Essays Upon Some Controverted QuestionsHuxley, Thomas Henry
Religion
Essays Upon Some Controverted Questions
Huxley, Thomas Henry
Science
In the course of the present discussion it has been asserted that the
"Sermon on the Mount" and the "Lord's Prayer" furnish a summary and
condensed view of the essentials of the teaching of Jesus of Nazareth, set
forth by himself. Now this supposed _Summa_ of Nazarene theology distinctly
affirms the existence of a spiritual world, of a Heaven, and of a {458}
Hell of fire; it teaches the Fatherhood of God and the malignity of the
Devil; it declares the superintending providence of the former and our need
of deliverance from the machinations of the latter; it affirms the fact of
demoniac possession and the power of casting out devils by the faithful.
And, from these premises, the conclusion is drawn, that those Agnostics who
deny that there is any evidence of such a character as to justify
certainty, respecting the existence and the nature of the spiritual world,
contradict the express declarations of Jesus. I have replied to this
argumentation by showing that there is strong reason to doubt the
historical accuracy of the attribution to Jesus of either the "Sermon on
the Mount" or the "Lord's Prayer"; and, therefore, that the conclusion in
question is not warranted, at any rate on the grounds set forth.
But, whether the Gospels contain trustworthy statements about this and
other alleged historical facts or not, it is quite certain that from them,
taken together with the other books of the New Testament, we may collect a
pretty complete exposition of that theory of the spiritual world which was
held by both Nazarenes and Christians; and which was undoubtedly supposed
by them to be fully sanctioned by Jesus, though it is just as clear that
they did not imagine it contained any revelation by him of something
heretofore unknown. If the pneumatological doctrine which pervades the
whole New Testament is nowhere systematically stated, it is everywhere
assumed. The writers of {459} the Gospels and of the Acts take it for
granted, as a matter of common knowledge; and it is easy to gather from
these sources a series of propositions, which only need arrangement to form
a complete system.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account