Two things will be noticed in respect to this law, namely, it was issued before he made any profession of Christian faith, and, it was the day of the sun which was to be observed by resting from secular labor. And history furnishes abundant evidence that the sun was the especial object of adoration by the emperor, and Apollo, the sun-god, was his "tutelary deity." If this be so, then the heathen origin of the edict must be beyond question. Milman thus testifies :—
"Up to this period, all that we know of Constantine's religion would imply that he was outwardly and even zealously pagan. In a public oration his panegyrist extols the magnificence of his offerings to the gods. His victorious presence was not merely expected to restore more than their former splendor to the Gaulish cities, ruined by barbaric incursions, but sumptuous temples were to arise at his bidding, to propitiate the deities, particularly Apollo, his tutelary god. The medals struck for these victories are covered with the symbols of paganism. Eusebius himself admits that Constantine was at this time in doubt which religion he should embrace; and after his vision, required to be instructed in the doctrines of Christianity."—Hist. of Christianity, p. 287.
And again, of the Sunday law, he says :—
"It is the day of the sun which is to be observed by the general veneration; the courts were to be closed, and the noise and tumult of public business and legal litigation were no longer to violate the repose of the sacred day. But the believer in the new paganism, of which the solar worship was the characteristic, might acquiesce without scruple, in the sanctity of the first day of the week."—Milman, book 3, chap. 1.
Gibbon furnishes the following decisive evidence on the subject :—
"The devotion of Constantine was more peculiarly directed to the genius of the sun, the Apollo of Greek and Roman mythology; and he was pleased to be represented with the symbols of the god of light and poetry. The altars of Apollo were crowned with the votive offerings of Constantine; and the credulous multitude were taught to believe that the emperor was permitted to behold with mortal eyes the visible majesty of their tutelary deity. The sun was universally celebrated as the invincible guide and protector of Constantine."—Gibbon, chap. 20, vol. 2, p. 251.*
And again :—
"The panegyric of Eumenius, which was pronounced a few months before the Italian war, abounds with the most unexceptionable309evidence of the pagan superstition of Constantine, and of his particular veneration for Apollo, or the sun."—Note, p. 251.
Reference has been made to the fact that after Constantine professed his preference for Christianity he continued to hold the office and title of Pontifex Maximus, or high priest of the heathen rites; and he held it to the year of his death in 337, and, indeed, there is no evidence existing, that we have been able to find, that he ever renounced it. His religion was not Christianity, but Polytheism, and when he professed to embrace Christianity it was in union with his former paganism, and not by any means to the exclusion of it. Thus Keightley says :—
"Constantine, however, was still a polytheist, and his principal object of worship was the sun-god, Apollo. At the same time, with the compliant spirit of polytheism, he held the God of the Christians and the author of their faith in respect and reverence."—Hist. of Rome, p. 313.
And Dr. Schaff testifies to the same thing :—
"At first, Constantine, like his father, in the spirit of the Neo-Platonic syncretism of dying heathendom, reverenced all the gods as mysterious powers; especially Apollo, the god of the sun, to whom, in the year 308, he presented munificent gifts. Nay, so late as the year 321 he enjoined regular consultation of the soothsayers in public misfortunes, according to ancient heathen usage; even later, he placed his new residence, Byzantium, under the protection of the God of the martyrs and the heathen goddess of Fortune; and down to the end of his life he retained the title and dignity of a Pontifex Maximus, or high priest of the heathen hierarchy. His coins bore on the one side the letters of the name of Christ, on the other the figure of the sun-god, and the inscription, Sol invictus."—Church Hist., vol. 2, pp. 14, 15.
The edict above referred to in which "he enjoined regular consultation of the soothsayers in public misfortunes, according to ancient heathen usage," was given on the 8th day of March, 321, the next day after the Sunday decree was given! Without any other evidence this fact would prove that the Sunday edict was a heathen ordinance only; and it had no more reference to Christian duties than had the consultation of soothsayers, which the Lord had expressly forbidden to his people. And Dr. Schaff clearly shows the nature of his Christianity, so-called, in the fact that he not only retained his office of Pontifex Maximus, and dedicated his residence to the goddess of Fortune as well as to the God of the Christians, but inscribed on one side of his coins the name of Christ, and on the other the figure of the sun-god, with words of adoration to the sun! Dr. Schaff further says:
"He enjoined the observance, or, rather, forbade the public desecration of Sunday, not under the name of Sabbatum, or dies Domini, but under its own astrological or heathen title, dies solis, familiar to all his subjects, so that the law was as applicable to the worshipers of Hercules, Apollo, and Mithras, as to the Christian."
