FAITH AST) CEEDULITT 81 



come back to earth, and we see everywhere an 

 unquestioning belief in the reality of what we called 

 miracles, or physical results brought about by other 

 than physical means. Do these things agree with 

 the rest of our knowledge ? If not, is the proof of 

 them commensurate with their exceptional charac- 

 ter ? 



John Locke stated the truth about this matter of 

 faith and reason two hundred years ago. 



" There being many things," he says, " wherein 

 we have very imperfect notions, or none at all ; and 

 other things of whose past, present, or future exist- 

 ence, by the natural use of our faculties, we can 

 have no knowledge at all ; these as being beyond 

 the discovery of our natural faculties, and above 

 reason, are, when revealed, the proper matter of 

 faith. Thus, that part of the angels rebelled against 

 God, and thereby lost their first happy state ; and 

 that the dead shall rise and live again : these, and 

 the like, being beyond the discovery of reason, are 

 purely matters of faith, with which reason has 

 directly nothing to do." 



But Locke says that reason is to judge whether or 

 not the revelation be genuine. Yet what test the 

 reason has of the validity of a revelation the philoso- 

 pher does not set forth. 



If the facts or truths revealed are above reason, 

 how can the fact of the revelation itself be proved 

 to reason ? Is faith itself reasonable ? Of course 

 it all depends upon the assumption with which we 

 start. If we start with the assumption upon which 



