Robert Lewis Dabney, Presbyterian Theologian and Philosopher, (1820-1898)
en.wikipedia.org
R. L. Dabney is my favorite theologian, even though he is Presbyterian and I am Baptist. He warned soon after the War Between the States as follows:
"But the American commonwealth has expressly pledged herself to a non-religious attitude. Hence, she cannot, by her State-action, endow or inculcate a particular religion. While the population of some States was homogenous, this radical difficulty was not seriously felt: the people of a Protestant State, like Connecticut, could quietly overstep the true history of their own constitution, in favor of Protestantism ; and there was nobody to protest. But now we have Papists, Unitarians, Chinese, Jews and Atheists by the myriads; and they will not acquiesce in the wielding of State-power, in which they have equal rights, for the partial advantage of a creed to which they are opposed. The result will be, that their protests will triumph, as they now do, in many States ; and we shall have a generation of practical atheists reared "on State account" page 261
But the present plan proceeds on the doctrine of despots, that the people are the servants of the government. Parents are bidden to stand aside, and betray their rights and duties, while little State officials usurp their powers of creating schools, electing teachers, and ordaining methods.
On the one hand, if the State is to act fairly and honestly up to her pledge to sever herself from the Church, she cannot inculcate one religion to the exclusion of the others. On the other hand. It is an Atheistic outrage on the Christians, who compose the larger part of the citizens, to intrude between them and their children, and then give them a godless, which, as we have shown, must be an ungodly education. We have again and again warned the advocates of the Yankee State theory, that the entanglement was insoluble, and that the practical result will surely be, that the attitude of our constitutions will enable the infidel party to triumph everywhere, to expel the Bible and Christianity 'from all the schools, and to rear us (so far as State schools go) a generation of Atheists. This is to be the practical issue of their misguided zeal — the issue which is, in fact, rapidly establishing itself in the Northwest to-day. Now, all this difficulty was avoided by our fathers' plan. The State, which knows no church in preference to another, did not create schools; did not usurp that parental function; did not elect the teachers; did not ordain their discipline or religious character. Parents have the right to do all these things in the lights of their own consciences and spiritual liberty, and the parents made the schools. No other solution will ever be found that is as good." page 280
R. L. DABNEY.
Five Volumes of Discussions by R. L. Dabney are found online -
reformedbooksonline.com
Christians and churches ignored the warnings of Dr. Dabney in the 19th century, now they bellyache about the government schools!
Robert Lewis Dabney - Wikipedia
R. L. Dabney is my favorite theologian, even though he is Presbyterian and I am Baptist. He warned soon after the War Between the States as follows:
"But the American commonwealth has expressly pledged herself to a non-religious attitude. Hence, she cannot, by her State-action, endow or inculcate a particular religion. While the population of some States was homogenous, this radical difficulty was not seriously felt: the people of a Protestant State, like Connecticut, could quietly overstep the true history of their own constitution, in favor of Protestantism ; and there was nobody to protest. But now we have Papists, Unitarians, Chinese, Jews and Atheists by the myriads; and they will not acquiesce in the wielding of State-power, in which they have equal rights, for the partial advantage of a creed to which they are opposed. The result will be, that their protests will triumph, as they now do, in many States ; and we shall have a generation of practical atheists reared "on State account" page 261
But the present plan proceeds on the doctrine of despots, that the people are the servants of the government. Parents are bidden to stand aside, and betray their rights and duties, while little State officials usurp their powers of creating schools, electing teachers, and ordaining methods.
On the one hand, if the State is to act fairly and honestly up to her pledge to sever herself from the Church, she cannot inculcate one religion to the exclusion of the others. On the other hand. It is an Atheistic outrage on the Christians, who compose the larger part of the citizens, to intrude between them and their children, and then give them a godless, which, as we have shown, must be an ungodly education. We have again and again warned the advocates of the Yankee State theory, that the entanglement was insoluble, and that the practical result will surely be, that the attitude of our constitutions will enable the infidel party to triumph everywhere, to expel the Bible and Christianity 'from all the schools, and to rear us (so far as State schools go) a generation of Atheists. This is to be the practical issue of their misguided zeal — the issue which is, in fact, rapidly establishing itself in the Northwest to-day. Now, all this difficulty was avoided by our fathers' plan. The State, which knows no church in preference to another, did not create schools; did not usurp that parental function; did not elect the teachers; did not ordain their discipline or religious character. Parents have the right to do all these things in the lights of their own consciences and spiritual liberty, and the parents made the schools. No other solution will ever be found that is as good." page 280
R. L. DABNEY.
Discussions of Robert Lewis Dabney Vol. 4: Secular : Dabney, Robert Lewis, 1820-1898 : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive
Warfield called Dabney the most conspicuous figure and the leading theological guide of the Southern Presbyterian Church, the most prolific theological writer...
archive.org
Five Volumes of Discussions by R. L. Dabney are found online -
Dabney, Robert
1820-1898 Works (Incomplete) Systematic Theology, HTML Buy 1878, 924 pages A standard systematic theology. One of the few by a southern presbyterian. Discussions Buy 1890, compiled by D…
reformedbooksonline.com
Christians and churches ignored the warnings of Dr. Dabney in the 19th century, now they bellyache about the government schools!
