THE ALTAR AT HOME. SECOND SERIES. SELECTIONS AND PRAYERS FOR DOMESTIC WORSHIP. Blest The home where God is felt. HEMANS. EIGHTH EDITION. BOSTON: AMERICAN UNITARIAN ASSOCIATION. JOHN FRYER CHINESE LIBRARY Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1862, by WALKER, WISE, AND COMPANY, in the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of Massachusetts INTRODUCTION. T can hardly be necessary, in view of the constant IT demand for books of this class, to demonstrate their utility and desirableness, or to apologize for adding one more to the number. The marked favor with which the First Series of the "ALTAR AT HOME" has been received has induced the Editor of the present volume to adopt the general plan of that work. Many, who have regularly used the "Altar" since its publication, have expressed a wish for a new series of Selections and Prayers, those in the former series, necessarily limited in number, having become somewhat trite from frequent repetition. While in the present volume the general plan and arrangement of the former issue have been preserved, experience has suggested a few alterations, which it is believed will be generally esteemed as improvements. The introductory Selections, designed to be read in alternation by the members of the family, have been somewhat extended, while the Prayers are generally shorter. The Selections have been made, not exclusively from the Scriptures, but there have been interwoven some of the wise, devout, and elevating thoughts of a few of the purest and most holy men whose existence has blessed the world. The aim has been to make these Selections of a practical character; not simply pious ejaculations, or passages expressive of admitted truths, but those calculated to awaken attention, to produce conviction, to stimulate, to console, to strengthen. They have been carefully chosen, and so arranged as to follow one another naturally, and be in some sense responsive to each other. The verse of Sacred Poetry which introduces each service, and is designed to be read by the head of the family, or sung by the members of the family when practicable, has been selected as embodying the spirit of the Selections following; to strike the key-note, as it were, of the entire service. The Prayers have been written by a number of clergymen, generally well known in this community, whose names, alphabetically arranged, are given on another page, and to whom the Editor desires to acknowledge his great indebtedness for the essential service rendered him in his laborious and delicate task. The Prayers having been contributed with special reference to the respective services of which they form part, it is believed that a unity of spirit throughout each entire service has been thereby secured, which could not have been attained in any other way. Another alteration will be noticed in the present series. Instead of dividing the Selections into morning and evening services, it has been thought best to append a morning and evening Prayer to each Selection. Few families, if any, it is believed, use the book for both morning and evening worship, hence, in the former series, one half the Selections were unavailable. By the present arrangement, every Selection, except the few designated as "Special," may be used by every family, whether they observe domestic worship statedly at the commencement or at the close of the day. And still further, as, in most instances, the omission of a word or two, or some equally slight change, will make it possible to use the morning and evening 'rayers interchangeably, the scope of the volume is thereby materially enlarged. As the First Series of the "ALTAR AT HOME con.. tains ample selections for the use of the closet, together with the ancient Collects of the Church and a number of Litanies, it has been thought best to exclude those fea b |