God Arises
Religion and Society
~ 426 ~
A certain deed may be decreed an offence and,
therefore, punishable by law, but it is not enough
for the words of prohibition to be inscribed in the
statute book. For something to be considered an
offence, and a punishment attached to it, it has to be
viewed with general abhorrence by society at large.
Anyone committing an offence can then be made to
feel that he is doing something wrong, for his action
will be condemned by the whole of society, and
law-enforcement authorities will then be able to
apprehend him with full confidence; judge and jury
will be in a position to deliver their verdicts,
confident that they are punishing one who is
deserving of punishment.
What is an offence in the eyes of the law must be a
sin in the eyes of men. As the historical school of
legal thought maintains, law making can only
succeed when it complies with the inner convictions
of the generation by whom and for whom the law is
made. A system of law, which does not do so is
bound to fail.
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