Agathos, and other Sunday stories

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Preface

The following allegories and stories have been actually related by the Author to his children on successive Sunday evenings. He began the practice with the earnest desire of combining some sort of occupation suitable to the Lord's day, with something which might amuse his little ones. Few parents can, he thinks, have failed to feel the want which he would here hope in some measure to supply.

On the one hand, if the conversations and employments of Sunday are not early marked as different from those of other days, how is it possible that our children can grow up with a deeply-rooted reverence for its holiness ? On the other hand, if the day i& one which they remember even for its dulness, how can

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children grow up in the love of this blessed season ? " Everlasting droopings," * their young hearts least of all will " bear." And if on other days they are used to amusing employments, if they love (and all children should be made to love them) the times of relaxation in which they see their parents as friends, and in some sort companions ; what else can happen, if on this day all amusement be banished, and all interest removed, but that they will grow insensibly to feel the Lord's day a weariness. But if the week-day's tale is changed for the Sunday story ; and if the child is really interested in it ; he learns, even unawares, to separate in his own mind the first day of the week from its common days ; and that by a pleasurable separation.

Such has been, to a remarkable degree, the effect of the first telling of these stories in the Author's family ; and such he cannot help hoping may be more widely their effect when they are given to the public. The questions at the close of each are designed as tracks, not as grooves ; and they may easily be multiplied or

PREFACE. XI

reduced in number, according to the judgment of the parent, or the age and intelligence of the child. Some of them are the very answers he received from his children.

One word more should be said about the plan of these narratives. The Author's greatest care has been, while interweaving in them as much instruction as he could about the Holy Scriptures, its allegories, and some of its most striking narratives, to keep as far as possible from all lowering down of holy things, or making the mysteries of the faith common and cheap to childish imaginations. Against this most dangerous evil, which appears to him to infest and poison many of the current religious books for children, he begs here most earnestly to protest, as against that which is laying unawares the foundation of untold evils, in accustoming the mind to look curiously, and with levity, on things which man must never approach but with humiliation and adoration. " Put off thy shoes from off thy feet ; for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground." This should be, from the first, the

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temper carefully wrought into our children's minds, if we would have them approach God with acceptance.

To teach them to think boldly of mysteries, in the vain hope of explaining to their childish minds what, in the fulness of their highest understanding, they can never truly comprehend, may make them shrewd and forward questioners, but cannot make them meek and teachable disciples.

It only remains further to say, for what age these stories are intended. The Author's children reach from five to nine years old, and are of ordinary powers of conr vehension. Of these, the eldest has been fully interested by the simplest narratives, and the youngest has understood the most difficult. All the applications of the allegorical tales, they of course will not understand at first ; but in the author's judgment, this is the very excellence of allegorical instruction. The minds of children may be fatally dwarfed, by never having presented to them anything but that which they can understand without effort ; whilst it

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is exceeding difficult to devise anything which shall at the same time attract their attention and stretch their faculties. It is exactly this want which allegory supplies : the story catches the attention of the youngest ; glimpses of the under-meaning continually flash into their minds ; and whilst it is difficult to say exactly how much they have fully understood, it is clear that it has been enough to give them interest and arouse their faculties.

May God hereby bless some of the tender lambs of His fold.

The rapid sale of a numerous edition of this little work, not only proves the existence of the want which it is intended to supply, but it is also a gratifying mark of the kindness with which the attempt has been received.

On one point the author has been requested to say a single word in explanation of his plan. Some of the stories are gathered from Holy Scripture, and yet do not adhere in every particular to the letter of the Bible narrative ; and he has been requested to explain the principle of such variations. They consist, then, he would say, in every case, of the mere marking out of lines which the general sketch of Scripture appeared to him to contain : — the filling up for his young readers of the picture, which is set before them there in outline

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merely. Thus, for instance, in the ninth story, David is represented as slaying the lion and the bear in a time of snow, though this is not mentioned in the passage which records the fact. But in another chapter we find the slaying of a lion especially recorded, with the addition that it was " in the time of snow," (2 Sam. xxiii. 20) : and this seeming to point out the season of the year at which such beasts were wont to leave their more retired haunts, it is introduced to perfect the picture which the brief narrative of Scripture sketches only in outline.

