Ask High School Credit for Outside Religious and Biblical Studies

A movement to “reduce spiritual illiteracy” among the youth of the city of New York was started on Tuesday, when the “Interfaith Committee,” consisting of representatives of Protestants, Catholics and Jews, held its first meeting. The committee decided to request that beginning next February, high school credits be granted for religious and biblical studies given outside of high schools.

Though the ultimate aim of the “Interfaith Committee” is said to be the excusing of elementary school children from school for one hour a week for religious instruction, this question was not taken up at Tuesday’s meeting, which discussed plans for bringing religious education to the 600,000 school children of New York City who were declared to be “spiritually illiterate.”

The Jewish group at the meeting was headed by Rabbi David de Sola Pool of the Spanish – Portuguese Synagogue. Mgr. Michael J. Lavelle, rector of St. Patrick’s Cathedral, presided in the absence of Federal Attorney Charles H. Tuttle, the president. Mgr. Lavelle, who heads the Roman Catholic group, proposed that each faith select two editors who would map out a program of publicity which would bring before the community the necessity of teaching children to distinguish between right and wrong and instilling in them a groundwork of faith.

In a statement as to the aims of the “Interfaith Committee,” Rabbi Pool said yesterday:

“It holds that religious instruction must be left to the church, the synagogue and the home, and the Committee is unalterably opposed to any attempt to give such instructions in the public schools of New York City and to identify or segregate the pupils in such schools after their religious belief or unbeliefs.

“The Committee’s ultimate aim is to encourage and facilitate religious instruction through proper agencies, under the safeguard mentioned, to the pupils of our public and high schools.”