The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1914-08-01
WHY BUILD CHURCH scHooLs2

: At this season of the year many
anxious parents are selecting schools
for their sons and daughters for the
coming scholastic year. Too many
Catholics, for the sake of certain ad-
yantages, real or imaginary, choose
public schools or non-sectarian col
leges, in preference to Catholic institu-
tons? They evidently do not appre-
ciate the far-sighted wisdom, even
from natural standpoint, shown by
the Church in America in starting,
many decades ago, that system of
Catholic educational institutions which
has become the admiration of the
best public school educators them
selves. Now that mont Catholics are
beginning to see the wisdom of her
foresight in this matter, our own peo-
pie should awake to a keener appre-
citation of the solicitude of holy mother
Church for her little ones. In this con-
nection we commend to the considera-
ton of our readers the following
thoughtful words of Professor Moenke-
moller, Lutheran, in an address at
the laying of the Cornerstone of the
parochial school of Trinity Church,
Rochester, Mimi, about year ago:
mo doubt some will ask, why
should a church have school? Let
use consider the question. But first /
will correct a mistaken notion held by
some, that it is mainly consideration
for the German language that induces
us to maintain our own schools. That
is not the case There is higher
reason. We hold that sound educa-
ton requires thorough religious train
ing and to provide this religious train
ing, we need, under existing condi-
tons, church schools. According to
the text, the fear Of the Lord must be
the starting point on the road to wis
dom. 1t must form the basis, the
foundation for the superstructure Of
wisdom that is real wisdom. Without
the fear of the Lord all branches of
wisdom are cut off from the natural
root and cannot bear sound fruit. As
God is the beginning of all things, the
Creator of the world, the author of
our lives, in whom we live and move
and have our being, so, too, God must
be the beginning of wisdom. An edu-
cation which leaves out the fear of
the Lord can never be an education
that is worthy of Gods most noble
handiwork. The words of the text are
obviously general and cannot apply to
matters spiritual only. For man is a
composite creature consisting of body
and soul. In speaking of the soul, we
must take into account, both the in
tellect and the emotions, or as the
common expression is, the head and
the heart. These parts are closely
inter-related; all must be developed
equally according to their requirements,
If man is to live and act as he should.
Above all it cannot be stated too en-
phatically that in our development of
the soul we make a most grievous
mistake if we direct our efforts only to
the intellect. The heart furnishes the
motives from which the head acts.
What good can the keenest intellect
do If the heart be base; il man lacks
character. The man with the de-
PRAYED heart and a bad character will
never be real. service to himself or
to others. The brighter his mind the
more damage will he be likely TO do.
But a good character can be formed
only in close communion with Him
Who is the Author Of all good. =
Under existing conditions. the home is
unable to give the necessary educa-
ton; the Sunday school il insufficient
for it; the public school cannot pro-
vide it, because in our country, church
and state are separate, as they should
be. Hence we see no other solution of
the problem than to establish church