Children of Light and the Children of Darkness

by Reinhold Niebuhr

Book Overview

The Children of Light and the Children of Darkness, first published in 1944, is considered one of the most profound and relevant works by the influential theologian Reinhold Niebuhr, and certainly the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0023875305
• ISBN13: 9780023875304
• Release Date: January 1974
• Publisher: Prentice Hall
• Length: 190 Pages
• Weight: 0.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.0" x 0.8" x 5.5"

Customer Reviews

Important, but Not Especially Original Insights

Reinhold Niebuhr's Children of Light and Children of Darkness brings to the discussion on democracy many needed insights on human nature that have been articulated by Calvin, Augustine, and a host of other Church fathers. Although the insights presented in the book are not particularly novel or original, they remind a modern society that tends to cast too must of its faith in the government of man's sinful propensities and how this limits what we are to expect of democracy and of government in general. In his book, Niebuhr argues that "a free society prospers best in a cultural, religious and moral atmosphere which encourages neither a too pessimistic nor too optimistic view of human nature" (p. viii), and that this atmosphere is best served in democracy. "Man's capacity for justice makes democracy possible, but man's inclination to injustice makes democracy necessary" (p. xiii). Niebuhr designates the moral cynics as the "children of this world" or "children of darkness" (p. 9), making a reference to Luke 16:8: "the sons of this world are more shrewd in their generation than the sons of light." He defines the "children of light" as those who believe that "self-interest should be brought under the discipline of a higher law" (p. 9) and "in harmony with a more universal good" (p. 10). The children of darkness, in contrast, "know no law beyond the self" and they are wise because they "understand the power of self-interest" (p. 10). The children of light are foolish because they have a naïve, sentimental view of human nature that does not recognize the perils of anarchy. The error of modern culture is pinned on a rejection of the doctrine of original sin and thus the neglect of the fact that there is "some corruption of inordinate self love" in all human moral or social achievements (p. 17). If this crucial truth is denied or ignored, democratic civilization will not survive. "The children of light must be armed with the wisdom of the children of darkness but remain free from their malice" (p. 41). On the question of individualism, Niebuhr asserts that man is by nature a social being called to live in community. At the same time, he is an individual and "[t]he `I' is so intimately related to the `mine' and the `thou' and the `thine' that relations of accord or conflict between individuals usually imply questions of property" (p. 86). Property, Niebuhr asserts, is by its nature intended to be privately held in man's postlapsarian state, for after the fall of man, "communism became impossible" (p. 93-4). Pope Leo XIII recognized this when he wrote in his encyclical Rerum Novarum that the principle of private property is "pre-eminently in conformity with human nature" (p. 93). Yet the bourgeoisie has committed two errors with respect to property: (i) the "excessive individualism of the bourgeois property concept, which is part and parcel of a general exaggeration of individual free in middle-class existence"; and (ii) the "prevailing presupposit

relevant today and tomorrow

i stumbled upon a copy of this book in a Salvation Army store sometime in the early 1980's. Best 25cents i have ever spent! :-) it is unsurpassed, imho, in predictive power and fairminded, broadminded useful analysis regarding certain macro-political concerns of the modern era. Written during a time when the evil capabilities of humankind were stripped of their disguises and protestations and rationalizations and perfume, this book lays down foundational principles for how and why a checksandbalances sort of democracy is the least bad of all forms of human government. The portions of the book written as critique are damning in showing how we can twist the most noble-sounding notions to horrifying cruelty with no other motive than banal selfishness, and do so on massive scales. It touches lightly also on the notion of why the assumption of their being a God to see as a creator and designer, and as an AllGoodOne to Whom/Which we all must answer is a better approach than assuming we are truly self-governing.In this sense, it should be of interest to those interested in human depravity, original sin and related concepts, and the question of what it might take for humanity to overcome our thoroughgoingly superbrutal history, and whether a need for redemption is present, etc. I think this makes a terrific companion to Churchill's speeches and writings, and some of the other history, holocaust literature and biography/memoirs of the era. g s morris ps this book was briefly referenced during former President Ronald Reagan's funeral

Freedom and Order in Democracy

This is the most compelling argument for democracy I have read. All other forms of government lack the necessary tools to keep corruption or tyranny in check. If the true necessity of democracy is not understood, democracy itself can be used for corruptive or tyrannical ends. Reinhold Niebuhr's insight into freedom and order's mutual dependence in society is simple and yet profound. The individual requires order, and society needs freedom, to a greater extent than is commonly understood.

Mindboggling! StarWars looks like a Kindergarten!

This is one of the best spiritual books I have ever read. Opens your mind to a lot of spiritual questions, specially for endtimes of our era. How and when it will happen makes you wait for that big event like a child expecting the return of a father to rescue him from deep down under.