Dear Editor,

I refer to the letter by J Kadaru entitled, ‘There should be a moral education programme in the schools’ (SN, 21.6.08). In his letter Mr Kadaru writes, “Academic knowledge alone is not fulfilling to us as humans. It would help us to earn a livelihood but together with the EHV programme we would go beyond the earning of a living, and we would be prepared for the challenges of life both morally and spiritually. It is my belief that such a programme in schools would reduce most of the crimes being committed by the children, the teachers and the adults today.”

With the entire nation wondering in bewilderment at the “crimes being committed by the children, the teachers and the adults today,” commonsense should indicate that the absence of instruction in “the quality of mercy, compassion, sympathy and love” in our school system allowed its replacement with greed, anger, hatred and other evils, and that the earlier teaching should be reinstituted.

It is apposite to note that in addition to the virtues of mercy, compassion, sympathy, love, etc,  manners, sensibilities (the acceptable face of worship) and ethics were all put on the back burner when the government took control of the school system from the Church in the mid-seventies.

Yours faithfully,
R Warren
Minister of the Gospel