New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1883-06-10
CHTIDREN,S DAY.

There is a beautiful custom in the Methodist
Church which gives this day wholly over to the
children. They are gathered into the church
from the highways and by-ways. Each little
one, however poor, has its bunch of roses. Inc
sermon is the simple story of Jesus, told to
them the prayers are for them; the music Is
only the hymns going in their sweet untaught
voices up to heaven.
In the Moravian Church there is similar
anniversary of the day on which Christ enter
ing into jerusalem, was met by the children, VINO
shouted Hosaunas and strewed palm branches
in His way. The Morayian children assemble
in the church and sing anthems OF praise
which arc answered by the congregation. In
both cases they are taught that they are IN actual
acting part of tho church, that they are only the
Younger sons of the Heavenly Father, the little
ones whom He takes into His arms and carries
where He will that they, too, hare something
70 do for Him, like those children ages ago
whose palms thrown IN His way are not yet
faded, and whose feeble HOsannas still echo In
the world Ii Is not the children only that are
helped by this most beautiful OF all religious
festivals but, probably, still more, their fathers
and mothers. The poor drunken pauper who
never enters church door throughout the
wear will creep into the back pews this morn
ing to ser his little girl go in with her clean dress
and bright shining face and bunch of roses, and
TO hear her voice in the hymns. The religion
In " hich his child believes, and which makes
her happy, will be true to him, and the story OF
Christ told to her to-day will have new mean
ing for him. 1t is the little child that leads us
all.
It's the child, too, as we all know, that leads
the future man through his life against all
other influences against reason itself. No
force of public opinion, no argument no con-
viction even In the adult mans own mind can
do away with the impressions and faith OF
childhood. If, then, Christian churches wish
10 establish Christianity more securely in the
world forty years hence, they should devote
more time to the training of their children in a
firm faith in Christ. Sunday schools are well
enough in their way, but that way does not 90
far. There is in Sunday school teaching nee
essarily the machinery of every organized move
ment. and the effect produced is measurably
mechanical. The little scholar brings away
with him more lively sense of picture cards,
banner classes, heather penny boxes and enter
tanning library books than of the deep holy awe
and love lOr the SaNlOuT Nuicu JHeso thlusS
hint at rather than teach. A few whispered
words of God and His love, breathed by his
mother as she holds him in her arms, would
make lifelong impression. Yet how many
faithful Christian mothers leave the religious
instruction of their children wholly to the Sun
day-school7 Outside of the Sunday-scho0l,
too, little is done by the churches for the train
ing of children or young people. How many
sermons preached during the year in any pulpit
would he understood by child OF ten to four
teen7 They are levelled at adults, usually the
most intelligent in the congregation and very
| often are heavy literary efforts meant for
| certain critics. and in no wise intended to help
the gaping boys and girls upward on the long
way before them. Yet children followed the
Saviour, and any child can understand the
Sermon on the Mount. The RoDish Church,
with its usual shrewd, far-sighted policy, begins
almost in infancy to instruct the children in
| the tenets of its faith and to give them the
consciousness of their own part and duty in it (;
hence the strength Of its hold upon the faith of
adults The Episcopaliau, Lutheran and Mo-
ravian sects follow the same policy, though not
| SO far, and measurahly with the same results.
| The festival of to-day is step in the right
direction by the Methodsts. No child who
| part,kes of it will ever quite lose the gracious
| Influence out of Its life of the holy story of
| Jesus told in the midst of sunshine roses and
music.