No further liberty has been taken with the letter of God's word; and tljis does not, the author trusts, exceed the just and necessary limits of exposition.

Contents

PAGE

AGATHOS, OR THE WHOLE ARMOUR OF GOD 1

THE RAVENS IN THE FAMINE * . . . . 13

II. The Ravens In The Famine

The spring-time was come; and the birds had all built their nests, and sat upon their smooth round eggs till they had hatched them ; and now they were busy flying here and there, and running along the ground, some picking up seeds, and some catching flies, and some seizing every worm which put his head above the damp ground ; and all carrying them off as fast as possible to feed their young ones, as they were taught to do by the instinct which God Almighty had given them. It was a busy happy scene. Cheerful too it was to the ear as well as to the eye ; for sometimes they stopped from their labour to sing a song of praise to the good God who has made this happy world.

Amongst these birds there were two black ones called Kavens. These flew to a town a long way off, and there they lighted by a great shop, where a man was busy selling some bread and meat to the people who came to buy. The man threw them each a lump of bread and piece of meat for the sport of the people round : and the birds took them in their strong beaks, and flew straight away with them ; and the people clapped their hands and shouted. But they were all surprised when just at night the same birds came again to the same place and seemed to ask for more ; and then flew away with what was given them, just as they had done in the morning. The next day they came again as soon as the shop was open, and when they had got what they wanted, away they flew with it, and were seen no more till night ; and then again they only stayed till some bread and meat was given them; and then nobody saw more of them. Many persons tried to watch them ; they must have, it was thought, some great nest near, and they took all this with them to feed their nestlings.

But perhaps these people were quite wrong; for God, who has taught birds in general to feed their young ones, has before now taught them a different lesson. So it was at that time of which we read in the Bible, when he taught Eavens to feed one of the Prophets. If any one could have flown with them and seen all their doings, it would have been a strange sight. How they got the meat we do not know ; but we know that any one who could have flown with them, would have seen that as soon as they got it they flew straight away with it to another country. Then they passed over a land where every thing was dry and burnt up for want of rain. It had not rained for a whole year, and all the brooks were dry. The little

THE RAVENS IN THE FAMINE. 15

streams which had leaped from stone to stone were drunk in by the thirsty ground, and their murmuring voice was no more heard ; the corn was parched up and would not grow ; the grass was dried and withered ;

the cattle had eaten it quite close down to the dusty earth, and then had grown thinner and thinner till they had died. Men's faces had grown thin and sharp, and their eyes looked hungrily out of their sunk cheeks ; and their tongues were dry, and swelled with thirst; and they walked about, here and there, looking for food and for water, and they could not find any.

Child. There was a great famine in that land.

Father. Yes, there was a great famine. The people of the land had sinned against God, and He had bid "the clouds that they should rain no rain upon it." And if you could have flown with those Havens you would have heard a great voice of sadness, and sighing, and sorrow, rising from all that land as they flew over it.

But where do you think the Eavens were flying to ? They flew over all that land till they came to a cave in the side of a high sandy hill ; and if you could have looked into that cave you would have seen, not a nest of young Eavens, but one man sitting, or standing, or kneeling, by the side of a little brook that rose high up in the cave, and sunk just below in the thirsty land, so that no one else knew of it.

Perhaps you might have seen this good man kneeling down, and lifting up his hands towards the sky, and saying, " Lord God, who hast kept me hitherto, and ordered the wild ravens to feed me, take care of me this day, for Thou art my God, and I am Thy servant."

THE RAVENS IN THE FAMINE. 17

And then the mouth of the cave was darkened for a moment ; it was by the wings of the great ravens, as they flew in and laid down the meat and the bread before the good man's feet ; and he would rise and gather a few dry sticks to dress the meat at the cave's mouth, and drink some of the clear spring- water, and then kneel down again to thank his God, who had taught the Eavens to fly all over the starving country to bring it to him in this lonely cave.

