Seattle University - Aegis Yearbook (Seattle, WA)

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12 SEATTLE COLLEGE ANNUAL animal, which sees in the human mind nothing but another “aspect” or “phase” of the animal organism, and consequently denies the spirituality and immortality of the soul, such despicable philosophy cannot assign any other end and object of man's life than some form of hedonism or utilitarianism. Unfortunately such philosophy has exerted a disastrous influence on many modern educational theories. It has led to the separation, more or less complete, of education from religion, but a solid moral training is totally impossible without religion. There is only one system of philosophy which can form the sound basis of true pedagogy and that is genuine Christian philosophy, that philosophy which is in perfect harmony with the revealed truths of Christianity. This philosophy alone gives the correct answers to the questions, Whence and Whither? It tells us that the soul of the child is a spirit, created by a personal God to His own image and likeness, and destined for eternal happiness in heaven; it tells us that this life is not man’s goal, but a journey to another, higher life, that “we have not here a perpetual city but that we seek one that is to come.” A system of pedagogy firmly based on this solid Christian philosophy will widely differ from those systems which are built upon modern philosophy, be it German Pantheism, French Positivism, or English and American Agnosticism. The most essential difference will be this, that in the Christian system the intellectual training is considered secondary to the moral and religious training whereas all other systems aim at purely secular learning to the utter neglect of moral training. Down through the long avenues of the Christian ages, the Catholic Church has guided men onward and upward in the highway of progress bv the light of the Gospel of Christ; she has taught him that the grace and the beauty and the honor of life lie in its conformity with the eternal laws of God; and she has protected and strengthened and developed the civilization which she founded by the combined forces of religion and intellectual enlightenment. With the experience of ages before her, she insists today that religion and secular learning must go hand in hand in the work of education, if we are to safeguard the most vital inter-

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EDUCAT10NAL MORA LITY 11 system; and animal gratification shows a decline of man back to the moral standard of the pagan ages. It has frequently been observed that the spirit of our age manifests many pagan tendencies. The utilitarian trend of morality in modern education is undoubtedly a sort of neo-paganism. To the artistic, the wonder-loving mind of the Greek, “the Beautiful” and “the Good,” were almost synonimous. Greek education, accordingly, aimed at the harmonious development of body and intellect for life in this world only. In the eyes of the Romans, the eternal city was destined to rule the universe. To make useful and devoted members of that mighty political fabric was the sole aim of the learning given the Roman youth, such also apparently is the purpose of the instructions in our public educational system of today. These points touch the sore spot of modern education. The capital error of most school reformers lies in this that they expect too much from intellectual accomplishments for the moral and social improvement of mankind. Every other word they utter is, Culture, Knowledge, Science, Information, and yet what is still more needed is a reform of Character by a thorough training of the will. The plausible assertion “Instruction is moral improvement,” a principle which is repeated in various forms, is false. The neglect of religious and moral training is the outcome of a false philosophy; for, there exists the most intimate relations between philosophy and pedagogy, so much so that erratic philosophy leads to a false pedagogy. Pedagogy according to the very derivation of the word means the guiding of children; but in order to guide them properly it is necessary to know properly and clearly the end and goal to be reached. The final destiny of man can be known only from his true nature and this knowledge is furnished by philosophy. The philosophy, then, which is to be the sound basis of noble pedagogy must correctly answer the questions: Whence and Whither? If as the foundation of education a philosophy is chosen which gives a wrong answer to these momentous questions, the children will be led in a wrong direction. Now that philosophy which considers man merely a highly developed

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13 EDUCATIONAL MORALITY ests of society. And notwithstanding the records of antiquity, history bears eloquent evidence of the sagacity of her educational policy. Let us hope that this broad nation of ours, great in accomplishments, great in the prospect of a still more glorious future, will harken to the eloquent voice of the august teacher of ( hristendom and secure the favors and blessings, of a true democracy for the generations yet to come, by freely bestowing on every child the advantages of a Christian education. 'file Church and the home should enforce the work of the school, but the class room which rules by far the greater part of the child’s active mental life is the only channel to which we must look for that moral and intellectual enlightenment, that supremeness of design and that loyalty to duty which should characterize the American citizen, and which religious education alone can bring forth. As long as our educational system forgets the soul in trying to perfect mind and body, crime will increase, for where there is no God, there is no conscience. Xor can educators afford to forget that “when Christ our Master comes for the final examination he will not ask how well we spoke and disputed, but how we lived,” “Xon quid legimus, sed quid fecimus, non quam bene diximus, sed quam religiose viximus.” JOHN F. DOUGHERTY, ’15.