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PARTISAN REVIEW
against a dominant Hellenism." Elsewhere too Toynbee sharply con–
demns the Jewish uprising of 135 A.D. But, I wonder, did not Islam
and Christianity go into politics and wage wars-and not merely to
defend a threatened way of life, but aggressive wars? No, says Toynbee
in the very same passage from which I have just quoted: "Islam alone
had partially succeeded in retrieving a false step into which
it
had
been led in its infancy by its Founder." (VII, 532) Islam has flourished;
so Toynbee infers, after the manner of Job's friends, it must have been
virtuous. And when our gentle scholar comes to the Crusades, only
thirty-five pages after his indictment of the Zionists, he develops all
the enthusiasm of a Sunday-morning quarterback as he pictures the
victories that might have been, if only the Crusaders had followed his
strategy.
In his footnotes Toynbee carries on a prolonged theological dis–
cussion with one Martin Wight, a Christian, who eventually draws from
our author an admission that he is no longer a Christian. Toynbee's
position is developed
in
an "Annex" on "Higher Religions and Psycho–
logical Types." The types are those of Jung (Freud is not listed in
any of the indices), and the "higher" religions are the four with the
largest following. Toynbee's religious outlook also finds expression at
the end of Part XIII (the last Part of his work) when, after piling up
quotations in different languages for several pages, he concludes with
a long prayer of his own which alternates between Latin and English.
I quote two of its twenty stanzas:
Saneta Dei Genetrix, intercede pro nobis.
Mother Mary, Mother Isis) Mother Cybele, Mother Ishtar,
Mother Kwanyin, have compassion on us, by whatsoever name
we bless thee for bringing Our Savior into the World.
I t would be hard to guess whom this will offend more: Catholics or
Protestants? But if hitherto syncretism usually meant an attempt to of–
fend no religion, consider Toynbee's bow to Islam:
Sancte Petre, intercede pro nobis.
Tender-hearted Muhammad, who art also one of the weaker
vessels of God's grace, pray that His grace may inspire us..
For any who might wish to commemorate the event, Toynbee finished
this prayer in "London, 1951, June 15, 6:25 p.m., after looking once
more, this afternoon, at Fra Angelico's picture of the Beatific Vision."
Immediately before this prayer, Toynbee refers the reader twice
to the New Testament, but understandably not to those words
in
the
