T H E TORCH OF REASON, SIL V E R T O N , OREGON, D E C E M B E R 13, E. M. 300 (1900.;
5
in it. He duly subm itted the mat-
ter to the attorney-general for his
opinion, and it is this opinion
which m akes all the trouble.
But
ratio n . The reason is obvious, be- New T estam ent. C onsequently no
th e le tte r a n d s p irit, w h erev er th e y a re
cause otherwise the schools of th e version of the Bible is common’ to a p p lic a b le to th e q u e stio n .
various places in the state would all, but is the cause of religious
In his first sentence he questions
vary in their program m es of edu- strife, and opposition, hence sectar-
the wisdom of our law m akers over
more anon!
cation and cause detrim ent to th e ian.
¡education of those pupils who hap-
The second question, “ whether whom the spirit of liberality hover
ed, and m ethinks th at he would
pen, for one or another reason, to the saying in public schools of the
B ib le in th e S ch o o ls.
change their residence from one Lord’s prayer, or any other prayer, gladly retu rn to ihe tim es of in to l
C hanging the is adm issible,” to my opinion, m ust erance, when Jew s and other n a
To the editor— Correspondence place to another.
tions who did not believe in the
from Salem , published in the O re -uniform and general system of be decided in the negative. It is
veracity of the New Testam ent were
Because every
gonian, November 27, under the common schools is prohibited by not admissible.
driven by force to hear C hristian
h ead in g ,“ Bible in Schools,” brought section 3, article 3, state constitu- sect has prayers composed by its sermons, their children torn away
A rtoruey-G eneral
Black b u r n’s tiom Such an innovation is an pious men, and those who reject anti converted (m aybe by such pious
opinion th a t reading of the Bible unlaw ful action of the teacher, who the divinity of Christ will most de- m aiden religious teachers); and,
and saying the L ord’s prayer in ursurps the right of the State cidedly object to say or revere his theretore, he postpones the consid
Compulsion
to read this
public schools is ,perm issible, and B oard, p ro d u cin g a co u rse of stud- . piayer.
.
r ___________
___ eration of the wisdom of our law
pupils failing to take part in the les o* his own, and no doubt such prayer interferes with the right of
u fpunhor Luo
_______ _
__ •
« .
-
_ m akers to a time unknown. In my
worship may be expelled if the a teacher has no right to waste any conscience, expressed in sections 2 hum ble opinion, they were men of
p art of school time in reading te x t and 3, article 1, C onstitution of
board of directors does not object.
wisdom, tolerance, and true c iti
W ith the greatest deference to books chosen by his or her own Oregon.
zens. I beg to quote no less an
How Mr. B. could not
the-lcarned judge, I cannot help caprice.
The solution of the third ques au th o rity than Ju d g - J. O rton (76
saying th a t his opinion on this see this point in the rule quoted by
tion, “ W hether the reading of the Wis., 219). In a question of Bible
question is opposed to logic, con him is more than I understand.
Bible in public schools is constitu reading in public schools, he says:
tradictory to the broad and Liberal j 2. Subdivision 12, of section 31,
tio n al” , necesitates the definition
Religion as a system of belief cannot
law£ of our state constitution, and of the said rules quoted by Mr. B.
be taught without giving offence to those
am ong otliey things: of the phrase, “ reading the B ible.” who have their own peculiar views of re
inconsistent with studies on C hris provides
“ W orship,” according to W ebster,
ligion, no more than it can be without of
tian and o ther religions in general. “ Boards of directors shall have en
W
orcester,
the
Im
perial
and
the
fence to the different sects of religion.
Tne question at issue arose from tire control of the public schools of
Bible
Dictionaries,
means
reverence
How can religion, in this sense, be
a fact, as stated in th at correspon their district, and the teachers em to him whom people accept as God, taught in the common schools without
dence, contained in the following: ployed therein, to establish rules,”
consisting in prayer and reading taxing the people for or on accoent of it.
etc.,
but
neither
this,
nor
any
othpr
A teacher in one of the schools of
his holy word: hence' “ reading the The only subject, purpose or use for tax
section
or
clause
gives
any
Board
ation in this State must be exclusively
W ashington County (either from
Bible”
is
part
of
worship.
The
secular. I here is no such source and
zealousy to piety or to shortening of Directors of a county school any
learned
Supreme
Judge
J
.
Lyon
(76
cause
of strife, quarrels, fights, malig
the tim e of tuition) has been each right to introduce any other te x t Wis., 194), says: “ Reading the nant opposition, persecution and war
m orning reading a ch apter from books than those prescribed by the Bible in the schools, altoough un- and evil in the state as religion. Let it
Such an innovation
the Bible and repeating the L ord’s State Board.
once enter into our civil affairs, our gov
accom
panied
by
any
com
m
ent
on
ernment would soon be dertroyed; let it
prayer, com pelling the pupils to is unlaw ful, hence for disobediance
the
part
of
the
teacher,
is
‘instruc-
once enter into our common schools,
stand up and repeat or listen to to such unlaw rul requirem ents the
tion.’...........Some
of
the
most
v
alu
they would lie destroyed. Those who
the same.
H er passionate ardor pupils cannot be excluded from
made
our Constitution saw this, and
able instructions a person can re
for Bible reading and m ania for school.
ceive may be derived from reading used tiie most apt and comprehensive
3.
The
m
atter
in
issue
involves
saying prayers brought her so far
language in it to prevent such a catas
alone, w ithout any extrinsic aid by trophe.”
the
following
questions:
th a t she did not even hesitate to
W hether the Bible is a non-sectar way of com m ent or exposition.”
