both in leadership and in work, partly because of the constant fervour of his soul. Mary, of Bethany, is the ideal disciple amongst the women of the four gospels. She is the pattern believer. It is on her Christ lavishes His warmest praise, and in her spirit He finds the model He can hold aloft to all her fellow-disciples. Martha shares His love as really as her sister, but is never lifted out of herself, and above the low current of her household devotion, by the ardour of her affection for Him. She is not impelled to leave her work and go with hungry heart to feast on the words of her Lord. Christ's presence does not magnetize her spirit. She is still careful and troubled about many things. She is busy, restless, even petulant, and such is the weak hold the love of Christ has on her, ready to flame out in anger against the divine Guest for whom she has been eagerly toiling half the day. True she is serving Him, and with love to Him; but not in the spirit that leaves everything else for Him, and rests on Him, and loses itself in adoring Him; and therefore Christ, with mingled sharpness and gentleness, rebukes the cold, bustling, zealous servant, and warmly commends the disciple that chooses Him with a choice that knows no change, and a fulness that leaves nothing behind.

And, as if to make more evident who they are whom He delights to honour, our Lord places before us the companion picture of the feast in the house of Simon the leper. For love gives and works as well as listens with open ear and fixed gaze. It does not sublime itself in idle reverie or wasteful feeling; but yokes itself to the hardest service with a cheerful heart, and finds occasion for jubilant song in endless sacrifices. It does all Martha's work if it is really wanted; does not shirk a bit of it, yea, goes even beyond in fond anticipation, but does all with Mary's spirit of quiet trustfulness, sweet serenity, and holy, fervid self-forgetfulness. It has not only an ear to hear Christ's words, but an alabaster box of precious ointment for Christ's head. It can sit at His feet when, wearied with work, and burdened with real sorrows, He craves communion and sympathy more than food; and it can take up His cross and carry it, or be nailed on to it, if His gospel requires it. Hence it is Mary only whose love-quickened eye sees (for love takes highest rank amongst the seers) the shadow of the cross stretching across the path of her chosen Lord, and brings the pure nard for His anointing beforehand; and it is of this expression of glowing devotion, apparently wasteful, and to the eyes of careful, prudent, shrewd, and bagholding Judas, a wilful extravagance, that Christ says, "Let her alone. She hath done what she could." She hath done what she could." Love has laid its best offering at its shrine. "Wherever this gospel is preached this act shall be spoken of for a memorial of her.” Nothing pleases Christ more than the all-surrendering generosity, and the sublime rich-heartedness of love. Such are the model Christians. Such followers Christ looks for. Absence of feeling is utterly distasteful to Him. He seeks largeness and nobleness of devotion; intense, adoring love: a love that keeps back nothing, but gives Him all, and makes Him all and in all.

And such a love brings serenity and strength. Tennyson sings

Love is and was my Lord and King,

And in His presence I attend
To hear the tidings of my friend,
Which every hour his couriers bring.
Love is and was my King and Lord,
And will be, though as yet I keep

Within his court on earth, and sleep
Encompassed by his faithful guard,
And hear at times a sentinel

Who moves from place to place
And whispers to the worlds of space,
In the deep night, that all is well.

JOHN CLIFFORD.

THE INSTRUCTION OF THE YOUNG IN RELIGIOUS KNOWLEDGE BY THE PASTORS OF THE CHURCHES.

BY REV. R. Y. ROBERTS.

THE title of this paper refers to what is a great need in the present day; and prescribes the remedy, or one part of the remedy, for that need. The first question is that of possibility! Can the pastor undertake this work, and if so, in what form can he operate? It is necessary to ask this because of the state of the case. There is no reason to suppose that the pastor will be released from any other thing in the shape of pastoral duty: and what is he to do? He is to get hold of the young of his congregation, and to get hold of them so that he may influence them, train them, educate them. Are all things ready for the pastor's hands in this matter? Lamentably they are not; and that makes his work the more Herculean in the courage required and the strength necessary.

This work is expected to be additional to any that is done in the Sunday school; additional in that it is, perhaps, to be of a higher character than the teaching there-and so supplemental; and also that it is, perhaps, to include those who do not attend the Sunday school.

