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terrible wailing and anguish of those, who shall there cry out, 'Blessed are the wombs that never bare, and the paps which never gave suck?'--Luke 23: 29. Doubtless, from the bitter thought that they have not brought their children back to God, from whom they had only received them in trust."

III. MONKISH TRAINING OF THE YOUNG.

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Luther disapproves of isolating children from the world, after the usage of the monks. "Solomon," says he, was a right royal schoolmaster. He does not forbid children from mingling with the world, or from enjoying themselves, as the monks do their scholars; for they will thus become mere clods and blockheads, as Anselm likewise perceived. Said this one; 'a young man, thus hedged about, and cut off from society, is like a young tree, whose nature it is to grow and bear fruit, planted in a small and narrow pot.' For the monks have imprisoned the youth whom they have had in charge, as men put birds in dark cages, so that they could neither see nor converse with any one. But it is dangerous for youth to be thus alone, thus debarred from social intercourse. Wherefore, we ought to permit young people to see, and hear, and know what is taking place around them in the world, yet so that you hold them under discipline, and teach them self-respect. Your monkish strictness is never productive of any good fruit. It is an excellent thing for a young man to be frequently in the society of others; yet he must be honorably trained to adhere to the principles of integrity, and to virtue, and to shun the contamination of vice. This monkish tyranny is moreover an absolute injury to the young; for they stand in quite as much need of pleasure and recreation as of eating and drinking; their health, too, will be firmer and the more vigorous by the means."

IV. OFFENSE GIVEN TO CHILDREN.

In Luther's exposition of the sixth commandment, he pointedly condemns the offense which is given to the young by the use of foul language. "It is a great sin to use such infamous language in the presence of innocent boys and girls. Those who do it are guilty of all the sins which their inconsiderate words beget. For the tender and inexperienced minds of children are very quick to receive an impression from such words; and, what is far worse, this filthy language clings to their memory, and long abides with them, even as a stain on a fine white cloth is much harder to efface than if it came on one that is rough and course. This the pagans, too, learned from experience: Horace, for example, who says that a new vase long retains the odor of that substance that happened first to have been put into it!

'Quo semel est imbuta recens servabit odorem
Testa diu,'

And Juvenal, 'you should pay the utmost regard to your boy; and, if you meditate any thing base, think not that his age is too tender to remain unsullied.'

'Maxima debeter puero reverentia, si quid

Turpe paras, hujus tu ne contemseris annos.'

"We will now inquire more particularly what these people do, who thus offend children? Since it is a good thing to pay regard to their tender years, and to keep them in the observance of propriety and decorum, (for it is an acceptable sacrifice to God, to seek the welfare of souls,) we should, therefore, with all diligence, watch over young boys and girls, and prevent them either from seeing or hearing any thing infamous; for their evil tendencies are strong enough by nature. If you seek to quench fire, not with water, but by adding fuel to it, what good do you think you will do? But, alas! how many wicked people there are, who make themselves the tools of the devil, and destroy innocent souls with their poisonous and corrupt language. The devil is truly called a destroyer of souls, but he does not do his work, unless with the help of the infamous tongues of such as are on his side, and take pattern by his example.

"Can a child root out of his soul the vile word, that has once passed in at his ear? The seed is sown, and it germinates in his heart, even against his will. And it branches out into strange and peculiar fancies, which he dares not utter, and can not rid himself of. But, woe to thee! whoever thou art, who hast conveyed into an artless mind, that had otherwise been free from the guile, such troubles, perils and poison! Thou hast not, indeed, marred the body; but, as much as in thee lay, thou hast disfigured that much nobler part, the soul. Thou hast poured, through the ear of a fellow-being, a deadly bane into his life-blood; yea, thou hast slain his soul. Such people are of the race of Herod, who slew the innocents in Bethlehem. You would not suffer your own children to be murdered before your eyes;-why then will you destroy souls that are not yours, but God's. St. Louis, king of France, said that his mother would rather have seen her children die by violence than commit a deadly sin. And what a terrible condemnation does our Lord pronounce upon such corruption of children. But whoever shall offend one of these little ones, which believe in me, it were better for him that a mill-stone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.' Matt., 18: 6. See what care Christ bestows on innocent little children, in that he affixes a new and peculiar penalty upon the sin of those who offend and injure them; a penalty that is denounced upon no other sin. By this he would doubtless indicate, that such persons

shall undergo an aggravated punishment in the world of woe. And hear him further, in the 7th verse, 'Woe unto the world, because of offenses! for it must needs be that offenses come; but woe to that man by whom the offense cometh! And, in the 10th, 'Take heed, that ye despise not one of these little ones; for I say unto you, that in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven.'

