Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 10 (1895)

Ms 73, 1895

Education

Armadale Camp-ground, Melbourne, Australia

[October] 1895

Previously unpublished.

While we compose a part of the great human family, it is essential for ourselves and for the influence which we shall exert upon others, that we and our children shall have a proper education. For this reason we have sought such a position for our school in New South Wales that is not in or nigh the city. We do not think it is safe to locate near the cities. We have chosen a retired position so that the youth may look upon God’s works, upon the hills and the lofty trees. Our children learn by the sight of the eyes and by the hearing of their ears, and we desire that they shall be in a place where the sight and sounds shall be purer than those of our cities. 10LtMs, Ms 73, 1895, par. 1

John the Baptist, the greatest prophet the world has ever known, did not receive his education in the schools of the rabbis. In his youth he was taken away from these scenes and sights into the wilderness. What was the reason? God has declared over and over again that his people must be distinct, pure, and holy, a peculiar people, that should not mix and mingle with the elements of the world. 10LtMs, Ms 73, 1895, par. 2

We have not established schools like this because we want to be singular, but because we see that it is our duty to place our children in the most advantageous position to form characters for the future immortal life. Are we living for this world? On every side we see people passing away without a moment’s notice. How do we know how soon our turn will come? Teach your children of these things. Gather them round your knee, and talk to them of the love of God. Teach them of his unselfishness and love toward the human family. And when your children reach the age when it is proper to place them in school, find a school where they will attain the best knowledge of God, where they will not lose eternal things out of their reckoning. Place them just as far as possible from the fashions and practices of the world. Children need to be taught what it means to walk with God, that they may reverence sacred and holy things, and distinguish between the sacred and the common. 10LtMs, Ms 73, 1895, par. 3

The Lord would have us stand in a position where we can say, “Speak, Lord, and thy servant heareth” [1 Samuel 3:9], closing our ears to the inconsistency and folly seen on the earth, and magnifying him in whom are centered our hopes of eternal life. And if this is so, do you think the Lord wants our schools filled with books which will sow the seeds of infidelity and doubt? The highest science of education is to know the plan of redemption. The knowledge of God must be the foundation of the education given in our schools, that the students may know God, not merely by report or hearsay, but as their Creator and Redeemer. Upon this foundation let them build an education, not merely that they may say, I am educated, but they may have something to carry with them wherever they may go. With their mind filled with the knowledge of God, their thoughts will not lead them to the betting hall or the horse race. They will see that there is a race to be run and a crown to win—the crown of immortal life. This is the kind of education the youth should have. 10LtMs, Ms 73, 1895, par. 4

To send the youth into the world loaded down with the education gained in the schools of today, is to put into their hands weapons against God. Instead of this, we need schools where they shall learn to know God and Jesus Christ whom he hath sent, so that they will choose for themselves to stand under the blood-stained banner of Prince Emmanuel; to put on the whole armor of God, that they may be able to fight manfully the battles of the Lord, in his power gaining the victory. We thank God that he has given us intellect and reason. Shall we not teach our children that their minds were given to them, not to be made workshops for the devil, but that they might be in touch with the Lord, working with him and for him? 10LtMs, Ms 73, 1895, par. 5

But education does not embrace merely the training of the intellect. The Lord has shown us that the whole being, physical, mental, and moral must be developed equally; that every part of the human machinery must be put to the tax. While at school our youth should be taught trades, that their overflow of energy may be expended in something useful. Jesus Christ, after he had sat in the temple with the learned doctors asking and answering question, returned to his home and worked with his father at the carpenter’s bench, helping to support the family. I have heard people say that it would be degrading to give the children common work, but that is the best education to instill into their minds. 10LtMs, Ms 73, 1895, par. 6

I have heard people mourning that God took their children away in the morning of their life. But was it God that took them? It was violation of the laws of health. It was the wine in the tables of these parents. 10LtMs, Ms 73, 1895, par. 7

Nature is the great educator, and our schools must be established where we shall have God’s works all round us; where the students can be given object lessons from the flowers and trees, and pointed from nature to nature’s God. “Consider the lilies of the field; they toil not, neither do the spin; and yet I say unto you that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.” [Matthew 6:28, 29.] In our country I have seen water lilies growing in pools of water. Though surrounded by debris, their blossoms stand out, beautiful in their purity. I gathered some once, and found that the roots were firmly imbedded in the pure sand beneath. This is an object lessons for us. Though in the world and surrounded by its moral pollution, yet with a right hold of God we can escape the evil around us, and be partakers of the divine nature. Rooted in Christ, we can stand against the temptations of Satan. 10LtMs, Ms 73, 1895, par. 8

When tempted to corrupt yourself, remember that you are not your own, but are bought with a price, even the blood of the Majesty of heaven, the King of Glory, who came to our world to save those who had wandered from him. Our youth must be taught these lessons of truth, and I have felt an earnest anxiety that schools should be established after this order, where the youth will be given an education that will be but a preparation for the higher grade, to which, if faithful, they will be called by Christ, where they will learn through the ages of eternity more about God and the mystery of his love to the world. 10LtMs, Ms 73, 1895, par. 9

In our schools the youth should be taught how to perfect a Christian character. Christ came to do the Father’s will. He said, “I have kept my Father’s commandments.” [John 15:10.] He came to show us how the moral image of God, which had been obliterated by ages of sin, might be restored on the earth. Keep these lessons before the youth continually; for the highest science of education is to know the plan of redemption. 10LtMs, Ms 73, 1895, par. 10