"
"And why not?"
"Because, my dear boy, though false in the letter, if good counsels
prevail, it may be made true enough in spirit. If it were to go, its
place would be soon filled by men who would be as false in letter as the
others were, and much more false in spirit. You want a heart to check
your head, and a head to check your heart. As in our English body
politic there are two parties opposed to one another, neither of which
can thrive if the other is unduly weakened, so in our spiritual and
intellectual world two parties more or less antagonistic are equally
necessary. Those who are at the head of science provide us with the one
party; those whom we call our churchmen are the other. Both are corrupt,
but we can spare neither, for each checks as far as it can the
corruptions of the other."
"Then you would have us uphold Sunchildism, knowing it to be untrue?"
"Do what you will, you will not get perfect truth. And if you can follow
the lead which I believe Dr. Downie will give you, that is to say, get
rid of cock-and-bull stories, idealise my unworthy self, and, as I said
last night, make me a peg on which to hang your own best
thoughts--Sunchildism will be as near truth as anything you are likely to
get. But if Hankyism triumphs, come what may you must get rid of it, for
he and his school will tamper with the one sure and everlasting word of
God revealed to us by human experience.
Pages:
269
270
271
272
273
274
275
276
277
278
279
280
281
282
283
284
285
286
287
288
289
290
291
292
293