THE BIRTH FROM ABOVE 181 



recognize the change in consciousness when there 

 is no consciousness of change. Along with the de- 

 velopment of the mental and conscious life there 

 may be a development of the moral nature giving 

 a very decidedly different spiritual condition in 

 the child before there has been anything like a 

 choice based on the knowledge of right and wrong. 



Says Mrs. Lamoreaux : ' ' The nurture of these 

 years is as silent as that of the dewdrop upon the 

 blade of grass, but it is as real. God's voice is 

 the still small voice that ever speaks in quietness. 

 The stillness of the moment at the mother's knee, 

 the prayer repeated in the reverent, low tone of 

 the mother's voice, the earnest prayer offered for 

 him in His presence, the Christlike living in the 

 home, all carry their holy influence to his soul. 

 He feels God without knowing Him." ("The Un- 

 folding Life," 40.) 



The first moral relation of the child that is es- 

 tablished is a relation with the parent. The child 

 is obedient or disobedient to the parent long be- 

 fore he knows his moral relation to the Heavenly 

 Parent. Right training will put into this relation 

 with the parent the germ up from which will grow 

 the moral nature in his relation to all other beings. 

 Thus the parents in the beginning are in the re- 

 lation of God to the child, and through relation 

 to them the moral nature is to have its first exer- 

 cise and training. We would then say, hoping not 

 to be understood as saying more than we do say 

 more than should be claimed at this stage of the 



