"'He alone who maketh you wiser maketh you greater; and it is only
by such an implement that Almighty God himself effects it. When he
taketh away a man's wisdom he taketh away his strength, his power
over others and over himself. What help for him then? He may sit
idly and swell his spleen, saying,--WHO IS THIS? WHO IS THAT? and at
the question's end the spirit of inquiry dies away in him. It would
not have been so if, in happier hour, he had said within himself,
WHO AM I? WHAT AM I? and had prosecuted the search in good earnest.
"'When we ask who THIS man is, or who THAT man is, we do not expect
or hope for a plain answer; we should be disappointed at a direct,
or a rational, or a kind one. We desire to hear that he was of low
origin, or had committed some crime, or been subjected to some
calamity. Whoever he be, in general we disregard or despise him,
unless we discover that he possesseth by nature many qualities of
mind and body which he never brings into use, and many accessories
of situation and fortune which he brings into abuse every day.
According to the arithmetic in practice, he who makes the most
idlers and the most ingrates is the most worshipful. But wiser ones
than the scorers in this school will tell you how riches and power
were bestowed by Providence that generosity and mercy should be
exercised; for, if every gift of the Almighty were distributed in
equal portions to every creature, less of such virtues would be
called into the field; consequently there would be less of
gratitude, less of submission, less of devotion, less of hope, and,
in the total, less of content.
Pages:
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118