T h e K i n g ’ s
B u s i n e s s
May 1928
273
mechanism, not only ever executed by art and man’s de vice, but ever conceived by human imagination.” It is doubtful if we shall ever become wiser than the Psalmist, on the matter o f the origin o f man: "Know ye that the. Lord H e is God : it is H e that hath made us, and not we ourselves” (Psa. 100:3). ¿We. How Don Marquis Got His Eye® Opened T HE Dark Hours” by Don Marquis has been pro nounced one o f three best plays about the Saviour which have in recent years appeared in the English lan guage. It covers the Saviour’s Passion, and while it has not'yet been staged, it has been considered one of the few good dramas written in the United States. W e are not especially in favor o f attempting to dramatize these sacred scenes, but we have been especially struck by the author’s note which appears as the conclu sion o f this book. Don Marquis started out to write under the impression which has biased other writers o f plays about the Saviour, namely, that all men are the sons of God. He had not gotten far in the study of the New Tes tament which was entailed in the preparation of the play, when it dawned upon him that the Sonship of Jesus Christ was absolutely unique. He, therefore, concludes his story in the following paragraphs:
Mockery and snickering were used by the enemies o f Christ and His apostles. It is the weapon of the coarse. As Cowper said: “ A moral, sensible and well-bred man Will not affront me : and no other can.” * Christianity has nothing to fear from sneers, nor need any Christian worker be discouraged if some professing' Christian seeks to hinder his work by trying to make a joke o f him. There is no better proof o f the fact that the opponent is at the end of his own rope. The Herald-Tribune' recently said editorially: “ It is ironic enough that within the last decade, irony has, in so many quarters, come to be identified with wisdom.” A man can be discredited in the minds of many people, and branded a Modernist, if some influential but jealous brother snickers at the mention o f his name. Sarcastic editorials are getting rather common in some Christian papers. Cynical letters are written by Christian people who seem never to write unless they have something about which to complain or some person they desire to scorch. As Christians we need to examine ourselves whether we are becoming infected with this foul disease. Henry Ward Beecher pictured this kind of a man in the fol lowing lines : “ If a man is said to be pure and chaste, he will an swer: ‘ Yes— in the daytime.’ If a woman is pronounced virtuous, he will reply : ‘A s yet.’ Mr. So-and-so is reli gious: ‘ Yes— on Sunday ’ Mr. B. has joined the church: ‘ Yes, election is coming on.’ This man is generous : ‘ Yes — o f other people’s money.’ This man is upright: ‘ Yes, to lull suspicion.’ Thus his eye strains out every good qual ity and takes in every bad one. The live-long day he sits with sneering lip, uttering sharp speeches in the quiet est manner.” The pity of it is that many Christians today can be prejudiced so easily against men and institutions o f God’s owning,, by men who employ such -methods. They seem to require no evidence further than the sneers of some self-appointed champion. Open violence against men is honorable in compar ison with the winks and sneers of human owls, vigilant in darkness, blind to light and continually mousing for vermin. How can a man possibly be called a follower of Jesus Christ who makes use o f such devices to hinder all who do not work according to his particular method? God forbid that we, as followers of Christ, should handle such base weapons. Let us recognize in courtesy as expressed in the Christian life, a practical exhibition of the virtues and graces o f the Gospel. It is one of the deepest qualities o f the soul. The love of Christ cannot dwell in a man who is discourteous and unkind. ¡V « I® Legal Form of Bequest m I give and bequeath to Bible Institute of tin ill? Los Angeles, incorporated under the laws of the State of California |gj[ ®y >| .gsgy liti and I direct the release of the President of MSI the Board of Directors of said Bible Institute l.w IpM pt? of Los Angeles shall be a sufficient discharge eli to my executors in the premises. ;*§',) i.i Ifff’f [Seal] fifì? 'ItS SI è*fi#) 3 %)
“ I believe there is a contemporary school of thought which holds that when Jesus spoke of His Father He meant that God is the Father o f all o f us —the Father of Jesus, and of you, and o f me, and of everybody else, in much the same way. And I rather inclined, myself, to the opinion that such was the meaning of Jesus. But the careful and repeated examination o f the Bible necessary for this play has convinced me that it was not His meaning. I cannot escape the conviction that He intended to convey that He was the Son o f God in a sense special and unique ; that He differed from other men who might call God their Father not merely in the degree of His spir ituality, but also in the character of His relation ship to His Father. “You may or may not believe this, I may or may not believe it—but I cannot evade the belief that Jesus Himself believed it. He seems to me to have been as explicit as possible in this claim; either the four Gospels have not reported Him correctly, or he meant j ust that: at least, I can make nothing else out o f it, and I began an examination of the Bible with a contrary view. It was for this assertion, that He was the Son o f God, that the Sanhedrin con demned Him, for the Sanhedrin considered it blas phemy; if He had meant anything else or anything less He would have answered otherwise when the question was discharged at Him point-blank by Caia- phas, and His life or death hung upon the answer; He died for that belief because it was His belief. To think o f Him as dying for some belief that He did not really hold seems to me to be merely idiocy. “ I make this note merely because I think His claim to be the Son of God, in a special sense, is the central knot of the drama of His closing hours on earth.” Human Owls
T HERE are symptoms that even the so-called ‘sophis ticated’ public is growing weary o f listening to (and reading after) snickering little enemies.” It is a Christian editor speaking, and he is deplor ing the increasing use being made in theological circles o f ridicule, cynicism and sarcasm. Ridicule is the weapon forged by the forces o f evil for their battle with righteousness and truth. Anyone can use it. It is the easiest thing to get hold of. It requires no special wisdom. It takes no skill to use it. “ Who ever can talk can mock.”
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