agement of the goodness of God, to give way to impatience and discontent with his allotments, and inordinately to desire the station, the influence, the blessings, possessed by others. (2.) It is ruinous in its influence on the best interests of communities. Does it aim at literary honor and distinction—how often has ambition, in this way, sought its object at the expense of truth, by disparaging, if not denying, the character, the government, and the providence of God; by vilifying the revelation which he has given of his will, and of his merciful designs; and by flattering the vanity, and stimulating the sensuality and corruption of man! It is this guilty principle that has filled the world with a species of literature with which it is dangerous to be acquainted; which is the vehicle of infidelity in all its forms of refinement and coarseness, which addresses itself, in sarcasm, in wit, in ridicule, in polluting insinuation, to the passions of the reader. It exists under the garb of history, of poetry, of philosophy, and of periodical journals; assailing the highest interests of man as a moral, a religious, an immortal being. Does Ambition seek political distinction and powerhow destructive has it been in this way in all ages of the world! To what madness and crime has it led individuals, both in ancient and in modern times! If we beheld hamlets and cities in ruins; the means of subsistence, the domestic enjoyments of multitudes wasted; and war spreading misery and death over the face of that world on which the Creator lavishes his bounty, we should only witness some of the evils which cruel and hard-hearted Ambition voluntarily produces. V. The opposite of Covetousness-Contentment. 839. In order to exercise this virtue, it is not necessary that we should feel indifferent to the evils connected with the circumstances in which we are placed. On the contrary, it implies the existence of events not in themselves agreeable to us; but to which we feel it to be our duty to reconcile our minds, by moderating our desires after unattainable good, and by bearing with equanimity and resignation our difficulties and trials. Virtues included in Contentment. 840. (1.) It implies a frame of mind and course of life so virtuous that its possessor is at peace with himself. (2.) It implies such a conviction of the infinite excellence of the divine government, and such a humble hope of divine favor, and such a sense of personal unworthiness, as will lead to a cheerful acquiescence in all the dispensations of divine providence. 841. We observe that vanity sometimes produces the effect which should always flow from religion. Some persons are highly pleased with themselves, and everything which pertains to them. Their houses, their wives, their children, their property, are so much better than those of others, that they have no wish to make an exchange; and wrapt up in the dream of superiority, they allow the world to go on in its course, without envying any one, or disturbing any one, except by an ostentatious display of their advantages. 842. The tendency of the tenth precept is to promote the happiness of mankind, while it honors the God of providence. If it were engraven upon our hearts; if our thoughts and affections were under its control, there would be an end to the complaints and murmurs, the cares and anxieties, which agitate our minds; the world would no longer present the disgusting spectacle of a field of battle, where emulation, wrath, strife, deceit, and violence act their part, men prey upon one another, and all contend who shall be conquerors in the struggle for honor and wealth. [Dewar's Moral Philosophy; Professor Dick's Lectures; Secker's Works; Dick's Philosophy of Religion.] 827. What is the meaning of the word covet? 828. What is the direct object or design of this precept? 829. To what extent may desire be lawfully indulged? 830. Since then not every sort of desires is forbidden in this precept, what desires are forbidden? 831. What prominent forms of covetousness may here properly be considered? 832. Whence does our liability to this sin arise? 833. How may the passion for money be distinguished? 834. What is denoted by the various forms of the passion for moneyby worldliness, by rapacity, by parsimony, by avarice, by prodigality? 835. What are some of the evil tendencies of covetousness? 836. What are some of the bad effects of avarice upon communities and nations? 837. Where is ambition manifested? MORAL LESSONS OF BIOGRAPHY. 838. How does the sinfulness of this passion appear? 407 839. What is to be understood by contentment-the duty implied in the Tenth Commandment? 840. What virtues are included in the exercise of contentment? 841. Is there any disposition beside religion which sometimes produces contentment? 842. What then is the happy tendency of an observance of the Tenth Commandment? CHAPTER V. MORAL LESSONS OF BIOGRAPHY. 843. THE duties of man have, in the preceding portions of this work, been drawn, (1.) From the two fundamental laws of Love to God, and Love to Man. (2.) From our Savior's Golden Rule. (3.) From St. Paul's exhibition of love and its manifestations. (4.) From the principle of Love to Man, viewed under certain general relations. (5.) From the Ten Precepts of the Moral Law, explained and amplified by a reference to other preceptive parts of the sacred volume. 