But Dr. Schaff has gone further, as he well knew that Constantine had no regard for Christianity at the time when he issued this Sunday decree, and this he declares in the following words :—
"He enjoined the civil observance of Sunday, though not as dies Domini, but as dies solis, in conformity to his worship of Apollo, and in company with an ordinance for the regular consulting of the haruspex (321)."—Hist. of the Chris. Church, vol. 2, p. 31.
And Milman again says :—
"The rescript commanding the celebration of the Christian Sabbath bears no allusion to its peculiar sanctity as a Christian institution; it is the day of the sun which is to be observed by the general veneration."—Page 289.
Although retaining the office of high priest of paganism he exercised the power of a bishop in the Christian church, and affected to preach. Dr. Schaff says one of his sermons "is still extant, in which he recommends Christianity in a characteristic strain, and in proof of its divine origin cites especially the fulfillment of prophecy, including the Sibylline books, and the Fourth Eclogue of Virgil."—Hist., vol. 2, p. 34.
Mosheim, while avowing his belief that the conversion of Constantine (such as it was) took place in 323, says that Zosimus placed it after the death of Crispus, 326; and he adds that it is difficult to determine the truth in the matter. The words of Mosheim on this point are as follows :—
"How long Constantine retained these vague and undecided views of religion and religious worship, regarding the Christian religion as excellent, and salutary to the Roman State, yet not esteeming the other religions or those of inferior gods, as vain, pernicious, and odious to God—it is difficult to determine. Zosimus, as is well known, reports that Constantine did not publicly profess Christianity, and show himself hostile to the Romish sacred rites, until after the slaughter of his son Crispus, and his wife Fausta; which truly detestable crimes were perpetrated in the year 326."—Hist. Com., p. 469.
They who would gladly avail themselves of Constantine's influence in behalf of some customs introduced in his day, are anxious to save his reputation as far as possible. If his conversion could be placed after the most horrid of his crimes were committed, it would be some relief to his character as a Christian. But that is attended with difficulties, for it would place his Sunday edict farther from his professed reception of Christianity, and also present him as presiding over the first great Christian council and leading the minds of the bishops in their consultations on matters of faith before he professed regard for the Christian religion! Look at it in whatever light we will, his patronage of the church was a curse to it, and his Christianity, mixed as it was with paganism, was unworthy of the name. The title of "the great" has been accorded to him with many misgivings, by some, as the following shows :—
"That Constantine had a large share of talent, and some virtues, is undeniable; but when we consider his many faults, among which was a cruelty that did not spare even his own children, his claim to the title of great becomes somewhat more than dubious."—Dictionary of Biography.
Dr. Schaff makes another declaration which has an important bearing on Constantine's religion, and sheds light on the statements made but a few pages before that he acted "in the spirit of the Neo-Platonic syncretism of dying heathendom." Syncretism is the attempted union of incongruous principles; and this was remarkably displayed in the actions of Constantine. Dr. Schaff there stated to what length this incongruity was attempted to be carried, even to wearing the insignia of a pagan high priest and exercising the functions of a Christian bishop; to dedicating his residence to the goddess of Fortune and to the God of the Christians; and to inscribing together on his coins the name of Christ with the figure of the sun-god and words of adoration to the sun! The further statement of Dr. Schaff is in regard to the length of time in which these inconsistencies were retained by the emperor :—
"When at last on his death bed he submitted to baptism, with the remark, 'Now let us cast away all duplicity,' he honestly admitted the conflict of two antagonistic principles which swayed his private character and public life."—Hist., vol. 2, p. 18.
It appears beyond all denial that, had not the bishops become ambitious, selfish, and worldly; had they not valued the personal favors bestowed by the emperor above the purity of the church, they would never have recognized him as the leader and head of the church, as he actually was at the council of Nice. But this was a dark day for the church, as the extracts we have given conclusively show. Most of the testimony respecting it comes to us through the "orthodox" or Roman side. But the picture is dark enough. Athanasius, a man of indomitable will and determination, took the lead of the Trinitarians, or orthodox, as they were finally called, while Arius headed the opposition. Strong charges were preferred against Athanasius, concerning whose trial Sozomon thus speaks :—
"After several sessions, when the synod was filled with tumult and confusion, and the accusers and a multitude of persons around the tribunal were crying aloud that Athanasius ought to be deposed as a sorcerer and a ruffian, and a being utterly unworthy of the priesthood, the officers who had been appointed by the emperor to maintain order in the synod compelled the accused to quit the judgment hall secretly; for they feared that he might be torn to pieces by the mob."—Eccl. Hist., p. 86.
