World of Religion

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23009, 9 April 1938, Page 7 (Supplement)

World of Religion

By PHILEMON

THE disciplinary thought of Lent and the approach of Passion "Week with its vision of Goodness nailed to the Cross raise once more the perplexing problem of evil and suffering in the world. The Dean of St. Paul's, Dr. W. 11. Matthews, in his "Essays in Construction," tells how the mystery oppressed him in youth.

"I can remember myself," he says, "at the age of fifteen, shortly after having been confirmed, standing under a street lamp in a London suburb, suddenly seeing with dreadful clearness that there could be no God. What was in fact an age-old dilemma flashed into my mind as a piece of original insight. ]f God can prevent evil and does not, he is not benevolent; and if He would prevent eyjl and cannot, Ho is not almighty. But He does not prevent evil and therefore He is eithor not benevo-, lent or not almighty. Hence a God, of the Christian kind at any rate, cannot exist." ' Problem of Suffering Many thousands of eager, truth-seek-ing men and women have stood under that street lamp, distressed by the, force of the same tremendous dilemmaf. Nor is there any problem to-day that harasses and appals the mind comparable with that of the sorrow and Buffering of the world. If the problem seems insoluble it is not for want of attempts to penetrate the mystery. The best minds of all ages and faiths, poets, dramatists, philosophers, theologians, have been drawn to its consideration with intense desire at least to 5 abate its severity, and still men refuse to abandon the search, though light comes but slowly and insufficiently. Years ago the Rev. J*. E. llattenbusy, of the West London Mission, after a sermon in which he had asserted that no solution could be found to the problem, was challenged by Six Percy Bunting, then editor of the Contemporary Review, who had been present at the service. A Lazy Attitude "It is a thoroughly lazy attitude," was Sir Percy's rebuke. The censure was perhaps too unqualified, and no doubt the critic took more out of the preacher's words than they were meant to convoy, but an active and sincere mind can never rest in the presence of the mystery of a marred and distressful world.

When we endeavour to think things out we see that the dilemma which in youth assailed the faith of Dean Matthews is an insufficient statement of alternatives. A third issue must be added to those that presented themselves to him, and the dilemma becomes a trilemma. God may be able to prevent evil and refuse to do so, or He may bo unable to preveut evil and so be less than almighty. But it is also conceivable that Ho may permit evil for some higher and justifiable end and use it to promote that end.

It is along this last lino of thought that wo seem to find an indication of the way 111 which the mystery may finally lie solved and the goodness and wisdom of God bo vindicated. Light From Darkness Dean Matthews, enlarging upon the youthful experience to which wo have referred, makes an acute remark. He says that the recovery of his belief in God arose out of the very problem of evil that had so sorely disturbed him, and tells us that as the power of evil becamo more evidently formidable to his mind the need for God became the more desperate and the conviction that good was really stronger than evil became clearer.

His meaning is manifest. He would say that if, when thought is confronted

UNDER THE STREET LAMP

r with such a world as that which surrounds us and with the problem why it should be permitted to exist, the mind is to be saved from chaos and despair, it must fall back upon faith in Ono who foreknew all and yet in Hi» wisdom brought the world into being, who is at work even amid its pain and mystery reaching toward the ultimate good which Ho foresaw, and who will in His own time afford to His creation the great Interpretation. The more inscrutable the power of evil, the more essential becomes faith in God. , •'The Use of the World" The well-known words of Keats, in whose sad and early-perished life the problem of defeat and cruel pain acutely presents itself, open a door upon a place of help. He said: "Call the world, if .VOU please, a Vale of Scul Making. Then you will find out the use of the world." The world may be taken to exist for the creation and development of free personalities, who know themselves and their place in it ? and who use their freedom in the service of their Maker and of their fellows. Yjfe see around us to-day the unfinished process in operation and do well to delay our judgment. To create an automaton, compelled to act in predetermined would not be to creal e a man in the divine imago and likeness. No good end could be served by the creation of a universe, not of persons, but of robots, mechanical devices under the appearance of men. Only the loyalty of free personalities can hare value for God, and all else, we conceive, exists ,for their production and furtherance. And when we nsk which is better, a world without sin and suffering because without freedom and moral character, or a world with the possibility of evil in which freely chosen fellowship with God is possible, the question carries its own answer. Evil Finally Cast Out But, be it noted, it does so on one condition—that the divine end is. achieved, and evil in the long run is made the servant of good and finally cast out. The long process, 1 burdened with its heavy weight of tragedy, yet all foreseen by God and provided for by. His providential grace, must not end in failure. "It is true, says a modern thinker, "that such an explanation has its deep difficulties, but there is no other, and the difficulties that this explanation relieves are far greater than those by which it is attended." We thus rest in faith that the profoundest fact of life is the existence of good. The-problem of evil is never seen except against a baclcground that ii» not evil. Good is more deeply and securely founded in reality than evil is. Evil, not good, is the intruder, the enemy whoso overthrew and removal is to be sought, and something checks and antagonises it at every point. No Lasting Quality When it enters the individual soul, conscience rises up to chastise it. In its grosser forms it has no lasting quality, but wears itself out in a few generations. Proud and haughty as it may be in our world to-day, it is a proscribed thing that ought not to be, an impertinence marked for rebuke and humiliation^ The work of the three Theological Colleges located in Auckland is now in full swing. At St. John's College six new students have entered, two from the Auckland diocese and four from Wellington. The total in residence is thirteen. At the Baptist College there are four freshmen and a roll number of eleven. At Trinity Methodist College twenty divinity students ore enrolled, nine of whom entered this year. Of these three are students of the Congregational Church.