hat is Charity.

Not almsgiving. I had almost said, anything but that; making bad worse,
the improvident more improvident, the liar more ready to lie, the idler
more ready to idle. But the Charity which is Humanity, which is the
spirit of pure pity, the Spirit of Christ and of God.

Say then, Even if these poor creatures did us no harm, as they must and
will do--civilize and christianize them for their own sakes, simply
because they must be so very miserable--miserable too often with acute
and conscious misery; too often with a worse misery, dull and
unconscious, which knows not, stupified by ignorance and vice, that it is
miserable, and ought to be more miserable still. For who is so worthy of
our pity, as he who knows not that he is pitiable?--who takes ignorance,
dirt, vice, passion, and the wretchedness which vice and passion bring,
as all in the day's work, as he takes the rain and hail, the frost and
snow,--as unavoidable necessities of mortal life, for which the only
temporary alleviation is--drink?

If the refined and pure-minded lady does not pity such beings as that, I
know not of what her refinement is made. If the religious lady will not
bestir herself, and make sacrifices to teach such people that that is not
what God meant them to be--to stir up in them a noble self-discontent, a
noble self-abhorrence, which may be the beginning of repentance and
amendment of life--I know not of what her religion is made.

One word more--I know that such thoughts as I have put before you to-day
are painful. I know that we all--I as much as anyone in this church--are
tempted to put them by, and say, I will think of things beautiful, not of
things ugly; of art, poetry, science--all that is orderly, graceful,
ennobling; and not of dirt, ignorance, vice, misery, all that is
disorderly, degrading. Nay, even the most pious at times are tempted to
say, I will think of heaven and not of earth. I will lift up my heart,
and try to behold the glory and the goodness of God, and not the disgrace
and sin of man.

But only for a time may they thus think and speak. Happy if they can, at
moments, lift up their hearts unto the Lord, and catch one glimpse of Him
enthroned in perfect serenity and perfect order, governing the worlds
with that all-embracing justice, which is at the same time all-embracing
love, and so, giving Him thanks for His great glory, gain heart and hope
to--what? To descend aga