Abbeville press. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1860-1869, 1869-03-12
From the Lutheran and Visitor.

hafuS uoWs 6oW0Wnat 10
detail. cohsiaersd the question whether We
may, with strong hope of success, enter
upon The work Of training our children III
the fear Of God, We now stop to consider,
an objection (which is often paraded,. will
an aiE Of triumph, against The view W.
have been pressing, Wig '~Many parents,
professors Of religion, have children, not
only ont of the church, but grossly i'm.
moral, therefore our position must be false. u
With sorrow we admit the fact of many
goddess .:ohildreu, descendants Of gGdly
parents, but utterly repudia,e the use made
Of is: This'may be accounted for most
satisfactorily without calling idto question
the truth of Gods word. T. 49,
It'may arise from want OF faith in the
truth of the doctrine that we are advocat-
ing on the part Of PARENTS: Where' such
practical skepticism, is found there will
follow inevitably d want of a course OF
training adapted to such an end. To
tioub. the truth, the iunyarying truth of the
declaration: "Train up child in the way
he should go, and when lie is old he will
not depart from it," is to defeat the whole
workof Christian parents thus doubling.
To be without any fixed principles on this
vita. .trut1r is at once tantamount to failure.
Success 10 the secular or religious world
never attends those VINO beIieve" success
cannot be attained. The young man who
has made Up his mind that he can never be
an artist, master mechanic. or scholar,
is sure 10 realize all that be believes on the
subject and no more. Faith is iudispensa-
bic to success on any subject.
The fact stated in the objection may
arise in the second place from an erroneous
Wow. on the part of parents, as 20 the mode
of accomplishing the work. There ara
many good parents who firmly believe the
truth Of Gods word on this subject, and
who sincerely am to "briug up their chill
dren in the nurture and admonitiou of the
Lord" and yet owing to some defec. in
their government or discipline, or from a
failure to understand the peculiarly of dis
position or temperament Of tl,eir children,
often sadly fail. ~
OF all dut es none is more difficult than
the proper training Of children. Au error
committed. at the eommencement of
childs religious training may ruin it for
time and etternisy. Some, like Eli, fail to
administer proper and timely correction,
and from mistaken; but we'll meant kind.
ness, allow their children full liberty Oh all
subjects. Some persons go gu. upon the
principle that young persons, especially
boys, will necessarily have their days Of
gaity aad sin-that they must SOW their
wild oats, but that after awhile. when they
get older, reflect mo,e and settle down in
life, they will come back to virtues paths
and walk therein. Where such views pre-
vail that children should grow up in wick.
eduess is but what could be expected.
Failure often results in the third place
from want of sleadfast cooperation an
agreement on the pant Of both pareu: >,
the work Of training. One will punish for
wrong doing, believing that afoolishness is
bound up in the heart of child, but the
rod of correction will drive it far from him."
and the other pet and condole With them
when so corrected. We know the mother
Of family Of two sons, and believe her to
be deYotealy pions, but are credibly in
formed that while her boys were growing
up she could not endure to see the fa,hor
punish them, and would invariably screen
than force the rod. The father was an ex-
eel ent minister of the gospel but years
since called to his reward. The mother
still lives, but without the presence and sup
port Of her sons, who grew up in dissipa.
ton and shame, and have wandered as
vagrants over the world. And how could
the resul. lave been otGerwi,e9 How eex
pset, in; defiance Of ali the divinsly' estab:
'lished principles on the subject, that they
should have growb Up other .han wicked,
practically illustrating the inspired deolara
ton, "a child left to himself bti3geth his
mother TO shame 2" =. ~ f. -
Again, Others in maintaining their right
ful authority over their children, do it IN g
temper and spirit so foreign to christianity
as to implant, at an early age. deep seated
prejudice in the minds of their childrep
agaiust religion. They leave the impression
that piety is amorose, sulIeu, gloomy some
thing instead of a,way.o of pleasantness.
And,,husf.om well.meaut, honestly intend
ed, but excessive severity, they fail to attain
.he desired end. u I., s s
'S'Thss wAht Of q consistent example on the
part of parents often defeats aud ueutraIizes
their'heis counsel. This is what Arch
bisoop Tillotson calls, "beckouing ito chill.
dren with the head to chow them the way
toheavep; while. you take them by the
hand and lead them 10, tue wayS'to hell"
ln<my first charge, q msn 10 middle life,
said to me with tears In bis eyes, q know
fought to be a Christian, apd sish TO be