The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1893-07-07
THE POPE AND THE PUBLIC
SCHOOLS,

Many who have read the letter of Pope
Leo XIII. touching the relations of the
Roman Catholic church to the public
school system in the United States find
it is difficult to decide in what condition
the papal utterances leave the subject.
In order to rightly interpret the letter it
is necessary to understand something OF
the DEGREES of the Council of Baltimore
in 1884, and of the propositions submit
ted to the council of bishops last Novem-
Der by Archbishop Satoli, the pope's
direct representative in this country.
The Council of Baltimore directed that
all care must be taken to erect Roman
Catholic schools equal to the public
schools, and added that where there
were no parochial schools, or none fitted
to give the children training in keeping
with their condition, the public schools
might be attended. The general provi-
sion of the council was:
mot only out of our paternal love do
we exhort Catholic parents, but we com
mand them, by all the authority we pos
sess, to procure truly Christian and
Catholic education for the beloved off
spring given them of God, born again in
the baptism unto Christ and destined for
heaven, to shield and secure them
throughout childhood and youth from
the dangers of a merely worldly educa-
ton, and, therefore, to send them to
parocAial or other truly Catholic
schools"
Under these Instructions Roman Cath
Ole bishops in various parts of the coun-
try insisted upon attendance at the
parochial schools, many times making
exclusion of parents from the sacrament
OF the church the penalty for permitting
their children to attend the public
schools. The propositions submitted by
Satolli were not approved by the council
of bishops, and many thought that they
abrogated the disciplinary law enacted
by the Council of Baltimore, and there
fore would lead to diversity of inter
pretations and consequent disseDSlons.
One of Satolli's directions was that if
parents make sufficient provision for
the religious training of their children,
let them be free to secure in other ways
that education which the position of
their family requires" He further en-
joined that the pastor should be especial
ly diligent in imparting religious in
struction, as appears from these words:
''Nor let him, with little prudence, show
less love for the children that attend the
public schools than for those that attend
the par0chial; on the contrary, stronger
marks of loving solIcitude are to be
shown them"
The pOpe's letter endeavors to show
that the Baltimore DEGREES and Satolli's
propositions agree, and the most reason
able Interpretation of his utterarces is
that he approves of building up Roman
Catholic schools wherever possible, and
at the same time authorizes the attend
ance of Roman Catholic children upon
public schoolsswhich are fairly conduct
ed, enjoihing upon the priests the duty
of caring for the spiritual welfa"e OF the
children receiving a secular education at
public expense. In fact, the only change
from present practices it recommends
"'''"""s to he less vigorous discrimina-
ti6h agaiHst tbs public schools thus civ
ing Roman Catholic parents more lat,-
tude in the selection of schools for the
education of their children, putting up
on the authorized religious teachers of
the church full responsibility and au-
thority only in the matter of the spirit
ual training of the children in their re-
spective arishes.-Troy Times.