• F. Can you tell me where this story comes from ?

C. Yes, we may read it in the 1 7th chapter of the 1st Book of Kings.

F. Who was it that was thus fed by ravens ?

C. The prophet Elijah, by the brook Cherith.

F. Why did God thus take care of him ?

C. Because he was His faithful servant.

F. Yes, my child, and so it shall always be. He will never leave nor forsake those who trust in Him and serve Him truly. He will feel and care for a child that prays to Him. " The young lions do lack and suffer hunger ; but they who trust in the Lord shall want no manner of thing that is good."

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UL THE MAN IN THE DUNGEON.

There was a deep dungeon — its walls were all green and stained with the damp which had long hung on them ; its floor was made of cold rough stones. It had one small window, across which were thick iron bars, and it was so narrow and so high up, that hardly any light came from it to the floor. It was night, and all was quite still and silent there : even in the day, no cheerful sound came into that sad place ; not even a bird's song was ever heard there ; scarcely even a fly could ever be seen in it ; but now it was night, and dark, and silent, except when now and then the moving of chains was heard on that dungeon's floor. For a man was lying there chained, by chains which went round his wrists. But his chains made no noise now, for he was lying still : he was asleep ; sleeping as quietly, and breathing as gently as if he were a child. How could he be sleeping so gently ? Did he know where he was ? Yes, he well knew : and he knew too, that when the sun rose the next morning, and woke so many persons all around him to their daily work,

THE MAN IN THE DUNGEON. I !!

or to their daily pleasures, that it would see him led out of that prison to be put to a eruel death : for the very next morning he was to be killed. Then surely he must have been some very wicked man ;

for why else, should he be in that dungeon, and why else should he be about to be killed % You would the more have thought so if. you could have, seen all ; for you would have seen that he was chained to two

soldiers, who lay on each side of him, with their weapons ready to slay him if he were to move. Fierce evil-looking men they were, of dark and savage faces ; they were asleep, but even in their sleep they looked angry and cruel. The gate of the dungeon too was barred and locked, and there were four other soldiers asleep outside it ; and beyond them again was a great iron gate fast closed, so that surely he must be a very wicked and desperate man whom they are guarding with this strength and care. And yet, if you could look into his face, you would see him sleeping quietly and calmly. A little child upon the knees of his mother, could hardly sleep more gently. And could he sleep so if he were indeed a wicked man ? Could his conscience be asleep when he was thus deep in the dungeon, and death coming so near to him ? No doubt he could not : no doubt that his sleep could not have been what it was, unless God had been with him there : for he was a holy man, one who did indeed love God, one who had followed Jesus Christ when He lived upon this earth, and whom with eleven others Jesus Christ had trusted to govern His Church, now that He had ascended into heaven. He had been thrown into that dungeon, because he loved Jesus Christ, and believed in Him, and would speak about Him among people who hated Him ; and so their wicked king had laid hold on him, and cast him into this dungeon, and was about to put him to death the very next day. He seemed now given over, for no one else was to be seen in that dungeon, but the poor man in chains, and the

THE MAN IN THE DUNGEON. 21

fierce soldiers to whom lie was bound. But there was another there ; there was One who watched over him ; who kept him from all harm ; who gave him that sweet sleep; who heard when he % prayed, and was ever ready to help him, — Jesus Christ was there.

There was in that town another room, not a very large one, and yet there were many persons in it. It was now late at night, but still they stayed there. There were some men and some women, — what are they doing ? They are praying to God, calling on the name of Jesus Christ, begging Him to save His servant Peter, and not to let him, like St. James, be put to death by Herod. They prayed very earnestly, and no doubt their prayers were heard. Perhaps it is as an answer to their prayers, that the chained prisoner sleeps so peacefully ; for he looks as if some happy vision or dream came to him as he slept. Perhaps he is dreaming of the time when he was a boy, and went with his father upon the lake of Gennesaret as a fisherman.

