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THE AIMS OF THE LONDON NEW CHURCH SUNDAYSCHOOL UNION.

THE INAUGURAL ADDRESS DELIVERED BY THE PRESIDENT, S. B. DICKS, At Argyle Square, London, October 18th, 1876.

(Inserted by request.)

BEFORE entering upon the consideration of the aims of our Sundayschool Union, it may be well for us briefly to notice the origin, rise, need, and justification of our Sunday-schools.

On the 25th of January 1764, Mr. Raikes held his first school service in a kitchen in Gloucester. The light of the New Dispensation was just breaking forth, and as it shone into the hearts that through the long night had kept the fire of love burning upon the altar, it pointed out this new and lofty sphere of loving Christian work. The state of mankind at that time, even in Christian England, was truly deplorable when viewed from the religious standpoint. Inside the church the ruling principle was self first, duty last. Fat livings, boon companions, the oppression of dissenters, and absolute clerical sway were the rights so called for which the professors of a religion of unselfish purity and brotherly love laboured and fought the long day through.

Outside the church, matters were quite as bad. The spirit of ecclesiastical intolerance on the one side awakened a spirit of relentless opposition on the other, and the liberty of conscience dearly bought had to be jealously guarded to the neglect of some of the most important duties devolving upon the Christian Church. Like priest, like people. Party strife of the worst kind, divided households, townships, and countries, complete a chapter which history only too painfully chronicles.

But "when night is darkest, dawn is nearest ;" the Divine fiat had gone forth with tenfold power, "Let there be light." The mists of error and superstition slowly but surely roll away, and to the spiritual shepherds, keeping watch over their flocks by night, came once again the heavenly message, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill toward men."

That there existed a need for Sunday-schools no one can doubt who has read the history of the time to which we are now referring;

as the new light spread, the need became more generally recognised, and it is doubtful if any institution the world has ever seen has spread with such amazing rapidity, or achieved such a great success in so brief a period.

The effects produced form one of the best justifications of Sundayschool work; but above all these, the Divine injunctions, "Feed my lambs," "Suffer the little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me, for of such is the kingdom of heaven," provide all the justification the teacher needs. Enough for him to know that "it is not the will of Our Father in the heavens that one of these little ones should perish."

This brings us to the aims of our Sunday-school Union. "One is your Master, even Christ, and all ye are brethren, "—these words of our Lord to the disciples at Jerusalem are still addressed to the sincere inhabitants of his spiritual Zion: and because we recognise the importance of the Divine declaration, we seek to develop by this means a spirit of true brotherly love and unity amongst our Sundayschool workers. "Union is strength" in this as in other spheres of labour; and the great work sought to be accomplished needs all the strength that man can give.

Further the Sunday-school workers carry on an aggressive warfare against the common enemy of all that is good and true; they own the leadership of the same great commander, the Lord Jesus Christ: occupying therefore the same field of battle, they need to be drilled side by side, to put shoulder to shoulder, and go forth a strong, because a united army to face the foe. In heaven the repentance of one sinner fills every angel with joy, because a new channel of usefulness presents itself to their waiting hearts,-what a sublime union for good! We too, in our degree, desire by this our humble effort the fulfilment of the prayer, "Thy will be done, as in the heavens, so upon the earth."

But our Union, to serve any good purpose, must take a practical form. We must first fix upon some definite end to be attained, and then work heart and hand for its attainment.

What then are we to aim at? The answer is an easy one. We are to aim at doing the most good in the best possible manner. Nothing less will fully satisfy the Divine request, "Let us make

man."

Coming, then, to the schools and their organization, we have to deal with officers, scholars, methods of imparting instruction, music,

home visiting, libraries and Sunday-school literature, and the connection existing between the school and the church. Taking these seriatim, and touching very briefly on each (for our address is suggestive and not exhaustive), we have first the

Officers. Order is heaven's first law, but order implies the existence of rulers: hence it follows that, if the spirit of harmony is to prevail, there must be a definite specification of duties devolving upon properly fitted workers. Everybody's business is nobody's business; we must therefore have the head to govern, and the other members performing their proper functions.

Next in order come the Scholars. It is a moot point whether our New Church Sunday-schools should be confined to the children of members only, or be opened to all who choose to come. It may perhaps be difficult to formulate a rule which will equally apply in all cases, but, generally I think, the more liberal we are in this respect the greater will be the good achieved. We are sure to benefit the children, we may by this means also reach the parents.

Our next point concerns "the method of imparting instruction." This is the most important point, and one which will demand the earnest consideration of every member of the Union.

