Teachers of the School Street Universalist Sunday School. Boston

“ Never complain for want of reading while we have such historians as Moses, poets before whom Shakspeare dwindles into insignificance, philosophers of a higher and holier school, and truths that exceed the most astonishing fictions. Where has Scott a heroine that can compare with Ruth? Grand as are the beauties of the Bible, life-giving as is its wisdom, and imperishable as are its truths, it is too frequently left unread.
As a general thing, too much is read; more than can be well retained. One page well read is more beneficial than a whole volume merely glanced over. ”

“ The slave, rather than the companion of man, she knew not that, were the storehouse of knowledge opened for her, she could come forward and stand on an equality with the "proud lord of creation!" Rome, too, the metropolis of the world, denied to woman her proper station in society, not dreaming of the hidden gems of thought which lay undiscovered beneath the thick incrustations of ignorance and superstition. ”

“ Memory! Who has not felt its influence! Who of us would wish to part with its delights and quiet teachings! Beautifully adapted is the twilight hour to the cherishing of the recollections of the past. It is then that the hum of busy life is hushed, and all nature seems resting from its toil. Then, in undisturbed peace, rise before us the loved ones we have cherished, and whose memories, like guardian angels, always attend us. ”

“ Talent, without virtue to guide, is like a ship without sails or rudder, exposed to the wild winds of the storm on the broad expanse of the ocean. What sadder spectacle can there be, than to behold a mind employing its talents and its learning in endeavoring to lead its fellow-beings away from the paths of rectitude, disregarding the laws of God and man, and refusing to acknowledge the Source that gave it birth? ”

“ In the kindness and love of the children for each other, in their faithfulness in the duties of the school, and in their respectful and affectionate bearing towards their teachers and all others, do we not recognize some of the fruits of Sabbath school culture? And may we not expect that such children will be beloved, honored, and useful among men?
Do we not also see some of the fruits of these influences in the fraternal regard of teachers for each other, in their devotion to their duties as teachers, and in their distinguishing virtues as Christians? ”

“ The beautiful in nature is all the production of his power. He spoke this world into being, and decorated it with sun, moon, and stars. Beauty and loveliness are stamped upon everything that he has made. But no scene in the outward world transcends in loveliness the Sabbath school, where the young come to receive Christian instruction. And now, dear children, make this wise resolution; to love your Sabbath school, your parents and teachers, all the world, and especially your heavenly Father, better than you ever have before ”

“ Shall deck the barren path of toil with flowers;
And praying each that as the years roll on,
Laden with pleasures soon forever gone,
Each year shall bring but added virtues forth,
And leave behind the impress of their worth;
Till every heart to innocence be tuned,
Nor sinful pleasures ever dare intrude,
To mar the image God has made and blest,
With means of pleasure, happiness and rest;
That all may find, in holy joys and pure,
Relief from care, for every sorrow cure;
And live to be in holy pleasures blest,
Till earthly toil is changed for heavenly rest. ”

“ Suppose you loan a book to a friend, would you not consider it his imperative duty to take the best of care of it, as though it were his own, and return it in as good condition as it was when taken? Certainly you would. Then the same duty devolves upon you, as a member of the Sunday school. The school lends you books, and expects you to take good care of them, and return them early. This is no trifling duty. If you have a right to be negligent, every other scholar must have the same right, and the Library would be speedily ruined. Thus your negligence greatly wrongs others. ”

“ This is right; but still it is our duty and privilege to call on him in time of prosperity as well as in time of adversity, never forgetting to seek his divine blessing. Without this we cannot enjoy life, or be prepared for death. And when the days on earth are all passed, and we are called to lay ourselves on the bed of death, if we can but look back upon a life well spent, it will smooth the pillow of pain, and make even death itself sweet. ”

“ In my experience, both as teacher and scholar, I have observed among the young those who read a great many books, but at the end appear but little wiser. They may have a confused and indistinct recollection of events and characters, and may be able perhaps to follow out the plan of a story. Out of the mass that they have read they may have retained a great many facts; but being without connection or object, they are nearly useless. Bad habits are formed, their reading is to no purpose, and their time, therefore, misspent. ”

“ It is in the Bible that we are taught to love God, and all mankind.
When we enter the Sabbath school, may we learn to say, To-day is the Sabbath day, ever blessed and beautiful; welcome to its holy and happy influence! Welcome, thrice welcome, the day of sweet repose, and sweeter meditation. Spring is sometimes compared to childhood. ”

“ In admiring the virtues and moral excellence of one who holds a high rank in society, who fills a distinguished place in the State, or occupies a responsible seat in the halls of science or in the church, we are liable to be swayed in our judgment. His social position is a kind of magnifying lens, through which all his virtues are viewed. But when a comparatively obscure individual from the humbler walks of life claims our attention, we are better able to estimate his virtues at their true value. ”

