The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1888-09-01


wardly from all that has been treas
ured 1.-THE accumulated wisdom and re-
finement Of the ages. They are nothing
to her. The sum total of all human
experience, if it could be put together
in some shining bauble, would seem
to her as darkness compared with the
luminous joy with which she serves her
young immortal, her prophet, her
priest, her king. The cure for
selfshness can not be anywhere else
like that"
And if there be in the family one
who is sickly or deformed, the selfish
ness of the parent is all the more quick
ly swallowed up in devotion and SER
vice. Let the mother herself speak
for her poor dumb child:
my silent boy, 1 hold theeto my breast,
just as 1 did wnen thou vert newly born;
1t may be sinful. but 1 love thee best
And kiss thy lips the longest night and
morn.
20 thou art dear to me beyond all others
And when breathe my trust and bend my
knee
For blessings on thy sisters and thy brothers,
God seems the highest when 1 pray for
thee"
8. They teach US patience.
When the mother of the Wesleys
was asked why she told her child a
thing the twentieth time, answered
because he did not remember it the
nineteenth time" How much thought
and perseverance and skill are required
to train up one of these little lives to
honor and usefulnessl What self con-
troll is ecessary! We discipline our
selves as we direct our children.
There are other ways in which they
teach US patience. know of one who
was carrying his sick babe by night
upon pillow. But with all his care, the
child cried with pain and thought papa
was handling it very roughly. The
father thought: "My poor baby, if
you could only look into my heart and
know how 1 love you and how L am
trying to ease your pain!" And then
he thought, 81 am only larger infant
in the arms of my Father. 1 think 1
am roughly handled sometimes, but if
could look into my Fathers heart, 1
should find that at the centre all is
Lowell"
Ill. There are other Lessons to be
learned from childhood.
/. Religion does not consist in intel
lectual beliefs, but essential character.
l do not say that we should not strive
for correct views; think we ought. I
simply say that these do not determine
our standing in the sight of God. If
intelligent and correct belief were
absolutely essential, Jesus would never
have taken his example of the vital
thing in religion from little child.
What is child's creed? What are its
ideas OF God, of Jesus Christ, of the
Bible? Not much more astray, per-
haps, than some of ours; but the creed
of childhood is what Paul defines as
the fruit Of the spirit: sLove, joy,
patience, meekness, and temperance.
Whoever has these belongs, by the
terms of Jesus, to the kingdom of God,
whatever he may believe or disbelieve,
whatever he may call himself or refuse
to be called
2. Through human love God tries to
teach US something about his own love.
This is the great revelation. This is
the ever-fresh outpouring of the divine
life and light. Our own love-espec.
tally for our children-is the type of
the Divine Love. Like as a father
pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth
them that fear him." eff ye being
evil, know how to give good gifts unto
your children, how much more your
Father which is in heavenl' The pull
sations of love in our own hearts give
US some hint of the mighty ocean from
which they came.
8. This human love for our children
is truly love for God. How many a
heart has been made wretched by the
miserable notion of a God who was
supposed to be moved by a jealousy
like that which rankles in the breast Of
man! How many mother has felt
when she bowed over the PROSTATE
form of her babe, that the little one
was taken because she loved it too
well; that God was angry because so
much affection was lavished upon that
sweet young life, that he wanted the
affection himself and removed the
child in order to gain it. Within a
year have heard this brutal doctrine
preached. AS if UGH an act ON the
part of creature or Creator would win
lovel Affection is not won by murder.
To the honor of God be it spoken, he
does not interfere, in jealousy, or
caprice, with the laws of life or death.
There is a reason for everything, and
whether we can trace it or not, there is
natural and not an unnatural or ar
bitrary cause, for the dropping of every
bud from the tree of life. "Love is of
God" he does not seek to quench it.
every one that loveth is born of God''
and the affection that is poured out
upon the child is poured out as an