We have before referred to the glorious privilege the Christian worker enjoys, in that he is a co-worker with the Lord, who is ever saying, "Let us make man,”—ever desiring that His Love, Wisdom, and Power should be received, known, and manifested by the creatures of His care.

Man, a finite image and likeness of the infinite, is a loving, thinking, active being. Our efforts, therefore, must be directed to the cultivation of pure and exalted affections, true thoughts, and holy actions in those committed to our care. Every faculty must be sedulously cultivated, and everything inimical to its orderly development removed. First in order and importance comes the principle of love. Experience has taught every teacher that, unless they have gained the affection of their scholars, their teachings will have but very little effect. The old idea that boys and girls were to be whipped and frowned at is rapidly disappearing, and the wondrous power of mutual love is being recognised and realized. To every teacher then I would say, Seek above all things to obtain the love of every member of your class. Remember the old maxim, "Love begets love," act upon it, and your success is assured. Abstruse propositions enter with great difficulty into the infant intellect, if indeed they ever find their way there at all:

but a look, a word, or a deed of love goes straight home to the heart, and awakens a corresponding affection there.

Another and equally important aim should be to lead the children to love each other, to stimulate them to acts of mutual goodwill, to seek to repress a spirit of rivalry, and foster a spirit of brotherly and sisterly help. I should like to see in our schools more of the social element introduced, not an annual tea and romp, but a good many of them. The more men know of each other the more they see to admire and love; so doubtless will it be with the children.

But we must pass on to that which concerns the intellectual training and here it is that our Union will for the present find its most important sphere of labour.

An idea has long prevailed that the work of the Sunday-school teacher needed not any especial fitness, or great preparation; hence it has too often been left entirely in the hands of young and incompetent persons. But this is a great mistake. Our Heavenly Father entrusts the bodily keeping of children to developed men and women: their spiritual keeping surely needs an equal care.

Besides, it is necessary to remember that since the time when schools were first founded, secular education (especially in our own land) has progressed with amazing rapidity; and that the rising and all future generations will be composed of educated men and

women.

The teachers of religion need to be in the van of modern thought and learning, for it is theirs to be the leaders of the army of liberty and light. It is no longer necessary to teach in our Sunday-schools the rudiments of elementary secular education; but the time is fast approaching when it will be necessary for the true teachings of science and modern discovery to be placed side by side with the declarations of the Divine Word, and the apparently discordant elements reconciled.

The instruction, theological or otherwise, needs also to be adapted to the capacity of the recipient. Food hastily prepared is unpalatable and injurious to the body: far worse is it with the food of the soul. Prayerful, thoughtful preparation must first be made, or the duty will be irksome, and the effects disappointing. Children do not like dry sermons, therefore don't preach; place the materials before them, explain as briefly as may be their use, and then, by judicious questioning, strain the young mind to think, and to express its thoughts in a clear and coherent manner. How many of us now feel

the lack of this useful power. will be even more sorely felt.

In the days that are to come the need

It is doubtful if a system of teaching could be framed which would work equally well in all our schools; but at any rate every school should have a well-ordered system of its own, and the results of each should be made known to all at the quarterly conferences of the Union. In this way a mutual benefit will be secured.

The subject of school requisites, such as lesson-books and the like, is too important to be treated of now, and will well occupy one of the sittings of our Union, if not more.

Musical arrangements next demand our attention, but, as I am not a musical authority, I will content myself with putting it forward as one theme eventually to be considered.

The question of the home visiting of sick and absent scholars is a very delicate one, intimately connected with it is a manifestation of sympathy and interest in the temporal welfare of the taught. Both, unless very judiciously performed, are likely to do more harm than good.

If, however, a wise discretion is observed in the performance of these obvious duties, the results cannot fail of being beneficial. In all cases the superintendent or one of the senior teachers should perform the task.

Libraries and Sunday-school literature are subjects that must not be hastily dismissed. A paper on these important points is already promised by an eminently practical man; I shall not therefore forestall the promised treat, but content myself by simply expressing the hope that our Union may some day be able to issue the illustrated periodical I so ardently long to see.

The last topic to which I shall now refer is the connection between the school and the church. This divides itself under the following heads, viz., the relation in which they stand to each other; the usefulness of children's services and catechising: and the means to be adopted for keeping the children in the church.

First, as to their mutual relationships. The church, rightly viewed, is the home of its members; the school, then, will be the nursery, and the teachers the kind and tender nurses entrusted with the care of the church's little ones. But no true parent leaves the children entirely to the nurse, however kind, or the affection that should centre in the highest degree upon the parent will be found lacking. The church must act likewise. The minister, together with the members of the