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Kl< ThePh>fitA, if anyj'^arising f^m tb« Ml* of this Discourse, to b« appro< priated to St Thomas' Church. *•' %j-^-"^.'W'"--'^'^*'-^---T''»f'r'~-^" "-"■ Y" sm » V ".Vt'-'JJSH*."" \ i X. > S E IM[ O N. ^^^^^W^^^»^^^»>^»<»^W^^»^^MWM»**^'^^^*^^ '^ Thns saith the Lord, set thine house in order : for thou shftlt die» and not live." — ^ii. Kingst xx. 1, • 1 w ^^MMMMMA^AMAA^MMMAMrfW^»W%^WMW4^^ i„ T^ selection of such a text, my brethren, m a^iessing you upon this the first Lortfs day in the New Year, may appear strange. You tave been accustomed to regard this as the happiest period of the year. Ngw^ your plans are forming— -your anticipations of title future are> bright and cheering — and, in the happy congratulations incident to the season, you are apt to lose sight of th% trials and vexations and disappointments which lie m your w^y. The gloomy subject of death, with the preparation necessary for it, is not the one which yclu would choose for your meditations to-day. But this is not the case with alL The bereave^ parent, the widow and the fatherless, whose eyes seek in vain the beloved presence of thpse who O t '< "^■« ■ '}.. gladdened the opening of tlie previous year, whose ears have failed to catch the music of their voices, can see the appropriateness of such a choice. Surely your Pastor, who looks around upon nearly a score of families desolated by the ravages of death within a period of but a few montlis, may address those who survive, nay, every member of his flock, in the spirit of the text — " Set thine house in order, for thou shalt die, and not live." These were the words of God to Hezekiah by the mouth of the Prophet Isaiah. The message came at a time when he was lying afflicted with a grievous sickness — " In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death."* Highly favoured as wp the good Monarch of Israel, like other men, he was subject to disease and death. And although, in answer to prayer, the short term of his existence was prolonged, yet it was but theiiremoving to a little distance the approach of that solemn event which awaits us all, and for which he was enjoined to prepare. In looking forward through the year just commenced, I see in anticipation many of you, { I \ * ii. KingH, xx. 1. l,-.:^-' "IE, % perhaps inyselt* among the number, cut down by tlie ruthlesB hand of the destroying angeL Y^ my dear brctliren, judging from the past, some of us will certainly be called hence. When again we bcgui a New Year, tliere will be, as now, parents mourning the loss of chil- dren, torn from their embrace in the tender age of infancy, tlie bloom of youth, or the ripeness of manhood. Lonely widows, bereaved hus- bands, orphan youth will be here, who are, now, enjoying, in happy union, the comforts of domestic life. 5^ But it is not upon this sad reality that I wduld dwell I would turn your thoughts to the preparation needed for the change, that if any of you should be called hence, you may have the satisfaction of fe^ng that you have done everything that cpuM*^ done fbr the good of your own souls and the so^ of others. May you leave this house of God Jo-day,'feel- ing tliat there is a momentous resppmbflity devolving upon you. You have perhaps enter- ed upon the last year in which you will be allow- ed to make preparation for eternity. To each of you, in your several relations. of parent, hus- V y I *'■■«.. . 9 ! J. band, wife, child, friend, I might aay your days may bo numbered ; and yoiir present example, counsel and influence, decide tlie happiness of those dearest tp you, throughout eternity. Well, tlierefore, may I come to yoti this mommg, as the messenger of God, with the language of the Prophet in my mouth—" Set . thine house in order J* And I design applying these words to the urging upon you : Firsts the importance of im- ^ mediate attention to' the work of religion in ^ the heart * ^ ^ Secondly, such an adjustment of your worldljT affairs as is th^ duty of every Christian in t^ . prospect of d^tL . * And Thirdly, that devotion to the religiW wants of your families which may render your death-bed peaceftd. L First: The importance of immediate atten- tion to the yfork of personal religion. This will appear from the consideration of the worth of the souL Our Saviour has said, "what shall it profit a man though he gain the whole world, and lose his own 1 soul?"