Law, William: The works of the Reverend William Law, M.A.: in 9 vol. (Band 4): A serious call to a devout and holy life, adapted to the state and condition of all orders of christians (Setley, Brockenhurst, New Forest, Hampshire, 1893)

a Devout and Holy Life. 169

So far an enemy to pride, as you never spare it in yourself, nor
ever censure it in other persons.

Now in order to do this, you need only consider, that pride
and humility signify nothing to you, but so far as they are your
own ; that they do you neither good nor harm, but as they are
the tempers of your heart.

The loving therefore of humility is of no benefit or advantage
to you, but so far as you love to see all your own thoughts, words,
and actions governed by it. And the hating of pride does you
no good, is no perfection in you, but so far as you hate to harbour
any degree of it in your own heart.

Now in order to begin, and set out well in the practice of humi-
lity, you must take it for granted that you are proud, that you
have all your life been more or less infected with this unreason-
able temper.

You should believe also, that it is your greatest weakness, that
your heart is most subject to it, that it is so constantly stealing
upon you, that you have reason to watch and suspect its ap-
proaches in all your actions.

For this is what most people, especially new beginners in a
pious life, may with great truth think of themselves.

For there is no one vice, that is more deeply rooted in our
nature, or that receives such constant nourishment from almost
everything that we think or do. There being hardly anything in
the world that we want or use, or any action or duty of life, but
pride finds some means or other to take hold of it. So that at
what time soever we begin to offer ourselves to God, we can
hardly be surer of anything than that we have a great deal of
pride to repent of.

If therefore you find it disagreeable to your mind, to entertain
this opinion of yourself, and that you cannot put yourself amongst
those that want to be cured of pride, you may be as sure, as if
an Angel from heaven had told you, that you have not only much,
but all your humility to seek.

For you can have no greater sign of a more confirmed pride,
than when you think that you are humble enough. He that
thinks he loves God enough, shows himself to be an entire
stranger to that holy passion ; so he that thinks he has humility
enough, shows that he is not so much as a beginner in the prac-
tice of true humility.