Also, still on the same subject of grace in The Great Divorce, at the bottom of page 28 the Big Ghost is quoted as saying, "That may do very well for you, I daresay. If they choose to let in a bloody murderer all because he makes a poor mouth at the last moment, that's their look out" (p.28). Can people be saved like this? I sympathize with the Big Ghost a little bit on this even though I know my standards of fairness are not the same as God's! What to people think?
posted by Anonymous at 12:22 PM
2 Comments:
I agree that this does seem unfair. The Big Ghost believed that he had lived a good life and is upset that a murderer was allowed to be in heaven. But, if you read onto the next page, we find out that the Big Ghost wasn't so great after all. He was awful to his wife, children, and his workers. He did not deserve heaven any more than the murderer. The murderer at least was able to ask for forgiveness and to accept God's charity.
I certainly believe people can be saved such as this person. I see it evidenced with the thief on his cross. He admits that he has gotten what his evil deeds deserve, but his trust in Christ obtains his ticket into paradise.
Moreover, there is no distinction because we all have sinned. Some may say, "Hey, this person murdered a guy and goes to heaven, while another person does not kill any one, and goes to Hell. How is that fair of God?
But, in the end, what is the difference between me cheating on a test and another person killing someone. If the only sin ever committed in human history was my cheating on the test, it still would have been enough to put Jesus up on the cross. I still would have been branded rightly, in God's eyes, a murderer of His son.
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