Faraday to Jane Barnard   1 August 1841¹

Interlaken: August 1, 1841.

Dear Jenny,- A whole month has passed away since we left you and all our friends; and though we have for so long been absent, and without those cheering words and pleasant little chats, which are and ought to be a comfort to one another, still we have had your letters, and you can hardly think how great their value is to us. I speak of you as all together, for I cannot tell how to separate you one from another; bound up together, as I trust, in the one hope, and in faith and love which is in Jesus Christ, you seem to me to become more and more as one to us; for, as we increase our distance from you, there appears to be a separation of the few, or I ought rather to say of the many, that are with you from the rest of the world, and a distinction which I feel to be the greater now that I am away. And you too, dear Jenny, are away in a manner; for though it is not distance which separates you, yet it has pleased God in his dealings to bring weakness of body over you, and so to lessen your power to enjoy those privileges which are granted to us to keep alive in our hearts the knowledge and love of the Lord Jesus Christ. But we know that these his dealings with his people who are found waiting upon Him are all mercy, and are needful to rule their rebellious hearts to the obedience of Him, and to see in Him everything which is necessary for our rest. How anxious, to be sure, we are to do something! Often it takes the form of going to his house, or of joining in his worship, or of working in the labour of love in the profession - things that his people, constrained by his love, will be always found observing; but when it pleases God to take from us these privileges, leaving us his Word, which is all-sufficient, how often shall we find, by the workings and thoughts of our hearts, that in these things we were trying to do something on our own account! And so we may be encouraged to hope that He is thus showing us what is within ourselves, that He may turn us again unto Christ and to Him alone. Now, my dear Jenny, I hope I have not written anything to make you dull. I have no such thought; I am rather hoping to cheer both you and myself by the thought of Divine goodness and mercy, which make salvation not of any worth or work of ours, or any goodness or strength or fitness that we have, but alone of his sovereign grace and mercy.

Now I have told you no news - my companion and dear wife and partner in all things will tell you enough of that. We often talk of you and speak of our joint hope; and the separation that now is makes us think of another that will follow, and that cannot be much longer delayed, and of the joyful hope of meeting never to part in that heaven where there are many mansions, and where the Saviour is gone to prepare a place for his people.

The pleasure, however, we have in letters makes me turn back to a bit of worldly wisdom.

If anybody is about to write to us, let the necessary postage be paid, as you and Margery [Reid] (dear creatures) have paid it. My brother Robert or the Grays² might perhaps not know the necessary preliminaries. I do not think I trouble you by saying this much, because you have only to say the thing to Margery or Caroline, and I know their effectiveness in all that will be needful that way.

My love to all as if mentioned by name. If I were to repeat the names of all I wish it to, in every letter, it would still be with strong affection and nothing of form; but I refrain, lest you should think me childish. But you can hardly think (being at home) how dear the remembrance of an absent friend is to one. Love to father³, mother⁴, brothers, and sisters, and all friends. We may rejoice together that our pleasant old friend, B.A.⁵, is gone where love is made perfect and all fear cast out.

Ever, dear Jane, your affectionate brother, | M. Faraday.