There is no steady unretracing progress in this life; we do not advance through fixed gradations, and at the last one pause: --through infancy's unconscious spell, boyhood's thoughtless faith, adolescence' doubt (the common doom), then scepticism, then
disbelief, resting at last in manhood's pondering repose of If.
In this view belief is not a positive phenomenon, though doubt and
disbelief are so.
Yet -- I take shame to be forced to confess it -- my brother has not yet grasped the nature of the Third Dimension, and frankly avows his
disbelief in the existence of a Sphere.
Under the caress of his hands doubt and
disbelief went out of the minds of the boys and they began also to dream.
It is slowly evolving itself out of a chaos of doubt and
disbelief. Before the growing insight and experience the diffidence recedes.
That the place was haunted by the spirit of the late Silas Deemer was now well known to every resident of Hillbrook, though many affected
disbelief. Of these the hardiest, and in a general way the youngest, threw stones against the front of the building, the only part accessible, but carefully missed the unshuttered windows.
Konstantin Levin heard him, and the
disbelief in the sense of all public institutions, which he shared with him, and often expressed, was distasteful to him now from his brother's lips.
The magistrate appeared at first perfectly incredulous, but as I continued he became more attentive and interested; I saw him sometimes shudder with horror; at others a lively surprise, unmingled with
disbelief, was painted on his countenance.
Astonishment, that would have been as painful as it was strong, had not an immediate
disbelief of the assertion attended it.
In like manner, the
disbelief of a Divine Providence renders a man incapable of holding any public station; for, since kings avow themselves to be the deputies of Providence, the Lilliputians think nothing can be more absurd than for a prince to employ such men as disown the authority under which he acts.
Weston, which they seemed to find such pleasure in describing to me; and hearing things asserted of him which, from the character of the man, I knew to be exaggerations and perversions of the truth, if not entirely false--things derogatory to him, and flattering to them--especially to Miss Murray--which I burned to contradict, or, at least, to show my doubts about, but dared not; lest, in expressing my
disbelief, I should display my interest too.
No effort of faith is necessary to believe in such a god; no effort of will can possibly induce
disbelief in such a god.