FOUNDATION
MR TIM SHEARER (' 85 ) DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT , FOUNDATION EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
SUPPORTING THE DELIVERY OF A LIBERAL EDUCATION
THE SCOTCH FOUNDATION IS FACILITATING THE DELIVERY OF SCOTCH ’ S MISSION AND AIM
The scenes in Europe today have impacted us all in our own ways , and while we are physically removed from what is playing out , we have been emotionally impacted by the images as they are beamed across the world through the wonders of technology . Feelings of sadness , concern and helplessness have consumed me over the past three weeks as I see an innocent people being persecuted by the deeds of an ambitious , oppressive and aggressive narcissist .
The following words , written by my grandfather , and former Geelong Grammar Headmaster , Sir James Darling , in 1961 , seem as apt today as when they were written , and give me some hope as we move forward …
‘ History demonstrates that the forces of evil can be defeated and the sacrifices of so many in the struggle against evil may not be in vain . To achieve an ultimate triumph of good we can never accept the supremacy of evil . Rather we must keep in mind our God-given destiny to live as a human family in a world of goodness and keep pressing on to achieve that goal .’
The events overseas demonstrate how we shouldn ’ t take our freedom and liberties for granted . While Winston Churchill ’ s words also ring loud and true today , when he opined that ‘ Many forms of Government have been tried , and will be tried in this world of sin and woe . No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise . Indeed it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time …’.
At Scotch our boys are encouraged to think and reflect about two foundational questions : how did the world come to be as it is , and how can they shape its future , to the greater good of all . At times like this the importance of a liberal education , so firmly espoused by our founder , James Forbes , comes to the fore . James Forbes was a product of the Scottish Enlightenment , and he saw education as an essential foundation for a high quality public life and for people ’ s right to choose their own course in life . Education , he wrote , ' must be regarded as the great remedy for the ills of the body politic , the basis on which must be mainly rested all hopes of its amelioration , and of its future generations being better than the present '.
Forbes was a passionate advocate for the concepts of freedom and self-responsibility , and at times like this I can ’ t help but think this passion was underscored by an awareness of the alternatives . Forbes was resolute that if a decent society were to be achieved in the new land , it would be by the efforts of the colonists themselves . He wrote in The Port Phillip Gazette :
' The present Secretary of State for the Colonies is a man of enlarged views , and what is better , a man of Christian principles . But let not the colonists of Australia Felix forget that their main source of confidence must
62 Great Scot Issue 165 – April 2022