Most parents long to give their children the best of educational advantages so that they may be equipped to face the problems of life and obtain some measure of happiness and prosperity. This desire on the part of parents is not a modern development; it has probably existed in some form since mankind first awakened to the need of protecting its young.

The wise writer of Ecclesiastes expresses the advice which many parents would give to their children today: "Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them." Even before the revelation of Christianity with its assurance of immortality, this ancient writer perceived that the path of safety and happiness for youth lies in remembering the reality of spiritual things while in the midst of material life and its seeming attractions.

Individuals to whom the teachings of Christian Science have brought the spiritual understanding of God and man, are confident that the bitter years of disillusionment will not "draw nigh" to those who are learning the spiritual meaning of true manhood and womanhood. They know that the unfolding years of youth and maturity can be a process of increasing spiritual freedom. Why? Because Christian Science teaches that man, as the image and likeness of God, knows no element of discord or decay, knows neither the temptations of youth nor the decrepitude of old age.

To the youth before whom life stretches out full of glamour and endless variety, the wisdom of Ecclesiastes may appear austere and colorless. To tell them that all is "vanity and vexation of spirit," however modern may be our way of expressing it, antagonizes them. The youth of today are alert, active, intelligent, the product of an age of speed, mechanical perfection, an age which has little reverence for tradition and a great respect for efficiency. The religion to meet their needs must contain that element of spiritual beauty which appeals to youthful idealism, and must also be practical and provable.

The vanity of material pleasures and material possessions may be somewhat apparent to those who have learned through sad experience, as well as through spiritual enlightenment, that they do not satisfy. But how to present such truths to our children without preaching or dogmatizing is the problem facing parents and teachers today. One needs to be loving, tolerant, and compassionate in order to help youth with its beliefs of material ecstasy, its temptations and seeming defeats. How can we make spiritual beauty so attractive that they will desire it with their whole heart?

The seeming conflict between youth and age must be met and overcome by the prayerful consideration of all such problems. To many young people the wisdom of an older generation appears old-fashioned. Parents and teachers need to beware of traditional platitudes, and be true to what spiritual intuition and experience have taught them as to the real needs of their young people. They need to maintain in their homes the standard of right conduct which neither age nor custom can change, and refuse to be disturbed by any youthful beliefs of indifference or intolerance.

Christian Science reveals the motive and method for spiritual education or enlightenment. It brings to spiritual education the Science which reveals God as Principle and man as obedient to Principle through reflection. Christian Science is not merely a doctrine, it is a way of life; and in order to teach it to children one must live up to his highest understanding of it. In "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" (p. 272), Mrs. Eddy writes, "It is the spiritualization of thought and Christianization of daily life, in contrast with the results of the ghastly farce of material existence; it is chastity and purity, in contrast with the downward tendencies and earthward gravitation of sensualism and impurity, which really attest the divine origin and operation of Christian Science."

In the Manual of The Mother Church (Art. XX) our Leader has given some simple rules for teaching in our Sunday schools, and also the subjects that shall be taught. She has laid the foundation of spiritual education, emphasizing obedience to moral and spiritual law. Through the understanding of these lessons and their utilization in daily life, thought is spiritualized and life is Christianized.

Mrs. Eddy states that the children are to be taught the Scriptures, and she indicates as subjects for teaching, the great spiritual revelatiosn on which character building rests the Ten Commandments, the Beatitudes, and the Lord's Prayer. These are the foundations of spiritual education in the Sunday school and the home. Both parents and teachers need to understand and teach them, so that the children may learn to claim and demonstrate their spiritual freedom.

Both parents and teachers need to study our Church Manual in regard to teaching the children. The tender, loving mother will alwyas find time to teach her children the spiritual laws of obedience to God, good, love for their neighbor, and the meaning of prayer. Both mother and Sunday school teacher can help the child to learn his first lessons in self-discipline. The real selfhood of the child must be seen as God's child, but he must also be taught to overcome the faults which deny and hide from him this spiritual selfhood. These faults must be seen and destroyed, not ignored. Children will not become Christian Scientists by merely learning the letter of the lessons as outlined in the Manual. They must be taught to apply them according to their needs.

We cannot begin too soon to teach children spiritual values, and Sunday school teachers need the co-operation of parents in this regard. Parents should not expect that children can be taught the practical application of Christian Science through the Sunday school alone. They must be helped at home to understand and apply the truth every day. One might just as well expect a child to become an accomplished musician by attending school once a week. The child who is being taught spiritual lessons at home brings to his Sunday school a more fertile soil for the seeds that are sown there.

Most children spend the major part of their time in day school. The thoughtfully equipped modern school is teaching the children of today many good habits, such as those of cleanliness, promptness, and obedience, and bringing them enlightenment along many lines; but the wise parent will not be satisfied with such education alone. In Science and Health (p. 236) Mrs. Eddy speaks of the mother as being "the strongest educator," and continues further: Children should obey their parents; insubordination is an evil, blighting the buddings of self-government. Parents should teach their children at the earliest possible period the truths of health and holiness. Children are more tractable than adults, and learn more readily to love the simple verities that will make them happy and good."

Copyright, 1938, by The Christian Science Publishing Society, One, Norway Street, Boston, Massachusetts. Entered at Boston post office as second-class matter. Acceptance for mailing at a special rate of postage provided for in section 1103, Act of October 3, 1917, authorized on July 11, 1918.