Article January 2, 1915 Issue

Harmony in Accordance with Law

CHARLES A. GRIFFITH

Since time immemorial, by some perversion of thought, mortals have associated suffering with religion, seeming to consider it a part of the divine plan that mankind should endure more or less of misery in order to be prepared for the heavenly joys which were supposed to await the sufferer after death. That such is not the teaching of the Bible must be clearly evident to any one who will consider for a moment to what an extent Jesus, the prophets, and the apostles devoted their time to the elimination of evil of every sort. This was certainly not Paul's idea of Jesus' teaching, for he says in his epistle to the Romans, "Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good."

It is indeed remarkable that, in spite of all the Bible declares to the contrary, some can so far mistake God's beneficent purpose toward His children; that infinite Love could be so perverted as to delight in human suffering. This false concept has culminated, in some instances, in the organization of societies the members of which voluntarily torture one another and themselves in the belief that the suffering of the body "is good for the soul." This belief, unreasonable as it may seem, is but the logical conclusion of the hypothesis that the sufferer, by resignation to his suffering, may thereby enhance his hope of heaven.

So strong has been the tendency to associate misery with religion, that even Jesus' Sermon on the Mount has been perverted in its meaning and used as authority for the contention that misery and morality go hand in hand. This most wonderful of all sermons begins with a statement of blessed assurance to those who are poor in spirit, those who mourn, the meek, those who are hungering and thirsting after righteousness, the merciful, the pure in heart, the peacemakers, those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, and lastly to those whom men shall revile and persecute, falsely, for Jesus' sake. The master Christian did not herein commend misfortune or untoward circumstance; he did not pronounce a blessing upon mortals because they were in trouble. Rather was he pointing mankind away from poverty,—spiritual and otherwise,—away from mourning, persecution, and false accusation, to the infinite goodness that awaits a clearer perception of God's allness; also to the blessed state of the meek, the merciful, the pure in heart, the peacemaker, and the seeker after righteousness.

Send a comment to the editors

NEXT IN THIS ISSUE

Article

God's Work and Man's Work