chandife and be fure that you omit not to relieve the needs of your enemy and the injurious: for fo poffibly you may win him to your self; but do you intend the winning him to God. 12. Truft not your Alms to intermedial, uncertain and under-difpenfers: by which Rule is not only intended the fecuring your Alms in the right chanel, but the humility of your perfon, and that which the Apoftle calls the labour of love. And if you converse in Hofpitals and Alms-houses, and minifter with your own hand what your heart hath firft decreed, you will find your heart endeared and made familiar with the needs and with the perfons of the poor, thofe excellent images of Chrift. * 13. Whatfoever is fuperfluous in thy estate is to be difpenfed in Alms. He that hath two coats must give to him that hath none; that is, he that hath beyond his need, must give that which is beyond it. Only among needs we are to reckon not only what will fupport our life, but alfo what will maintain the decency of our eftate and perfon; not only in present needs, but in all future neceffities, and very probable contengencies, but no farther: we are not obli ged beyond this, unless we fee very great, publick and calamitous neceffities. But yet, if we do extend beyond our measures, and give more than we are able, we have the Philippians and many holy perfons for our precedent, we have S. Paul for our encouragement, we have Chrift for our Counsellour, we have God for our Rewarder, and a great Treasure in Heaven for our Recompence and Reftitution. But I propound it to the confideration of all Chriftian people, that they be not nice and curious, tond and indulgent to themfelves, in taking accounts of their perfonal conveniencies, and that they make their proportions moderate and eafie, according to the order and manner of Christianity; and the confequent will be this, that the poor will more plentifully be relieved, Præmonftro tibi, Urità te aliorum miferefcat, ne tui alios mifereat. Plaut. Trinum. them. themselves will be more able to do it, and the duty will be lefs chargeable, and the owners of eftates charged with fewer accounts in the fpending of them. It cannot be denied, but in the expences of all liberal and great perfonages many things might be fpared; fome fuperfluous fervants, fome idle meetings, fome unneceffary and imprudent teafts, fome garments too coftly, fome unneceffary Law-tuits, fome vain journeys and when we are tempted to fuch needlets expences, if we fhall defcend to moderation, and lay afide the furplufage, we fhall find it with more profit to be laid out upon the poor members of Chrift, than upon our own with vanity. But this is only intended to be an advice in the matter of doing Alms: for I am not ignorant that great variety of cloaths, always have been permitted to Princes and Nobility and others in their proportion; and they ufually give those cloaths as rewards to fervants and other perfons needful enough; and then they may ferve their own fancy and their duty too: but it is but reafon and Religion to be careful that they be given to fuch only where duty, or prudent liberality, or alms determine them; but in no fenfe let them do it fo as to minister to vanity, to luxury, to prodigality. The like alfo is to be obferved in other inftances. And if we once give our minds to the study and arts of Alms, we shall find ways enough to make this duty eafie, profitable and useful. 1. He that plays at any game must resolve beforehand to be indifferent to win or lofe: but if he gives to the poor all that he wins, it is better than to keep it to himself: but it were better yet, that he lay by fo much as he is willing to lofe, and let the game alone, and by giving fo much Alms traffick for eternity. That is one way. 2. Another is, keeping the Fafting days of the Church; which if our condition be fuch as to be able to caft our accounts, and make abatements for our wanting fo many meals in the whole year, (which by the old appointment did amount to 153, and fince moft of them are fallen into defuetude, we may make up up as many of them as we please by voluntary Fafts) we may from hence find a confiderable relief for the poor. But if we be not willing fometimes to faft that our brother may eat, we fhould ill die for him. Saint Martin had given all that he had in the world to the poor, fave one coat, and that alfo he divided between two beggars. A Father in the Mount of Nitria was reduced at laft to the Inventory of one Teftament, and that book alfo was tempted from him by the needs of one whom he thought poorer than himself. Greater yet: St. Paulinus fold himself to flavery to redeem a young man, for whose captivity his Mother wept fadly and it is faid that St. Katharine fuck'd the envenom'd wounds of a villain who had injured her most impudently. And I fhall tell you of a greater charity than all thefe put together: Christ gave himself to fhame and death to redeem his enemies from Bondage, and Death, and Hell. 13. Learn of the frugal man, and only avoid fordid actions and turn good husband, and change your arts of getting into providence for the poor, and you fhall foon become rich in good works: and why fhould we not do as much for charity, as for covetouinefs for Heaven, as for the fading world; for God and the Holy Fefus, as for the needless fuperfluities of back and belly? 