AUTHORITY AND THE STATE

Sir, The secretary of the Association of Irish Humanists, Ellen Sides, made some odd remarks in her article on teaching relationships…

Sir, The secretary of the Association of Irish Humanists, Ellen Sides, made some odd remarks in her article on teaching relationships and sex education outside religion classes (January)

For example, she claims that many educationalists recognise that the State itself is a valid source of moral authority". So if a state decrees slavery or genocide, like the Nazi and Soviet and other similar states, do they have their right to do this as sovereign states?

"All values come from man," she proclaims as a dogma of (atheistic) humanists, and continues "There is not the slightest reason to fear that once this is recognised, we shall fare any worse than when religion was thought to provide the only possible basis, for responsible human conduct.

In the present century, we have seen quite a number of regimes which totally rejected religion as a basis for conduct, and proclaimed a new humanism of a Marxist or a national socialist or other type. I'm sorry, but I'm afraid that there is plenty of reason to fear what such people can do. I'm not suggesting that Ms Sides or her associates would do such dreadful things, but they show what can happen when (non religious) humanists take power.

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There is much else that is tendentious and even naive in Ms Sides's article, but letters must be brief. May I finish with a quotation from Einstein "Being a lover of freedom, when the revolution came in Germany, I looked to the universities to defend it. But no they immediately were silenced. Then I turned to the great editors who in days gone by proclaimed their love of freedom, but they too were silenced in a few weeks. Only the Church stood squarely across the path of Hitler's campaign for the suppression of truth. What I once despised the Church I now praise unreservedly". Yours, etc The Abbey, Galway City.