d obedience must be the rule, though
in their case it is not to be, as in the case of the child,
unquestioning obedience, but is to be founded on reason, affection and
gratitude. With them obedience takes the form of reverence, or, to use
a more familiar word, respect. The child is bound to obey his parent
without hesitation or reply; the young man who has entered into greater
liberty than the child will still respect his parents' wishes and
cherish reverence for their authority. This feeling on his part is
termed in the Scriptures _Honor_. "Honor thy father and thy mother" is
one of the Ten Commandments, and can never cease to be included among
moral and religious obligations. It is opposed to everything like
unseemly familiarity, discourtesy of treatment, insolence in reply, or
deliberate defiance. It implies respect for age and experience, and a
sense of the great sacrifices a parent has made for his children's
welfare. It is said that in our time the bonds of parental authority
are being loosened, and that young men do not regard their parents with
the deference that once was invariably shown towards them; that they do
little to smooth the path of life for them when they grow old and weak,
and are more ready to cast them on the public charity than to
contribute to their support. Such a state of things would be shameful,
if true. It would indicate a corruption of social life at the
fountain-head that must lead to serious consequences. The family is
the nursery both of the State and of the Church, and where the purity
and well-being of family life is impaired, both State and Church are
sure to suffer. There should be therefore an earnest and prayerful
endeavor upon the part of the young to cherish towards their parents
that loving sense of their superiority which is implied in the word
Honor. "Let them learn first," says St. Paul (1 Tim. v. 4), "to show
piety at home, and to requite their parents; for that is good and
acceptable before God." There can be no more pleasing memory for a
young man to have than this, that he has been a dutiful son; none more
bitter than this, that he has set at defiance, or neglected, those to
whom he owes so much.

2. _Affection_ is the atmosphere that should pervade the household.
"Without hearts," it has been truly said, "there is no home." A
collection of roots, and trunk, and branches, and leaves, do not make a
tree; neither do a number of people dwelling together make