The Leon reporter. (Leon, Iowa) 1887-1930, 1903-10-08
The Bible in the public Schools

EDITOR REPORTER: by request OF one
OF your correspondents of Center town
ship | will write on the above subject.
| ! am indebted to Mrs. Harriet M.
Close in her speech at Newton, Iowa,
for the following:
"ln but five states of the union, Mis-
souri,, Minnesota, Montana, Washington
and Wisconsin are court decisions adj
| verse to Bible reading in the schools.
In nine states court decisions have
made it legal, viz, Massachusetts, New
Jersey, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Georgia,
Mississippi and the North and South
Dakotas. In various other states no
specific mention is made though selec-
tons are used
Last winter and since the above was
uttered Nebraska was added to the list
of prohibiting Bible reading. The last
decl sion caused intense excitement
over the state and elsewhere The
people were surprised, however, by the
number of newspapers that came out
in support of the measure, papers too
that were all along supposed to be fav
orable to religion; also OF the number Of
church members, especially of the cdu-
Gated classes, who sanctioned the de-
cision. These decisions We're founded
upon our constitution that prohibits
the union of church and state. or any
man being compelled to support any re.
ligion. Since the Bible is wholly a re-
| ligious book it's use in the schools that
are supported by taxation would be a
| direct violation OF the constitutions If
these decisions are correct all of those
states that permit Bible reading in their
| public schools are doing so in violation
| of the constitution. These consttu-
tional clauses wore inserted by our fore
| fathers who We're deep thinkers and
4 profited by thousands of years of the
| past history of the union of church and
4 state has proved the saddest wedding
II our earth has ever witnessed. The
4 bloodshed following in its wake would
h turn crimson the waters from lake ltaska
\ to the gulf. During the last 100 years
| our best statesmen have repeated that
the separation should be kept eternal
Washington said, "In no sense whatever
is this government founded upon the
Christian religion SO also in like
manner spoke Thos. Jefferson, Franklin
} Madison, Monroe, Grant, Garfield ant
Lincoln. Notwithstanding these angels
with flaming swords, the church bein!
= in the majority, has ever anon graspet
for Ec forbidden fruit More force i
needed to guard the tree of life. Blu
why is there demand for the Bible ii
! the schools? 1t has been said, and re
! peatedly, that children need religion
> education, that religion should go wit
= education. We will let q. S. Grant re
ply to this as follows: ''Leaye the mat
6 ter of religion to the family altar. tn
I.ehurch and the private school support
? ed entirely by private contribution
Keep the church and state forever SEP
!, arate.'
But it is asked. apart from the vic
lation of the constitution, if sectarial
ism be guarded against, what harm ca
come from reading the Bible in tn
> | public schools. My answer is: First
the Bible is sectarianism as against al
against those who believe not it's super
natural claims. Second, King james
Translation is Sectaran as against TIN
4 Catholics and others. And Catholic
to support protestant schools and the
they refuse to patroniZe them on nc
count Of religion. The new translator
} OF the Bible, all protestants, declare,
that King James translation contain
Z 10000 errors. il may be replied tina
= Catholics do even worse toward Protes
tants in Catholic countries where they
even make heresy a crime But tina
fact only straiGhtcns our argument ant
affords no reason why we should dc
> wrong. Third the Bible, the way it liter
ally contradicts science and many scien-
, lists have been put to death because
of their teachings which have since
been demonstrated to be the truth
contradicted the Bible 1t has been re
piled that the Bible language is iigua
; tive and when properly interpreted does
not contradict science, then do we I'M
derstand that you will permit til,
teacher to interpret the Bible in the
schools, and if so how can you limit thai
Interpretation in way to prevent sec
? taranism? 1t can't be done. wo!,t
: like to hear from the other side If it has
s, ,sny votsrics in this county.
A. A. SNOW.
Bronchitis for Twenty Years.