The first consideration is, that of the pastor's time for the work. A vigorous and restless glutton for work may say, "He must make the time;" but are there no churches and congregations whose ministers are so worked that they need less work rather than more? If the pastor be not expected to work in pastoral supervision at all; if he never be expected to preach two fresh sermons on the Sunday; if he never be required to take part in public movements or in social gatherings, there is a chance for his taking some work of this kind. But supposing that his time is ample for work, and that he ought to set to work at once, then how is he to occupy the time for the best both for himself and the young? He has his Bible class, and his preparation class with the Sunday school teachers; he works in these, he acquires certain influences in these, but these are in only comparatively limited circles; there is a wide field outside these, in which are those who belong to neither the one class nor the other. And he must so map out his time as to comprehend these! How is he to get them together? He has adverse influences to contend with, the greatest of which is the comparative indifference to the necessity of religious education, as well as of spiritual training. Still, despite adverse influences, a pastor may work and work successfully. There are men who are inspired to action only as they find that difficulties are inevitable. And the demands of the future upon the pastors of the future, as well as of to-day, are of this characteristic. Greater work is inevitable! Greater skill in planning that work is inevitable! Greater personal adaptation for that work is inevitable!

Let us for a moment look at what has been done in this way of education by the pastors of churches. There are instances where pastors have established classes of a certain character among their young people, and when those classes have been tolerably successful. Those of Messrs. Macfadyen, of Manchester, and Picton, of Leicester, are cases in point. But we must remember what there is to be said in favour of these classes. The congregation at either church is very large, and of the higher class of Nonconformists. They are quite exceptional in character, and the Manchester congregation is of the most respectable in position, and it is suburban in situation: the congregation at Leicester has almost equal advantages in its favour. But what is the attendance at these classes? At Manchester the

highest number given as in attendance is only about two hundred, and at Leicester only about one hundred, and at the latter place only thirty are seniors. It may be said that this is a very fair proportion of the young of the congregations, and that such a fact is in itself a crushing defeat of any objections which may be raised. But these do not represent the mass of congregations in the country, and certainly not at all those in the country districts. If these numbers found their comparative parallel in only half of the churches of the great Nonconforming body, then there would be a measure of satisfaction, and an earnest of future strength and stability of religious principle among us.

In Mr. Macfadyen's paper upon this subject, read before the Congregational Union Meeting at Nottingham last October, he says, "We ought not to be content till some plan has been devised by which an opportunity will be provided for every child in the congregation to come into personal contact with his pastor as his teacher." We can see at once that this is the thing to be desired; and more, it is what must be accomplished. It is a difficult task; but if we are men, Christian men, the fact of its being a difficulty will only give us a desire for encountering it, and a determination to be conquerors. It is an absolute necessity of the circumstances of the times in which we live; our present condition demands, and our future prosperity, that the thing be bravely and discreetly encountered.

There are two ways, it seems to us, in which the pastors of our churches may have the direction and oversight in this matter of instruction-by direct contact with our young people, and by general supervision of all the different organizations of the church which have to do with the young. It used to be a favour and a surprise when the pastor of the church appeared among the teachers of the Sunday school. It was talked of for weeks after. And in these days, there are excuses made for the pastor. "He cannot talk to young people; he is too much of a student to be able to come down to the young." These times for the pastors are fast dying out. They are not good old times to be remembered with pride. They were deficient in those very things which would have made us ten-fold better in principle, in understanding, in denominational characteristic than we are. Because of the comparative idleness in those days that are gone, we have the prospect and the necessity of work made doubly hard in its demands, and imperative, in that no time must be lost, ere we set about the work.

Take the general superintendence and supervision on the part of the pastor first. He might make use of the general materials of the church somewhat in this way. There are in our congregations, men and women of comparative intelligence-comparative according to the character of the congregation. In very many places, and indeed where it is otherwise it is regarded as a most remarkable exception, these good friends have no settled, defined work in either church or congregation. So far as intelligence is concerned, they are able to give ample and most useful help to the pastor. They could make themselves district visitors to gather young people together; they could become assistant teachers to work under the supervision and direction of the pastor; they might take classes with tolerable regularity, the pastor alternating, by some settled plan, from one class to another for the purpose of inspection and examination. In this way there might be some general and useful instruction in the things needed, imparted weekly, while the pastor would at certain set times see every one, whether child or youth, receiving instruction, and see each one for the important purpose of testing the value and the influence of the instruction given.

By the Pastors of our Churches.

