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Show RELIGIOUS EDUCATION: CATHOLIC VIEWPOINT Lecture Delivered at Colnmbia University, . New York, by Paulist father, Rev. Thomas McMillan.. Rev. Thomas McMillan. C. S. P.. recently delivered de-livered the Jnsr of a strles of lectures on "Contemporary "Contem-porary Educational Problems'' at Teachers' College. Col-lege. Columbia university. This lecture completed a' course given by Dean Russell with the co-operation of President Nicholas Murray Butler and special spe-cial lecturers. The course was open to seniors and graduates and by special' permission, of the committee' com-mittee' on undergraduate student-: juniors, and special spe-cial students. Visitors were admitted by card signed by either President Butler or Dean Russell. President .Butler was especially fortunate in securing Father McMillan, whose keen interest and wide acquaintance with educational problems 2iv singular value to his opinions on methods of dealing deal-ing with the young. . His lecture was given in Teachers' college chapel, where a large and cultured cul-tured audience followed his words with appreciative appreciat-ive interest. A resume of the address is given below. Assuming the need of religion for the complete development of physical powers, the lecturer began be-gan by asking the pertinent quesiion. When should religious instruction for the child begin? As well might it. be asked, he declared, when the builder should lay the foundation of a house, . when a farmer .should sow seed in his field. Youth has been called the seed-time of life. Experience as well as reason gives daily evidence that. swir.tr and the reaping are correlated. We do not look for grapes among thorns nor seek to get tips from thistles. In early childhood the mind is docile and willing to accept teaching at home and at school. The average child from a home governed by the right sort of parents seldom presents any serious form of rebellion against the rules of school discipline. disci-pline. First impressions are the last forjrott.cn. and while the model child may be led astray in after life by force of passion or bad example, with advancing age there is always hope of a return to the right way. The poet stated an important truth when he said : ' ' - . "Take enre in youth to form th heart nd mttrl. For as the twig- Is lnt the tree's inclined.'' Parential Responsibility. In spite of all the claims advanced for modern ideals and methods, it still can be safely affirmed that the starting point of education is at the, mother's knee. This is conspicuously true with regard to religious education. The mother's love is a dominant factor in child life. In the case of a Christian this maternal instinct is like a sixth sense, combining the cunning of the serpent and the simplicity of the dove, ever protecting the child against dangers to soul and body. i The father also is a strong factor in th development de-velopment of the child and to him the mother must appeal to sustain her own teaching, especially with vigorous boys who need at times very stern correction. correc-tion. The clergy in the Catholic church undertake to co-operate with parents in the teaching of religiou3 doctrine, but parental responsibility is always clearly recognized as a paramount duty. ' For the maintenance and promotion of the Y parochial school each bishop is responsible in his own diocese and each priest in his own parish. As bearing directly upon this point Father McMillan, then read an extract from the decisions of the bishops bish-ops of the United States, assembled in the year 18S4 at the Third Plenary Council of Baltimore. It reads : "We not only affectionately exhort Catholic parents, but with all our authority we command them to impart a truly Christian and Catholic education edu-cation to their beloved offspring destined for the kingdom of heaven. We prescribe that they be instructed in-structed by the bishops and their pastors to look on the school as an essential part of the parish. The school is by no means a work taken up as an : outlet for the overflowing zeal of the priest, but a -I burden and a duty laid by the church on the priest, and by him to be faithfully taken up and carried, . but not without the aid of the laity. And let no less zeal and prudence be employed to root out the false idea that interest in the' school belongs only to those whose children attend it; but rather let '. the clergy show, as they easily may. that the benefits to faith and .morals, flowing from the parish schools, redound to t'ae good of the whole community. commu-nity. After the church, then let the faithful assign the place of honor to the school as a most powerful factor in the preservation of faith and morals, and as the nursery of youth." Effective Teaching. ' , , In this home of advanced pedagogy. Teachers' ' college, Father McMillan continued, there