Article August 6, 1927 Issue

Teaching the Children the Scriptures

BELLE WEBBER PARDEE

In the "Explanatory Note" read each Sunday by the First Reader from the desk in Christian Science churches, is the statement, "The Bible and the Christian Science textbook are our only preachers" (Christian Science Quarterly, p. 4). The writer, whose daily task is with little children, has often prayerfully considered the best method of bringing the knowledge of the truth contained in the Bible, and illumined by our textbook, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" by Mary Baker Eddy, to the comprehension of the children. Mrs. Eddy, who can be considered our greatest modern educator, has pointed the way in the provisions for teaching in the Sunday school, found in the Church Manual (pp. 62, 63), and again in that pregnant sentence, "Spiritual teaching must always be by symbols" (Science and Health, p. 575). In the work of Christ Jesus, the greatest teacher of all times, we are impressed by his use of parable and illustration whenever he taught the multitudes who followed him. The story was used as a means to awaken people to a realization of their spiritual heritage, and the healings that followed this mode of illumination proved the correctness of the method.

We who are parents, guardians, or teachers must give earnest heed to each of Mrs. Eddy's admonitions if our children are to increase in wisdom and understanding. The provisions in the Manual for teaching the Commandments, the Beatitudes, and the Lord's Prayer in the Sunday school, buttressed by the opening sentence, "The Sabbath School children shall be taught the Scriptures" (Manual, p. 62), fully cover the children's need; and we can joyously make our demonstration of obedience to each command in these sections, both at home and in the Sunday school.

Consider the wealth of illustration furnished by the Bible to bring the truth to the children in the form best adapted to their comprehension! The Bible is a glorious record of a people's growth in the understanding of God, and with its spiritual interpretation is a complete guide for our little ones in their journey from the wilderness of material sense to the promised land of Spirit. The stories in the Old Testament shed light on the Commandments, and only a knowledge of both the Old and the New Testament will enable us to understand the Beatitudes and the Lord's Prayer. Let us strive to equip our children with a thorough background of Bible narrative, so that they may perceive the full flowering of the life of Christ Jesus, the Way-shower.

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