844. There is still another source of valuable instruction in human duty. The biography of those who have✔ carefully studied, and most exactly conformed to, the various delineations of duty furnished in the sacred scriptures, supplies a very pleasing and instructive means of learning how to feel and act under the varied circumstances, and in the various professions of human life. 845. A large amount of valuable biography, drawn by an unerring hand, is combined in the sacred scriptures; and this may be regarded as a practical illustration of moral law, either in the form of obedience or transgression; and may serve the purpose of imitation or of ad monition. This remark may be applied to biography in general, and serves to illustrate the value of this species of literature. 846. Preeminent above all other characters is the human character and conduct of Jesus Christ—the beautiful and the perfect example of human virtue which he exhibited to his disciples, and to the world. Next to his biography, in value, contained in the New Testament, must be ranked the biography of those remarkable men and women that lived in the first and 408 MORAL LESSONS OF BIOGRAPHY. purest age of the Christian church-the biography of those who imbibed most largely his spirit, and conformed most closely to his example. Among these, perhaps, stands preeminent the apostle Paul. Subsequent centuries of the Christian church have contributed valuable additions to the biographical literature contained in the sacred volume. The Reformation in the time of Luther gave birth and prominence to many illustrious examples of the Christian and human virtues; and, from that period to this, divine providence has been greatly multiplying their number, so that in our own day biographical literature is sufficiently extensive to constitute, of itself, a respectable and a most valuable library— valuable, as furnishing one of the most agreeable, practical, and impressive modes by which a knowledge of human duty may be learned to advantage. This remark is limited to the memoirs of moral and Christian characters, and is not, obviously, to be extended to the memoirs of the base, the corrupt, the profligate, unless written by men of moral and Christian principle for moral ends and uses. In the annals of a truly Christian benevolence, since the days of the apostle Paul, no man stands forth to better advantage and with a stronger claim upon our admiration than the distinguished HOWARD of England. The greater part of his life he devoted to the alleviation of human wretchedness where he traveled, exposing himself to the infected atmospheres of hospitals and jails, in order to improve the condition of the unfortunate. In this labor of love, he traveled three times through France, four times through Germany, five times through Holland, twice through Italy, once through Spain and Portugal, and also through Denmark, Sweden, Russia, Poland, and part of the Turkish empire, distributing benefits to the miserable wherever he appeared. From realm to realm, with cross or crescent crowned, O'er burning sands, deep waves, or wilds of snow, MORAL VALUE OF BIOGRAPHY. He treads, inemulous of fame or wealth, 409 DARWIN. 847. The prominent object of such works, when properly written, is to teach men, women, and children, their duty in the various relations and circumstances of life, by example-the most persuasive of all methods of instruction. A long catalogue of memoirs might here be furnished that are especially worthy of perusal and study. The nineteenth century abounds in such written examples of "whatsoever things are true," of "whatsoever things are honest," of "whatsoever things are just," of " whatsoever things are pure," of "whatsoever things are lovely," and of" whatsoever things are of good report.' In learning our duties from the biographies of Scripture, great assistance and entertainment may be derived from Robinson's Scripture Characters, and Hunter's Sacred Biography. In no manner more fitting can we close a practical system of Moral Philosophy-of a philosophy worthy of that title than by presenting a brief view of the morality of the Bible as it is embodied in the character and life of Jesus Christ, to the study and imitation of which we are impelled by the strongest of moral attractions, and by the high command of Heaven. In a moral sense—as a delineator and exemplar of human duty-he never had, he never can have, a rival. He is the light of the world; and if we would learn our duty, without mistake, it behooves us to walk in the light of his instructions, and of the living and perfect commentary of his example. We shall now present his character, substantially, as furnished by Bishop Wilson of Calcutta, and Dr. Paley. Moral Duty learned from the Character of Jesus Christ. 848. There are, in the sacred scriptures, several prominent aspects of his remarkable character. (1.) He occupies the place of mediator between God and man. He sustains a private character adorned with every per S (2.) |