So far as Arius himself was concerned the controversy was closed by his sudden death in a fit of purging and retching; the orthodox declaring that God had smitten him for perverting the faith, and his friends as persistently declaring that he died by poison from the hands of his orthodox enemies.
J. H. WAGGONER.
(To be Continued.)
God’s Opinion Matters Most
TAKE very little account of what your neighbors think of you, but think much of what God thinks of you.
The Sabbath in Continental Europe.
By John Nevins Andrews
The friends of the Bible Sabbath are not numerous in Europe, though there is reason to believe that nearly or quite all the countries of the continent have some who hallow the day of the Creator's rest. But if they are not strong in numbers they are mighty in the strength which is given through the truth. They hallow the day observed by the Creator in giving an example to mankind, and observed also by the Son of God while he dwelt among mankind; the day observed also by all inspired men throughout the Scriptures, and the only weekly Sabbath ever observed by any of them. They do this in obedience to the fourth commandment of the law of God, which law stands firmer than heaven and earth, as Christ has testified. This moral law of God is no temporary law; for the Saviour declares that even a jot or a tittle shall not pass from it till the heavens and the earth shall pass, which will not be till the day of Judgment. This royal law from the King of heaven is so sacred that whoever violates one of its precepts is counted guilty of violating the whole code. Matt. 5:18.
It is true that as the result of the predicted apostasy the nations have been made drunk with the wine of Babylon, which is false doctrine, and out of this cup even good men have sipped the doctrine of the change of the Sabbath, and now observe a day never commanded in the Bible, but only sustained by the tradition of the elders, and made convenient because of general practice. Even from the days of their fathers have men gone astray from God's ordinances, and have not kept them. They have transgressed his law, changed his ordinance, and broken the everlasting covenant.
One man with God's sacred truth so plain and so mighty can stand before a thousand who are sustained only by tradition and the commandments of men, and two may put ten thousand to flight. The strength of the contending hosts is thus very different from what at first view it appears. In every age since God gave man the example, there have been reverent observers of his sacred memorial—not simply for rest from toil, but to commemorate the creation of the heavens and the earth. They have always been a minority, but they have held in trust a most sacred treasure—the Sabbath of the Lord their God.
There are Sabbath-keeping Christians in Switzerland, Germany, Holland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Russia, Bohemia, Hungary, and Italy. Probably also in the other countries of Europe there are some who observe the day enjoined in the commandment, though we have as yet no definite knowledge of them. In Southern Russia there are many Sabbath-keeping Christians, and they date back at least one hundred years before the great Reformation. In the vicinity of Elberfeld, Germany, are some fifty Christians who hallow the seventh day. Eld. James Ertzenberger is now laboring in that field. In Western Switzerland there are about seventy Sabbath-keeping Christians. They are making earnest efforts to bring this great truth concerning the Sabbath of the Lord to the knowledge of the people of Europe. How long shall it be that men who fear God will stand on the side of error? How long will they continue to trample beneath their feet the memorial of the great Creator? How long will they halt between duty and convenience? The present is the time when God will cause men to show what is in their hearts. Reader, what do you think of the fourth commandment, and what are you doing with respect to what it commands? —J. N. Andrews, in Sabbath Memorial.
What Do These Things Mean?
By M. E. Kelsey
THIS is a question which can but suggest itself to the mind of every person who takes any interest in the things that are transpiring around him. It is a very rare thing to take up a secular paper without finding quite a portion of it devoted to accounts of terrible disasters by fires, floods, tornadoes, and earthquakes.
So frequent are these occurrences, and so numerous are the portents of coming events, that even the insane seeker after pleasure, the worldling in the giddy whirl of business, and people among all classes, and in all avocations, are constrained to pause and inquire, What is before us? What great event is the world being prepared for by these calamities?
