misdeeds, knows the number of his last hours, and amidst the awful preparations for his death, has time sufficient to pray, to bewail his sins, and to receive the sacrament;-whilst the most pious, the most righteous follower of Jesus, often dies suddenly and unexpectedly.

This false Christianity, this fruitful heresy, invented as a plea for revelling in sin with the greater freedom-this trust in faith without works, has at the same time ever been the source of religious hatred. By placing all worth in faith and none in deeds, various religious parties have been led to persecute each other with rancorous cruelty. They looked only to the opinions, not to the heart; only to faith, not to integrity of mind. Let their neighbour have been ever so blameless, charitable, and useful in his life and conduct, they persecuted him as a criminal worthy of death, because he professed a different form of faith from themselves.

For the honour of God they murdered their brother-for the honour of God they lighted a pile for the innocent for the honour of God they condemned, injured, and persecuted those who thought differently-for the honour of God they were rapacious, treacherous, and violent.

Ah! the wretched people! They expected to conquer Heaven by their zeal, while their wickedness and transgression destroyed God's creation

upon earth. They expected to please God, whose children they murdered, or plunged into misery; they expected to sanctify themselves, whilst they assumed the office of executioners; and refused that mercy and love to others, which they themselves had most need to seek from God?

These frightful effects of a rage for faith, have happily become rare in our days: or rather, through the influence of wise and Christian magistrates,— thanks be to Providence-they have entirely disappeared on the other hand, that same false Christianity is much revived and supported, which exalts a dead faith, and proportionally disregards the practice of virtue on Christian principles-awakens a dangerous propensity to fanaticism, to a fruitless trifling with the feelings, to false devotion, and to uncharitable judgment of those who hold opinions different from our own on religious subjects. For it is more convenient to an indolent mind to speculate or dream over spiritual matters, than to practise religion; much more convenient to sigh over a wicked world, than to edify that wicked world by active Christianity, and to animate the virtue of the Christian by a virtuous example: it is easier to acquire a fictitious, and, in some respects, an earthly love of Christ, by exciting one's own feelings and imagination, than to love Jesus in all his brethren, that is, in all mankind with whom we are con

versant: "Whosoever shall do the will of God," saith Jesus himself, "the same is my brother, and my sister and mother." (MARK iii. 35.) Every other love, as being merely a fiction of the mind, which produces not the abjuration of faults, and the practice of virtue, whenever there is opportunity, is closely allied to a fruitless and dead faith.

We should live as if we could be justified only by our works, as if we could earn heaven by our virtue; and we should die as if we could obtain eternal salvation only through the merits of Jesus Christ, and the mercy of our God. In both these views there is no delusion; in both is sacred truth. For through faith alone, and without works, we shall not be accounted righteous before God; and at the same time, with our purest virtue, we can appear only as sinners before the Most Holy-the Omniscient Judge of our words and actions-the Searcher of our secret thoughts.

IX.

IN ONE VIRTUE ALL VIRTUES.

2 PETER i. 5—9.

And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue ; and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you and abound, they make you, that you shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he that lacketh these things, is blind and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins."

FEW persons have spent upon the improvement of their minds, even half the time, trouble, and reflection, which they have expended at the toilet, on the adorning of their persons; or in the house of business, on the increasing of their fortune; or on the acquirement of practical arts and sciences; or on the pursuit of gaiety and diversion. Even those who are by no means entirely indifferent to their inward, moral perfection, and the health of their souls, are accustomed for

the most part to be satisfied with fulfilling punctually their private and public duties; with being obliging towards their friends, beneficent to the poor, and courteous to strangers; with attending the Church regularly to perform their Devotionsand then with leaving the rest to chance or the humour of the moment, amidst the whirl of every-day and busy life. They cannot fail, therefore, to make far quicker progress in the ability of gaining a livelihood-or in the polite arts and accomplishments —than in the pious sanctification of their mind. They think that they have done enough for this object, when they can venture to say of themselves, 'I am, at least, not one of the worst!'-although it be mere self-love which whispers it; and notwithstanding they know little of the inward state of those persons, whom they might probably be inclined to consider worse than themselves.

Certainly there come, from time to time, hours of serious self-reflection, when either heavy misfortunes overwhelm them, and they find no other consolation than in God; or when repentance seizes them, at the sight of the dark train of their various crimes; or when on their own bed of sickness, or over the coffin of a beloved friend, they feel a horror of eternity. There are hours in which we make pious vows of improvement, and even some happy beginnings to subdue our reigning faults; to recon