It would be very nice if there were a God who created the world and was a benevolent providence

It would be very nice if there were a God who created the world and was a benevolent providence, and if there were a moral order in the universe and an after-life; but it is a very striking fact that all this is exactly as we are bound to wish it to be. In the long run, nothing can withstand reason and experience, and the contradiction religion offers to both is palpable.