TOP
0
TOP UP
Reading History
Log out
Get the APP
Robert Blatchford
Robert Blatchford's Book(1)
God and My Neighbour
Literature
5.0
Huxley quotes with satirical gusto Dr. Wace's declaration as to the word "Infidel." Said Dr. Wace: "The word infidel, perhaps, carries an unpleasant significance. Perhaps it is right that it should. It is, and it ought to be, an unpleasant thing for a man to have to say plainly that he does not believe in Jesus Christ."Be it pleasant or unpleasant to be an unbeliever, one thing is quite clear: religious people intend the word Infidel to carry "an unpleasant significance" when they apply to it one. It is in their minds a term of reproach. Because they think it is wicked to deny what they believe.To call a man an Infidel, then, is tacitly to accuse him of a kind of moral turpitude.But a little while ago, to be an Infidel was to be socially taboo. But a little while earlier, to be an Infidel was to be persecuted. But a little earlier still, to be an Infidel was to be an outlaw, subject to the penalty of death.Now, it is evident that to visit the penalty of social ostracism or public contumely upon all who reject the popular religion is to erect an arbitrary barrier against intellectual and spiritual advance, and to put a protective tariff upon orthodoxy to the disadvantage of science and free thought.The root of the idea that it is wicked to reject the popular religion—a wickedness of which Christ and Socrates and Buddha are all represented to have been guilty—thrives in the belief that the Scriptures are the actual words of God, and that to deny the truth of the Scriptures is to deny and to affront God.But the difficulty of the unbeliever lies in the fact that he cannot believe the Scriptures to be the actual words of God.The Infidel, therefore, is not denying God's words, nor disobeying God's commands: he is denying the words and disobeying the commands of men.No man who knew that there was a good and wise God would be so foolish as to deny that God. No man would reject the words of God if he knew that God spoke those words.But the doctrine of the divine origin of the Scriptures rests upon the authority of the Church; and the difference between the Infidel and the Christian is that the Infidel rejects and the Christian accepts the authority of the Church.Belief and unbelief are not matters of moral excellence or depravity: they are questions of evidence.The Christian believes the Scriptures because they are the words of God. But he believes they are the words of God because some other man has told him so.Let him probe the matter to the bottom, and he will inevitably find that his authority is human, and not, as he supposes, divine.
You might like
The Count of Monte Cristo
Alexandre Dumas
4.9
With an Introduction and Notes by Keith Wren, University of Kent at Canterbury The story of Edmund Dantes, self-styled Count of Monte Cristo, is told with consummate skill. The victim of a miscarriage of justice, Dantes is fired by a desire for retribution and empowered by a stroke of providence. In
Pride and Prejudice
Jane Austen
5.0
One of the most universally loved and admired English novels, Pride and Prejudice was penned as a popular entertainment. But the consummate artistry of Jane Austen (1775–1817) transformed this effervescent tale of rural romance into a witty, shrewdly observed satire of English country life that is n
Memoirs Of A Geisha
Arthur Golden
5.0
Memoirs of a Geisha is a novel by Arthur Golden, published in 1997. The novel, told in first person perspective, tells the fictional story of a geisha working in Kyoto, Japan, before and after World War II.
The Pastor's Son
William W. Walter
4.9
The Pastor's Son by William W. Walter
Rich Dad Poor Dad
Robert Kiyosaki, Sharon Lechter
4.9
"Study hard and get good grades and you will find a high-paying job with great benefits," my parents used to say. Their goal in life was to provide a college education for my older sister and me, so that we would have the greatest chance for success in life. When T finally earned my diplom
War And Peace
Leo Tolstoy
4.9
War and Peace , a Russian novel by Leo Tolstoy, is considered one of the most celebrated works of fiction.It is regarded, along with Anna Karenina (1873–1877), as Tolstoy's finest literary achievement. Epic in scale, War and Peace delineates in graphic detail events leading up to Napoleon's i
Varney the Vampire
Thomas Preskett Prest
5.0
This book was originally published in \"penny dreadful\" form. This edition does not include the entire 109 episodes, which were published in three lengthy volumes, but this slightly condensed form conveys the full story and complete reading experience. Note that authorship has also been ascribed to
If Only etc.
Augustus Harris
4.0
If Only etc. by Augustus Harris
Miss Billy's Decision
Eleanor H. Porter
5.0
Orphaned as a young woman, Miss Billy has had to struggle to make her way in the world. After finding a place in the family of her late father's dear friend, William Henshaw, she falls in love with his brother Bertram and helps bring him out of his shell. The two become engaged to be married, and th
Romance of Three Kingdoms
Luo Guanzhong
4.9
Romance of the Three Kingdoms, written by Luo Guanzhong in the 14th century, is a Chinese historical novel based upon events in the turbulent years near the end of the Han Dynasty and the Three Kingdoms era of China, starting in 169 and ending with the reunification of the land in 280. Romance of t