I said Protestant—­I say it again.  What is the watchword of Protestantism?  It is this.  That no lie is of the truth.  There are those who complain of us English that we attach too high a value to TRUTH.  They say that falsehood is an evil:  but not so great a one as we fancy.  We accept the imputation.  We answer boldly that there can be no greater evil than falsehood, no greater blessing than truth; and that by God’s help we will teach the same to our children, and to our children’s children.  Free inquiry, religious as well as civil liberty—­this is the spirit of Protestantism.  This our fathers have bequeathed to us; this we will bequeath to our children;—­to know that all truth is of God, that no lie is of the truth.  Our enemies may call us heretics, unbelievers, rebellious, political squabblers.  They may say in scorn, You Protestants know not whither you are going; you have broken yourselves off from the old Catholic tree, and now, in the wild exercise of your own private judgment, you are losing all that standard of doctrine, all unity of belief.  Our answer will be—­It is not so:  but even if it were so—­ even if we did not know whither we were going—­we should go forward still.  For though we know not, God knows.  We have committed ourselves to God, the living God; and He has led us; and we believe that He will lead us.  He has taught us; and we believe that He will teach us still.  He has prospered us, and we believe that He will prosper us still:  and therefore we will train up our children after us to go on the path which has brought us hither, freely to use their minds, boldly to prove all things, and hold fast that which is good; manfully to go forward, following Truth whithersoever she may lead them; trusting in God, the Father of Lights, asking Him for wisdom, who giveth to all liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given them.

I have been asked to preach this day for the National Schools of this parish.  I do so willingly, because I believe that in them this course of education is pursued, that conjoined with a sound teaching in the principles of our Protestant church, and a wholesome and kindly moral training, there is free and full secular instruction as far as the ages of the children will allow.  Were it not the case, I could not plead for these schools; above all at this time, when the battle between ancient superstition and modern enlightenment in this land seems fast coming to a crisis and a death struggle.  I could not ask you to help any school on earth in which I had not fair proof that the teachers taught, on physical and human as well as on moral subjects, the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help them God.

SERMON XIII.  PROVIDENCE

Matthew vi. 31, 32, 33.  Be not anxious, saying, What shall we eat? or, what shall we drink, or wherewithal shall we be clothed? (for after all these things do the heathen seek:) for your Heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.  But seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.