251

Bearing in mind another very serious and crying necessity in the condition of our young people, and especially of the young people in the south of England, we mean the ignorance of young professing Christians, of their religious responsibilities as citizens, we have another suggestion to offer. The intelligent help in our churches might be utilized in it, the pastor should direct it, and that is the establishment of what might be called "a young members' class." As we are at present governed-at least in the greater number of our churches-the boy or girl of eighteen has as much individual power, so far as voting is concerned, as the sage and experienced member of sixty or seventy years. Does not this put our young people in a false and dangerous position? They are led to regard themselves as fully equipped for the battle of the church; they are blinded to their actual position and tendencies by their power of election; and, though they cannot help a member of parliament into place, they can and do often help largely and sadly to hurl a minister out of peace and usefulness. On this account we think " a young members' class" a great necessity. It should be comprised of young members of the church, or if thought more advisable, of young members of the congregation (though, if conducted efficiently, it would be very beneficial to members not young), and their training should be in scriptural principles, and denominational policy, until at least they are of the age of manhood, as settled by law. With such means of instruction, there would be at least a chance for learning intelligent reasons for being a Dissenter, a Nonconformist, a Baptist, and if need be, not a Calvinist. This might be conducted in the manner before suggested: intelligent members its regular leaders, the pastor systematically and regularly testing its efficiency.

In large churches, where the numbers of additions from the young are comparatively numerous, there might be one of two courses adopted or possibly both. They have been suggested by those who have had much experience in the instruction of the young. They might be combined. A "children's church," as a kind of midway between the school and the church, might be instituted, having its own organization, officers, rules, modes of discipline, etc. Such an institution has been originated by the Rev. James Comper Gray, of Halifax, and he writes concerning it, "This junior church is pronounced by my deacons a very great blessing. It has quickened the teachers; they have an immediate result to aim at. In addition to my church of about two hundred members, the junior church contains about forty-five young people of from ten to fourteen or fifteen years of age. It has been established a little over two years, and has worked well. I am quite sure, and all of us here are sure, it is a step in the right direction." Of course there may be such arrangements and modifications of this institution as shall be deemed desirable by the pastor and church where it shall be established. There have been many and strongly worded expressions of disapproval of this institution, but still we think that its being acknowledged as a "step in the right direction," by one pastor and his deacons, is some proof of its utility.

The other course is, the engagement of a second minister whose special duties should be the shepherding of the lambs of the flock." This is a suggestion of Mr. Macfadyen's, and should certainly recommend itself to the members of our larger churches. He might be the pastor of the children's church, or "junior church," as some prefer to call it, when one was established, and such a help might be exceedingly useful, especially when we consider that to teach and to minister to the young require to a

These

very great extent special gifts as well as earnest and intense special preparation. As to the special manner of the teaching, and the exact character of the instruction, we cannot lay down any unalterable rule. things must be left to the discretion of those who work, and be contingent upon the place and circumstances.

The pastor may also be allowed to have the direction of the instruction of the young in Christian families. There may be objections urged against this, because it may seem to savour somewhat of priestism on the part of the pastors. We appreciate the objections; but at the same time we think that such an oversight would be useful and beneficial not only to the young, but to the parents and heads of households themselves. This may be performed in the way of simple elementary lectures and catechisings; and would, if it did nothing more, operate as a test of the way in which parents and heads of families remembered their spiritual and religious responsibilities. It would tend to decrease the comparative irritation there is between pastor and families in so many instances, and might give some pastors an excuse for visiting where now they feel they are sadly in want of one.

The other suggestion is, that the pastor shall have some defined control over the circulation of religious literature among the young people. In most of our churches there is what is called a 66 book secretary." Through him, for the most part, are ordered the divers magazines and periodicals and tracts, &c., for the young of the church and congregation. One reason for this being, that some gain thereby accrues to the funds of either the church or the Sunday school. It is simply an independent business which very benevolently gives up its profits for the general good. But who has the slightest control or oversight of it? generally speaking, not an individual. And the book secretary, if he please, can take orders for the "Police News," "Sunday at Home," "Good Words," or "Bow Bells." It is not enough to say that such a medley cannot be found in the books of any secretary throughout the land; that is not the question. The question is, "What right of control is there? To whom is the secretary responsible? and we cannot get any fair answer. We have applied to several Sunday schools in years past concerning their rules, and we have never yet seen any provision for proper regularity in this matter. A wide contrast has been intentionally drawn in the character of the books which the secretary may circulate in order to show not probability, but simply possibility. And the very fact of a possibility is ample reason for careful provision in such an important means of diffusing literature. We think the proper authority should be vested in the pastor; not that he be paramount by any means, but that he be the president of some properly authorised and constituted committee of management.

There is then remaining what seems to us an exceedingly difficult question to deal with-the pastor's direct contact with the young people of the church and congregation. If we may use very plain words we shall say that this means that the pastor is to do this work of religious instruction single handed. He is not only to be the spiritual guide of the parents on the Sunday, but the religious teacher of their children in the week. But wherever there be this necessity, and it does exist in some places, the pastor must accept the position, and seek to improve this state of things. In addition to the Bible class for the young of from fourteen to twenty, the pastor may have a preparation class with the teachers of the Sunday school. This plan has been adopted in the writer's own church. There is one week