A LAYMAN'S DOUBTS.
[TO THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR."] an article headed " A Merchant's Faith," which appeared in the Spectator of March 10, you observe that " we should wel- come any occurrence which tempted people unlearned in theology to state their actual beliefs, and reasons for their beliefs, as an im- mense addition, not, indeed, to the thought of the world, but to the means by which thought may be directed towards the problems needing solution ;" and you refer to an attempt at a production of this kind in the present number of the Contemporary, by Mr. F. Peek, as giving, "with great clearness and some eloquence" his view of a "reasonable faith,"—the view which can be accepted by a " British merchant."
In the preceding paragraph you have given expression to a thought long present to my own mind, and probably to the minds of many other laymen " unlearned in theology," but earnest in- quirers after truth. You point out that a formidable difficulty arises just now in the way of fruitful religious discussion, from the difficulty of discovering the general effect of particular argu- ments. In the pulpit, as in the Press, a great deal of strength is wasted, for want of better knowledge of the real nature of the doubts which unsettle the mind and disturb the faith of dissidents ; and secondly, of the arguments which will reach the true source of their difficulty. Many earnest clergymen are vainly occupied in fighting shadows, instead of the real objections on which the doubter feeds. This is an evil greatly due, no doubt, to the un- willingness of those who are " perplext in faith " to lay bare the secret doubts that pursue them. Some from a natural feeling of reserve are silent, but many more from a conscientious fear of doing mischief by giving utterance to what may carry perplexity to other minds which are at peace, and the statement of unsolvable problems—" enigmas of life "—towards the satisfactory solution of which they have nothing themselves to offer. Yet " honest doubt" should have nothing permanently hurtful or offensive in it to the most devout believer, and free discussion of religious
• Those gentlemen declared this to be incorrect; they were aghast at the appearance of the article. Vol. III., p. 318.
questions, with all their momentous issue, seems to offer the best, if not the only hope of a larger faith, and more solid foundation for what is true and real in religion, than is found, I fear, by great numbers of professing Christians at the present day.
If you will allow me, therefore, to profit by your hint, and set forth in plain words the thoughts of one who has long sought for a " reasonable faith," I will endeavour, as briefly as I can, to note some of the points on which faith and doubt seem to main- tain their disturbing conflict over a wide area. A continuous stream of doubt, indeed, and sceptic argument from every seat of learning and science, is perceptible. The creed of Christianity, whether Romanist, Greek, or Protestant, would really appear to have little hold on the faith or intellect of the great majority living within its pale. This was not long ago asserted of the Germans in the Times by its Berlin correspondent, and led to a fierce discussion. The occasion which gave rise to the controversy, it may be remembered, was the act of a youth named Bilasd, who fired a pistol at a clergyman as he repeated the Creed in church, by way of making an emphatic protest against the general insincerity, which, according to the assassin's view of the matter, was the only explanation of an educated man's continuing to profess his belief in the Creed. The correspondent contended that Biland's view was so far right, that a large majority of the educated men and women of North Germany had practically " ceased to believe in Christ- ianity to such an extent that the country could no longer with any propriety be described as Christian." In the end, the corre- spondent maintained his ground, and appeared to make good his point as to the general prevalence of disbelief in any creed. So, even of Catholic France and Italy and Spain, and of a large number, both of the educated and uneducated in this kingdom, may not something very like it be said with truth, if we admit a qualification as to degree ? There is an increasing divorce between science and Christianity, as Kingsley has said, and " when a popular war arises between the reason of a genera- tion and its theology, it behoves the ministers of religion to inquire, on which side the fault lies."
It is with Christianity that our chief concern is at present.. The verbal inspiration of the Scriptures has been almost aban- doned by clergy and laity alike. The historical accuracy and truth of the several books of the Old Testament can only be ac- cepted with large allowances for error and interpolations. The prophecies of the greater and lesser Prophets have undergone a similar damaging process of critical analysis. The historical truth of the origin of Christianity and its divine character must in the main, therefore, rest on other authority than any to be derived from the earlier Biblical records, which constituted the law and- the covenant of the Jews. What other foundations it rests upon, and how far they are satisfactory to the majority of Christian men and women in the several Churches and nations constituting the Christendom of the nineteenth century, is a legitimate object of inquiry. This part of the subject, together with the question how far the creeds of Christendom have true acceptance among the millions who nominally profess them, and in what direction, if at all, they essentially fail to satisfy the heart and intellect, and govern the conscience, must be reserved for another occasion, if you will afford me space.—I am, Sir, &c., A LAYMAN.
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