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Robert Raikes

Robert Raikes

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A couple of centuries ago, a British gentleman called William Wilberforce, who had been educated in the 'usual way' of the privileged those times, devoted much of his adult life to championing the worthy cause of bringing about the abolition of slavery in the British Empire. On a sentimental note, on the very day of his death in 1833, slavery was abolished by an Act of Parliament.

This was a period of social reform, and one of Wilberforce's contemporaries, my fore-father Robert Raikes, used all the means within his scope in actively encouraging the education of all classes, and was a notable champion of the poor and the defenseless. Robert became an influential newspaper Editor, and channeled his ideas into the effort that gave him the title 'Inventor of the Sunday School'.

What may resonate with the more affluent and philanthropic reader is that both William W. and Robert R., to mention but two of the many effective social reformers of that time, understood and perhaps empathised with less fortunate and under-privileged people becoming dehumanised, almost as if they were mere units of consumerism or that they existed solely for purposes of exploitation - in short, Slavery. It is worthy of note that both William and Robert came from wealthy families and were in a position to ignore the plight and needs of the 'have nots', yet they did the contrary.

"In the case of Robert Raikes, the first Sunday School was opened in 1780 in Sooty Lane, Littleworth, UK, opposite the city prison, a slum area in which chimney sweeps lived. He chose ladies known for their ability to cope with rough boys, and required them to have clean faces and hands, and combed hair. He knew the children were too poor to have shoes or coats. They were taught to read, and Raikes printed the Bible in 100 parts, and Spelling books for them. He visited their homes, and rewarded cooperation and trust with gifts such as combs, (and, rumour has it, the occasional slice of plum cake). Social training was of special importance, and the resulting change in the behaviour of children was remarkable and surprising, given the cruel realities of life for the poor." (I am indebted to Elizabeth Janson, The Raikes' Legacy).

The historical facts of that era give us an insight into how people of low birth and little consequence were treated; "During the reign of George II (1727 - 1760) land formerly the property of the parish and its people was enclosed, and became the property of the landowner who took an 'Act of Enclosure' to Parliament to annex the parish lands so forcing many people out of their village and into towns where they became poorly paid factory, mill or mining workers."

Then in 1782 something that was considered unthinkable and impossible occurred; notwithstanding the might and superior power of the armed forces of the British Empire, the American colonies were 'lost'. I choose to believe that this was due, in great part, to a group of 'brave and treasonous' Americans of diverse ethnic origin who had found themselves in the painful position of being exploited to breaking point - in simple terms, I sense that they had had enough and were 'just sick and tired of being sick and tired'.

Until the French Revolution of 1789, the poor, and the working classes had no voice in government and were expected to serve the wishes of those with wealth. In revolting terms for some, the French set a precedent which showed the ruling elite families and money masters abroad that there was a real danger of revolution in their own back yard, so to speak, no matter how strong and powerful the powers-that-were may have seemed.

In my mind, the aforementioned considerations beg the question: "could history possibly be repeated in this day and age, and if this were to be the case, is there such a thing as a peaceful revolution?" For, as with every revolution, be it social (external/material) or individual (internal/spiritual), experience teaches us that changing the status quo does not take time, it is not changing it that does. Moreover, this brief lesson in our respective histories has, I believe, the potential to serve both as a metaphor and as a model for eventual peaceful replication.

Enough for today; be well in awareness

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