* ♦Mark, ix. Sg, t ^ m -^ y ■ t iijpi It i'"^^'-w« .?! It /; / r <* ^'. J ■** * .* intimating the v^lue of one soul to be greater than that of the whole world. The world shall . be.burr^l up and all tliat it contains, however attractive its objects may now appear. The corruptible body of man, decked out ^t such an expense of time and means, shall soon •become food for the worms, or else turn to th^ dtCBt^ of which it was formed. Not so the deathless principle within ; the soul sjiall live bn^^rever. The union, too, of the body and ]tKq spul, has> in the wise Providence of God, ^)^n made the term of probation for man, tod kfe' Conduct herQ is to decide the destiny of his immortal part Endow^^d with the capacity of enjoying exquisite happiness or of enduring unutterable misery, either the one or the other will become the lot of the soul after d^th.* This season of probation is, ^t best, but short , How few attain to the age of^nan, in itself ^ nothing when compared with eternity. ^ , ."The year rolls round, and steals away ' , The breath that first it gave ; ^ . ■ ^ Whate'er we do, where'er we be, We're travelling to the grave. " Dangers stand thick through all the ground, To push us to the tdmb : And fierce diseases wait around. ■^. :» To hurry mortals home." It »*"~*"»t»"?5eff T" M^ 1. 't m 10 , Yet, fllM^rt aft is the term of probation, it is our on/y onei There is no preparatioii beyond the grave. No efforts can then be made, no prayers offered, for the relief of the soul. You . may be permitted to remain a few years longer upon eardi, or it may be for onl^ a few dajs ^ pr hours,— none but God can tell; yetremember that though it be but one hmr, it is the only ieason allotted you in which to make ready for Eternity. I urge you, therefore, to seek, with- out delay, this preparation. 1. Strive to realize your lost condition by nature ijund actual, transgression. Take the holy Scripr toes for your guide, and you will see that by the fall of our first parents all were made dinners, so that you have been "conceived and born in an."* To this evil nature, thus inhe- rited, you have added many actual transgres- sions of the holy Law of ^od. This you have to-day confessed in appropriate language appomt^ by the,.Church— " We have erred and strayed from thy w^ys like lost sheep, and there is no health in us.'' FoUow the teaching of il^ saiiie blessed oracles, and you will 1^-^-*- I > 1 7 V ^^^w. I .V ■ . ■* *-. ■ \ ■■ ^ ".'-'' ■ acknowledge any one of these sins which you have committed to be suflScient to banish you everlastingly from the presence of God, inas- much as it is written — " Cursid is every one . thatcontinueth not in all things which are writ- ten in the book of the law to do them,"* and, " Whosoever shall keep the whole Law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all"! How hopeless, theiefore, without a Savio*-, is your conditK)^ The broken law is demanding th6 penalty I you have nothing to give. It would be satisfied with a perfect obedience to all its reqmrements ; but that you cannot yield. No faithfulness now can atone for past negleqt Neitjier can the word of the Almight^r, without some sufficient atonement, be recalled : "The soul that sinneth it shall die.**:]: Ponder, my beloved hearers, upon this sad truth of your lost state by nature and actual transgression. Pray that the Holy ©host may be pleased to show you xnore and more of the deformity of sin, ite guilt and aggravation m the eyes^H God 5^ not that you may be thi^m int» 0es- paijr^ but th at you may realize /more senaMy ♦ G»Uti«ns .HI 10. t J«"nw. H, 10. J Ewjkiel, xriii. 4. "^3 X,:. '■■;•■ -^r^Ur'- W^ ■?/v m.; ■\ \ : 12 , ,'■,-:■ tibe impcMwibility of saving yourselves, and may be driven out of .yourselves to the salva- tion provided in the Gospel. It is the Holy Spirit alone who can give such deep convinc- ing views -of our sinful and lost condition. May He, in infinite mercy, graut them to us all, for Christ's sake! 2. But again, J exhort you to lay hold with the hand ok faith, of the salvation wrought out far you by Jesus Christ " This is a faithful say- ing and Vorthy of all acceptation," is the lan- guage of St Paul, " that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners."* Our.