Donal Grant: Chapters 14 - 20
The description of Graeme’s garden in Chapter 14 highlights one of GMD’s insistences, that is the importance of appreciating nature and feeling a kinship with it. Such is a great help to a healthy spiritual life. Donal remarks: “Man ought to learn of nature. . . . His work is, through the forms that nature gives him, to express the idea or feeling that is in him.” One of the unfortunate aspects of our present society is the way most people’s lives are severed from nature and it is looked upon simply as something to be exploited for our material benefit, rather than the environment which God created as a proper context for healthy spiritual lives. Our novel begins with beautiful descriptions of Donal’s natural environment, and there are several throughout. One of the strengths of GMD’s writing is the giving of such descriptions.
Donal’s interaction with nature is one of the factors that contributes to his stature as an ideal Christian, enabling him to conduct himself as he does in the difficult situations in which he finds himself. He is invited to dine with Lord Morven, and after a congenial conversation Morven begins acting strangely; soon Donal himself is seized with strange sensations and feels complete disorientation. He awakes next morning, blaming himself for having drunk too much wine the night before.
Keeping his poise in spite of his bewilderment, he again dines with Morven, along with Lady Actura, and experiences again a period of violent disorientation. When he sees Actura later, she tells him that Morven himself takes drugs, and that he has clandestinely drugged her on another occasion, as he did Donal, to see what the effects would be.
When Donal tells her God had protected her from harm, she confesses to him she questions her own belief in Christ, and Donal proceeds to give her his understanding of the essence of the Gospel. He affirms that “God . . . does all that can be done for even the worst of men to help them believe.” But believing should bring obedience, and with obedience comes the measure of understanding necessary for the occasion, but not for the complete understanding people want.
The tendency of people is to seek understanding apart from obedience, and this leads to concepts of God that are far removed from a true understanding. An earnest desire for union with God, together with obedience to his precepts, puts one on the road to a whatever understanding the individual needs. GMD often quotes Jn 7:17: “If any man shall do his will, he shall know of the doctrine. . . .”
Donal continues to explain that it is in Jesus Christ that we have a true depiction of the nature of God, for Christ and God the Father are one. Christ did not die to deliver mankind from the punishment for sin, but from sin itself. “The horrible thing is being bad, and all punishment is help to deliver us from that, nor will punishment cease till we have ceased to be bad.” All adversity, then, is an expression of God’s love, and has as its divine intention to help us turn to Him from sin.
Such thinking helps explain such Biblical statements as we have at the very beginning of the Book of James, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of our faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work, so that you may be mature and complete . . . .”
GMD IS GIVING MANY OF HIS OWN DEEPEST CONVICTIONS IN DONAL'S CONVERSATION WITH ACTURA. DO YOU FIND THEM HELPFUL, OR WOULD YOU IN ANY WAY QUALIFY WHAT IS BEING SAID?
DO YOU HAVE ANY REACTIONS TO OTHER ASPECTS OF THE TEXT?
Comments
For the most part I can see his points but admittedly there are some things that leave me wondering where his priorities lie. I do agree that obedience is a necessary expectation of a follower of Christ. However it seems like he puts more emphasis on that rather than simply believing that Jesus was the Messiah. By doing so it leaves them unsure of their salvation wondering if they have done enough. If, as you pointed out, he thought Jesus came to take away sin, then did He fail since we still have sin in our lives? Is he thinking we can achieve perfection in this life? Did Jesus not come to take away the power of sin rather than taking away sin itself? The power of sin was in separation from God but in His sacrifice to pay the penalty for us there is no longer that power for we are forgiven when we repent and ask His forgiveness. And we know we are Christians when we believe on the Lord Jesus Christ for then we shall be saved ... But not after we have obeyed long enough or understood well enough. God is not passively standing by waiting for us to come to Him but is actively calling those who are His with His Spirit working with us to enfold us in His loving arms and to commune with us in our deepest being. The following seems to me to reflect this:
"You know, Davie dear, every sin, whatever it is, deserves God's wrath and curse, both in this life and that which is to come; and if it had not been that Jesus Christ gave himself to turn away his anger and satisfy his justice by bearing the punishment for us, God would send us all to the place of misery for ever and ever. It is for his sake, not for ours, that he pardons us."
I agree that I would like GMD to say more of the importance of repenting and surrendering ourselves completely to Christ.
Please give the page number for Donal's statement that you quote. It does not appear typical of GMD's thought.
Thank you for your help to get me to the place where I can understand his perspective. Maybe it will be more clear to me as he further develops his ideas in response to Lady Catherine later in the book.