What a sweet colour the divine light takes to itself in courtesy, whose perfection is the recognition of every man as a temple of the living God.  Sorely ruined, sadly defiled the temple may be, but if God had left it, it would be a heap and not a house.

Next to love, specially will the light shine out in fairness.  What light can he have in him who is always on his own side, and will never descry reason or right on that of his adversary?  And certainly, if he that showeth mercy, as well he that showeth justice, ought to do it with cheerfulness.

But if all our light shine out, and none of our darkness, shall we not be in utmost danger of hypocrisy?  Yes, if we but hide our darkness, and do not strive to slay it with our light:  what way have we to show it, while struggling to destroy it?  Only when we cherish evil, is there hypocrisy in hiding it.  A man who is honestly fighting it and showing it no quarter, is already conqueror in Christ, or will soon be—­and more than innocent.  But our good feelings, those that make for righteousness and unity, we ought to let shine; they claim to commune with the light in others.  Many parents hold words unsaid which would lift hundred-weights from the hearts of their children, yea, make them leap for joy.  A stern father and a silent mother make mournful, or, which is far worse, hard children.  Need I add that, if any one, hearing the injunction to let his light shine, makes himself shine instead, it is because the light is not in him!

But what shall I say of such as, in the name of religion, let only their darkness out—­the darkness of worshipped opinion, the darkness of lip-honour and disobedience!  Such are those who tear asunder the body of Christ with the explosives of dispute, on the plea of such a unity as alone they can understand, namely a paltry uniformity.  What have not the ‘good church-man’ and the ‘strong dissenter’ to answer for, who, hiding what true light they have, if indeed they have any, each under the bushel of his party-spirit, radiate only repulsion!  There is no schism, none whatever, in using diverse forms of thought or worship:  true honesty is never schismatic.  The real schismatic is the man who turns away love and justice from the neighbour who holds theories in religious philosophy, or as to church-constitution, different from his own; who denies or avoids his brother because he follows not with him; who calls him a schismatic because he prefers this or that mode of public worship not his.  The other may be schismatic; he himself certainly is.  He walks in the darkness of opinion, not in the light of life, not in the faith which worketh by love.  Worst of all is division in the name of Christ who came to make one.  Neither Paul nor Apollos nor Cephas would—­least of all will Christ be the leader of any party save that of his own elect, the party of love—­of love which suffereth long and is kind; which envieth not, is not puffed up, doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not its own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth, beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.