Daily Reading for May 15 • The Martyrs of the Sudan (transferred)

While the historic faith of Christianity stands, and it is more than ever necessary to assert its supernatural character, it is only possible to do so convincingly if we are ready to learn much from the contemporary conflicts. In particular, if we are to convey to secularism the belief in transcendence, it must be a transcendence realized in the midst of secular life and not apart from it. . . .

The truth of God’s transcendence still stands. God is near, but God is different. God is here, but man is dependent. God’s otherness is the otherness of Creator to creature, of Saviour to sinner; and it is for the creature still to worship the Creator and for the sinner still to ask for the Saviour’s grace. . . . The transcendent and the numinous are to be seen not in a separated realm of religious practice but in human lives marked by an awe-inspiring self-forgetfulness, compassion, humility and courage.

From God, Christ, and the World by Michael Ramsey (London: SCM Press, 1969).