^aviour, when speaking of his own advent in the flesh, said : " The Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was fo5<."t For the proud Pharisees, who trusted in their own righteous- ness for salvation, he could do nothing. "They that be whi)le," was his reply to them, "need not aphysician,\buttheythatare5fcA;."tIf,therefore, you possess \that deep sense of your sinful and lost condition, of which I have just spoken, if you dare notlso much las lifl up your eyes to heaven^ if you are sincerely penitent for your :*■ ♦ 1 Tiin. 1^,16. fLukejxix. 10. X Mfttt ix. 13. *iF ■~vSQ ^^ *?%!-»"-»-? r \ . * past transgressions, and have, in the strength of God, renounced all the ways of the devil, you may confidently look to Jesus Christ as ypur Saviour fi-om sin and death. You may - 3ee, in " God manifest in the flesh,"* one able and willing to save you. In His obedience and sufferings unto death, you can behold an all- sufficient righteousness and jl complete atone- ment That work of which you can da||o mrt is accomplished in the person of Christ. You - need no other Mediator. It is presumptuous for you to hope, by any works of your own, to add to the efficacy of Christ's atonement All, '' therefore, that you can do is to receive this salvation thus wrought out Look, then, with the eye of faith to the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world. Look to Jesus! extended upon the Cross on Calvaiy,— * as the dymg Israelites did to the brazen serpent, — ^witn the confidence, of Peter when he cried 'out, "LordySave meff or of the belie^dng parent in the Gospel— -" Lord, I beheve; help thou mine unbelief" J " 3 Once more^ I bid you search in yalir life • 1 Tim. iii. 16. t Mat. xir. 80. X Mwk, iz. 34. t< '%■ • ■ ■ ■ . -- ■ , ■ and conduct for those evidencea of a tamng change of hearty without which the strongest profeasims of faith in Christ can avail nothing. That faidi%hich justifies the sinner is a faith which worketh by love f whose existence in the goal is manifested by a life of unreserved obe- dience to the Divine Will For a man to say that he |K>S£Sb9ses^nuine faith, and yet at the miie 4iie to be Hving in the cojnmission of habilual and wilfiil sin, plainly involves a con- tramction. How can a man love God and yet be daily, yea, hourly, heaping contempt upon Hb holy name ? St John tells us that " Who- *8^ver is bom of God sinneth rwt^* that is, will not allow himself in the indulgence of any known sin. But he has also s^d;* " Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is bom of God." t Therefore, it is dear, that he who posses- js^ the saving faith of which we have spoken, or in the language of the Epistle, " believeth that Jestis is the Christ,** being bom of God, will not commit sin. i Again, St John tells us that a distinctive niark of those who are bom of God is, that * 1 John V. 18. f 1 John T. 1. i\- : ■m «« '■P' w they have overcome the world* the world, my brethren, is the enemy of God, so pro- nomieed to be in the Holy Scriptures ; yet how many professing Christians cling to it to the destruction of their souls; How many in this congregation, who are undedided on the subject of religion, would,% called to the Bar of Judgment this night, hlfe to configs, that the whole cause of their indecision, ffs inln unwillingness to abandon the sinftd schAies and pleasures of the world. [I might enumen rate some of these sinful schemes and pleasures, ^ such as The Theatre, The Race Ground, .The Gambling Table, The Ball PoVm, The Lottel^, ' were I not fearful of misconstipuction ; lest any should suppose that true Godhness consisted in the abandonment of these alone. There are others equally sinful, some of which might not with propriety be mentioned in this house of Crod, and before this assembly. ] f Were we per- "' ' ' < — » — ■■ — • — . - ■ *1 John, V. 4. t The Above, in brackets, was deKrered extemporaneously. In confirma- tion of the poBifaon taken, I quote the followuig extracts : #i.r T^Thbatbb— Plato teUs us, that playJ rouse the passions, preyent " the use of reason, and are dangerous to moraUty. Aristotle Uys it down as a rule, that the seeing of nnnuwli«a cmtAi* *n. v^r^jkJtAA^- x. ._• among tbem. Uvid in his most licentious poems, nieaks _ fiiwurable to dusolutenesA, and advises its suppression, the Whole nriml- tiv» Caiuroh tertifled^isent thereto. Theophiarf^ntinch , In t^^SJTg!, m 16 \ initted to say, on the authority of God, that they might still enjoy these forbidden pleasures, that they could without injury to their souls pursue them, how quickly would the Chufch tnry uyt, " It is not lawful." The Roman Catholic Church repeatedly pro- hibited it The Protestant Church in Europe and America have itiven similar testimony. Archbishop TiU(»t8on calls the Theatre, the Devil's Chapel, a nursery of licentiousnesx and vJM; a recreation that ought not tu be allowed among a civilized, much less a (^stian community.'