“ If you were to be boys always, and didn't need to know anything more than just enough to enable you to enjoy your sports from day to day, it would not be so necessary, perhaps, as it now is, to attend strictly to your every-day studies; though the influences of the Sunday school would be necessary, even then. Boys cannot enjoy their sports together, unless they are truthful, just, and kind; and it is in the Sunday school that these graces are most successfully acquired. But boys will become men; and all the knowledge they can acquire in boyhood will become serviceable in manhood. ”

“ Education exalts and refines the mind of woman, and enables her to contribute to the happiness of those around her. It is that which renders her the dutiful and obedient daughter, the kind and affectionate sister, the trusting and loving companion, and the fond and tender parent. The old adage, "woman must be ignorant in order to be useful," has been long thrown aside among the rubbish of the past, and remembered only as a relic of the superstitions of other days. Home, with its duties, is woman's sphere of action ”

“ If the path in which I have walked has been desolate and dreary, I do not desire that others should walk in it. If God is seen in his true loveliness, the young, as well as the old, will love his holy name.
In this regard, I think much good can be done in the Sabbath school, and many profitable and lasting impressions may be made upon the young mind. I cannot think we meet together every Sabbath in vain. The blessing of God will surely rest upon us, and we shall be profited by our assemblings. We must not be forgetful of God, for he is not forgetful of us. ”

“ The ways of God appear mysterious to us, because we cannot understand his motives. We know that all he does is right, and for our good; therefore we should not indulge a murmuring spirit at anything that may happen to us. It is our duty, as we cannot understand His manifold ways, and all-wise purposes, to study deeply the Holy Scriptures, and be willing to be taught by those wiser and better informed than ourselves. We should confidently rely in God's wisdom and knowledge, which are so much greater than ours ”

“ No lasting principle is gained, but the whole may be lost, as the words of the lesson are lost to memory and forgotten.
Eld. B. What are the results of attendance on the Sabbath school?
Teach. That question we answer, partly in faith, and partly by knowledge. Faith is good;—and we know that our school is a good school; we know that we enjoy ourselves there; and we know what is learned there is good. It is there that divine influences and joyful communions fill with gladness the hour. We enjoy them, and if we could say no more, we think that this would be sufficient. ”

“ There are other lessons to be learned besides those we commit in the schoolroom. The whole world, indeed, is a school, and we are daily committing our tasks. These teachings are preparations for our future happiness.
You have all noticed the growth of a tree. At first, only a little twig springs out of the ground. And so with the flower. You deposit only a tiny seed; but in a little time a shoot springs up, and by natural but slow processes the twig becomes a large shady tree, and the shoot a beautiful blooming flower. Though they grow very slowly, yet they never rest. ”

“ By a thousand little kind acts, you can diffuse happiness in your homes; and all the while you are disseminating these virtues, you are acquiring these lasting graces, in yourselves, which will spring up, like the violet and sweet clover, leaving a fragrancy and beauty wherever you have trodden. ”

“ There are too many who suppose that reading is only a very pleasant amusement. They think of printing as a very ingenious invention, and have no thought higher. They may look about and see a great deal of misery and unhappiness; but its alleviation is nothing to them. "The great mission of life" is something that is very well to be talked of in the pulpit, and ministers and reformers will accomplish it, no doubt. But life has no responsibilities for them.
One of our first duties is to seek our own moral and intellectual culture. ”

“ In spring, when the brooks fall gurgling down the mountain side, when the earth begins to be covered with its verdant robes, when the birds are joyfully singing around, the trees gently waving in the breeze, and all is gay and gladsome, we sometimes wish that it could always be spring. So in youth, we sometimes wish we could always be young ”

“ But now, all the precious gifts which learning can bestow are justly extended to her also; and man, with his increase of knowledge, has wisely learned to respect the mental abilities with which God has endowed her; has found that she may, like himself, ascend the steep hill of science, enjoy its pleasures, cull its sweetest flowers, and drink of the pure and living waters from the inexhaustible fountains of knowledge. ”

“ It gives me great pleasure when I enter the Sabbath school to meet your happy countenances and smiling faces. Children, you do not assemble together for the purpose of passing an hour that perhaps might pass unpleasantly elsewhere. It is for a higher and nobler purpose. It is to gain useful and religious instruction from the Bible, the best of all books. You should not be content with learning and reciting your lessons, but you should try to remember what you learn. And when you grow up to be men and women, you will never regret it. ”

“ Pleasant and important, therefore, are the duties of teachers. The directing of tender affections, and the development of youthful powers, are intrusted to their hands. If they perform their duties faithfully, they may have the satisfaction of seeing the pupils of their charge useful among men, devoted to right, and obedient unto God. Such an office is lovely. It is more than lovely, it is holy. It blesses him who fills it. It exalts his affections, ennobles his purposes, and enlarges his heart.
Do we not see the fruit of this labor in our own school? ”

“ In the summer, it collects honey from every flower, that it may have a supply of food for the approaching winter, when the flowers have all faded. But children have reason, instead of instinct, to guide them; and should be industrious in childhood and youth, in gathering the sweets of knowledge and virtue for spiritual sustenance in the winter of life. ”