The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1889-03-07
SUNDAY MEDITATION.
Practical Duties Taught by Study OF the Inter
national Sunday school Lesson Appointed 70
March IL. st. Mark. 10 1922.


national Sunday-scIOOl Lesson Appointed for
March IL. st. Mark, 10 1922.
Zone reading these notes should first carefully
study the paragraph from the Holy Scriptures as
indicated above.
SUBJECT: CHRIST BLESSING LITTLE Chill
DREN, AND THE TRIAL OF THE RICH
YOUNG NAN.
The lesson covers two subjects. We shall
consider them separately.
I. Christ Blessing Little Children.
Alice Gray Cowan wrote the following lines
under the inspiration of the beautiful incident
which is our present study:
child so careless in thy merry play
Thoughtful for nothing but the present gleel
Hast thou been Taught these precious, holy words
The Savior spake when here, to babes like thee?
Through the long Summer day oft should there
Into the whiteness of thine infant soul
Bright thoughts of Heaven, and that healing grace
Which from past ages down to thee doth roll.
He took the children in his sheltering arms
And blessed them, though he heard the heather
Q child, Of what thy Savior did for thee
Be justly proud it is heritage
Suffer the children unto me TO come;
Forbid them not; with such make my home"
All are familiar with the engraving, now
famous, of Christ Blessing Little Children.
l. Time and Place.
The incident of our study took place in
'
was going leisurely from Ephron to Jericho by
way of Perea. He blessed the children in
Perea probably in a line east from Jericho, and
therefore not far from Bethabara, where he
was baptized.
3 Data.
The account is given by st. Matthew 10: -
10: st. Mark 10: 13-16); st. Luke Us 1910
One should read the three reports, carefully
comparing them. This should be done before
proceeding further.
3. The Circumstances.
Christ was known as a Teacher. He was at
tracing much attention. 1t was customary to
bring children to a Rabbi for his blessing
When it had become known Jesus was in that
vicinity the parents thought it good oppOr-
tunity to secure his blessing on their offspring
St. Matthew says little children; st. Mark,
young children >" st. Luke, infants" 1t
would seem from ST. Luke, IS: IS, the children
were old enough to come, and had will to
come. Hence, forbid them not) BY brought
(V. 13 of st. Marks account) we do not under
stand actual bringing, as, e. g., In arms, but
leading. Yet we doubtless to have in mind
mainly infants requiring guidance of parents,
aud in most instances demanding carriage in
arms of fathers or mothers. The parents
wanted Christ to put his hands on their chill
dren. That was a method of dedication and
conservation. When ministers are now or
udlueu EleTIC6i UdDuS are ldlQ on U0Glr neauS.
So of baptism and confirmation. LANCE SAYS,
or The Presidents of synagogs were in the Gus
tom of putting their hands on (the heads) of
children"
4. Position of the Disciples.
The immediate followers of Christ rebuked
the parents for bringing the children to Christ.
The Disciples were in turn rebuked by Christ
for such rude treatment of the fathers and
mothers. We are not informed which of the
Twelve was spokesman, but judging of the
promptness and outspokenness of ST. Peter we
may suppose he led off in the criticism. We
remember that Christ afterward squarely asked
him whether he would feed the lambs There
may have been some connection. We cannot
wonder at the lack of comprehension of the
early Disciples All things relating to Christ's
Kingdom were new to them.
Why did the Disciples rebuke the parentsP
l. Christ was very busy with adults, and
they thought it more important to care for the
grown-up people. This even yet is too COM
mon mistake of many church teachers aud
leaders.
2 Children were not of sufficient Importance,
they thought, to attract Christ's special atten-
ton. Lightfoot, who was diligent student of
Hebrew learning, declares, "The "Rabbis
taught that children persisted like brutes."
g. If parents were once encouraged to bring
children to Christ, he would soon be bothered
all the time by them.
l. 1t has been thought by some that the
critics We're in special the unmarried. who did
not have any personal interest nor feel any
warm sympathy for childhood.
If Christ had shown peculiar regard for
children for three and one-half years, why
Were the Disciples so surprised at his reception
of children? Was this case which we study
solitary instance of the care and interest of
Christ for little ones, or was it a specimen of
Christs usual concern for children? We think
it an instance of Christ's general conduct. The
Disciples all along had been reluctant to have
Christ give so much attention TO little Ones
and at length their impatience broke out into
open complaint. Ministers have preached for
aud yet we see much reluctance and careless
ness about the matter; indeed, sometimes
much lack of faith as to the utility of the prac-
tice, and too often very little consciousness as
10 the obligatorIness of the duty.
The Disciples were as obtuse in their COM
prehensi0n of the place in Christianity for child
hood as they were with regard to the spiritual
nature of his Kingdom. Indeed, there NAV have
been a relation between their unseemly indig-
nation at Christ blessing little children and
their mistaken idea that Jesus was to form a
temporal kingdom with the Twelve as Prime
Ministers. They could not think of their King
becoming sort of st. Nicholas-the patron of
childhood.
8. Position Of Christ to Children.
Jesus noticed his Disciples were repelling
the parents from bringing their children to
him. He was displeased, felt sorry, and was
doubtless somewhat indignant at the conduct
of his Disciples. Notice reasons why:
l. Because they remembered so poorly. Only
in June before he taught them a different
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