The Intermountain Catholic. (Salt Lake City [Utah] ;) 1899-1920, 1903-11-07
THE NECESSITY OF RELIGION IN EDUCATION.
Continued From Page OneJ

dependence acknowledges personal God the God
of nations ruling over them with benefceut PROV
idence, and appeals to him to vindlcate by victory
the justice of revolt from the mother country. And
when victory came fOrefathers acknowledged
God as having answered their prayer In both of
his inaugural addresses Washington, the spOkcs
man of the nation gave God the glory and declared
this people, above all other peoples indebted to
providence for national life. And in his farewell
address Washington declares that our hopes as
free people, that the protection of our property
our lives and our reputation rests not ON large
armies, not on extent or fertility of soil, not ON
commerce; no, and not even on secular education
but on the religious obligations of oath.
These are his words: OF all the dispositions ana
habits which lead political prosperity religion ana
morality are indispensable supports Let it
simply be asked. Where is the security for property
for reputation, life if the of religious obl
cations deserts the oaths which are TIC instruments
investigation in of justice? odd let us with
caution indulge the superstition that morality can be
maintained without religion Whatever inay De CON
coded the influence of refined education on minds
peculiar structure and experience both for
bid us to expect that national moralty can prevail III
the exclusion of religious principles"
These are words pregnant with significance in this
discussion. In following out TINS great truth mere
uttered by Washington every officer of the govern
men state and federal, from president to policeman
when indicted into office calls God to witness that
he will be faithful to his trust The judge on the
bench the juror the box, the witness on the stand,
the attorney at the par, all give us the same dssu
in the way. If Washington was right, II
policy the government is right, is 1t not worth
while to preserve this of the religious obligations
of oath by all the agencies we have?
VIII someone say: The state can 90 without re-
ligous instruction in schools? The system of schools
organized teaches a system of natural ethics
which is quite sufficient? Let Herbert Spencer an
In Facts and Comments he says:
I'm many the Agnostic is misled by the
sumption that a secular creed may with advantage
forthwith replace the creed distinguished as sacred
That right guidance may be furnished by system of
natural ethics is belief usually followed by the
Corollary that If needs only to develoD such system
and tho fFOl rriII
contemplation of mems natures and doings disspates
this coroary. 1t general intelligence ca
pable of seeing the beneficial outcome of certain modes
of conduct, and it that, having perceived
the good results of this kind and bad results of
that kind men will adopt the and reject the
other But neither assumption is true The average
intellect cannot grasp a demonstration even when
the matter concrete, and still less when the matter
Is abstract 1t cannot bear in mind the successive
propositions, but coapses under the weight of them
before reaching the conclusion. Dogmatic teaching
alone is effective with such and even that often fails
The dogma, Honesty is the best policy is commonly
imperative with the thief since he always hopes to
escape detection Further to nope that average men
may be swayed by the contemplation of advantage
society utterly Utopian. In the minds of who
form the slum population, and most OF those immedt
ately above them, will arise the thought: 1 don't
care damn for society. And the other end Of
the social scale among those whose lives alternate
between club rooms and game preserves, there will
arise if not so coarsely expressed, thought yet
thought: Society it is my purpose very WELL
and that's enough for me-
Thus the Agnostic who thinks he can provide
forthwith adequate guidance by setting forth natu
raj code of right conduct duly illustrated. is under
an illusion"
Such is the estimate that Herbert Spencer places
Of life Joy '-i'-iS'
Now I do not believe that anyone will contend
that system of education that excludes a code of
ethics based the supernatural can rise higher than
the natural merely And do not think that any one
will contend that such ethical system can give
religious sanction to an oath such Washington
claims our property, our reputation and lives
pend upon for their security.
Moreover would it not seem that if that i'm
personal something, called the State which has no
religion, and yet which depends essentially upon
religion, could give one unprecedented thought to the
subject Of its own interest, it would be thankful to
have religion inculcated by do believe in
and are its teachers, especially when they propose
to DO So not only without the cost of one cent to
the state but actually saving State the cost OF
grounds and school buildings.
And as subject of mediation, for those especially
who are SO sensitive the question of secterianism
ana SO Iear1uI lest the state be asked to pay for
sectarian instruction, did it occur to them that
Agnosticism is as much sect Methodism? Ag-
osclSl Tor the Agnostic, is his special belief
rellg1on just as much Methodsm is the belief of
the Methodist about religion. And since the intent Of
the school system, in order fair to all is theO
reucay based on the idea that it will paw for the
teaching of no mans religious belief, but practically
without intending 1t, does matter fact foster
most tenderly the Agnostics religious belief by the
very exclusion of all instruction on supernatural re-
igion. why should not the Methodist or an otbe~
christian denomination consistently and logically find
fault with system that carefully provides for one
all others? 49, y
Those who believe in the Christian religion are
perfectly willing that the Agnostic should be pro
pOA'iOe't anu HdluIdl right OF DeneNlnS
md following Agnosticism for himself but it is lit
lie too much to ask them to support willingly and
Nlthout murmur, system of education whose prac-
ca WORKING is so utterly unfair. furnishing the
agnostc the teaching of the Agnostc religion for his
,hlldren and discriminating against Christian re-
iglon and even taxing the teaching of the Chris
IAN religion and all this on the high plane alb
olute fairness to all!
To us it seems passing strange that the other bod
es of Christians do not the necessity of taking
his logical common sense and true view the mat
er means of self preservation and of making
common cause with us, instead of depending upon
he hap-hazard reading of chapter of the Bible in
he schools, half the time by those who do not be-
teve in its sacred character; recitation of the
1ords Prayer. led many times by those who do not
eeve in the Lord and the delivery of baccalaureate
ernon 70 the graduating class at the year.
" some minister of the Gospel