Page:On Charity Faith and Good Works.pdf/3



MUCH has been said by spiritual writers, in every period of the Christian Church, and said well, on the subject of Charity; but then their views of what charity really is, and means, though correct in some particular points, have heretofore been defective as to the grand assemblage of all those distinct characters and qualities which enter into its composition. For Charity, like all other graces and virtues, is a compound', not only as to its three degrees, which may be called first, middle, and last, or internal, interior, and external, but also as to the innumerable component parts of each degree; and it is for want of viewing Charity in this light, that the common definitions of it, as given by ancient, as well as modern writers, are so very imperfect. Thus some, looking at this virtue only as it exists in its first or inmost degree, but not extending their view to its lower degrees, draw their portrait partially, giving only the head of the original, but without the body and feet. Others again see nothing but the body and feet of Charity, and some only the feet; and the consequence is, that their delineations also are defective, consisting either of a body and feet without a head, or of feet alone without a body. Thus the figure of this heavenly grace is mutilated, so that nothing can be seen of it but broken fragments, scattered here and there, which convey indeed some faint idea of the perfection of its original form of beauty, but for want of being viewed in the combination, leave the spectator to lament his very inadequate conception of their united effect.

Nothing perhaps is more to be lamented, because nothing is more mischievous in the church, than the above exhibition of its virtues in parts only, whilst the general symmetry resulting from those parts is unseen, and thus even the parts themselves are de