And well may they raise these inquiries. Only look at the number of desolating fires and floods that have swept over our country during the last few years, spreading sorrow and death in their track. During the late fires in Pennsylvania, many towns and villages have been laid waste, and the inhabitants have been obliged to flee for their lives. In Wisconsin, also, fires have been raging, and the city of Oshkosh was almost entirely destroyed a few months since, the loss being estimated at no less than $2,000,000. And while our own country has been suffering such disasters, other countries are not without their portion. France has recently been visited by floods and inundations devastating large tracts of country, and carrying away thousands of people.
The appalling accounts of the Chicago fire of 1871 alone are sufficient to cause every one to stop and consider. It is said by eye witnesses of that event that "The very air seemed to be on fire." The Detroit Post gave at that time the following description of the scene:— "The fire did not spread gradually from tree to tree and from house to house, but a great sheet of flame, overcoming them like the clouds, and moving with the rapidity of a hurricane, rushed upon them without warning. The atmosphere seemed filled with fire. Many who inhaled the air fell dead. Corpses were found without a trace of fire upon them, or even upon the clothes which still covered them. Many were killed in compact masses as if by blast of death, and fish were killed in the streams by the intense heat. Many of the people believed that the last day had come, and well they might."
It was estimated that a space one mile wide and five miles long was burned over, not even sparing buildings which were considered fireproof. Thus we have the enormous extent of "thirty-two hundred acres of burned buildings, the loss being three times that caused by the fire of 1666 in London, and over fifteen times that occasioned by the celebrated fire of 1868 in Portland, Maine."
If this does not fulfill the prophecy of Isaiah, "Thou shalt be visited of the Lord of hosts with thunder, and earthquake, and great noise, with storm and tempest, and the flame of devouring fire," what can?
Another fact which adds to the fears and strange forebodings of the people, is the alarming frequency and intensity of earthquakes. Only a few weeks ago we had accounts of the terrible earthquake in South America by which it is thought that not less than twenty thousand lives were lost. Also there have been accounts of recent disastrous ruptures in Iceland. At the rate this phenomenon is increasing the inhabitants of this earth may well wonder with astonishment to know what the end will be.
The following figures found in the "Coming Earthquake," by D. T. Taylor, show they are on a fearful increase: "Earthquakes recorded before the Christian era for a period of 1700 years, 58; thence to the end of the ninth century, 900 years, 197; thence to end of fifteenth century, 600 years, 532; thence to end of eighteenth century, 300 years, 2804; thence to 1850, only 50 years, 3240;" and finally, "in the single year of 1868 over one hundred thousand persons perished by earthquakes, and the single month of March, 1869, there were eleven earthquakes, two of them great and destructive."
Surely we could ask for no greater evidence of the times in which we live. When the disciples of Christ raised the question, "What shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?" before giving a direct answer, he mentioned, among other things, that there should be famines, and pestilence, and earthquakes, in diverse places. Therefore, as we see these signs fulfilling, and others fulfilled, how can we doubt the truthfulness of our position that Jesus is soon to return to earth? These things are given as waymarks whereby the Christian may know where he is in the world's history.
The remnant people of God will be called to witness many trying scenes ere they reach their final home, but Christ has promised grace to those who ask it, and has left for us this encouraging promise that "he that endureth to the end the same shall be saved." May we all be among that number. M. E. KELSEY.
Hollister, Cal.
By Dudley Marvin Canright
THIS is a village of some 1500 inhabitants, lying fifteen miles south of Gilroy. It is the county seat of San Benito County. It is a pleasant little town in the midst of a rich farming country just now being settled up. Like other new railroad towns, it has the reputation of being a very rough, irreligious place. Two men have been shot since we came here, and a third has committed suicide; still the majority of the people seem to be quiet and orderly. We never had less disturbance and better order anywhere. One thing is remarkable in California—we do not have the disturbance in our meetings that we frequently experienced in the States. Have not had a rope cut or the least disorder in any meeting this summer.
Religion is at a low ebb in Hollister, as in most other places. The attendance at the regular meetings is exceedingly small, but we have found this so in every place we have visited in California.
We have now been here ten days. We were told that it would be so windy and cold that we could not hold meetings in the tent; but it has been sufficiently warm and pleasant so far. We have a high wind for about three hours every afternoon, directly from the ocean, but it is always calm at meeting time. We have had full as good an interest as we expected, having a steady audience of a little above one hundred, and Sunday evenings two or three hundred. Have sold $10 worth of books. People seem friendly, inviting us to their houses, and bringing food for us when not invited out; so our expenses will be light.
