Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1909-01-12

| llOn, ana ignorance VI IL lS d Hlool &c
rious disadvantage to the student"
Ruskin said: Il attribute all my vigor
of thought and expression to the fact
that my mother taught me the Bible,
and especially that she made me learn
the first eight chapters of Proverbs. "
Sir Walter Scott, just before his death,
said to his son-in-law, Mr.. Lockhart:
l"Read to me-" From what book shall
/ read " he asked. THE Bible" an
| swered the. dying man; there is but
one book" To these strong endorse
| Inents of the Bible, we all give our
| most hearty assent. Should not this
pre- eminence Of the Bible and its ac-
knowledged supremacy among books
constrain parents to give their children
an accurate and comprehensive knowl-
edge of it's contents?
Opportunity and Obligation of Parents.
The obligation to instruct our chill
dren in the Bible is commensurate with
our opportunity LAS We have oppor-
tunity let us do good" says the inspir-
ed word. The opportunity Of the pa
rent Is supreme and his obligation is
proportionally great. "The hand that
rocks the cradle rules the world" Is a
proverbial expression Of the worldwide
influence Of a parents sphere. We
need not dwell upon elements of home
opportunity for religious instructions,
susceptible minds and hearts, faith in
parents, constant association, supreme
authority, personal interest and mutual
owe. All these we admit in theory
though we may deny them in practice.
Let us rather look at the results Of the
improvement of the opportunity and
fulfllment of the obligations as seen
m the lives Of two men, one now a
saint in the church triumphant and the
other still a honored member of the
church militant, Drs. John G. Patton and
Theodore l.. Cuyler. If you have not
done so, read pioneering in the New
Hebrides, An Autobiography" by the
former, and "Recollections Of a long
Life" by the latter from which the fol-
lowing interesting facts Of their home
life are culled. The influence Of these
two lives has been felt around the globe
and the world Is better and heaven
richer because they lived. Yet the
source of these two streams Of power
for good Is ascribed by each to the home
influence Of parents, who recognized
their opportunity and quietly met the
sacred obligation divinely assigned. In
speaking Of his early home life and re-
ligious training, DR.. Patton says: And
so began in his seventeenth year that
blessed custom of family prayer, morn
ing and evening, which my father prac-
tised probably without one single omis-
sion till he lay on his deathbed, II
years Of age; when even to the last
day of his life. a portion Of Scripture
was read, and his voice was heard soft
ly joining in the Psalm, and his lips
breathing the morning and evening
prayer-falling in sweet benediction on
the heads of all his children, far away
<-cny Of them over all the earth, but
all meeting him there at the throne of
Grace. None of us can remember that
any day ever passed unhallowed thus;
no hurry for market, no rush to busi-
ness, no arrival of friends or guests, no
trouble or sorrow, no joy or excitement
ever prevented at least our kneeling
around the family altar, while the
high priest led our prayers to God, and
offered himself and his children there.
Each of us, from very early days,
considered it no penalty, but great
10y to go with our father to the church.
We had, too, special Bible readings on
the Lords day evening, mother and
children and visitors reading in turns,
with fresh and interesting question:
answer, and exposition, all tending to
impress us with the infinite grace OF
God of love and mercy in the great gift
Of his dear Son Jesus, our Saviour
The Shorter Catechism was gone
through regularly. 1t laid the solid
rock foundation of our religious life.
After years have given to these ques-
tions and answers a deeper or modified
meaning, but none Of us have ever once
dreamed of wishing that we had been
otherwise trained. Oh, can remember
those happy Sabbath evenings; no
blinds drawn and shutters up, to keep
out the sun from us, as some scandal
ously affirm; but holy, happy, entire
father
mother and children to spend. There
were eleven of us brought up in home
like that: and never one Of the eleven,
boy or girl, man or woman, has been
heard or ever will be heard, saying that
Sabbath was dull or wearisome for us.
or suggesting that we have heard OF or
seen any way more likely than that for
making the day Of the Lord bright and
blessed alike for parents and children.
And in this world, or in any world, all
their children will rise up at mention Of
their names and call them blessed"
Equally impressive and beautiful is
the picture drawn by DR.. Cuyler of his
early religious instruction. He says:
MY father died when l was but four
and one half years old. After his
death, l passed entirely into the care
of one of the best mothers that God
ever gave an only son. She was more
to me than school, pastor, or church, or
all combined God made mothers be-
fore he made ministers; the progress OF
Christ's kingdom depends more upon
the influence of faithful, wise, and pious
mothers than upon any other human
agency. The first Sunday school that
ever attended had only one scholar,
and my good mother was the superin-
tendent. She gave me several verses OF
the Bible to commit thoroughly to
memory and explained them to me; l
also studied the Westminster Cate
chism. 1 was expected to study Gods
Book for myself, and not to sit and be
crammed by teacher after the fash
ion of too many Sunday schools in these
DAYS. There is a lamentable ignorance
of the language of Scripture among the
rising generation Of America, and too
often among the children Of professed-
ly Christian families. During my IN
e,,,.,, +Lo. oodl,, ,,,otber had dedicated