A COURSE OF READING
A list of books is given at the close of this chapter. No doubt there must be many brethren of limited opportunity, who do not wish to waste their time (at first, at all events) in browsing unguided among the world's many books, but who wish, as efficiently as possible, to read enough to equip them for their purpose, and this list may serve to help them.

A reading plan is a good idea. The fact that we ourselves have never followed a reading plan is something of an obstacle; it might, indeed, be thought to disqualify us, but at least it guarantees that the plan shall come forward with the innocent freshness of inexperience. Here, then, with all necessary apologies for its adolescent awkwardness, it is. Perhaps it will be more beautiful as it grows older.

(a) The Bible. The Bible Companion is taken for granted. Then follow the counsel of the earlier part of this chapter, and read all but the biggest books as a whole and write a précis of their contents. Do not look at a commentary while you are doing this. Your wrong ideas may look silly when you do, but that brings a salutary humility, and you may hit on some that are not wrong.

(b) The Life of Jesus. Have the Bible by your side whatever you read under this head. Then go through Nazareth Revisited, Gore's Jesus of Nazareth (Home University Library) and Seeley's Ecce Homo (Everyman's Library)-the last two smallish and cheap. There is much good fruit in both, and you need not swallow the stones. Note the sound Christadelphian doctrine, which the authors bring out almost with surprise-for example, Gore's discovery that the early Christians looked for the establishment of the Kingdom on Earth. At this stage (or perhaps even earlier) it is a good plan to start listing the teaching of Jesus under various doctrinal heads, such as some of those suggested under " Brief Notes," such of the "'first principles " as are not covered there, and other topics as their importance is appreciated. The need to think for yourself in all your reading cannot be too strongly insisted on.

(c) The Purpose of God (seen as a whole). This ought to come after (a) and (b), for we need to be familiar enough with the Bible as a whole to check references to it intelligently, and since we shall be repeatedly told that the purpose centres in Jesus, we must know something of his life to see how true that is. At this stage, then, Elpis Israel comes up for study. This is a bigger and meatier task than (b) and needs application. The resulting broad grasp of Scripture teaching as a whole will well repay the effort.

(d) Devotional Writings. The continual danger of seeing the Word only as a doctrinal armoury must be guarded against. If we read only those works which dwell on teaching truth as against error, we may become less sensitive to the Bible's gentler moods (as partly indicated in chapters 1 and 2) than, as preachers and as brethren, we need to be. To know the danger is half-way to defeating it, but our reading should be varied to that end. Therefore, let the grimly purposive study to doctrinal ends be interlarded with, from the Truth's writings, Seasons of Comfort and its sequel, and, from without, others mentioned in the Bibliography.

(e) Doctrinal Study. In such a general plan, the Truth's writings must take first place. Other works contain a truth or two and more or less error, and are not for this stage. Elpis Israel will have set the course, and Christendom Astray may not add much to its information. But Christendom Astray is commended here, Bible constantly at hand; it arose, after all, from a course of Christadelphian lectures to strangers, and that is what we prepare for. Much of the material is unchangeable, and if we find occasion here and there to prefer a different approach, we can still accept gratefully bro. Roberts's garnered stores. One caution should be offered; the book is not always accurate in the portrayal of the beliefs of other people, and its science should be treated with reserve. Take its Scripture gladly, then, but leave its expos£ of the Trinity and its conception of electricity alone. Warnings of a different character will perhaps be sensed from re-reading chapters 1 and 2 at this stage.

(f) Expositional Reading. There is no short-cut here, (a), (b), (c) and (e) were groundwork which must be covered at the start and which can (though only in a limited sense) be written off as they are done. Much more can and must be learned about them all, but there is material to preach on here. Exposition is different: there are 66 books to be covered, and a life-time's work in skimming the surface of them. Start, therefore, at once. Cover as much ground as you can before the accumulation of preaching duties puts you in the position of finishing one compelling task to rush on to the next. There is a growing body of expository literature in the Truth's library, and it does not much matter where you start. The writer (having his own inclinations and the work of preaching in mind) would probably make for " The Letter to the Romans " as his first, but that is all he can say.

One further piece of counsel: religious literature in the world is very widespread and abundant; there exists in our own midst a mass of books, booklets, pamphlets and leaflets (whether issued through recognized channels or privately), born of some special controversy or promoting some particular private opinion. Much of the matter is good, and very much more trivial and perverse. But whatever the contents, the presence of this material is the unwary brother's snare: more time is wasted well-intentionedly by this than by any other means. The very littleness of many of the publications prompts the reflection that " it will not take long to read this," and another evening is wasted. To all, therefore, whose time is too precious to squander (that is, to all without exception), the advice is urgent: having adopted a plan of reading, which may include wholesome pamphlets on the subject in question, do not be deflected from it by the odds and ends you pick up on bookstalls-railway journeys are perhaps legitimate exceptions to this-or by the unhappy fruits of your name and address being known to the pamphleteers. Note the matter which comes your way and seems likely to be of later use, but at best pigeon-hole it determinedly until the task in hand is completed. By the time you are free to choose, your list of possibles will probably be so long that most of the frivolous material will have to be left aside to enable you to get at the few gems you have garnered. And that is as it should be.