Plain Christianity
H e r e 9s a crisp , fresh approach on how Christianity w ork s by J. B. PHILLIPS
1 rather like the phrase plain Christianity. I am not particu larly interested in religious thrills and visions (though I don’t deny they have their value), but I am intensely interested in how this Christian faith works in everyday life. Frankly, I am not a bit impressed by any religion unless it actually works out in practice; but I think the Christian religion does. In fact I do seriously think that if I were looking for the proof of the genuineness of plain Chris tianity, I should look first of all at the lives of the plain Christians. Now the result of that looking may surprise you, for, in the 20 odd years that I have been a par son, I have become more convinced of the truth of the Christian faith by observing the lives of genuine Christians than by anything else. This thing does work out in prac tice. Indeed, although I believe Christianity to be historically true, that is, founded on historical facts and not on a myth or on a series of beautiful thoughts; and although I’d be prepared to argue the value of plain Christianity as the only sane and sensible way of meeting this life and whatever lies beyond it, yet I think what convinces me most is the lives of plain Christians. Now naturally that sounds like a very rash statement, for every one knows there are quite a num ber of poor-quality Christians about who are quite the opposite of a good advertisement for their faith. And I should have to admit, since the Christian faith is rea ll/ a way of living, that the lives of people who are trying to follow that way are,
at any given moment, at very dif ferent stages of development. However, when I talk about the lives of plain Christians as being to me a proof of the reality of the Christian faith, I am thinking of those who have taken that faith seriously (and by that I do not mean solemnly!), and who have over a period of years .lived their lives by that faith. As a parson I am fortunate in meeting all sorts of people of all kinds of tempera ment, people of varying degrees of intelligence and in various walks of life; and the thing that impresses me about genuine Christians is a certain quality of life which they all possess. It is rather difficult to put into words and, of course, I am not claiming that they are “ saints” in the sense that they have no faults. But they all exhibit three particular characteristics which I think are quite remarkable. T he first is a kind of inward tranquility, as though the very center of their person alities were relaxed and at peace. Many of them of course are busy people with all kinds of re sponsibilities to carry and often with heavy burdens to bear. But nevertheless they give me this strong impression that inside of them they are at peace—-and that is a thing which I very rarely see in those without a religious faith. The second characteristic which is common to all the best Chris tians is an unquenchable gaiety of spirit. Christians of course never expect, and certainly don’t enjoy, any particular imm un ity from
trouble; but I find in them the ability, not only to cope courageous ly with their particular difficulty, but very often to cope with it good- humoredly and even joyfully. I don’t want you to think that I al ways and invariably observe this, but I must say that I have seen it so often, and in such unlikely places, that I cannot help being very much impressed. The third thing that I notice which is common to all Christians, whatever their background or cir- - cumstances may be, is a quality for which we can only use the word love. Unfortunately, ais you know, we have misused the word love so many times that it has almost ceased to mean anything at all to us. But there is in the genuine Christian life not merely kindli ness and charity, but what I would describe as a kind of outgoing love which really is concerned about other people. Of course there is a lot of imita tion love about, and since there are hypocrites among Christians as there are in any other group of people, there is unhappily such a thing as hypocritical love. But of course I am not talking about that, nor am I talking about some senti mental, vague feeling of goodwill towards all mankind. The love I see exhibited in the best Christians is a deeper thing than kindness; it is a warmer thing than charity; and I think it is a more costly thing than mere expressions or feelings of goodwill. In fact, it rather looks to me as though it is some divine quality, much deeper and more sus tained than any human feeling, ex-
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THE K IN G 'S BU SINESS
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