"If any one should be disposed to judge these persons mildly, and say their words may raise a blush, but they themselves are clean, as Ovid falsely alledges of himself,

My manners differ widely from my verse;

The muse may dally,-I am none the worse.

let him hear what Christ says, and keep silence. 'Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.' 'A tree is known by its fruits.'

"And hence it is, too, that the Christian faith is at so low an ebb, because the children have been led out of the way; and, if the Christian church is again to rise from the dust, we must begin with a careful instruction of the young."

V. DEGENERATE CHILDREN.

When, despite the conscientious efforts of parents and teachers, children turn out ill, Luther casts a consoling view upon the case. "What is greater and more glorious than this your labor, ye faithful taskmasters? You are, in all truthfulness, to instruct, to teach, to chasten and admonish the youth committed to your care, in the hope that some will keep in the way of wisdom, though some too may turn aside. For whoever will do any good, must bear in mind, that this effort may prove all in vain, and his benevolence be thrown away; for there are always many who scorn and reject good counsel, and but few who follow it. We should be satisfied, if our good deeds are not wholly fruitless; and if, among ten lepers, one returns and gives thanks, it is well.-Luke, 17: 17. So, if among ten scholars, there is but one who bends to discipline and learns with zeal, it is well; for our kindness is not wholly lost; and Christ himself bids us, after the example of his Heavenly Father, do good to the thankful and the

unthankful alike.

"Therefore, stand in your lot, and labor with all diligence; and, if God does not crown you with success, yet ascribe to him glory and dominion in the highest, and faint not, neither be impatient. Think what an admirable example Solomon has set us; for Solomon himself, or any other king, may train up his son from infancy in the best, most pains-taking, and most godly manner, thinking and hoping,

he shall succeed, and may fail, notwithstanding all. Have you a pious son; then say, 'thanks be to God, who has made him and given him to me;'-but, if your son has grown up to evil courses, you can but say, 'such is this poor human life; I have toiled to train up my son aright; but it was not the Lord's will he should prosper; yet blessed be the name of the Lord.'

"Nor must parents ever cease to seek their children's good, however degenerated and ungrateful they may be."

VI. ALLOWED DISOBEDIENCE.

But should parents, in the training of their children, trangress God's commandments, then, Luther thinks, they can not justly claim their obedience.

If parents act with such thoughtless folly, as to bring up their children to wordly pleasure and dissipation, then the children may cease to obey them. For we see by the first three commandments that God will be honored before earthly parents. By bringing them up to the world, I mean, pointing them to nothing higher than pleasure, honor and wordly good.

VII. SCHOOLS.

The establishment of institutions of learning by magistrates, as a means of providing a constant succession of well-educated and able men for the church, the school and the government, and a defense of study, especially the study of the languages, and the founding of libraries, are treated of in "Dr. Martin Luther's Address to the Councilmen of all the towns of Germany, calling upon them to establish and sustain Christian schools. A. D., 1524."

To the Mayors and Councilmen of all the towns of Germany :

Grace and peace from God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. Beloved rulers, wise and sagacious men, ye all do know that I have been under ban and outlawry for well nigh three years; and I surely would keep silence now, if I feared the commandments of men more than I fear God; for which cause also, many in this our German land, both high and low, are even now denouncing my words and deeds, and shedding much blood over them. But, for all this, I can not refrain from speaking; for God has opened my mouth, and commanded me to speak, yea, to cry aloud, and to spare not, while at the same time he has ever been giving strength and increase to my cause, and that too without any device or act of mine; for the more they rage and set themselves, the more he laughs and has them in derision.”—2nd Psalm. And by this one thing alone, whosoever is not hardened in unbelief may see that this cause is of God. For this is ever the way with God's word and work here on the earth; they manifest the greatest power precisely when men are the most eager to overthrow and destroy them. Therefore, I will speak, and, as Isaiah saith, "I will not hold my peace, till the righteousness of Christ go forth as brightness, and his salvation as a lamp that burneth." And I beseech you all, my beloved rulers and friends, receive this my writing and exhortation with joy, and lay it to heart. For whatever I am in myself, yet in this matter I can say of a truth, with a pure conscience in the sight of God, that I have not sought mine own good, (which I could the more easily have secured by silence ;) but, out of a true heart, I speak to you and to the whole of Germany, even as God has ordained me to do, whether ye hear, or whether ye forbear. And I would have you freely, cheerfully and in a spirit of love, give me your attention; since, doubtless, if ye obey me herein, ye obey not me, but Christ, and whoever does not follow my precepts, despises Christ, and not me.

