wonder, if such remissness and such licentiousness have done more harm, than charity schools have done good. The number educated in them, is a very small part of the poor of the nation: and the wickedness of the rest corrupts too many of these. Still the right principles, taught them, often preserve them, and often bring them back, when nothing else would. And if this too frequently proves otherwise, it only shews the proneness of our nature to sin, and the necessity of our best care. Had none been taken, bad as we are, we had been much worse; and had more been taken, we might have been much better. But to charge the degeneracy of a people on the very thing, that doth so much to prevent it; and make it the reason of their being wicked, that some of them are trained up to be pious and virtuous; is a degree of absurdity, which one scarce knows how to excuse from wilful misrepresentation. III. I now proceed, as I am very sensible it is high time, to consider briefly, in the third place, what course we are to take, if neither prudent management, nor rational defences of the good work that we are engaged in, can altogether prevent its being evil spoken of: which, though very hard, hath been hitherto, and we must expect will be, the case. Some will speak ill of it from hatred, others from indifference, to religion and virtue. For though in reason both unbelievers and immoral persons ought to wish, that most others, especially the poor, might be sober and honest, and for that purpose religious; and therefore ought to encourage those of them who are so, and such methods as would make the rest of them so yet Scripture hath taught us to look for the contrary from them, and in experience we find * Amos v. 10. John xv. 19. xvii. 14. 1 John iii. 12. it. They would even seem to act from a kind of principle in this matter: and persons, who have no fear in the least of society being hurt by profaneness and profligateness, affect prodigious fears of its being hurt by charity schools: do nothing, say nothing, against other evils; join in them, plead for them; but this one danger awakens all their public spirit and they are as clear, that the education of these poor children is the cause of almost every thing they dislike, as the heathen Romans were, that all the calamities which befel their empire, proceeded from the growth of Christianity. Some again, without going so great lengths, will not fail however to condemn what they must else contribute to support. Others are so unhappily attentive to party considerations or personal prejudices, that if a design, ever so valuable, comes from a wrong quarter, instead of being ambitious to share in the merit and the honour of it, they set themselves immediately to depreciate it, and suggest mischievous intentions in it. And every one of these motives will induce some to invent and many more to magnify faults: to dress out facts with circumstances, that entirely alter the nature of them; and talk vehemently about things, which have been corrected long ago, as if they happened lately, and the same ill management subsisted still. No persons indeed should be charged with speaking or acting from worse motives, than they do: for it is both injuring and exasperating them. But every person ought conscientiously to examine, what his own motives are; and prudently to consider, what those of others may be; and neither be influenced by their opinions, nor their assertions, more than they deserve. For not only false, but incredible and ridi culous stories about these schools, have been confidently averred, and incautiously believed. Nor are bad people only, but very good ones sometimes, grievously inclined to partialities and hard censures too negligent of enquiring, too hasty in giving credit. A small, or but imagined failure, in the scheme, in the execution, in the success, of a most useful undertaking, shall cool their friendship, or provoke their enmity to it: and they strangely forget, that a few errors and defects are no reason for abandoning valuable designs, but only for amending them; and that the good arising from them, even if amendments cannot be procured, may be vastly greater than the harm. It is very afflicting, when persons, who mean well to religion, will notwithstanding take part thus with such as mean ill to it; and abet those, who have no other view than to destroy, instead of favouring, the endeavours that are used to reform and improve. The watchfulness of our worthy diocesan over the management of this charity, hath kept equal pace with the malice of its forwardest adversaries *. And your care, who are trustees, hath been applied without intermission to prevent or remedy, what others have only busied themselves to rail at. Yet the faithful diligence shewn on the one side, hath been suspected and reproached: and the unrighteous accusations brought on the other, applauded and propagated. But, unjust as this treatment is, you must resolve to bear it with all possible temper and composedness. For persons, who judge and behave very wrong in * See the directions given by the Lord Bishop of London to the masters and mistresses of charity schools, in the chapter-house of St. Paul's, November 14, 1724. relation to these schools, may yet be entitled to great regard on other accounts. And where prejudice and a kind of fashion run against any thing, as they do amongst too many in the present case; angry complaints, however well grounded, will only be despised, or excite a return of more anger: whereas mild representations will at least mollify those, whom they cannot bring over. Objections therefore, and even invectives, should be patiently heard: and answers, though sufficiently given already, repeated with calmness. If real faults are found, they should be acknowledged: if proper alterations are demanded, they should be made. For though innovations, which appear very plausible, may be found, when examined, very dangerous; and therefore love of change is by no means to be encouraged; yet aversion to it may be carried to an extreme also; and persons may both intend very well, and in most things do very well, and yet material points may have been either overlooked by them at first, or gradually forgotten afterwards. Each of you singly therefore should always be solicitous to learn, both from friends and enemies, what will be conducive to your design: and that excellent rule, which you have so wisely established and so long observed, of stated meetings to consult together for the better conduct of it, should be strictly kept up; and diligently applied, to propose modestly, and promote unanimously, whatever may contribute either to perfect or recommend it. Only you will remember, that the former should be your chief concern and that the reality, not the name, of a Christian and useful education, is the thing, which you are to have at heart. Such then is your duty and if you are conscious of having taken due pains to perform it, let who will censure or ridicule you, let who will grow cool or leave you, go on with cheerfulness, and persevere to the end. For, provided it be a zeal according to knowledge*, it is good to be always zealously affected in a good thing, and not to suffer our love to wax cold, because iniquity abounds ‡. Deserting such a work, after once engaging in it, not only withdraws countenance from it, but casts an imputation upon it. Be not therefore overcome of evil, but, in this sense as well as others, overcome evil with good §. You have the comfort of doing much service to God and your fellow-creatures: you have the consciousness of having endeavoured to do more. You deserve from all persons, and you will receive from all considerate persons, great honour and were it less, you would only be the surer, that you act from a right principle, and shall obtain a large reward; not only for all you have designed, but all you have borne, as you ought; whether it be reproach, or whether it be disappointment. But then let your whole lives be suitable to this part: be good Christians in every respect yourselves, whilst you profess to make others such: else you will discredit your undertaking before men, and lose your recompense from God. For though charity shall cover the multitude of sins: yet this one work is only a small branch of that extensive virtue; and were it the whole, no wilful transgressions, of which you do not so repent, as to forsake them, shall ever be hid by it. But all, that the directors of this charity can do, will be much in vain, unless you, the masters and * Rom. x. 2. Matt. xxiv. 12. + Gal. iv. 18. 1 Peter iv, 8. § Rom. xii. 21. |
