PHILOSOPHY 0F THEISM

THE G I FF O RD L E C TU R E S
D EL I VE RE D B EF O RE T H E U N IV E RS I TY
O F E D I N B U R G H I N 1 8 94 9 6 -

B Y

A L E " AN D E R

C A M P B E LL FRA S E R LL D .
,
.

HON . D C L
. . . O "F O R D

E M E R IT US P RO F E SS OR O F L O G I C A ND M E T A P H Y S I CS

IN T H E U N IV E R S IT Y O F E D I NB U R G H

S E CO N D ED I T IO N AME N D E D ,

NE W YORK
CHA R L E S S CRIBNER
S SON S
1 5 3 1 57 F IF T H AV E NUE
1900
 P RE F A CE TO T H E S ECON D E DI T I ON .

F O R this edi t ion t he Philosophy o f Theism has been recas t

and to a g rea t ex t en t rewri t ten I t has also b een condensed

.
,

in t he preface and throughout t he lectures par t ly by being

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purged of redundancies which are perhaps pardonable in

oral communication o f ideas b u t are less sui t ed fo r though t
,

ful readers ; and i t now appears in o n e volume instead o f

t wo. The b ook has b een fur t her modied by occasional i n
t r o d u c ti o n of new mat t er in t ended to presen t i t s cen t ral
,

principle in fuller li g ht The w hole has been arranged in

.

Three Par t s preceded by t wo preliminary lec t ures in which

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an expanded Natural Theolo g y is dened and ar t icula t ed in

,

i t s three lo g ically indemonstrable data A Retrospec t o f th e

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cen t ral course o f t hough t follows t he las t Par t .

It is hoped t hat these changes m ay make th e book les s

unwor t hy o f the indul g en t recep t ion and sympathe t ic
cri t icism wi t h which the rst edition has b een signally
favoured abroad i n America and in A ustralia no t less than
, ,

in t his coun t ry .I n i t s new form i t may also be more

a dap t ed t o assis t reection o n the fundamen t al ques t ions o f

human life in t hose educational insti t utions into which i t

,

has been received .

T h e ve lec t ures in t he First Par t deal with three forms

o f specula t io n each o f which would reduce t he universe of
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 vi PR E F A C E TO S E C O ND ED I T I O N .

reali t y t o O ne S u b s t ance o r Power ; and the lec t ures r ep re

sent t o t al S cep t icism as t he r ed u cti o a d a bsu r d u m alike o f ,

Universal Ma t erialism Pane g oism and Pan t heism when

, , ,
1
t hose Monis t specula t ions are pressed in t repidly into their
issues This Par t is chiey cri t ical and ne g ative
. .

I n t he S econd o r C on s t ru ctive Par t the theis t ic con ,

c ep t i o n o f t he t hree da t a is unfolded no t as a direc t con ,

sequence o f deduc t ive or in d uc t ive proof b u t as founded o n ,

o u r spon t aneous moral faith in O mnipo t en t Goodness a t t he

hear t of t he Whole t aken as an inevita b le (conscious o r

,

unconsciou s ) presupposi t ion in all human experience t he

reconcilin g principle in o u r intercourse scien t i c o r moral , ,

wi t h t he Power t ha t is universally a t work G o d is pre .

supposed an d in a measure revealed in t he presupposi t ions

, ,

o f universal order and of u niversal adap t ation 3 and is

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fur t her revealed in the of t en dorm an t b u t indispensable , ,

moral an d spiri t ual implica t es of human experien ce which ,

need t o b e awakened in t o conscious and prac t ical life by

ex t ernal events an d institu t ion s Th e reali t y o f human
.

experience i s foun d t o involve t he reali t y of omnipo t en t ,

omniscient omnipresen t moral Providence t o which the

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emo t ion and will t ha t go to cons t itu t e o u r nal Fai t h

respond s o m aking consciou s or unconscious Reli g ion t he
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chief fac t or in the his t ory o f mankind This Part in a .

de g ree unfolds t he me t aphysical r a ti on a le o f theistic fai th .

The Third Part comprehends ve lec t ures concern ed wi t h ,

t he Great E ni g m a o f E vil presen t e d a t leas t o n ou r plane t

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which seems t o contradic t t he fundamen t al moral fai t h ,

and by dis t urbin g t h e reli g ious o r optimis t concep t ion o f

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The i nmossi b z lz ty
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exis t ence leads t o pessimis t scep t icism

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o f an a n omni sci en t in t elli g ence demons t ratin g t he supposed

con t radic t ion and thu s t ransforming o u r universe into an

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un t rus t wor t hy u niverse wi t h which o n e can have no in t er

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course is the attitu de primarily assume d t owards t his

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E ni g ma Bu t fur t her consi d era t ions are proposed b y

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 PR EF A CE To SE C O ND E D I T I O N . v ii

which t he di fcul t y seem s to be miti g ate d even to human

apprehension poin t ing t o modes o f escape from t he dismal
,

al t ernative of a scep ticis m which would involve S cience and

Goodness in a common ruin I n particular there is the .
,

fac t t hat t he universe o r a t leas t t his plane t see m s t o be

, ,

adap t ed to the progressive improvemen t o f persons who

have m ade t hemselves b ad sugges t in g t ha t a slo w personal ,

s t rug g le t owards t he Ideal rather t han original and c o n ,

s t ant perfec t ion o f persons may be i m plied in ni t e per ,

sonal agency There is also the possibili ty o f spiri t ual

.

advance t hrou g h w hat may appear t o be interference by

O mnipo t en t Goodness wi th the divine na t ural order for ,

t he res t ora t ion to goodness o f persons w h o have made

themselves bad b u t which m ay really be normal operation
,

o f t he Universal Power accordin g to incompletely co m pre ,

hended O rder And las t ly t here i s the room a fforded for

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n al adj us t men t an d fo r the sa t isfaction of O mnipo ten t

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Love t ha t i s opened t hrou g h t he mystery o f man s physical

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disappearance by death in the divinely cons ti t u t ed universe ,

an d t he consequent ul t ima t e venture o f t heis t ic fai t h o r ex

p ec t a t i o n . These are examples o f m iti g a t ions o f t he Grea t

E nigma t ha t is presented o n t his planet an en igma which , ,

if demonstra b ly inconsis t ent with In ni t e Goodness o r Love ,

would paralyse science an d m oral developmen t o f the Ideal

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Man in t he individual .

The philosophy ini t ia t ed in t hese lec t ures may perhaps

be called ei t her Hum anised Idealism o r S piri t ualised Na t ur
a li s m . I t seem s to be t he reasonable a t ti t ude t owards h is
o w n life and t he universe for a person like man who is con ,

ned b y his small share o f experience t o a kn owledge which

real as far as i t g oes is intermedia t e be t ween Unconscious

Nescience an d Divine O mniscien ce I t is for philosophers .

o r t heolo g ians in the gradual progress o f philosophy o r

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theology t o sh ow h o w far and under what ar t iculate con

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c ep t i o n s even in man s in termedia t e posi t ion h i s i n d i s p en s

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viii PR E F A C E To SE C O ND E DI T I O N .

able n al cr ed eawla may become fo r him i ntelligend a And .

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as wi t h Pla t o and Aristo t le O ri g en an d Aquinas Berkeley , ,

and empha tically Hegel philosophy is found by di fferent, ,

rou t es to culmin ate in t heology or religion in i t s intel

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lec t ual expression If t he universe as realised in human

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,

experience is religiou s in its nal concep t ion philosophy and

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t heology at las t unite in t ellec t ually .

Na t ural Theology t hus philosophically expanded must
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be dis t inguished from t h e natural theolog y which h as of t en

b orne t he n am e Ab ou t sixty years a g o wi t h t he lat t er
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in vie w Lord Macaulay wrote t hus : As respect s n atural
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reli g ion i t i s n o t easy t o s ay t ha t a philosopher at the pre

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sen t day is more favou rably si t ua t ed t h an Thales or S imon

ides . He has before him j ust t he same evidences o f
desi g n in t h e s t ructure o f t he universe that t he early
Greeks had The discoveries o f modern astronomers and
.

a n atomis t s have added no t hing t o the force o f t ha t ar g umen t

which a reec t ing m an nds in every beas t bir d insect sh , , , ,

leaf ower o r shell All t he g rea t eni g mas which perplex

, , .

t h e na t ural theolo g ian are the same in all age s The in g en .

u it
y o f a people emerging from bar b arism is s u i c i e n t t o
propound t hese enigmas The genius of Locke o r Clarke
.

is qui t e unable to solve them The Book o f Jo b shows .

tha t long b efore le t ters an d ar t s were known t o Ionia these

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vexin g ques t ions were deba t ed wi t h no common skill and

eloquence under t he t ents o f t he Idu m ean I mirs ; nor has
human reason in t he course o f t hree thousand years di s
covered any satisfactory solu t ion o f t he riddles which per
p l e x ed E lip h az and Z ophar Natural t heology is .n o t a
progressive s cien ce Bu t neither is revealed religion
.

o f the na t ure of a progressive science A ll divine t ruth i s .

,

according to t h e doctrine o f the Pro t estant Churches r e ,

corded in certain b ooks ; n o r can all t he discoveries o f all

t he philosophers in t he world add a sin g le verse t o a ny
o f t hese b ooks I t is plain t herefore that in divini ty there
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 PR E F A C E To SE C O ND E DI T I O N . ix

cannot b e a progress analogous t o t hat which is cons t an t ly

t aking place in pharmacy g eology and navi g at ion , A , .

Chris t ian of t he fth cen t ury with a Bible in his hand is

neither better nor worse situa t ed than a Chris t ian o f the
nineteenth century wi t h a Bible candour and na t ural acute
ness bein g supposed equal I t ma tt ers no t a t all t ha t the
.

compass printing gunpowder steam gas vaccina t ion and

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a thousand other discoveries and inven t ions which were ,

unknown in t he f t h centu ry are fa m iliar in the nine t eenth

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None o f these discoveries and inven t ions has the smalles t

b earin g on t he ques t ion whe t her man is j ustied b y fai t h
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alone or whe t her the invoca t ion o f sain t s is an or t hodox

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practice I t seems that we h ave no securi t y for t he fu t ure

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agai n st the prevalence o f any theolo g ical error t ha t has ever

prevailed in times pas t .

The reader will consider how far t he philosophy or t heo

lo g y t o which this b ook i s an in t roduction is consis t en t
with this discouraging view o r with t he unconcilia t ory ,

dualism which separates na t ural from revealed r e
l igio n according to the assu m p t ion o f Lord Macaulay
,
He .

will j udge whether t he elimina t ion (o n account o f man s

intermedia t e posi t ion ) o f eni g mas which have perplexed

past ages and which s t ill perplex may no t O pen t he way
, ,

to a sane progressive exercise o f human reason rooted in ,

theis t ic fai t h with all t hat t he i s t ic faith i m plies in dis ,

posin g o f the nal questions which man requires to deal

wi t h somehow Religion o n its in t ellec t ual side is surely
.

more advanced now t han it was among t he early Hebrews

o r in Homer Fresh reection by successive genera t ions o f
.

thinkers upon the inevitable cr ed en d a in order to convert ,

them more fully or philosophically into i n tellig end a com ,

b i n e d with advancing interpretation of the divine revela

t ions given in external nature and in the inspired spiri t ,

laten t in man seems to a fford a m ple S C O p e for progress in

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t ha t t heolo gy which in the deepest meaning o f nature is

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" PR E F A C E TO S E C O ND E DI T I O N .

t he mos t n a t ural o f all The eternal gospel of O mnipo t ent

.

Goodness la t en t in humani t y from t he b eginning is nu

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folded i n the divine human na t ure of t he Ideal Man and ,

is gradually unfolding in human life and his t ory And if .

fai t h in O mnipo t en t Goodness wi t h all t hat t his involves , ,

is t he root and sprin g of human experience and science ,

n o changes in t hat experien ce n o discoveries in science , ,

n o his t orical cri t icism n o fu t ure events in his t ory n ei t her

, ,

t hin g s presen t n or t hin g s to come can ever show t he ,

unreasona b leness o f this nal fai t h o r deprive t he human ,

race of di vine consola t ion and healing power .

G O RT O N HAW TH O R ND E N
, , M ID -
L O T H I AN ,

F eb r u a r y 1 8 9 9 .
 P RE F A CE TO TH E F I RS T E DI T I ON .

T WO su bj ec t s above all others have a universal in t eres t .

O ne o f them always concerns all be in g s bu t especially

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all persons in all worlds The o t her is of human concern

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only . The former rela t es t o the m oral meaning o f t he

Universe in which each person has to play his par t and
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its nal m oral t rus t wor t hiness . It has t o do with t he

ch a r a cter o f the Universal power in con t inuous in t ercourse
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wi t h which each person lives in and through his e t hical

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personali t y and his environmen t withou t his own leave

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t oo b y t he bare fac t of exis t ing under moral conditions

, .

Th e other subj ect is the al t erna t ive o f evanesce n ce o r per

man en c e after Dea t h as applicable t o human persons
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Do .

t hey all nally lose t heir conscious personali ty in physical

dea t h ; o r do t hey con t inue in self conscious life n o t with
-
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standing t he dissolution o f the body i t may b e wi t h added

in tellectual and spiri t u al power as a consequence of relief
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from i t s limiting conditions after t he body has served the

end of perma n en t ly individualisin g t he human spiri t ?
Is o u r environmen t essen t ially physical and non moral or
-
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is it ul t im ately divine ? Is his visible body the measure

of the continuance o f each man s self conscious personal

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ity ? These t wo correlated qu estions underlie human life .

Nei t her o f t hem I think can be go t rid o f on the ground

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x ii PR E F A C E T O F I R S T E DI T I O N .

t ha t i t is in t eres t ing only specula t ively ,

or t ha t it is pra o
tically indeterminable .

Na t ural Theology in t he philosophical meaning o f the

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t erm i s face t o face wi t h b o t h these ques t ions For the

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word na t ural in t he ancient and lar g e meaning of Na t ure
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is applied no t only t o the world o f m a t erial t hings an d t heir

me t amorphoses b u t also to the world of persons o r m oral
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agents an d some t imes even t o the su m of real exis t ence

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t emporal and t imeless ni t e and divine To follow na t ure
,
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is accordingly t o follow reason in cludin g moral reason .

The philosopher h as t o consider wheth er men are doing this

when they are proceedi ng upon t h e religious con ception of
t he universe as its nal con cep t ion ; whe t her t hey are r e
quired by reason t o accept a wholly physical or non moral -

concep t ion as t he hi g hes t a tt aina b le ; o r whether t hey need

t o withdraw from every endeavour t o in t erpre t t hemselve s
and t heir surroundings an d mus t su b side in speechless
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mo t ionless a g n ostic despair

,
I t is in a lar g e meaning of
.

Na t ure t ha t I take t he t erm Na t ural Theolo g y to com

prehen d rati onal t rea t men t o f the universally in teres tin g
problem foun d at t h e roo t of human life D elibera t e .

s t u dy o f i t b elongs t o liberal education especially in t he ,

condi t ion in which w e n d m odern t hou g h t It should .

be the outcome o f t his remarkable S cottish Founda t ion

b y Lord Gi fford which admits o f s o many benecial
,

adap t a t ions .

I n the followin g lec t ures th e critical reader canno t fail

to nd conclusion s sustained b y reasonings t hat are n o t
fully unfolded and impor t ant ques t ions ei t her passed over
,

or subj ec t ed to supercial t rea t men t It is hoped however

.
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tha t the order o f th ough t which I have t ried to follo w

m ay lead persons disposed to reect o n a p a t h where
m ore a b undan t frui t may b e g a t hered by their o wn hands .

I ven t ure t o as k t h a t t he work may b e looked at in i t s

 P R E FA CE To F I RS T E DITI ON . x ii i

reasoned unity and not as a series o f isolated discussions ;

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unbiassed I h ope in its in t ention by any in t erest tha t is

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at variance wi t h wha t is t rue The shor t tim e for prepara

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tion tha t could b e given by t he academical authorities who

honoured me by t his appoin t ment h as n ot permi tt ed me t o
explore as I could have wished t he vas t and ever increasin g -

relative litera t ure T o escape t he c onfusion o f mind apt to

.

b e produced in t hese circums t ances by much readin g I have

, , ,

con ned myself t o a sincere exposition o f t houghts gradu

ally reached in a life devoted t o kindred pursui t s S ome of .

them have already found expression in a less explicit form , ,

chiey in n o t es and disser t ations included in my edi t ions

of the works o f Berkeley and o f Locke and bio g raphies o f
those philosophers as well as in lec t ures t o studen t s i n
,

the universi t y of E din b urgh .

The religious concep t ion of the universe is adop t ed in

these lectures as its t r u e conception on t he ground t hat , ,

unless the Power universally a t work is O mnipo t en t Good

ness there can be no valid in t ercourse o f Man with Nature
, ,

which ins t ead has to be avoided as the ac t ion and revela ,

t ion of a suspec t ed Power : t he perfect reliabili t y o f the

Universal Power i s presupposed in the reliabili t y o f e x
p e ri e n c.e T he his t ory o f man is a record of collision
between sceptical dis t rus t o f his na t ure an d environmen t ,

o n t he o n e side and moral fai t h and hope in an environ

,

men t that is trus t ed in as ul t ima t ely Divine o n t he o t her , .

I t presents a competi t ion be t ween nal Doubt and nal

Faith for the deepest place I n t he earlier lectures the voice
.

of t he S cep t ic is prominent A fter wards Fai t h makes itself

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heard as t ha t which must a t las t underlie t he utmos t pos

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sible doub t because the indispensable con d ition of any s c ie n

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t i c o r moral intercourse wi t h the ever chan g ing universe -

of ex t ernal na t ure and m an But sceptical criticis m i s still

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valuable fo r unfoldin g t he r a ti ona le o f nal fai t h in the per

fe e t g oodness o f t he Power t hat is universally at work .
x iv PR E F A C E To F I RST ED I TI ON .

Tha t t he me t hod I have adop t ed may be called anthropo

morphic o r an t hropocentric is not I t hink a reasonable , ,

obj ection t o i t if all man s in t ercourse wi t h reali t y mus t b e
,

under human conditions and i s possi b le s o far only as t he

,

universe is adaptable by m an not i n humanly inaccessible

O mniscience T he ul t imate rela t ions o f men in t he fulness
.
,

o f t heir spiritual b ein g t o t he reali t ies amon g s t which t hey

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were wi t hou t t heir own will in t roduced at bir t h under i n

, ,

evi t able in t ellectual and m oral p os t ulates no t O mniscience

as at t he divine cen t re th i s surely is t he only philosophy
o r theolo g y tha t man is able t o enter t ain or t hat is needed ,

t o sa t isfy his necessi t ies This is t he realities in their

.

rela t ion to man when man is reco g nise d as m ore than a

,

sentien t au t oma t on ye t as less t han omniscien t The d if

,
.

c u l t i es found in ul t imate moral fai t h and hope arise lar g ely

from oversi g h t o f wha t humanly limi t e d knowled g e mus t

b e in t he end .

Tha t a mix t ure of t he a b stract S pinozism which i g nores

change and philosophises su b sp eci e eter ni ta tis wi t h t h e em
, ,

p i r i ca l a g nos ticism o f D avid Hume which reduces all realities ,

t o inexplica b le successive appearances is in t his cen t ury ,

working in t he main curren t o f t hou g h t in E urope and

America in sympa t hy with analo g ou s ideas in India and t he
,

E as t is a consideration which was present t o my mind

, .

S pin oza and Hume were seldom forgot t en Nor was t heir .

service t o t r u t h overlooked in t he w ay o f deepenin g an d

,

vivi fying t he t imi d conven t ionalism which ecclesiastical

t heology sometimes exemplies .

It is di fcul t to discuss t he ques t ion s of man and the

univers e in their n al relation s wi t hou t making a large
and unaccep t a b le demand upon t he reec t ive power o f t he
d
rea er a t any rate a grea t er demand t han is made by
,

a S ociety novel Y et I am well aware t ha t this book falls

.

far short o f what mi g h t be reached in t his respect by a

more powerful philosophic al imagina tion an d a more lucid
 PR E F A C E TO F I R S T ED IT I O N . "V

and pene t rating intelligence direc t ed by ar t is t ic li t erary

,

faculty The defect has been largely supplied since E ng

. .

lish literature has been enriched by a t reat ise o n The

Foun da t ions of Belief by Mr Balfour in which t he reader ,

nds the ba s i s of theology investiga t ed in a manner that

rivals Berkeley or Hume in luminous expression o f su bt le
t ho u gh t Wi t hout ven t urin g t o o ffer observa t ions upon an
.

argumen t con du c t ed with a somewha t di fferent design I may ,

express t he sa t isfac t ion with which I have found a sanc t ion

in Mr Balfour s reasonin g s for the equ al nal insolubility of
physical science and theolo g y and for t heir common fo u n d a

t ion in wha t migh t perhap s be called t he au t hority o f
the collective moral reason of m ankind as dis t inguished from ,

direc t lo gical proof Two other eminen t men o f a ffairs h ave

.

also added lately t o t he debt which religious t hou g h t owes to

illustrious sta t esmen since Bacon and Leibniz s et t he example
, .

The world m ay be gra t eful t o Mr Glads t one for the cri t ical
exposi t ions in which he has powerfully recommended and
rein t roduced the chief E nglish work o f t he eigh t een t h cen
t ury in the philosophy o f religion thus associa t ing h is nam e,

wi t h t ha t of Bishop Bu t ler And t he Duke of Ar gyll with

.
,

charac t eris t ic argumen t a t ive s t reng t h and eloquence h as ,

explaine d t he t eleological concep t ion o f t he universe o n

scien tic grounds in h i s Philosophy of Belief
Tha t in .

t he closing years o f t he nine t een t h cen t ury t hree o f t h e

mos t eminent leaders in public affairs should have t hus
placed t hemselves o n the side o f nal Faith in t he
stru g gle wi t h nal D ou b t is no insi g nican t si g n o f t h e
,

time in t his coun t ry and in t he world .

U N I V E R S IT Y OF E D IN B U R G H ,

S ep temb er 1 8 9 6 .
 C O N T E N T S .

I I
P R E L M NA R Y .

L E CT . P A GE

I . TH E V ER SAL P R O B L EM
U NI 3

II . T H R EE P R I M A R Y D A T A : E G O M A T T E R
, ,
AN D GOD 24

I
F R ST P AR T .

U N T H E I S T I C S P E C U L A T I O N A N D FI NA L S C EP T I C I S M .

I . UN I VE R SA L M A TE R IAL I S M I3

IIP AN E G O I S M
. 62

III P A N T H EI S M
. 76
I V P A N T H E I S T I C U N I TY A N D N E C E S S I T Y
. Z S P INO Z A 89

V F I NA L S C E P T I C I S M Z D A V I D H U ME
. 1 04

SE C O ND P AR T .

F I N AL RE A SO N IN T H E I S T I C FA I TH .

I . GO D LAT E N T I N N ATU R E
II . I D E AL M A N AN I MAG E O F GO D 139

II I . WH AT Is GO D ? 154
x v ii i CC NT E NT S .

IV P E R F E CT G O O D N E SS P E R S O N I F IE D
.
166

V O M N I P O TE N T G OO D N E SS
. 185

V I O M N I P R E S E N T D I V I N E A D A P T A TI O N
.
200

P H I L O S O P H I C A L O R T H E O L O G IC A L O M N I SC I E N C E 216

V I I I F I NA L FA IT H
. 232

T HI R D P AR T .

T H E G RE A T E N I G MA OF T H E I S T I C F AI T H .

I E V I L O N T H I S PL AN ET
.

II T H EI S TI C O P TIMI S M
. 26 2

I I I H U M AN P R O G R E SS
. 277

I V MI A CU L O U S I N T E R E R E N C E W HA T I S A MI R A C L E :Z
. R F . 29 1

V T H E F I NA L V E N T U R E O F T H EI S TI C FA IT H
. 3 06

A R E T R O S P E CT 3 25

IND E" 3 33
 P HIL O SO P HY OF THEISM .

LECTU RE I .

THE U N IV ER S AL PR O B LE M .

M Y rst words mus t give expression t o the emo t ion P rs o n l e a .

which I feel on nding myself once m ore admi t ted to

S peak o fcially within th e walls of t his an cien t uni
versity wi t h which as s t uden t gradua t e and professor
, , , , ,

I have b een connected for sixty years F o r i t is sixty .

years in t his November since I rst cast eyes of wonder

o n the ac a demic walls which n o w carry so many memo

ries in my mind an d w h ich t o day are associated wi t h

,
-

an extraordinary responsibili t y I n the evenin g o f life

.
,

in reluc t ant response t o t he unexpec t ed invi t ation o f the

pat rons o f the Gi fford Trus t I nd myself in the presence
, ,

o f my countrymen called t o s ay hones t ly the best that

,

may be in me concerning the supreme proble m of hu m an

life our response to which at last de t ermines t he answers
,

to all questions which can engage the mind o f man N 0 .

words th a t I can nd are su f cien t t o represen t my sense

of the honour thus conferred o r the responsibility thus
,

imposed upon one w h o believed tha t he had bid a nal

,

farewell to appearances in public o f t his sor t in order t o ,

wind u p his account wi t h this mysterious life of sense .

It is an appalling pro b lem which confron t s m e and ,

in
 PH I LOSO PH Y OF THEISM .

T h e na l dee d confron t s us all fo r all mus t practically dispose o f i t

,
h u man
b1
in one way or another ; an d I am now required to han dle
t i? li t in t ellectually O ne may n o t b e ready to s ay wi th P ll ny
.
,

t hat all religions are t he o ffspring o f human weakness and

fear ; and t hat wha t God is if indeed God b e any t hin g ,

dis tinc t from t he world i n which we nd ourselves it is ,

beyond man s unders t anding to kno w

Y et even t he .

boldes t thinker when confronted by the ul t ima t e pro b

,

lem o f existence m ay desire to imi t a t e t he philosophic

,

ca u t ion o f S imonides when he was asked Wha t G o d

, ,

was ? i n rst demanding a day t o t hink abou t the

answer then two days more and after t ha t continuously
, ,

doubling t he required time when t he t ime already gran t ed

,

h ad come to an end ; b u t wi t hou t ever nding tha t he w as

able t o produce t he required ans wer ; rather becoming
more apt t o suspec t t hat the answer carried him beyond
t he ran g e of human intelligence O ften in t hese las t
.

months I have wished t ha t I could indulge in t his pru

den t procras t ina t ion t akin g not m ore months only but
,

more years t o ponder t his in nite pro b lem Bu t after .

t he threescore years an d ten t his is a forbi d den al ter ,

native if I am to speak in t his place at all I s ee at

, .

hand

T h e sh ad o w c l o ak d fr o m h ead t o fo o t

,

/ W h o k e ep s th e k e y s o f al l th e cree d s
.

F o rm s in Man s ul t ima t e ques t ion abou t his life in t he universe
t h th
o f Theism
e
pr b l m 0 f
o e
is a t the heart Philosophy asks
. wha t t his
th ni
e u I ll i m i table a g gre g a t e o f ever C hang i n g t h i n g s an d persons
-

r m y really means if indeed i t means anything Wha t i s t he

gi ,
.

p r ss d
e e deepest and trues t in t erpre t ation t ha t can b e pu t b y me
.

upon t he world i n which I found myself par t icipa t ing

when I became percipien t and wi t h which I have b een ,

in contac t o r collision ever since I be g an t o live ? O u g h t

a b eni g n meaning o r a malign meaning t o b e pu t upon i t
This is surely the most human ques t ion t hat can b e
, ,

raised : no man can avoid g iving some sor t o f response

t o i t in t he mo t ives o f his life if not in philosophic ,

t hou g ht I n what sor t o f universe divine o r dia b olic

.
, ,

o r in d i fferen t and for wha t purpose if any am I exis t in g , ,

 THE U NIV E R S A L PR O B L E M . 5

consciously ? Wha t is t he deepest and t rues t meaning o f

this ever changing universe in which I am now s t rugglin g ?
-

What t he ori g in and t he ou t come o f its endless ux ? I s

t he Universal Power perfec t ly reasonable and morall y
trus t worthy ? o r is the whole morally chaotic and mis
leadi ng with only transitory semblance o f even physical
,

order ? o r mus t I remain for ever ignorant and t herefore ,

unable t o adopt either o f t hose al t erna t ives ?

It is this problem o f the ultimate m eaning an d purpose T h h e u

o f hu m an life in t he universe or whe t her indeed there is

{ggf gff
l r
,
o
any purpose in i t tha t I nd at t h e hear t o f the subj ect ni v rs
, u e e

t hat h as been in t rusted t o m e for free bu t always rever ,

e n t i al discussion I t is a many sided subj ect which each t h gh t

.
-

, ou ,

lecturer is invited to discuss a t his o wn point o f View ,

with the a dvantage to truth o f i ts being thus looked at

o n many sides o ne t oo that is m ore than usually dis
, ,

t u r b in g feeling an d faith in t his ou t speaking era of E uro

,

pean and American civilisa t ion .

When I was asked t o engag e in t his work I turned t o Lor d G i f ,

Lord Gi fford s Deed o f Beques t in the hope t ha t i t migh t t ti n

f r d s
,
o 111 '

s ru c o s
contai n ar t i culate d i rect i ons W i th regard to t he o bj ect f d l ing or ea
W it h
mat t er t o be investiga t ed the me t hod o f investigation , ,
.

and the chief end o f the proposed inquiry I found .

,

under each o f t hese three heads par t icular ins t ruc t ions , ,

bu t m ore o r less ambiguous .

A s regards the proposed m a t ter o f in quiry i t seems t o I t i I n n ,

s

concern an O bj ect tha t is absolu t ely unique I t canno t .

be made Visible or tan g ible ; nor is it even nite as bs l t l y , a o u e

obj ects studied in natural science are and as the word E t th t m iq 0 1 ue 3 '

,
j ec a
o bj ect seems t o I m ply Th i s un i que O bj ect I f obj ec t i t w h v
,

.
, e a e

m ay be called is thus spoken o f in t he Deed of Foun

,

da tion God t he Inni t e t he A ll the First and O nly

, , ,

C ause the O ne and the S ole S ubstance the S ole Being

, , ,

t he S ole Reality and the S ole E xis t ence more p ar ti c u
,

l arl y
,

t he na t ure an d a t tribu t es o f God and t he rela ,

t ions which men and the whole universe bear t o God .

S cience o f this is called Na t ural Theology in the

widest sense o f the term .

