by Samuel Slater
in ePub, .mobi & .pdf formats
A Discourse Concerning Family Worship.
This text has been initially updated from EEBO-TCP by Project Puritas (Logan West, David Jonescue, Alex Sarrouf) www.puritansearch.org. Further revision and editing done by Monergism. Copyright Monergism via universal text usage permission from the above.
"An Earnest Call to Family Religion" by Samuel Slater, published in 1694, is a comprehensive religious treatise emphasizing the importance of family worship and piety. Slater, a Minister of the Gospel, presents this work as a collection of sermons, advocating for the establishment and maintenance of family worship as a critical aspect of Christian practice.
In his dedication, Slater addresses the Christian church at Crosby-Square in London, expressing his concern over the decline in practical religion and the apparent difference between contemporary Christians and their more devout predecessors. He notes a shift away from godliness, with many homes devoid of prayer, scripture reading, and other religious activities, which he equates with living without God. The book opens with a plea for the return to and reinforcement of religious practices within the family structure, which he sees as foundational to a robust Christian life.
Slater uses biblical references, particularly the example of Joshua who declared his household would serve the Lord, to underpin his arguments for family worship. He believes that the head of the household has a responsibility to lead their family in worship, ensuring that both children and servants are included. He argues that this practice is not just a good thing to do, but a duty that is implied by various biblical precepts that call for continual, everywhere, and all kinds of prayer.
The treatise further insists that family worship is a means of bringing blessings upon the household, educating the young in Christian ways, and serving as a daily renewal of faith and commitment to God. Slater's work is a clarion call to his contemporaries to elevate their religious observance at home, thereby influencing the wider community and ensuring the presence and blessing of God in their lives.
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Table of Contents
The Epistle Dedicatory
I. First Arguments for the setting up of Family-worship and Duty
II. Second Arguments for the setting up of Family-worship and Duty
III. Third Arguments for the setting up of Family-worship and Duty
IV. Particular Directions for the Instructing of your Families
V. Counsel in the Right Directing of your Families.
A Postscript to Young Ones.