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Page 44
MATERIAL FROM HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHY
God is to be found in the lives of nations and of men not less than in
nature, and the evidences and effects of his presence there should be
taught our children. The spirit which Jesus revealed in his life upon
earth is exemplified in the lives of many of his followers who joyously
spend themselves in the service of others. Men who set the standard for
manliness, and women whose character and lives are the best definition
of womanliness, are as much a revelation of God's work and power as a
constellation of stars or the bloom of the rose.
The example of great lives.--So, along with the great Bible characters
we will bring to the child the men, and women of other generations. We
will bring to him the great souls who, as missionaries, have carried the
Light to those who sit in darkness; those who in honesty and integrity
of purpose have served as leaders of nations or armies or movements to
the blessing of humanity; those who, with the love of God in their
hearts, have gone out as ministers, teachers, writers of books, singers
of songs, makers of pictures, healers of sickness; or those who, in any
field, of toil or service, have given the cup of cold water in the name
of the Master.
And we will bring to the child the story of the nations, showing him one
people growing in strength, power, and happiness while following God's
plan of human justice, mercy, and kindness; and another going down to
destruction, its very name and speech forgotten, because it became
arrogant and perverse and forgot the ways of righteousness. At the
proper time in their development we will bring to our pupils the life
and problems of the present--the wrongs that need to be righted, the
causes that need to be defended and carried through to victory, the evil
that needs to be suppressed, the work of Christ and the church which is,
awaiting workers. Thus shall we seek to bring the challenge of life
itself to those we teach.
PICTURE MATERIAL
No discussion of the curriculum can ignore the use of _pictures_ as
teaching material. Teachers of religion have long recognized the value
of visual instruction, and every lesson series now has its full quota of
picture cards and other forms of pictorial material.
In this picture material may roughly be distinguished three great types:
(1) the _symbolical_ picture; (2) the rather _formal_ picture, often
badly conceived and executed, always dealing with biblical characters or
incidents; and (3) the more universalized type drawn from every field of
pictorial art, representing not only biblical personages and events, but
also typifying �sthetic and moral values of every range adapted to the
understanding and appreciation of the child.
Types of pictures.--Representative of the first, or symbolical,
pictorial type are found the more or less crude pen drawings of such
things as the _heart_ with a key, an open _Bible with a torch_ beside
it, tombstone-like drawings representing the _Tables of the Law_ or
three _interlocking circles representing the Trinity, etc._
Not only are all these abstract concepts beyond the grasp or need of the
child at the age when the pictures are represented, but the symbols are
in no degree suggestive to the child of the lesson intended; they are
devoid of meaning, without interest, possess no artistic value, and lack
all teaching significance. Such material should be discarded, and better
pictures provided.
The second type of pictures, or those dealing with Bible topics, contain
teaching power, but should be merged with the third, or true art, type.
That is to say, biblical subjects, moral lessons, and inspiring ideals
should be treated by _true artists_ and made a part of the religious
curriculum for childhood. Wherever suitable masterpieces executed by
great artists can be found, copies should be made available for teaching
religion. Hundreds of such pictures hang in our art galleries, and not a
few of them have already been incorporated into several excellent series
for the Sunday school.
Further, the pictures offered children should be as carefully selected
with reference to _what they are to teach_, and should be as carefully
graded to meet the age, interests, and appreciations of the child as are
other forms of curriculum material. Some otherwise excellent picture
sets of recent publication lose the greater part of their usefulness as
teaching helps through the lack of this adaptation.
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