Nex t I nd some t hing a b out the me thod o f conduc t ing

 6 P H IL OS O PH Y O F TH E I S M .

T h e I n n t his unique inves tiga t ion S tric t scien t ic me t hod is e n

.

gtfif j oined accordin g t o the analogy of t he na t ural scien ces

e g
, ,

in q ir d
u e unres t rained excep t by evidence with consequent obliga ,

gggg t ion t o follow facts in pursui t of wha t ever is found o n

?
,

t i c s p ir it ,
t he whole t o b e reasonable As t hus : I wish th e l e e .

t u r er s t o trea t their subj ec t as a stric t ly na t ural science ,

the greatest of all possible sciences in one sense t he only ,

science tha t o f I N FI N I T E B E I N G ; without reference t o or

,

reliance upon any supposed specia l e xcep t ional o r s o

, , ,

called miraculous revelation I wish i t to be considered .

a s as t ronomy or chemistry is The lecturers shall be

.

under n o res t raint wha t ever in their t reat m en t o f their

t heme . F o r example they may freely discus s (and it
,

may be well t o do s o ) all questions about man s con

c e p t i o n s of God o r t he Innite ; their origin na t ure an d , ,

t ruth ; whe t her man can have any such conceptions ;

whe t her G o d is under any o r what limita t ions ; and s o
o n as I am persuaded t hat n othi n g but g ood can result

from free discussion The lecturers appointed shall

.

accordingly be su bj ected t o no tes t o f any kind and shall ,

no t b e required t o take an oa t h o r to make any promise ,

o f any kind ; they may be o f any denomination whatever ,

o r o f n o denomination at all and many earnes t an d hi g h

(
minded men prefer t o b elon g t o n o ecclesias t ical denom
i n ati o n ) t hey may b e o f any religion o r way o f t hinkin g ,

o r as i t is sometimes sai d they may b e o f n o reli g ion ; or

, ,

t hey may b e called scep t ics a g nos t ics o r free thinkers , ,

-
,

i t being desira b le t hat the su bj ec t be promo t ed and

illus t ra t ed by di fferen t minds .

wit h a Finally the code o f directions su ggests t ha t a b road

,
t
Egg gigl s b
social purpose o f u tili ty is to be kept in V iew throughou t
the i n qu i ry Th i s I s I ndeed the ch i ef en d o f t hose lec
o o

es t we ll .

mg
Ep w 3
nd
e
t u r e s h ip s o n
Natural Theolo g y in the wides t sense of
ar
p r ogr ess , t he t erm . I t I s i n t elle c t ual enlarge m en t fo r a human

and prac t ical purpose O ne nds what follows
.
I
having been fo r m any years deep l y an d rmly convinced
that the t rue knowledge o f G o d that i s o f the Being , ,

Na t ure and A t tribu t es o f the I nni t e o f the A ll o f t he

, , ,

Firs t an d only Cause the one only S ubstance and Being ;

,

and t he t rue an d fel t Knowledge (no t mere nominal


THE U NIV E R S A L PR O B L E M . 7

Knowledge ) of the relations of Man an d of the Universe

t o Him 7 bein g I say convinced tha t t his knowled g e
, , ,

when felt and acted on is t he m eans o f ma n s highest ,

wellbeing an d the security of his u p ward progress I

, ,

have therefore resolved to i ns t i t u t e and found in con ,

n e c t i o n if possible with the S cot t ish universities lec t ure ,

S hips fo r the promotion o f the study of t he said subj ec t s ,

and fo r the t eaching and di ffu sion of sound views regard

ing them among the whole population o f S cotland
,
This .

implies t ha t a man s nal faith or nal doub t shows what
the m an is and makes h i m what he is
,
.

It is with t his deeply hum a n purpose in View and in L t ,

e us

t he scientic S pirit which seeks for tru t h truth only f lly ndf f ts ace ac
, ,
u a
and truth all that we n o w address ourselves to the ul t i h nestl y
, o .

ma t e ques t ion about the Unive rsal Power the answer t o ,

which consti t utes Na t ural Theolo g y i n the widest sense

o f the t erm We are in quest of the wises t and truest
.

a ns w er available for a bei ng su ch as m an is t o t his s u

, ,

pre m e question What is the ch ar a cter of the Universal

Power with which all experience brings me in t o in t er
course ? Am I obliged i n re ason by the facts and con ,

d iti o n s o f the case to put nally a religious interpretation

,

upon the universe ; o r do the facts forbid me t o recognise

any concep t ion hi g her t han the physical called p a r ea: ,

cell eii ce the scientic ? E ither w ay I must follo w as

facts and reason oblige me Things are what t hey are .
,

as Bishop Butler says and t he consequences of t hem
,

will be what they will be ; why t h en should we desire , ,

to be deceived ? Let u s face the fac t s seekin g only ,

to know what they are and as far as we can wha t they , , ,

mean I will give t he re m ainder o f this lecture t o so m e

.

further consideration o f the obj ect ma t ter method and -

, ,

utili t y o f Philosophical T h e is ni o r Natural Theology in ,

the wides t meaning o f the term .

I Look rs t at tha t in man which sugges t s the nal R gni

. ec o
t i n f th e
human problem The marvel o f his o wn existence and l ti m t
.
,
u
o o
a e

o f the universe in which he nds himself appears a m r v l , a e

marvel only to man amon g known sentient beings ; and it f th o e

 8 PH I LOSO PH Y OF TH E I S M .

u ni v e rs e i s is t his wi t h full consciousness on l y t o the few who reect .

Wi t h t he exception of m an as S chopenhauer says n o
, ,

h u m an .b ein g wond er s at its own existence and surroundin g s .

By the b ru t e desti t u t e o f self consciousness t he world -

,

and i t s o w n life are felt u ni nqu i ri ngly fel t as a m a tt er o f

, ,

course Bu t wi t h m an his o w n life and what i t means

.

b ecomes a t hough t at which even the mos t degraded may b e

moved t o m arvel Men sho w t hemselves dimly conscious
.

o f t his in t he rudest forms of religion A sense of the ever .

abidin g presence of t he eni g ma o f existence shown in

t he form o f wonder as t o wha t w e are wha t o u r surround ,

in g s involve wh y w e are wha t we are w h y so surrounded

, , ,

and what w e are des t ined t o b ecome at las t is t he chief
m o t ive t o philosophy I t is t he aw e involved in t he
.

vague sense o f man s absolu t e dependence upon t h e

Universal Power amids t t h e Immensities and E ternities

, ,

and t he sense o f moral responsi b ility fo r t h e way w e con

duc t o u r lives tha t gives rise t o religion
, .

A m r ly
e e The omnipresence o f Innite Reality gives t heir d i s ti n c
f
t ive
O
ch aracter alike to philosophy an d t o reli g ion It is .

the uni v r b y t heir con cern with Inni t e Reality that b oth are dis
e

$23 n t i ngu i s h ed from nite physical science We are accus .

p ssib l
o e. t o m e d in scien ces o f t h e ma t erial worl d t o a feelin g o f
satisfaction when w e are able t o refer unexpected even t s
t o visi b le causes o n which they are believed n aturally t o
,

depend accordin g t o t h e esta b lished n atural order an d by

, ,

which they are provisionally explained But it is some .

t hing deeper t han desire fo r t his provisional satisfac t ion

t ha t mov es philosophical curiosity For the comple t e o r .

nal meaning o f t he inni t e universe o f reali t y canno t be

discovered by referrin g i t t o a na t ural cause in the ,

w ay material phenomena are referred to natural cau ses .

S cience of i t s Universal Power mu st b e t herefore ab s o

l u t e ly uniqu e science The universe cann ot b e treated
.

as if i t were only a ni t e t erm in a n atural succession .

It i s n o t like a visible event in o n e o f the physic al sciences ,

which when a place h as b een found for it in t he order o f

,

ou t ward nature ceases to perplex I n asking a b out t he

, .

Character o f the Power t hat accoun t s for t he t emporal

procession w e are n o t t rying t o nd a physical cause
, .
10 PH I LOSO PH Y OF TH E I S M .

Can you think Clean t hes t ha t your u sual phlegm and

, ,

philosophy have been preserved in s o wide a step as you

have t aken when y o u have compared t he universe to
,

h ouses S hips furniture m achines ; and from t heir simi

, , ,

l ar i t y in some circums t ances inferred a similarity in t heir

causes ? Though t desi g n intelli g ence such as w e discover
, , ,

i n m e n and other animals is n o m ore than o n e o f th e

'

innu m erable S prings an d principles in the universe which ,

as well as a hundred o t hers such as heat and cold a t tr ac , ,

t ion and repulsion fall under daily observation It is a

,
.

natural cause by which so m e particular parts o f n ature ,

w e nd produce al t era t io n s o n other parts

, Bu t can a .

con clusion with any proprie ty b e t ransferred from [ nite "

parts to the [innite "whole D oes not the grea t [ inni t e "
disproportion bar all comparison or in ference ? Bu t ,

allowing t hat w e are to take the opera t ions o f one par t

o f n ature u po n ano t her par t fo r the foundation of o u r ,

j udgment concerning the origin of t he whole (which never

can be admitted ) yet w h y select s o minute so weak s o
, , ,

bounded a cause o r principle as t he reason an d desi g n

o f ani m als livin g upon this planet is found to b e ? Wha t
peculiar privilege has t his lit t le agitation of t he b rain
which w e call though t that we must t hus make i t the
model o f the whole universe ? S o far from admit t in g
tha t the opera t ions of a par t can a fford us any j ust con
elusion concerning the [inni t e "whole I will n ot allow ,

any o n e part to fo rm a rule fo r another part if t he latter ,

be very remote fro m the former A nd if th ough t as .

,

we may well suppose b e con ned m erely t o this narrow

,

corner and has even here s o limi t ed a S phere o f ac t ion

, ,

with wha t propriety can we assi g n i t for t he original

cause o f all thin g s The narrow views o f a peasan t who ,

makes his domestic econ omy the rule for t he government

o f kingdo m s is in co m parison a pardonable sophis m
,
B ut .

were w e ever s o much assured that a thought o r reason ,

resembling t he human were to be found thro u ghou t the

,

whole universe and were i ts activi t y elsewhere vastly

,

greater t han i t appears o n this globe ; yet I cannot see

why the operations o f a world n o w constituted arranged , ,

adj us t ed can with any propriety be ex t ended to a world

, , ,
 TH E U N I V E R S A L PR O B L E M . 11

which was in i t s embryo sta t e an d only advancing t owards

,

tha t cons t itu t ion and arrangemen t Nature w e nd from .

, ,

o u r li m ited experience possesses an in nite number o f

,

springs and principles which incessantly discover them

selves o n every change in her position and situation .

A nd wha t n e w and unkn own principles would actua t e

her in so new and unknown a situation as that of the
formation o f a Universe we cannot wi t h ou t the u t most
, ,

te m erity pre t end t o deter mine
,
S o far David Hume . .

No t withs t anding this obstacle t o o u r co m prehen sion o f T h p r s e e

the Character of the Universal Power t here are facts in 225222 ,

1
experience that in t ensify the longing fo r some idea of f d th i n o ea
l ld
what life in this evolvin g world in whic h w e nd o u r ft jg ll
e
el
y
selves practically means fo r u s and what it is nally to h m n i , u a u

issue in . Wha t probably quickens t his desire an d 1 11

,
1
rouses men out o f the sensuous indi fference prod u ced by p i b fjm

o ,

t he mere custo m of living is in the rst place the su ffer

, , ,

i n g and s i n t hat seem t o be chaotically mixe d up with

life o n t his plane t ; and in the n ext place the vanity that
, ,

appears to be s t amped upon each person s S hare in t he
whole t ransaction throu g h the fac t t ha t he is confron t ed
,

by his approaching death E vil and death are chief d if

.

c u l t i e s moreover in t he w ay o f a solution
, ,
If this em .

bodied life o f ours i n which withou t being a b le to avoid

,

it w e become individually for a t ime a t least part o f

, , ,

t he universe if this life were endless and unmixed with ,

s i n and pain the interest man could take i n t he ultimate

,

problem would be S pecula t ive T he great enig m a o f E vil

.

would not t hen dis t urb the divine h armony Neithe r .

should w e be confronted by t he mystery o f o u r o wn

prospective disappearance from the scene
T o d i e t o s eel p
T o s l eep p e r c h an c e t o d r ea m ay , t h e r e s th e r u b

d
F o r i n t h at s l ee p o f e at h w h at d r e am s m ay c o m e ,
d
W h en w e h a v e s h u fe o ff th i s m o r tal c o i l ,

M u s t g i v e u s p au s e
.

Philosophy h as been descri b ed as medi t ation upon

d ea t h
. It is an expansion o f wha t the gen tle and r e
l igio u s E nglish essayis t represen t ed accor d ing to popular
 12 PH I LOSO PH Y OF THEIS M .

T h e my s concep t ion in t he V ision of Mirza Bu t fai t h in t heir
.

t er y o f
en d l ss
e in
own immor t ality seems incredible to those w h o are accus
dvd l
i i ua t o m e d t o take the pos t ula t es o f modern ma t erialism
lfi e
.

alone for re g ula t in g their nal interpreta t ion of m an .

The world i n whic h w e are is foun d t o be in cons t an t

chan g e : all t ha t is individual seems n a t ural ly t ransi t ory .

Is it not con t rary to t he analo g ies of experience to s u p

pose t ha t I who la t ely began to live shall never cease

to live t ha t I shall n ever b e refunded in t o t he u n c o n
scious exis t ence from which I w as evolved when I was
born ? Mus t n ot all t hat is generable b e perishable ? If
I am immor t al mus t n o t I have e xis t ed before my bir t h ?

A n d if my existen ce t hen noways concerns me n o w as ,

li tt le n eed my existence after m y death concern me n ow .

Unconsciousness before the na t ural bir t h of our bodies

su gg ests unconsciousness when t he or g anisation na t urally
dissolves What arguments can j ustify expec t ation o f a
.

sor t o f existence which can no way rese m ble wha t any

living m e mb er of the human race has experien ced ? When

it i s asked says the sceptic
,
whether Agamemnon , ,

Th ersi t es Hannibal V arro and every stupid clown that

, , ,

ever exis t ed in Italy S cy t hia Bactria or Guinea is n ow

, , , , ,

alive can any man think tha t a s crutiny of na t ure will

,

furnish ar g uments strong enough to a nswer so s t range a

ques t ion in t he a fr ma t ive Moreover how can endless ,

personal existen ce b e reconciled with a se n se o f personal

identi t y ; o r with t he faintest memory in an in ni t e fu t ure , ,

of the immor t al person s immeasura b le past ? It is di f cult

for a grown man t o iden tify himself with t he new b orn

b abe which he once w as how is this di f c u lty increased
f
when t he person has b ecome millions o years old ? Wha t
practical identity can there b e betwee n myself n o w and
myself a hundred millions of years hence ? And above ,

all wha t means a co n scious life that is endless or in nite

, ,

thus t ranscending years and t ime ? I S no t an i n ni te

su cces s i on o f conscious states o r o f events of any sor t
, ,

impossible ? A t any ra t e what scien t i c verication of a

,

conclusion s o stupendous is possible ? E ven t he crucial

instance o f a m a n w h o has died and been res t ored t o life
t elling his experien ce of what followed his death fails :
 THE U NIV E R S A L PR O B L E M . 13

fo r he could no t have had experience o f endlessness I t .

is questions o f this sor t that the mystery o f dea t h is

ap t to sugges t t o t hose who assu m e tha t the physically
scientic in terpre t ation of the w orld mus t be it s deepes t
in t erpre t a t ion .

Man s position in rela t ion t o the nal question which P l t l

a o s a

gives rise t o philosophy and which evokes religious faith $ 3 3;

,
1 0

and hope suggests Plato s parable o f the Cave Which in tmt e

,

.
us s

t hings are an allegory fo r in them the philosophic Greek

gaizl h f
rrl

,
c e
gures the contrast be t ween the realities beyond and the ,

cons t an t succession o f changes within this transi t ory em

bodied life S o tha t with respect to what really exists
.
, ,

men in t his mortal state are not unlike those who are
g e t ting educa t ed in a Cave ; looking o n the shadows o f
things with their e yes turned away from t he light which
,

r eve a ls t he reality outside .

Man s interest in a set t le m en t of his nal problem is G d n d

o a
m
.

th
perhaps connected by S chopenhauer to o ex clusively with m rt l ity e 1
o a
'

a vague des i re fo r some k i nd o f ex i stence af t er phys i f m n o a .

cal dea t h . We nd he says t hat the interest which
, ,

philosophies and religions inspire has always its stronges t

hold in the do g ma o f some kind of existence after dea t h ;
and although the mos t recent systems seem t o make the
exis t ence o f God t he main poin t and defend t his m os t ,

zealously ye t in reality t ha t is because t hey have con

,

n e c t ed their fai t h in a fu t ure life with God s existence

and regard the o ne as inseparable from t he o t her O nly .

o n accoun t o f this supposed future life is the existence o f

G o d important to man F o r if o ne could sustain belief

.

in one s o w n unending exis t ence in some o t her way than

by faith in God s existence t hen zeal for the exis t ence ,

o f G o d would cool ; a nd if con versely the absolu t e i m

possibili ty o f a future life fo r m a n were proved t heo ,

logical zeal would give place t o complete t heological

indi fference A lso if we could prove that o u r continued
.
,

exis t ence af t er death was absol u t ely inconsis t en t with

t he existence o f G o d men would soon sacrice God to
,

t heir own immor t ality and become zealous for atheism

, ,

in order t o re t ain t h eir h O p e of a future life .

But does n o t all t his proceed upon a wrong idea o f

 14 PH I L O SO P H Y O F T H E I S M .

A nni v s e wh a t should b e sough t for when we t es t the reasona b le

er ,
w it h o t
ness o f faith and hope in the Universal Power ? Does it
u
G d
o .

n o t involve a m iscon cep t ion of wha t o u g h t to be meant

by the word G o d ? F o r a u niverse e m ptied of God is reall y
a universe withou t m eaning law or order ; withou t reason
, , ,

ei t her omnipresent in i t o r somehow suprem e over it

, ,

and that is therefore eve n physically uninterpre t able ;

wi t hou t t rus t wor t hy ac t ive moral r e ason at the root of its
t herefore ultimately chao t ic evolutions I t is a universe .

which m ay possibly be charged with purposeless future

misery t o men an d to all other sentien t beings m isery
,

innitely transcendi ng tha t which t he most wretched

h ave experien ced in t he pas t I t is a universe in which
.

we must live withou t reasonable hope ; and o n t h e s u p

posi t ion that each person s life in it mus t be endless it

m a y become t o all an endless hell from which t here is ,

n o escape in t o unconsciousness Wi th ou t perfec t moral

.

order and goodness personied a t its cen t re m an would ,

be in a w orse condition t han t hat o f the scep tic whose

tho u g h t s are paraphrased by Pascal Who h as sent m e .

into t his scen e in which I n ow n d myself I kno w ,

not he proclai m s in despair ;
,
wha t the t rue nal
meaning o f my surroundings may be I know not ; what ,

I really am myself I know n o t I am in a bewilderin g

,
.

and terrify ing ignora n ce o f all things : I kno w not how

t o interpret any of th e experience t hrou g h which I pass .

E n compassed by t he fathomless and fr ig h t ful abysses o f

Immensity and Et ernity I n d myself chained t o this
,

o n e little corner o f their boundless extent ; withou t under

standing w h y I am here rather th an there existin g n ow ,

rather than t hen ; wi t h unknowable Power all around ,

which m ay at any m oment cause me t o disappear like

a shadow The s u m o f my knowledge after the utmos t
.
,

e xperience t hat I can have o f t he i n nite universe in

which I am livin g is that I must soon die : my highes t
, ,

wisdo m seems to consist in nothin g b e tt er than a fruit

less meditation upon the mystery o f my o w n dea t h .

Fai t h in the omnipresent supremacy o f active moral

Reason fai t h in G o d is t he o ne un con di t ional human

hope .
 THE U N I V E R S A L PR O B L E M . 15

It is t old o f Bishop B u tler tha t o ne day in conversa A i ns n u a e

nv rs
t ion wi t h his friend Dean Tucker he pu t t h e ques t ion ,
I e e :

Whe t her nations as well as individual men might no t be

liable t o ts o f insanity ? I tho u gh t little a t t he t ime

o f that o dd conceit of the Bishop th e Dean remarks ;
,

bu t I o w n I could no t avoid thinking o f it afterwards ,

and applyin g it to many cases o f nations and their rulers .

Bu t ler s o d d conceit may suggest a ques t ion not unlike

his with re g ard no t to nations only but to the ever

, , ,

chan g in g Universe in which we are living and partici

pating May no t t he supposed cosmos to a dim per
.
,

ce p ti o n o f whic h w e all awake be the manifestation o f

,

irra t ional o r even o f innitely cruel Power ? We h ave n o

, ,

guarantee agai n s t the virtual insanity o f t he Universe ,

w hen we lose moral reason in t he Universal Power .

Under such condi t ion s can w e even j ustify t he vu lgar

,

faith which in daily life an d in the previsions and

, ,

veri ca t ion s of science t akes for g ranted without proof

, , ,

t hat man i s livin g in an in t elligible physical syste m the ,

even t s in which are t to be reasoned about an d c o n

ver t ed into physical science ? For i t may then be tha t
h e is living in wha t may turn o u t a t last a physical
C haos ins t ead o f a physical Cosmos ? O rder in t he past
is n o securi ty t hen for order in th e fu t ure M ay n ot the .

postulate of order in na t ure n a t ural l aw in t hings b e

a mis t ake for what at last is purposeless unreason a t the

heart o f t he whole ?
Much philosophical and religious though t in t he pas t A bs l t o u e

is the issue o f endeavours to nd the best answers to

questions like t hese Reecting m e n h ave been moved im
. a .

to inquiry because they wanted to nd reaso n able security

that t he supposed C osmos w as n o t nally C haos s o that

t he world and human faculties m ight be trus t ed in This .

is the do m in an t note of absolute Idealism which in its ,

o wn w ay seeks to s h ow t hat experience is coherent in the

organic u nity o f reason s o that n o rightly exercised hu man

,

being can be put to permanent confusion by irrationality

in the Univers a l Power .

I S moral faith in the Universal Power the hi g hes t phil Q s ti n s ue o

W h mh
osophy and if s o what does this fai t h involve
, , ,
? Is i t o u r
 16 PH I LO SO PH Y OF TH EIS M .

Nr l mos t reasonable at t i t ude demanded b y an d su fficien t for

at u a ,

Th l g eo O
Y human na t ure in i t s tr u e ideal ? I S t he immeasura b le
in th W d e i

e st m n real i ty i n wh i ch I n d myself l i v i ng and movi ng an d

ea ,

9
[if 3 1 5
1
11
havin g my
1
1
being
8
roo t ed in A c t ive Moral Reason
,
an d ,

tot o o n t herefore absolutely worthy o f t rus t ; o r is i t hollow an d

g c
Si d e
hopeless b ecause a t last wi t hou t meaning or even mean
, ,

in g ill ? A ccordin g to the answers t o t hose ques t ions our ,

surroundings and o u r fu t ure are viewed wi t h an i nera di

ca b le hope o r wi t h li t erally unu tt erable because to t al
, , ,

doub t and despair I t is t hose questions t ha t Na t ural .

Theolo g y i n the wides t sense o f t he term has t o an swer .

O ur M e I I Think nex t a b ou t the Me t hod o f procedure w e are

.

ggggfw
t
expec t ed t o follow when we are t rying t o nd t he answers .

lt t i
e e
a s Lord Gi fford s D eed o f Foundation recommends o n e way

? b y o f dealing wi t h t he nal problem of exis t ence while i t

$ str i t
9 31
,
e c

1y r
n at u e d
"
part i cularly warns u s a g ai nst ano t her as I ncons i s t en t W i t h ,

m et h d o
g enuine in quiry and honest t hou g h t The nal problem .

s el en c e ,
of o u r Universe is t o be disposed o f w e are t old accord
'

, ,

ing t o the s t ric t ly na t ural method of science ; accord

ing to me t hods as n a t ural as t hose adop t ed in t he
sciences of as t rono my and chemis t ry which are mentioned ,

as examples This is one ins t ruction The o t her is t ha t

. .

w e are to pursue t he inquiry withou t reference to o r ,

reliance upon any supposed special exceptional or s o

, , ,

called miraculous revelation .

A mb ig u E ach of t hese condi t ions s o s t a t ed seems t o involve, ,

I t) "
am b i g ui t y .

N at u r l a I n t he rs t place i t seems as I have already said t hat

, , ,

t his wholly uniqu e science of t he Universe cann ot b e a

u r l
a in science o f n atural causes in the same way as as t ron omy ,

and chemistry are sciences o f na t ural ca u ses For these .

ph y si al c t wo and o t hers like them are sciences of por t ions o f

, ,

Zi ex t ernal na t u re ; t heir facts receive the required explana

e nc es

t ion in inductively ascer t aine d laws in which the inferred ,

cause is presentable in sense an d t t o b e experi men t ed ,

on . B u t Inni t e B eing the Final Principle o f the uni

verse t ha t in vir tue o f which t he universe is a universe

,

an d which keeps i t a universe th i s cannot be t reated as

only a por t ion o f na t ure For t ha t would b e t o dives t i t

.
 18 PHIL OSO PH Y O F TH E I S M .

na t ural science must be formed by me thodical o b
servation o f even t s in nature and freely formed inference s ,

foun ded t hereon s o the t heology which is natural

,

must be determined by fac t s and by principles o f reason ,

known t o be t rue in their o w n light n o t dogm atically

assumed o n the infalli b le aut h ority o f a Church o r of
, ,

books assum ed t o express infallibly the divine purpose .

We know t ha t t here i s n o such do g matically imposed

au t hority fo r an infalli b le as t ronomy o r an infallible ,

chemis t ry which would supersede rational inves t iga t ion

,
.

In like manner b lind relian ce o n supposed infallibili t y

, ,

b iblical o r tradi t ional in m at t ers o f religious t hought mus t

, ,

b e put aside by the Gi fford lecturer s o tha t all the t hree

sciences t he t wo physical ones now named an d the ,

unique science o f the Universal Power must alike make

their nal appeal to reason in experien ce ; n o t t o t radi
t i o n a l au t hority p er s o which can never b e the fin a l,

court o f appeal for a reasona b le b eing o n any question , ,

na t ural o r supern atural Wha t i s meant see m s to be .

,

tha t r ea s ona b leness mus t nally direct us in this as in ,

every t hin g else if w e are reasonable bein g s

, .

B t l it r
u eS o I do no t in t erpret the terms of this Founda t ion as
ng f fivgfg unphilosophically pu t ting an arbi t rary restrain t up n
c s

o
ins p ir reason by W i th d r a w m g from o u r regard part o f what I s
a

,
ti n f n
o
p rt f th
a
s
repor
o
0r
t ed
e
1
in the history of t he world includi n g those ,

r rd d S i g nal examples of rel i gi ous exper i ence i n Palesti ne and

ec o e ,

3 323 elsewhere which claim to be the issue o f wha t is called

1 3 3 11 0 8
,
11
superna t ural in t erposi t io n The Church and t he Bible .

presen t spiri t ual experien ces about G o d which s om eh ow ,

certain m en have ac t ually expressed in words o r in

ritual an d which (s o far ) are fac t s in the history o f man
,
.

Whether natur a l o r super n atural in any o f the several ,

meanings o f t hose ambiguous t erms t his recorded ex ,

p e r i e n c e is a portion o f his t ory I t i s still t he o ffice of

.

reason to j udge under what con di t ion s i t is reasonable t o

accep t recorded human experience as revelation o f G o d ,

and also to in t erpre t the words in which t he e x p e ri

en ce is recorded Whatever God h as revea l ed is cer
.

t ainl y t ru e ; w e ar e obliged in reason to accep t it for ,

in doin g s o we are accepting reason itself B ut t hat .

 THE U N I V E R S A L PR O B L E M . 19

t his o r tha t which claims to b e divine i s divine can

n ot be assumed blindly : reason m us t j udge whe ther it
is reasonable s o to accep t it Reason indeed can never
.

permi t u s to rej ec t a greater evidence in order t o em

brace what is less eviden t nor allo w us to en ter t ain
,

proba b ility in opposi tion to absolu t e cer t ain t y N o evi .

dence t hat any church o r book is divi n e can be more

clear an d cer t ain t han are the universal and necessary
principles o f reason ; and t herefore nothing that is d e
m ons tr a b ly i n consi sten t wi t h what is reaso n able h a s a righ t
in reason to be received in faith B u t whatever i s divine
.

revela t ion can claim assen t in th e name of nal reason ,

which is itself the inspiration o f God .

O ne nds much need for S ocratic qu es tioning when t he W h t i a s

terms na t u ral and supernatural are O pposed to o n e $ 3 2t
11
,

another Wha t conception of n a t ure is taken when ng r

1

. h a a ?

theology is called natural and as such admitted to
,

acade m ical treatmen t as philosophically queen amon g t he

,

sciences ? Can there be a di fference in kind between

wha t happens naturally and anything tha t is supposed
,

t o make its appearance superna t urally i h an ultimately

reasona b le universe ? Must no t all that can enter in t o

t he his t ory of t he planet and its inhabi t an t s be regarded by

the theis t as na t ural i n the wide m eaning o f nature ?
and must n o t all possible events whe t her called natural
,

o r superna t ural be consis t en t wi t h the di vine intellec t ual

,

order ? Nay i s n o t supern aturalness in another Vie w

, , ,

the characteristic o f man s o far as m an is a moral agen t

, ,

and to t hat ex t en t independent o f physical nature ? Is

not miracle W hen th e term is applied to a physical
event t he resurrection of a dead man a relative

term dependent o n t he limitations o f hu m an experience

,

an d hu m an intellec t ual g rasp ; s o t hat in p ropor t ion as

,

man s intelligence and experien ce are widened events

called superna t ural or m iraculous would be seen by the

eye of reason to t ake t heir places in t he perfect order o f
G o d bu t a t a point o f View perhaps transcending the
S hare of scienti c knowledge in wh i ch a hum a n i nt ell i
gence can participa t e ? In the V ie w o f perfect Intelligence
can any even t s ay t he resurrec t ion o a dead man b e
f
 20 P H IL OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

miraculous and not ra t her in natural c onformity with

,

omnipresen t reason and purpose ? Looked a t from the

cen tr e o f t hings is it no t true tha t ei t her nothin g should
,

be called supernatural o r all should be called superna t ural ,

A dim idea of this sor t was perhaps in Bishop Bu tler s

mind whe n h e sugges t e d tha t t here can b e n o absurdity

in supposing beings in the universe whose capacities an d
knowledge may be s o ex t ensive as that the whole Chris
tian dispensation commonly called superna t ural or mir ,

ac u l o u s m ay to them appear na t ural ; as na t ural as th e

,

visible course of things appears t o u s If all that happens .

,

o r can happen in na t ure is t he i m mediate issue and
,

expression of omnipresen t ac t ive reason t he dis t inctio n ,

b etween na t ural and supernatural seems in t h e end to

disappear ; but no t t herefore t he dis t inc t ion b e t w een wha t
is m erely physical o r sensuous and wha t is S piritu al ; nor
is th e ra t ional possi b ility shu t o u t o f events b y man fo r
ever incalcula b le .

