Excerpts from Orthodoxy, by G. K. Chesterton, 42

This, then, is our second requirement for the ideal of progress. First, it must be fixed; second, it must be composite. It must not (if it is to satisfy our souls) be the mere victory of some one thing swallowing up everything else, love or pride or peace or adventure; it must be a definite picture composed of these elements in their best proportion and relation. I am not concerned at this moment to deny that some such good culmination may be, by the constitution of things, reserved for the human race. I only point out that if this composite happiness is fixed for us it must be fixed by some mind; for only a mind can place the exact proportions of a composite happiness. If the beatification of the world is a mere work of nature, then it must be as simple as the freezing of the world, or the burning up of the world. But if the beatification of the world is not a work of nature but a work of art, then it involves an artist. And here again my contemplation was cloven by the ancient voice which said, “I could have told you all this a long time ago. If there is any certain progress it can only be my kind of progress, the progress towards a complete city of virtues and dominations where righteousness and peace contrive to kiss each other. An impersonal force might be leading you to a wilderness of perfect flatness or a peak of perfect height. But only a personal God can possibly be leading you (if, indeed, you are being led) to a city with just streets and architectural proportions, a city in which each of you can contribute exactly the right amount of your own colour to the many coloured coat of Joseph.” Twice again, therefore, Christianity had come in with the exact answer that I required. I had said, “The ideal must be fixed,” and the Church had answered, “Mine is literally fixed, for it existed before anything else.” I said secondly, “It must be artistically combined, like a picture”; and the Church answered, “Mine is quite literally a picture, for I know who painted it.” Then I went on to the third thing, which, as it seemed to me, was needed for an Utopia or goal of progress. And of all the three it is infinitely the hardest to express. Perhaps it might be put thus: that we need watchfulness even in Utopia, lest we fall from Utopia as we fell from Eden.

Orthodoxy, first published in 1908, by G. K. Chesterton, is in the public domain, and available from Project Gutenberg. The previous post in this series is here. Thanks for reading! Read Chesterton.

Sunspots 505

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to someone else:

The Arts: Relevant has an opinion piece that says that Christians should care more about design -- in music, and in other arts, including book covers. There's a link to a compiled list of the worst Christian book covers of 2014, and yes, most of them are really awful.
Christianity: Relevant on "4 Ways the Modern Church Looks Nothing Like the Early Church." Pretty important ways, too.
Computing: Gizmo's Freeware reports on a free Windows program to list all your drivers, and their properties.
Health: National Public Radio reports on how difficult it is for veterans to get benefits. Shameful.
Politics: National Public Radio reports that the South Carolina Poet Laureate's poem was not read at the inauguration of Governor Nikki Haley, last week. The poem is included in the report.
Science: National Public Radio reports on the question of how humans come to like foods (like hot spices and coffee) that they didn't like when they were small children.
Wired tells us why squinting helps us see better.


Image source (public domain)