Chapter I

How very hard it is to be A Christian! Hard for you and me, —Not the mere task of making real That duty up to its ideal, Effecting thus, complete and whole, A purpose of the human soul— For that is always hard to do; But hard, I mean, for me and you To realize it, more or less, With even the moderate success Which commonly repays our strife To carry out the aims of life.

After some preliminary discussion about faith in its relation to life, the easy-going friend takes this position:—