Wherefore I beseech you all, beloved rulers and friends, for the sake of God and of poor neglected youth, do not count this a small matter, as some do, who, in their blindness, overlook the wiles of the adversary. For it is a great and solemn duty that is laid upon us, a duty of immense moment to Christ and to the world, to give aid and counsel to the young. And in so doing we likewise promote our own best interests. And remember, that the silent, hidden and malicious assaults of the devil can be withstood only by manly Christian effort. Beloved rulers, if we find it necessary to expend such large sums, as we do yearly, upon artillery, roads, bridges, dykes, and a thousand other things of the sort, in order that a city may be assured of continued order, peace, and tranquillity, ought we not to expend on the poor suffering youth therein, at least enough to provide them with a schoolmaster or two? God the Almighty, has, in very deed, visited us Germans with the small rain of his grace, and vouchsafed to us a right golden harvest. For we have now among us many excellent and learned young men, richly furnished with knowledge, both of the languages and of the arts, who could do great good, if we would only set them to the task of teaching our little folks. Do we not see before our very eyes, that a boy may now be so thoroughly drilled in three years, that, at fifteen or eighteen, he shall know more than hitherto all the high schools and cloisters put together have ever been able to impart? Yea, what other thing have the high schools and cloisters ever achieved, but to make asses and blockheads? Twenty, forty years would they teach you, and after all you would know nothing of Latin, or of German either; and then, too, there is their shameful profligacy, by which how many ingenuous youths have been led astray! But, now that God has so richly favored us, in giving us such a number of persons competent to teach these young folks, and to mould their powers in the best manner, truly it behooves us not to throw his grace to the wind, and not to suffer him to knock at our door in vain. He is even now waiting for admittance; good betide us if we open to him, happy the man who responds to his greeting. If we slight him until he shall have passed by, who may prevail with him to return? Let us bethink ourselves of our former sorrow, and of the darkness wherein once we groped. I do not suppose that Germany has ever heard so much of God's word as now; certainly we may search our history in vain for the like state of things. If we let all this slip away, without gratitude and praise, it is to be feared that worse calamities and a deeper darkness will come upon us. My dear German brothers, buy, while the market is at your door; gather in, while the sun shines, and the weather is fair; apply the word and the grace of God to your hearts, while they are here. For this you should always bear in mind, that God's word and grace are a passing shower, that goes,-never to return. And do not, my German brothers, indulge in the delusive dream that it will abide with you forever. For an ungrateful and a scornful spirit will drive it away. Wherefore, lay hold of it, and keep it, ye, who may; idle hands reap never a harvest. God's command, so often communicated through Moses, to the effect that parents should teach their children, is thus taken up and enforced in the 78th Psalm, 3rd verse, et seq., "which our fathers have told us, we will not hide them from their children, showing to the generations to come the praise of the Lord." And the 5th commandment God deemed of such vast importance, that the punishment of death was decreed upon stubborn and disobedient children. And why is it, that we, the elder, are spared to the world, except to train up and instruct the young? It is impossible that the gay little folks should guide and teach themselves; and accordingly God has committed to us, who are old and experienced, the knowledge which is needful for them, and he will require of us a strict account of what we have done with it. Listen to Moses, in Deuteronomy, 32: 7.-" Ask thy father, and he will show thee; thine elders, and they will tell thee." But with us, to our sin and our shame be it spoken, it has come to this, that we must drive and be driven, before we can bring up our children aright, and seek their good; and yet, nature itself would seem to prompt us what to do, and manifold examples among pagan nations, to incite us to do it. There is not a brute animal that does not direct and instruct its young to act as befits its nature; unless we except the ostrich, of which God saith, in Job, 39: 14, 16; "which leaveth her eggs in the earth," "she is hardened against her young ones, as though they were not hers." And what would it profit us, if we were faithful in the discharge of every other duty, and should become well-nigh perfect, if, withal, we failed to do

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