My mother
told me that to be a priest and to serve God was the highest
happiness that could befall a man. I believed it,--and when I look
at the stars up there crowding around us in such vast circles,--when
I look at all this moonlight and the majesty of creation around me,
I believe it still! Up here, it seems there MAY be a God; down
there,' and he pointed towards the streets, 'I know there is a
devil! But I have discovered that it is no use telling the people
about God, because they do not believe in Him. They think I am
telling them a lie because it is my metier to tell lies. And also
because they think I have neither the sense nor the ability to do
anything else. They know they are telling lies themselves all day
and every day. Some of them pretend to believe, because they think
it best to be on the safe side even by feigning,--and they are the
worst hypocrites. It drives me mad, Lapui, to perform Mass for
liars! If it were only unbelievers! but liars!--liars! Liars who lie
on their death-beds, telling me with mock sighs of penitence that
they believe in God when they do not! I had a dream last night--you
shall tell me if I was mistaken in it,--it was a dream of this very
tower of Notre Dame.
Pages:
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235
236
237
238