I F it h
s a a Locke accordin g to Hume w as t he rs t Christian who
, ,

$ 58 33?
9 1
ven t ured openly to asser t th a t fa i th was n othing but a

species o f r ea s on an d tha t religion intellectually con,

s i d er e d w as a branch of philosophy O mnipresen t r a .

t i o n al order no t irra t ional and capriciou s in t erference

,

with ra t ional order must b e presupposed a t the fo u n d a ,

t ion o f all revelatio n s of the charac t er o f the Univer
sal Power whe t her the revela t ions are called na t ural o r
,

superna t ural This i s n o t inconsis t en t wi t h t he principle

.

on which Goe t he o bj ected t o Hegel for t ransformin g ,

the Chris t ian religion into philosophy namely t hat , ,

philosophy has really nothin g to do wi t h it ; inasmuch

as Chris t ianity i s sus t ained no t by p h ilosophy bu t b y , ,

b ei ng found in experience t o have a migh t of i ts own by ,

which dej ec t ed su ffering humanity is re eleva t ed from

,
-

t ime t o time For in this which af t er all is an ar g u

.
,

m e n ta ti ve appeal t o experience t he spiri t ual effi ciency ,

o f Chris t iani t y proved b t he consequences o f its en

,

III Fur t her Lor d Gi fford s Dee d gives a moral mo tive

.
,

 THE U NIV E R S A L PR O B L E M . 21

for his encoura g emen t of Natural Theology in i t s wide I l l s tr u a
m
meaning It was because he sa w in true knowledge o f s, n
.

l e ce e
p
God the means o f man s h i ghes t welfare a n d secur i ty for d n f

, e ce o

his upward progress ; and also that t his knowledge could B gigt
be t hus valuable only when i t w as reasonable convic t io n p n , u o ou r

really fel t an d ac t ed o n not merely S pecula t ion ab m n l e
,
i gn
And I think Efii f
lo
s t r ac t e d from human life and social regard .
e ,

it may be gran t ed t hat the ul t imate concep t ion of life ,

in i t s relations to O m n ipresen t Po wer which a man (con ,

s c i o u s l y o r unconsciously ) acts under is t hat which chiey ,

makes him wha t he i s Take so m e obvious illus t ra t ions

. .

I f a m an fully accepts a nal conception o f t he universe ,

which makes him only t he passi ve subj ect o f blindly

necessi t a t ed natural evolution m orali t y and immorality
,

become meaningless words and F atali s m as t he logical

, , ,

i s also the practical issue Again our conduct and o u r

.
,

j udgments of hu m an action m ust di ffer widely as the

wholly material o r the spiri t ual t he pessi m ist o r t he ,

opti m ist concep t ion of existence governs our lives Also

, ,
.
,

unless we presuppose omnipresent Goodness in the uni

versal evolution we cannot j us t ify any in t erpre t ation put
,

upon events by science : i t is all physical chaos under a ,

t emporary sembla n ce o f cosmos ; deceptive chaos with a ,

present pre t ence o f order .

It mus t surely be w i th a sense of weighty prac t ical T h ni v eu er

issues that we address ourselves t o the considera t ion o f

the supreme problem which in fain t outline I have now b tr t d e ea e

put before yo u . In t he t reatment of it either of t w o giggl f i

,
s
r

obj ects may be pro m inen t It m ay be treated b istori m t p h j a
.
e a s

f
cally as an investig t ion o t he religions o f the world in
,
a l l ) ca

their natural evolu t ion in a historical science and psycho

,

logical analysis o f Religion ; or it may be t rea t ed meta

physically as an examination o f the ultimate foundations
,

o f t he religious conception o f the universe in a Phil ,

osophy o f Theism I n S co tland bo t h t hese courses were

.

followed by D avid Hume The o n e is exemplied in

.

his Na t ural His t ory o f Religion a pioneer o f that

,

S cience o f Religion which is characteristic o f the nine

t e en t h century ; the o t her is the subj ect o f Hume s Dia

 22 PH I LOSO PH Y OF THEISM .

lo g nes concernin g Natural Religion in which we are ,

brough t face t o face with t he me t aphysical questions

which underlie reli g ion an d all human experience .

I ths e Lecturers o n th e Gi fford Foundation in this an d the ,

t h l gi l
co n
eo o
p ti n
ce
o t her ca

o
S cot t ish Universi t ies have hi t her t,
o I t hink i n , ,

o f th e ni c lin e d to th e historical t reatment o f Reli g ion

u D eeply .

v rs n
e e a
in t eres t in g as tha t is it l aves in the b ackground the
a n h on
ac r e ,

i m nd
s a supre m e human q uestion especially in a s cep t ical age ,

a bs r d u
t he t ru t h o r validi t y o f Religion in any of its develop
m en t s Can i t be philosophically j us t ied ? Is it a per
.

m anen t a tt i t ude of human na t ure consisten t with reason , ,

if not t he culmina t ion o f reason in man ? C an tru t h in

su ch m atters or if n o t in any mat t er be ei t her na t urally
, ,

o r superna t urally reache d by man ? I s t he religious con

c ep t i o n o f t he universe a pro t rac t ed illusion characteristic ,

o f certain lower st ag es o f human development b u t an ,

anachronism in a civilisa t ion like that o f modern E urope

and America which demands veried prevision under a
,

physical o r mechanical con cep t ion o f the universe as the ,

only le g itima t e cri t erion of reali t y ?

Th m t e e aI propose to take the second of these t wo poin t s of View ,
ph y s i l an
ca
d s o to deal m etaphysically with the nal human prob
p i nt s f
o o
v i w p r o m lem This involves inquiry in t o foundations o f the di ffer
e .

in n t in
e
en t n al in t erpretations o f existence all religious if
this ,

Co s ur e . religion means va g ue recognition by m an o f Po wer in the

universe tha t is superior to his o wn not all properly
theis t ic Philosophy of Theism n ot Natural His t ory of
.
,

Religion is o u subj ect yet with the his t ory t aken in
r ,

occasionally in illustra t ion o f the philosophy The moral

,
.

interes t of the his t ory lies in the validity and worth of

t he faith Reli g ion presupposes tha t human experience
.

demands a deeper in t erpreta t ion t han t hat o ffered in the

concep t ions o f na t ural science Theistic faith claims for
.

man an obligation in reason to recognise t he universe

as supremely or nally a m oral and spiritual unity R e .

l igi o u s phenomena are insu f cien t ly treate d when re g arded ,

only as transitory physical growth o r evolution t he s c ien ,

t i c ordering o f which is t aken for our whole intellec tual

concern with t hem O ne still wan t s to be satised regar d
.

ing their practical and their e t ernal validity O n e wan t s .

 THE U N I V E R S A L PR O B L E M . 23

to nd whe t her he is obedien t t o t he inevitable limita

t ions o f hu m a n knowled g e when he ventures to put a
,

religious m eanin g upon experience an d trea t s this as its

,

m ost real meaning . I S lial faith in O mnipoten t Good

n ess a reasonable sta t e o f the human m ind and even an ,

i ndispensable m oral postulate of human e xperience ?

In wha t follows I will try t o supply so m e inci t ement Ai d s t o
r
and direction to reec t ion upon o u r nal a t ti t u de t owards n ti n e ec o
o n l our a
the universe frankly facin g dif culties tha t are apt to t t it d t
, a u e o
w r d s th
occur to thoughtful persons always seeking to keep reali t y ni v rs
,
u
a

e e
e

hones t ly in view and satised to make the best o f g limpses

.

o f reali t y t ha t m a be within our reach in t his embodied

y
life .
 24

L E C T U R E II .

T H REE P R I MA RY D A TA : E GO ,
M A TTE R AN D , GOD .

Ult imat e THE ul t ima t e pro b lem o f existence in t he vague form ,

in which i t was presen t ed in las t lec t ure m ay seem ,

t i on f t h
o e to evade in t ellectual g rasp . I t mus t b e fur t her ar
t i c u l at e d before i t can b e t aken hold of for orderly
medi t a t ion an d inves t iga t ion A n advan ce towards t hi s
.

is m ade when w e reco g nise t hat t he innite reality o f

which w e are par t into which we are all born and th e
, ,

meaning an d purpose of which philosophy an d religio n

are especially co ncerned wi t h presents t hree primary
,

da t a
. E ach o f t h es e j m en seem t o b e o b liged in som e
degree t o recognise but wi t h innumerable di fferences in
,

their individual conceptions The t hree data make thei r

.

appearance in t he very words o f Lord Gi fford s Deed

,

which dene the province o f Na t ural Theology in t he ,

w ides t meaning of t he t erm . For the words represen t i t

as comprehending knowledge o f God s nature and att r i

bu t es knowledge o f the rela t ions o f m en t o God

and

knowledge o f the rela t ions which the whole universe

bears t o God . Here we have men ex em p l i ed by
each man for himself in his own private consciousness ;
,

t hen t he material world outside eac h conscious ego ; and ,

fo r the n al syn t hesis , G o d I n ni t e or Universal

Power .

T h e thr e e But although these three da t a are commonly pos t ula t ed

as dis t in g uisha b le existences i t is n o t to be supposed tha t
,

d iff r ntl y
e e existence su b s t ance reali ty and suchlike
,

n cei v e d
co
t erm s are applied t o each o f t he t hree in the sam e
,
 26 PHIL OS O PH Y O F TH E I S M .

h appy in prop ortion to t he due ackn owledgmen t of all

the t hree C onfused conceptions o f the three are an
.

inexhaus t ible source o f t wo ex t remes superstition and

scepticis m .

T he t Take Locke s accoun t o f the foundation o f certainty as

h r ee

332?
1
t o the E go Ma tt er and God It is given expressly
,
in , .

arti l t d three chapters o f the fourth book of his E ssay : bu t

cu a e

,
by LO k
indeed t he wh ole E ssay conver g es and rests in t h e
C e '

en d upon wh at Locke calls man s t hreefold knowledge

o f exis t en ce I choose Locke among philosophers fo r .

this purpose b ecause h e gives expression more than most ,

of them to the uncriticised convictions o f the co m m on

mind ; and b efore n atural science and theological ideas
were m odied either by the conception of universal ,

physical evolution or by the philosophical criticism o f ,

Kant and the dialec t ic o f Hegel I wan t t o present .

Locke s homely ar t icula t ion of the ul t ima t e problem o f

the universe a s a preparation fo r the considera t ion o f ,

more pre t entious philosophical speculations which try to ,

resolve the three primary da t a in t o one He pu t s t he .

case in the ninth chapter o f t he four t h book o f the

E ssay and by implica t ion in t he t wen t y third chapter
,
-

o f t he secon d book .

H o w th e In Locke s view t he mos t o b vious o f the three nal

O

u rance o n e has o f his o wn exis t

figfgg gf; cer t ain t ies is E go the ass
e
l
l
o wn x i s teence This arises when he reco g nises h i ms elf t o be some
.

e nc ri s s how more than a succession o f conscious s t ates as t he

e a e :

invisible personal cen t re t o which alone a portion o f t he

conscious experien ce th at is i n process in the universe
must be referred as being his own private and con ,

t i n u o u s conscious life As for o u r own exis t ence he .
,

says w e perceive it so plainly and so cer t ainly t ha t
,

i t neither needs nor i s capable of any proof For noth .

ing can be m ore eviden t t o me than my own exi stence .

I think I reason I feel pleasure and pain : can any

, ,

o f these s t a t es be more evident t o me t han my o w n

existence ? If I doub t o f all other things tha t very ,

doub t makes me perceive my own exis t ence E xperience .

 T HR E E PR I M A R Y D A TA . 27

t hen convinces us t hat w e have an in t uitive knowledge

o f our o wn existe n ce an internal infallible perception
, ,

tha t we are (Bk iv. ch ix ) . . . .

I n this pos t ula t e Locke is g iving expression to t he u n T h d t e a um

criticised conviction o f the human mind E nigmas tha t .

underlie t he da t um are left t o the speculating philosopher p s n er o

111
to disinter They emerge when we proceed to rake Locke s $3g 3
.

,
0"

foundation For further reection is provoked to as k

.
,

What i s m eant by one s existence as a separate person

tha t s o meth i n m or e than a series o f isola t ed conscious

g
states which is supposed to be signi ed by the pronoun
,

I ? T his is the riddle o f personality T he personal .

pronoun in s o far as i t means t his some t hing more
, ,

m eans somethin g t ha t cannot be perceived by the senses

o r pictured Mus t it therefore be discharged fro m lan
.

g uage as e m p t y sound ? T his is the w ay t he personal

,

pronoun h as been sometimes t rea t ed David Hu m e fo r .

,

example dismissed all ter m s as j ar g on t o which no i mag

,

i n ati o n could be attached ; and o n this principle he virtu

ally dispensed with the personal pronoun I
For after .
,

trying t he experi m en t he sa i d he could never li g ht upon

,

anythin g perceptible o r i m aginable correspo n din g to I ,

only isola t e d and transitory conscious states

; s o he con
cluded t hat if any one pre t ended t o think th a t the Eg o
was some t hing more than t he single perception or feeling

o f t h e moment it was impossible t o reason with him
,
.

If any one perceives something S i m ple and con t inued

which he calls himself I am cer t ain he asserts tha t

, , ,

t here is no such percep t ion o f continuous exis t ence in

me But this negative certain t y of Hume is confronted
.

by t he di fcul ty tha t if the personal pronoun si g nies

,

nothing more than isola t ed m omentary perceptions there ,

must b e as many persons or egos as there are moment a ry

perceptions ; each momentary percep t ion in wha t is com ,

mo u ly called one s m ind constitu t in g a separate person

, ,

whose personal life lasts only as lon g as the momentary

consciousness las t s I t i s further confronted by the fact
.

that t he mysterious ego inevitably reappears by implica

t ion in t he words and actions even o f the sceptical philo
sopher wh o is t hus obli ged in fact to acknowledge as
,
 P H I LOS O PH Y OF TH E I S M .

re al more than can be presen t ed i n sense or pic t ured i n

sen s u ous imagination .

E ni g m s a There are other eni g mas involved in o u r o w n exis t enc e

i n v lv e d
o
tha t lie m ore o n the surface t h an t he on e n o w su g ges t ed .

i n th i d e ea

o f w n The origin
our o gradual evolution and nal destiny o f t h e
, ,

i n d iv i d l invisible
ua
an d continuou s Eg o t he relations o f t he Eg o
e xist n e ce
;
of wh i ch w e are conscious to its visible organism ; t h e
.

need and na t ure of its connection wi t h Ma t ter are ,

amon g t he ques t ions sug g ested b y the meaning o f th e

personal pronoun which modern thou g h t presses upon
us Locke is sa t ised wi t h g iving emphatic expression
.

t o his S pontaneous convic t ion o f his own exis t ence S i .

n on r og a s , i ntellig o .

T h e e ie He deals m ore analy t ically with percep t ion of t hin g s

bl f
h
t at mo v
presen t t o the senses t he second of t he t hree primary
ab l h gs
e t in
a nd i n data Con t ac t and collision with ou t ward t hings is found
.

dvd l
i i ua t o b e the occasion if not t he ori g in of o u r awakin g int o
p rs on s
e
, ,

ex i st t an irresis t ible conviction o f o u r personali t y For that

ou .

sid m e convic t ion involves a perception of some t hin g outside each

e .

e g o to which the personal s t a t es are found rela t ed E very

,
.

ac t o f sensuous percep t ion gives us Locke says an , ,

f
equal view o f both par t s o Nature the corporeal and the
S piri t ual Whils t I know b y seei n g an d hearin g that
.
, ,

t here is som e corporeal bein g wi th ou t me t he obj ec t o f ,

t ha t sensa t ion I do more certainly kno w also t ha t t her e

,

is some S piritual being wi th i n me that sees and hears

t ha t o bj ec t S o he nds t ha t t he human ego b ecomes
.

simul t aneou sly possessed o f t his irresistible assuran ce
o f t h e ou t side exis t ence o f t hin g s visi b le and t a n g i b le ;

thin g s which canno t b e appropria t ed by t he e g o as state s

o f itself in t he way t ha t its o wn pas t and presen t feelings
,

and t h ough t s are appropriated Bu t i t is impor t an t t o .

remark t ha t i t is a por t ion o f ou t ward exis t ence very
limi t ed in ex t ent and duratio n which is supposed by Locke ,

t o be perceived withou t need o possibility of proof over

r
,

and above t he spon t anei t y o f t he sensuous perception i t self ,

and t he certainty which t his spon t anei t y is t aken t o i n

volve The obj ec t spon t an eously perceived is limi t ed b e
.
,

cause t he w orld o f ou t ward t hin g s is in cons t an t chan g e .

And t he uc t uating obj ec t s are fel t to be certainly real

 TH R EE PRIM A R Y D AT A . 29

o nly (s o Locke assumes ) durin g the momen t in which each

ou t ward thing by actually opera t ing upon our senses in
, ,

a manner for ces u s to p er cei ve i t then and there existing .

A ccordingly when an outward o bj ec t is withdrawn t o a

,

d is t ance fro m on e s organ s o f sense o r separated by an

interval of t i m e Locke assumes that o n e h as no absolu t e

,

certain t y o f i t s still conti n u ed existence I t s absen t .

e xis t ence at least in t he form it had when it w as pres

,

e n t can only be inferred and with a probabili t y varied

, ,

according t o circu m s t an ces When o n e is loo/si ng at the

.

s u n he mus t have perfect assurance that t he s u n is th en

,

really exis t i n g : t his is the spon t aneous certainty o f i m

m ediate perceptio n But when a t ni g h t he is only expec t
.

in g its reappearance in the morni n g this exp ecta ti on is ,

nothing more than probable convic t i on of t he continued

exis t ence of the absen t s u n : the solar syste m Locke ,

would s ay might con ceivably be dissolved before m orn

,

ing ; and there is n o unconditional guarantee t ha t this

may not actu ally happen .

I nnumerable enig m as underlie Locke s infallibly cer E nigm s

a
i n v l v d in
t ain sensuou s percep t ion o f ou t ward things enig m as p r p t i n o
e ce
e
o
s carcely apprehended by h i m especially in the forms in , f t h ing s o

x i s t i ng
w ich they n o appear in scien t ic and reli g ious thought
h w e

tw rd l y
.

ou a

Take an example He tells us tha t we have an irre
.

s i s ti b l e assurance o f the presen t corporeal reality of all

thin g s t ha t are actually operating upon our senses
especi ally upon t he senses of sigh t and touch as long

a s they persist in actually operating upon those senses .

Here a question of far reaching S igni cance arises which

-
,

Locke touches only incidentally In wha t meanin g o f the .

a mbi g uous words power
opera t ion an d cause m ay
, , ,

any things of sense be said t o op er a te either o n o n e an

o t her o r o n m e ? Have I reason fo r supposing that an
ato m o r a mass of atoms can be ri g htly called an ag en t ;
a lth ough in common and also in scienti c language bodies

i
are so spoken o nay are even supposed by materialis t s

,

t o be t he on ly a g ents in the chan g es cons t an t ly going o n

i n the universe ? Locke at any rate hesita t es to incl u de

active power in the complex idea we are j usti ed in
forming of ma ter i a l subs t ance ; although he falls into the
 0
O
0 PH I L OSO P H Y O F T H E I S M .

popular m o d e of expression ; for he occasionally speaks o f

b odi es opera t i n g Bu t he sug g ests wi t h characteristic
.
, ,

caution in the part o f th e E ssay where the powers o f
,

substances are expressly treated o f tha t ma t erial s u b ,

stances are n o t s o entirely active powers or a g en t s as

o u r hasty t houghts are ap t to represen t t hem Indeed .
,

whether m atter be not wholly destitu t e of active power

m ay be wor t h considera t io n Bu t if t ha t be s o the soli d .
, ,

m ovable thin g s by which we are surrounded can be only

the natural occ a sions not the origin o f o u r percep t ions o f , ,

t hem He begins to see that we mu st look else where t han

.

t o t hin g s visible an d tan g ible for the po w er t ha t direc t s

t he cha n ges which the na t ural scien ces are gradually
learning to explain It is only es t ablished order o f.

procedure in external na t ure n o t cau sation proper t ha t , ,

t h ose s ciences are concerned with Natural science i s .

only articulate applica t ion o f o u r faith that in nature

t h e f u ture will s o resemble th e past that we t hrough ,

t h e past m ay with practical safe t y to some exten t

, , ,

forecast the fu t ure But our interpre t ations are of t en .

mistaken when tested by t he issue ; and even i n t hose

,

cases in which they are veried by experimen t it is only ,

pro b able veri cation n ot uncondi tional certain ty t ha t , ,

on e is landed i n The concrete past can n ever make t he

.

concre t e future kn own in t he way abstrac t premisses ,

make know n an abstract conclusion in a m at hem atical

de m onstra t ion We do n o t know all the powers which
.

de t ermine changes o r the possible action of the Universal

,

Power A ccordi ng ly w e cannot be said to kn ow u ncon

.
,

d i ti on a lly even th at the sun will rise t o morrow An -

.

accident as in o u r ignorance w e migh t call it may
, ,

occur to the solar sys t em in the in t erval s o tha t there ,

may be no t o morrow in the ordinary m ea ning All
-
.

physical science o f ou tward thi n gs is sus t ained at last
in undemonstrable fai t h .

D l it y f
ua o Never t heless with mys t eries like th ese wrapped up in
gtf
l g nd
f
a

el
the t wo da t a this duality of conscious person an d n u

conscious thin g are t aci t ly assumed but by most persons

, ,

in a s i n on r oga s i n tellig o state of m ind S o o n e may s ay

,
.

t hat h e has na t ural assurance of his own exis t ence as a ,

 TH R E E PR I M A R Y D ATA . 31

separa t e self conscious e g o ; and also na t ural assurance o f

-

t he e xis t ence of thi ng s ou t side as long as they are present

to his senses He nds when he ac t s that he canno t rid
.

himself of either o f t hese as workin g convictions and he

, ,

nds t ha t each is the correlative o f the other .

S till t his dual universe in which I nd myself is re F init e

d
cognised as i n comp lete when o n e thinks of it as consisti ng nd th
,
l it y ua ,

a e
on ly o f the ego and the ou t side world the occasion t o p r s e u
p
m
the ego o f innu erable pains and pleasu res Locke e x S m h ing p s i t i n f .
o o o

t o e
presses the comm on feeli ng o f t his incompleten ess dim I n nit , e .

in many when he nds hi mself u n able t o think o f his

,

own existence wi t hout also recognisin g the existence o f

S ome t hing E ternal o r Innite m ore and other than

t h e e g o more and other than t he outer world o f t hi n gs .

He nds himself as certain of the reality o f this E ternal

S omething as certain t o o that this E ternal S omethi ng
mus t be E ter n al Mind as he is certain of any con clusion
m

in mathematics He nds himself even surer t hat an

.

E tern al Mind exists than he i s that an y thing else ou t

side o f himself exis t s ; and he believes th at every other
human bein g wh o makes the trial must n d that this is s o .

It is as certain in reason h e says tha t there is a God
, ,

as i t i s cer t ain that the O pposite angles made by t he

intersection o f t w o strai g h t lines are equal o r as tha t the ,

three angles o f a triangle are equ al t o tw o right a ngles .

Y e t while the existence o f t he Universal Power the ,

supreme factor of experience beco m es conscious certainty

,

in all wh o reect the cert a inty Locke grants needs r e

, , ,

ec t i o n to awak e n it Without du e reec t ion a m a n m ay

.

re m ain as ignoran t of Divine Rea l ity as a stranger to

geo m e t ry may remain ignoran t o f the demons t ration s ,

and even the axioms o f E uclid altho u gh they lie laten t

, ,

in th e minds o f all I n like ma n ner many persons never

.
,

recognise necessity in experience fo r the exis t ence o f

Divine Mind . But it must be re m embered that the
o t her t wo d ata our o w n exis t ence and tha t o f outside ,

things are also only obscurely recognised although all

,

acknowle dge them in feelin g an d action

,
.

Now h o w does conviction o f the existence o f E ternal L k s oc e

nt f ac c o u o
Mind rs t en t er a human mind ? G o d cannot o f course , ,
 32 PHIL O SO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

h o w we be presented to o u r senses ; n o r indeed can any o t her , ,

co me to
fr
in e
e g o t han my o wn b e present to me in the way the ,

E rn l
te a invisible ego is Here i s Locke s answer
. I canno t
:

M d
in .

wan t a clear proof t ha t G o d exis t s as lon g as I carry ,

myself abou t with me F o r each man knows t ha t he

.

individually exists and he also knows tha t h e has not

existed always It is therefore in evita b le to him as a
.
,

rational bein g t o conclude t ha t S ome t hing m ust have

,

exis t ed from e t ernity t his being of all absurdities

,

t he grea t est in t he eye o f reason t o imagine t ha t pure

No t hing the perfec t ne g ation and absence of all b ei n g s
, ,

S hould ever produce any real exis t ence I canno t m yself .

b e this Et ern al S ome t hin g seein g that m y o w n exis t ence

, ,

as I know had a b e g inning ; an d whatever had a beginning

,

mus t h ave been produced by somethi n g else ; and i t mus t

have got all t h at belongs to i t s existence from t ha t other
being Further I nd tha t I am a t hinking b ein g : there
.
,

fore t his S omething the original source o f my existence

, ,

must be a thinking being t oo i t being as imp ossible tha t -

what is wholly void of knowledge and operatin g blindly ,

and withou t any percep t ion S hould produce a kno win g ,

being such as I am as i t is impossible that a triangle

, ,

should m ake itself three an g les bigger than t wo ri g h t

ones . This arg umen t af t erwards elabora ted by S amuel
,

Clarke is in subs t ance as o ld as A ristotle

, .

C an t h e Nevertheless E ternal ,
Mind when reco g nise d by ,
E t er n a l Locke as t he t ransla t ion of t he E ternal S ome t hing is t his
Po w er b e ,

r egar d ed with an i mportan t qualica t ion A m I permit t ed by .

as s el f reason t o think of the E ternal S omething as Mind

cons i u s
,
c o

M in d such as I nd conscious in myself ? I s t he E ternal Mind

conscious mind o r is the ter m consciousness applic
,

able t o t he E ternal Power ? A re w e obli g ed to suppose

in wha t is called G o d an individual conscio u s life in ,

which subj ect an d obj ect are distin g uished as i n human

consciousness ? May we t hink o f E tern al Mind as a s ep
ara t e conscious life continually passing through conscious
,

chan g es ? and if s o what is t he ground in reason for so

,

t hinking ? H o w do w e know t hat t he E ternal Power i s

an operative conscious life and s o eter n ally ? A S t o ,

this Locke S hows charac t eris t ic cau t ion The Et ern al .

 34 P H IL OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

nite fac t s only ; and which a s ni t e raises anew i n , , ,

stead o f n ally foreclosing the previous questio n as to the

, ,

c ause o f i ts exis t ence Th e supposed g ods o f poly t heism

.

are nite therefore dependen t an d un t t o satisfy t he ,

need fo r absolute support or t o mee t man s sense of i n ,

comple t eness i n all that is ni t e The essence o f t h e .

meani ng o f th e word G o d is necessarily wan t ing in

t hem When G o d i s taken t o be a conclusion from
.

the world ins t ead of a presupposition involved in all

,

reasonable interpretation o f the world the term is then ,

used in an un t heistic meaning ; an d s o far as this applies ,

to poly th eis t ic reli g ions th ey are in t his respect untheistic

, .

We m ust n o t take the opera t ion of o n e nite b eing

upon another nite bein g as an alogy fo r forming an
inni t e conclusion God is n o t t o be t hou g h t of as on e
.

amon g inn umerable individuals material and spiritual , ,

which make u p the universe but as O n e in whom all ,

have t heir individu al being O ne incomprehensi b le under

g enus o r species absolu t ely unique incapa b le o f b eing

classed .

M o r l i ty
a ,
The three primary data of reali ty are severally t he
ph y s i l ca
occasions o f morality science an d reli g ion My o wn
sin
c e ce,
, ,
.

and r l i e exis t ence implied in the reco g ni t ion o f my continuous

,

gi no .
personality and in the power which I refer t o myself
, ,

w hen I acknowledge perso n al respon sibili t y calls forth ,

ideals o f duty t o m an and God and a ffords material for ,

moral jud g ments E xternal nature a t leas t as presented

.
,

in o u r se n suou s experience is non moral : ye t withou t ,

-

t he medium supplied by ex t ernal thin g s as si g ns I see m ,

t o have no m eans o f discovering the exis t ence o f other

persons ; still less o f receiving from them o r communi ,

cating t o t hem ideas : s o t hat but for a material world , ,

there would be n o room for th at exercise and develop

men t o f intelligence which in t er p re t ation o f visible na t ure
requires and o n which individual and social pro g ress de
,

pend : th e m aterial world non m oral in i t self is a medium

,
-
,

o f social intercourse and also a medium through which

,

persons are individualised and morally educated Then .

,

too without faith and h O p e in the Universal Power

, ,
 T H R EE PRIM A R Y D ATA . 35

on which t he universe o f chan g e is presumed t o depend ,

a n d o n which w e repose as our basis for t ho u g h t and ao

,

tion b o t h morali t y and na t ural science must be paralysed

, .

I n this divine faith religion is roo t ed ; S O t ha t secular mo

rali t y and n a t ural science become a t las t religious Trus t .

in na t ural l aw is faith in God in germ .

S upersti t ion and scep t icism are extremes in t o which E mpl s xa e

m
men are led by no t preserving the balance be t ween t he gg g
,
l
three primary d ata o f reali t y While no one o f the t hree r g r d ing
. e a

can be wholly explained away consistently wi t h san e iin gf

,
tl f e l ee
l
hu m an life any o f t hem m ay be so exa ggerated as to S m
,
y
a ,

d is t or t the nal conception of life an d the universe .

Take examples . A t certain s t ages in man s religious
a n d intellectual development t here is a disposition t o
,

s ee G o d only in wha t is uncommon unexpec t ed ab , ,

n ormal ; and t o refer to what are called n a t ural agents ,

e vents tha t are customary A ccording t o this assumption

.
,

wha t ever is found t o evolve or grow evolution is another

n ame for grow t h g radually an d regularly is referred ,

wholly to a supposed power in nature which power ,

means only the constant na t ural method t hrough which

t h e issue is reached : G o d is recognised only when some
thing happens which seems n ot t o appear gradually o r
unde r n atural l a w S o t he realm of na t ural operation
.
,

and the real m in which God is supposed t o O perate come

.

to be regarded as each excluding the other ; with the r e

s ul t in an unconscious polytheism which makes o n e g od of ,


n a t ure and another god of supe rnature I t follows .

t hat all scien t ic discoveries o f natural causes o r na t ural

processes are supposed t o exclude God more and more
as the cons t ant agen t in the universe God is seen acting .

o nly in what science cannot naturally brid g e over ; and

t hese vacan t intervals o f course b ecome fewer and fewer

wi t h the advance o f science The need fo r a religious
.

interpre t ation o f wh at happens in the universe seems t o

diminish wi t h each step onward in natural interpretation :
t h e idea o f the universe as in i t self throu g hout nally
interpre table on ly physically and therefore foreclosing an
,

ulterior t heolo g ical conception in the end takes t he place

,

o f the religious id ea o f t he whole

The advance o f science
.
 36 PHIL O SO P H Y OF THEISM .

b ecomes the paralysis o f religious t hou g ht b ecause t h e ,

system of n a t ure leaves no room fo r that ar b i t rary viola

tion o f ra t io n al or d er in which supersti t ion and confused
theolo g ical thinking n d t he S ign of t he providen t ial pres
e n ce o f God When superstition is n o t permitted b y
.

s cience to re t ain an irregular and capricious universe of

this sor t it s dei t y an d its religion disappear The modern
,
.

apprecia t ion o f natural causes after dissolving t he per ,

s o n i c at i o n s of polytheis m is n ow des t royin g their relics

,

in i n adequa t ely conceived theism .

Th e con This conception o f God as mechanical and local and ,

j t
ec u r e
ex t ernal appears at the b o tt om of theolo g ical appeals
th t G d
a o ,

m y b
a a g ainst t he presump t ion o f t he a t heist w h o dares to
e ,
f n d l s con clude t ha t God does n ot exis t m erely b ecause neither
ou e e
wh r l
e e, a
,

th gh n t our eyes nor o u r t elescop es reveal His presence wi t hin

ou o
n this
o
pl n t
a e
t.
he compara t ively narrow and always nite space t o which
o u r senses even when ar t icially assisted and o u r i m
, ,

a i n at i o n give positive access

g If no t foun d h
. er e a God ,

m ay possibly be found th er e ; i f n o t t he cause o f th i s

which comes within our experience a G o d may possibly ,

be the cause o f s ometh i ng elsewh er e t ha t man cannot see .

