Fitting Young Men for the Ministry.
By S. Brownsberger
BY PROF. S. BROWNSBERGER. ONE of the chief objects for which our College at Healdsburg was established is to provide instruction suited to the necessities of those who expect to labor in the ministry of present truth. The College is in successful operation to this extent: Hard-earned means have been invested; suitable accommodations in grounds and buildings have been provided; teachers have been secured who are well qualified to give first-class instruction, and to meet the wants of all classes for whom the school was established; eighty-two students have been in attendance during the past month, a large majority of whom are the children of our brethren; but the number who are here for the express purpose of preparing to labor in the ministry, is small. Now this should not be. The cause needs workers, and there should be at our College to-day forty or fifty young men and women preparing for this work. I have no doubt that there are many young people on this coast that feel impelled to come here for that purpose but for different reasons they are hesitating; some for lack of means, others from embarrassment on account of age and ignorance, while some are so involved in business that they cannot find time to attend school; others, too, may be undecided in regard to the practical benefits of education. Pluck and industry will make a little money go a great way in meeting a student's necessary expenses at school. By self-boarding, expenses here are small, and a few students can find opportunities to labor Sundays and thus add some to their scanty supply of means. Where there is the disposition to succeed, however great the difficulties may appear, the end is already secured. The fact is that most who hesitate for want of means are dreaming more than they are doing. Men who are lifted over difficulties, never render good help at the wheel of reform. To those who are halting from embarrassment, I would say, No true seeker at the shrine of wisdom, takes any cognizance of age and condition. The embarrassment you fear is a phantom of the imagination that is never realized. It is never seen nor felt within the walls of our College. Those who come here with such fear, soon discover their folly. True it is, those who have reached the noon of life, or nearly so, have not the time to take a full course of study, but a year's study or even a single term in special classes, would help them much. But some are questioning whether the benefits to be derived from attending the College are at all proportionate to the cost, and whether after all they cannot accomplish just as much without such effort. We do not think that education will change a weak man into a strong one in all cases; but it takes each one as it finds him, and imparts to him a degree of character and ability such as otherwise he would never have attained. It must be apparent to every one that no ignorant person can succeed in any profession or business in which are required knowledge and cultivation of mind. Because some educated men fail for want of tact, energy, or natural ability to apply their powers, it is not therefore just to suppose that education is not necessary to full success. One of our most successful ministers made the following statement in a private letter concerning a preparation for the ministry:— "It is my experience that no man can hope to succeed in the ministry without such a knowledge of English Grammar as will enable him to form correct sentences, and not disgust the people with his slaughter of the king's English. Most people judge from appearances, and would be liable to put a man down as entitled to no credit, if he made a bad use of language, spelled his words improperly, and withal wrote poorly. In these three particulars a minister should seek to attain perfection, as nearly as possible. "I regard even a few months of thorough drill in school as of priceless value, simply to aid the student in learning how to study, how to think systematically, how to control the thoughts, and apply all the powers of the mind in close study. For lack of this many a naturally strong intellect is allowed to run to waste all through life. The mind needs to be trained to think accurately, as well as the fingers to guide the pen accurately." Our fall term of school will soon close. The spring term will begin Jan. 3. I trust that all who have been undecided heretofore, and halting between two opinions, will fully decide to be here at the opening of next term,560ready for work; and may the blessing of God rest upon them in their endeavors to better fit themselves for his sacred work.