FIDELITY. 1. It comes of a very evil ground, that ignorance should be the mother of faithfulness.O, no! he cannot be good that knows not why he is good; but stands so far good as his fortune may keep him unessayed: but coming once to that, his rude simplicity is either easily changed, or easily deceived; and so grows that to be the excuse of his fault, which seemed to have been the foundation of his faith. Remark. The firmness of any virtue (which alone confirms it to be a virtue; for boasting of a virtue, that has never been assailed, is an assumption without a proof;) depends more on the understanding than is generally supposed. The sanction of Dr. Johnson may well support the observation, and he says, "that it ought always to be steadily inculcated, that virtue is the highest proof of understanding, and the only solid basis of greatness; and that vice is the natural consequence of narrow thoughts, which begin in mistake and end in ignominy." 2. All honest hearts feel that trust goes beyond advancement. 3. A man of true honour is well known to think himself greater in being subject to his word given, than in being lord of a principality. Remark. Such fidelity is the platform of all the vir tues. 4. Joyful is woe for a noble cause, and wel TRUTH. 1. He that finds truth, without loving her, is like a bat, which though it have eyes to discern that there is a sun, yet hath so evil eyes, that it cannot delight in the sun. 2. Surely all truth cannot be sufficiently proved by reason; considering that many things exceed reason and nature. But yet cannot any untruth prevail, by reason, (in rational minds,) against truth; nor any truth be vanquished by the judgment of reason. For untruth is contrary to nature; nature helpeth reason; reason is servant to truth; and one truth is not contrary to another, that is to say, to itself: for truth cannot but be truth, and reason, reason. 3. Prefer truth before the maintaining of an opinion. 4. I desire a man to bring his wit, rather than his will, to investigation: for fore-deemings and fore-settled opinions, do bring in bondage the reason of them that have the best wits; whereas, it belongeth not to the will to over-rule the wit, but to the wit to guide the will. 5. If men applied their wit as advisedly to judge between truth and falsehood, godliness and worldliness, as every man in his trade doth to judge between profit and loss; they should forthwith, by principles bred within themselves, and by conclusions following upon the same, discern the true religion from the false; and the way which God hath ordained to welfare, from the deceitful ways and cross and crooked inventions of men. Remark. The idea that a religious life obstructs the temporal advancement of men, and deprives them of many pleasures, is the greatest enemy of piety which we find in the human breast. A narrow view of man's nature, destination and end, gives rise to this misconception. When Jesus told the young man who boasted of his virtue, to sell off his goods and give to the poor, and he should have treasure in heaven, "the young man was sad at that saying, and went away grieved; for he had great possessions!" He understood not the riches of love; which never considers itself so wealthy, as when it has expended all, in obedience to the commands it honours-in the service of what it adores. The voice of truth speaking from a hundred lips, utters only one language. Observe how the learned Dr. Barrow expresses himself on a subject which ought to be the study of man; for it is the aim, the means, and the completion of his happiness. |