Perhaps he dreams of the first time he went ; how pleased he was to go ; how the bright moon shone, and the little waves rippled round the boat, as it shot with its dark shadow through the moonlight, and left a troubled path on the waters where it had passed. Is that his father's voice calling him ? Is that the moonlight round him? See, he starts in his sleep and opens his eyes ; he looks like a man who hardly knows whether he is well awake, or still in a dream. What is the light around 'him? there was never moonlight in the dungeon, and he- is there, and not by the sea of Galilee. And what is this light, brighter, and yet softer far than any moonlight ? It is so clear, that he can see every corner of the dungeon, and yet so mild that it does not dazzle his eyes, which had been so long in the darkness. And what is that voice which says to him, " Arise up, quickly," as kind as his father's in his dream, and yet a real sounding voice? The soldiers, too, beside him, why do they sleep on? He looks up, and he sees a form he knows not. Is it one of God's angels ? the light seems to beam from him : either he must be a holy angel, or all this is a beautiful dream. But he does as the voice bids him ; he rises up, and the chains fall off from his hands ; they clanked and rung as they fell upon the ground, but the soldiers did not stir : the hands of one of them was upon the hilt of his sword ; in a moment surely it would be drawn, and Peter slain : but no, the fierce man slept on, and Peter bound on his sandals, and followed the angel. He passed the first gate, for it opened for them ; the keepers lay around it, but no man stirred, and it shut again behind them. They came to the second ; it too is left behind. Surely it must be a dream. But now they stand before the iron gate ; its heavy weight hangs always stiffly on its rusty hinges, and many men can only just slowly and scarcely force it open with a great creaking and noise. It, too, opens of its own accord, and they pass through it into the open air. It was a very pleasant feeling ; that ' first breath of the

THE MAN IN THE DUNGEON.

open summer night-breeze upon Peter's forehead, which had grown damp and cold in the dark wet dungeon.

Surely it must be more than a dream. He looked round for the angel who had brought him forth, but he was gone. Gone, as he came, unseen and unknown by man, save when God would have him seen. Perhaps he stood near him still, though he could be seen no longer. Peter stands doubtful for a moment. Then all the truth comes surely ou his mind, and he knew that " the Lord had sent, His angel, and delivered him out of the hands of Herod, and from all the expectation of the people of the Jews/' And he went to that room where the servants of the Lord were together praying, and they would scarcely believe when they heard that Peter was there. But he went in and told them what great things the Lord had done for him ; and he and they feared the Lord together, and trusted in Him more and more.

THE CHILDREN AND THE LION. 25

IV. The Children And The Lion

There was once a Father who had two children whom he loved exceedingly. They were a little girl and boy, and they were good and obedient children. For many years, ever since they were born, they had lived in the middle of a great town, and had never seen the open fields and the beautiful flowers, and birds, and woods, except sometimes when their father took them out in a carriage with him for an hour or two ; and those were happy times. One day, when the little girl was seven, and the boy nine years old, their father called them to him, and said to them, My dear children, I am going to take you away from this house in which you have been used to live, and to take you into another house, where you will have a beautiful garden, in which you can play about amongst the flowers, and hear the birds sing all day long, and see the bright butterflies which you have seen when I have taken you out in the carriage.

Child. How pleased the little boy and girl must have been to go to such a beautiful house, from the midst of the dark town where they had lived before.

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F. Yes, they were greatly pleased; and when the next day they came to this new house, and looked out of its windows, and saw the green grass looking fresh and bright, and gay butterflies flying over it up and down, and the painted feathers of all sorts of birds which flew in and out of the bushes, or stayed to warble in the thickets, they longed to run straight out of doors and sing too, they were so happy ; and • thought that they should never tire of gathering the flowers, and playing with the bright yellow gourds which they could see growing here and there in the beds, and watching the birds and butterflies. But just as they were running out, their father called them to him with a very grave face, so grave as to be almost sad, and said to them, My dearest children, before you go into that beautiful garden, listen well to what I am going to tell you. In that garden there is a fierce and hungry lion, who is always walking up and down it, to find some one to devour. There are reasons which you cannot understand, why I cannot turn this lion out ; and why, much as I love you, I have yet brought you to live in this garden, near such a savage beast ; but if you will remember my words, he can never hurt you. What you must do is this; keep in mind that he is ever near you, that he is waiting to spring on you ; and when the sun is the brightest, and the birds the gayest, and all is most beautiful around you, and you are the happiest yourselves, then think that he is near you, and watch carefully, lest he should spring on you

