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materials . The service must not be long , lest the children be weary ; if short , it must be impressive and comprehensive , or its influence will immediately pass away . There must be novelty to attract , and variety to engage the attention ; there must be solemnity enough to inspire awe , and cheerfulness enough to excite sympathy and banish restraint . That all these objects should be attained , is perhaps too much to expect : but they should all be aimed at . The Scriptures should , of course , be more frequently read than any other book , and their contents made as interesting as possible by
judicious selection , and , where it is practicable , by a viva voce explanation from the reader . But with this Scripture reading should be joined other kinds . Sometimes a plain and striking illustration of a religious truth or moral duty which has occurred in private study may be advantageously connected with a chapter of the Testament . In some cases a short work on a practical subject may be read continuously . But sermons are , perhaps , all things considered , the best means of family religious instruction . To those far advanced in moral and intellectual cultivation , sermons are
generally but an unsatisfactory kind of reading . The truths of the gospel are of vast and various extent as well as importance ; but , in this species of composition , every subject must be treated of at a certain length , and no other ; and even when developed in a series of sermons , there must be a conclusion to each , and the attention is palled off almost as soon as engaged . It must often happen in discourses of the greatest length , that , however clearly a proposition may be laid down , its corroborating arguments must
be merely stated , and not ur | $ ed ; and its consequences intimated , and not displayecf ; so that either the proposition , its proofs , or its results , must be taken on trust . But those who think deeply , and thirst after the purest supplies of religious knowledge , have access to fountains of wisdom which give out a deeper and wider stream ; and will remember , what is too often forgotten , that sermons are not primarily intended for closet reading ; but to fulfil purposes which cannot be answered by a more complete and copious communication of truth . Sermons are intended to convey instruction to those who have limited means , or no opportunity whatever of obtaining it from books . They are designed to awaken consciences which seldom hear any
other voice of exhortation , and to arouse minds which are only occasionally withdrawn from the occupations and seductions pf the world ; arid according to their intention should they be judged . To effect these purposes , sermons should be made as interesting as possible , by variety in the subjects , and by a much greater ease , if not familiarity of style , than is found in t , he generality of discourses . The supreme importance of their objects cannot but ensure sufficient dignity ; and tfre preacher need seldom fear to dishonour the cause by ecoplpying vivacity of illustration and liveliness of style . The more like speeches , and tfye Jess like essays ,
sermons are , tjie better . Formality is more injurioqs in this Jhan in any other kind of composition . Did not Robinson ' s discourses produce a greater and better effect than ten tinges the number of formal essays th , at we are still too often in the way ofhearipg ? Religion dicl not , from this cause , Jose one particle of its dignity in ftobinson ' s hands ; while the hearts pn * J minds of thousands were , warmecl anc } - fillet } . > Ve ^ ve pften gri ^ y ^ d th , at his sermons were not adapted for fajpily reading ; as it is cjifficujt to find any where a volume of discourses which in any degree answers the purpose . A
collection of sermons by one author , however good , goes but a very little way in supplying the wants of a family , jf the style , suits some hearers , it is not adapted to the capacities or tastes of others ; and it is almost inevitable that
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450 Sermons for Families .
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Citation
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Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), July 2, 1829, page 450, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2574/page/2/
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