If m an does n o t kn ow ever y a g en t in the wide ex panse of

the universe the a g en t that he i s i g noran t of may b e God
, .

I f he cannot assign t he causes o f all tha t he perceives t o

exist the unperceived cause o f t h a t u nknown remainder
,

may b e G o d If he does n o t know h o w every thing has

.

b een done in past a g es some o f those doin g s may have ,

b een the doin g s o f God I n short unless I preclude t he.

,

possi b le exis t ence o f ano t her g od by being omniscient o r

a g od myself I cannot know for cer t ain t ha t t he G o d
,

whose existence I deny m ay not exist s omewh er e Now a .

o d t hat can b e locally an d poten t ially presen t here b u t

g , ,

n o t there in this even t b u t n o t in tha t event ; o r tha t

, ,

mi g h t be detected b y a teles cope in some remo t e par t of

space if a powerful enough telescope could b e inven t ed ;
,

o r de t ec t ed only in ex t raordinary even ts spoken o f to o ,

as a G o d is surely n o t the Unique Divine Reali t y ,

in which we all live an d move and have o u r b ein g ;

presupposed t aci t ly in all percep tion and self conscious -

n ess o r else everywhere an d for ever o u t o f rela t ion t o

,
 TH R EE PR I M A R Y D ATA . 37

human life God as Bacon says does not need to work

.
, ,

physical miracles in order t o refute atheists If the whole .

n atural course o f t hings does n o t presuppose God as t he ,

condition of its being even physically in t erpre t able no ,

extraordinary local manifestations in nature can in them

s elves supply the proof Wi t h the presupposi t ion g ranted
.

o f Divine Reason laten t in the hear t o f existence some ,

e vents in t he his t ory o f t he universe may doub t less be

more tted than o t hers to evoke in t o fuller in t elligence the
correspondin g moral t rus t and adora t ion t ha t are laten t in
man ; but withou t t he t acit pos t ula t e o f God in all per
c e p ti o n and consciousness t his fuller or richer intelligence
,

o f Dei t y o t herwise evolved by enlarged experience nds

, ,

n o adequa t e foundation .

Again I s it n ot also an inadequa t e and inconsequen t O might

. r

theism that is left to depend nally upo n historical proof f n d h v b n a e ee

ou
that the cosmical economy of o u r little planet or eve n o f l ng g , o a o,

the solar sys t e m had no natural beginning ; because u nder n t n w

,
l th g h a ou
o o .

t he conception of na t ural beginning t he re could be no

reason i t i s assumed for the suppositio n of a God
, ,
If
the econ omy o f the present solar sys t em mus t rst be
proved by his t oric records to have been formed unnaturally
according t o the common expression by a sudden crea
,

tive ac t before faith in God can be j ustied the basis ,

see m s t o o n arrow and t o o precarious to support the c o n

elusion It is not enou g h t o argue fo r E ternal Mind as
.
,

s ome have done o n the g rou n d that it can be proved by

,

the book o f Genesis that t h e visible world originated in

G o d bu t t ha t there is no historical proof that the G o d in
,

whom it originated Himself had a beginning If we thus .

make history settle questions which lie beyond i t s sphere ,

wha t is t h e di fference in t his respec t be t w een t he solar

sys t em and the causally dependent God its historical
o rigin is supposed t o prove ? They are both treated in

these arguments as caused causes A men t al world o r
.
,

universe o f ideas as Hume sug g ests requires a cause as
, , ,

much as does a material world o r universe of obj ec t s In .

an abstrac t View they are entirely alike ; and no di f culty

,

attends the one supposition which is not common to bot h

o f t he m Is i t not only af t er the ultima t e divineness of
.
 33 P H I L OS O P H Y O F TH EIS M .

a ll na t ural processes has b een presupposed t ha t any ex ~

p e r i e n ce is foun d to enlar g e and illus t rate our concep t io n

of G od

P a mat e
n S o much in illus tra t ion o f perplexi t ies in which t hou g h t
11
32 353
11 8 11 ,
b ecomes involved under crude concep t i ons of th e t hree
a nd P an fundamen t al d a t a and t heir mutual relations The d i f .

t h el s m
cul t y o f reconcilin g these t hree exis t ences wi t h o n e
ano t her alon g wi t h the desire for undi fferentiated unity
,

awakened in speculatin g in t elli g ence leads to Monist ,

t heories which profess to resolve all tha t exis t s in t o O ne

o f t he t hree The theories di ffer according as this o r t hat
.

da t um obtain s exa gg erated an d in the end exclusive r e

, ,

cognition Thus t he ma t erial world which lls t he

.
,

horizon o f sense is t aken fo r t he si ngle reali ty in a

,

,

nal concep t ion which m akes t h e universe a t last only

a universe o f molecules in m o t ion This is P an m a t er ial .

i s m which fancies tha t it nds in Ma tt er what com m o n

,

conviction refers to t he E go o r to G o d O n the o t her .

hand those in whom the introspective ha b it is s t ron g

,

are apt to in t erpret All as ul t ima t ely modied Ego in ,

a t heory o f Panegoism o r S olipsism Las t ly d is s ati s fac .

,

tion with a universe of only ni t e beings combined ei t her ,

with reasoned or wi t h mystical aspira t ion af t er Inni t e

Reali ty disposes t h e courageous thinker o r the pious
, ,

mys t i c t o seek for the O ne nei t her in outward t hin g s

, ,

wi t h t he P an m a t eri alis t nor in the Eg o wi t h t h e

,

Pane g ois t b ut in G o d ,
.

Is a ny o f I will n ow endeavour t o occupy each o f t hese t hre e

~

p e c Monis t poin t s o f View in succession to t ry whether

S

l t n
u a io s
;
a re any o f t hem a ffords t he ul t i mat e concep ti on needed by
g Pl man in his spiritual in t egri t y Are men under intel
[ mn
-
ac e
.

or a as

l nd lectual obl i ga t i on t o accept any o f them as t he nal I n

,

am or a a ,

t e r p r eta t i o n of all t hat exis t s and if s o which o f t hem is

gngg
t l a
, ,

t hus obligatory ? If supreme regard for reasonableness

'

obliges us to dismiss t hem all wh at al t erna t ives are open ?

,

Mus t we abandon the universal problem as o n e which ,

does n o t admit even of a working human solu t ion ; o u r

nal rela t ion t o it being t he ne g a t ive knowled g e tha t th e ,
 TH R E E PRIM A R Y D ATA . 39

whole is a riddle an e n igma an inexplica b le mys t ery

, ,

s o tha t a t last n o j udgment formed about any t hing can be

regarded as more certain t han its contradic t ory ? I S t o t al
scepticism the issue o f the nal rej ection as unreal o f
, ,

any one o f the t hree data an d o f at t empts t o explain

,

m an s life in th e universe in t erms o f o ne only o f t he

t hree ? These are ques t ions which w e have now t o meet .

I will b egin by askin g y o u to look a t exis t ence as the

ma t erialis t m ay b e supposed to look a t i t an d inquire
,

whe t her Universal Materialism is a coherent concep t ion ,

and t he only human solu t ion o f the Whole .

 LECTURE I .

U N I V ER S A L MA TERIALI S M .

I N t he infan cy o f philosophical specula t ion as in t he E r ly H el ,

a

early years o f each man s life it is t he world o f solid t mp t s t

l ni t e e a
,
e o
and extended things wha t can b e seen and moved n ll y in a
t p t th
t hat is apt to be regar d ed as the o ne only reality an d ni v rs ,
er
u
re

e e .
e

as wha t alone is entitled t o be called a C ause S o it .

was tha t in the age b efore S ocra t es among t he early ,

Hellenic in quirers the mys t ery in which w e nd o u r

,

selves enveloped when we look before and after see m ed

t o be relieved as soon as some ele m en t in ma tt er could
,

be de t ected o u t of which i t migh t plausibly be conj ec t u red

,

t hat all originally issued They were satised when they

.

t ho u gh t t hat they could answer t he nal question about

man and the universe by resolving the Whole in t o some
,

sor t of Visible substance water air o r r e as primary
, ,

ma t erial The t otality o f exis t ence was nally iden t ied

.

with ma tt er ; bu t without ana lysis o f what mat t er ulti m

ately means o r even a dis tinct concep t ion o f ou t ward
,

ness in relation to self conscious mind The obj ects o f

-
.

sense were tacitly credi t ed wi t h powers which seemed to

su b ordin ate the o t her t wo o f t he three primary da t a .

It w as among t hings t ha t appeal t o t he senses tha t

Thales Anaximander and o t her con t emporaries sough t
, ,

satisfac t ion when their crude experience gave rise to

,

t heir philosophic wonder This pre S ocra t ic m aterialism

.
-
,

latent in t he universal ux o f Heraclitus d eveloped in ,

t he atomis m o f Democritus w as idealised and may be seen

, ,

a t i t s b est in the magnicen t poem o f Lucre t ius

, .
 44 PHIL OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

M ri l
at e a O ur own nine t een t h cen t ury nds million s try in g t o
i sm in th e
ni n t
e eent h
g e t satisfact i on in the same w a
y; s t ill turnin g for ex
c ent r y
u plana t ion t o wh at sense presen t s when they are con
.
,

fron t ed by the mys t ery o f t heir o w n life in t he universe ;

or when t heir desire for in t ellectual uni t y rebels a g ains t
t hre e nal existen ces and s t rives t o reduce all plurali t y
,

t o O ne Modern materialism reco g nising t he i n n u m er

.
,

a b le u seful secre t s which the ma t erial world h olds wi t hin

i t and which m odern science is dis closin g t o the i n
,

crease o f our knowledge an d comfor t in gra t itude for

wha t Matter is apparen tly d oing for u s all is ready
to fall down an d worship its b enefactor and to lose ,

Man and G o d in t he im m ensity o f ou t ward t hin g s an d

their eternal evo l ution For science o f o u t w ard t h in g s
.
,

af t er three centuries of successful experimental in t er

course with the w orld t ha t is presented to the senses has ,

much to s ay for itself It is able t o s ay tha t i t has

.

gr adually succeeded wi t h universal consen t in in t er

, ,

p r e t i n g many t hings tha t surround u s in space solid an d ,

ex t ended ; one kind o f thing th a t w e s e e bein g said

to explain another kind o f t hing t h a t c an also be seen ;
an d it is ready t o contrast the consen t in physical in t er
p r e t a t i o n with th e perplexities which metaphysical in t er
pr ot ation o f t he universe is said t o involve S o t rus t is .

pu t a t last only o n what is o u tward and tha t can be

veried b y physical experi m en t Wha t can be s o m ade .

good o n e is ready to say is boun d t o carry it over t heo

, ,

lo g ical dreams which are all t hat we possess when w e

,

pretend to so m ething superior to sense I seem to b e .

the spor t o f illusion when ever I forsake t his safe S phere ,

t he na t uralis t inquirer insis t s : wha t I see I can also

t ouch ; wha t I tou ch I can make experimen t s upon ; I
can repeat th e experimen t s in ne w circumstan ces an d ,

then compare a t my leisure t he issues o f v arious calcul

ated experimen t s In this w ay I nd t hat I can fore
.

s ee physical issues an d anticipate the na t ural b ehaviour

,

o f t hings F o r t hese and other reasons I am certain tha t

.

i n the da t a of the senses I have go t hold of existen ce o n

i t s only real S ide I nd tha t I can u s e tangible and
.

visi b le experience as t he o n e undoubted t es t fo r in t er

 U NI V E R S A L M AT E R I A LI S M . 45

p r e t i
gn wha t ever happens tha t is in t erpre t able While I .

keep o n this pa t h I can walk with a r m in t ellectual step ,

an d can stake my life o n the certain t y of m y inferences .

S uch is the voice o f moder n science o f ex t ernal nature

in evolution when t ransla t ed in t o Universal Materialism
, .

It leads back to what in nai ve and confused fashion w as

, ,

the assu m p t ion of Hellenic cos m ologis t s in th e infan cy o f

philos ophical questionin g It i s supposed to de m onstrate
.

the i ns igni c an c e o f m an in n ature and t here f ore t he base

,

lessness and u nintelligibili t y o f the theistic hypothesis ,

when i t pretends to be the last word about the Whole .

F o r dogma tic atheis m o r at least theological agnos t icism

, ,

is t he inevitable philosophy o f those w h o con ne e x p er i

ence t o external sense disallowing any other experience
, ,

or any prin ciple o f harmony deeper t han cus t o m ary su c

cession o f sense appearances .

I t was n o t always t hus in t he long in t erval which T h n e a

th
separates Thales and D emocri t us from the nine t een t h ntrpi ce
ro o

c
century . A teleological conception of existence tha t n p ti n co ce o

might even b e called a n th r op ocen tr i c or man centred f t h n i - o e u

v rs in
, ,
e e
instead o f the earlier or the later materialism pervades H br w , e e

in a s t riking fashion ancient Hebrew literature as w e nd H l a e

l ni l i t r ,
o c e
have i t in Genesis and other books ; in t ensied in t o a t r a u e .

spiri t u al anthropomorphism in the Jewish psalmis t s and

prophets wit h their deep intuition o f t he moral relation
,

o f man t o their vividly conceived personal God Unique .

as were t he Jews in this respect a t eleological if no t an

, ,

anthropocentric concep t ion of t he universe is n o t e xclu

,

s i ve l Hebraic even in the an cien t world A mong t he

y ,
.

Greeks there was a fain t reco g nition by Anaxagoras o f

ac t ive Reason as the supreme cosmic principle superior t o ,

blin d necessities o f molecular mo t ion and ap t t o su g ges t,

a religious conception o f t he relations o f t he Whole By .

an emphatic acknowledgmen t of Man ra t her t han out

ward t hings as t he primary obj ect o f human interes t
the moral agent not the s t arry heavens S ocra t es r e
,

called his followers from exaggerated re g ard for o u t

ward t hings ; he also direc t ed reec t ion to en ds laten t
in reason and connec t ed wi t h man as the chief end I n
,
.
 46 PHIL OSO PH Y OF T HEIS M .

Greece S ocra t ic reac t ion was inspired b y t he g enius o f

Plato and more ar t iculately t hrou g h the sys t ema t ic i n
,

t ellige n c e of Aristotle ; while among the Romans t h e

natural theology o f Cicero b ased o n a t heological idea,

of the world sometimes nds ven t in lan g ua g e t hat

,

might be called an t h r O p o mo r p h i c .

Ab v ll
o e a B u t i t was t he profound spiri t uali t y of Chris t ianity ,

in C h ist
i an i t y
r
.
occasionally exag g era t ed among C h ris tians t hat reduced ,

material things to i ns igni c an c e as compared wi t h per ,

sons in t he ela b ora t e theology or philosophy o f the a g es

,

of fai t h The conception of the supremenes s o f man in

.

th e cosmos found a scientic auxiliary in the accep t ed

Ptolemaic as t ronomy with i t s geocen tr i c conception o f the
,

material universe in which all falls in t o subordinate r e

,

lation to a man inhabited E ar t h-

The destiny of man .

t hu s came to be regarded as even t h e nal and eternal

purpose of t he universe ; and it w as assumed i n b ar ,

mony wi t h t his that t h e Universal Power m ust be a

,

living S piri t analogou s t o the spiri t foun d incarnate in

,

m an .

An th r p o o A narrow an t hropocentric concep t ion of t he S upreme

ntr i
ce

co n ce
c
Principle of the universe culminated in the middle age
p
t i n s in
o o f E uropean t hought Monastic separa t ion fro m the
.

M d i ev l
e a
visible world ; absol u t e separa t ion between what w as a h
i sm .

s t r a c t e d as secular an d what was abstrac t ed as spiritual

, ,

o r b etween state and church ; opposition be t ween na t ure

o n the o n e side and superna t ural power o n t he o t her

, ,

were among i t s symptoms It produced indi fference to

.

physical order and t o science o f na t ure ; warfare with

those wh o w ould rule t heir lives by the physical idea
o f law ; an endeavour to live only in consciousness of

superna t ural environment ; man a t the cen t re o f space ,

seein g t he inni t e e t ernal economy all direc t ed to his

m

o w n
spiritual g overn en t m an s welfare supposed t o be
marred by acknowledgmen t o f spirituali ty in secular life .

Reli g ion under this ascetic for m o f reli g ious thou g h t

, ,

took t he place in medievalism that is n o w claimed for

s ciences of ou t ward n ature The atomism o f Lu cre t ius
.

w as exchanged for t he sub t le Christian t heology o f

Aquinas the curious concei t s of the Divina Com
,

 U N I V E R S A L M A T E RI A LI S M . 47

media afterwards in t he my t hology o f Mil t on and the

,

,

hu m an analogies of Puritan divines .

Man s imagined local supremacy under the Ptolemaic Lo l in ig

ca s

astronomy encourage d this theological concep t ion o f human $ 3342 0

1
life A scientic revolu t ion in men s ideas o f their place
.

in t he material universe which seemed t o reduce man to

,

his discovered local i ns igni c an c e and invi t ed us to t hink

,

o f ourselves as the t ra n si t ory issue o f a n a t ural process ,

appeared incon sistent wi t h the supremacy o f the reli g ious

idea and an invi t a t ion t o the ato m istic and mechanical
,

o n e t o resu m e its o l d n al place The postula t e that

.

God is a t t he root of the Whole seemed somehow bound

up with a n o w exploded uniqueness in t he local posi t ion
o f man s earth l y home in the m aterial world

.

S o modern free search a m ong the natural causes per B n ac o an d

c e p t ib l e by t he senses has been ch anging t he old anthro

o c en t ri c ideas under the scien t ic assump t ion that l g i l

p o ca con

causation is only re g ular sequence open to experimental,

d etection and more o r less sub ject to human con t rol v ers
,
. e .

T h is assump t ion accus t omed t he mind t o physical utili

t ies and a narrow teleological concep t ion see m ed barren
,

by contrast . The change nds voice in wha t Bacon

an d S pinoza s ay abou t t he fruitfulness of na t ural causes ,

as compared with the inutility o f nal causes I t is .

a s t he visible means accordin g to which human purposes

may b e carried o u t by men as ministers o f nature that

, ,

Bacon se t s a high value o n material or caused causes ,

and on t he science which discloses them : in a nal

c ause he found no t hing which man could employ as
his instrument o r of which he could be the in t erpre t er
, .

Final causes look unprac t ical : the inscrutable will and

purpose o f a distan t God becomes an asylu m for indolent
neglect of t he useful natural causes which surround us ;
o r a shelter for supersti t ion wi t hdrawing men from ex
,

p e r i m e n t a l inquiry into the tex t ure o f t he web o f nature

in which w e are involved S o S pinoza argues against
.

a n t hropomorphism In this he exceeds B acon w h o com

.
,

plains only o f the a b use o f nal causes when they make ,

us negle c t the causes tha t appeal to o u r senses and ,

 48 PHIL OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

tha t can be adapted to human purposes in t his em

bodied life ; but allowing fo r their value in other aspects .

Not so S pinoza who insists that reason t eaches m en t he

,

futility o f the very idea o f a nal cause in which man is

the end ; and argues tha t un t il men are sa t ised that
l aw in na t ure is not in t ended for th ei r satisfaction they ,

a re not likely to b e convince d t ha t reali t y m u st be

measured by disin t eres t ed scien t ic eviden ce No t hing .
,

he says should be concluded t rue o r false because i t is

, ,

o r is n o t in har m ony with human interes t s ; an d it is a

profound mis t ake t o call thin g s or events good or b ad ,

because t hey happen to b e a g reeable or repug n ant t o a

bein g s o insignicant as m an O n the o t her hand Bacon
.
, ,

while he presses th e need for engaging in t he long neglected -

search for the causes that may be foun d b y experimen t

within the visible su ccession o f na t ure seein g tha t we

may usefully employ su ch causes when we discover the m

ar g ues also that experimen t al searc h among physical

phenomena m ay even conrm and exalt o u r reco g ni t ion

o f divine purpose . For induc t ive inquiry in t o n a t ural
causes which are t he required condition s of all cha n g es
,

tha t g o o n aroun d us s o far from dissolvin g fai t h in a

,

dominan t providence only shows t hat full human satis

,

fac t ion is n o t a t tained withou t dis cernment o f divine

providence animatin g the na t ural evolu t ion .

Mod e m The cen t uries S ince Bacon and S pinoza h ave wi t nessed
Bas t i o n an increasing reac t ion against all forms of t heological
anthropomorphism in t he interes t of a secularly fruitful
,

c ent ri c search fo r operations o f na t ural causes visible and t an g

,
mep tmn
.

Co '

ible under laws which interpret our b odily surroundings

, ,

an d our bodies besides laws which may be applied b y

men as m ean s fo r making t his a more comfor t able plan

e tary abode .Thus t he vas t m a t erial world as con t aining
,

the only visible a g en t s o f desirable chan g es h as come to ,

l l the popular imagination : t hat small portion o f m a tter

which is appropriated by each person as S pecially his body
is reduce d to rela tive i n s igni c an ce The merely physical
.

interpreta t ion of external nature with i ts tacitly supposed

, ,

but undemons t ra t ed fai t h in constant physical order is

, ,

nex t assumed to be t he only le g i t imate sor t o f science ,

 5O P H IL OSO P H Y O F TH E I S M .

According t o his innocen t concep t ion God had said Let , ,

there be ligh t s in the r mam e n t of heaven to g ive light

upon the earth .Bu t h o w can s o gran d a spectacle as
modern astronomy puts before us be supposed by any
reasonin g being to have for i ts nal cau se the convenien ce
o f short lived ani m als w h o somehow nd their home o n
-

this small planet transitory in their successive genera

tions in t h e Homeric imagin a tio n as the leaves which
, ,

yearly a ppear and disappear o n the trees of the fores t ?

T h s t rr y
e a T h e pro g ress o f m odern astron omy h as been a runnin g
commentary o n t he loca l i ns igni c an c e o f men when men ,

r l t iv
e a eare tho u gh t o f only as individual organisms in the
illimitable material sys t e m found i n possession o f t h e
sp a
ce ,
immensi t y of space Wha t is the hu m an body invisi b le
.
,

from ano t her plane t in comparison with the innite

,

m aterial world ? The E arth itself ins t e a d of bein g con

,

c e i ve d as t he solid centre o f all that exis t s in space is ,

n o w recognised as only o n e in a sys t em o f planets more ,

o r less like i t self some immensely larger all revolvin g

, ,

round a cen t ral s u n o n which t hey and all their contents

,

depend Then this solar sys t em itself is only o n e a m ong

.

innumerable other solar systems like itself all i t seems

, ,

revolving collec t ively round some u ndiscovered centre .

An d even t his enl arged ma t erial syste m m ay b e only a

su b ordinate part of an inconceivably g reater economy ;
which again in its t urn may be an appendage to a greater
still ; and s o on wards and onwards in an unendin g series
o f enlar g emen t s fo r w h y should any b oun dary be s et to
,

t he ma t erial con t en t s o f in ni t e space ? Wha t indeed is , ,

t his human a n imal s o much made o f in the an throp o

ce tric concep t ion when placed beside t he innumerable
n

animals whic h may occupy the innumerable worlds t hat

are moving through Immensity ? What is m an that he
should be regarded at all in a Divine Purpose ? A bove
all wha t is m an t ha t he should be the o ne supreme obj ec t
,

in t ha t Purpose as in t he Christian conception o f r ed em p

,

tion accordin g to t he medieval interpretation o f i t which

, ,

so long limi t ed the t eleological View .

T h e i n igs But if s cien t ic inves t igation of the con t ents o f sp a ce

nm c an
reduces t he pe t ty organisms o f the race of man from
ce
,
 U N I V E R SAL M A T E R I AL I S M . 5I

s upremacy in t he Divine purpose t o inconceiva b le i n f m n ,

o e re

signicance in the material system t his abatemen t o f ,

human pre t ension is even more di fcul t t o resis t when g ni m a s s

l d
o n e turns to wha t modern science has to tell about the
f VO e
Y
n Tim i e
course o f even t s I n ti me A bove all t h i s I S s o I f we
.

.
,

accept the conception of t he causal process according ,

t o which a constant evolu t ion o f the ma t erial universe

proceeds in wha t for augh t man can know may be an
, ,

unbeginning and unending metamorphosis o f its m o l ec

ular constituents If modern astrono m y inaugurated by
.
,

C opernicus and Newton has revealed t h e i n s igni can c e

,

o f man s planet amon g the illi m itable s t arry hosts an d

t he in nite i n s igni c an c e o f each ephemeral human o r

a n i s m when all i s in t erpreted i n ter m s o f space wha t
g , ,

shall be said of t he revelations of modern geolo g y and , ,

much more o f modern biology ? They seem to S ho w

,

that all t h e living bodies o n this plane t as well a s ,

t he planet i t self are transitory issues in continuous

, ,

natural processes o f integration and disin t egra t ion ,

withou t be g inning an d wi t hou t end S ome of the .

present laws according to which t heir changes occur

have been discovered ; and those persons w h o claim t o
be discoverers have thus put s o m e passi n g pleasures
wi thin reach o f those by whom the discoveries m ay be
applied o r have enabled t hem to escape some passin g
,

p ains ; but n o ul t ima t e accoun t of all t his can be given .

Nor can w e t ell whe t her the physical order presumed

withou t proof to be permanent withi n the narro w sphere
o f men s discoveries o f natural

causes is really the ex

pression o f E ternal Reason o r only a n accident d u ring a

,

brief i n terval within which chaos in human experience

, , ,

assu m es the semblance o f a permanen t cosmos .

In the ligh t of geological and biological d iscovery and T h e l t r a e

t f
specula t ion one seems to s e e animal life gradually e vo l v fni ggf t fn
,
s
a o
o
in g in its relative place in t he contin uous natural succes n d d i in
, a s

S ion in a process according to which lower forms o f living g t i m

i gi i a
g ol
,
se
matter o n this planet are slowly followed by higher and m i t er ,

more co m plex E ach generation in this continuous nat

.

ural evolu t ion i n ni tes i mal ly di fferen t fro m t hat which

,

preceded i t transmi t s t he inni t esimal di fference to its

,
 52 PHIL OSO P H Y O F TH E I S M .

successors ; and thus o u t o f wha t m ay have been the ,

common m ass of protoplas m a t an early stage animal ,

life becomes gradually di fferentia t ed in t o ever multiply -

in g species t he human organism t he mos t notable

among t he or g anisms hither t o evolved in the history o f
this plane t Th e hum an org anisms moreover at the
.
, ,

presen t s t a g e of the un b eginning and endless procession

o f ch anges which t he ma t erial world presents are foun d ,

t o b e in advance of their remote natural ances t ors in their

in t elli g ence with perhaps a prospec t according to t he ,

analo g ies of na t ure of con t inuin g to advance with the

,

process o f t he suns B u t hu man or g anis m s wi t h t heir

.
,

u nique characteris t ic of self conscious life are on l y some -

,

of the cons t ructions na t urally presen t ed in the u n

, ,

b e g innin g and unendi ng evolution or metamorphosis o f

mat t er They see m t o rise in t o life spon t an eously when
.
,

the condi t ioning ma t erial causes occur of which or g anisms

o f t his sor t with their self con sciousness are the natur a l
,
-
,

sequence Bu t t hose physical causes as well as t heir

.
,

consequences are t hemselves passive su bj ects o f t he

,

n atural rules of universal change Reasonin g by anal .

o
gy ,
under commonly received maxi m s all em b racin g ,
-

materialism m ay accordingly an t icipa t e in the future ,

his t ory o f this plane t the nal extinc t ion of human ,

organisms in analo gy wi t h pre cedin g ex t inc t ions o f

,

inferior races ; with all their works t heir scienti c ,

discoveries and indeed all S i g ns o f their pas t exis t ence

, ,

in the general disin t e g ra t ion o f t he solar sys t em .

La t er s t ill t he wh ole m aterial universe may b e refunde d

,

into the original r e mist o u t of which i t was once -

evolved ; or it may all be condensed into o n e s t upendous

m ass o f m olecules ready t o resume another prolonged

course o f na t ural integra t ion o r n a t ural creation with

, ,

an issue i t m ay be o f n e w s t ellar and plane t ary sy s

, ,

tems o r perhaps of other constructions o f ma t ter u np re ,

d ic t a b l e because du e t o physical conditions n o w u n

,

know n and even by u s incon ceiva b le

,
I n t he n e w .

m aterial universe o f that immeasurably remote future ,

wha t room is there in retrospective t hough t fo r the

pe tt y human organisms o f an immeasurably remo t e past
 U NI V E R S A L M AT E RI A LI S M . 53

wi t h t heir ephemeral records o f social ins t itutions and

social s t rug g les scien ti c discoveries achievements o f
, ,

mechanical art humanly admired creations of imagina

,

t ion religions and philosophies all dissolved and buried

,

in t he dissolution of the vas t m olecular economy in which ,

e ven while they existed they were as no t hin g for ever ,

forgo t ten in the new heavens and n e w earth into which

, ,

a universe essen t ially o f molecules has then been trans

, ,

formed i n another o f its purposeless metamorphoses ?

,

These are only materialistic dream s ; bu t t hey are dreams

in analogy with t he universally m a t erialis t ic co n ception
O f existence which I am asking o u t o try to realise in
, y
imagination .

Two condi t ions which bo t h play an impor t an t part in I nd estr

,
uc

s ciences concerned with Mat t er are presupposed bu t no t , ,

unconditionally demonstrated Th e o n e is the in d es tr u c t nd i. a co l

i b i li ty o f the material m olecules ; and t he o t her t he conser ,

vation o f wha t is ambi g uously called energy which m a tter ,

i s supposed to involve The indestructibili ty of Ma t ter

.

and the conservation of E ner g y are as you know hypo , ,

t heses which domina t e modern inferences about t he pas t

and future history o f the molecules which on t he ma t erial ,

i s t i c conception of man an d the universe form t he ele ,

m entary totali ty Accordin g ly as long as the m aterial

.
,

universe exis t s and i t is presumed to be indestructible

i t must consis t of th e same quantity o f m at t er the same ,

number of molecules t his t hrough all the m eta mo r

p h o s e s which these have under g one or m a
y yet undergo ,

i n the for m o f stellar systems and of living ma tt er in

, ,

the various degrees o f life sentient intelligent self c o n , , ,

-

scious which less o r more elaborately organised mat t er

,

is found t o manifest ; as well as in future issues which

human imagination cannot picture The assumption o f .

the indestructibility o f mat t er forbids an inconceivable

transforma t ion of n oth i ng suddenly in t o someth i ng as in ,

the o l d idea o f sudden creation ; and o b liges us always t o

suppose and seek fo r physical causes presentable to sense ,

although n o t necessarily perceptible by human senses

when we t ry to account t hrou g h i t s exact material equiv
,

a l ent , for each new metamorphosis The his t ory of the .