*-^ I^r. Beecher's Senium at theopeniiig of tAeTretn^n^heatre, as a House of Divine Worship. rticitous for the preservation of the puri ^ its members, are induced to impress upon'the The he iifias e luroMBbc thffVportant'duty, with a discreet but earnest zeal, of warning the Df their respective cures, of the danger of an indulgence in those pleasures which may tend to withdraw the affections from spiritual . And especially x)n the subject of gamin";, of amusements hivolving 11^ to the brute creation, and of theatrical representations, to which |Mme peculiar circumstances have culled their attention,— they do not hesi- tate to express their unanimous opinion, that these amusements, as well from jg their lioentipuB tendency, as from^the strong temptations to vice which they ^ fiford, 6ught not to be frequented. And th» bishops cannot refrain from ttKiMressing their deep regret at the information, that in some of our large dties, so bttle respect is paid to the feelings of the members of the Churoh, . ttfJH theatrical representations are fixed for the evenings of her most solemn / nmvals."— •JFrom the Journal of the Convention of ^ Protestant EpuKopat Church in the United States, 1817. ** Both to the clergy and to the laity we desire to say, but most pointedly to^ the former, that the Christian profession exacts a greater abstraction from tbe world than that which consists in the abstaining from acknowledged sin. There are practices so nearly allied to it, and so easily abused, that we con- oeWe of a professor of religion in dnty bound either not to countenance in the least degree,; or, as is tdlovrable, in re|;ard to some of thejuttiers con- tempLited, to avoid the so employing of time, and the so lavisffig of affec- tion, as puts into a state of sin, although not necessarily belonging to the inhject We would be far from an endeavour after an abridgment of Chris- tian liberty, i^ut we cannot foi^t, that in a list of the classes of evil livers, there is introduped the description of persons who are "lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God ;" ndr, in respect to the female professors of reli- l^on in particular, the admonition, that " she who liveth in pleasure is dead , while she liveth." We are aware of the difficulty of drawing the line between the use of the world and the abuse of it ; that being conceived of by different persons equally pious aud , virtuous, according to the diversity of natural temperament, and of the states of society in which they have been placed by education or bv haljit ^, but we know, that where the con- . teienoe can reconcile itself to the drawing as near to ihe territory of sin, as it can persuade itself to be consistent with the still sUmding on secura : iproondti^eadness to spiritual good at the best, but more commonly sntljeo- tion to its onpoute is the result." « ■^ ** lb speaking of subjects of the above description, we wonld not be nn- dewtood to cImi among them any lirantine whichT* either immoral in itself, \ - T*™ "^Sr ^^^=p be crowded with applicants for adnuwion into its privileges. ,g, I say not this of all who have not yet mad« a public profession o f religion. I believe that fcrsocustomarny accompanied by immorality, that the one is neoesaarilv countenanced with tho otW. Of the forme/ description, i. «ST3 the ^l^-'ety of ,t8 exercise ; and the liite may be «^i5 of whaK iSySy- cruelty to the lower unimals of. the creation. If the same cannot £ affiZS cbarMters, for the purpose of instruction or of entertainmentT vet. a?^ Cr.i W^'^-We »o t|ie exhibition, of th« theatre ^hV^ei^L^ fcen neytry a^ and are atjpresent, we do not hesiSe to dediire. iimS ttouBly, our opinion, that it is a foul source of very extensiwZri.