Our College
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A clear conception of what God is, and what he requires us to be,
will give us humble views of self. He who studies aright the sacred
word, will learn that human intellect is not omnipotent; that, without
the help which none but God can give, human strength and wisdom
are but weakness and ignorance.
As an educating power, the Bible is without a rival. Nothing
will so impart vigor to all the faculties as requiring students to grasp
the stupendous truths of revelation. The mind gradually adapts itself
to the subjects upon which it is allowed to dwell. If occupied with
commonplace matters only, to the exclusion of grand and lofty themes,
it will become dwarfed and enfeebled. If never required to grapple
with difficult problems, or put to the stretch to comprehend important
truths, it will, after a time, almost lose the power of growth.
The Bible is the most comprehensive and the most instructive
history which men possess. It came fresh from the fountain of eternal
truth, and a divine hand has preserved its purity through all the ages.
Its bright rays shine into the far distant past, where human research
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seeks vainly to penetrate. In God’s word alone we find an authentic
account of creation. Here we behold the power that laid the foundation
of the earth, and that stretched out the heavens. Here, only, can we find
a history of our race, unsullied by human prejudice or human pride.
In the word of God the mind finds subject for the deepest thought,
the loftiest aspiration. Here we may hold communion with patriarchs
and prophets, and listen to the voice of the Eternal as he speaks with
men. Here, we behold the Majesty of heaven, as he humbled himself
to become our substitute and surety, to cope single-handed with the
powers of darkness, and to gain the victory in our behalf. A reverent
contemplation of such themes as these, cannot fail to soften, purify,
and ennoble the heart, and, at the same time, to inspire the mind with
new strength and vigor.
If morality and religion are to live in a school, it must be through a
knowledge of God’s word. Some may urge that if religious teaching is
to be made prominent, our school will become unpopular; that those
who are not of our faith will not patronize the College. Very well,
then, let them go to other colleges where they will find a system of
education that suits their taste. Our school was established, not merely
to teach the sciences, but for the purpose of giving instruction in the