Say That Again?

The other day, as I was reading the section about John Calvin in George Hodges' Saints & Heroes Since the Middle Ages, I came across the following passage...

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"The theology of Calvin has been in a great part outgrown also. Where he thought of God mainly as the Sovereign of the world, we think of Him rather as the Father of all men. Where he thought of the Bible as a divine book, dictated by God, we think of it as a human book, written by men who increased century by century in the knowledge of God. Where he thought of man as wholly bad, and saved only by the sacrifice of Christ, and even then saved only in part, according to the pleasure of God, without reference to the good or evil of their lives, we think of man as progressing, more and more, towards goodness, by the help of Christ into an eternal life where everybody shall reap what he has sown."

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Excuse me? Say that again?

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Persevero,

Scribe

Can the Government Fix It?

Courtesy of Student News Daily

From the School Library...

CRANMER  (Clears his throat fussily)  Sir Thomas, [the Act] states in the preamble that the King's former marriage, to the Lady Catherine, was unlawful, she being previously his brother's wife and the - er - "Pope" having no authority to sanction it. (Gently) Is that what you deny? (No reply) Is that what you dispute? (No reply) Is that what you are not sure of? (No reply)

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NORFOLK   Thomas, you insult the King and His Council in the person of the Lord Archbishop!

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MORE  I insult no one. I will not take the oath. I will not tell you why I will not.

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NORFOLK  Then your reasons must be treasonable!

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MORE  Not "must be"; may be.

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NORFOLK  It's a fair assumption!

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MORE  The law requires more than an assumption; the law requires a fact.
           (CROMWELL looks at him and away again)

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CRANMER  I cannot judge your legal standing in the case; but until I know the ground of your objection, I can only guess your spiritual standing too.

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MORE  (For a second furiously affronted; then humor overtakes him)  If you're willing to guess at that, Your Grace, it should be a small matter to guess my objections.

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CROMWELL  (Quickly)  You do have objections to the Act?

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NORFOLK  (Happily)  Well, we know that, Cromwell!

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MORE  You don't, my lord. You may suppose I have objections. All you know is that I will not swear to it. From sheer delight to give you trouble it might be.

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NORFOLK  Is it material why you won't?

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MORE  It's most material. For refusing to swear, my goods are forfeit and I am condemned to life imprisonment. You cannot lawfully harm me further. But if you were right in supposing I had reasons for refusing and right again in supposing my reasons to be treasonable, the law would let you cut my head off.

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NORFOLK  (He has followed with some difficulty)  Oh yes.

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CROMWELL  (An admiring murmur)  Oh, well done, Sir Thomas. I've been trying to make that clear to His Grace for some time.

~ from Act II of the play

A Man For All Seasons by Robert Bolt

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Persevero,

Scribe

The Work of His Hands

 

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Persevero,

Scribe