167. (VIII.) Charity in the Man of Business. If he looks to the Lord and shuns evils as sins, and transacts his business sincerely, justly, and faithfully, he becomes charity. He acts as from his own prudence, and yet trusts in the Divine Providence. He is therefore not despondent in misfortune nor elated with success. He thinks of the morrow, and yet does not think of it. He thinks of what should be done on the morrow, and how it should be done; and yet does not think of the morrow, because he ascribes the future to the Divine Providence and not to his own prudence. Even his prudence he ascribes to the Divine Providence. He loves business as the principal of his vocation, and money as its instrumental; and does not make this the principal and that the instrumental, as very many of the Jews do. Thus he loves his work, which is in itself a good of use; and not the means rather than the work. He does not indeed so distinguish between them; but yet they are thus distinguished when he looks to the Lord and shuns evils as sins. For he shuns avarice, which is an evil and the root of many evils. He loves the general good while loving his own good; for that lies hidden within it, as the root of a tree, which conceals itself in the earth; from which, nevertheless, it grows, and blossoms, and bears fruit. Not that he gives to it of his own beyond what is due; but the fact is that the public good is also the good of his fellow-citizens, whence indeed it arises, whom he loves from the charity of which he is a form. No one can know the secrets of charity within himself, for he cannot see them; but the Lord sees them.