The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1878-01-16

ATHENS December 18th, 1877.
We sent few weeks since to the readers of your
paper an account of the closing of the mission
school in Athens. The matter is now finally de-
cided and is as follows: After three weeks OF aoa
ing we received from the Minister of + !ucation
the following document, in reply to our request to
be permitted to carry on Our school or in that
could not be given to be permitted to open pure
ly Evangelical schools This document to be read
by us and if we accepted the terms to be forwarded
to the Nomark
ITO THE NoMARK OF ATTICA, "
"We beg you to make known to the applicants,
that persons wishing to bsh school, in which
they teach pupils Of the Orthodox faith, must IN
| conformity to the laws OF the country, submit
| through tie Nomark, to the Minister, the pro-
gramme of lessons which will be taught in the
school they wish to establish, with the names Of
the teachers who are to teach in the school In
this programme must be expressly, the sacred les.
sons, sacred History of the Old aud New Tesla.
ments, and the Catechsm of our Orthodox faith
as also the person appointed to the lessons in
question, who must be one of our educated clergy
La the hall Tor principal ROOM Of the school must
be hung the Holy picture Of the Mother OF God
| If they cannot conform to these obligations aud
wish to proceed to the establishment # special
school of known religious dogmas, be it known to
them, that towards this, We find no thculty In
granting such a permission, if in the said school
they will teach only girls of the dogmas OF Proies
tantism, which however will continue undnr the
immediate supervision of those in power. Ia tbi
they must know, what responsibility thew assume
if caught, 10 receiving only one nf the Orthodox
| girls. From the Minister Of Ecclesiastical AT
fairs and Public Instruction"
| THEoDoRAs DELEzANNI
To accepta permission on those terms, is to bind
ourselves to receive no child of Orthodox faith
of any nationality whatever, into our school, and
any Greek bringing his children to US must declare
himself and his children Protestant, otherwise. we
assume the responsibility if caught which 40
cordipg to the law, is Imprisonment for twenty
DAYS aud fine OF 800 Francks each.
After consultation With the very best authorities
We we're convinced, that under the present ilibera
laws of Greece nothing more favorable would be
granted u.s. We therefore sent in our petition in
regard to Protestant school, asking for an imme
date reply. Yet for this we were kept waiting two
weeks longer. Making in all six weeks of expense
and uncertainty; our house rent having to be paid
and all the expenses of school incurred, while we
were forbidden to give single lesson even to the
children 10 the house. The whole matter could
easily have been decided in two weeks. But such
is Greece The reply reached us on December h
and on the 5.h Of December we opened here in
Athens purely asotestant school, ander all the
restrictions of the most ilbersl laws, to which
Greece and the Greeks of the present day submit
| NJ. hal H.
has done all in his power in representing the in
terests of American citizens here. He has Ger
tanly spared neither time nor trouble in nves-
eating this whole matter.
There seems really to be no law regarding chill
dren of other known religions, but there is now a
bill, which this same Minister of Education desires
to bring before the house, making provision for
such schools, but specifying that no orthodox"
child cen be received, unless the schools come
under the law for Greek schools
Some persons of influence have promised to do
all in their power to defeat this bill If this can
be done, and more liberal provision made for for
eigners, something may be gained.
We are saying and doing all we can to awaken
the minds of this people to the fact, that they have
not religious freedom.
One of our patrons, member of the House Of
Representatives, was exceedingly anxious to have
his daughter, who had been in our family and
school for year, continue with US, and after max
ing special and personal application to the Minister
of Education, was informed that he could not do it.
We trust that the fact Of our having a school
here, to which our former patrons and those who
approve cf our system of education cannot send
their daughters, however much they may desire to
do so, will be living protest against these laws.
Although greatly disappointed in the seeming
failure of our work here we are not without hope
that it may yet result in great good to this people,
Christian people in America as some here have
done, may ask But would it not have been bet
ter to compromise, than to give up all Why not
take the priest catechism, &c., with some restric-
tions, and trust to your own teaching OF the Word
of God to counteract their superstitons and false
doctrines?" Let these questions be answered in
the words of a good Scotch minister visiting not
long since in Athens: What, take the money
which Christians in America have given to eradi
cate these errors, and pay man to teach them2'
To our minds and conscences it was clear that
we must do one Of thfec things: pay a man to
teach these errors; practice deceit, by permitting
only such parts as We could approve to be taught,
while we professed to be complying with the law /;
or, give up the school, Let any Christian who
reads this decide in his own conscience as we have
been called to do; aohich IS right?
Our little school, now at the close of the first
week, numbers fifteen, but not half of these aye
purely Greeks, the rest being in part, or entirely
English and American
The stripgency of the law is such that we cannot
permit servant girl in our employ, nor little or
phan who is staying in our family to keep from
starvation to go into the schoo-room to recite a
lesson.
Just now there is again threatening of war,
but it may all pass over often during the last
six months it has done and all be quiet once more.
There is already much suffering here among the
Door, and should war come, the condition of many
of the Greeks both in Greece proper and in the
Provinces, will demand the sympathy of the world.
1t seems pity, that just on the verge Of this they
should show themselves so illiberal towards
strangers in their midst Yet opportunities may
thus come to us to prove to them our real inten-
tons, and that we are their true friends.
|. NJ. L-N.
IT, - 10y. Cnnr,oc ILL., t.oo.J: