An Essay on the Evils of Popular IgnoranceFoster, John
Philosophy
An Essay on the Evils of Popular Ignorance
Foster, John
Education; Great Britain -- Social conditions -- 19th century; Literacy; Missions -- India; Religious education
There is also palpable matter of fact to the point, that an education
which combines the discipline of the conscience and the intellectual
faculty will be rendered, in many instances, efficacious to the formation
of a religious character. This obvious fact is, that a much greater
proportion of the persons so educated do actually become the subjects of
religion, than of a similar number of those brought up in ignorance and
profligacy. Take collectively any number of families in which such an
education prevails, and the same number in which it does not, and follow
the young persons respectively into subsequent life. But any one who hears
the suggestion, feels there is no need to wait the lapse of time and
follow their actual course. As instructed by what he has already seen in
society, he can go forward with them prophetically, with perfect certainty
that many more of the one tribe than that of the other, will become
persons not only of moral respectability but decided piety. Any one that
should assert respecting them that the probabilities are equal and
indifferent, would be considered as sporting a wilful absurdity, or
betraying that he is one of those who did not come into the world for
anything they can learn in it. And the experience which thus authorizes a
perfect confidence of prediction, is evidence that, though discipline must
wholly disclaim an absolute power to effect the great object in question,
there is, nevertheless, such a constitution of things that it most
certainly will, as an instrumental cause, in many instances effect it.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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