™SS! We lay little stress on the plea, that it is a matter SdSSiTteS& When this shill have been accomplished, it will be time to takeMritoSi^ SZl Si" *?u*^ T "™ "**' persuaded of the possibility of thetiSf when we consider that the prominent and moat nu^«roui p«troM S^* !ft^-l"^*''^*^* •'J'^'^ ***■ ^ ^^^ '«"8t disposed to the wriJS whSh £SiirWhir«:fr'?''**^T?* »** ^onmrnate bSwZ SiJ2^ •na guilt. While the opinions anO the pnssions of such persons shyllcnn! tinue to serve the Durpose of a looking-glass, by which Se^wS 21 mters are to L adjusted to the taste of w^at «TrwnSSn^f tK A* we despair of %e[Z the sta^« rp«.„«i f^^:^^?:?Rr"'°!l °' *'»« P?^^^ IWneness and obscenitv . anJ m.,nh i««o ^* ♦il* ii.ku»»ij^ enusions^ot dt^ fc^r«irr y T^"'s •"" »"»§« re»cuea irom the aisgusting effusions fcneness and obscenity , anS much less oT that mean <7«orrurSon i^MKi instnuatm^ than anv other-the exhibiting of what ^ SSv^bJe^ . rilmiwe with proiK,rt1es captivating to tb9 hSagiiiHtion. - ^ ^' " . While wo address this alike to the clergy and to the Wtv wa mi..!^,' it as especially hostile to the usefulne«, of Ye former. IS Sen iTwSS to some matters confessed to be innocent in themselvei the^ inZ^n^v^ deMndmuchonmanyc.rcumstance8,andprofessionalcLS«ten.S^^ Theearof a clergyman should always bS open to a caUto the SwriSS Jjties of his statrpn. Whatever may render it diflScu to his S^ S to wcur to those duties with the solemnity which they Sre or J^v^ndoS an opinion in others, that such a recurrence must li Skome tTCf^ ^mTlTlZ'T^r' "'I!^ »'"'r««'^»e,oSgKo'S:tiS^^^ hS^;..iL ^« '^ ?«"^'fi««» the making oF it is exacted by what ought to Z his ruling wish, the servmg of G.k1, and the being useful to his fXw mttJ in thedscharge of the duties of the ministry. 'l/^o^/o/S /XX^ifS 2B:^%r ^ ^'''''^' ^i-cWai^ in ^ZJiZ^l .?i°i f *"j[«»^«' P^.fcy the late Dr. Bedell in the bands of thow who dt. aired to become u^ Mfith the Chu,5(*.^iB any of its ordlnanSJ.'Ttod % •\ Ihare «re some kiept away from other and h^er motives, such as an humbling sense of their unworthiness, and a fear lest they should afterwards be betrayed into inconsistencies which might bring reproach upon religion. Sit why should I, as a Minister of God; d0^i»ye^any of yon into the belief that yon i|5gy |A the sape time be the servants of €tb(| iifid the servants of the world? Is it not vnatt/en in language so plain that the wayfaring maii^ though a fool, cannot err therein : *^ Ye cannot serve God and Mammon.*** *' If any man lore the world, the love of the Father is ibt in him. For all that is in the world, the •D ifi|M fa— wwh M tbaj ««• OQOtrarj to tlw eoipnii oommincl, whiA '»]Pi^*ColMirituid state, •nd what do I think ought to be the conduct of my pantor toward me f* ' **1 on^^t to think my leTf described in that saying of Scriptnre, * 1 hou hast [left tiiy first love,' and that my spiritual state wonld call for deep repen- HHbei, and a speedy ntnm to God, and that my pastor ought to warn, re- ; }fv^9, pray tor and with me, and if all this fidl to relieve me, refuse me the ^▼ii««e8 I had heretofore so unworthily eirojed."-^irit of woridly-mindedness, which, if indulged, must prove ruinous to your eternal prospecti» From this you have more to fear at the present day than fix)m the progress of open infidelity or superstition. These have been so often met and so triulnphantly refuted, that they may ahnost be compared to venomous reptiles whose sting las been extracted. Not so the world! it is so insidious in its approaches that even the most wary are made its victims. In op^ position to its advances cultivate a spirit of holiness. The two cannot live together. The ♦iJohiLiLlS, la. ^J taam, br. 4 . i ». • t one will extinguish the other. Let thai grest dumge be once thoroughly wrought in your hearts by t^e Holy Spirit, and your taste for these pleasures will be destroyed. You will find, what may^now appear a strange anomaly, that you can liv^ without them — nor only so, but that you wiU enjoy a peace of mind to which you have hitherto been i strang^^ and irfiicE the world can neither give nor take away. CI I have dwelt the longer upon the points contained under this head, because they are fuch as affect the sali^jbion of every individual •ouL Without a deep sense of our lost condi- tion, without a surrender of the soul to Christ «nd a life of holiness, none can expect to be flaved. For all are included in the memorable tr^cdB of our Saviour: " Verily, verily, I say imto thee, except a^man be bom again, he <&imot see the kingdom of God."