Magic Statistics

The latest in an occasional series of prayers by Christians of ages past. Previous entry here; complete list of entries here.

Father of Heaven! Give us grace to endeavour after a truly Christian spirit to seek to attain that temper of forbearance and patience of which our blessed saviour has set us the highest example; and which, while it prepares us for the spiritual happiness of the life to come, will secure to us the best enjoyment of what this world can give. Incline us oh God! to think humbly of ourselves, to be severe only in the examination of our own conduct, to consider our fellow-creatures with kindness, and to judge of all they say and do with that charity which we would desire from them ourselves.

We thank thee with all our hearts for every gracious dispensation, for all the blessings that have attended our lives, for every hour of safety, health and peace, of domestic comfort and innocent enjoyment. We feel that we have been blessed far beyond any thing that we have deserved; and though we can only pray for a continuance of all these mercies, we acknowledge our unworthiness of them and implore thee to pardon the presumption of our desires.

May thy mercy be extended over all mankind, bringing the ignorant to the knowledge of thy truth, awakening the impenitent, touching the hardened. Look with compassion upon the afflicted of every condition, assuage the pangs of disease, comfort the broken in spirit.

More particularly do we pray for the safety and welfare of our own family and friends wheresoever dispersed, beseeching thee to avert from them all material and lasting evil of body or mind.

Grant this most merciful Father, for the sake of our blessed saviour in whose holy name we pray. Amen.

Adapted from a prayer in Volume 6 of The Works of Jane Austen.

The great Victorian novelist's father and oldest brother were Church of England rectors, she almost became engaged to a clergyman, and clergymen play central roles in many of her books. The exact nature of her religious beliefs is a matter of ongoing controversy among her many admirers, both academic and amateur. Some have claimed that she adopted evangelical views, but this is not widely accepted. What is clear from her novels is that she was intensely concerned with morals. On the whole, her views would seem to correlate well with Christian ethical principles.

This prayer is one of three she is known to have written for reading at evening service in her father's church.

Websites with voluminous information on her life and work can be found here and here.

From Day By Day With John Calvin: Selected Readings for Daily Reflection, 1 September: "Man is said to have free will, not because he has a free choice of good and evil, but because he acts voluntarily, and not by compulsion." This, to me, immensely clarifies the ongoing—not to say never-ending—disputes over "free will" between various theological persuasions within the church. Some maintain that Calvin and those who agree with him deny man's free will. This is said to amount to an espousal of fatalism, a counsel of despair, and therewith unChristian.

Speaking as one who agrees with Calvin's understanding of the far-reaching effects of original sin, I respectfully disagree that this is fatalistic. As the sentence just cited shows, Calvin does not reject free will. Man acts voluntarily; he freely chooses his actions. Calvin's objection is that the phrase "free will" tends to be invested with meaning that it does not comprehend. He would prefer that the phrase be avoided altogether.

The reading from Calvin continues:

It is an admirable freedom that man is not forced to be the servant of sin, while he is, however, a voluntary slave; his will is bound by the fetters of sin. I loathe mere verbal disputes, by which the Church is hurried to no purpose; but I think we ought religiously to avoid terms which imply some absurdity, especially in subjects where error is of deadly consequence. How few are there who, when they hear free will attributed to man, do not immediately imagine that he is the master of his mind and will and that he can incline himself either to good or evil? It may be said that such dangers are removed by carefully clarifying the meaning to the people. But such is the inclination of the human mind to go astray, that it will more quickly draw error from one little word, than truth from a lengthy discourse.

As I often say in discussions of these matters, "Free will is overrated".

The source of the reading from Calvin is: Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book II, Chapter II, sections 6 and 7.