II The Views of Bertrand Russell

II The Views of Bertrand Russell I t was in 1966 that I decided to study the works of Bertrand Russell (1872-1970). Fortunately, I found a whole set of his books in a nearby library. But when I arrived home with this pile of books my wife was shocked. “Now you will surely go astray!” she exclaimed. It has to be accepted that Russell is the most extreme of all the atheists of the modern age, and his writing is so persuasive that one does run the risk of turning atheist after having read him. But by the grace of God, I entered into Russell’s world, then re-emerged with my faith not only intact, but greatly fortified. Of all the modern philosophers, Russell has carried out the most broad-ranging of studies. The only possible parallel to his work is that of Whitehead, a contemporary and fellow intellectual. Russell himself said of his life’s work, which extended over almost an entire century: “There is only one constant preoccupation: I have throughout been anxious to discover how much one can be said to know and with what degree of certainty or doubtfulness.”1 For this purpose, Russell made a special study of four branches of science—physics, physiology, psychology and mathematical logic.2 On the basis of these studies, he sets aside the sceptical viewpoint: “Scepticism is psychologically impossible.”3 Here man faces a two-sided difficulty. On the one hand, if we concede that the ultimate truth is beyond us, by what compass are our lives to be guided? On the other hand, when we strenuously try to penetrate life’s mysteries, success seems awesomely remote. “Philosophy from ancient times has made long claims, but what it