The aim of making Australia a "clever country" seems to have universal acceptance, yet the education system has many weaknesses. Students can leave school without the ability to produce understandable written material, without knowledge of how the Australian political system works, and even without the skills necessary to become intelligent consumers or investors. They graduate into the workforce ignorant of even the basic elements of the legal system and the taxation system. It is little wonder then that the teaching of comparative religion has been given such a low priority in Australia. The general public is probably unaware that such a subject could even be taught in schools. Most people seem quite happy to follow the religious beliefs of their parents unquestioningly. Blind faith and dogma are much more comfortable than having to think for oneself and make logical choices. Giving high-sounding labels to things helps to disguise ignorance. Meaningless concepts such as "saving souls", a "life hereafter", "forgiveness of sins" and "the day of resurrection" abound. Black magic items - for example, the virgin birth and transubstantiation - obviously have appeal for some people. There are even persons in this country who feel that creationism is a sounder scientific theory than evolution. It is said that the Holy Roman Empire was neither "holy" nor "Roman" nor an "empire". The oft-used phrase "Christian education" is a similar contradiction of terms. To any rational thinker, the scientific attitude has much great appeal. Under such an approach it is quite impossible to ever prove anything; the best that one can do is to put forward a plausible hypothesis and then test it as thoroughly as possible. If the particular theory is disproved then one has to start all over again with a better hypothesis, and thus slowly advance human knowledge in small, gradual stages. It is really quite astonishing that in a modern society such as Australia superstition still prevails - buildings without a 13th floor and magazine columns and even Internet sites featuring astrological guidance abound. In a massive irony there are even computer programs - science at its best - to allow the preparation of horoscopes. People still get conned into losing large sums of money by mystics who offer to "bless" them. Having a scientific attitude - as distinct from merely relying on authority from up high - would allow people to think rationally about many contemporary issues, such as the right to free speech and discrimination against homosexuals. It might even allow some tidying up of the statute book - for example, in regard to "crimes" such as blasphemy. Perhaps our mistake as a nation has been to leave education to the educationalists. |