orthodoxy-第42章

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crime　as　disease；　about　making　a　prison　merely　a　hygienic　environment



like　a　hospital；　of　healing　sin　by　slow　scientific　methods。　



The　fallacy　of　the　whole　thing　is　that　evil　is　a　matter　of　active



choice　whereas　disease　is　not。　　If　you　say　that　you　are　going　to　cure



a　profligate　as　you　cure　an　asthmatic；　my　cheap　and　obvious　answer　is；



〃Produce　the　people　who　want　to　be　asthmatics　as　many　people　want



to　be　profligates。〃　　A　man　may　lie　still　and　be　cured　of　a　malady。　



But　he　must　not　lie　still　if　he　wants　to　be　cured　of　a　sin；



on　the　contrary；　he　must　get　up　and　jump　about　violently。　



The　whole　point　indeed　is　perfectly　expressed　in　the　very　word



which　we　use　for　a　man　in　hospital；　〃patient〃　is　in　the　passive　mood；



〃sinner〃　is　in　the　active。　　If　a　man　is　to　be　saved　from　influenza；



he　may　be　a　patient。　　But　if　he　is　to　be　saved　from　forging；



he　must　be　not　a　patient　but　an　IMPATIENT。　　He　must　be　personally



impatient　with　forgery。　　All　moral　reform　must　start　in　the　active



not　the　passive　will。







　　　　　Here　again　we　reach　the　same　substantial　conclusion。　　In　so　far



as　we　desire　the　definite　reconstructions　and　the　dangerous　revolutions



which　have　distinguished　European　civilization；　we　shall　not　discourage



the　thought　of　possible　ruin；　we　shall　rather　encourage　it。　



If　we　want；　like　the　Eastern　saints；　merely　to　contemplate　how　right



things　are；　of　course　we　shall　only　say　that　they　must　go　right。　



But　if　we　particularly　want　to　MAKE　them　go　right；　we　must　insist



that　they　may　go　wrong。







　　　　　Lastly；　this　truth　is　yet　again　true　in　the　case　of　the　common



modern　attempts　to　diminish　or　to　explain　away　the　divinity　of　Christ。　



The　thing　may　be　true　or　not；　that　I　shall　deal　with　before　I　end。　



But　if　the　divinity　is　true　it　is　certainly　terribly　revolutionary。　



That　a　good　man　may　have　his　back　to　the　wall　is　no　more　than　we



knew　already；　but　that　God　could　have　his　back　to　the　wall　is　a　boast



for　all　insurgents　for　ever。　　Christianity　is　the　only　religion



on　earth　that　has　felt　that　omnipotence　made　God　incomplete。　



Christianity　alone　has　felt　that　God；　to　be　wholly　God；



must　have　been　a　rebel　as　well　as　a　king。　　Alone　of　all　creeds；



Christianity　has　added　courage　to　the　virtues　of　the　Creator。　



For　the　only　courage　worth　calling　courage　must　necessarily　mean



that　the　soul　passes　a　breaking　pointand　does　not　break。　



In　this　indeed　I　approach　a　matter　more　dark　and　awful　than　it



is　easy　to　discuss；　and　I　apologise　in　advance　if　any　of　my



phrases　fall　wrong　or　seem　irreverent　touching　a　matter　which　the



greatest　saints　and　thinkers　have　justly　feared　to　approach。　



But　in　that　terrific　tale　of　the　Passion　there　is　a　distinct　emotional



suggestion　that　the　author　of　all　things　（in　some　unthinkable　way）



went　not　only　through　agony；　but　through　doubt。　　It　is　written；



〃Thou　shalt　not　tempt　the　Lord　thy　God。〃　　No；　but　the　Lord　thy　God　may



tempt　Himself；　and　it　seems　as　if　this　was　what　happened　in　Gethsemane。　



In　a　garden　Satan　tempted　man：　　and　in　a　garden　God　tempted　God。　



He　passed　in　some　superhuman　manner　through　our　human　horror



of　pessimism。　　When　the　world　shook　and　the　sun　was　wiped　out　of　heaven；



it　was　not　at　the　crucifixion；　but　at　the　cry　from　the　cross：　



the　cry　which　confessed　that　God　was　forsaken　of　God。　　And　now　let



the　revolutionists　choose　a　creed　from　all　the　creeds　and　a　god　from　all



the　gods　of　the　world；　carefully　weighing　all　the　gods　of　inevitable



recurrence　and　of　unalterable　power。　　They　will　not　find　another　god



who　has　himself　been　in　revolt。　　Nay；　（the　matter　grows　too　difficult



for　human　speech；）　but　let　the　atheists　themselves　choose　a　god。　



They　will　find　only　one　divinity　who　ever　uttered　their　isolation；