 54 PHIL OSO P H Y O F T H E I S M .

universe is therefore a history o f t he natural t ransforma

t ions of wha t already exists molecularly : t he addi t ion o f
absolu t ely new molecules or the absolute extinc t ion o f old
,

ones are unscien t ic conceptions E ach n ew appearance

, .

in n ature i m plies an equivalent withdrawal o f s ome o t her

appearan ce an d the whole succession i s an endless meta
,

m orph osis Li g ht reappears in equivalent heat : electricity

.

in equivalent magnetism : m olecular changes in the livi n g

organism in t heir equivalent s t ates of conscious life : the
,

b ir t hs and dea t hs of m en an d other livin g or g anis m s have

t heir resultin g compensa t ion : the b ir t hs and deaths of
planets an d suns have dea t hs an d births in something else
corresponding t o t hem .

Is C s
au a If all t ha t has been and t hat can be must thus be
, ,

gitygz
uy
t hough t o f at last in t erms o f m aterial molecules t he nal ,

s o t h at pro b lem S hould be solved in t h e discovery and ex h au s
ny h m

o f the u ltima t e law or l aws according t o

inigit l
g
,
tive
a
applica t ion
p i
ri o r b ,
wh i
e ch the i nnumera b le molecular metamorphoses pro
th ff f
o ecd The s earch fo r cause is conned t o a search for
e e ? o
n y t hi n g ?
.

a
percept i b le cond i t i ons wh i ch constantly precede o r c o n ,

s tan t l y accompany e ach perceptible ch a ng e

,
Causal .

sequences are nothing more than the sequences which

seem t o b e cons t an t amon g ma t erial phenomena As .

constan t t hey b ecome a sort of lan g uage in which

, ,

n a t ural causes are S ignicant o f their S o called e ffects -

,

and t he e ffec t s o f their s o ca l led causes T o explai n

-
.

the universe nally would be t o read all i t s endles s

cha ng es under their physical laws A n analysis of ex .

p e r i e n c e in
,
quest of connec t ions that are con s t an t b e ,

comes the only means fo r de t erminin g whe t her this is

th e cause o f t ha t ; not any a p r i or i idea o f the sufciency ,

o r insu f ciency of this a g ent t o b e t he cause o f this o r

,

t ha t sort of chan g e Abstrac t ly t hat is t o s ay without

.
,

ndi n g t h a t thi s is always in n a t ure ac t ually followed b y

h
t a t m a n h as no right t o assume t ha t only t his sort
o f cau se ca n explain t ha t sor t o f e ffec t ; that unorganised

ato ms can o r tha t they canno t account fo r the self

, ,

conscio u s life t ha t is found o n this remo t e lit t le planet .

E no u gh if experien ce presen t s life rising o u t o f certain

org anic condi t ion s ; and then conscious life appearing in
 U NIV E R SA L M A T E R I A L I S M . 55

th e more elaborate living organisms : one is b ound hon

es tl y t o accept the fac t s O ne is t hen t old to s ee in th e
.

s o related molecules a n d t heir motions the true and only ,

explanation of the psychical pheno m ena which appear i n

signal or g anisms especially i n t he human and whic h are
, ,

vulgarly referred to what is called m ind the abs t ract
,

word mind a convenien t refuge for human ignorance A t .

this poin t o f view any material thing appears a p r i or i

e qually t o r equally un t with any ot h er to be t he cause
, , ,

o r constant an tecedent of any sort o f chan g e

,
Causali t y is .

only the sort o f sequence that is imagined to be constant ;

and as any event may be imagined to follow any other
apar t fro m experience anything may be t he supposed
cause o f anything tha t happens The falli n g o f a peb b le
.

may extinguish the sun for au ght we kno w a p r i or i ; o r

,

the will of a man may disturb t h e planets in their orbits .

When I s ee one billiard ball moving in a straight line to

wards ano t her even if motion in the second ball should by
,

accident be s u ggested to m e as the result of their con t act ,

mi g ht I not con ceive hundreds o f o t her sorts o f even t s as

well following from tha t particular cause Might not both .

the balls remain at absolute rest ? Migh t not the rst ball
re t urn in a straight line o r leap away from the second in
,

any linear d irection ? All t hese suppositions are c o n c ei v

able Why t hen should we give the preference to o n e of
.

them which a p r i or i i s n o t more consistent or conceivable

,

than t he res t ? No a p r i or i reasonings will ever be able

to S how us an unconditional necessi t y in reason for t his
preference .

Under this sensu ous and empirical ca u sality as t he T h p ss i e o

b l i ss s
only hu m an conception o f power ; wi t h survival of t he f ni o
e

a u
ue

physically tt est as its highes t biological illustra t ion v rs f e e o

m l
with assumed indestruc t ibility o f ma tt er an d conserva t ion i n m ti n l s o ec u e
o o
of energy for working hypo t heses ; and the speculative i n t h m e

postulate of an unbe g innin g and unending succession o f ni t e su c

ss i n ce o
causal inte g ra t ions and disin t e g rations of a universe o f
.

molecules in perpetual motion with all this pos t ulated ,

abundant oppor t unity seems to be given i n en dless ti m e , ,

for inni t e variety in the rela t ions of t he m olecules to o n e

another an d for all sor t s o f resulting molecular combina
,
 56 PH I LOSO PH Y OF TH E IS M .

t ions These when they emerg e as far as man can see

.
,

b efore t rial may each be a cause o f any sor t o f e ffect

, .

S O u n der t his ul t imate conceptio n o f the universe wha t

, ,

for b ids tha t in th e course o f time one of the innumerable

issues o f molecular colloca t ion migh t b e t hat actually
presen t ed by the universe o f in dividual t hin g s and persons
in which we nd ourselves living in the economy o f which ,

the human or g anism form s a p a rt and into which each ,

man has been n aturally introduced The universe of .

m olecules at t his sta g e of i t s te m poral evolution includes

, ,

t hose m olecular or g anisms which while t hey las t are , ,

foun d in experience to be the physical causes o f di fferent

degrees o f life ; in the more rened elaborations t he ,

natural causes of sentien t life ; and in due t ime even o f ,

life tha t is self conscious .

S lf
e -
n oo Under t his m a t erialistic concep t ion t he universe seems ,

ig gfg to be completely emptied of those alleged striki g e x

l
f
es
n
l
p s d f
o e amples of divine adaptation o f n atural means to hum an
e
f ls
ee
ends in which under another nal conception this visible
sp i l
ec a
.
, , ,

m i i
o ec u ar world of ours on ce seemed t o abound ; wh i ch I mpressed
re n ? ordinary minds w hen presen ted b y Cicero o r Paley ; o r
gi n s w h i h
e
, ,
o c
B at m n} earl i er s ti ll by t he Hebre w poet t o whom the heavens
a . , ,


d eclare d the glory of God and t he r m am e n t showed
Egigfi t H i handywork Under the Hebrew concep t i o n o f
ll l ll
,
l e
hi st r y f
o s o l
.

m l l s t hings day unto day w as uttering t his higher speech

o ecu e
m m mn
, ,
o
and nigh t unto night this higher knowled g e
'

As the Jew .

looks at it there is no speech n or lan g uag e where this
,

Divine V oice is not heard : t heir line is g on e out throu g h

all the ear t h and their words to the end o f t he world ,
.

Under the m olecular n al idea of existence on th e ,

con t rary t h e heaven s and the e arth with all their livi n g
, ,

and intelligen t population declare t he powers o f i n ,

numerable m aterial m olecules in the in nity of their ,

possible rela t ions in th e eternal succession O u t of any .

natural cause a ny sor t o f issue insentien t mass o r living,

or g anis m sentient or self conscious life for all we can

,
-
,

predic t a r i or i is able to attain t o its actual but

p
ephemeral existence as naturally as any o ther That .

t he motion o f o n e billiard ball should be t he nat u ral -

sequence o f contact with another billiard ball in motion -

,
 58 P H I L OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

universe conceived as ultimately m olecules in motion ,

w h o recognises no t hing in metaphysical implicates o f

experience tha t t ranscends this hypothesis accepts it u n ,

appalled in th e in t repid spiri t of science He is ready

, .

t o s ay that things are what they are an d are not other ,

t hings b ut this wi t h his eye t urned exclusively to

phenom ena o f m atter in t heir relations o f n atural
sequence .

T h e mat e Man and his ma t erial or g anism are a b solu t ely identied
in this nal interpretation o f the u niverse in which man ,

M an , in consequen t ly b eco m es one o f i t s most insignican t i t ems :

his S piri t ual existence is measured by t he size and c o n
ism ,
t i n u an c e o f his body which i s himself ,
The consciou s .

lives o f men especial ly those who h ave b een evolved in

,

t his advanced era o f the universal history are the m os t ,

remarka b le manifesta t ion s of psychical phenomena tha t

come within man s experience ; bu t even t his sor t is
invariably embodied : o u r only ex ample of self consciou s -

life is t h e hum an or g anism in i t s lit t le more than momen ,

t ary ex is t ence With a human organism na t urally g iven

.
, ,

th e spiri t ual life of man mysteriously springs for t h like ,

t he appearance o f t h e genius wh en Aladdin ru b bed his

lamp in the E as t ern story o r like any o t her na t ural fact
,

which appears in its due season .

M an t h s
u It is thus that man is reduced from th e fan cied heigh t
gifl y p
w ed i s
o f a moral agen t w h o s o far as suc h
,
mus t be i n d ep en
,
.

,
a al

tr y p rta of dent o f phys i cal law t o t he extent o f h i s m oral respons i

,

[ 23 32
31 1
3 8
b il i ty : he is identied with those a g gre g ates o f atom s in
1 11
t he na t ural evolution which di ffer from the lifeless things
,

of inorganic n a t ure only in the fact o f their or g anic con

n ec t i o n wi t h pleasurable o r painf u l feelin g and their ,

o t her au t oma t ic conscious s t a t es manifes t ed in t he course ,

o f m olecular ch an g es of which t he organism and i t s s u r

roundings are the subj ect s invisi b le sta t es as wholly

automatic o r dependent on molecular mo t ions as the

, ,

visible changes in t he org anisms t hemselves Man , ,

physical intellectual moral w e are told is as mu ch a
, , , ,

par t o f nature as purely a product of t he cosmic process

, ,

as t he humblest weed Therefore men a t t heir best
.
,

present only t his ephemeral consciousness which emerges ,

 U NIV E R S A L M A T E R I A LI S M . 59

from the always indi fferen t and often cruel n atural , ,

mechanism wi t hin which withou t t heir o wn leave they

,

nd t hemselves in extricably involved I n c o nso lat o ry to .

the individu al as t his discovery of what he i s and the ,

world in which he is m ay be it i s inexhau stible in , ,

resources o f physical explanation I t explains as a .

,

physical consequence o f relations among molecules which

occur in t he course o f their history m an s illusion t ha t ,

he can ever be morally free from natural l a w an d r e ,

sponsible fo r what he does For t h e illusion is found in .

invariable se quence t o certain organic s t ates which ar e ,

t hemselves the issu e o f inn u m erable molecular m o t ions

and colloca t io n s that have occurr ed in t h e history of t h e
material universe The su fferings through which sentient
.

beings o n t his pl an et pass and the sins with which men ,

are charged are in this way seen in t heir innite i n s ig

,

n i can c e as only phenomena in the succession o f natural

,

cha n g es amon g t he a t oms which for ever o c cupy the i m

m e ns ity o f space t hey are n o t more S igni can t ul t ima t ely
than t he pains or pleasures o f insects t o o m inu t e to be
seen by the microscope in t he summer sunshine n o w seem
to us Good and evil right and wron g meri t and demerit
.
, , ,

self sa t isfac t ion and remorse are scien tically discovered

-
,

t o be words which have acquired their misleading mean

ing a t an inferior era in this world s history ; thro u g h
man s na t ural i g norance a t the time t ha t he is only an

i t em in the unbeginning and unending succession o f

molecular changes which Universal Materialism assumes
,

t o be nally c o extensive wi t h reality

-
.

Y e t at ano t her point o f Vie w if any t hing migh t be

, D ei c at i o n
t he cause o f any t hing because it m ay conceivably be i ts
,
0 f m at t e r :

predecessor might one n o t at t ribute to the molecules

into which t he universe is resolved all the at t ribu t es o f
man and even those t hat are attributed to God ? A n d
,

if Deity may b e t hus la t en t in the molecular universe ,

is i t more than a ques t ion o f n ames as b et ween this

omnipo t ent and omniscient Ma t ter on the o ne hand an d , ,

the God of pantheism o r even of theism o n the other, ,

.

Where is t he universal materialist t o stop in wha t he

 60 PHIL OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

a tt ri b u t es t o Ma t ter if he may a tt ri b u t e t o i t t he rational

,

acts and moral experience o f a human b ody ? O ne asks

in reply what t he materialist w h o ar g ues thus m eans by
,

Mat t er ? It mus t mean more t han molecular motion .

T h e t r an s But the molecularl y constituted dei ty o f Universal
Materialism has it seems caused a t one sta g e in the de
, , ,

M r l it y vel o p m en t of m an wha t are discovered to be illusions

o a . ,

u nder la t er evolved conceptions to which the laws o f

na t ure are now au t oma t ically conductin g scienti c men

concep t ions t o o which may in their turn be all as
, ,

na t urally dissolved la t er on in t he pro g ressive evolu t ion

,
.

Amon g st t hose illusory n atural produc t s may hereaf t er

come t o be included the m oral ideas which presuppose the
impor t ance o f the race o f man as compared say wi t h a , , ,

race o f animalcu l es and th e e t hical presupposi t ions from

,

which men infer t he need fo r individual sacrice o n b e

half o f the race for t he sake o f a longer survival o f the
,

whole Conscience begin s to appear as an ar ticial device

.

fo r the prolonga t ion o f the race i t was na t urally generate d

at that inferior stage in t he his t ory o f the molecules a t
which hu m an organisms were na t urally induced to clai m
a unique digni t y an d impor t ance B u t s cien t i c disin t er .

e s t e d n es s itself a physical sequence on occasion o f ,

cer t ain molecular m otions comes afterwards t o s ee tha t

t he m an and the reptile are alike insignicant bein g bo t h ,

the transi t ory ou t come of universal physical l a w To call .

a n agent in a dis t inc t ive sense moral or spiritual ,

is t o apply a misleading pre dica t e ; for the a g ency
can b e only t he physical l a w under which a certain
con di t ion o f the human b rain is constan t ly accompanied
by t he delu sion t ha t love and will and conscience are
someho w superior t o brain o r to t he molecules on which
,

all ul t imately depends F o r i t is a natural law tha t a t a

.
,

cer t ain stage in its evolution the organis m which consti ,

t u t e s man becomes what we call eth i ca l and subj ect to ,

t he delusion t hat man is free to struggle against evil .

T h e tr nsa But more t han dissolution o f morality would follo w

233 311211
1
1
8 0
from
1
premisses which yield a wholly molecu l ar solu t ion
R s n
ea o . of t he problem o f self conscious life in a m olecular uni
-

verse i f indeed any conclusion abou t any t hin g could b e

-
 U N I V E R S A L M AT E RI A L I S M . 6I

consis t ently drawn in such a universe F o r reason itself .

reason to which science is won t to a ppea l as the supreme

t ribunal is transformed in t o one o f t he innumerable

t ransitory issues o f purposeless or g anic condi t ions In .

t ellige nc e wi t h science as i t s product an d conscience

, , ,

with morality as i t s product co m e t o be conceived as ,

only t ransitory natural outcomes of m olecular conditio n s .

The t hinki n g an d observi ng processes th em s e l ve s t hose u

processes t hrou g h which t he materialis t nds tha t c o n

scious mind in all its states is vir t ually molecules in
, ,

motion are only a par t o f the m olecular process Human .

in t elligence and hu m an conscien ce are only modes of the

ephemeral phenomena t o which the molecular universe in ,

i t s e t ernal ux of molecules and a g gregates o f m olecules ,

is supposed t o be giving birth at di fferent st ag es in the ,

course o f its evolution Its veried inferences as well as

.
,

its unproved hypotheses are all alike transitory illusions ;

,

i f w e are n o t allowed to presuppose in the primary data

m or e t han molecules t ha t seem under cer t ain conditions

t o transfor m themselves into self conscious life And -
.

thus Monis m a t least in t he for m o f Universal Material

,

ism itself disappears along with conscious in t elligence

, , ,

i n the abyss of Universal Nescience .

Can we accept as a solution of the universe and o f man A s i n

, ,
re c e ce
nd d t y a
as a part of it th i s which asks us habitually to think o f i d nt l
, ,
acc
u
e a
t he W hole as nally purposeless molecular ag g rega t ion and i ss s f ue o
m l l r
motion wherein intelligence an d conscience are t ransi m otions
,
o ecu a

t ory issues bu t which in the nal darkness o f Universal

, ,

Materialism can while they las t put in no claim to de t er

, , ,

mine the interpretation O f the whole ? Can what is

com m only meant by Matter co n sistently claim t his nal
universality and supremacy ? We shall consider wha t
invisi b le consciousness has t o s ay for itself when thus ,

confronted in this remo t e corner by a universe o f only

, ,

molecules and molecular sequences .

 LECTU R E II .

PA N E G O I S M .

T h e e x ag e
H U MA N organisms and their self conscious life appear at
-
,

ger at i o n of
t h e U ni
th e poin t o f view o f atomism o r m o l ec u l is m t o b e only ,

v rs l
e a M a par t an d a very insignicant par t o f the t ransi t ory
, ,

t er i al i st
.
n a t ural issue o f the universe o f m ole cules in mo t ion .

They emerg e for a time in a rem ote and pe tt y corner

O f immensity under t hose par t icular physical condi t ions
,

which are found t o give rise t o a conscious or g anism .

Mind m a tter tr a n sfor m ed i n to consci ou sn ess according ,

t o ma t erialism is o n e a mo ng innumerable o t her t ran s

forma t ion s which molecules t emporarily under g o ; n o t in
itself more signi can t than any other o f t he m any sorts
o f quan t i t ative di fference in size shape o r arran g ement
, , , ,

o f molecules and molecular masses o n which consciou s

,

life as well as all t he o t her qualities of t hin g s are on

, , ,

this concep t ion o f exis t ence ass u me d t o depend S imi

, .

l ar ly as re di ffers from water and water from g old o n

, ,

account o f supposed differen ces in the size shape mo t ion , , ,

an d consis t ency of their respecti ve consti t uent mole cules ,

di fferences which mi g ht be described with precision if

o n e could construct microscopes powerful enough to r e

veal t hem s o o n the same condi t ion those special

, , ,

characteristics of molecular or g anisation which give rise

to consciousness when th ey happen t o b ecome ac tual
, ,

migh t in like m anner b e observed in detail This is .

the universe of the m aterialis t as i t rises in ima g ina

,

tion when t he da t um o f a material world is t aken b y

,

philosophy as the one nal datum .

 PA N EG O I S M . 63

Bu t has the percipien t and self conscious life b y which

-
W h at of
th e 9 990 ?
man is characterised wi t h i t s scientic and moral o u t
,

come which has s t ar t ed up in this re m ote plane t ary

,

corner o f the ma t erial world no t hing more t han this

,

to s ay for i t self ?

The invisible self conscious E go does no t so soon force

-
T he ex ag

i t self upon attention as t he boundless and endless world 0

o f ou t ward things presented t o t he senses does A t least . p o st l u at e

t he E go does n o t ob t rude itself upon t h e u n re ec ting as fifg ih

r

an
exclusively entitled t o be called r ea l Its assu m ed real .
t h at o f th e
i t y seems instead to resolve int o transitory modes o f the s ec on d
solid and extended or g anis m s presen t ed to t he senses .

Reection upon conscious life follows in the wake o f

spontaneous consciousness ; fo r thought mus t have appro
ri a t e experience in the for m of spiritual states already
p ,

passed through before i t begins to express spiritual life

,

in ter m s of science o r to s ee the immense philosophical

,

signicance o f livin g Mind .

T he b ab y n ew t o ea r th an d sk y ,

W h at t i m e h i s t end er p al m i s p r e s t
A g ai n st t h e c i r c l e o f t h e b r ea s t ,

H as n e v e r t h o u g h t t h at t h i s i s I .

B u t a s h e g ro w s , h e g at h e r s m u c h ,
A n d l ea r n s t h e u s e o f I an d m e ,

d
A n d n s I a m n o t w h at I s e e,
A n d o th e r t h an t h e th i n g s I t o u c h ;

So r o u n d s h e t o a s ep a r a t e m i n d ,

F r o m w h en c e c l ea r m em o r y m ay b egi n .

O r a g ain

d
D a r k i s t h e w o r l t o t h e e t h y s el f ar t th e r ea s o n w h y
F o r i s H e n o t al l , b u t t h o u , t h at h as p o w e r t o fee l I am I

A ccordingly outward t hings are ap t to b e exaggera t ed T h t e ou

into th e one nal for m of existence sooner t han t he i n ggi g n a s '

dividual and invisible ego I n t h e early sta g es of man s i nt t h

.

o e
i w rd
his t ory h e is more ready to suppose t ha t consciousness can n a :

be refunded into the universe o f ou tward t hings than t hat ,

t he universe o f outward t hings can b e refunded into his

64 PHIL OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

o wn self conscious percep t ions We are all in our childish

-
.

years m ore or less ma t erialists And w e nd t he ma t erial .

is t point of View the favourite one in th e childhood of the

race of man In early Hellenic S pecula t ion S ocra t e s
.

awoke t he sense of individuality an d personali t y B u t .

it was with t he rise o f Chris t iani t y t hat t he idea of t h e

individual person unfolded into moral distinctness The .

Chris t ian Fa t hers found so m e t hing in a self conscious -

person t hat was inadequa t ely expressed in t he Hellen i c

an d Roman t hou g h t of t he pre Chris t ian world Great -
.

is t he revela t ion g iven in mem ory o n e nds A u g ustine ,

ex claiming in his C onfessions grea t is memory in

, ,

all its depth an d m anifold intensity ; t he stran g e reality

revealed in it is my mind ; and my mind i s myself Fear .

and amazemen t overcome me when I t hink of this Ye t .

m en go a b roa d t o g aze upon moun t ains an d waves b road ,

rivers wide oceans and t he courses o f t he s t ars and o ver

, , ,

look th ems elves t he crowning wonder
,
In the thousan d .

years after A u g ustine o n e nds many u tterances in har

mony wi t h t his And the supreme signican ce o f t he Eg o
.

survived t he modern reac t ion a g ains t scholas t ic t hought .

I n the new con cep t ions o f t he universe and the ulti m a t e

meanin g o f life which s t rug g led in t o exis t ence in the
mind o f D escartes th e wa t chword was Cogi to ergo su m :
,

E go su m cogi ta ns E go was t he o n e essen t ial fac t

. No t .

a t oms but ego was t aken as t he primary elemen t in the

u niverse His o wn invisible self is wha t is nearest t o
.

each person and his world is the world which depends

,

upon h is consciousness This was t he s t artin g point o r

.
-

b irth o f t he new philosophic spiri t which s o strenuously ,

asser t ed i t self in t he seventeen t h century The more this .

invisible fac t i s pondered t he more o n e seems t o see the,

dependence o f t he u niverse o n i t S o t he Eg o conscious .

an d percipient comes by degrees to absorb ou t ward

t hings con vertin g an otherwise illusory outwardness into
,

real inwardness Like Ac taeon changed in t o t he stag

.
, ,

an d t hen torn to pieces b y his hounds on Mount C ith eero n ,

t h e once t o o ob t rusive world of molecules is at las t s w al

lowed u p in t he world of one s o wn conscious life or per

s o n a l it y .
 66 P H IL OSO P H Y O F T H E I S M .

The fat e o f C onsider wha t would become o f the world that is r e

an u n p er
c eived
vealed in vision and t ouch the world which is the obj ec t
m at er i a l of daily interest t o every hu m an being which is t he
wo rl d .

means when scien t ically interpreted o f advan cing man s

, ,

comfort and o n which society an d civilisation depend

,

wh a t would become of this solid an d expanded world

o f all the physical an d natural sciences t oo and eve n o f ,

m a t eri al i s m itself as the living philosophy of a conscious

b eing if t he Eg o were withdrawn and conscious reason ,

were for ever extinc t .

I nt ell ec For o n e thin g all intelli g ible experience o f ou t ward

,

tu a l t hings including the philosophy which teaches that exist

s u i ci d e ,

ence is all molecular i tself d ep en d s on wh a t i s i nwa r d

.

.
,

A ll science is dependent o n conscious life which as felt , , ,

is n o t a Visible molecule or m ass of m olecules The .

percep t ions and coheren t inferences o f which l iving know ,

ledge o f ex t ernal t hings consis t s are ind ispensable even

,

for t he construction o f t h e universal ma t erialism in which

m an looks s o insignican t But fo r conscious life in t his
.

lit t le corner o f the u n iverse or elsewhere the whole

, ,

world o f ou t ward things would b e for ever unrealised If .

t he persons who are p ercipien t of the things that m ove in

space and who b y reasonin g combined wi t h observation
,

discover na t ural laws are fou n d in t he progress of their

, ,

o wn discoveries to be the m selves in t he last resor t only

, , ,

transitory issues o f unin t elligent an d unintelligi b le Matter ,

t his materialistic philosophy of theirs m ust like all t hat ,

depen d s upon facul t ies s o produced be unwor t hy o f trust

,
.

Human science is discredited in t he de g radation o f the

hu m an beings in whom it i s converted in t o an acciden t
o f t he universal ux F o r sciences and philosophy are
.

then only acciden t s in t he history o f human organisms ,

which in this era o f molecular evolution happen t o have

, ,

b een formed o n t his little plane t The supp osed discovery

.

that t he whole is ultima t ely only continuou s mechanical

m otion of a t oms wi t hout mor a l guarantee in a divine
,

na t ural order discredits every pretended discovery U n

,
.

less t here is th a t in the universe which is more than

evolu t ion of m atter in t o organisms when matter
 PANEGOI S M . 67

means only phenomena as presented in sense t here

can be no valid science no valid materialis t philosophy

,
.

The t estimony given by a human adventurer to the fac t

t hat he has been cast up inexplicably in a succession o f ,

t he molecular changes which are the only ulti m at e reali t y ,

and who thinks that he sees scienti cally t h at all con

scious life must sooner o r later disappear is testimony ,

which un der such condi t ions can neither be vi n dica t ed

, ,

nor ref u ted T he issue is a literally unut t erable scepticis m

.

abou t every t hi n g The key which pretended to open t he

.

secret o f reality has been taken away in the very act o f

using it Universal Materialism i s intellectual suicide
. .

Larger an d deeper human experience see m s t o involve A c on

a continual protest against this The supposi t ion tha t igf

o l s eg"

intelligence is essentially m olecular is found to be i n

.

z
th
a er

an a

adequate if not self contradictory philosophy Modern

, ,
.

D
S ci ence o f outward th i ngs of wh i ch man i s j us t ly proud s s
.

, , ciou

as am ong the most si g nal o f his conques t s becomes only t h i ng s

,

o ne among innumerable other sorts o f accidental and

temporary modi ca t ion o f ato m ic move m en t ; culmina t ing
in t he discovery o f t he irrelevancy and i n sign i c an ce o f
the conscious reason tha t is the apparen t ins t rumen t o f
t he discoveries Realisa t ion in t he form of living t hought
.
, ,

o f the mechanic a l law o f gravita t ion or of t he still more ,

comprehensive biological l a w o f n atural evolu t ion i n

cluding evolution of those scientic discoveries t hemselves
-
S urely implies in t he nal constitu t ion o f t he universe
, ,

something deeper t han an ori g inally un conscious and acci

dental concurrence o f atoms We are reminded o f the .

sen t iment o f Pascal Physically m an is a petty t ransitory

.
,

organism When w e measure i ts S ize and duration and

.
,

compare this with the I m mensities and the E terni t ies ,

man is insignicant indeed A vapour o r a drop o f

.
,

wa t er is fou n d enough to co m pass his des t ruc t ion Y et

, .

even if the illi m i t able materia l world were to employ for

the des truction of men all t he m olecular forces that are
supposed t o belon g to its a t oms there is s t ill tha t in man ,

which is more noble than the m a t ter by which the hu m an

or g anis m s would be destroyed grea t er t oo than the dis , , ,

solved or g anism For the ma n would be consci ou s of his

.
 68 PHIL OSO P H Y O F TH E I S M .

fa t e ; while t he material universe woul d b e u n consciou s o f

i t s vic t ory The t rue o fce and s t anding o f m an in t he
.

universe is t o b e read n o t in t he quan t ity of space t ha t his

,

b ody i s seen to ll ; nor in t h e period of time during which

t he physical evolu t ion o f which his b ody is t he ephemeral
issue has b een g oing o n bu t in the invisible life actively ,

percipien t and self conscious which emer g es I nvisibl e -

, .

e g os are therefore superior t o a gg re g a t es o f m olecules ,

however v as t in size The Eg o is greater t han the whol e .

material world when it is abs t ract ed from all percipie n t

,

life : it is grea t er t han all the obj ec t s tha t can be pre

sen t ed t o the senses ; b ecause t he ego is conscious and .

ac t ive while things presen t ed t o sense are known only

,

as powerless an d unconsciou s m asses .

Wh at d o Th e Panegois t in S hor t raises a ques t ion which Univer

, ,

w me n m a tter
s al Ma t erialism overlooks He asks wha t t he word
e a
wh n w
.

e e
af rm th ul t ima t ely means when the word is righ t ly used Wha t
e , .

r l x i s t is mean t by t he real exis t ence o f a m olecule or an a r e

ea e
en f
ce o
gg ,

m tt r o
a ga
e t e o
r f molecules o r by t he reali t y of t hings
,
in motion ?
m l l s Wha t is mean t by t he ou t wardness o f a t hing o r t h e
o ec u e
,

ex t ern al existence o f a t hin g ? By ques t ions like t hes e

w e bring in t o ligh t t he d ei ty of ma t erialism We b e g in .

t o s ee t hat th ere is more t han w e had supposed in p er

ce ti on o f things There is here a chasm which the
p .
,

his t ory o f philosophical inquiry su g gests the di fculty o f

b ridgi ng a chasm be t ween livin g percep t ions which s u c
, ,

o ecd one ano t her in t he absolute privacy of one s own

conscious life and o n the o t her hand solid and ex t ended

, , ,

t hings m olecules and m asses o f molecules crudely s u p

,

posed t o exis t as o n e now sees t hem and t ou ches them ,

whe t her or n o t t here exists in the universe any percipien t

who i s seein g or t ouching The thin g s called ou t ward .
,

and supposed t o be in dependen t o f all percipien t life in ,

the absence of all percipien t s lose t heir qualities ; fo r t hes e

are n o longer realised by t h e living fac t or o f reality They .

disappear as emp ty abstrac t ions when all percipien t life is ,

wi t hdrawn ; s o that one is led to ask whether an a ggrega t e

o f molecules or even a S in g le m olecule cou ld con tin ue t o
, ,
:

exis t in the w ay i t n o w appears t o our senses t o do a ft er ,

t he ex t inction of all life in the universe .

 P A NE GO I S M . 69

A g ain When one speaks o f ex t ernal t hings he mus t T h e h m n

.
,
u a

include amon g t he m the minute or g anism which h e calls f ggife g r

s
r
l
his own body tha t which for the ma t erialis t is t he s elf n
, ,
-
co

whole man I t is an o bj ect t he local i ns igni c an c e o f

.

which amon g the o ther con t en t s o f space and dura t ion p rt f th b

, , a o

s ignies t o a ma t erialis t ic imagination t he i n s i gni c an c e

F o r one s o wn b ody s n s

o f m an as an i t em in t he universe
, . e e ,

is a par t of t he material world E ven though i t i s called .

livin g matter it is still like all other space occupying
, ,
-

thin g s ex t ernal t o the private self o f consciousness

, .