One minister of the place is very friendly, attends our meetings, heartily endorses the most we have presented, and is about convinced on the Sabbath. We have spoken three times on the Sabbath, and hope to have several Sabbath-keepers by next Sabbath.
We do not intend to make a very lengthy stay here, as we shall pitch the tent for two or three weeks in a small village near by, before camp-meeting. If necessary, one of us can stay here and continue the meetings after the tent leaves.
To-morrow Bro. Howard has to leave us. We are sorry to part with him, as he has been a good tent-master—much better than we generally find. We hope it may be our privilege to have him with us again after the camp-meeting, or next season. We are all in good health, and my family is now with me.
The evidence of the certainty and overwhelming importance of our message increases every day. That the hand of God is in this work none can doubt who are acquainted with the evidences of our faith. That the end is drawing near we confidently believe. We hope to see a few souls gathered out in Hollister as witnesses for the present truth. To this end we labor and pray. D. M. CANRIGHT. Hollister, Cal., Aug. 1, 1875.
Gilroy.
By John Norton Loughborough
SABBATH and first-day, in company with Bro. Waggoner, held five meetings in Gilroy. Here we met about a score who are trying to keep the Lord's Sabbath, although surrounded with discouragements of a temporal character. If such are faithful in the work, and in the performance of their duties, there will be not only a growth in grace and strength with themselves, but they may gather others around the standard of truth already erected there. We had some freedom in speaking the word to them and others who met with us, and left them with the hope that we may see them again at some future day, and find them prospering in the good way.
J. N. L.
The Blood of Christ
As there is no blood that saves souls like the blood of Christ, so there is no blood that sinks souls like the blood of Christ. A drop of this blood upon a man's head at last will make him miserable forever; but a drop of it upon a man's heart at last will make him happy forever.
The Value of Decision
MANKIND like and respect men of decision—border men, neutral men, are detested.
Free-will Offerings.
By Ellen G. White
After the children of Israel had left Egypt, when there was but a step back from freedom to slavery, God commanded the tabernacle to be built from their scanty means. Their own tents were small, but they did not plead to enlarge their own tabernacles. God's house must first be built. God gave them the design he wished them to follow in building the tabernacle. They needed no urging. Gifts and free-will offerings came in abundance. Their ornaments and jewelry were taken from their person and cast into the treasury, to be used to beautify and enrich the house for God. Materials of gold, silver, brass, and ornamental work, were gladly given, each soul being anxious to have an interest in the tabernacle which was being erected for God. More than a million of dollars was expended in erecting that tabernacle. Moses did not need to urge the people, but he had to proclaim to them that they had enough, and their cheerful, willing labors and offerings must cease, for they could not appropriate all that they had already brought.
There are hearts now that are as free, willing, and anxious, to aid in the advancement of the work of God as were the children of Israel. Only let them be assured that there is a work to be done, and that God calls for their means and their hearty co-operation, and they will need no urging.
When we can have even a small comprehension of what Jesus has done for us, we shall feel our responsibility to do all that we can for Christ. The life of Jesus was spent in devising plans for our welfare. While we were enemies to God, he pitied us, and came from the courts of Heaven to suffer, the just for the unjust. He died, and rose again from the grave, to show his followers the way of life from the dead. He now stands before his Father as our great High Priest and our advocate, pleading our cause, and presenting our feeble progress with infinite grace before his Father. He forgives our transgressions, and by imputing unto us his righteousness, he links us to the Infinite. In the heavenly courts our Saviour stands and extends to the world the gracious invitation, Come, ye weary, ye poor, ye hungry; come, ye burdened, ye heavy-laden, sin-sick souls, come. And whosoever will, let him come and partake of the waters of life freely.
Can we be too earnest, and self-sacrificing in our efforts to set the truth before the world? Shall we plead for ease and for the pleasures of this life, to enjoy our pleasant homes and the society of family and friends, and let others do the work which must be done in warning the world? Shall we plead as did the ungrateful ones to whom Christ extended the invitation to come to supper, I pray thee have me excused? Or shall we gird on the armor with cheerfulness, hope, and faith, and like valiant soldiers, be willing to engage in the thickest of the fight, war the good warfare, share the glorious victory, and receive the eternal reward?
E. G. W.
Preparation for the Work.
