I should like to make it clear
that I could not possibly hold the extreme "Fundamentalist" position
of so-called "Verbal Inspiration." This theory is bound to
break down sooner or later in the world of translation. Yet I find, when
addressing meetings in this country [England] and in America, that there still
survives a minority who passionately believe in verbal inspiration.
It appears that they have never
seriously thought that there are millions for whom Christ died who would find
a word-for-word translation of the New Testament, even if it were possible,
frequently meaningless. Any man who has sense as well as faith is bound
to conclude that it is the truths which are inspired, and not the words which
are merely the vehicles of truth (p. 15).
"Of course," said the
Fat Man, leaning against the bar, "I like dumb blondes. In
fact," he went on to say, pushing his glass across for another refill,
"the dumber they are, the better I like 'em." There was a
murmur of assent.
The Fat Man might have gone a bit
further. What he would really like would be a race of glamorous blondes,
altogether charming and attractive, who would give him all the pleasure and
thrill he wanted without his ever having to think that they might have
minds--or even souls. He really wants his females to be living things,
but not real persons. And of course his attitude produces the female
reply to that sort of thing--the gold digger.
Most of the miseries of this world
are caused by this attitude--treating people as things, not people. The
employer who uses his employees as machines, the parent who regards his
children as his own possessions, the young people who treat their home as
simply a cheap hotel, the attractive girl who looks at all men as mere
tributes to her sex appeal--they're all doing the same thing, trying to use
people as things instead of recognizing them as people.
Of course it's a vicious
circle. The Fat Man produces the gold digger, the inhuman employer
produces the clock watcher, the possessive parent, the thankless child, and so
on ad infinitum. The world is full of it. What is obviously
wanted is a new spirit, something that will make people see one another and
treat one another as people who matter, instead of exploiting them as things
to be made use of.
Jesus Christ taught that this
could be done if men would do two simple, though difficult, things.
First, recognize that there is a God who is equally the Father of
everyone. Fat Man, blonde, employer, employee, parent, and all the rest,
and give Him a wholehearted loyalty.
Secondly, treat other people
exactly as you would wish to be treated--in other words, love your neighbor as
yourself. Further, He said that the Spirit to effect this change is
immediately available to those who mean business. A few have tried these
two rules and they work. How about you? Are other people just
things to you, or are they fellow beings with the same Father? (p. 28).