When it is seen in t his li g h t t he t hough t occurs t hat no ,

s u fcien t reason can be produced to show tha t conscious

life mu s t be em b odied life althou g h ours is embodied ,

.

Is t ha t fact a reason which forbids t he supposi t ion tha t

I may pass t hrough all t he di fferen t sor t s o f sen t ient or
men t al experience o f which I have been conscious S ince I
w a s born wi th ou t b ei ng em b od i ed ? Why may I no t have
,

the mental experience called seein g o r tha t other sor t ,

called touching without my present Visual and tac t ual

,

organs o r even without an organism of gross molecular

,

mat t er ? O ur senses t o o migh t conceivably have been

, ,

o ther t han they are more numerous and thus presen t ,

in g ou t ward t hin g s clo thed in qualities n o w absolu t ely

unimaginable by man ; o r less numerous in which case ,

much t hat normally cons t i t uted men can now perceive

and ima g ine would be uni m aginable O f t his las t w e .

have exa m ples in human beings w h o are born blind an d ,

to whom words expressive o f visual ideas t o us who s ee

are meaningless F o r augh t we know there may be per
.
,

c ip i e nt beings in some other corner o f the universe w h o

are each des titu t e o f all o u r external senses and endowed ,

with ve o r ve hundred o t her sor t s o f senses each ,

di fferen t in kind from any o f ours If s o what means .

,

m atter in their perception and conception o f it ? I t
can have none of the qu ali t ies which we refer t o t he
t hin g s w e call ou t ward ; and i t must have ve o r ve ,

hundred sorts of properties all o f which a human being

, ,

would be as unable to imagine as t he born blind man is -

to ima g ine scarlet a quality which Locke s blind friend
pic t ured as somethin g like t he sound of a trumpe t .
 70 PHIL OSO P H Y O F TH E I S M .

T h e p ro Bu t w e mus t re t urn from co nj ec t ures t o facts It .

p ert i es o f has been custo m ary to d i st i n g u i sh the proper ti es of bod i es

mat t er d ig
t in gu i sh e d f
as o t wo sorts t hose which are ess en ti a l t o b ody , ,

deprived o f which i t would no t b e n amed ma t ter ; and

t at i ve , an d those o n the o t h er h and which might disappear wi t h
, ,

se o n d ar y
i o u t its ceasin g to be called matter The rst sor t are
o r i mp u t ed
.

pr i mary proper t i es o f m atter ; t he o t he r s are called

.

secondary proper t ies In t heir primary o r essential at

.

t ribu t es b odies wheth er large o r small are space

,

occupying : t hey are mova b le solids : they can be for

m u l at e d mechanic ally in terms o f m a t hematical q u an ,

t ity The secondary proper t ies again are t hose which

.
, ,

inves t bodies with their chief human in t eres t They are .

t hose in virtue o f which they are of prac t ical i m portance

t o m an t heir hardness o r softness t heir hea t or cold , ,

their colours sounds odours an d tastes all which as

, , , ,

distin g uished fro m the former s or t are especially called ,

qualities ; for t he others are quanti t ies rather t han

qualities In fact o n t he molecular nal con ception o f
.
,

exis t en ce t he or i g in al atoms were supp osed t o be quan t i

,

ties on ly w ithout qualitative di fferences ; and the i n

,

nu m erable di fferences which w e observe in t he secondary

qualities com m only i m pu t ed t o external thin g s were r e
ferred to quantitative di fferences t o o m inute to be seen ,

di fferences in t he shape size posi t ion and motions o f , , ,

t heir constituen t molecules D emocri t us the represen t a .

,

t ive o f early m a t erialism argues t hat all t he quali t a t ive,

di fferences in external t hings are caused b y are

physically dependen t o n t heir quantita t ive m olecula r
di fferences Water fo r ins t ance presents qualities di ffer
.
, ,

ent from iron because its consti t uen t molecules are roun d
,

and sm ooth an d do no t t into one ano t her ; t hose of

,

iron o n t he contrary are j agged uneven an d densely

, , , ,

aggregated This conj ecture of D emocritus reappears in

.

D escar t es and Locke ; with the cau t ious quali ca t ion in

t he case o f Locke that i f the qualities imputed to o u t
ward t hings are n ot di fferen ced by t heir dependence o n
quan t ita t ive relations o f their consti tuen t molecules t hey ,

mus t a t last depend up on som ething more mysterious .

N o w lookin g in t he rs t place only at the secondary

,
 PAN EGO ISM . 71

proper ties o f the ma t erial world i t is obvious t ha t they O b v i s , ou

depe n d upon sen t ient and percipient life We canno t f th d p nd n

.
e e e ce
O e
even i m agine tas t e o r smell exis t ing externally in the s nd r y , ec o a

absence of all sentient intellige n ce excep t by readi n g p q l i t i s,

ua e
u on a
pe r
them in terms o f the non resembling m olec u les and m o l e c ip i nt
-
c e .

ular motions of which t hey are supposed to be the cor

rela t ives .T he a toms o f which re is co m posed have
themselves n o sensa ti on of heat like that which I have ,

when I approach re But if th e m en t al sensa t ion is

.

abstracted what re m ain s t hat is at all imaginable t o c o n

, ,

s ti t u t e the meani n g of the word hea t ex cept motion ,

among aggregates o f molecules ? Heat is necessarily read

i n ter m s o f m otion when it is i m agined as so m ething ex
,

t ernal . Whe n I cease t o read it in ter m s o f fel t sensa t ion

o f hea t I mu s t read it if I read it at all in terms o f m olc e
, , ,

ular mo t io n A n orange beco m es vir t u ally colourless in

.

the dark and mus t lose odour an d taste when sensuous

, ,

percep t ion ceases : the residuary issue is a mass o f c o l

o u r l e ss,
inodorous tas t eless molecules A nalysis o f the
,
.

proper t ies o f bodies in this way obliges u s to strip the

ma t erial world o f all its secondary and interesting qual
ities except s o far as t hey can be tra n slated in ter m s o f ,

the atomic m otion s o f which they a r e the correlatives .

A nd physical science h as no t discovered all the varie t ies

o f molecular mo t ion which on the hypo t hesis o f molecular
,

correla t ion correspond under n a t ural law t o t he i n nu mer

, , ,

able varieties o f secondary qualities .

But t he subordination o f the world t o t he percipient D p n e e

ego it m ay b e argued at the poi n t of view o f Panegois m l ik wi s d n

,
e ce
,
e e
does n ot stop here The process is not arrested when it f s l i d
. o o

has stripped molecules and their aggregates of all t h at p r i m r y q nt it y ua ,

or a
gives the m hum an in t erest I t m ay be f u rther argued q l iti s
.
ua e ,

t ha t t he aggregates o f m olecules and the m olecules the m i ip n ,

n o er

p t c e
selves beco m e empty i n conceivable abstrac t ions after they mind
, , .

h ave been stripped o f their interesting qualities and are ,

left t o exist in an u nresistan t colourless S ilen t inodorou s , , , ,

and tasteless condition nei t her cold nor h o t F o r t he

,
.

chief primary property of things occupancy o f space

i s itself dependent upon sensations o r fee l ings with which

it is b lended so inextricably t ha t we cannot im agine a
 72 P H IL OSO PH Y O F TH E I S M .

colourless mass o f ex t ended ma tt er An ex t ended thi ng .

wi t hou t any secondary qualities canno t be imag ined as an

outward o r material thing a t all S t rip t hings o f all .

t h e quali t ies which really depend upon a percipien t and ,

after t ha t n o perceptible quali ties remain B u t this .

su b traction of a ll th ei r p r op er ti es is practically the sub

t raction O f matter ; therefore mat t er cannot h ave real
exis t ence independen t ly o f all percipient life A t the .

mos t only an unqualied and u nq u ant i e d s ometh i ng r e

,

mains o f w h ich nothing can be either a frmed or denie d

, ,

an emp t y nega t ion not w orth t akin g into accoun t as

,

a primary datum .

Mol l s ec u e If all t he proper t ies o f material t hings are in this

th s b
u
way proved t o b e dependen t upon living percep t ion the
e
,
c m
o mp
e e
t y bs t r
a common bu t confused supposi tion tha t some o f t hem exis t
ae
ti ns
o nd,ex t ernally meanin g by that independently o f all percipi
a
t h i ng s re
s lv int en t life m ay be ar g ued by the ex t reme Pane g oist t o be
o e o ,

fe l ing s
e contrary to reason Matter is realised or brought in t o
.
.
,

ac t ual existence by t he sentien t ego throu g h whose fel t

, ,

experien ce it b ecomes what w e nd it to be The u ni .

verse the Panegoist ar g ues cannot be nally a universe

, ,

of independent molecules : i t i s nally the independent

ego wi t h molecules a gg re g ates of molecules and their , ,

qualities all sustained in the con scious experience o f t he

,

ego Accordingly on e w h o looks upon the universe a t

.
,

the p anego i sti c poin t o f view sees in the whole material

world s t ars their planets this plane t with all i t s
, ,

visible and tangible con t ents in cluding our o wn bodies ,

only inward experiences proceedin g in an esta b lished ,

order which en ables u s to foresee other inward ex p eri

o nces s t ill future all which orderly u niverse wi t hin the
,
-

mind would necessarily become extinct wi t h the extin e

tion o f the percipien t life of the ego o n which t he whole is ,

practically suspended O ur nal conception of t he world .

,

and o f wha t reali t y means is even more deeply transformed ,

in this in t repid Panegoism than was the o l d fashioned an ,

-

t h ro p o c e nt r i c conception by t he modern discoveries o f t he

astronomer Instead o f an ex t ernal ux o f variously
.

qualied thin g s in orderly motion in space the universe

, ,

b ecomes a ux o f orderly ideas and feelings in the his t ory ,

 74 P H I L OSO PH Y OF TH E I S M .

t a t io n ,and t he still wider law o f evolution t hemselves ,

need t o be explained ; and the only li g ht we have for ex

plana t ion comes from m orally responsible agen cy E x t er .

n al things are agen t s only metaphorically : the e g o alone

i s originative .

M tt r
a e In t his way ins t ead o f being an ag g regate o f ma t erial
,

nly
o
s y st m f
e
a

o
agen t s to each o f which certain issues m ay be nally r e
,

int r p r t
e e ferred the world tha t is u nfolded t o o u r ve senses pre
,

a ble s ns e e
sents only aggrega t es o f passive sense appearances called
s i gns ,

sensible things These are related t o o n e another not a s

.

.
,

an agent is conn ected with e ffects which originate ab s o

l u t el y in himself b ut as constant an t eceden t s o f events
,

yet fu t ure which t hey passively si g nify to us in a p r ac

,

tical way b ecause they are in constan t connec t ion with

,

t he m W hat are called ca u ses in t he material w orld are

.

only pre m onitors which warrant men in expec ting th e

,

changes t hey are believed t o si g nify They are the ap .

pointed forerun n ers o f even t s fo r which t hey prepare ,

t hose wh o are able to interpret t hem The world pre .

sen ted t o sense is conceived as a cos m os only b ecause it i s ,

conceived t o b e this sys t em o f in t erpretable sense signs :

i t i s in t erpretable because cer t ain sorts o f its presented
appearances are found in constant sequence wi t h cer t ain
other sor t s : faith in this constan cy makes men infer that
when an ins t ance o f t he o n e s ort appears a n ins t ance ,

of t h e o t her sort may b e expected T he ma t erial world .

b ecomes t ransfor m ed under this con ception in t o a system

, ,

o f passive sense si g ns ; and w e nd t hat w e are able t o

interpre t usefully phenomena which signify coming plea

sure and o t hers which si g nify co m ing pain
,
.

T h e P an A t the point o f View o f Panegoism the universe is born ,

egms t u ni
v ers e .
and dies with the person wh o experiences it ; and the
only person o f whose existence I am conscious is myself .

Matter and G o d are absorbed an d lost in Me T he .

solitary E go as the only da t um reduces human experience

, ,

t o a b surdity if n o t t o con t radiction Unlike Universal

,
.

Ma t erialis m and Pantheism Panegoism is a form o f ,

Monism which can hardly lay claim to a historical exist

ence althou g h some hi g hly specula t ive minds seem t o have
,
 PA N E G O I S M . 75

boldly accep t ed i t as the logical issue o f their analysis of

,

the three pri m ary d a t a But i ts exag g eration s at leas t

.

help to illustrate the subordi n ate office o f Mat t er in the

universe of existence and i t s true rela t ion t o S pirit in
,

human experience in which the visible world appears as

,

the servant of the invisible mind having this for its ,

chief end It is chiey as an aid t o reection upon t he

.

absurdity of dominant Mat erialism t ha t I have enlarged

upon Pane g ois m .

I turn now t o the t hird prim ary da t um in order t o An th r

,
o e

l t n t ve a er a l
ponder its adequacy to the demands o f reason and e x p er i
.
'

ence when it is taken to supersede the o t her t wo May

, .

the nal in t ellectual and moral satisfaction desired by the

philosopher be found when G o d is assu m ed as t he only
,

reali t y and when w e think o f Matter and the E go as only

,

illusory m odes o f God ? This third ph ase of philosophical

Monism will be next considered .
 76

L E C T U R E I II .

PAN THE I S M .

R etr o s p ect L E T me recall the t rain of t hough t t hus far

. At the .

ou t s e t I put before you my concep t ion o f t he divine

o r universal problem with which one i s con cerned when ,

enga g ed wi t h Na t ural Theology in t he wides t sen se o f

t h e term. I t is the supreme problem o f hum an life in
t he world in which man awakes in t o consciousness That .

wha t is experienced exis t s is wha t mos t of u s t ake for

,

gran t ed : t his primary fai t h is illustra t e d when ever things

and persons are presen t ed t o u s in space and t ime Bu t a .

u a r a n tee is needed for the nal moral and intellectual

g
trus t wor t hiness o f experience in t he ever chan g in g uni
,
-

verse i n which I n d myself I have entered i t as a

.

s t ran g er an d involuntarily and when I look aroun d I

,

ask What sor t o f universe is this ? May I look a t

i t wi t h trus t an d hope as an orderly sys t em ? o r must
,

I resi g n myself to nal dis t rus t and despair ? What

am I wh o have b ecome self consciou s and percipien t ;
,
-

an d for wha t purpose am I in t his conscious life ? I n

wh a t o r in whom am I a t t his m omen t livin g and
, ,

m ovin g and h aving my bein g ? These are ques t ions in

which the nal pro b lem o f exis t ence is raised ; t hey are
qu es t ion s wi t h which philosophy an d religion are con
cerned in common Philosophy culmina t es in answers t o
.

t hem : reli g ion presupposes a prac t ical answer Religion .

does no t indeed involve a complete solu t ion o f inni t e

, ,

pro b lems b y t he in t ellec t F o r reli g ion i s a m oral r e

.

la t ion o f t hou g h t emo t ion an d will t o a nally divin e

, ,
 P A N TH E I S M . 77

enviro nmen t ; and this remain s g ood al though t he divine

reali t y is incomple t ely comprehensible in a human under
s t anding A religious life o f adoration and m oral t rust
.

is no t only consisten t wi t h b ut involves recogni t ion o f , ,

ul t ima t e mys t ery mys tery t o which reasoning in ab

,

s t r ac t i o n from the moral and emo t ional elemen t s in

human nature is inadequate , Does no t the hi g hes t .

li iIO S O p h t ake the form f religious condence tha t

p y o

man need not be pu t t o intellectu al o r moral confusion

in the end ?
S O m uch regardin g t he problem o f Natural o r Phil A rti l cu a
t i n f t h is
o so p h i c al Theolo g y O ur next step w as to articulate i t p r b l m o o
.

o e
more deni t ely There are t hree nal exis t ences n a m ely t h r p r im
.
, ee

my inner conscious S elf ; the outer world of Mat t er whic h y d t

,
ar a a .

immediately environs me ; an d G o d o r the universal ,

Power These are o u r three primary data Under vari

. .

o u s concep t ions o f wha t each means they are all tacitly ,

assumed by mankind For t he his t ory o f man is really

.

a record o f the gradual ofte n interrupted evolution o f , ,

t hree central ideas one s o w n personality one s material

environmen t and Divine or Universal Power O ur con

.

c ep ti o n o f each is modied by t he manner in which it is

regarded in rela t ion to t he other t wo For the last ques .

t ions re g arding each cannot be raised withou t involving

answers t o roo t ques tions about the others I n t he early .

stages o f m an s developmen t self o r the personal factor

, , ,

is only obscurely recognised The idea of law o r order .

in the sense environ m ent is also dim in primi t ive ages ,

as at rs t in t he life of every m a n A nd the idea of God .

originally appeared in crude forms of fe ti c h i s ni and poly

t heis m afterwards o f inter ference with nat u ral order
, .

After t hese preli m inaries we entered t he First Par t o f Th ir e re

t he course t o con t emplate philosophical endeavours t o h il

,
d ti n t uc o o

p a o so
reduce the t hree primary data t o O ne With h is craving p h i l . ca

ni t y
for uni ty the theorist is dissa t is ed when a mysterious m t r i l
,
u
a e a
plurali ty ins t ead o f an ima g inable unity is o ffered as i ti g i s c, e o s

nal reali ty The ins tinct o f t he speculative thinker t i p n c, or a

t h is t i
.

e c
accordingly makes him t ry t o reduce the t hree primary
.

existences S o it co m es about t ha t some are disposed to

.

a ma t erial unity and take Ma tt er as the last word abou t

,
 78 P H IL OSO P H Y O F TH E I S M .

what exis t s The in t rospective t hinker again exag g era t es

.
, ,

the conscious E go as the ma t erialis t s exag g era t e the visible

,

and tangible world : he sees his surroundings dependen t

o n the E go ; and his las t word abou t wha t he is livin g

and moving and having his being in is tha t he is living ,

and m oving an d having his being in hi m self Bu t nei t her .

molecules in t heir ag g rega t es and organisms nor t he E go ,

in its successive conscious states provides the desired ,

uni t y t o t hose w h o think deeply A nal reali ty ei t her .

,

in t hings o f s ense o r in myself is inconsistent with the

,

om n ipresence an d omnipotence I n n i ty in a word ,

whi ch mus t belong t o the nal Power The E go an d t he .

things by which I am surroun ded accordingly lose t heir

o w n reality : they are conceived a s unreal modica t ions

of O ne In nite Reality .

P nth i s t ic Here are three ulti m ate con ceptio n s o f exis t ence that
a e

ni t y n d
u
under
a
which All i s resolved into a materialis t ic unity
n ec essit y
l n n th a t un der which All is resolve d in t o my individual
a o e u
nd i
spiritual u n ity ; and t ha t under which All is resolved
co
ti n d
o e .

in t o t he Divine unity But while each o f these e x agger

.

a t i o n s o f one da t um t o the exclusion of the o t her two

, ,

has its advoca t es perhaps n one of t he three has ever

,

b een advocated with thorough g oing consis t ency We .

have already contemplated Universal Ma t erialism and

Panegois m b oth o f t hem u n t heis t ic whe n logical Now
, .

we are t o look at Pantheism in which t he idea of Go d,

is ex clusive Pantheism alone among t he three g ives t he

.

conception o f absolute uni t y .

M tt r
a e We found modern Materialism un der t h e inuence o f ,
as th e
u l t im t e a
sensuous imagina t ion ready,
to accep t physical science as
u ni t y . t he solution o f t he universal problem The physical .

or g anis m is supposed to explain reason an d will as

manifes t ed in self consciousness ; and natural history o f
-

the organism i s subs t ituted for introspec t ive cri t icism

of rational and volitional activi t y The details of .

or g anic evolution in t he natural sequence o f biolo g ical

,

causation are without doubt fu ll o f in t eres t ; but they

,

are all irrelevan t when w e want to hear the nal voice

o f reason itself . It is impossible to iden tify ra t ional
consciousness with wha t moves in space The na t ural .
 P A N TH E I S M . 79

S cience of t he visib l e organism is irrelevant to theis m :

n atural procedure is not atheis t ic ; nor i s ra t ional c o n

s c i o u s n e s s resolved into m olecula r motion m erely because ,

it may be the natural outco m e of physical co n ditions .

I proceeded next t o as k what egoistic i m m aterialis m has T h E g e o

th
to s ay for itself F o r some o f the consequences o f think ltim t
.
as
u
e

a e
ing t he universe of things a nd persons under a n ulti m a tely n ity u .

m aterialistic unity appear in a striking w ay when w e r e ,

verse o u r poi n t o f vie w and look a t the u niverse wholly

,

in t h e ligh t o f our o wn inward conscious life We nd .

t hat space occupyi n g things depend o n conscious percep

-

t ion in unexpected ways an d i t is to rational co n scious ,

ness t h a t m aterialis m itself n ecessarily appeals a t last in

all its o w n reasonings It was chiey to illus t rate this
.

inevitable dependence o f t he outward upon the inward ,

tha t I tried to m ake the E go the nal unity in t he uni

versal sys t e m resolvi n g outward things and God into m y
,

subj ective experie n ce I t is true that Panegoism is hardly

.

e ver an accepted philosophical system at l east with a full ,

conces s ion of its lo g ical consequences It h as been attrib .

u t od to Descartes as an implicate o f his me t hod Fi c h te

, .
,

at a certain stage in his philosophical education has ,

someti m es been considered i ts represen t a t ive Hypo .

t hetically sta t ed it su g ges t s a r ed u cti o a d a bsu r d u m o f

,

Universal Ma t erialis m It reduces the only reality o f the

.

materialist to e m pty negation when th e li g h t a n d life o f ,

percipien t consciousness i s wi t hdrawn fro m existence .

Bu t Panegois m too is self des t ruc t ive : it shuts the ego in

, ,
-

suicidal isolation ; because postulates o f reason which c o n ,

n ee t individual consciousness with what is out ward and

with the innite are o n its narrow basis dissolved in the
, , ,

o n e d atu m o f solitary individuality .

Bu t there is another a l t erna t ive to a universe o f Ma tt er G d s o a

th nl y
and also t o the E go universe T here is t he recognition of r l it y .

ea
e o
.

Inni t e Bein g as t he only possible reality Mind and .

matter in us and around us under this concep t io n have

, ,

only illusory reality n o t more o r o t her than as transi

t ory phases o f O ne Absolute Reality o f which the nite ,

universe in all i t s de g rees from minerals up to men

, , ,
 80 PHIL OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

is the necessi t a t ed illusion The universe conceived .

pan t heis t ically is the e t ernal involun t ary evolution o f

Innite Being : t h e being t h a t we call our o wn is
only a modica t ion o f the O ne Being A t oms in t hei r .

visible organisa tions and the ego in its conscious s t a t es , ,

are modes o f Innite Bei n g the only S ubs t ance an d ,

Power This i s pantheistic Monism o r t he necessi t ate d

.
,

uni t y o f the All The innumera b le ato m s o f materialism

.

presen t an empirical and generic uni t y ra t her t han t he ,

necessary an d innite O ne I n Inni t e Being alone we .

nd unity t ha t is logically inconsisten t wi t h real plurality ;

necessity tha t is inconsis t en t wi t h real conti ngen cy ;
eternity t hat supersedes duration .

A re nit In nite Bein g or t he O n e S u b s t ance s eems therefore

e , , , ,
t h ing s n d
t o have
a
a clai m in reason to exclusiveness which nei t he r
p ers ns o

s bst n
u of the two o t her da t a can produ ce God is more t ruly
a c e, .

i n t h w y subs t ance and p ower even under ordinary conception s of

e a
t h t in n
,
a
it B i n g i what substance an d power mean t han ni t e thin g s and
e e s ,

S bs t n e persons can be
u a c
.

D escartes den ed su b s t an ce as t hat
which s o exists t hat it needs nothing else t o accoun t fo r

o r sust ain i t s existence : wh at are called created s u b

s t ances bodies and e g os t o w i t are bein g s t h a t n eed

G o d for their be g inning and continu ance ; they are ,

t herefore s ubs t ances only in a secondary sense wha t

,

ever that may amount t o : subs t ance proper is that which

exis t s in i t self self exis t en t reality S pinoza more -
.
,

lo g ical than D escartes concluded from t his t ha t subs t ance ,

must be O ne s o that wha t ever i s nite and plural can

,

only be illusory .

P nth i s m
a ePan t heism in one or o t her o f i ts m any protea n forms
, ,
i n it p s
is a w ay of thinking about t he u n iverse t hat has proved
ro
t n f rm s
ea o
p r v d s i t s inuence over millions o f human minds Looked a t in
e a e .

t h int l
e

l t l nd
ec u a
one e
light
a
i t seems to b e A,
t heism in ano t her sen t imental ,

e m ti n l
o or m ys t ical T heis m ; in a t hird C alvinism
o a It has , .

h i s t r y f governed the religious an d philosoph

o o
o f In dia
m n k in d
a
fo r ages E xcept in Palestine wi t h He b rew
.

.
,

consciousness o f a personal G o d i t has b e n characteris t ic ,

o f A sia t ic thought It is t he reli g ious philosophy of a

.

moiety of t he hu m an race I n the West w e nd a pan .

theistic idea at work in di fferen t de g rees of dis t inc t ness

 82 P H IL OS O P H Y O F T H E I S M .

In t ellect is unders t ood t o preside over g overn an d c o n , ,

duct the whole fra m e o f thi ngs This is n o t necessarily
.

inconsistent with the existen ce o f morally responsible

person s With this proviso i t is not pan t heism either
.
,

cosm i c or acosm i c .

D ei s m . Pantheism is an ambiguous term It is apt t o be .

applied to theists w h o e m phasise what dis t inguishes them

from deists Deism t heism and pantheis m sho u ld be d is
.
, ,

t i ng u i s h e d .Under t he g ross deistical conception what ,

i s called God i s ima g ed as existing in a place apart

deter m ined at a certain ti m e t o create the things and
persons t ha t have appeared these all after creation being
left by this remote D eity to supposed forces in n a t u re
G d a t a distance
o usually doin g nothin g occasionally

interferin g with the n atural order by miracle o r prov ,

idence a wholly transcendent and alien God an i n

dividual amo n g individuals inst ea d of t he O ne Absolu t e
,

Bei n g .

P th i s m
an e The pan t heis t ic conception is at the opposite extreme
d
s o
i D m
o
pp os e
ei s .
to t h e deis t ical : God is the ever evolvin b inni t e Bein : - g o
*7
'

i n d i V I d u al s or D e i ty mod i ed by i nnate n ecess i ty could

, ,

present n o o t her appeara n ces than those they present in

na t u re : ni t e things and persons are related to G o d as
its waves are related to t he ocean whose surface t hey ,

occasionally disturb the waves not o f a nite bu t o f

innite ocean Bu t as waves are alwa y s water even s o
.
,

ever changin g things an d persons are always God

-
.

I n N at u r e s e e n o r s h ell n o r k e r n el ,

B u t th e A ll i n A ll an d t h e E t e r n al .

T h i sm
e In t ermedia t e be t ween the deis t ical con ception o f an
aSi I t er idle God remote from the world occasion ally interfering
E
'

di
me at e , , ,

and t he panthe i s t i c concepti on o f G o d as Un i versal Be i n g

.

in i t s innite necessities there i s t he theistic conception

,

O f the universe o f hu m an experience given as revela t ion

o f G o d : G o d revealed in the
incomplete revelation

con t en t s o f space and time bu t n o t t herein exhaus t ed ;

,

God n o t so necessi t ated as that wha t ever g ood o r evil

en t ers in t o e x is t ence must be divinely n ecessi t ated
 PA NTHE I SM . 83

wi t hou t room for moral or immoral ac t s o f persons or ,

for ideals o f du t y or for the rise in t o exis t ence o f any

,

a c t tha t ough t n ot t o exis t .

The developed idea o f God as t he omnipresen t Life o f T h p r s ,

e e

the world co n stan t ly opera t ing in and t hrough natural

,

l aws is common t o educated t heis m wi t h pan t heism A t i v

, , c e
R
and is wha t mo d ern theism owes to pan t heis t ic ex agge ra j ing
ea

I t distinguishes bo t h fro m the deism in which bh ni

er
t ion .
e u -

G o d is conceived as a t a dis t ance leaving t he ordinary v ers

,
e

evolu t ion o f t he m aterial world an d society t o natural

law . The t hought and feelin g o f divin e i mm anence o r
omnipresence in all natural chan g e ; o f the ni t e as
pervaded by a n d sustained in wha t is innite comes ,

o ut
,
in ancient and modern poetry an d religion It is .

t he intense expression of a theis m s o conscious of the

uniqueness and pervadingness of Deity as to refuse
to think God apart a Person outside other persons
,
-
.

Hebre w literature with its abundan t representations o f

,

God as personal still sugges t s the idea o f G o d la t en t

,

in the heart of universal reality I nstead of an i n .

d ividual and dis t an t God external to the cosmos but , ,

o ccasionally operating i n i t as a dis t urbing God its ,

voice is Whither shall I go fro m Thy S piri t ? o r
,

w hi t her shall I ee from Thy presen ce ? If I ascend

up into heaven Thou art t here : if I make my bed in
,

hell behold Th ou ar t t here

, , If I take the wings of .

t he m orning and dwell in the u t termost par t s of t he

,

s e a ; even t here shall Thy han d lead me and Thy righ t ,

hand S hall hold me A nd there is expressed sense o f
.

despair apart from t he all envelopin g and pervadin g

,
-

and supporting Power : The way o f man is no t in h i m

self : i t i s not in man tha t walketh to direct his s t eps .

A g ain o f the voice o f fai t h an d h O p e : God is not far
from every o n e o f us : for in Him w e live an d move , ,

a n d have o u r being S o too with the thinkers and
.

prop h ets o f Chris tiani ty in t he early Greek Church as ,

C lemen t and O rigen and in the medieval ages of fai th, .

This is followed by more deistical conceptions in early

Protes t antism which t end to divorce nature as wholly
, ,

secular from God as wholly superna t ural

, Reaction .
 84 PHIL OS O PH Y O F TH E I S M .

agains t t his nds expression in our own reli g ious poe t ,

wh o had learned

T o l o o k at N at u r e , n o t as i n th e hou r

O f t h o u g h t l e ss y o u t h 3

and was won t t o feel

d
A p r e s e n c e t h at i s tu r b s m e w i t h th e jo y
d
O f el evat e t h o u g h t s a s en s e s u b l i m e
d
O f S o m eth i n g far m o r e e ep ly i n t er fu se , d
d
W h o s e w ell i n g i s th e l i g h t o f se tt in g su n s,
d
A n d th e r o u n o cean , an d t h e l i vi n g ai r ,
A n d t h e b l u e s ky an d i n t h e m i n o f m an d .

P th i s t i
an e c The dreamy a b s t rac t charac t er of pantheism is foun d
dr ms o f
ea
in i t s pro t ean m odes o f represen t in g t he relation o f all
S ot s
c u
E rig n e a. t ha t appears in space an d t ime t o t he D ivine Power
and S u b stan ce Is God e t ernally under modica t ion ;
.

or have t h e modica t ion s called things and persons ,

wi t h t heir changes a beginnin g and will t hey all end ;

, ,

s o t ha t t hin g s and persons shall a t las t disappear in

G o d wi t h an e t ernal cessation o f change time and

, ,

change b eing illusions o f sensuous imagina t ion ? S o the

medieval pan t heist S co t u s E rige n a speculates in his
, ,

philosophic dream abou t Na t ure or t he totali t y o f ,

existe n ce .I n t he dream all n a t ure consis t s o f God .

