The New Zealand Tablet THURSDAY, JULY 16, 1914. THE ARCHBISHOPS’ AND BISHOPS’ MANIFESTO

New Zealand Tablet, 16 July 1914, Page 33

The New Zealand Tablet THURSDAY, JULY 16, 1914. THE ARCHBISHOPS’ AND BISHOPS’ MANIFESTO

" * " W -E direct the very earnest attention of our readers to the able, closely-reasoned, and f/W'ii evor y way weighty pronouncement on > the subject of the so-called referendum which has been issued by the Catholic Hierarchy of New Zealand, and which is V **3* printed in full elsewhere in this issue. i he present deliverance, while pointing out briefly the root objection to the plebiscite proposal —namely, that it is, in effect, mere ballot-box legislation, over the head of Parliament, on vexed questions of religion and personal religious conscience which are not proper subjects for decision either by referendum or by plebiscite— devotes itself mainly to a consideration of the detailed provisions of the Pill as it has been actually framed. In the course of a keen and searching analysis of the proposals, it is shown that alike in its form of reference, its false assumptions, its jumble of issues, its ambiguities and controversial concealments, and, above all, in its iniquitous ‘ conscience clause,’ the Bill is —apart from the fundamental objection already noted —about as hopelessly unsatisfactory a measure as could well have been devised. The reader will find an admirable summary of the vital points of objection to the Pill in Clause 10 of the manifesto — which points, by the way, as is pointed out, the Pill conceals from the electors or glosses over with ambiguous or fair-seeming words. The objections are thus stated: (a) The Government arc to provide * religious instruction,’ ‘ general religion,’ ‘ general religious teaching’ —in other words, a State religion. (b) This State religion is, admittedly, suited for the consciences of only one league or section of the people. No such provision is to be made for the conscientious requirements of any other section of the people. (c) Conscientious dissenters from the State religion will be unable to derive any advantage therefrom. But they will be compelled to pay tithes (taxes) for the compiling, printing, binding, storage, distribution, and teaching of ffhe' State religion. They will receive no such State endowment for their own religious beliefs. . (d) Conscientiously objecting teachers will be compelled to teach the new State religion, or be driven, as if they were convicted malefactors, from the public service. (e) The Irish proselytising conscience clause is embodied in the Pill. It claims, for the Government, the right to compel all children to be brought up in the State religion, unless specially and individually exempted. The Pill thus embodies the

League’s demand for proselytism by Act of Parliament. 1 hat is a heavy indictment against the measure, and is amply sufficient to justify the earnest and solemn protest which, in dignified and telling phrase, the Hierarchy have voiced on behalf of the Catholic body. The manifesto will doubtless be published and distributed as a leaflet ; but in the meantime we exhort our readers to cut it out of the Tablet or the daily press, and to make themselves familiar with its contents. As will be noted, we are- promised a second pronouncement from the Hierarchy, in which the grave violation of rights of conscience, • which is such an odious feature of the ‘referendum’ measure, will be further dealt with.