THE CHILDREN AND THE LION. 27

unseen : for if, when you see him, you call on me to help you, you will find me always near you, and he will fly away from you. Do not stay to think how I caq. hear you when you do not see me, but call at once on me, and I shall be always by your side, and you will be safe. But if in your play you cease to watch for the lion, and so are not ready to call on me, he will creep close to you when you least expect it, and spring on you and devour you.

• The children looked very grave and thoughtful ; each took the other's hand, and they walked quite sadly down into the garden ; trembling and afraid, as though thinking that • at every turn the great lion would spring out upon them.

But they saw nothing of him ; and as the birds hopped round them, and the gay* butterflies floated up and down in the air, and the sun sparkled in the stream that ran amongst the flowers, they began to forget that there was such a thing as a lion in the world ; and soon they were playing and laughing as merrily and loud as if they had never heard that he was near them. But just when they were the gayest, they heard their father's voice, saying, sadly and seriously, ' Remember ! ' They started and looked round, but they could not see him : the voice seemed to come from the air ; but the little girl thought directly of the lion ; and as she looked into the bushes, which were quite white with their bright blossoms, she saw something creeping softly towards her ; and in a moment her eyes were fixed on the fierce fiery eyes of the savage lion. She had hardly breath left to call upon her father, but at the first call he stood by her side ; and she could see the Hon turn from her, and spring away and hide himself in the thicket. Her father took her in his arms, and told her not to fear, for that she was quite safe in his keeping ; and he bid her remember, that if she had not watched, and seen the lion, and called on His name, the evil beast would

THE CHILDREN AND THE LION. 2 J)

have sprung upon her, and she would have been his prey.

Day after day passed away, and the children became more and more watchful, and even in their sport and play, they were sober and mindful of the lion ; and when he was stealing near to them, they called always on their father, and he ever stood beside them, and saved them from his fangs.

Now do you remember anything like this in the Bible ?

C. Yes, I remember the text which says, " Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary the devil goeth about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour/' I suppose that he is the lion.

F. Yes, my dear children, he is ; and who is the kind father who is ever near to hear when they call ?

C. Is not that God, whom we are taught to call our heavenly Father ?

F. Yes, it is God, and Jesus Christ our Saviour, w T ho are ever near those who trust in Them, and who will hear as soon as ever they call, and who will help and deliver them from the devil and his snares.

So that you see, my dear children, how you must watch ; if you would be kept safe from this great enemy. You must " watch and pray : " watch that you may pray, and pray that you may be safe.

V. The Storm At Sea

A large ship lay near the shore ; she was waiting for the wind, for all her cargo was on board. The sea, which had been long as calm as a great looking-glass, began to be ruffled over here and there as the flaws of wind fell upon it, and little waves began to rise upon it, looking very bright where the sun fell upon their sparkling tops, and quite black and dark where they curled away from his shining ; and as they followed one another on to the pier, they broke against and ran up it, throwing up a little salt spray, through which the sun shone in many colours like a rainbow.

When the wind began to rise, every one was busy on board the ship. The sailors were running about, pulling the ropes, and shaking out the sails, and drawing up the anchor ; and the captain was walking here and there, and seeming to think that they could never work hard enough, or get the ship quick enough ready to sail out to sea whilst the pleasant breeze lasted. However, the sailors laboured, and all was just ready, when a man came down to the sea-shore and jumped into a boat which lay there, and called to the sailors near to row him out to the ship, before she should sail away. He had but just time to reach her : he got alongside just as she began to cut the water with her keel, and he begged the captain to take him on board, and he would pay for his passage. After a few words it was settled between them ; the boat pulled back to the shore, and the stranger was standing on the deck of the vessel, watching the windows and the people and the houses, as they grew less and less every moment, until they could scarcely be seen the one from the other.