The ni t e universe in its t otal evolution is a ash of

light in t h e darkness and S ilence o f unconsciou s nu
di fferen tia t ed Being God is the essence o f all t hings
.

an d persons in which t hey mu s t at las t e t ernally an d

,

unconsciously repose These t remendou s asser t ions o ffered

.
,

without proof il l ustra t e t he elas t icity of pan t heistic i m ag

,

i n at i o n and i t s in difference t o t he demands of human ex

,

ri enc e S pecula t ion rst fancies wha t reality mu s t b e

p e .
,

and t hen disdain s all troublesom e fac t s which are dis ,

r a e d as sensuous imaginations E xperience is t rea t ed

p a g .

as an illusory descent from the universal to th e particular ,

from the abstract to th e concrete I n the end as in t he .

,

b eginni n g all resolves in t o the in experienced o r t he u n

,

conscious .

This much in illus t ra t ion o f some phases of Pan t heism ,

when i t w as t rying to occupy a posi t ion b e t ween At heis m

 86 P H I L OSO P H Y O F T H E I S M .

S p in i s m
oz As I have said t he pan t heistic idea o f su bsta n ti a ti on
,
nd L r d
o f t he world an d the ego in O ne Innite S ubs t ance
a o
G iffo r d .
,

called God is an idea t ha t lurks in Lord Gi fford s Deed

,

o f Foundation t he idea which he seems t o desire t o hav e

,

worked ou t and tested through this lectureship in so m e of ,

t h e inn umerable frui t ful ways which i t s developmen t

might open to mankind The idea comes o u t s t rongly
.

in a lecture o n S U B S TAN C E delivered by him som e ,

years before his death I make n o apology fo r quotin g .

some sen t en ces from this rare and curious tract to S how ,

h ow n ear t he idea o f Divine S ubs t antiation o f things and

persons lay to his heart .

All t h ing s He conceives God as t he one an d only S ubstance t he o n e ,

a nd p
s ns
o
hidden
er

as
reali t y tha t exists under all concrete bein g s and ,

co ns l u ) t o which all their phenomen a are t o be ascribed S o h e .

t nt i t d
s a
in G d o
t
a e
ells u s that the word S U B S TA NC E is the grandest word in
,
th e o nl y any la n guage S u b stance is t hat which is below and
.

S bs t n c
u a
above and around and wi t hin all m a t erial t hin g s and all
e .

minds or e g os ; tha t in which t hey all exis t ; s o tha t

whatever is predicable o f them mu s t be predicable o f
t he O n e S ubstan ce o f which they are par t s Take the .

following :
Un b t nsu s a To come t o t he roo t and bo tt om of t he ma tt er a t once ,
t i l it y f
I ask you t o look at t he forces an d energies and laws of
a o
ni t e
t hi ng s n a t ure ; and t he laws of life which have s o much t o do with
and p
t he ph enomen a o f ex t ernal na t ure and o f m a n which w e
er
s ns
o
Wha t are t hese for ces and
.

have been examining .

n i inna t e in m a tt er forsoo t h inna t e in protoplasm

e erg es , ,

innate in organisa t ion an d on which s o much reliance is

placed ? D o t hese forces and energies explain anythin g
D o t hey n o t j us t pu t the question fur t her back o r f u rther ,

on ? F o r th e question is Wha t is the s u bs ta n ce o f all t he

,

forces and energ ies t hemselves ? T h ey are n o t nal and

ul t ima t e ; t hey themselve s need explanation ; there must
b e S ome t hin g b ehind and b ey ond t hem all They are not .

self originated : t hey are n o t self maintained : t hey are b u t

- -

w ords telling us t o go deeper an d t o go higher ; they all

,

seem t o say to the an xious inquirer N o t in us n ot in us ,

,
.

The force behind an d in all forces the ener g y o f all ,

ener g ies t he explanation of all explana t ions the caus e

, ,
 P A N TH E I S M . 87

of al l causes and of all e ffects the S oul that is wi t hin ,

an d below and behind ea ch soul t he Mind that inspires ,

and ani m a t es and thinks in ea ch mind i n o n e word t he ,

S ubstance o f all substances the S ubsta n ce of all phe ,

n o m e n a is God Nature " tis but t he name o f an e ffect

.
, .

The cause is G o d Now w e have reached a S ubstance tha t

.

does n o t in i t s t urn become merely a phenomenon a S ub

s t ance which has no t hing behind it but o f which all t hings ,

and persons pas t presen t o r fu t ure are bu t the for ms

, , , , .

S u bs ta n ce is the true na m e o f G o d E very line o f .

thought m ee t s here E ve ry eager question is an s wered

.

here E very di f culty and perplexity is resol ved here

. .

Here t he philoso p her must rest Here the ignorant must .

repose T his niverse and all its phenomena other uni

. u

verses un t hink able by hu m an m inds all are but forms

,

of the Innite S hadows of t he S ubstance that is O ne fo r

,

ever . There cannot be a nite energy that is due

only to i t self alone and which is independen t o f every
,

thing else ; for there can be bu t O ne I n ni t e It is .

mere repetition t o say That if God be t he very S ubstance

,

and E ssence of every force and of every b eing He m us t , ,

be the very S ubstan ce and E ssence of the human soul .

The human soul is neither self derived n o r self subsis t ing - -

.

I t is b ut a manifesta t ion a phenomenon It would vanish ,

.

if it had not a substance ; and i t s substance is G o d .

The n if G o d be t he substance o f o u r souls He mus t also ,

be the substance o f all our thoughts and of all our actions

, .

Thoughts and ac t ions are n o t self sustaining self produc -

,
-

in g any m ore t han worlds T hey are mere manifes t a t ions

, .
,

rst of o u r souls bu t next and far m ore truly o f G o d

, , , ,

w h o is o u r S ubs t a nce In Him w e live and move and

.
, ,

have o u r being We are par t s of the I n ni te literally

.

,

s t ric t ly scientically s o
,
A hu m an soul o r a human
.
,

t hough t and action ou tsi d e of G od would be a rival dei ty

, ,
.

In all this I have not gone a sin g le s t ep out of my H s s e ee
l l th
way as a st u den t o f mental science ; and if I h ave had to s i n s a
c e
e
ce
f
speak to y o o God frankly an d freely t ha t is only 1
u
1 0 11 111 1 11 8 3

because G o d is n ecessa r i ly fou n d by all w h o fairly follow s i n f

i ng i n
c e ce o
up the purely scientic idea o f substance to i ts deepest th O n e e

roo t s an d its hi g hes t sources The highes t science al wavs S bs

.
t n u a ce .
 88 P H IL OSO PH Y O F TH E I S M .

becomes reli g ious nay religion itself S cience knows

,
.

n o authority b u t t he in t uition o f tr u th If G o d be the .

substance o f all forces and powers and of all beings He , ,

must be t he on ly subs t ance t he only substan ce in this ,

universe o r in all possible universes This Uni t y O f S ub

, .

s t ance is the grand tru t h o n which the system o f S pinoza is

fou ded
n I am and there is no e besides Me
.

n ,
no being
,

no t hing n o exis t en ce besides I am and no t hing else is

, .
,
.

If there could be t wo S ubstan ces ; if anything else b u t

G o d existed anything outside G o d any t hin g o f which
, ,

G o d w as n o the substance
t t hen there would be t wo ,

gods and neither of them would be innite Bu t I mus t

,
.

forbear he says at last I m us t forbear t o t race further
, ,

t he consegu ences o f God b ein g seen as the o ne eternal and

on ly S ubstance The su bj ect mi g ht be expanded into
.

many volumes .

S i nti
c e c I t is expansion in t o i t s consequences o f the idea o f
ex pl i ca
God as t he O n e only S ubstance with cri t icism o f the same
, , ,
tion o f
t h e O ne in t he innumerable ways in which t he t hough t m ay be
S bs
u t an ce .
conceived by di fferent minds th a t Lord Gi fford seems to ,

have had before h im as that which generations o f thinkers

,

might work o u t accor d in g to t heir respective individu

,

al i t i e s
. The idea i t self is an elas t ic o n e apt to evade ,

in t ellectual g rasp and while a tt ribu ted b y h i m t o S pinoza

, ,

w as held in fervid sentimen t by Lord Gi fford pro b ably ,

more and o t her than intellec t ual S pinozism .

P r o s p ec I will nex t as k y o u to look in t o t he grounds an d c o n

ti ev .

sequences o f t he S pinozistic concep tion o f t he universe .

This will open the w ay fro m Untheistic Monism to t he

rationale o f human faith and hope in the Universal
Power .
 90 P HI LOSO P H Y OF TH E I S M .

all suppose in S pinoza an ene m y o f religion By Lessing .

and Novalis Goe t he an d S chleier macher he is canonised

, ,

for vir t ue an d pie t y O nce a n athema t ised by Jews and .

Christian s this proclaimed ath eis t is no w described as a

,

god intoxicated mystic

-
Between these extremes men .

oscill a t e in their reading o f the pensi ve spec t acle g rinder -

in Holland as they s ee in him the lo g ical reasoner w h o

'

treats Deity as an emp t y abstraction or recognise a ,

devo t ee ready in self s a c r i c i ng spirit t o lose his indi

,
-

v i d u al i t y in his divine S ubs t ance The charac t eris t ic .

elasticity of pan t heism may e xplain the con t radiction .

The pantheist concep t ion is suscep t ible of either a

materialist o r an idealist d eveIO p m e nt : under o ne light
it yields in t ellectual atheism and u nder another senti ,

men t al theism A n alien in the prev ailing spiri t o f the

.

eigh t een t h cen t ury probably no o t her personage livin g in

,

the preceding century h as m ore powerfully a ffected theo

logical philosophy in this g eneration than this soli t ary
reasoner w h o devo t ed t he thinking part o f his shor t life o f
,

forty four years to m edita t ive speculation abou t God An

-
.

intellectual love of God experie n ced in discovery of his ,

own iden t ity with God was the peace o f S pinoza s l ife ,

th e religion t o which he sincerely aspired It was a lif e .

o f more t han co m mon si m plici t y fru g ali t y an d i n d iffe r , ,

ence t o sensuous pleasure th at this swar t hy slender , , ,

consu m ptive looking you t h passed t hrou g h in his lonely

-

lodging at The Hague His very innocence an d vir t ue .

,

m atured into invin cible habit in which t he man w a s ,

los t in t h e abstrac t thinker may have blinded him t o t he ,

defects o f a doc t rine which when it is rigidly interpreted , ,

over t urn s morali t y .

I n S p in The resigned feeling tha t I and all persons are having

oz

i m th
o u r being as m a t he m a t ically di fferentiated modications o f
s e
o n D ivin
e e
R l it y i O ne Un di fferentiate d S ubs t ance seems to be t he essence
ea s ,
r g r d d of S pinoza s religion He nds himself u nder an in t el
e a e

.

as a t n o ce
i n nit e lec t ual o b ligation to ackn owledge one and only o n e
n d nit e indi fferently named God Nature o r
a
reali t y Uni ca S u b
s bst n
u a ce
, ,

a nd m d s o s ta n ti a
e .
Its a t trib u tes are innite : the m odica tions
.

which t hese at t ribu t es so m ehow assume are nite The .

a tt ri b u t es o f the Divine S ubstance t hat are known to man

 P A NT H E I S T I O N E C E SS I T Y . 91

are only t wo in n ite ex t ension and innite t hough t : God

or Nature is known only in mo d es o f extension and modes
o f t hou g h t .

Individual t hings and individual persons are for m ed by I n S pin oz

human imagination out of these modes : nei t her t he t hings [11315 21 31 11

11 1
nor the person s h ave real exis t en c e : t heir appearance of t h i g s n ar e

111 1
reality is explained by S pinoza as an illusion of i m agina 1 11 5 0

t ion which necessarily arises w hen modes are conceived in

,

abstr a ction from t he Divine Reali t y Taking the m eta .

phor o f the ocean and its waves t o represen t the Un i ca

S u bsta n ti a individual persons and t hings are like t hose
,

waves changed into lu m ps o f ice I m agination deludes .

u s in t h e supposition that t hey are more than m o d i c a

tion s o f t he innite S p ace o r the in nite thought which ,

exist i n necessary correlation ; for extension and thought

are correla t ive phases of t he O ne S ubs t an ce But this .

evolu t ion o f individuals ou t of t he Undi fferentia t ed Unity

i s t ruly illusion according t o S pinoza : under his supreme
,

principle om ni s d eter mi n a ti o es t n ega ti o t he nite can

b e only a negation o f t he Inni t e n o t a posi t ive reality , .

Nevertheless he proceeds as if the Innite were de

,

co m posable by abstraction capable of bein g regarded,

alternately as Innite and ni t e S ubstance an d modes , ,

Undetermined yet di fferentiated in ma t hematically n e c e s

sary forms .

Thus t he t wo a tt ribu t es o f God known t o m an are T h m d s e o e

represen t ed in i m agina tion as individual things and indi SW

vidual persons an d endowed wi t h a n illusory reali t y t n ti
,
. s a a

Things and persons may both b e reasoned about geome t ri

cally ; for ex t ension an d though t being substan tially g m tgi , eo e

identical are necessarily correlative s o tha t thought and

, ,

theology are philosophically unfolded in mathematical

terms . They form be t ween them the n a tu r a n a tu r a ta ,

which by a logical but not real dis tinc t ion S pinoza con
, ,

t ra s t s with the n a tu r a n a tu r a ns T hese names ins t ead o f

.
,

universe and G o d express t he unity an d iden t ity of t h e

,

O ne S ubstance ; which as I have said may be reasoned

, ,

o u t in terms o f geometrical quan t ity seeing t hat extension ,

an d though t are in ra t ional correlation The S ubstance o f .

which I nd myself a mode m ay be specula t ed either in ,

 92 PHIL OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

abs t ract un ity o r in i t s concrete modes at once inni t e ,

and nite undi fferen t iated and yet under mathema t ical
,

forms G o d wi t hout the u niverse has n o self existent life

.
-

o f His own : Uni ca S u bs ta n ti a is empty su b s t ance with ,

o u t attribu t es and t herefore with out meanin g : n a tu r a

n a tu r a ta is a necessity o f exis t ence as much as n a tu r a
n a tu r a ns . We are livin g an d moving an d havin g o u r
bein g in t he O ne Divine Immensity which contai n s ,

all t hat can exist .The universe o f nite things and

persons must b e as i t i s There is n o room fo r the crea
.

tion b y nite persons o f acts which con form t o ideals of

duty an d goodness ; nor yet o f evil ac t s which o u ght not
to exist an d are therefore not a b solutely necessi t a t ed
, .

Reali t y and perfec t ion mus t b e o ne u nder S pinoza s de ,

m o n s tr ati o n s : t he h om o m ens u r a p ostula t e mus t n o t in t er

fere to arrest t he in ference A conclusion o f t his ma t he
.

m a ti c a l pantheism is tha t there can be n o con t in g en cy ,

e ven a t t he point o f view o f human philos ophy apparen t

personal freedom from ma t hematical necessi t y is delusion ,

t h e issue o f inadequate knowled g e S o t o o i s every con

.

u r e a b ou t nal reality which supposes th a t

je c t n a tu r a

n a tu r a ta is ruled by man s ideas o f providen t ial g ood and

e vil order and disorder o r for th ose ends which see m

, ,

desirable according to a human imagina t ion o f provi

dence Human desires mu st b e regulated b y the m athe
.

m ati c al necessities o f Na t ure which i s another n ame ,

for God n o t by t he self re g arding interes t s o f men

-
.

Here S pinozis t ic pantheism looks like a t heism I n words .

S pinoza g ives us n o t hing bu t G o d ; ye t in fac t he gives u s

only an unmoral G o d stripped of providen ce and purpose
, .

T h e i ea d s B u t is not t his way o f looking nally a t t he universe

of sp
ac e , unlike reality as revealed in o u r deepes t experience ?
t i m e , su b
s t anc e , an d W hen w e try to assimila t e the speculative t hou g ht u n
s l y
c au a i t , rolled in the a b s t rac t demons t ra t ions of S pinoza we are
a vn s e ue
,

t w rd s
o a
carried away from experien ce which wi t h him is only ,

i n n it e a name fo r ni t e illusion W e are summoned in t o t hat

.

B in g
e .

sublime idea o f I nni t e which with him becomes pan

,

theis t ic unity an d necessity while for o t hers i t sus t ains

,

t heis t ic faith The Innite in fact is no t very far from

.
, ,
 9 4: P H I LOSO PH Y OF TH E I S M .

g rea t t or t oise : and bein g fur t h er pressed t o t ell wha t sup

por t ed the tor t oise replied someth i ng h e kn ew n o t wh a t
, ,
.

A n d as wi t h S ubs t ance s o t oo wi t h Power I f it is i mp o s

, .

sible to suppose a quality existing withou t su b s t ance

a n adj ective wit h out a substantive i t is also impossi b le

to suppose change withou t a cause in t o which t he chan g e

mus t be refunded : bu t every ni t e cause in its t urn de
m ands another t o explain its own en t rance into e xis t ence
, ,

an d tha t o t her if ni te equally demands a cause ou t of

, ,

which i t has emerg ed and so t he physical re g ress i m ,

posed by in t ellec t ual necessi t y is lost at last in the mys ,

t e r y of E ndlessness In short w e nd ourselves inevita b ly

.
,

dissa t ised wi t h wha t is n i te wi t h nite places in space ,

nite times in dura t ion,ni t e su b s t ances and ni t e causes ,

.

However far we g o t here is an in t ellectual obli g a t ion t o g o

fur ther The universe of o u r experience seems to ex t en d
.

into innity ; for when we t ry to limi t i t w e nd t he ,

limi t ed portion s t ill related t o reali t y b eyond .

I s I n ni t e Bu t do we t hink ade quately o f Divine reality when we

R e l it y a
a
t hink of i t as a q ua n ti ty ? It cannot be a quantity if
qu antity ,

quan t i t y mean s absolu t ely rounded Imm ensi t y o r ab s o ,

l u tel y rounded E ternity ? A n indeni tely large o r an ,

indeni t ely long con t inu ed nite obj ect i s a qu anti t y ; for
-
,

i t has i t s boundary al t hough t he b oundary may b e t oo

,

rem ote fo r human imagination t o represent Bu t is t he .

In nite Reality towards which we are carried b y ni t e

,

places dura t ions qualities and chan g es capable of quanti

, , , ,

t at i ve measuremen t
F i nit e Take S pace to be g in wi t h Imag in e any quanti ty o f .

s p es and
ac
S pace yo u please however vas t s ay the area included
i n ni t e ,

S p ac e .
wi t hin the orbi t of th e plane t on which w e are livin g .

Y ou ca n su bt rac t from t his th e t o t al space con t ained s ay

within the orbit o f Mercury ; you have t o t ha t ex t en t
redu ced t he nite area whic h was contained within t he

E ar t h s orbit O r ins t ead o f sub t ractin g you ca n add t o
.
, ,

the quantity of the E ar th s orbi t by in cludin g all tha t is

within t he vas t er expanse con t ained within the orbi t o f

Mars o r of Jupi t er or O f t he whole solar system I n
, ,
.

shor t y o u can either diminish o r enlarge the quantity of

,

S pace wi t h which you are dealin g in those ins t ances ,

 P A N TH E I S T I C N E C E SS I T Y . 95

because y o u are dealing in all o f t hem only with nite

q uan t i t ies which
,
are all i m aginable in their na t ure ; even
if hu m an imagina t ion g ives only an obscure im age o f
qu antities s o vast o r so s m all as t o be i m perfectly con
c e i ve d . In thi s w e are holding up in i magination a
n ite quantity o f space ; trying t o pic tu re a S pace which ,

because it i s ni t e i s capable of bei ng dimi nished o r i n

,

creased i n extent N o t so with space when los t in the

.
,

mysterious innity which contradicts sensuous i m agination .

For w e are so m ehow ob liged to add to ever y i m agin able

o r nite space however vast : w e n d so m ething in o u r
,

minds which forbids us t o suppose th at w e can ever reach

a space w i th n o sp a ce b eyon d : some t hing in o u r m inds
obliges u s t o o to think o f ever y nite o r i m aginable
, ,

S pace however small as s t ill divisible into parts s m a l ler

, ,

than itself We are obliged to believe that t h e largest

.

conceivable nite space i s still incomplete ; fo r th ere

m u s t be a larger : w e canno t but suppose t hat the
sm allest is inco m pletely divided ; fo r there m ust b e a
s m aller .A noteworthy fact in all t his is th a t each ,

additio n is believed t o bring us n o n ea r er to the I n n

i t e Reality than we were before we began t o add and ,

each subtraction t o carry us n o fa r th er a way from it .

The addition of the quantity o f space contained within

th e orbit of Mars to tha t contained wi t hin the or b it o f
the E arth i s a de ni t e addi t ion to a quan t i t y ; be c ause
both are nite an d consist o f ni t e parts B ut n o addi
,
.

tion o f parts t o parts brings o n e nearer t o Immen sity ;

and no subtraction carries us farther away from it Fini t e .

spaces large o r small large eno u gh to include the whole

, ,

known stellar sys t em o r s m all enough to defy the most ,

powerful microscope these spaces are conf u sedly spoken

,

o f as parts o f an I n nite which transcends relations of

part an d whole We suppose as m uch more space b e
.

y ond the lar g es t as there is beyond the s m alles t quan t ity .

S t re t ch i m agina t ion to the ut m os t i n nit e space is as ,

much out o f reach as far short o f exhaustion as i t was ,

at r s t the addi t ions being all as it were irrelevan t to , ,

it. I n the light o f reason the spaces of sense and imagin ,

ation la rge o r small disappear in In nite Reality

, ,
.
 96 PH I L OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

F init e S pace in t his way is one avenu e t owards t he Inni t e in

t im e s nd
a

Et ernity .
relation to quan t i ty Turn n ex t to D ura t ion This is
. .

ano t her avenue which perhaps even more t han space

, ,

b rings inni t y h ome t o us all However far b ack in .

t ime we make imagination t ravel we are o b liged t o sup ,

pose a past s t ill more remo t e ; however far forward w e

look w e are o b liged t o suppose a y et remo t er future
, .

We can s et no boun dary either in the pas t o r in t he

,

fu t ure t o t he succession of chan g es by which t he idea

,

o f dura t ion is awakened in human consciousness : when

we ima g ine any period long o r S hor t o u r minds obli g e

, ,

us s t ill t o imagine a duration lon g er o r shor t er by the

, ,

addi t ion or subtrac tion o f which the rs t is in creased o r

diminished But j us t as space a t las t disappears in I m
.

m en s i ty s o t ime at last disappears in E ndlessness

, Un .

b eginning t ime does not admi t of addition nor does ,

u nending time admi t o f sub t rac t ion The Et erni t y in .

which each is lost does n o t admit o f parts al t hough sen ,

s u o u s imagina t ion h as t o picture i t as divisible We are .

as far fro m exhaus t ing Et ernity when w e have t ravelled

back million s of years as w e were when w e commenced
o u r j ourney into pas t t ime ; an d n o passage o f t ime n ow

elapsed diminishes t he endlessness t hat seems t o b e in

fron t o f us The unbeginnin g pas t seems to misleadin g
.

imagina t ion as if i t were a quan t i ty su bt rac t ed from t he

unendin g fu t ure i t t o o bein g a supposed quan t i t y : thought
,

is lost in an Inni t y g rea t er t han either the unbeginnin g

pas t o r t he un endi ng fu t ure ye t somehow containin g each
,

of t he two as i ts par t s Add to any ni t e time and w e

.

are brough t nearer to a ye t longer nite t ime ; bu t w e

are brough t no nearer t o E terni t y Time necessarily i n .
,

capable of bein g completed at either end makes imagina ,

t io n commit suicide when i t tries to exhaus t D ura t ion in ,

t he unpictura b le region in which

i mmu t ab ly vive
su r ,
F o r o u r s u p p o r t t h e m e a s u r es an d t h e fo r m s
,

W h i c h an a b s t r a ct i n t e ll i g e n c e s u pp l i e s ,

Wh os e kingd om i s wh er e ti me a n d sp a ce a re n ot .

So it is t ha t t he space b y which I am no w surrounded ,

 98 P H I L OS O P H Y O F T H E I S M .

W it h S p in He who tries to think o u t the Reality in which he lives

n th m g
OZ a o
and moves and has his bein g i n sy m pathy wi t h S pinoza
r ll y h p
ea a
, ,

p n s l l m ust therefore t hink it o u t no t as imaginable succes

e a ,

e x is t s i m sion o r physical evol u tion bu t as uni m aginable E ternity

s
u lt n a e
, ,
.

ou s ly .
F o r i m agina t ion o f succession is t o t he reality like trees o r
h ouses as seen from the window o f a carriage in m otion .

They seem t o be m oving bu t t he m otion is in o u r selves ,

.

The supposition t ha t change is real i s the delu sion of the

uneducated Nothin g happens : all exis t s si m u ltaneously
. .

The pas t i s not really past : the fu t ure is n o t s t ill u n

real Tho u ght is n o t successive : succession arises only
.

when im agination invades t h e provi n ce o f s cience A ll .

is N o w Under the g eometrical necessi t ated conception

.
,

history and experience logically dissolve in illusion : wh at

has no t ye t happened is as real a s wha t h as happened ;
what i s future an d wh a t is past is iden ti ed in what must
be Nothing really happen s all exis t s absolu t ely
. .

T w w ys o a It is instructive to follow S pin oza as he subli m a t es

o f n
co iv nite
ce
things fallaciously individualised by i m agina t ion
i ng q n
, ,
ua
t it y .
ou t o f which the illusory world o f com m on consciousness
is supposed to emerge bu t which reason refunds in t o the ,

O ne Divine S ubs t ance in which all things exis t in absolute

perfec tion S ubstance s o far as it is in nite cannot he
.
, , ,

argues be added to o r divided If asked why we are apt

,
.

t o suppose th e contrary he would an swer that quan t i t y , ,

may be conceived either in imagination o r accordin g t o

pu re in t ellect If w e regard qu anti t y as it appears to
.
,

i m agin ation w e nd i t divisible or m ade up o f parts ;

, ,

but i f w e regard it intellectually which is di fficul t ,

fo r us t o d o it can be dem on s t ra t ed t hat it must be
,

indivisible .

Th e ah Ag ain the universe o f reality mus t be eternally n e c es

,

s ur d it y O f sary as o t herwise w e are involved in the contradiction

,
co nt in

g e n yc .
t hat Na t ure might be di fferent from what mu st be What .

w e call con tingency and cha n ge is t he issue o f an imper

feet comprehension o f innite reali t y under t h e delusive ,

form O f sense or imagination Wha t really exists cannot .

b e contingent : it seems s o only because it is vie wed in

t he li g h t of decien t kno wled g e Things are perfect in .

t heir reality fo r wha t is real is divine B u t even t he

,
.
 P A N TH E I S T IC N E C ESS I T Y . 99

O pinion which refers all t o capricious Will is nearer t ru t h ,

according to S pinoza than t he supposi t io n that things are

,

what t hey are for the sake o f any supposed good t hereby
,

secured to man or o f which man i s the nal cause F o r

,
.

t his last supposes an end independen t of G o d o r t o which ,

God i s only a m eans .

The favourite prej udice tha t a humanly rela t ed purpose P nt h i sti a e c

o r nal cau se i s the cons t itu t ive principle o f existence i s

x pl s i n e o o
f th i d o e ea
what S pinoza by his demons t rations labours to re m ove th t th . a e
n i v rs i
Man u n p h il O S O p h i c ally disposed to think thin g s in succes h rg d
,
u

c a
e

e
e s

sion n o t su b sp eci e ceter n i ta ti S takes his o w n nite and w it h d p t a a

ti n
i m aginable experien ce as th e measure of reality and looks w h i h ,
a o

c
s

a t reality as event o r historically ;

,
not su b r a ti on e o r r l t t , e a e o

in t ellectually Ma g nifying the i m portance o f his o wn h m n u a

i nt r s t s
.

e e
feelings and desires he supposes that t he nal cause
.

o f exis t ence mus t b e human happiness A s pleasure is .

the mo t ive of his o wn ac t ions he co m es t o in t erpre t ,

Na t ure or God as a system of means intended to secure

this fo r m an ; which involves t he supposition of an an
t h r o p o m o r p h i c Ruler o f Nature endowed wi t h a capri
,

c i o u s freedom disposed t o act emotionally in t his way o r

,

t hat ; w h o does nothin g in vain th at is t o s ay w h o does

,

n o t hing that is inconsisten t with man s happiness An d .

when experience contradicts this human fancy b y t he ,

miseries t o which men are subj ec t t hen rather t han , ,

surrender the childish hypothesis o f a reali t y that is

deter m ined by hu m an interests i ts an t hropomorphic ,

advocates suggest man s ignorance an d conclude t hat the

rule of the gods somehow surpasses o u r co m prehension .

This favourite refu g e o f narrow minds S pinoza thinks , ,

would have p erpe t ually kep t t he h uman race in darkness

if ma t he m a t ics which excludes re g ard to causes either
, ,

n al o r ef cient had n o t offered a higher criterion o f

,

truth and made philosophers acknowledge the necessary

,

nature o f All For a mathe m atical concep t ion of the

.

universe sh ows s o he argues t ha t God o r Nature as ,

perfec t can be s u b ordinated t o no human end : to s u p

,

pose the universe charged with purpose is a ction o f

i m agination n o t a scientic conception I t is because in
,
.

the eye o f imagination the wor t h of things is deter m ined

 1 00 P H IL OSO PH Y O F TH E I S M .

b y t heir human rela t ions and u t ili t ies t hat t he irra t ion al ,

prej udices arise which are expressed b y t he words good

and evil vice an d s in praise an d blam e order and disorder
, , , .

Good is t h e term popularly applied t o whatever is s u p
posed to be in th e in t eres t o f man o r like ritual o r w o r , ,

ship in th e imagined in t eres t o f God I g noran t of t hin g s

, .

in their ra t ionale men ima g ine an order o f their o w n

, .

When things are s o arra nged tha t they can b e ea si ly

im ag ined they call t hem well arra ng ed and when placed
, ,

o t herwise t h ey call t hem confused ; as if t he order were

,

som e t hing in the things and no t in their own ima g in a ,

tion They suppose that G o d m ust crea t e the univers e

.

s o t ha t th ey can easily in t erpre t it ; weakly a tt ribu t ing

t h eir o wn imagin ation t o God and dreaming t hat G o d has ,

disposed all o u t o f consideration for human ima g ina t ion .

S pinoza with sorrow sees human life crowded wi t h ex

amples o f ni t e ima g ination subs t i t u t ed fo r t he inni t e
reali t y o f divine reason and endless con t roversies as t he
,

consequence Men imagine without t ruly understandin g

. .

If t hey t ruly unders t ood thin g s t hey would b e all agreed , ,

al t hough n o t necessarily pleased The perfec t ion of things .

is to be j ud g ed b y what they m ust b e n o t by t he ways in ,

which t hey sa t isfy o r o ffend men .

