Peradventure; or, The Silence of GodKeable, Robert
Religion
Peradventure; or, The Silence of God
Keable, Robert
Church of England -- Fiction; Religion -- Fiction; Young men -- Fiction
It was odd, Paul thought, how entirely he failed him. Paul was coming
daily to love more and more this kindly pleasant man, but he was
beginning to see joints in his harness. The three of them would talk
of an evening, for Paul could not do otherwise, and he would drag a
somewhat unwilling Manning into it; but Tressor answered the younger
man not at all. He clung to a refuge that was not yet, at any rate,
storm-proof for Paul. Logic, said Tressor, failed at a point. The
heart of man universally had need of God, and it would not crave if
there was nothing to crave for. Tressor relied on intuition and
instinct. Instinct and intuition, said Manning, were the result of
training and environment. Psychology could dissect and label both,
almost as easily as physiology the bones and muscles of a man. There
was mystery before and behind, said Tressor, but God was fatherly, and
in the end the weary soul would fall back upon His heart and rest.
"Sir," Manning cried one evening, goaded for once out of his habitual
calm, "if your principles had been applied in science, man would be
still in the Stone Age!"
Tressor had flicked an eyelid and looked hurt. He had shortly gone off
to his study, and Manning had as shortly gone after him to apologise.
He had returned a little flushed. "He's a jolly good chap," he said to
Paul. "It's beastly of me to hurt his feelings."
Feelings! As if, Paul thought, feelings mattered. He walked
bareheaded in the avenue and stood on the edge of the sleeping lake,
and he cried out of the depths of his tortured soul to God. One
syllable of an answer, one solitary sign out of the still night, one
resolute conviction even, if God preferred that secret way, among the
changing shifting doubts that racked his soul, and he would be ready to
drink any kind of cup and be baptized with any baptism.
(5)
Tacked on to the very house, was a peculiar feature of the place. The
parish church was also the private chapel. The parish had dwindled all
but to the inhabitants of the park and grounds, and one clergyman
served Fordham and held as well the living of the considerable village
that lay beyond; but, occasionally, once a month for each service,
Communion was celebrated, Evensong sung, so near to them that it was
difficult even for unsympathetic guests not to go. Besides, Tressor
liked one to go, and that was enough for Manning and Paul.
The last Sunday in the month, then, Paul went to Evensong. All the
servants were there: dear old Mrs. Bird in a bonnet that tinkled with
jet, with service-books the treasured gifts of her master; Timothy, for
the most part crouched in his pew, expressionless; Rider, precise and
understanding; the maids, strange in Sunday outdoor garments. The
three friends occupied a pew discreetly not in the front, flatteringly
not too far behind. And Mr. Prideaux took the service and preached.
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