branches of learning, left no room to suspect he could be ignorant of the true answer to this question, and especially of what every one knew was delivered upon that head by their great Legislator our Saviour therefore refers him to his own memory of what he had found there in the course of his studies. What is written in the law, how readest thou?- Upon which the inquirer reciting the general heads of our duty to God and man, as delivered in the 18th of Leviticus and the 6th of Deuteronomy, — namely - That we should worship the Lord our God with all our hearts, and love our neighbour as ourselves; our blessed Saviour tells him, he had answered right, and if he followed that lesson, could not fail of the blessing he seemed desirous to inherit. This do, and thou shalt live.

But he, as the context tells us, willing to justify himself willing possibly to gain more credit in the conference, or hoping perhaps to hear such a partial and narrow definition of the word neighbour as would suit his own principles, and justify some particular oppressions of his own, or those of which his whole order lay under an accusation-says unto Jesus in the 29th verse- And who is my neighbour?

Though the demand at first sight may seem utterly trifling, yet was it far from being so in fact. For according as you understood the term in a more or less restrained sense - it produced many necessary variations in the duties you owed from that relation. — Our blessed Saviour, to rectify any partial and pernicious mistake in this matter, and to place at once this duty of the love of our neighbour upon its true bottom of philanthropy and universal kindness, makes answer to the proposed question, not by any far-fetched refinement from the schools of the Rabbies, which might have sooner silenced than convinced the man

but by a direct appeal to human nature in an instance he relates of a man falling among thieves, left in the greatest distress imaginable, till by chance a Samaritan, an utter stranger, coming where he was, by an act of great goodness and compassion, not only relieved him at present, but took him under his protection, and generously provided for his future safety.

On the close of which engaging account our Saviour appeals to the man's own heart in the first verse of the text - Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among thieves? and instead of drawing

the inference himself, leaves him to decide in favour of so noble a principle so evidently founded on mercy. The lawyer, struck with the truth and justice of the doctrine, and frankly acknowledging the force of it, our blessed Saviour concludes the debate with a short admonition, that he would practise what he had approved - and -and go, and imitate that fair example of universal benevolence which it had set before him.

In the remaining part of the discourse I shall follow the same plan; and therefore shall beg leave to enlarge first upon the story itself, with such reflections as will arise from it; and conclude, as our Saviour has done, with the same exhortation to kindness and humanity which so naturally falls from it.

A certain man, says our Saviour, went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his raiment, and departed, leaving him half-dead. There is something in our nature which engages us to take part in every accident to which man is subject, from what cause soever it may have happened; but in such calamities as a man has fallen into through mere misfortune, to be charged upon no fault or indiscretion of him

self, there is something then so truly interesting, that at the first sight we generally make them our own, not altogether from a reflection that they might have been or may be so, but oftener from a certain generosity and tenderness of nature which disposes us for compassion, abstracted from all considerations of self: so that without any observable act of the will, we suffer with the unfortunate, and feel a weight upon our spirits we know not why, on seeing the most common instances of their distress. But where the spectacle is uncommonly tragical, and complicated with many circumstances of misery, the mind is then taken captive at once, and were it inclined to it, has no power to make resistance, but surrenders itself to all the tender emotions of pity and deep concern. So that when one considers this friendly part of our nature without looking farther, one would think it impossible for a man to look upon misery without finding himself in some measure attached to the interest of him who suffers it - I say, one would think it impossible -for there are some tempers-how shall I describe them? formed either of such impenetrable matter, or wrought up by habitual selfishness to such an utter insensibility of

what becomes of the fortunes of their fellowcreatures, as if they were not partakers of the same nature, or had no lot or connection at all with the species.

Of this character, our Saviour produces two disgraceful instances in the behaviour of a Priest and a Levite, whom in this account he represents as coming to the place where the unhappy man was;- both passing by without either stretching forth a hand to assist, or uttering a word to comfort him in his distress.

And by chance there came down a certain priest ! Merciful God! that a teacher of thy religion should ever want humanity or that a man, whose head might be thought full of the one, should have a heart void of the other! This however was the case before us-and though in theory one would scarce suspect that the least pretence to religion, and an open disregard to so main a part of it, could ever meet together in one person;- yet in fact it is no fictitious character.

Look into the world - How often do you behold a sordid wretch, whose strait heart is open to no man's affliction, taking shelter behind an appearance of piety, and putting on the garb of religion, which none but the merci