你可曾听说古腾堡的梦？

¶你可曾听说古腾堡的梦？
（乔治·埃弗拉德，《阅读的重要性》，1885年）
你可曾听说古腾堡的梦？
他正要推出自己发明的印刷机，仿佛有一位天使来到他面前，对他说：

¶“约翰·古腾堡，你已使自己的名字永垂不朽——但代价何其大！好好想想你正在做什么！不敬虔的人远比敬虔的人多。你的工作只会使他们的亵渎和谎言倍增。你揭开了无底坑——从此，一群引诱人的邪灵将从中涌出，把人间变成地狱。啊，想想千百万灵魂因你的成就而遭到败坏！看那恶魔的毒汁一滴滴渗入男孩女孩的灵魂，使他们小小年纪就老于罪恶！看那位母亲为她堕落的儿子哭泣，那位白发苍苍的父亲因女儿的羞耻而掩面。毁掉你的印刷机吧，因为它将成为亵渎和情欲的帮凶！毁掉它，忘掉它！不要因使恶人的手段倍增，就让自己世世代代有份于他们的罪行！”

¶古腾堡正要毁掉自己的发明，却又想到：神所赐的恩赐虽有危险，却绝不是坏的；他也许能借此帮助人，使神所赐给人的才智和智慧获得新的助力与行善的机会。于是，他继续自己的工作，而他的印刷机印出的第一本书，就是圣经的一部分。

¶然而，唉，这个梦竟应验得如此真切！成千上万、大大小小的出版物不断印行，向四面八方散播罪恶的瘟疫。许多在校的男孩因读了这类读物，心思的格调与纯洁便一去不返。许多女孩暗中读过这样一本书，它便在她身上留下终生的污痕——她的衣裙也许美丽洁白，然而内里那件纯洁衣袍上的污点却始终不去。

¶每天发行的印刷品数量浩繁，其中有害的恐怕远远超过有益的，实在令人痛心。无数人的心思怎样被他们所读的出版物败坏，无人能说得尽。因此，我的朋友，务要留心你所读的是什么！

¶“他心怎样思量，他为人就是怎样。”这话确实不错。然而，同样确实的是：一个人读什么，他的思想也会在很大程度上随之而定。心思、记性、良心、想象、意志、情感——这一切都会受到你所读之物的影响。

¶那些内容可疑的小说，往往描绘灵魂中最恶劣的情感冲动——这种情形实在太常见了；人不该如饥似渴地读它们，仿佛它们不会留下任何不良影响。我很清楚，我们都需要消遣；但若把一个又一个小时花在埋头阅读那些低劣、荒唐，甚至更坏的东西上，就不是真正的消遣——这些东西只会使你无力从事任何更高尚、更圣洁的事。

¶在这件事上，父母肩负着重大的责任。你必会十分谨慎，绝不把毒药随意放在家中，让儿女有任何机会碰到。但岂不还有比危害生命的毒药更厉害的毒药吗？你岂不也该留意，不让家中存有任何可能损害儿女灵魂的书吗？

¶此外，亲爱的读者，倘若你已经养成阅读这类轻浮而有害的书籍或刊物的习惯，立刻把它们丢在一旁，岂不是明智之举吗？起初，要改读其他读物，对你或许很难；但到最后，阅读品格更高尚的著作所带来的真实益处和充实的享受，会使你付出的努力得到丰厚的回报。

¶如果你家中有我所说的这类书，就当效法以弗所人的榜样。他们把那些坏书当众烧掉，尽管这些书价值五万块银钱。（使徒行传19:19）

¶Did you ever hear the dream of Gutenberg? ( George Everard , " The Importance of Reading " 1885) Did you ever hear the dream of Gutenberg? He was just about to put forward his invention of the printing press , and it seemed to him as if an angel came and spoke to him:

¶"John Gutenberg, you have made your name immortal - but at what a cost! Think well what you are doing! The ungodly are many more than the godly. Your work will but multiply their blasphemies and lies. You have uncovered the bottomless pit - and a swarm of seducing spirits shall henceforth come out and turn earth into Hell. Oh think of millions of souls corrupted by your achievement. See the poison of fiends distilled into the souls of boys and girls, making them old in the experience of sin! See that mother weeping over her depraved son, and that grey-haired father hiding his face from his daughter's shame. Destroy your press , for it shall be the pander of blasphemy and lust! Destroy it, and forget it! Forbear, by multiplying the resources of the wicked, to make yourself through all ages the partaker of their crimes!"

¶Gutenberg was about to destroy his invention, but he reflected that the gifts of God, though perilous, are never bad, and that he might be helping the intellect and wisdom which God had given to man to gain fresh help and opportunity for good. So he proceeded with his work, and the first book that went forth from his press was a portion of the Holy Scriptures.

¶But, alas, the dream has come too true! Tens of thousands of publications, small and great, are issuing from the press which spread the contagion of evil on every side. Many a school boy has lost irretrievably the tone and purity of his mind by such reading. Many a girl has secretly read such a book, and it has left its stain on her for life - her dress may be fair and white, but the spot on the inner robe of purity abides.

¶Amidst the vast amount of printed matter sent forth daily, it is to be feared that the evil sadly exceeds the good. None can tell how the minds of multitudes are corrupted by the publications that they peruse. Therefore, my friend, be careful what you read!

¶It is true that "as a man thinks in his heart, so is he." But it is no less true that as a man reads - so very much will he think. Mind, memory, conscience, imagination, will, affection - all will be influenced by that which you read.

¶The questionable novel, with its picturing of the worst passions of the soul, as is too often the case - ought not to be devoured as if it would leave no bad impression behind. I know quite well, that we all need recreation, but it is not genuine recreation to spend hour after hour pouring over that which is trashy, nonsensical, and worse - and will only unfit you for anything higher and holier.

¶A great responsibility rests upon parents with respect to this matter. You would be very careful never to let poison be so exposed in your house that by any chance your children would be likely to touch it. But is there not worse poison than that which endangers life? And ought you not to take heed that no such books are in your home as may prove likely to injure the souls of your children.

¶And if, dear reader, you should have formed the habit of reading such light and injurious books or publications - is it not wise at once to cast them aside? It may be difficult for you at first to substitute other reading, but in the end you will be abundantly recompensed for the effort, in the real profit and solid enjoyment afforded by the perusal of works of a higher character.

¶If such books as I have referred to are in your house, follow the example of the Ephesians. They burned their bad books publicly, though the price of them was fifty thousand pieces of silver. (Acts 19:19)