By John Nevins Andrews
God does not call men to work for him without fitting them for his work if they will allow him to do it. They may refuse to be benefited by his effort to instruct them, but it is nevertheless true that he does give them an opportunity and means of preparation to fit themselves for his work. It is not for the honor of God that men should enter into his work till they are prepared to do it in a manner that he can approve.
God gave to Isaiah a vision of heavenly glory. When he had seen it, he cried out, “Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.” Isa. 6:5. Upon this, one of the seraphim took a live coal from off the altar and laid it upon his lips, and said, “Lo this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.”
Then he heard the Lord make this inquiry, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” And thus he records his response: “Then said I, Here am I; send me.” And the Lord then bade him go forth to fulfill his solemn commission. This teaches us a great lesson. Before men go out to work for God, they must have his work first wrought within themselves. When the live coal from the altar had been laid upon the lips of Isaiah, his iniquity was purged. Then he could speak for God, for he had something to say, and he was fitted to say it in a manner that God could accept.
God does not want men to go out to labor for him till they have had their iniquity taken away. No man can lead others to Christ till he has first become personally acquainted with him. Men cannot preach the truth acceptably to God till they have first felt its saving power on their hearts. Wherever self exists, the work of God will be marred. It is not enough that the truth should be preached. It must be preached from pure motives. The honor of God and the salvation of men are the only reasons which should prompt the acts of Christ’s ministers. When they preach for the purpose of gaining the applause of men, God will not accept their work. Whatever is done to be seen of men, will have no reward from the God of Heaven.
Before we can work for God, we must be soundly converted. When our hearts are right in his sight, our motives will be pure before him. We shall not then seek our own worldly interests, nor the praise of men, nor our own ease and convenience, but shall seek only the honor which comes from God, and for this will cheerfully bear burdens, and make sacrifices without one word of complaint. God will regard what men do with such motives as these. He will not accept that which is done from other motives.
It is no light thing to work for God. The sacredness of the work cannot be over estimated. God will not be trifled with. He sees through all disguises, and he detects the most secret motives of the heart. The action is valued according to the motive which prompts it. Those who name the name of Christ must depart from all iniquity. They must not bear the vessels of the Lord without being themselves clean in his sight. Who is then sufficient for these things?
J. N. A.
Health Department.
By Ellen G. White
"Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth." 3 John 2.
The Mother's First Duties.
Cleanliness, neatness, and order, are indispensable to the proper management of the household. But when the mother makes these the all-important duties of her life, and devotes herself to them, to the neglect of the physical development and the mental and moral training of her children, she makes a sad mistake. The Agriculturist speaks well upon this subject under the head of
"UNPRINCIPLED NEATNESS."
" 'Cleanliness is next to godliness;' but let us never forget that godliness is the first thing to be sought, and after that cleanliness to any extent. If anybody supposes that I mean that you are to 'get converted' in the ordinary sense of that phrase, and then go on scrubbing and scouring with all your might, without any application of Christianity to these wash-board and dish-pan affairs, that person has not made my acquaintance. The 'fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,' etc., and beyond all price; neatness is only a secondary matter.
"We are putting cleanliness above godliness if we brush and scour until our nerves are so wearied that good temper becomes almost a physical impossibility; or if we keep our friends in constant dread of making a speck of dirt upon our premises; or if we allow ourselves to be greatly put out by any disasters that happen to our carpets or tablecloths. It is hard to bear these things, if we have not abundant means and plenty of assistance; and I do not know of anything but a true philosophy believed by the heart, as well as the intellect, that will help us through. Do we really desire to lead true lives, and to do our duty by our families? Then we must settle in our minds what are the essentials to this end, and resolutely make other matters subordinate.
"It is neatness without principle that insists upon clean aprons and polished faces for the children more than upon gentle words and patient sympathy with their plans and pleasures, which concerns itself more about flies and dust than about family health and happiness. Bright windows and spotless paint and well-scoured floors are excellent things in their way; but if you can only secure them by a loss of all time and relish for reading and out-of-door recreation, have the nobleness to bear with some dirt and rags, rather than sacrifice the life for meat or the body for raiment. For the sake of all about you, as well as for your own sake, save your nerves from over-strain, and your intellectual life from starvation. But never sacrifice cleanliness to display. Those children are fortunate who are kept supplied with whole and clean clothing; but none of these things can begin to compare in value with a wise mother's love and care in respect to the formation of character and the development of a sound mind in a sound body. A husband has something to say 'thank you' for, whose buttons are never missing and whose dinner is always in good time and good order; but he deserves to miss the best gifts of this life who values these things above a wife's companionship and inspiration in all things most lovely and of good report."
