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a scandal upon all the forms and appearances of religion. Yet such has been our destiny, that while we have dropped the most religious of their practices, we have taken up with the worst of their principles, and are now suffering under the natural effects of them.

10. A Clergyman to a Friend (on Fasting). MY DEAR YOUNG FRIEND, According to your request, I will put down on paper, as well as I can, a few hints about fasting; which I hope, with God's blessing, may be useful to you and your companions.

First of all, we must remember that our blessed Saviour Himself fasted (see Matt. iv. 1, 3, &c. &c.); that He gave us some directions about fasting, as in the 6th chapter of St. Matthew, 16-18, and in other places. The apostles fasted frequently (Acts xiii. 3, &c. &c.); and the Church has always practised and recommended this duty up to the present time.

This being the case, it is very clear that it is right for all good Christians to fast now,-in other words, that we ought to fast ourselves. But now comes the question, "What is fasting, and how are we to perform it?"

Our blessed Saviour told us, that we were to guard against hypocrisy, and against fasting to be seen of men; but He nowhere told us exactly what we ought to do. The apostles, as we read, fasted themselves; but neither St. Luke, who wrote the Acts of the Apostles, nor they themselves, give us any positive instructions as to how they fasted, or how we are to do so. Our Church, in like manner, tells us that we are to fast on certain days; but the manner of doing so she leaves to ourselves.

Therefore you see that we have sufficient authority for saying, that we are bound to observe this

duty; but it is left to each man's conscience in what manner it is to be done.

That we may have some idea of the advantage of fasting, let us consider (as I mentioned to you the other morning), how it would be with us, if we were to eat a very hearty dinner, and then go to church immediately afterwards. Do you think you would be able to join in the service with the same devotion that you could have done, if you had said before dinner, "Now I am going to church immediately; I must make a very small dinner, or I shall be dull and heavy, and not able to attend to what I am going to do ?"

Do you not see, that by thus denying yourself as much food as you might perhaps otherwise have properly eaten, you would be able to say your prayers and worship God with greater devotion?

Therefore one end of fasting is to bring our minds into as devotional a state as possible, by taking care that the body is so kept under, as not to prevent our turning our thoughts and minds to spiritual contemplations.

Another reason for fasting is to bring our blessed Saviour's sufferings and humiliation to our remembrance by making ourselves suffer something for His sake. If we take a little less food than usual on any particular day, or eat plainer food, you know it is unpleasant to us, and we cannot do so without thinking about it; and this should bring before our minds how much, how very much, our Saviour denied Himself for our sakes.

This is the great thing we should keep in mind during Lent, which is a period of forty days, ending with Passion-week, which the Church, from the earliest times, has set apart for the special purpose of humiliation for our sins, and of bringing before our minds the sufferings of Christ for them.

And now, as to the manner of fasting. You must remember, that to fast properly, we must put ourselves to some inconvenience-it must be in some way unpleasant to us; therefore it is not fasting, properly speaking, to go without meat, for instance. upon any particular day, if we eat as hearty a dinner of fish, which perhaps we should like better.

We may fast, by taking rather less than our usual quantity of food, or by denying ourselves something that we usually take and like very much; as, for instance, eating dry bread that day instead of toast or bread-and-butter, taking care that we do this in such a manner as to attract as little notice as possible.

Whenever we set apart a day for fasting, we must remember that prayer must go along with it, and, if possible, alms-doing: for instance, you can see for yourself that it would be no religious duty to go. without your dinner on any particular day, if you never thought all the day what you were doing it for. You might have the same to do often enough because you were too busy to go home to dinner; but this, you know, would not be fasting as a religious duty.

But it would be fasting, as a religious duty, if you took a very small dinner with you to the warehouse, eat it there quietly in a few minutes, and then spent the rest of your dinner-hour in some charitable work that you could not do conveniently at another time; endeavouring also during the day to keep in mind what you were doing, and, if possible, to retire to some private place for prayer sometime during the morning or day.

In such a cold, changeable climate as ours is here in England, it would not be right for us to fast very strictly, because it would injure our health, especially for those who have to work hard during the

day; but there are other ways in which we can, I believe, really and truly perform this duty, besides the mere going without food. Any thing in which we deny ourselves for Christ's sake is of the nature of fasting. For instance, suppose you were in the habit of spending four or five hours a week with a companion whose company you were very fond of; if, during Lent, you only spent three hours together, and gave up the other hour or two to reading your Bible, to visiting the poor, or to any other religious duty, this would be of the nature of fasting.

If you set yourself, as a task, to read some difficult book during Lent, this would be something of the same kind, especially if you had to put yourself to some little inconvenience, to get up half-anhour earlier than usual, for instance, in order to get it done.

You will see that the instances I have given are merely as examples, that you may understand what I mean. I do not mean that you should necessarily do any one of those things that I have mentioned; but I hope you will understand now in some degree what the principle of fasting is: the manner in which you actually put it in practice you must decide each one for himself.

But this I do say, that I believe the more we practise secret self-denial, whether it be in food or in any other thing, the more progress we shall be likely to make in our Christian course-the more we shall become like to our blessed Lord and Master, our example, who denied Himself more for our sakes than we can either comprehend or conceive. But remember, that all must be done as secretly as possible; though to this I think you would be prompted by your own religious feelings. Believe me, &c.

11. Robert Nelson to his Cousin going abroad.

DEAR COUSIN,-Your father having designed to send you for Turkey by the next ships bound to those parts, and intending thereby to breed you to business, that you may be enabled to advance your own fortune in the world, and to assist your brothers when they shall be fit to receive the advantages of your kindness; I cannot forbear commending that readiness of mind you have shewn on this occasion to comply with that scheme which your father, on mature deliberation, with the advice of your best friends, has formed for the employment of your youth. So near a relation can never want kindness to design that which is best for you; and the advantages of his good sense and great experience enable him to judge right in this matter; so that, being governed by the dictates of so kind and wise a father, you steer by a much surer compass than by following the suggestions of your own thoughts, which must want due ripeness in that path of life you now tread. I look upon this first step of your conduct to be a happy presage of your future wisdom and steadiness, and a good omen that your voyage of life will be prosperous and successful; for the miscarriage of many a youth has been owing to his own wilfulness and obstinacy, refusing the advice and guidance of his best friends when he stood most in want of it. Being therefore, sir, determined to travel, by your father's appointment and by your own prudent consent, I thought myself obliged to give you some advice in relation to your future conduct; and you ought to bear with me the rather in this matter, because I have had some share in the care of your education; besides, the character of a godfather entitles me in some sort to prescribe to you. But whether any of these reasons would have prevailed

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