14. In giving Alms to beggars and persons of that low rank, it is better to give little to each that we may give to the more, fo extending our Alms to many perfons but in charities of Religion, as building Hofpitals, Colleges, and Houles for Devotion, and fupplying the accidental wants of decayed perfous, fallen from great plenty to great neceffity, it is better to unite our Alms than to difperfe them; to make a noble relief or maintenance to one, and to restore him to comfort, than to fupport only his natural needs, and keep him alive only, unrescued from fad difcomforts. 15. The Precept of Alms or Charity binds not indefinitely to all the inftances and kinds of Charity : for he that delights to feed the poor, and spends all his portion that way, is not bound to enter into Prifons and redeem captives: but we are obliged by the prefence of circumftances, and the fpecial difpofition of providence, and the pitiableness of an object, to this or that particular act of Charity. The eye is the fenfe of mercy, and the bowels are its organ, and that inkindles pity, and pity produces Alms : When the eye fees what it never faw, the heart will think what it never thought: but when we have an object present to our eye, then we must pity, for there the Providence of God hath fitted our Charity with circumstances. He that is in thy fight, or in thy Neighbourhood, is fallen into the lot of thy Charity. Chi ti da un morta. 16. If thou haft no money, yet thou mayft have Luke 12.2. mercy, and art bound to pity the poor, and pray for Acts 3.6. them, and throw thy holy defires and devotions into off; non ti the treasure of the Church and if thou doeft what verrebbe thou art able, be it little or great, corporal or fpiritual, the Charity of Alms, or the Charity of Prayers, a Cup of Wine, or a Cup of Water; if it be but love to the brethren, or a defire to help all or any of Christ's poor, it fhall be accepted according to what a man I Pet. 1. 21. bath, not according to what he hath not. For Love is all this, and all the other Commandments: and it will exprefs it felf where it can; and where it cannot, yet it is Love ftill, and it is alfo Sorry that it cannot. Motives to Charity. 4. The motives to this duty are fuch as holy Scripture hath propounded to us by way of confideration and propofition of its excellencies and confequent reward. 1. There is no one duty which our blessed Saviour did recommend to his Difciples with to repea- Matt. 6. ted an injunction as this of Charity and Alms. To & Matt. 13. which add the words fpoken by our Lord. It is better 12,33.& 25: 15. to give than to receive. And when we confider how Lukerr.41 great a bleffing it is that we beg not from door to door, it is a ready inftance of our thankfulness to God, for his fake to relieve them that do. 2. This duty Phil. 4. 17 Dan. 4. 27. duty is that alone whereby the future day of Judgment fhall be tranfacted. For nothing but Charity and Alms is that whereby Chrift fhall declare the juftice and mercy of the eternal fentence. Martyrdom it felf is not there expreffed, and no otherwife involved, but as it is the greatest Charity. 3. Chrift made himself the greatest and daily example of Alms or Charity. He went up and down doing good, preaching the Gospel, and healing all Difeales: and God the Father is imitable by us in nothing but in purity and mercy. 4. Alms given to the poor redound to the emolument of the Giver both temporal and eActs 10. 4. ternal. 5. They are inftrumental to the remiffion of Heb. 13.16. fins. Our forgivenets and mercy to others being made the very rule and proportion of our confidence and hope, and our prayer to be forgiven our felves. 6. It is a treasure in Heaven, it procures friends when we die. It is reckoned as done to Chrift whatsoever we do to our poor brother; and therefore when a poor man begs for Chrift his fake, if he have reafon to ask for Chrift his fake, give it him if thou canft. Now every man hath title to ask for Chrift's fake whofe need is great, and himfelf unable to cure it, and if the man be a Chriftian. Whatfoever Charity Chrift will reward, all that is given for Chrift's fake, and therefore it may be asked in his Name: but every man that ufes that Sacred Name for an endearment hath not a title to it, neither he nor his need. 7. It is one of the wings of Prayer by which it flies to the throne of Grace. 8. It crowns all the works of Piety. 9. It caufes thanksgiving to God on our behalf. 10. And the bowels of the poor blefs us, and they pray for us. II. And that portion of our eftate out of which a tenth, or a fitth, or a twentieth, or fome offering to God for Religion and the poor goes forth, certainly giffe mala returns with a great Bleffing upon all the reft. It is morte mor- like the effufion of Oil upon the Sidonian woman; as benter long as fhe pours into empty veffels, it could never ra charitatis ceafe running: or like the Widow's barrel of meal; it exercuit. S. confumes not as long as the fed the Prophet. 12. The H'erem. Ep. fumm of all is contained in the words of our bleffed Nunquam nemini me thom qui li ad Nepot ope Saviour |