I have seen a mother whose critical eye could discern anything imperfect in the matching of the wood-work of her house, and who was very particular to have her house-cleaning thoroughly done at the precise time she had set, and would carry it through frequently at the expense of physical and spiritual health, while her children were left to run in the street and obtain a street education. These children were growing up coarse, selfish, rude, and disobedient. The mother, although she had hired help, was so much engaged in household cares that she could not afford time to properly train her children. She let them come up with deformity of character, undisciplined, and untrained. We could but feel that the fine taste of the mother was not exercised in the311right direction, or she would have seen the necessity of moulding the minds and manners of her children, and educating them to have symmetrical characters and lovely tempers.
If the mother had let these things which she has allowed to claim her first attention come in secondarily, she would have regarded the physical, mental, and moral training of her children of almost infinite importance. Those who take upon themselves the responsibility of mothers should feel under the most solemn obligation to God and to their children, to so educate them that they will have amiable and affectionate dispositions, and that they will be pure in morals, refined in taste, and lovely in character.
The mother loves her children. This is right. She cannot help it. But this love is frequently misapplied; for it leads her to indulge her children to their injury.
For years I have looked upon these children with feelings of sadness, sometimes repeating to myself these words: "That which ye sow, ye shall also reap." These children have needed the influence of a calm, well-balanced mind. The mother's time could not be more profitably spent than in seeking heavenly wisdom, and in studying how to train her children for God. If she would succeed she should have a firm trust in God, and that cheerful, hopeful mind and peaceful temper which flows from pure religious principles. Every effort made in this direction will repay her tenfold.
If mothers neglect to properly educate their children, their neglect is reflected back upon them again, making their burdens and perplexities harder than they would have been if they had devoted time and patient care in training their children to obedience and submission. It will pay in the end for mothers to make the formation of the characters of their children their first and highest consideration, that the thorns may not take root and yield an abundant harvest. God calls upon mothers to become co-workers with him in the formation of the character of their children, instead of wasting their time in needless labor to make display in their houses for the eyes of visitors, while their children are coming up with characters that are warped and deformed. They are not trained for usefulness, and their minds molded that they may have self-denial and self-control, having beautiful characters that angels can love. The inward adorning the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit God values. In comparison with this, outward ornamentation is of but little consequence.
Mothers have a sacred mission in directing and educating the minds of their children. They should not be so engrossed with the artificial and burdened with care that they cannot have time to educate their children from God's great book of nature, impressing their young minds with the beauties of opening buds and flowers. The lofty trees, the lovely birds caroling forth their happy songs to their Creator, speak to their senses of the goodness, mercy, and benevolence of God. Every leaf and flower with their varied tints, perfuming the air, teach them that God is love. All that is good and lovely and beautiful in this world speaks to them of the love of our Heavenly Father. The character of God they may discern in his created works. Parents should improve every opportunity to impress their children by connecting in their minds God with the things of nature, that they may look up through nature to nature's God. Lead your children to regard God as the Creator of all things, and to reverence and fear him who is exalted above the heavens, and to love him because he first loved them. The evidences of his love they have on every hand, speaking to them through the glories of nature. Your temporal matters may be neglected rather than the heart wants and culture of the minds of your children. E. G. White.
A Long Life or a Short One.
ONE man will make the shortest life
The longest seem in deeds,
That blossom from the very dust
For human wants and needs—
The harvest of the husbandman
That soweth goodly seeds.
Another drags his span of life
To full four score and ten;
Yet when he dies the busy world
Scarce knows where he has been—
No progress marks his leaden steps
Within the haunts of men.
And thus it matters not so much
How quick we journey through
The fruitful vineyard of the world,
My friend, as what we do!
How soon or late we reach the goal
That all men have in view.
Then let us labor while we may,
With all our given might,
Who have the sun but half the time
And half the time the night,
To fill the precious minutes up
With deeds that court the light.
We will not waste the shreds of time,
However small they seem,
Nor loiter in the great highway
Of mortal life to dream—
Mere clogs beneath the wheels of thrift
In this our age of steam. —Sel.