Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1923-10-19
|SEN. BREWSTER GIVES STRONG
ADDRESS ON REL| C|OUS EDUCATION
AT SUNDAY SCHOOL CONVENTION
Evening Session

Every seat was taken at the eve
| ming session of the convention and
| many were standing and sitting in
| the aisles of the church. Prof. Leedy
opened the service leading several
| hymns sung by the congregation.
Prayer was offered by Rev. 1. 3.
Mower, d. d.
AS DIR. A. o. Thomas did not ar
rive until the evening train Hon.
| Ralph O.. Brewster of Portland. State
| Senator to the last Legislature, was
| introduced by Mr.. Binford as the
| first speaker of the evening. The
subject of Hon. Mr.. Brewster's adj
| dress was THE State and Religious
| Education. He spoke as follows:
Address of Ralph o. Brewster
My subject tonight, has been an
| nounced as Religious Education and
| the Public Schools" 1t might well
| bear the sub title, "Educa ton in the
| Things of the Spirit"
! Education in America began with
the church in the early colonial days
I and was to a very substantial extent
| a religious education conducted by
what was then the predominant
| church. Gradually settlers of diff
| ferent faiths began to enter the col
ones and as they increased in num-
| DSlS tllt III thNil oPSA
! education became serious one.
| Various church schools existed, al
| though the principle was soon recog-
/ niZed that they should not be sup
ported from the public school funds.
| This system continued down through
| the time of the Revolution and even
| in 1920 when the Constitution of
Maine was written. this system still
existed, and it was very particularly
| provided in Section of Article 1, OF
the Constitution of Maine that "all
religious societies in this State shall
| at all times have the exclusive right
of electing their public teachers and
| contracting with them for their sup
port and maintenance"
| The public school. however, had by
| this time come into existence sup
ported by taxation and the Constitu-
| ton of Maine specifically provided
! that the Legislature should require
! the several towns to make suitable
provision at their own expense for
the support and maintenance of pub
| lie schools"
| with the rapid extension of the
| public school system under the lead
| ership of Horace Mann, in the first
| half of the nineteenth century. the
| American people came to conceive OF
| education as one of the most i'm
portant concerns of the state. Com
! f5ulsory school attendance laws were
| passed, standards established and
| free text books furnished.
| With the multiplicity of faiths and
with a firm loyalty to the principle
| of the separation of the church and
| the state, it was of course utterly
! impossible to attempt any religious
/ instruction in the schools. This is
7 fundamental.
! Meanwhile the world was being
revolutionized. The nineteenth cen
fury will always stand out in his
! tory because of the tremendous
! Quickenng that came to the world
in those days in natural science.
This century witnessed in rapid
! succession of the development of sci
! entific theories regarding the uni
i verse and man and inventions in the
| field Of industry which have trans
! formed the intellectual and economic
life of the world.
] The thoughts which animate and
| control our relations with our fell
lowmen, the idea of God, of
reason. and justice and humanity
and love transcend any material
. limitations or definitions and seem
! to all rational minds to have real
! ity of their own existing outside OF
| lneS6 material pHeTOllleud.
You may ask: What has all this
! to do with education in the things of
! the spirit?" and if you will bear with
! me a little further, will try to show
; YOU that it has very great deal 20
! 10 with this subject.
| If any of us sit down quietly and
consider the theories of natural
science which are accepted in the
educational world today. we shall
soon come to realize that the devel-
| opment Of these theories has trans
formed the whole concept of life
during this past century. These
theories have encountered a very
great deal of opposition, even down
| to the present day from people sim
cerely devoted to various religions.
who felt that they were undermining
the foundations of religious faith.
/ One result of this regrettable con-
| troversy has been to accentuate the
supposed differences between science
Continued on Page 5-Col. A.
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