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BIBLE CLASSES.

THE season of youth is distinguished from the rest of man's life by a greater simplicity, ingenuousness, docility, and warm-hearted affection, and is therefore properly called the golden age of man. At this season more than any other, the powers of the mind are capable of being disciplined to their most vigorous exertion, and the affections of the heart of receiving the deepest and most lasting impressions. Hence by universal consent, this is the season adopted for the training of man to the principles by which he is in after life to be guided, or to the employments in which he is to be engaged; and if this season be neglected, experience declares that the individual generally holds his principles with a looser grasp, or rarely attains to excellence in any profession, either scientific or mechanical. To the testimony of experience we may add that of inspiration, which, in the most decided manner, dictates the same truth- "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it."

To this voice, we rejoice to say, the fathers of our church did not turn a deaf ear. While they preached twice or thrice on the Sabbath, and as often through the week, to those of riper years, they also laboured assiduously in the instruction. of the young. They were well aware, that, although many might have an opportunity of acquiring knowledge in after life, yet it was very uncertain whether their minds, untrained in youth to the labour of obtaining it, would then submit to that labour; and even if they should feel the desire for it, it was still exceedingly doubtful what kind of knowledge might be imbibed, or what class of principles adopted. This would be true, were we only speaking of merely speculative opinions, where it cannot be supposed there would be any natural prejudices to bias the mind in favour of one set, or against another, but still more true when we speak of religious principles. Against the truth there is naturally in every heart a strong, and as we advance in years, an increasing aversion; and if left to itself, the mind will, in all probability, either remain stupid and unacquainted with any principles, or take up those which are directly opposed to that truth to which it feels this natural and growing enmity.

Many there are who never use any pains to instruct their children from the word of God, and yet think they have fulfilled all their duty, in ing given them a good general edu

cation. We grant they may, without religious knowledge, cultivate their understanding, and make them polished scholars in this world's literature; but they neglect the training of the soul for its most interesting studies-its noblest employmentsand its highest destinies. They may give them that scholarship which fits for mingling with the busy multitude around them, and attending to the transient interests of this passing scene; but which leaves the immortal part, so far as regards its God and eternity, a sterile wilderness- -a barren waste. And they who, having the charge of youth do so, whether teachers, or parents, or ministers, we hesitate not to say, are dishonest to the cause of Christ, and unfaithful to the high and important trust committed to them.

Let it not, however, be supposed, from these observations, that we mean to bring any sweeping charge of neglect, or of unfaithfulness, against the ministers or people of our church. While we must lament to see and acknowledge, that much ignorance prevails amongst us, which prevents the good effects of many faithful sermons-guards the heart, as with a coat of steel, against any deep impressions-hinders the usefulness of which multitudes would otherwise have been capable, and mars the beauty of our beloved Zion; we do at the same time, cheerfully and gladly acknowledge, that there is to be found, in the Presbyterian Church, a deeper knowledge of Bible doctrines, and a sounder acquaintance with solid and saving truths, than exists, in proportion to their numbers, in any other body in this country.

It is that this acquaintance with divine things may become still more general amongst us, that we would bring before the ministers, and elders, and people of our churches, the subject of Bible classes.

We have had the pleasure of being present lately at the examination of some classes of this description, in one of our country congregations, and beg to state some facts connected with them, as illustrative of what we mean by a Bible class.

The boys and girls are under separate teachers, and rank according to their proficiency. No person is admitted to any of the classes who cannot read the Bible. In some of the classes are children not more than eight years old, and in others again, are a good many advanced to the age of men; and in all the classes there are about one hundred and fifty. And in the examination which we witnessed, we were perfectly astonished at the amount and accuracy of the knowledge of Bible truths, which many, even of the very youngest, displayed.

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The shorter catechism is used in all as a text book; but so full is the examination of its statements, and of the doctrines contained in them, and so frequent is the reference to the Bible for proof of them, that none of the classes can get over more than from ten to twenty questions in the year.

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Now the first advantage of this mode seemed to be, that the children became interested in what they were learning. Their task had not been the mere drudgery of committing to memory vast numbers of words or sounds, without any ideas attached to them. It seemed to have been with their teachers a matter of first importance, to engage their attention by making their labours a pleasure to them. The general plan which has been hitherto employed, occupied the young in the exercise of memory alone; and we well remember, and have heard others express the same thing, how heartily the hour which was employed in repeating the catechism was hated by Not that our teacher did not explain to us what we repeated, but probably supposing, from our accurate repetition of the words, that we must have had a general knowledge of the subject; his explanations were often as little understood as the answer we had given; and thus our minds were only harrassed by the endeavour to remember terms, which were to us purely cabalistic. Now, in order that children should take a pleasure in learning any facts or truths, it seems absolutely necessary that they should understand them. With what intense interest do the young hang on the relation of a story, so long as they understand the language of the speaker; but let him, even after having wound up their attention to the highest pitch, carry on the narration in words which they cannot comprehend, and in a few minutes they become listless, and can no longer be induced to attend to the speaker. We remember an instance of a teacher, who attempted to instruct some young persons in geography, by obliging them to commit a large book on the subject to memory; this labour was found of little use the plan was changed to the tracing of boundaries, &c. on the maps, while their attention was kept up by the statement on the part of the teacher, of interesting historical facts, and in a very short time, the study of geography, from having been detested, became their very amusement; and it was with delight they heard their teacher call them to it.

