Cure for moral bankruptcy

Title

Creator

Tanada, Lorenzo

Language

English

Year

1947

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

CURE FOR MORAL BANKRUPTCY LORENZO TANADA LAST MARCH BEFORE the Rotarians in Baguio, I talked about the moral situation then obtaining in our country. I spoke of our apparent moral bankruptcy, as shown by graft in high as well as in law places, — graft in legitimate and illegitimate pursuits. I talked of the alarming increase of criminality, especially here in Manila, — of murders for a handful of pesos, of child gangsters and educated swindlers, of dishonest contractors, unfaithful guards, approachable managers and bribable public servants. Today, the moral situation of the nation still remains alarming. I should like to reach the root of the matter, to find if all this can be blamed on war alone. Time and again you must have asked yourselves as thoughtful students and keen observers of contemporary scenes and events why criminality is on the increase. Is it because of laxity in the en forcement of law and order, or it because lacking in self-control, some of us just can not help do ing the things that we do? Hardly a day passes that the metropolitan papers do not pub lish something politically or so cially unsavory, something that makes the man in the street won der if our society has not lost its moorings and is now drifting toward the maelstrom of perdi tion. You too must have won dered why the spirit of greed for luxury and lavish living that craved satisfaction even at the ex pense of all conscience and all honor is so predominant nowa days. 41 <12 THE CROSS What can be the reason? Has anything gone wrong with us as a people? Have our moral values been debased, as some quarters charged beyond redemption, or has our sense of them bden dulled to the point of insensibility? If we answer in the affirmative, —and there are those who would, though qualifiedly — other ques tions logically suggest them selves: What has caused such a sudden and radical change in our concept of right and wrong, hon esty and dishonesty, and in our attitude toward crime and the criminal? Is the war entirely res ponsible for it? Let us express the point dif ferently: What has so ruthless ly sapped our moral fiber that we appear to have lost those superb and admirable virtues that dis tinguished our forbears? Why have we become so materialistic in our views that the finer things of life, those qualities and achieve ments that make men and nations truly great, have ceased to have any attraction or meaning to us? I ask these pertinent, if un pleasant and disturbing, questions not in the spirit of flippancy or of criticism. My sole object, as I have stated, is to diagnose with you the symptoms as they, appear to us and, if possible to apply some remedy or suggest its ap plication to the authorities con cerned. Education And the more I ponder over and probe into our present mor al disintegration, the more I doubt whether we can blame it all on the war. I am inclined to believe that the present deplorable moral condition of the nation may be traced to our deficient education. It is truly said that the foundation of every state is the education of its youth. When, therefore, the education is defec tive, the foundation must' neces sarily be defective too. It was President Quezon who said: “Na tional strength can only be built on character. A nation is nothing more or less than its citizenry. It is the people that make up the nation and, therefore, it can not be stronger than its component parts. Their weakness is its fail ings, their strength its power.” The trouble with our education al system, before the war and at the present time, is that it is mostly concerned, with educating the mind. I believe no education is complete if it only trains the mind but not the heart. Learn ing, in the mind of an unprinci pled man is as dangerous as a dagger in the hands of a maniac. Arithmetic will teach a man to count and compute, but will also make it easier and faster for him to cheat. Reading, and writing will enable a person to express his thoughts more clearly and easily, AUGUST, 1947 43’ but will also give him the facili ty to deceive and beguile his fel lowmen., The arts and scienoes will make a citizen a more learned man, but they will also equip him more efficiently for evil and wrong doing. Learning therefore, should always advance hand in. hand with goodness; for, once goodness is left lagging behind, learning loses its rudder, its guid ing hand, and becomes dangerous. And the most effective, if not the only effective way of instill ing goodness in our people is by means of religious instruction. While it is true that “Good Man ners and Right Conduct” is a prescribed subject in our schools, I believe that the same is impo tent to instill goodness in our youth. The trouble with the subject, “Good Manners and Right Con duct,” is that it is solely and pri marily a training of the mind, like all or almost all the subjects in our schools, and not a training of the heart. It gives a student certain mottoes and principles which he is required to memorize and recite in class. But it is a subject that does not appeal or take root in the heart. It adds truisms to the memory, but does not touch the feeling nor mould the conscience. I believe goodness can never be developed that way. Goodness does not come merely from the mind, for even the most hardened criminals know, in their minds, that they are doing wrong. Good ness is something that must be bred and developed in the heart and in the conscience. Goodness is that which prevents us from wrongdoing, not only because we know it is wrong, but because we feel it is wrong. It is this feeling, this inner conscience, that the subject of “Good Manners and Right Con duct” can not reach. Only reli gion, with the inspiration and faith it excites, can instill real goodness in our youth. President Frank Sparks of Wa bash College, Indiana, who has been attracting attention by his innovations in the methods of pre paring students for work has made religion a compulsory sub ject in the freshman year. He was criticized at first, but after a while his bitterest critics had become his staunchest supporters. In explaining his system of religious instruction, President Sparks said: “We force no doc trine down our students’ throats. We merely introduce them to the history of religion, the history of the Bible and the application of Christian principles to our econo mic, social and political prob lems.” THE CROSS But, sad to say, the teaching or religion, even along the line fol lowed by President Sparks, is not given in our public and secular schools. So that while our Cons titution provides for optional re ligious instruction in schools, the provision is a* dead letter insofar as actual teaching is concerned. I know that in advocating reli gious instruction in our schools I am treading on dangerous grounds. I know that therfe are some who would call me old-fas hioned for advocating religious instruction in our public and pri vate schools,—but if to be old-fas hioned is to advocate an idea which is rejected merely because it does not sound modern and fas hionable, but which I honestly be lieve is the remedy to (extricate our people, our youth especially, from the present apparent bank ruptcy in our sense of righteous ness and morality, — then let those people call me old-fashioned. I know that those opposed to re ligious instruction in our schools may say that there are practical difficulties that would be met in carrying out this idea because of the many different religious groups in the Philippines. It is true that there are many differ ent religious sect» in our country but it is also true that the major ones can be counted on the fingera of one hand. Undoubtedly, there will be difficulties, but we have I believe enough men who are con versant with educational proces ses who can devise the necessary means to carry this out. Besides, what good work can be accomp lished without first surmounting difficulties? There will be defects, but what is perfect in this world? There will be objections and criticisms, but can we ever achieve anything worthwhile if we let objections and criticisms stop us at every turn? I, therefore appeal to our school authorities and educators to give this matter immediate and serious consideration. For I do not believe we can raise and main tain an enduring structure of na tional welfare, material though it be upon the shifting foundation of moral decadence. No .material re habilitation lags so far behind. And moral rehabilitation can be accomplished only by actually giving religious instruction in our schools. If we do not give our youth the education that will make them honest, truthful cou rageous and God-fearing, we may be sure that our men of tomor row will be found wanting in in tegrity and moral rectitude, and instead of building a great nation we shall have built a nation un worthy of our martyrs and pa triots.

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