We sometimes wonder what the world is coming to these days, and when we look at present conditions, we do not find very much that reassures us. Our nation is suffering a thorough-going breakdown of morality, with violence and wrong, selfishness and cynicism surrounding us on every side. Our world is full of poverty and hunger, wars and rumors of war, and whole populations subjected to tyranny and massacre. And try as we will to ameliorate conditions and to introduce some healing and good in society and world, any corrections we make seem like pitiful contributions compared to the force of evil in the world. Is that force finally just going to have the last word in human life and overwhelm us all?

If we believe that the course of nations and persons is determined solely by human endeavor, …