is, no doubt a general acceptance of. the statement that "the condition of all valuable instruction is legitimate legiti-mate curiosity on the part of . the learner." When this curiosity exists or can. be aroused the work of the teacher becomes effective. The intellectual impulse which is called curiosity is most active in regard to moral and religious questions. Philosophers Phil-osophers have defined man as a religious animal, thus making the attraction to religion, and the 'aptitude for it. and the need of it, the discriminating discrimin-ating marks which distinguish man from all other : animals. The most barbarous people have' been religious. Their religions may have been repulsive and unworthy of the Deity in their mode of expression, ex-pression, but are indicative, nevertheless, of the presence in our nature of an ineradicable, inherent and essential impulse. . , . . Curiosity regarding religion, therefore, is an j ; i' universal and constant quality of mind manifested ; by children after they have come to the use of rea- ; son. Every child wants to know about God and i f has intimations of immortality and duty. These j instincts, it is true, are of themselves undetermined ; : and without content; they are the reaching out of our rational natures to something, the need vi which is A-aguely felt. Every sane and complete ) system of education ought to be directed to th'i ' J satisfaction and guidance of this primary curiosity, . Like other qualities, it is developed by exercise, . . 1 I stimulated and invigorated by legitimate gratifies-, tion, and paralyzod or-cnfccblcd, if stifled; or seeks, ; if denied satisfaction, an outlet through grotesque channels. ) "Trailing- clouds of glory do we come From God who is our home; , t Heaven lies about us in our infancy. Shades of the prison-house begin to close, i 1 Upon the growing boy. But he beholds the light, and whence it flows, ! He sees it in his joy; The youth, who daily further from the -East ' Must travel, still is nature's priest, And by the vision splendid Is on his way attended." An extract bearing directly on this point was driven. from an article by Kev. Timothy Brosnihan, S. J. It reads: - "If at an age when this intellectual quality i active and keen in all healthy children, its exercise is eliminated completely from what they are taught to consider their principal formation, find if it is declared illegitimate as an element of their largest mental activity, two results will naturally follow. First, children will uncongciously infer and who will pronounce the inference invalid that religion is relatively unimportant or absolutely out of place in their ordinary daily life. Secondly, the religious instinct becomes inactive, . gradually sleeps; in-some in-some cases, to awake.no more to efficient activity, in others to manifest itself later in misdirected ways. "Every normal human being has an instinctive thirst for knowledge regarding the ultimate source of iis nature and the purpose of its existence, and a craving to satisfy it. In the case of a child whose mind, when unfolding, is kept in an environment environ-ment of religious darkness, this intellectual curiosity curi-osity may become extinct; but it will more gener-i gener-i ally become deranged and" finds expression in after 1 life in uncouth superstitions, and becomes an in- ! ftrument with which religious healers and profit- ! seeking prophets may form fantastic cults. Wit- ) ness the religious vagaries "which really disgrace us as an intelligent people and yet are accepted by ; men and women amongst us possessing at times a ' ' notable degree of merely intellectual culture' Child, Highls. . . ; There is another important consideration show- Jng the imperative demand for religious instruc-' instruc-' tion according to the Catholic viewpoint, namely, 1 hat the child has a right to know the teaching of ! Christ. Through the merits of His redemption the child acquires the right to heaven. This is the ' celestial inheritance not dependent on worldly rank: and if called away from earth before attaining attain-ing the use of reason such a child is admitted at oncp into everlasting ,". This doctrine, when explained to children, inspires in-spires hope and confidence and elevates the imagination. im-agination. The memory of the little baby brother or sister in the graveyard is coupled with a bright and beautiful picture, and so death, while a mystery, mys-tery, is robbed of its horror. When the child is brought, for baptism the par- Ients must be prepared to enler into an agreement with ihe church as represented by the priest. The father is required to be present with sponsors of his own choice, and fo guarantee that the child shall be taught the Christian religion and how to live according to God's commandments. Without satisfactory evidence of such an intention the priest would not be authorized