I hope my readers, if I should ever have any, will remember that what I
wish to do is to give some account of the manner in which we sought to be
of service to the small and very humble circle of persons whom we had
collected about us. I have preserved no record of anything; I am merely
putting down what now comes into my mind—the two or three articles, not
thirty-nine, nor, alas! a third of that number—which we were able to
hold. I recollect one or two more which perhaps are worth preservation.
In my younger days the aim of theologians was the justification of the
ways of God to man. They could not succeed. They succeeded no better
than ourselves in satisfying the intellect with a system. Nor does the
Christian religion profess any such satisfaction. It teaches rather the
great doctrine of a Remedy, of a Mediator; and therein it is profoundly
true. It is unphilosophical in the sense that it offers no explanation
from a single principle, and leaves the ultimate mystery as dark as
before, but it is in accordance with our intuitions. Everywhere in
nature we see exaction of penalties down to the uttermost farthing, but
following after this we discern forgiveness, obliterating and
restorative. Both tendencies exist. Nature is Rhadamanthine, and more
so, for she visits the sins of the fathers upon the children; but there
is in her also an infinite Pity, healing all wounds, softening all
calamities, ever hastening to alleviate and repair. Christianity in
strange historical fashion is an expression of nature, a projection of
her into a biography and a creed.
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.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account