od; it is required of the
Christian, and sometimes, no doubt, fulfilled; but the Stoa demands the
same virtues of its disciples. You, Constantine, knew Damon the Stoic,
and you will remember how strictly he enjoined on all that they should
rise superior to pain and grief. And then, when his only daughter
lost her sight--she was a great friend of mine--he behaved like one
possessed. My father, too, has often spoken to you of philosophy as a
help to contemning the discomforts of life, and bearing the sports of
Fate with a lofty mind; and now? You should see the poor man, reverend
Father. What good have all the teachings of the great master done him?"

"But he has lost so much--so much!" sighed Constantine thinking of his
own loss; and Eusebius shook his head.

"In sorrow such as his, no philosophy, no mental effort can avail. The
blows that wound the affections can only be healed by the affections,
and not by the intellect and considerations of reason. Faith, child!
Faith is the true Herb of Grace. The intellect is its foe; the feelings
are its native soil where it finds constant nourishment; and however
deep the bleeding wound of the mourner may be, Faith can heal it and
reconcile the sufferer to his loss. You have been taught to value a fine
understanding, to measure everything by it, to build everything on its
decisions. To you the knowledge you have attained to by argument and
inference is supreme; but the Creator has given us a heart as well as
a brain; our affections, too, stir and grow in their own way, and the
knowledge they can attain to, my child, is Faith. You love--and Love
is part of your affections; and now take my advice; do not let that
reasoning intelligence, which has nothing to do with love, have anything
to say in the matter; cherish your love and nurture it from the
rich stores of your heart; thus only can it thrive to beauty and
harmony.--And this must suffice for to-day, for I have already kept the
wounded waiting too long in the Serapeum. If you desire it, another time
I will show you Christianity in all its depth and beauty, and your
love for this good man will prepare the way and open your heart to my
teaching. A day will come when you will be able to listen to the voice
of your heart as gladly as you have hitherto obeyed the dictates of your
intellect; something new will be born in you which you will esteem as
a treasure above all you ever acquired by reason and thought. That day
will assuredly