* In what lemains I may be much more brief ilL I would then exhort you, in the second place, to^ek such an adjustment of your busi- jaess affairs as is the duty of every Christian in j^e pr6i^>ect of death. Thik was also contem- ♦Johii.iiL8. ^' •'**» ■ '^'■-■'m- M •■ • •'**• ■ 21 plated in the words of the prophet to Hezekiah: " Set thine hduse in order." Monarch of a King^ dom, it was of the utmost importance that'eveiy arrangement should be made by which its peace- ful enjoyment might be secured to his successor. Such reasonable attention to temporal things is, in an equal degree, the duty of eveiy Christian. I will venture to say that the majority of those cases of litigated property which have happened after the death of the proprietor, and which have led to much contention and many heart- burnings, might have been avoided by the seasonable observance of /this rule. But men, in general, are too apt to delay to a death-bed what should be done in the season of health. With some there appears to be a superstitious fear lest the making of a will should hasten the hour of death. AU their businesss affairs per^ haps partaJte of the same neglect, so that if they should be suddenly caUed into Eternity, much evil would ensue. I have no desire to enter largely into tJiis subject, but I liiust remind those of you who are prof^ipg Christians, in particular, that it is a solemn %ty incuml^t upon ybi i , to live in ! ■ ' l iia — i* ■ 1 "^ %^l A ' m f «i thflMbi^ diat ft dionld be J^otIKi now to makt Bach a dispomtion of fiftir aifairs as maj bear the inspection of Ood, and in case yon are removed, prove of no injury to your fellow mflB. ^\ *' ,'^WL I passion to the third and coneludinjtr |pmt which I would urge upon your consider- ation, as suggested by the text, yiz : — ^That de- iodon to the religious wants of your families which may* render your death-bed peaceful Many of you have become, in the Providence of Gk)d, parents— l|g^ of fomilica How solemn iitthe responi^H||||^us d||i^lvcid^upon yon. You are the namral guardians of these childreai and youth. They look to you for support| &Nr counsel, for S3rmpathy, for that moral and mtellectual training which is to fit them for lifa But especially are they to depend upon yotir dcample and precept in what concerns thei salvation of their souls. Yon occupy a place iHiich none besides can fill You may dele« gate your authority, in certain particulars, to >ofehers aitrasted with their leducation ; bat after iB, the iSe^onsibilit^^^ fall bade tqpon your- sehres; their weal or woe for all eternity ivill , .a: ■ " ■f ■ c \ If .*&^ 'X m ,.-f ' ■ # , ,■ ;^^?« depend, in a great m^pmti^ upoo the faithfiiW neis with which you harve executed your dutjr U.^ parent and frien4 Thia jb the point whiet I would seriously i|il%pon f6ta atten^ tioa If you would hav^yoar death-bed Jm., disturlxjd you lamt now k faithful to your ' children ^ Oh, teU me not «itf yiotfcould close your eyes in peace on earthlj things, with the ^ consdoufiness that the childtei you had left behind, would, in all probabiUfy, through your neglect, become reprobates, and that, in conae-- quence^ ;^u should never see them more. Under audi curcumstanoes, how could you di^ in peace? As, theiefoi^, life is so uncertain, and this year may not have run half ite couw before you are called to your account, let me admoniiih you to be wise in time. Gather these yt)uthful immortals statedly around yonr family altar— let every day be commenced and closed with God. Impress up^ tl^m the inht portance of secret prayer, and the study of thf sacred Scriptures. Do what you crijti to mak^ wbituaU^ with you to the sanctuary of Go^ M^0 tided of sptritnal nonrisHment as the body doe9 of food Send them to the Sunday School ; ttit^ray atmosphere it breathes is healthful to the soul Talk with them often and seriously abgpt the things which .qoncem their eternal Interests. Pray with them, and for them. Let ,,1ihem be taught to love the society of godly people. Let them be trained in enmity to the world. And, in their education, let them be lent to. schools, and colleges, and seminaries^ where the care of their souls will receive due attention, and ^here the truth will be taught without any admixture of superstition or error. If^