105. They who have the love of self and of the world for an end, cannot in any wise be in charity; they do not even know what charity is; and they cannot at all comprehend that to will and do good to the neighbor without reward as an end, is heaven in man, and that there is in that affection a happiness as great as that of the angels of heaven, which is ineffable; for they believe, if they are deprived of the joy from the glory of honors and riches, that nothing of joy can be given them any longer; when yet it is then that heavenly joy first begins, which infinitely transcends the other.

7366. EXODUS CHAPTER 8.

TEACHINGS ABOUT CHARITY

It has been stated above that self-love and love of the world residing with a person constitute hell. Now the nature of those loves must be stated, in order that a person may know whether he is ruled by those kinds of love, and consequently whether he has hell within himself or heaven; for a person has within himself either hell or heaven. The Lord teaches in Luke 17:21 that the kingdom of God resides within a person; therefore that is also where hell resides.

8253. The pursuit of a religious life involves thinking and speaking in godly ways, setting aside plenty of time for prayers and acting in a humble manner during them, going to church and listening to sermons there in a devout frame of mind, and attending several times each year the Sacrament of the [Lord's] Supper and likewise all other services of worship instituted by the Church. But the pursuit of a charitable life involves feelings of goodwill towards the neighbour and doing good to him, acting in every task from a sense of what is just and fair and of what is good and true, and in a similar way in all that one is employed to do. In short, a charitable life consists in performing useful services.