The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1895-08-03
RESPONSIBILITY OF PARENTS.
To the Editor of THE UNIvERsAL1sT:

| To the Editor of THE UNIvERsALIsT:
WATERLOO, IA, July 11.--Amopg the
many good things in recent issue of the
Universalist Herald. find the following
admirable and timely article from Rev.
Everett Green, Bagdad, Florida. 1t
touches great wrong among our people
which ought to be righted. While
| written more particularly for the Uni
i versalist homes of the Southland it is
equally applicable to the North, and
hope you will copy the article entire in
The UNIvERsALJsT and that the Banner,
Leader and Onward will do the same.
E. P. SINCLAIR.
| A TALK WITH UNIVERSALIST PARENTS.
There is Union church one mile
north of me, and neat, new school
house two miles south of me. In these
places I preach to my neighbors; in the
church the first and third Sundays, and
in the school house the second and
fourth Sundays, except when my health
or the weather prevents.
[ am busy, usually, six days in the
week with my farm work. and find but
little time for correspondence; but the
responsibility of Upiversalist parents to
their children, induces me now to write.
have two children now in their third
and fifth years. They are healthy and
intelligent, and are receiving constantly,
moral, social, intellectual and religious
impressions. They both learn very fast.
Bessie, the older, can read, and Oracle
knows her letters.
Last year, sent to Mrs. E. M. Bruce,
editor of the Myrtle. at Boston, Mass,
for two catechisms. These l use as
guides in teaching my children religion.
have little Sunday school in my own
home. Some may say that my children
are too young for this teaching, but l
know have not begun too soon. The
two catechisms, think, cost only twen-
ty cents.
Every father and mother ought to get
these catechisms, or other instruction
books, and establish Sunday schools in
their own homes, unless there is better
school at hand of our own faith.
By no means, however, would have
you to keep away from other churches
and Sunday schools. only desire that
you be sure to instruct your children in
the most precious and holy faith of the
Universalist Church. Such course as
this with our isolated Universalist fami-
lies in the South, would, in less than a
generation, make us great organized
power here in the South.
With this holy zeal, God would raise
up for US an abundance of preachers
from the by ways. from the trades, and
from our children. Brethren, sisters,
mediate upon this. Pray over the mat
ter. Act and God will bless you.
The religious condition of the isolated
families of our faith in the South, is
often actually bereavement. The chill
dren get in their homes only the most
fragmentary ideas of our faith. They
attend Unitarian churches and Sunday
schools. and many are thus drawn from
US. They too often learn scorn and con-
tempt for Universalists and their faith.
And when this is the case in home, the
father may try to talk his faith to his
children, but he finds them unwilling
listeners. They prefer not to be in
structed by him. He is kind father,
very likely, and they do not wish to pain
him by exhibiting their contempt or
scorn. They are silent. They will not
talk with their father about religion
He has lost the battle, and he is to
blame. He failed in his duty to his
children when they would have received
his instructions. prov. xxi. g.
Shall all those who have been such
failures, continue so? God forbid. To
begin and pursue this work of instruc-
ton will require some heroism, but God
will not be satisfied with your work if it
is less than heroic. EVERETT GREEN.
BAaDAD, FLA.