If another's fin chance to fall under our eye, we ought to exprefs our charity, by laying a mantle over it with a quick hand ; that it may not indanger the rest, by being exposed to publick view.

If the fin be fo manifeft, that it cannot; or fo foul, that it must not be hid;-we ought to express our charity by speaking of it (and that with prudence and kindness also) to the criminal himself, who is the party concerned to repent, and to mend his life for the future.

But after all, instead of discovering other mens faults, it is neceffary for every one to look into his own. And if people would but turn their eyes homeward, they would find fo much employment for them there, that they would have neither need, nor leifure to look abroad. There is in every breast so much of nature, whatever there be of grace, that our continual care is neceffary to keep us right in this matter. Nor is this poffible to be done, but by searching narrowly into one's own ftate. Which if all inquifitive people would do, they could not but discover prefently this one great fault of their own; that by prying curiously

after

after others, they have all along overlooked themselves.

THE Second property in my text, of the great duty of charity, is this; That it believeth all things; that is, all things that are good; and all things that are reasonable for a good man to believe. Credulity, or an eafiness of belief, at large, is no virtue; or, if it be, it is no safe one; because it is fo easy a matter to be deceived; especially in men, who are fo liable to deceit; and because it is fometimes fuch a woful and calamitous thing to be deceived indeed.

There are many dangers, which religion doth not require us to run into, by trufting without referve; and the queftion may be undeterminable, which of the two is most to be blamed; he who believes every thing, or he that believes nothing that is told him. On each hand, it is not charity, but folly.

The apoftle's meaning therefore is, That in cafes which are not plain and clear, beyond just reafon of doubtfulness, true chriftian charity inclines one to believe favourably, and to err rather on the right hand,

by entertaining a kind opinion, even when it is not apparently deserved.

St. Paul, who fo well understood the operations of virtue, was fenfible what good effects this is apt to produce; and how naturally it tendeth to make the minds and lives of people eafy; and, on the contrary, how hurtful it is, to the peace and comfort of particular men, and of whole focieties, to take up hard conceits, without fufficient and plain grounds; to run away with them, and to act upon them. Hatreds and mifchief follow in the end: Witness thofe outrages which he himself committed, upon his own groundless apprehensions. He believed once, that Chrift was a deceiver; and that his disciples were a very dangerous and heretical fect. Upon which falfe and groundlefs principle, he verily thought with himfelf, that he ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jefus of Nazareth. And how fatal and mifchievous was that one thought, to the church of Christ? What a world of vexation and mifery did it not put them to? And yet all the while, the people he perfecuted were innocent; and the perfecution was bottomed upon nothing, but VOL. III. Ꮓ

his

his own unreasonable and wild prefumptions.

Thus it is, when men believe without judgment and candour, believe evil things upon evil furmifes, and fide with wrong notions, as their firft imaginations and paffions sway them. Havock, and outrage, are the usual confequents. Peace, and a good confcience, and charity, and whatsoever else is defirable, all goes to wrack in the ftorm.

Now for the increasing in us a spirit of charity, and for the due expreffing it as to this point, this general rule must be carefully observed, To take things always in the beft fenfe; and never to give way to hard thoughts, where there is room for kind or favourable conftructions.

Many times indeed, mens guilt appeareth fo foul and open, that the evidence is too ftrong, for thofe that are willing to doubt in that particular. In which cafe, charity no more requires us to believe contrary to our experience, than it binds us to difcredit the teftimony of all our fenfes. As where people act maliciously every day; in fpite of all the charity in the world, we

cannot

cannot but look upon them as very ill men. -But where the matter is doubtful and uncertain, charity fhould always fet it in the faireft light.

We see at best but thro' a glass (as it were); a dark and dim profpect; and our fight is much the dimmer, when we would look into mens breasts, where we have no glass at all to look through. Therefore where we are left to guefs, our opinion should be on the charitable fide, because our eye cannot have a direct stroke upon the principle of another's action. Perhaps it was inadvertency; perhaps it proceeded from ignorance; perhaps from common human frailties. Many excufes charity will help us to find out, before we need to charge it upon the heart.

And this general rule, of putting the best fense upon mens actions, will incline us,not to be eafy in believing the first representations. By our daily experience we may find, that the first account of things is commonly the falsest, because it is usually attended with partiality, to possess the minds of people, with a prejudice beforehand.

Some have a fort of itch, both in their Z 2 minds