the
body has its place and function in the growth of Christian character,
still more has the mind its ethical importance. Our Maker can have no
delight in ignorance. He desires that we should present not a
fragmentary but complete manhood. Specialisation, though a necessity
of the age, is fraught with peril to the individual. The exigencies of
labour require men to concentrate their energies on their own immediate
tasks; but each must seek to be not merely a craftsman, but a man.
Other sides {208} of our nature require to be cultivated besides those
which bring us into contact with the ways and means of existence.
Indeed, it is only by the possession of a well-trained mind that the
fullest capacity, even for special pursuits, can be obtained. It has
become a commonplace to say that every man should have equality of
opportunity to earn a livelihood. But equality of opportunity for
education, as something which ought to be within the reach of every
youth in the land, is not so frequently insisted upon. Beyond the
claims of daily occupation every one should have a chance, and, indeed,
an inducement, to cultivate his mental and spiritual nature. Hence
what is called 'culture,' the all-round development of the human
faculties, is an essential condition of moral excellence. For, as
Goethe has said, the object of education ought to be rather the
formation of tastes than simply the communication of knowledge. But
most important of all the self-regarding aims of life is the obligation
of _Self-discipline_, and the use of every means of moral culture which
the world supplies. It is through the complex conditions of earthly
existence that the character of the individual is developed. It will
only be possible to indicate briefly some of the aids to the culture of
the moral life. Among these may be mentioned: (_a_) _The Providential
Experiences of life_. The world itself, as a sphere of Work,
Temptation, and Suffering, is a school of character. The affections
and cares of the home, the duties and tasks incident to one's calling,
the claims of one's fellow-men, the trials and temptations of one's
lot--these are the universal and common elements in man's moral
education. Not to escape from the world's activities and conflicts,
but to turn them into conditions of self-mastery, is the duty of each.
Men do work, but work makes men. The shopkeeper is not merely selling
wares; the artisan or mechanic is not simply engaged