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1052
THE KEY OF KNOWLEDGE
himself, and then does his level best to remove its harmful effect! Why this change of attitude ? Was he at first actuated by the impulse which makes the cat play with the mouse? If so, why so great a solicitude for the welfare of humanity afterwards? If we call him Father, because he sent down his only begotten Son as a propitiation unto himself, what shall we call him for his catlike spirit of playing with us? Would it not have been infinitely better if he had left us uncreated ? Theology has no reasonable reply to give.
The question of the origin of sin has taxed the brains of mankind from the very commencement of the dawn of discrimination, but it has remained as great a dilemma as ever to a great majority of the world. The reason for the misunderstanding lies in a defective and inexhaustive research. The moment the question is asked, 'does god create evil ?' we say, no, no, thinking that we ought not to ascribe its creation to him, but forgetting that in doing so we make him out to be a liar. He says: "I create evil;" we say he does not. The question is, does god know better, or do we? We make matters worse by saying that he means something else when he says, “I create evil,” for in that case our statement comes to this that he either purposely misleads us, or is unable to express himself in plain, comprehensible language. The fact is that it is not God who deceives us, nor is he incapable of good expression, but it is we who, failing to understand the nature of the mythological personification which is represented as speaking, and of the language of the seer, deceive ourselves by perverting its sense. The fault lies in us, because we will not allow our pursuits
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