Is it to clothe a naked child
Or freezing man against the storm,
With worn-out garments which have ceased
To keep our pampered bodies warm?
Or freezing man against the storm,
With worn-out garments which have ceased
To keep our pampered bodies warm?
Is this, then, all of charity,
These carnal gifts of man to man?
Nay; these were but the outer husks
In Christ's revivifying plan.
These carnal gifts of man to man?
Nay; these were but the outer husks
In Christ's revivifying plan.
To stop thine ears 'gainst evil tales
Of slander and of shame;
To say, "judge not," when wanton tongues
Befoul with sneers a once fair name—
Of slander and of shame;
To say, "judge not," when wanton tongues
Befoul with sneers a once fair name—
To guard thy lips close-shut lest they
Join in the hounding, coward cry
With which a horde of censurers
Drives forth a lonely soul to die—
Join in the hounding, coward cry
With which a horde of censurers
Drives forth a lonely soul to die—
To hold thyself too pure and true
To trample on another's woe,
Believing what thou hast not seen,
Condemning what thou canst not know—
To trample on another's woe,
Believing what thou hast not seen,
Condemning what thou canst not know—
To do these things is best to use
The charity that Christ decreed,
For transient are the body's wants,
Eternal is the spirit's need.
The charity that Christ decreed,
For transient are the body's wants,
Eternal is the spirit's need.
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