By Thomas F. Schwartz
Sam Tanenhaus’s new biography of William F. Buckley, Jr. has prompted mixed reviews from conservative commentators who have praised or criticized its treatment of Buckley’s role in reviving conservatives as a political force. Herbert Hoover’s copy of Buckley’s first book, God and Man at Yale (1951) contains highlighted passages as well as a lengthy penciled note on the back flyleaf. Hoover brackets Buckley’s paragraph that notes:
The first duty, of course, is to arrive at a judgment as to whether or not there exists at Yale an atmosphere of detached impartiality with respect to the great value-alternative of the day, that is, Christianity versus agnosticism and atheism, and individualism versus collectivism. My belief is that such impartiality does not exist. I shall document this opinion. What is more, for practical reasons I have restricted my survey to the undergraduate school, even though some of the graduate departments, the Yale Law School in particular, would provide far more flamboyant copy.
This Buckley passage piqued Hoover’s interest probably because it mirrored Hoover’s own concerns raised in his 1922 American Individualism.
Buckley’s book, released in October 1951, prompted Hoover to write, “I have never believed that science and religion are incompatible.” Perhaps only coincidence or not, Hoover expanded upon that theme in a late December 1951 recording for Edward R. Morrow’s radio program, “This I Believe.” Hoover declared:
My professional training was in science and engineering. That is a training in the search for truth and its application to the use of mankind. With the growth of science we have a continuous contention of a tribe of atheistic and agnostic philosophers that there is an implacable conflict between science and religion in which religion will be vanquished. I do not believe it.
I believe not only that religious faith will be victorious, but that it is vital to mankind that it shall be. We may differ in forms and particulars of our religious faith. Those are matters which are sacred to each of our inner sanctuaries. It is our privilege to decline to argue them. Their real demonstration is the lives we live.
But there is one foundation common to all religious faith.
Our discoveries in science have proved that all the way from galaxies in the heavens to the constitution of the atom, the universe is controlled by inflexible laws. Somewhere a Supreme Power created these laws. At some period, man was differentiated from the beasts and was endowed with a spirit from which springs conscience, idealism, and spiritual yearnings. It is impossible to believe that there is not here a Divine touch and a purpose from the Creator of the Universe. I believe we can express these things only in religious faith.
From their religious faith, the Founding Fathers enunciated the most fundamental law of human progress since the Sermon on the Mount, when they stated that men received from the Creator certain inalienable rights and that these rights should be protected from the encroachment of others by law and justice.
The agnostic and atheistic philosophers have sought to declaim progress in terms of materialism alone. But from whence come the moral, the spiritual yearnings, the faith, the aspirations to justice and freedom of mind which have been the roots of our progress?
Always growing societies record their faith in God, decaying societies lack faith and deny God. But America is not a decaying society. It remains strong. Its faith is in compassion and in God’s intelligent mercy.
The broadcast aired on May 29,1952 but the timing of the book’s release, Hoover’s initial reaction, and his theme for the radio broadcast suggests a likely connection.