“It is historically true that, in the earlier days when the Apostles’ Creed was put forth, the phrase ‘born of they Virgin Mary’ was inserted for the distinct purpose of laying stress on the humanity of Christ, and to controvert the assertion of the Gnostic sect that he was not born at all, but appeared in the world in some miraculous way.

“Thus to-day, by the aid of historical research, we are enabled to regard the Creeds in the light of their usefulness to life.  The myth of the virgin birth probably arose through the zeal of some of the writers of the Gospels to prove that the prophecy of Isaiah predicted the advent of the Jewish Messiah who should be born of a virgin.  Modern scholars are agreed that the word Olmah which Isaiah uses does not mean virgin, but young woman.  There is quite a different Hebrew word for ‘virgin.’  The Jews, at the time the Gospels were written, and before, had forgotten their ancient Hebrew.  Knowing this mistake, and how it arose, we may repeat the word Virgin Mary in the sense used by many early Christians, as designating the young woman who was the mother of Christ.

“I might mention one or two other phrases, archaic and obscure.  ‘The Resurrection of the Body’ may refer to the phenomenon of Christ’s reappearance after death, for which modern psychology may or may not account.  A little reflection, however, convinces one that the phenomenon did take place in some manner, or else, I think, we should never have heard of Christ.  You will remember that the Apostles fled after his death on the cross, believing what he had told them was all only a dream.  They were human, literal and cowardly, and they still needed some kind of inner, energizing conviction that the individuality persisted after death, that the solution of human life was victory over it, in order to gain the courage to go out and preach the Gospel and face death themselves.  And it was Paul who was chiefly instrumental in freeing the message from the narrow bounds of Palestine and sending it ringing down the ages to us.  The miracle doesn’t lie in what Paul saw, but in the whole man transformed, made incandescent, journeying tirelessly to the end of his days up and down the length and breadth of the empire, labouring, as he says, more abundantly than they all.  It is idle to say that the thing which can transform a man’s entire nature and life is not a reality.”

She had listened, motionless, as under the spell of his words.  Self-justification, as he proceeded, might easily have fused itself into a desire to convince her of the truth of his beliefs.  But he was not deceived, he knew her well enough to understand, to feel the indomitable spirit of resistance in her.  Swayed she could be, but she would mot easily surrender.

“There is another phrase,” she said after a moment, “which I have never heard explained, ‘descended into hell.’”

“It was merely a matter of controverting those who declared Christ was taken from the cross before he died.  In the childish science of the time, to say that one descended into hell was to affirm that he was actually dead, since the souls of the departed were supposed to go at once to hell.  Hell and heaven were definite places.  To say that Christ ascended to heaven and sat on the right hand of the Father is to declare one’s faith that his responsible work in the spiritual realm continues.”