only　one　religion　in　which　God　seemed　for　an　instant　to　be



an　atheist。







　　　　　These　can　be　called　the　essentials　of　the　old　orthodoxy；



of　which　the　chief　merit　is　that　it　is　the　natural　fountain　of



revolution　and　reform；　and　of　which　the　chief　defect　is　that　it



is　obviously　only　an　abstract　assertion。　　Its　main　advantage



is　that　it　is　the　most　adventurous　and　manly　of　all　theologies。　



Its　chief　disadvantage　is　simply　that　it　is　a　theology。　　It　can　always



be　urged　against　it　that　it　is　in　its　nature　arbitrary　and　in　the　air。　



But　it　is　not　so　high　in　the　air　but　that　great　archers　spend　their



whole　lives　in　shooting　arrows　at　ityes；　and　their　last　arrows；



there　are　men　who　will　ruin　themselves　and　ruin　their　civilization



if　they　may　ruin　also　this　old　fantastic　tale。　　This　is　the　last



and　most　astounding　fact　about　this　faith；　that　its　enemies　will



use　any　weapon　against　it；　the　swords　that　cut　their　own　fingers；



and　the　firebrands　that　burn　their　own　homes。　　Men　who　begin　to　fight



the　Church　for　the　sake　of　freedom　and　humanity　end　by　flinging



away　freedom　and　humanity　if　only　they　may　fight　the　Church。　



This　is　no　exaggeration；　I　could　fill　a　book　with　the　instances　of　it。　



Mr。　Blatchford　set　out；　as　an　ordinary　Bible…smasher；　to　prove



that　Adam　was　guiltless　of　sin　against　God；　in　manoeuvring　so　as　to



maintain　this　he　admitted；　as　a　mere　side　issue；　that　all　the　tyrants；



from　Nero　to　King　Leopold；　were　guiltless　of　any　sin　against　humanity。　



I　know　a　man　who　has　such　a　passion　for　proving　that　he　will　have　no



personal　existence　after　death　that　he　falls　back　on　the　position



that　he　has　no　personal　existence　now。　　He　invokes　Buddhism　and　says



that　all　souls　fade　into　each　other；　in　order　to　prove　that　he



cannot　go　to　heaven　he　proves　that　he　cannot　go　to　Hartlepool。　



I　have　known　people　who　protested　against　religious　education　with



arguments　against　any　education；　saying　that　the　child's　mind　must



grow　freely　or　that　the　old　must　not　teach　the　young。　　I　have　known



people　who　showed　that　there　could　be　no　divine　judgment　by　showing



that　there　can　be　no　human　judgment；　even　for　practical　purposes。　



They　burned　their　own　corn　to　set　fire　to　the　church；　they　smashed



their　own　tools　to　smash　it；　any　stick　was　good　enough　to　beat　it　with；



though　it　were　the　last　stick　of　their　own　dismembered　furniture。　



We　do　not　admire；　we　hardly　excuse；　the　fanatic　who　wrecks　this



world　for　love　of　the　other。　　But　what　are　we　to　say　of　the　fanatic



who　wrecks　this　world　out　of　hatred　of　the　other？　　He　sacrifices



the　very　existence　of　humanity　to　the　non…existence　of　God。　



He　offers　his　victims　not　to　the　altar；　but　merely　to　assert



the　idleness　of　the　altar　and　the　emptiness　of　the　throne。　



He　is　ready　to　ruin　even　that　primary　ethic　by　which　all　things　live；



for　his　strange　and　eternal　vengeance　upon　some　one　who　never　lived



at　all。







　　　　　And　yet　the　thing　hangs　in　the　heavens　unhurt。　　Its　opponents



only　succeed　in　destroying　all　that　they　themselves　justly　hold　dear。　



They　do　not　destroy　orthodoxy；　they　only　destroy　political



and　common　courage　sense。　　They　do　not　prove　that　Adam　was　not



responsible　to　God；　how　could　they　prove　it？　　They　only　prove



（from　their　premises）　that　the　Czar　is　not　responsible　to　Russia。　



They　do　not　prove　that　Adam　should　not　have　been　punished　by　God；



they　only　prove　that　the　nearest　sweater　should　not　be　punished　by　men。　



With　their　oriental　doubts　about　personality　they　do　not　make　certain



that　we　shall　have　no　personal　life　hereafter；　they　only　make



certain　that　we　shall　not　have　a　very　jolly　or　complete　one　here。　



With　their　paralysing　hints　of　all　conclusions　coming　out　wrong



they　do　not　tear　the　book　of　the　Recording　Angel；　they　only　make



it　a　little　harder　to　keep　the　books