“God would be the evil?”

“Metaphysics is the evil. It is for no purpose but to put to sleep the energy which we should apply to the building of the temple of society. An example is afforded by the action of the Grand Orient of France a generation ago. He struck the name of God out of his writings. We Italians followed him.”

“How Catholic!”

“In what sense do you⁠—”

“I mean I find it enormously Catholic, to strike out God.”

“What you wish to express is⁠—”

“Nothing worth listening to, Herr Settembrini. Don’t pay too much attention to my prattle. It just struck me that atheism may be enormously Catholic, and as though one might strike out God merely the better to be Catholic.”