The sam e may be said of our
expel pupils because they would
Hence
the
reading
of
the
Bible
in
law m akers.
not share her priestly exercises. ian book?
the
public
schools
is
twofold
uncon-
W hether the saying of the L ord’s
In the second sentence of Mr.
The solons of the board (except the
stiuitional. k irst, it tu rn s the pub
ch airm an ) approved her action. prayer, or other prayers in public lic schools from a secular into a B lackburns above quoted p arag rap h
he acknowledges the binding power
After some appeals, the S uperin schools is adm issable?
religious
or
theological
institution
;
W hether the reading of the Bible
of those sections of our Constitu-
tendent of Public In stru ctio n , J.
secoi d, it interferes with the right
H . A ckerm an, subm itted the ques in public schools is co nstitutional? of conscience. Sections 2, 3 and 5, tiotion. He is right, but bow could
I h e first .question according to
he arrive a t a conclusion which is
tion to A ttorney-G eneral B lack
article
1, C onstitution of Oregon,
Mr.
B
lack
b
u
rn
’s
opinion
is
decided
L.
j.
ju st the opposit of those laws, I
burn, who rendered the quoted
He goes even fur
cannot com prehend. M aybe he
opinion, based on the following affirm atively.
ther
and
considers
the
L
ord’s
p
ray
All men shall be secured in the natur was misled by several decisions
questions:
al
right to worship Almighty God ac th a t uphold his view, as 38 Me.,
W ith pathos he
1. H as a te a c h e r th e rig h t to use er non-sectarian.
p a rt of th e sch o o l tim e in re a d in g to exclaim s: “ But the reading of the cording to the dictates of their own con 376; 12 Allen (M ass.) 127, and
sciences. No law
law in
in a any
cast; Whatever
whatever
h e r p u p ils as a school e x ercise a c h a p k i k l o o n J I k . .
.
,
ovro.ncB.
n y case
te r fro m th e B ible, w ith o r w ith o u t
1 ’
repeating of the shall control the free exercise and enjoy- others: but those decisions can have
c o m m e n t on sa id c h a p te r.
Lotd s p ra y e r in the public schools | ment of religious opinians, or interfere no «plication to the broad and lib
2. H as th e te a c h e r th e rig h t to r e have nothing
in them of a sectar-1 w**h the rights of conscience. No money eral C onstitution of Oregon.
q u ire h e r p u p ils to re p e a t th e L o r d ’s ian n ature.”
I beg leave to differ ■
l)e drawn from the treasury for the
R ev . D r . N. M osessohn .
p ra y e r, o r to re q u ire said p u p ils to
with
him
and
state
th
a
t
the
Bible
I
benefit
°f
*ny
religious
or
theological
in-
s ta n d w hile said p ra y e r is being re
:
i
. •
i ,
stitution, nor shall any money be appro-
p e a te d as a school exercise?
ls a purely
sectarian
book.
Here
t ,»
3
...
Mrs. Josephine K. H enry is the
1
J
pnated i for
the payment . of , any
religious
3. M ay a p u p il be ex p elle d fro m a are the reasons:
Every populated services, in either house of the Legislat- first woman now in the Liberal
sch o o l fo r re fu s a l to re p e a t th e L o rd ’s
p ra y e r, o r to s ta n d w hile said p ra y e r is place in the Union contains people | *ve Assembly.
move and she deserves recognition.
bein g re p e a te d as a p a rt of th e school of various religious convictions.
a «^ i
•»
King James’ veraiou of the scrip- L
?
-‘ requires no argum ent C aptain and Mrs. H enry conduct a
ex ercise?
sem inary at V ersailles, K y. She
T aking ,o account Mr. Black- tores is held by the Roman Catho- . / . . T ’
' - - - ‘«nance
made a telling speech a t the In g e r
b u rn ’s argum ents, I can not help lie church incorrect as a transla-L t
sc 100 s no money s la
e
soll m em orial, th a t endeared her to
.
,
i orawn from the treasury,
saying th a t they are too feeble to tion and , incomplete.
Instead, they
i •
,
,
the hearts of all tru e reform ers, as
,„1.......
t . .............b P”‘‘l<n,g of the above quoted sec-
stan d criticism . Now for facts:
adopted the D ouay and Rheim e I ,¡ „ 7 7 , 7 ‘,l'.K «.
ei , c
« i i i
I
•
, .
uonb ot the s ta le vonstiuttion M r. she showed th a t she was all rig h t
1. R u le 43
of the school laws version, commonly known as “ Do- 01 11
on the labor question and on the
!_____ ’ • . „
..
/
I B lackburn says:
(quoted by Mr. B.) authorizing uay version.”
The reading of the
woman question. She asked, “ How
teachers to control the studies of Bible they allow only to th e ir auth-
These sections are provisions in what can men be free, born of slave
th eir pupils, subjects the sam e con- orized teachers.
Many consider ls UrtUally termed th « “ B ill o f R ig h ts ”
m others?”— [Freet hough t Ideal.
tro, and s tu d i ^ t,, tie- course pre- M artin L u th er’s version the m o s t
“
X «
scribed by the b , a te Board of E du-¡correct
The Jew s, the ow ner, of j tutionalconvention, and their mhae-
T
cat,on, and as neither reltg.nu, ,n-1 the Old T estam ent io the original, quent ratifleation by the electors, were
stru ct,o n nor the B tb .e are entered c a .ro all tra n s la fo n s incorrect and acts o f w isdom is n o t a question which
in th a t course, „ follows th at n e tth -, m ,.represented for certain purposes, can now be c o n sid ered . They „ re „ a r t
er th e teacher nor the county dtrec- reject the dtvinity of Jesus and the and parcel af the organic law, a n d must
to rs m ay tu ,red u ce such an tn n o -, veraetty of the facts told in the I be enforced in s tric t acco rd a n c e w ith
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