to perform the ceremony. cere-mony. When "of proper age to' receive religious instruction in-struction the child should be sent to Sunday school, or if that is impossible, he should be instructed from the catechism at home. The average child is supposed to be able to reason at the age of 7, although al-though the power develops less rapidly in some children than in others. A study of the Caleehism of Christian Doctrine shows that the truths contained arc presented in a manner calculated lo win the approval of the keen pedagogical critic. It starts with the visible world, the first question being: ''Who made the world?'' A. God made the world. Q. Who is God i A. God is the creator of heaven and earth and all things. O. What is man? I A. Man is a creature composed of body and 60ul and made to the image and likeness of God. Q. Is this likeness in the soul or in the body? A. This likeness is chiefly in the soul. Q. How is the soul like to God? A. The soul is like God because it is a spirit that will never die and has understanding and free j will. As Father McMillan's Sunday school at St. Taul's on Columbus avenue, Xew York City, enjoys en-joys a national reputation, it may be of interest to know that the catechism in use there is that prepared pre-pared and enjoined by order of the Third Plenary ! Council of Baltimore, published by M. II. Wiltzius Company of Milwaukee. ! Its further chapters tell of the fall of our first parents and the nature and kinds of sin and the redemption of the world through Christ's passion and death. The eleventh chapter treats of the church as one ; of the means instituted by our Lord to enable ; men to share in the fruits of the redemption. Throughout the catechism scriptural texts are ! given with accompanying explanations and com ments. 1 1 is not deemed advisable to place the Bible directly in the hands of the young. Instead they will later take up the study of Bible history when references for scriptural reading will bo given. A hook which Father McMillan specially recommended recommend-ed for such students is called ''Four Thousand Questions and Answers." prepared by Rev. John J "Vnt.li TV T) nf Buffalo, devoted to the nraetical explanation and application of Bible history. School Instruction. In the parish schools a half hour each day is given to religious instruction with review work on Sunday. Most of our Sunday schools provide some xtra week day classes after school hours in addition addi-tion to th regular sessions lasting from one to two hours on Sundays. The question of attendance at Sunday school is a somewhat difficult one to settle. By holding it in the morning after a children's mass the attendance may be perceptibly increased, as it may be also by accenting the social side and making the weekly meeting a source of pleasure to pupils and teachers. teach-ers. But, unfortunately, these measures sometimes fail, and as the compulsory school law does not include the Sunday school, the zealous advocate of religious instruction for the young must make excursions ex-cursions to the ''submerged tenth" of population. Here he will find a wide field for the study of hu-; hu-; man nature under varying conditions. Often the discovery is made that as charity should do the cyil does "begins at home." Then the question resolves re-solves itself into a study of the defective parent -- rather than the defective child. In his own inimitable style Father McMillan related a number of anecdotes showing that a high degree of tact, coupled with no little patience, is often necessary to secure the co-operation of parents. par-ents. It is quite afe to assume that even the stern and impartial parent entertains secretly a high regard for the natural virtues and mental endowment endow-ment of his offspring. One who would secure the aid of such a parent must give some recognition to. these supposedly fine qualities, the discovery of whose existence may entail long and patient search on the part of the teacher. 'More than all, however, the child himself must he made a subject of loving study. No child should he frightened or intimidated. Instead, his confidence con-fidence should be gained hy an extension of good fellowship and mutual respect. A Sunday school f director who is also a child's confessor possesses a great advantage in this respect, for the child feels that here is a just and yet a kindly judge to ,whom he can give his confidence and who will deal witJi him "on the square" in his small trials and dif- Acuities. This privilege of discussing personal matters with one outside his immediate family leads in the child that development of personal responsibility, re-sponsibility, which is so important a factor in the formation of character. v In closing he said: "The question is asked, 'Can morality exist without religious teaching?' Some men say so, and though honorable men, they are mistaken." 1 |