England -- Social life and customs -- 20th century -- Fiction; Husband and wife -- Fiction; Siblings -- Fiction
The two things that struck me most in the whole happening were first
its unspeakable wonder, and secondly its absolute naturalness. But
that is the way with all real miracles: beforehand they appear
impossible, and afterwards inevitable. Thus it is with the two great
miracles of marriage and parenthood. An imaginary wife and imaginary
children are amongst the most impossible creations of our dreams; yet
when they come, they seem to have been always there, and we cannot
picture a world without them. And so I think it will be with the other
great miracle of death. At present the heart of man fails to conceive
what good things are prepared for us in the land beyond the grave; but
when we are really there, I believe it will seem one of the most
natural things we have ever known; as natural as that earthly home
where the dream-wife and the dream-children came true, and made the
life before their coming sink into the realms of vain and
half-forgotten things.
When we had left Frank's room, and were waiting downstairs for Mr.
Henderson's motor, which was to take him back to London, I asked him--
"How do you explain your gift of healing?"
"I have but one explanation," he answered: "as many as touched the hem
of His garment were made perfectly whole."
"Then do you not put it down to the influence of mind over
matter--which is an influence we are only just beginning to realise?" I
urged.
"I put it down to nothing but the power of Christ," replied Henderson.
"I find that as long as people talk about mentality, or suggestion, or
will-power, or the influence of mind over matter, or the particle of
Godhead inherent in ourselves, the world will listen to them, and
follow after them, and believe in their cures; but the minute we put
all these things on one side and teach that there is no power in
anything save in Christ Jesus and Him crucified, the world becomes shy
of us at once and looks the other way. Yet there is no help for any of
us but in His Name, neither in this world nor in the world to come."
"But how would you explain this working of His power?" asked Arthur.
"I suppose He would work by means of mental suggestion, or something of
that kind."
Mr. Henderson shook his head. "I never attempt to explain: I only
believe. I know that He does certain things, but how He does them is
no business of mine."
"We are too fond of explaining things nowadays," said Arthur. "I think
we should do well to follow the example of the Cherubim who used two of
their wings to cover their faces, because there were things into which
they were not desired to look. We, on the contrary, try to pry into
everything."
"But we have as yet no wings with which to cover our faces," I
suggested. "It is only because we are low and earthy that we pry. As
we grow higher we shall grow humbler, and by the time that we attain to
wings we shall know how to use them."
"And until we know how to use them we shall probably not get the
wings," added Arthur.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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