Now I have been giving reasons why the figure of Christ has been so unreal in its passive: sons artistic, historical and theological. But next I want to trace the consequences of such a__ presentation. The book of our evidence is the mind of our soldiers. For the Church was noi idle during the war, as many seem to think. Apart from its ministries of consolation and of charity, it was studying the mind of young Christendom, the product of home and_ school teaching. And the- evidence collected in the book called "The Army and Religion." A private in! the R.A.M.C. wrote as follows: "There is, I think, the feeling that Christ's doctrine and Himself are rather womanly. The humility and meekness He taught seems weak. To adopt them seems like a weakening of character." A staff chaplain gives this testimony: "I think the appeal of Jesus is seriously hindered and by the unreality and sentimentality of our traditional presentation. He remains remote until we can show that the ideals of the average man are summed up and perfected in Him." After a review of such evidence Dr. Cairns, the Editor, makes his comment: "The men seem to have been taught in their youth a conception of Jesus which lays all the emphasis on the gentler side of His human character. The heroic side has been largely ignored. It is clear that we have here the roots of much mischief Experience in the trenches has fed to many revaluations in the moral ideal. The heroic virtues have acquired an_ altogether new prominence. Unlegs we can succeed, therefore, in showing the greatness and heroism of the character of our Lord, there may be a great breaking away of faith in Him."
Tue Gosper's Evipence.
This is a very serious warning. There is much talk of maintaining the faith. But ought we not first to re-examine it? What right have we to ignore the implications of a verse like this when presenting the Gospel of Jesus? His eyes were as a flame of fire." The look of His face is the revelation of His spirit and it is not as if this verse stood alone. The flame of His eyes is reflected in the Gospels. When the elders watched the healing of a cripple in order to get evidence against the healer, Jesus "looked round about Him with anger." There are some of His words that can only be understood if -you picture the smile that accompanied them. But other words need the eyes of fire, as when He spoke of those who devoured widow's homes, or who caused the little ones to stumble. How do you think Jesus looked when He challenged the crowd for the sake of Zaccheus, when the disciples in following Him turned cold with fear, when He cleared the dealers out of the temple? And how can we leave out of account the heroic audacity of the cross, which He deliberately faced and voluntarily bore? Strange it is and tragic enough, that the embodiment of defiance to the world's conventions and lies should be sung with humble tones and painted with neutral tints.
Lecenpary aNp Rea.
A recent writer of ability has set himself to re-examine the great reputations of the Victorian era, to part the legendary from the real. He takes, among others, Florence Nightingale, popularly pictured as the "Lady with the Lamp," gliding with gentle footfall among the crowded beds of the Scutari hospital, bearing consolation to the soldiers who kissed her very shadow. A true but very partial picture of a lady who came down hard with both feet on all manner of officials, and was perhaps the most commanding personality in
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.