A DANGEROUS PRECEDENT by Charles M. Snow

Pacific Press Publishing Company · Oakland, California · Oct 24, 1900

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 26, No. 43.

A DANGEROUS PRECEDENT.

By Charles M. Snow

FATHER O'BRIEN, of St. Patrick's Church, Lowell, Mass., died recently, and as his funeral was appointed for a day on which the public schools of Lowell would be open, the school board of that city ordered that the public schools be closed during the hours of the funeral; and Lowell's 15,000 schoolchildren were made to do honor to the memory of the Catholic priest. Father O'Brien was declared to have been a faithful priest, faithful to his charge, faithful to his church. It is not in place to question here his faithfulness to his church; but there are thousands of other priests in the United States who are faithful to their church. But what claim this gives them upon the time and homage of the public school-children of the land does not appear; or what claim it gives them upon the taxpayers of the country, by whose money the public schools are builded and operated, is another difficult thing for an American to understand. The schools are the property of the people, by whose taxation they are operated, and to close them for any portion of time whatever as a matter of homage to any church is a misappropriation of the public funds. It is the same principle that is involved in the appropriation of the public revenues for the maintenance of church schools; and in them both is that unjust principle of compelling a portion of the people to support or reverence a religion in which they do not believe.

On the other hand, there are many faithful Protestant ministers for whom the same action could be as justly demanded. The principle of fairness would require that this be done. The inexpediency and injustice of such a thing should be so apparent to any thinking person as to preclude the adoption of any such unwise course on the part of American school boards.

One of the reasons given for the closing of the schools of Lowell on that particular day was that the priest was a prominent educator. It is a fact that he had a parochial school in connection with his own parish, and that he had been instrumental in establishing such schools in other places. But as a faithful officer in the church he could not have been an advocate or supporter of the public schools. The opposition of Catholic officials to the public schools of the United States is too well known to need reiteration here. With the knowledge of this fact in mind, the action of the Lowell school board is peculiar, to say the least. The public schools which the priest opposed are compelled to honor his memory.

The incident is important as showing the gradual falling away on the part of American officials from the true American idea. It is noticeable all along the line. It is also important as another indication of the gradual but steady rise of the influence of Catholicism in all departments of the government, from the greatest to the least. C. M. S.