The Soul of a Bishop

https://fromtheheartofeurope.eu/the-soul-of-a-bishop-by-h-g-wells/

This 1917 novel concerns the Reverend Edward Scrope, Bishop of Princhester, whose faith is challenged by its irrelevance to the people of his industrialised diocese and by the horrors of war. Scrope deals with this difficulty by falling under the influence of an attractive and rich parishioner, and taking mind-altering drugs. He resigns from the Church completely, goes through further spiritual wrestling and finds his own accommodation at the end, though one feels that his wife is unenthused by the new state of affairs, never mind their five daughters.

One of the few unexpected things I learned about the English way of life when I went to study at Cambridge aged 19 is that show more there are a lot of people, if a minority, who take the Church of England seriously, something that was not apparent from the popular culture that I had absorbed growing up in Belfast. Wells isn’t quite sure how funny he should be here. He finds the Church itself ridiculous, but wants to make us sympathise with the bishop’s spiritual torment (which is expressed at length). The story ends up falling between two stools, and has been justifiably forgotten over the last 108 years. show less

This may be my favorite Wells. Why do we believe what we believe? what is the difference between doga, creed and belief and how do they intersect - or interfere with the search for the divine? When does religion support us and when does it fail us?