The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1904-12-31
SCHOOLS
Are Agnostic, Is the Contention
Of Bourke Cochran
In Pu olic Debate With President
Schuman, Of Cornell.

Before an audience that filled every
trliiuEle incl. of space in the house.
HE question. SHOULD religious instruc-
ton be given in the public schools?"
was debated in the theater at New
Rochelle, Sunday afternoon. December
is, by Congressman Bourke Cochran.
and President Schurman of Cornell
University. Mr.. Cochran took the
affirmative. 1t was evident that the
listeners We're about evenly divided
in sentiment, if one could judge by the
applause that was given to the speak
ers. The audience appeared to be eager
to hear both, and for nearly three
hours scarcely a person left the hail.
The contest was under direction of the
Peoples Forum of New Rochelle. On
the stage was President Finley, of the
City College, who presided, and who
ut the conclusion of the debate, said
he had decided not to give his opinion
us to who had the better of the argyll
ment. Many other prominent educators
were in the audience, also several
priests.
Congressman Cochran held that civil
ization was essentially Christian, and
that religion was ut the basis Of the
moral law. Therefore, the teaching Of
religion in schools should be encour-
aged instead of penalizcd, as it is now
by compelling the parents who insist on
such instruction for their children to
pay double taxes for school purposes.
He admitted that the state itself could
not teach religion for that would ne
cessitatr the establishment Of a state
religion. and he himself would be
among the first to protest against any
partnership of church and state. He
declared that all schools. public, pri-
vate and UNCONVENTIONAL, should be put
under the inspection Of the state, and
as long as they conformed to the
standard set up they should be paid
lol lllt WI IL lICS NIu lllC lllicS
of secular education, without regard
to whether they gave religious instruc-
ton or not. In his view the public
schools were anti-Christian and agnes
tic, which was an anomaly in a coun
try the majority of whose people were
Christians. He said that in democracy
the great object was to maintain the
liberty of all the people, and that the
question, therefore, was how should
education be administered so as to
promote the best interests of the peo-
pie.
'The gem of democracy" said tile
speaker, sis not an American discov-
cry. We do not find it first in the
constitution. 1t was not first promul
gated in the Declaration of Indepen
dence. 1t was proclaimed first on the
shores of Galilee when the Savior de-
clared all men equal in the sight of
GMl. Christ's example can be followed
10y all men. no matter whether they be-
levc i'm His divinity or not. The secur
ityof democracy must spring from that
law on which religion is founded, the
moral law that was preached on the
side of the Mount.
"HOw, then, can instruction in the
moral law possibly initiate against the
safety of the state? How can it 40
otherwise than strengthen the foun-
dations upon which it rests? Take
nv own church, for instance. What
single branch of the doctrine she
| breaches can be considered hostile to
| the we'll being of the state? You may
laugh at the doctrine of penance. but
do we all know what it really is?
I'VE may say that ii is unnecessary.
but the fact remains that before the
words of ahsOlntion are pronounced the
pcnitent must place himself in abso-
lutte harmony with the moral law. File
must make restitution if restitution is
due. If he covets his neighbours goods
or his neighbours wife, he must purge
his soul of that foul desire. How. then.
can the moral law be harmed by the
teaching of this doctrine? How can
the Gospel initiate against the safety
| of the state which rests on the moral
law? If the body of the people do not
obey the law, you can't make them
obey it by force. A democracy can't
exercise force agaist the ma jority, be-
cause the majority is the @ove:n mcnt
Security can only he had by developing
morality among the citizens. Education
by itself is not sufficient to maintain
that loyalty to the law w!ic'. is neces
sary for orderly. sane and enlightened
government.
"Agnosticism does not deny God il
ignores Him. That is precisely the OBJ
ject of the present system of cduca
ton in this state. There never was
Il term more misused than non-scc
tarianism. True non-sectarianisn
means the equal treatment of every
body, Gentle and Jew, Christian and
.gnostic, and that is the treatment
they should get in the matter OF
schools.
"Our public schools are being dis
credited on all sides. Every man Will
any prctcnsion to consequence sends
his children to private schools. ON