"Smiling the boy fell dead." Dear brothers, if we are called to seal our message with our lives, may GOD give us grace to do so! [22] Robert Browning. II PHYSICIANS We have thought over, or tried to think over, our rôle as messengers. Now--by that sort of rapid change which these titles put before us, and this illustrates the extraordinary variety and interest of our work--we have got to picture ourselves in the sober mien of physicians--physicians in a ward, good physicians, celestial surgeons. We must put away the picture of the rapid, eager, loyal messenger, and remember that there is a side to our message quite different from this, without which our service as messenger might degenerate into mere preaching. We have much else to do besides that. We are house-surgeons, physicians in a great ward of patients, and that ward is our parish; and upon our training, patience, and skill, will depend the safety and welfare of all this multitude of patients. They are all entrusted to our care. But what should we think, for instance, of a surgeon out at the front, if, with a great mass of wounded to be attended to, nobody ever asked him to come, but left him in a tent without a call? It would not be a very strong testimonial to his skill or standing or people's belief in him. And, therefore, we have to ask ourselves this fresh home question: If in our ward we are not called in, may it not be that the people do not believe in us, or trust us, or think we are sufficiently trained to be able to help them? (1) And that brings us, of course, to the whole question of training for the ministry. It is really humiliating when you think of it. No one is allowed to be a physician or surgeon, not even to begin as one--certainly not to have any sort of responsibility--unless he has had at least five years' course of continuous training. And sometimes we think a year or two at a University or a Theological College, not necessarily both, quite enough training to become surgeons and physicians of the soul. I do think the Church ought to back up the Bishops in the efforts they are making to remedy this great contrast. Five years' incessant training for those who treat the body, and a hasty two years considered sufficient for the more difficult task of surgeon and physician of the soul!