Article October 11, 1924 Issue

Kindness, according to the dictionary, means a disposition...

Rev. C. C. Harcourt,—Toronto, Ontario, Canada, March 20, 1924

Canadian Churchman

Kindness, according to the dictionary, means a disposition which delights to make others happy; and an act of kindness is that which promotes the happiness or the welfare of others. Also we find that synonyms are such words as good-will, compassion, humanity, generosity, affection. Searching for an example of one who consistently and entirely showed kindness, our thoughts are surely taken back to our earthly pattern, Jesus Christ. He, therefore, who best shows kindness is he who reflects in all his acts the spirit of Jesus. Kindness, indeed, in its fullest meaning, becomes almost identical with the name of Jesus Christ. He who, following in Christ's footsteps, seeks to be truly kind, must love his neighbor as himself, and in all his thoughts, words, and deeds express this love. David, the man after God's own heart, gives us an illustration of kindness. He loved Jonathan with a love so strong that even death failed to sever it; and when he became king he remembered the friend of his adversity, and diligently sought out any one left of the house of Saul. . . . Paul, who so assimilated the spirit of his Master, sets forth in his epistle to the Romans something of the duty of Christians to their neighbors: "Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another," he says. He enjoins sympathy, a "feeling with" our neighbor, bidding us to "rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep." He sets forth the highest form of the doctrine of love in the words, "If thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink," and by so doing to "overcome evil with good.". . . Jesus, looking on the rich young ruler, saw clearly his faults, and in spite of them loved him. Though the young man went away sorrowful, we can believe that the sorrow of Christ Jesus at his departure was much deeper. The whole gospel record, indeed, is full of illustrations of true kindness, from the angel's message at Bethlehem to God's care of the common sparrow, and on to Christ Jesus' tender farewell on the mount of Olivet. . . . Each one of us . . . must strive, . . . knowing that what matters is not the height but the sincerity and depth of our efforts. The mark of a Christian must always be the spirit of kindness which shows itself in his attitude to his fellow-men.

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