By this I mean studies adapted to the development of the whole man. The
pastor is not to be, in the narrow, technical sense, a mere theologian.
He should seek to be a man of broad culture, developing his nature on
every side and forming a full, symmetrical manhood. To accomplish this
his studies must take a wide range, and open to him all those great
realms of truth which science, philosophy, poetry, and history reveal.
1. _The sciences._ The pastor should not, indeed, turn aside from his
sacred work to become a devotee to science. But in this age of
scientific investigation, when the problems of science are so largely
occupying public thought and so vitally touching the profoundest
questions in religion, and the applications of science are so
marvelously transforming our whole civilization and life, surely, at
such a time, the man who stands up weekly to instruct the people,
assuming to lead public thought, ought not to be ignorant of the
results that science has reached, although he may not stop to pursue
the processes of scientific inquiry. Astronomy, geology, botany,
chemistry, each open a new world of truth, pouring light on the
interpretation of God's Word and abounding in richest illustrations of
the sacred themes of the pulpit. Standard works on these and related
sciences are within the reach of every pastor, and even one on each of
them, carefully read, would greatly enrich and enlarge his thinking.
2. _Philosophy, or the science of the mind._ The preacher undoubtedly
mistakes when he aspires to the character of a philosopher, and turns
aside from his direct and earnest work for souls to lose himself in
dialectics or the mazes of metaphysical speculation. But his work as a
minister is to deal with the human soul--to influence the mind by
reasoning, by persuasion, by the array of motives; and mind, therefore,
in its power and the methods of influencing it, may well constitute one
of his life-studies. It is here he comes in contact with the
master-spirits in the world of thought--minds which have controlled the
thinking of the ages--Plato and Aristotle, Descartes and Bacon,
Leibnitz and Locke. In the pressure of a pastor's life all these cannot
be read, but a few choice, standard works on mental science, such as
Hamilton, Mansel, McCosh, and Porter, may surely be read and carefully
digested.
3. _Æsthetic Culture._ God has not made us mere logical machines, but
beings of taste, imagination, sensibility, to be moved by objects of
beauty. Much of God's book is in poetry addressed to the imagination,
and the universe around us is crowded with endless forms of the
beautiful. Where a cold, impassive logic fails, truth often comes with
resistless power through the imagination and the sensibilities. The
cultivation of this side of our nature is essential to the development
of a full manhood and is important alike to pastoral and pulpit power.
For this, one of the best means is the careful reading of the greater
poets, the mighty creative minds whose works have stood the test of
ages. Among the last occupations of that magnificent man, the late Dr.
Wayland, was the re-reading of Shakespeare and Milton; and these
wonderful creations of genius afforded his ripened mind the richest
instruction and keenest enjoyment.
4. _History and general literature._ Historical study should, without
doubt, find no small place in this general culture. It enlarges the
whole range of thought, shedding light on God's vast plan of providence
and grace, and thus interpreting the Bible; while in all its wide
extent it is filled with illustrations adapted to enforce the truths of
the Gospel. Nor should the higher class of works in fiction be
excluded, for they often have great value, both for their delineations
of character and life and for the culture they give to the imagination.
Now, in respect to this general culture, the points I here emphasize
are, that it should be systematically and earnestly prosecuted, and
that on all the subjects studied only the standard, thoroughly-tested
authors should be read. Such a plan of reading, steadily pursued year
after year, will make an ever-growing mind, developing symmetrically on
every side into a noble, intellectual manhood. It only requires
conscientious earnestness and persistency. The time wasted by some
ministers in mental dissipation over newspapers and ephemeral
literature would suffice to put them into communion with those
master-minds of the ages, and secure the culture and wealth found in
these highest realms of thought.