Thus we are persuaded it should be, when the young are called to the study of religion. If we attempt to carry them on faster than they can understand us, they immediately loose all interest in the subject; and although they may continue to attend on their teachers, in obedience to their parents, yet

there is no pleasure felt in the exercises in which they are engaged; and we are persuaded, that the only effect often produced, is a disgust towards religion, and an aversion either to hear or speak about it. Indeed this we might anticipate, without any experience, when we reflect, that according to the plan hitherto so generally adopted, in instructing the young in their Bibles and catechisms, their first impressions connected with religion, were painful and unpleasant.

But by the mode which we had the pleasure of witnessing in operation, the minds of the children became deeply interested. They were taught not to pass any word or principle without understanding it, and to prove each truth by quotation's from the word of God. Nor were they satisfied to get only the proofs given in the catechism, but searched for others, until they were often able to repeat every text in the Bible bearing on the subject. Hence we have been assured that it has become almost the amusement of the children's leisure hours at home to examine the principles laid down in the catechism, and find proofs for them; and thus their affections are early and deeply engaged on the side of religious truth.

Another important advantage is, that their judgments are trained to a healthful exercise. Very often a truth seems to them opposed to some principle which they have formerly proved from God's word. The teacher with a lively interest listens to every such objection, and with a deep interest is it often heard by the class. It is then proposed by the teacher to the members in succession, and each person is expected to give a scriptural proof for the solution he proposes. What is erroneous the teacher corrects, and is generally able to satisfy the class of the accordance of the truth with the rest of the catechism, and with the word of God. Thus, while the memory becomes stored with facts and truths, the judgment is trained, not only to understand them, but to discriminate their relations, and apply them to the regulation of the heart and life. But when in a religious education, the judgment is neglected, how often may we find persons, come to the years of manhood, or womanhood, who know nothing of religious truth, and who cannot give a single answer on the first principles of religion, unless you ask them in the words of the catechism; and then they repeat a number of words or sounds, which are called to their remembrance by the association, not of ideas, but of sounds-the sounds you uttered having, in their education, always preceded the sounds they return as a kind of answer or echo to yours. Thus it would be with a master, who would commence to teach his pupils the

problems of Euclid, by obliging them to commit the demonstrations to memory, while they did not understand them. They would have inmense labour, be disgusted with the science, and in the end, have received not one particle of benefit. He might boast that they could go through every demonstration; but let him state the simplest of the problems in terms not exactly similar to those which they have been accustomed to hear, and immediately it will be seen that they are as completely ignorant of mathematics as those who never heard of the science. The absurdity here is so glaring, that we readily grant no teacher of that science has ever been stupid enough to adopt it; but we believe the absurdity is not one whit less, when we would thus attempt to teach religion; and we are sorry it must be added, that glaring as is the absurdity, and stupid as is the practice, we believe thousands of parents and ministers, in our own, and other churches, have adopted, and are practising it. Many may say, this is not our plan, we explain as we go on. Yes, but do your young people understand your explanations, and through them the question and the answer? If you do not take care that this is the case, your explanations have done more harm than good, for your pupils will be very likely to draw one of these two conclusions, either that you are stupid and unable to instruct them, or that the doctrines are incomprehensible; and hence they become discouraged from any attempts to understand them.

We would then press on those whose duty it is to instruct the young, not to hurry them at a rapid pace over the catechism or Bible, but to pause on every principle till they understand, and can prove it from the word of God; and they will find, that in communicating one truth to the understanding, they have accomplished a greater amount of good, than if the individual had, in the time so spent, learned to repeat many chapters in the Bible, or pages in the catechism. We know, from experience, that at first the work will be found tedious, and to the teacher vexatious, but let him only persevere for a little, and the judgment becoming vigorous by exercise, will soon be able to grapple with any subject; and the acquisition, not of sounds, but of solid truths, will go on rapidly.

To those ministers who are regular and faithful in the catechising of the young, in the different quarters of their congregations, and who, perhaps, could not find teachers qualified to carry on the plan stated here, we would respectfully suggest, that in each quarter there are always some to be found superior in understanding and knowledge to the rest of the youth.

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