Page:The Life and Works of Christopher Dock.djvu/233

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SPIRITUAL MAGAZINE NO. 41
221

tell-tale; speak well of thy neighbor and excuse his weaknesses.

62. — When others boast of their sins at school and elsewhere, and laugh at foolish pranks, beware of participating in their sin and compromising thyself.

63. — Seeing something wicked in others, sigh over it, think meanwhile of thine own faults, and pray God to deliver thee from such sins.

64. — Give every one his due and let the wholesome grace of God chasten thee to live justly.


III. Rules of Conduct of a Child Toward Himself

65. — Dear child, learn to know thyself aright.

66. — All the good thou findest in thyself is of God; but all the wicked is thy own.

67. — If thou observe thyself without self-love or flattery thou shalt find that thy heart is by nature an abyss of sin, and that the seed of all vice lies hidden within thee only awaiting the chance of breaking loose.

68. — Therefore flee all opportunities of wrong as the Devil himself, for they are all go-betweens that deliver thee into his power.

69. — Thy immortal soul is the noblest part of thy being, therefore thou must take more care of it than of thy mortal body.

70. — The nobility of thy soul consists in its union with God, for which thou must strive with all thy strength.