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Timebinder, v. 2, issue 2, whole no. 6, Spring 1946
17
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NON-SECRETARIAN VIEW VITAL FOR RELIGIOUS INSTRUCTION. T. Bruce Yerke* Figures showing that many church-going juveniles are none-the-less guilty of various degrees of delinquency is no reflection on the value of religious training itself. And by religious training I mean non-secretary training. It is obvious in all parts of the Christian world that the existence of the church alone is not a sufficient factor to guarantee that the doctrines of the church will be carried out. That the “Christian spirit”, wich a little study will show to be similar to the spirit of the Jewish, Mohammedan, Buddhist, Zoroastrian, Vedic, Uphanishad, or the Confucian scriptures, does not prevail today is merely an indictment of the poor quality of most of its adherents and disseminators. Mankind constantly seeks to meet God on man’s level and not on God’s level. It is impossible to maintain at one and the same time the spirit of “Do unto others…” and either predatory capitalism or personal egocentricity. The schism between Holy Scriptures of all denominations and the unholy actions of many of their followers cannot be excused by claiming the scriptural philosophy inferior and holding that it has failed when in truth it is the vacuous misanthropy of the condemners that has failed. I believe there is a legitimate case against the church in that it has often failed to give its followers a workable interpretation of its scriptures. But this is only a reflex case. There are still many persons following their religion and leading balanced, spiritually profitable, constructive lives. The failure has been in the large the failure of individuals, both lay and ordained, who put too much emphasis on ritual and atonements and overlooked the fundamental purpose of religion on general. In our haste to find a code which will “work” are we to match the code of the baser tendencies of men, or to those which we think and have thoughts for thousands of years to be his better qualifications? If we set up a “church” which stands for murder, tyranny, deceit, theft, and unscrupulous methods, shall we at least have found a workable moral code for the human race? There can be no harm in giving non-sectarian religious instruction in public schools; but how few teachers are capable -- * Reprinted from LosAngeles Collegian, by permission of author. -15-
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NON-SECRETARIAN VIEW VITAL FOR RELIGIOUS INSTRUCTION. T. Bruce Yerke* Figures showing that many church-going juveniles are none-the-less guilty of various degrees of delinquency is no reflection on the value of religious training itself. And by religious training I mean non-secretary training. It is obvious in all parts of the Christian world that the existence of the church alone is not a sufficient factor to guarantee that the doctrines of the church will be carried out. That the “Christian spirit”, wich a little study will show to be similar to the spirit of the Jewish, Mohammedan, Buddhist, Zoroastrian, Vedic, Uphanishad, or the Confucian scriptures, does not prevail today is merely an indictment of the poor quality of most of its adherents and disseminators. Mankind constantly seeks to meet God on man’s level and not on God’s level. It is impossible to maintain at one and the same time the spirit of “Do unto others…” and either predatory capitalism or personal egocentricity. The schism between Holy Scriptures of all denominations and the unholy actions of many of their followers cannot be excused by claiming the scriptural philosophy inferior and holding that it has failed when in truth it is the vacuous misanthropy of the condemners that has failed. I believe there is a legitimate case against the church in that it has often failed to give its followers a workable interpretation of its scriptures. But this is only a reflex case. There are still many persons following their religion and leading balanced, spiritually profitable, constructive lives. The failure has been in the large the failure of individuals, both lay and ordained, who put too much emphasis on ritual and atonements and overlooked the fundamental purpose of religion on general. In our haste to find a code which will “work” are we to match the code of the baser tendencies of men, or to those which we think and have thoughts for thousands of years to be his better qualifications? If we set up a “church” which stands for murder, tyranny, deceit, theft, and unscrupulous methods, shall we at least have found a workable moral code for the human race? There can be no harm in giving non-sectarian religious instruction in public schools; but how few teachers are capable -- * Reprinted from LosAngeles Collegian, by permission of author. -15-
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