1.]

IMPORTANCE OF A LEARNED MINISTRY,

which he is accustomed to travel he knows round which corners to turn, and arrives in safety at his journey's end."* For ministers especially, as the avowed cultivators of mind and intellect, it cannot be reputable, either to betray a deficiency of enlightened correct thinking, or to surrender the independency of their understandings to the domination of already received opinions. "Quit you like men," is a sacred command, from which neither reason nor religion can claim exemption. †

It must be obvious that in such an age as the present, cr a ministry is wanted, which will furnish discussions of religious topics, not inferior at least in intelligence to those, which people are accustomed to read and hear on

* Aristotle says, thinking is the business of the Gods; from which both their happiness and ours proceed.-See Remarks on Thinking, in New Month. Mag. for 1821, p. 307.

+ In accordance with these sentiments, has the subject of the present Me. moirs expressed himself; and in farther observation declares :-" We rejoice that in our day, so much candour and enlightened benevolence are manifested in the feelings and conduct of the Christian world. We join with all men to sing the funeral dirge of superstitious bigotry and anti-christian malice. Buried let them be in one grave, the slavery of oppression and the thraldom of ignorance, and the persecutions of counterfeit religion. And bright shall the morning be, and blessed and glorious shall be the day, when ignorance shall no longer uphold superstition and mental darkness shall no longer favour persecution, and national baseness no longer sustain oppression. The time will come, when these sights shall be perfected; and less than human must he be, who would for a moment retard their fulfilment."-Sermon on Heb. vi. 1, and ii Pet. i. 5, "The evil of Religious Ignorance," p. 17.

IMPORTANCE OF A LEARNED MINISTRY.

[Sect.

other subjects. Christianity will suffer, if, at a time when vigour and acuteness of thinking are carried into all other departments, the pulpit should send forth wild declamation, positive assertion, or dull common places, with which even childhood is satiated. Religion must be seen to be the friend and quickener of intellect. It must be exhibited with clearness of reasoning and variety of illustration; nor ought it to be deprived of the benefits of a pure and felicitous diction, and of rich glowing imagery, where these gifts fall to the lot of the teacher. It is not meant that every minister must be a man of genius; for genius is one of God's rarest inspirations; and of all the beamings and breathings of genius, perhaps the rarest is eloquence. I mean only to say, that the age demands of those, who devote themselves to the administration of Christianity, that they should feel themselves called upon for the highest cultivation and fullest developement of the intellectual nature. * Instead of

• "We would also submit to your attention here, how far it is binding upon every one who professes the religion of Jesus Christ, to endeavour by every ef fort in his power, to excite through the Christian church, a spirit of informa tion and knowledge; and both in himself and in others to cherish most anxiously such inquiries and studies as may have a tendency to remove the reproach too justly attaching to the Christian world-the reproach of ignorance. Our religion is the wisdom of God-to it every kind of knowledge and wisdom ought of course to bow; but to it every kind and species of knowledge and wisdom ought also to be made subservient, and to this end they must be pos. sessed. We know not why the "prince of this world" should engross all the

1.]

QUALIFICATIONS OF THE MINISTRY.

thinking, that the ministry is a refuge for dulness, and that whoever can escape from the plough is fit for God's spiritual husbandry, we ought to feel that no profession demands more enlarged thinking, and more various acquisitions of truth."*

Such considerations have been powerfully suggested by the rich collection of MSS. now before me and it is presumed, they will be readily associated with the memory of the present Character-the favoured son of a father, so devoted and successful in his various pursuits.

influence derived from learning and knowledge. We know of no reason why the prince of light, the God who gave man a mind and all its faculties, should not be acceptably served by the cultivation of those faculties; and why his church even here may not aspire at that perfection of wisdom, to which it shall arrive, when the grave shall have purified its defects and the light of the resurrection shall have illumined its understanding. Ignorance is one effect of our fallen nature, one mark of our subjection to this present evil world; and to shake it off and to rise in grand superiority to all the night of darkness and degradation, is one part of that superiority of the world, of which every Christian ought to strive, that he may be possessed."-Sermon on i John v. 4. p. 14, 15. And hence the Christian moralist and divine ought to take the lead in supporting "Mechanics' Institutions," and every similar society.-Scrip. Mag. iii. p. 261.

* A most eloquent Address-" On the Qualifications of the Christian Ministry: by W. E. Channing, D. D. of Boston, America;" appeared in the Scripture Mag. for 1825, p. 396.

HIS EDUCATION AND LOVE OF BOOKS.

[Sect.

SECT. II.

HIS EDUCATION AND CONDUCT AT HOME. From 1803 to 1816.

JOSEPH, having acquired the first elements of learning elsewhere, became a pupil of his father's. Mr. Jefferson had long been accustomed to the exercises of tuition, and therefore he was enabled to undertake them with the less inconvenience. His own son he beheld with peculiar interest, though not disposed to humour him by any preferring indulgence over his class-fellows. As a parent as well as a minister, he knew the meaning of that Scripture.

"He that spareth his rod hateth his son;

But he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes."

There was a fondness for books evinced from his childhood.* When about seven years of age, he is said to

* Well prepared was he therefore to give instruction to youth; and of this, his papers comprise the most ample testimony:

"I am happy to remind you, that the season of youth is the most suitable period for cultivating the best tempers; and that while such culture is severe and irksome to mature and inveterate habits, to yourselves the discipline will be comparatively easy and engaging. You have, in fact, every advantage for becoming the greatest in the kingdom of heaven."

"It is the way of the world to lay a superficial foundation, and to be ambitious of reaching at once after the upper degrees. This is one cause of ignor

1810.]

EDUCATION IN THE LANGUAGES.

have observed to Mrs. Toomer:

Josiah was!" Mrs. T. asked him,

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What a young king "Should you like to

be a King, Joseph ?" At first, he answered, "No;" but afterwards said, "Yes, I should like to be a King." "Why?" Because," replied he, "I could then have as many books as I want." Nor was it the bare love of reading by which he was animated; but his mind was evidently expanding its powers in delightful aspirations after his Creator. At this very period, a friend had been seriously conversing with him on the subject of religion : on which he retired, and was seen immediately afterwards in another room, engaged in prayer. So early had he the happiness of choosing the fear of the Lord ;" and of finding, that that is in truth"the beginning of wisdom!"

According to his father's plan of education, he became early acquainted with the languages-particularly the Latin, Greck and Hebrew.* In the pursuit of these he was thoroughly drilled, and he then laid the foundation

ance-men are not patient in the elements of learning. This is the cause of religious ignorance-men do not lay deep "the foundations of repentance from dead works and faith towards God." They pry into the secret things, the mys. teries of their religion, before they have learned its simplest elements, and have been purified from their old sins."-Lectures to Youth: on Matt. xviii. 1-4. p. 4; and Matt. xix. 16–22. p. 10.

This was evidently a favourite language with the Father, of which he has left many interesting memorials. Two of his manuscript books, in small 4to. are devoted entirely to this topic, and are designated, "Hebraica," and "Varieties in Hebrew Literature." Here is a most extensive collection of par

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