they have been successful. A new day will dawn when it is frankly recognised that religious work must bs left wholly to the churches. We cannot, for: shame, ask the state to interfere while we even -suspect that we-, are.'numerous enough and wealthy enough to make it. difficult for any British child to grow up without being brought, under lbs influence of the Gospel. The complaint is heard that \ve "are too logical. But this-is; r.o pretty pedantic logic ; it- is''reasoning based on the. principles of Christian life, and confirmed by the contradictions induced by the failure "to be logical. Those contradictions and confusions are driving the country to a. secular solution of its problem ; "and there is a. loud call for the (hurdles' to increase their zeal in imparting Christian knowledge. That the Sunday school fully meets requirements will be denied, and I myself should earnestly deny it, for present 'methods call for great improvements, and they .should : be .largely supplemented;' Still, it is a .fact that- mest of the-day scholars meet ;for instruction, on th J'Lord's Day, so that children, belonging to the working classes are at least as well off religiously as tho'sVcf rich persons, -.uanyrof .whom. appear to say. with more self-satisfactmn t-lian sorrow,: "They made •tie keeper of tlK\;.vii!ey'ar'ds,,.but mine' own vineyard,, have ..f not:-kept."