Ap n a A dilemm a confron t s t his pan t heis t ic uni t y an d nec o s

t h ei s t i
si ty E i t her w e reduce indi vidual thin g s and person s t o
c
d il emm a.
.

vain S hadows and then t he unde t ermined S u b s t ance o r

,

Dei t y of S pin oza comes ins t ead a fea t ureless u ni t y ; or

we mus t assum e t ha t t he data an d ra t ion al implicates o f

o u r experience are real so far as t hey go and t ha t G o d

is incomple t ely ye t re ally revealed in o u r physical and

spiri t ual experience F o r dete rm inin g b etween t hese
.

al t ernatives we mus t have recourse t o fac t s and t he nal

cons t i t u t ion of t h e human mind H omo mensu r a or n u lla .

mensu r a are t he al t ernatives t ha t mee t us a t las t I t is .

b y means o f mona d s says Leibniz t hat S pinoza is refu t ed

, ,
:

S pinoza would be righ t if t here were no mona d s : in t ha t

case all t ha t is n o t G o d would b e evanescen t acciden t o f
fancy Le t u s subs t i t u t e persons or moral a g ents for
.
, ,

mona d s an d s ay t ha t if t here were n o inspire d self ac t in g

,
-
 1 02 P H I L OSO P H Y OF TH EI S M .

s tr a t i o n s
in which th e co n clusions only make explici t what
w as already arbi t rarily introduced into the denitions .

Th e system is a lo g ical evolution o f wha t is contained in

the connotation of cer t ain words of ex t re m e abs t rac t ion .

And the resul t shows chiey argu m entative connec t ion

be t ween do g matically assumed d eni t ions and conclu

sion s . I t is possi b le as has b een sai d
,
by devising ,

a s et o f ar b itrary denitions to form a science w hich , ,

al t hough professedly conversant about moral poli t ical , ,

physical or any o t her ideas should yet b e as certain as

, ,

g eometry I t is o f n o moment whe t her th e ideas cor

.

respond wi t h fac t s o r n o t provided t hey do n o t expres s

,

a b solu t e impossibili t ies an d b e n o t inconsistent with

,

each o t her From t he d enitions a series o f consequences

.

may b e deduce d by the m os t unexceptionable reasoning ,

and the results will be p erfectly analogou s to m athe

m ati eal propositions : but the terms t rue and false cann o t

b e properly applied to them Nominal denitions are t he
.

principles o f this verbal science The t erms t rue and false .

t herein refer t o ver b al consis t ency n o t to corresponden ce ,

wi t h what i s real .

U n differ Th at it refunds all in t o un di fferen t ia t ed Uni t y e m ptie d ,

e nt i at e d
o f events is an u nsurmountable di fcul t y in t his thorough
u n it y ,

i ll s o r y
u . going I m personalism o r Pan t heism I t vain ly asks hum an .

in t elligen ce t o con quer the emp t y re g ion towards which

w e are carried when w e t ry t o surrender pl a ce for I m
,

m e n s ity ti m e for E terni t y substances reve aled in e x p eri

, ,

ence for t h e Et ernal S ubstance cau sed e ffects fo r the nal ,

mystery invo l ved i n Power It deman ds an i m personal .

faculty in which t he individual person m ust b e lost in an

illu sory unity an d t o m eet t his pantheis t ic t hinkers have ,

b een reduced to hard straits This d i fculty is met vari .

o u s ly : by some in the hypothesis o f a t ra n scendental

vision o r inspira t ion whi ch can hardly be dis t inguished

,

from blind feeling ; by others in an avowedly e m otio n a l

experien ce sui t ed t o t he less robust in t e l ligence an d
dreamy temperamen t o f t he m ore indolent a n d u n p r ac t i
cal races o f mankind Plotin u s in the ancien t world and
.
, ,

S chelling in t his cen t ury m ay be take n each in his own

, ,

way as advoca t es o f a tran scendental in t ui t ion which

,
 P A N TH E I S T I C N E C ESS I T Y . 1 O3

seems t o resolve at last into unintelligible feeling or to ,

be sublimated in to superco n sciousness as in the N i r va n a

o f the Buddhist weary of a perplexed and painful con
,

scious experience We nd Plotinus asserti ng a claim to

.

an ecs t at ic vision o f the Innite Unity into which he is

repor t ed to have acknowle d ged tha t he h ad risen only
four ti m es in his life a vision or feeling which m ay
h ave realised S pi oza s i d i ffe e t a t e S ubs t ance
i but in a

n n r n

fashion which necessarily forbid any repor t of the i n

e ffable result It i s told o f h im that in his pantheistic
.

enthusiasm he discl aimed h i s o w n birth looking with ,

co n tempt o n the contents o f space and ashamed of his ,

appearance in subordina t ion t o measurements o f t ime .

The ecs t asy mus t be an empty n ame for an illusory
superco n sciousness fro m which all that hu m an intelligence
,

can apprehend i s withdrawn S chelling s va u nted intuition

.

o f the Undi fferen t iate is beset by like contradictions .

O n the whole it see m s i m possible under the condi t ions ,

o f hu m an experien ce and u nderstand ing to connect in ,

philosophic i m ag ination Innite with nite ; temporal

succession wi t h t h e E ternal N o w It is i m possible under
.
,

hu m an conditions for scientic understandi n g to con quer

,

an In nite which refuses to e n te r a s a rounded O bj ec t into

experience I t i s i m p o ss i b l e to s e e A ll as A ll is visible
.
'

at the divin e centre Th e alterna t ives for m an a r e H omo

.

m ensu r a o r N u ll a m ensu r a T he for m er is adapted to

.

his intellectual place in the hierarchy o f existence in t er ,

mediate between Nescience and O m niscience .

 LE C TU RE V .

F I NAL S C EP T I C I S M : D AV I D H UM E .

u m mar y . IN precedin g lec t ures w e have passed through various

s t a g es of t ho u g ht regarding m an s nal problem I n t he

.

rst sta g e w e were in quisitive Wha t sor t of universe is

.

this in which I n d myself livi ng an d moving an d h avi ng

my b ei n g ? Is t he Universal Power nally good or n ally
evil ? I n what sort o f reality do I nd myself ; and w h a t
is to be t he issue o f the faith ven t ure which without my
-
,

leave asked o r given I n d myself o b liged t o m ake in ,

being obli g ed to live ? The nex t s t a g e w as assump t ive .

I found myself so m eh ow boun d to t ake for gran t ed t h at

consciousness mean s myself ; and m y self t o o percipien t o f , ,

a world ou t sid e o f me ; m oreover th a t t his inner and ou t er

,

reality is unconditionally dependen t upon t he Universal

Power called God In t he third s t age I was concerned w i th
.

t h e outside world o r with ma t erialism in its claim to b e

,

t he only interpretation o f the universal reali t y in t o which

I w as ushered when I be gan to be conscious The limita .

t ion led t o the conclusion t hat men are only ephemeral

material organisms co m posed o f m olecules in motion each
, ,

organism conscious while the organis m lasts but its sh or t ,

self conscious life only a pass in g inciden t in t he unive rsal

-

molecular his t ory which m akes up all t ha t exists T h e .

fourth s t age of though t throu g h which w e passed was i n

t r o s p e c t i ve
. Here w e found that a universe resolved in t o
m olecular motions was not so nally sa t isfyin g to reason
as it seemed a t rs t ; and tha t instead o f t he percipien t
e go b ein g an issue o f m olecularly constitu ted mova b le
 1 06 PHIL OSO P H Y O F TH E I S M .

U ni v ers al t o reduce t o u nity t hat triplicity which is dimly pre

S c pt i is m
e
supposed
c
in t he pri m ary data o f spontaneous faith
t h e ed e
.

r u

ti o ad b Universal
a Materialis m Panegoism Pantheis
,
m each s o ,

d m
far true in what it a f r m s are all challenged as i n co
sur u

a l ik f e o
M t r i l heren t expressions o f human experience ; o r because t hey
a e a
i m P n reach a verbal consisten cy through i
s ,
a
n adequate recog
e g i sm nd
o a

P nt h i s m n i ti o n o f actual facts in n at u re and in man In t h e

,

a e .
.

a g es ma t erialist and egois t atheism and e ni p i ri c is m ,

as well as pantheistic necessi t y reappear in new forms ; ,

for each so far represents what is real an d each has

, , ,

indirec t ly contributed to deeper and truer insight It i s .

probable t hat for some minds each m ay be found satis

fy i n g in the future as in the past But each when boldly .
,

t hought o u t leads t o Pyrrhonis m o r t otal doub t

,
.

N in es c e Final
ce Nescience doubt abou t everything and t h e
or T t l m
o a
ental paralysis involved in t his is accordin g ly t he next
S p ti i s m
ce c
condi t ion o f mind w e have to enter in t o Is it n o t th e
.

refutation o f all the three Monist syste m s because it is ,

t heir inevi t able issue ? An d mu st w e in the end subside

in t o t he impo t ence o f to t al scepticism o r i s there s t ill ,

ano t her atti t ude possible for man as regards the nal
meaning of h is li f e ?
I s th n l e S ceptical ne g ation m eanti m e succeeds t o the Monis t
a

p r b l m f system s which after trial we h ave b een ob l iged t o rej ect

o e o
h m n
u a
, ,

l if in
e as inadequate an d incoh eren t The in quisi t ive m ood in .

e v ry w y which we started would now seem to be frui t less

e a
A
ins l b l
.

o u e
poin t o f in t erroga t ion becomes the sy m bol o f hu m an life ,

in relation to the ego the ou t side universe and G o d I

, ,
.

cannot t ell wh a t sor t o f universe this m ay b e into which

I have been ushere d Its physical sequences even may all
.

be untrustworthy and therefore uninterpre t able Passing

,
.

appearances m ay o r m ay n ot b e the issue of innumerable

molecules i n m otion : they may or may not be only states
o f t he o n e conscious e o t erms of my changing life : the
g ,

ou t ward w orld an d t h e co n sciou s self may o r m ay n o t

be only modes of the O ne S ubstance The nal reality is .

hid benea t h both t he molecular and the conscious appear

anecs concealed ra t her than re vealed by the m ; for is
n o t t his what the pantheis t ic phase o f thought a b out the
universe in t he end amoun t s to ? I nd no issue o t he r
 FIN AL SCE PTI C ISM . 1 07

than t o t al nescience for abs t r a c t pantheistic reasoning o r ,

fo r p antheistic feeli n g o f In n ite If neither reasoned

.

n o r emotional pantheism gives an adequ a t e self con -

sistent accoun t o f experience an d its i m plica t es i t ,

leaves m e nally in doubt Whether there is o r is

.

n o t m orally trustwor t hy P ower a t t h e centre o f exist

ence n o w appears t o be a ques t ion less capable o f being
brought to an issue than t he ques t ion abou t a plurality
o f inhabi t ed worlds Whe t her t he Universal Power is
.

person al seems more indeterminable t han the question

about th e exis t ence o f perso n s in other planets Im .

proved experimen t al apparatus m ay so m e day bring o ne

or m ore o f the plane t s s o wi t hin human experience that
m e n can de t ermine whether o r not it is the scene of
an in t elli g ent popula t ion ; wider experience can never
relieve t h e nal i ncomprehensibility o f t h e innite uni
verse in which men awaken in t o c o n sciousness if it is an ,

incomprehensibility t ha t is i m posed by t he very c o n s ti tu

tion o f a hu m an knowle d ge of the concrete universe The .

supposition is self con t ra d ictory t hat man can reach t he

-

Divine cen t re of the All s o as to have in nite reali t y

,

wit h in his intellectual vision and then n d o n t his c o n

,

dition only w h at the Universal Power i s and w h ether

,

trustworthy and ours t herefore a trustworthy i n t elli

,

g ence. Paralysed th ou g h t wi t hdraws the n al problem

altoge t her as t he s u ggestion o f obstinate u nr eec t in g
,

delusion .

T o look at the universe thus i s according to a com m on

,
A gn o sti
expression to look at it agnostically
,
This agnos t icism
.

expresses a nal concep t ion o f li f e t h a t h as retur n ed

into fashion in the nineteenth century When I reached
.

intellectu al m aturity H u xley tells u s I began to ask
, ,

myself whether I w as an atheis t a t heis t o r a pantheist

, ,
.

I found when I pu t this question t o myself th a t the

, ,

more I reec t ed the less ready w as the an swer A t last

, .

I came to t he conclusion that I had n either l o t nor part

wi t h any of these denomina t ions ex cep t th e la st The o n e
, .

t hing in which mos t of t hese good people were agreed w a s

t he o ne t hing in which I di ffered from the m They were .

h
qui t e sure tha t t hey a d a tt ained a cer t ain Gnosis had

,
 1 08 P H I LOSO PH Y OF THEISM .

more or less successfully solved t he pro b lem of exis t ence :

,

while I w as qui t e sure I ha d n o t and h ad a pre t ty strong ,

convic t ion that t he pro b lem was insoluble A n d with .

Hume and Kan t o n my side I could not t hink myself ,

presumptuous in holding fas t by t ha t opinion So I .

took t hou g ht and inven t ed wha t I conceived t o b e t he

,

appropria t e ti t le o f agnosti c I t came into my head as .

suggestively antithe t ic to t he gn osti c o f church history ,

who professe d t o know s o much a b ou t the very t hings

of which I was ignoran t A g nos t icism is o t herwise .

described b y t he inventor o f t he name as a me t hod o f

, ,

a tt ainin g knowledge rather than a s t a t e o f i g norance abou t

,

t he foun dation O f human life an d t he universe It .

is a m e t hod w e are t old t he essence o f which lies in
, ,

the application o f a sin g le principle which is t he funda ,

men t al axiom o f modern scien ce Posi t ively t his prin .

c i p l e may b e t hus e xpressed I n mat t ers of t he in t ellec t ,

follo w your reason as far as i t will take you wi t hou t ,

re g ard t o any other considera t ion A nd nega t ively .

I n ma tt ers o f t he in t ellec t do n o t pre t end tha t conclu ,

sions are cer t ain which are no t demons t ra t ed or demon

strable . A g nos t icism accordin g t o t his accoun t is a
, ,

t erm in ven t ed t o express d u t iful submission o f b elief to

t he limits imposed by evidence rej ectio n o f all asser
t ions and denials that are inconsis t en t wi t h intellec t ual
in t e g ri t y
.

A gno s t i I t is di f cult t o s e e how in t ellec t ual in t egri t y can b e

c ism s
o me
assumed as t he dis tinc t ive m ark of t o t al ag nos t icism
s
t im e a
q su e t io n wi t hout qu es t ion b eg g ing I n t he presen t case the very.

b gg g
e in
point in dispute is whe t her a ny asser t ion a b ou t t he
r
te m ,

founda t ion an d purpose o f human life i s reasonable Tha t

.

many unreasonable assumptions an d conclusions posi t ive ,

and negative a b ou t the sort o f universe we are b orn in t o

, ,

its principle o r w an t of principle i t s moral purpose o r ,

want of purpose have more o r less prevailed is a super

, ,

u o u s t ru t h Bu t i t still remains fo r proof tha t all asser

.

tions o f thi s sort mus t be unreasonable To assume this .

a t t he outse t in a ques t ion b egging denition i s to de t er

,
-
,

mine a ma t ter o f f act n o t by proof but by an ar b i t rary

, ,

assump tion .
 110 P H IL OSO P H Y O F T H E I S M .

wishes o f m en a tes t o f the reality of what they wish

for is t o reverse the method of science and to subs t itu t e
, ,

indulgen ce in agreeable an t icipa t ion for in t ellectual i n

sigh t Unexplained human feelings are no t revela t ions
.

o f God .

Th i n Modern Agnosticism which kn ows tha t man mus t for

e sc e ,

[is gg solu b le mystery is in curious con t rast with t he certainty

ever nd the founda t ion o f his life an d experience an i n
la

m t f u or ,

fv m i n t ha t w as clai m ed for God by the illustrious spokesmen of

er r e a

i n r nt f
g o a o

(3 d 0 ph i losophy i n the early per i od of modern ph i losoph i cal

re

revival I hope tha t t o refer t o them here is no t an u n

.

OfB n reasonable recognition of authority A ccord i n g to Baco n

ac o ,
.
,

D s rt s for exa m ple dep t h in philosophy alon e bringeth men s

e ca e ,

nd L k ,
a oc e
minds to reli g ion for while the mind o f man looketh upon

second causes scat t ere d it may someti m es rest in t hem , ,

an d g o no further ; but when it beholde t h t he ch ain of

t hem con federate an d linked t oge t her it must needs y
, ,

t o Provide n ce and Deity Then hear Descar t es : With .

respe ct to God if I were not preoccupied by prej udices

, ,

an d my though t bese t on all sides b y the continual pre

sence o f images of sensible obj ec t s I should know no t hin g ,

sooner n or m ore easily t han the fac t of God s exis t ence .

F o r is th ere any tru t h more clear t han t he exis t ence o f

the S upreme Bein g o r G o d seein g t ha t i t is t o G o d , ,

alone t hat exis t ence necessarily and e t ernally per t ains ?

Bu t although the right conception o f this t ruth has cos t
me mu ch close thinkin g nevertheless n ow I feel no t only ,

as assured of i t as o f wha t I deem m os t cer t ain b u t I nd ,

further t hat t he cer t i t ude of all o t her t ru t hs is s o ab s o l

u t el y dependen t on this o n e tha t wi t hou t the knowled g e ,

o f God it w ould b e impossi b le ever t o know anythin g .

F o r if I do no t rs t kno w t ha t there i s a G o d I may have

, ,

bee n s o consti t u t ed as t o b e deceived by my facul t ies and ,

this even in ma tt ers which I apprehend with t he grea t es t

s eeming evidence a nd certi t ude ; especially when I r e c o l

lect tha t I have frequen t ly j udged thin g s t o be t rue

which o t her reasons after wards cons t rained me to re g ard
as wholly false I n ow clearly see tha t the cer t itu d e
.

and truth o f all science depends o n knowledge o f God and

o n t hat alone ; s o that be fore I knew God I could have no
 FINA L SC E PT IC ISM . 111

proper knowledge o f any t hing Bu t n o w tha t I know

.

G o d I have t h e m eans o f acquiring knowled g e o f i n

,

numerable other matters as well relative t o G o d as t o

,

corporeal n at u re Next t ake Locke : We cannot be in
.

wan t o f a clear proof of G o d as lo ng as w e carry o u r selves

a bout u s . I t is plain t o me w e have a more certain
knowledge o f th e existence of a God than o f anything o u r
senses have n o t immediately discovered to us Nay I .
,

presu m e I m ay say tha t w e m ore certainly know there is

a God than t ha t there is anything else withou t u s But .

though this be the most obvious truth that reason dis

covers and though its e vidence be (if I m istake n ot ) equ a l
,

t o m athematical certainty yet it requires though t an d

,

at t ention ; or else we shall be as u n certain and ignorant

o f this as o f other propositions which are in the m selves

c apable of clear de m onstration S o far Bacon Descartes
.
, ,

a n d Locke three early leaders o f m odern thought

,
H ow .

c o m es it t ha t wha t they in t he seven t eenth century

, ,

re g arded as self eviden t o r as mathematically cer t ain

-
, ,

should in the nine t eenth cen t ury be j udged by S p e c u l at

ing physicis t s to be wholly and fo r ever inco g nisable ?
The his t ory of E uropean t hought in the interval goes A gn ti os
i m b l dl y c s o
far to explain the revol u tion t hrough which wha t w as l im s c a

a ccepted as the supreme certainty by the intellectual d s nt e ce

leaders o f t he seventeenth century has become the s u n d K nt fr mL k o oc e

a a ,

pre m e uncertainty of physical theorists w h o aspire t o lead w l l as e as

hu m an thought in the n ineteenth Huxley argues that .

wi t h Hu m e and Kant the great authorities o f the
,

eighteenth century presentin g the m selves as advoca t es o f

,

t he insolubility o f the nal problem o f t h e universe i t ,

c annot be presumptuous in u s to hold fast by t his

opinion .He thinks agnos t icism is only a n e w n ame
for the philosoph y o f Hu m e and Kant ; and t ha t their
philosophy h as determined t he limits wi t hin which o u r
knowledge o f t he universe must be con ned Their m e s .

sage he reports to b e t hat men can kn ow reality only s o

far as t hey have actual e xperience : without experience

knowledge is on ly empty abstraction E xcep t so far as .

o u r three primary d ata outward t hin g s t he ego an d , ,

G o d are explained in experience n o positive assertions ,

 112 P H IL OSO P H Y O F T H E I S M .

regardin g any o f t hem can b e made : our asser t ions mus t

be all negative .

T he K an Kant is associa t ed wi t h Hume by Huxley as one o f

t i an P hil o
t wo ori ginal leaders o f ag nosticism This is on accoun t
s ph y
o as a
.

of Kant s th eory o f causality and his application of i t to

wh l n
o e ot ,

agn s t i
o c .
o ld fashioned na t ural theolo g y
-
Bu t Kan t s nega t ion of
.

t heological knowledge as wha t t ranscends understan din g

, ,

does n o t n ecessarily m ean practical negation o f t he moral

a nd religiou s con cep t ion o f t he universe This would .

imply t h a t his t o t al th ou g ht was n o t consis t ent with

itself t hat his secon d Critiqu e w as a vain attempt to

res t ore what h e had destroyed in his rst B ut t he .

argu m ents in t h e rs t Cri t ique against a t heological

solution of exis t en ce through p urely ra t ional c o n s t r u c
tion o f o u r sensuou s experience nei t her demons trate ,

nor disprove G o d ; t hey d o no t foreclose t he practical

argument from man s moral experience in t he second
Cri t ique which con tains t he comple m en t ary i ssu e o f
,

Kantian criticism Hume n o t Kan t is t he prime leader

.
, ,

o f modern agnosticism It is t h u s formulated by Hume :

.

When you go o n e s t ep b eyon d th e mu nd a ne system ,

y o u only excite an inquisitive humour which i t is i m ,

possible ever to satisfy Bu t Hume sees t ha t t his a g nos
.

t ic i s m when fully t hough t o u t involves tota l nescience

, , ,

n o t m erely t heological i g norance .

T he Pyr In t ru t h t he nega t ive revolu t ion which was proposed by

r h o ni s m o f
Hume in his u ve n i l e Treatise of Human Nature i s more

H u me i s
, ,

s bold and thorough t h an t he scienti c a g nosticis m of H ux

c i ent i c

: it involves t he c o m
a gn o s t i
f ll y
c ism, u
ley which ,
claims him as i t s parent
h gh
t ou p
t l e t e dissolution of common knowledge and science not ,

ou t .
o f theology alone It issues in the Pyrrhonism which
.

leaves men impoten t mo tionless speechless ; or if ex

, ,

pressed i n speech it mu s t be speech in t he form o f a

,

question never in t he form o f a proposition ei t her

, ,

a frma t ive o r n egative on any ma t ter whatever The ,

.

Q eu sais je ? wi -
t h the even balance as i t s sym b ol ,

which Mon t aigne adop t ed t o express t he hopeless uni

ver s al it y of human doubt o r ignorance represen t s all t ha t ,

Hume foun d in sensuous experience when emp t ie d o f ,

 1 14 P H I L OS O PH Y O F TH E I S M .

all t hese ques t ions and begin t o fan cy m yself in the

,

m ost deplorable condition ima g inable u tterly deprived ,

o f the u s e of every member an d faculty B u t if ex .

perience i n i t s narrowest m eaning when made th e sole ,

criterion o f reality bro u g h t him t o this pass experien ce
, ,

in a wider meani ng incl u ding felt m oral implicates o f

,

experien ce carried him h e confesses o u t o f his phil
, , ,

o s o p h i c al melancholy and delirium I t is indeed i m .

possible fo r a hum an being to subside practically int o

Pyrrhonism o r inability to asser t any t hin g abou t any
,

thin g There i s the secret force in hu m an n ature o f
.

which Pascal speaks which sustains the weakn ess o f ,

nite experience a n d understandi ng The sceptic w h o .

declines t o interpret any phenomeno n o r t o make any ,

exertion because he is n o t omniscient must cease to

, ,

live Total scepticism as h as been said can never b e

.
, ,

m ore than an i ntellectu a l amusemen t : i t s only serious

e ffec t consists in exercising acute n ess and i n humbli n g ,

dogmatism : no hu m an m ind can rest in i t : by virt u ally

making a ll the fou n da t ion s o f reasoning and condu ct
equ ally insecure i t leaves all O pinions in the sam e degree
,

o f certainty o r probabili t y relatively to each other in , ,

which t hey were before Hume himself occasionally .

s aw,
in the venture o f m oral faith the sor t o f e x t r i c a ,

tion from universal doub t t ha t i s a v ailable fo r a nite

intelligen ce .

I n all i n It i s instruc t ive t o trace the steps which Hume followed

fer en c es

ab o u t t h e
in his proposed solution of scep tical doubts It reminds .

abs ent on e o f Pascal Those w h o pretend t o doubt everythin g are

.

fr o m th e
con founded by natural faith : do g m atis t s w h o claim in
pr se ent , a

s p
t e mu t s fallibili t y are confounded by scepti cal criticism The .

k
b e t a en
nite understanding o f man incapable o f comprehe n ding
h h
w ic i s
,

l g
not a o i t he in nity o f exis t ence Hu m e nds n ever theless carried
,

c al c o n
by custom t o believe in obj ec t s an d events that lie b e
s q
e u en c e
yond the present testi m ony o f our senses and the records
.

o f o u r memory In all hu m an reasonings fro m ex p e ri
.

ence h e sees that a step is taken in fai t h unsupported by

, ,

any arg u ment o f the un derstanding ; y et sanctioned by

reason as a s t ep that is reasonable A l though not deter .

mined b y ar g ume n t to take the step one is induced by ,

 F IN A L S C E P T IC I S M . 115

ano t her principle o f equal wei gh t and au t hori t y All .

inferences from experience are found to be examples o f
tr u s t in the cons t ancy of uniformi t ies t ha t are customary .

O n this unproved trus t o r faith he accordin g ly recon ,

s ti t u t es the experience which his scep t ical criticisms had

d iscredited We are somehow obl iged he seems to

.
,

s ay,
to pu t moral t rust in the universe when i t ad ,

dresses u s in well tried uniformi t ies conden t tha t in t el

-
,

l igen c e will no t b e pu t t o confusion by the issue Now .

faith in the laws o f nature is unconscious faith in G o d

o m nipresen t in n a t ure It is in t his moral reliance o n t he
.

surroundings amids t which w e live and move a n d have o u r

being that men are able to transcend t heir m o m entary per
c e p t i o n s and t o bring into a l a rge o r scien t ic experience
,

what is n ot actu ally presen t t o their sen ses A ll expec t a t ion .

is rooted in faith : w e canno t de m ons t ra t e its presupposi

t ion Withou t faith ven t ure we could no t live ; and in
.
-

t he circums t ances o f man t his faith is reasonable unless

, ,

i t s absurdity can be demons t ra t ed It is an operation .

o f the soul whic h responds to the fac t o f order in
nature I t is as unavoidable as it is t o feel the passion of
.

love when w e receive bene ts o r ha t red when we mee t ,

with inj uries I n all t hese operations alike Hu m e sees

.
,

wha t he calls a species of nat u ral instinc t which human ,

reasoning is una b le either t o produce or to des t roy .

Hume even su gg ests a superior faith u nder which A ll i n sc e

f
faith in n a t ural law arises in the minds of men This g if i gght .

ce
c

faith he describes as a feeling o f t rust in na t ure which m t t rs f , a e o

can be understood only by o u r bei ng conscious of it .

Were w e to at t empt a de nitio n o f this belief o r fai th p i , ex r es s o s

w e should perh aps nd it an i m possible task ; in t h e same

g
manner as if we sh ould endeavour to dene t he feeling o f w rth i ness
a g s?
o

I h
) ; t
cold o,
r the passion of a n g er to a creature w h o never had
,
1
( e

any experience o f t hese senti m ents E very man is every P lt if

sa
.
e

moment conscious o f the sentime n t represented by i t I t .

i s that act o f t he mind which renders reali t ies o r what is ,

taken fo r reali t y more present t o u s than ctions causes

,

them t o we igh more in th e t hought and gives them a ,

superior inuence o n t he passions and i m agination B e .

lief consis t s n o t in the peculiar nature o r order of ideas ,

 116 PHIL OSO P H Y O F TH E I S M .

but in t he m ann er o f t heir concep t ion an d in their ,

peculiar feeli n g t o t he mind I t is impossible perfectly .

t o explain t his feelin g We can g o no fur t her than

.

assert th at b elief in reali t y is some t hing s o fel t by

t he mind as to dis t in g uish ideas o f t h e j ud g ment from
m ere c t ions o f t he imagina t ion I t gives them wei gh t
.

and inu ence ; en forces them in t he mind an d renders ,

t hem t he g overni ng principles of our actions S o i t is .

t ha t fai t h in t he di vin e t rus t wor t hiness o f the universe

is an implica t e of t he assuran ce tha t real even t s o u t
side o u r fancies follow o n e ano t her in s t ead y b r d er .

The pas t prevalence o f n a t ural order awakens faith in

t he con t inuance o f na t ural order th a t is t o s ay in t he ,

reasona b leness o r interpre t a b ility of na t ure But wha t .

ever the occasion o f t he rise o f this fai t h m ay b e t he ,

ma tt er of chief con cern is t ha t t he faith d oes n a tu r

,

a lly a r i se and t ha t t h e expec t a tion which it involves

,

nds a response in wha t happens in natu re The uni .

verse is (s o far ) comprehended when i t is foun d in fac t ,

t o correspond to t he previsive j udgmen t s o f man : m an

an d his universe exis t in an es t ablished in t elligible har
mony I s not t his in t erpre t a b ili ty o f n a t ure ano t her
.

expression for its innate divinity its nal superna t ural

n ess ? I t is t h e ini t ial ven t ure o f dependence o n the

Universal Power herein n o lon g er unknown bu t s o f ar
, ,

a nd th u s r evea led in a real revelation of what in i t s

,

divine innity passes knowled g e O ne can almos t rea d

.

t his wi t hin t he lines even in Hume .

T h ey p In t h e correspondence tha t appears b etween t his
re
Su pp o s e inevitable
3
faith o r trus t in na t ural order an d the issues o f
h
ivigi t h at order Hum e sees a k i nd of pre es t abl i shed har
r
hg
l l y
r -
e i ,
3)
ou r

th gh t s
ou
m ony I t is a. harmony b etween n ature an d o u r ideas

an d t h t ho u gh t he powers and forces b y which the universe

e
co s f is g overned be o t herwise wholly unknown to u s yet S O
ur e 0
n t r ;
,
a u e
so th t afar o u r though t s and concep t ions may proceed in t he same
i nt l t rain wi t h na t ure Cu s tom is the law un der which this
i)
SC e
.

f )
Eigi ci ; correspondence has been e ffected Had no t t he presence
c o .

of an obj ec t ex ci ted in u s t he idea o f t he obj ects com

gii
i ti c

m o n l y conj oined wi t h i t in n ature all human kno wledge ,

mus t have b een limited t o the narrow sphere of our

 118 PHIL OS O PH Y OF TH E I S M .

Hum e s
his friends and which Henry Mackenzie h as pa t he t ically
,
r eas o n fo illus t ra t ed in t he story o f La Roche was uni t ed to a
r

r egar di ng ,

r el igi o s ut emperamen t t o which religious emo t ion w as by his o w n

e m ti n
o o s
account
a
forei g n Warm in friendship he w a s indi fferent
i r ti n l
.
,
r a o a .

in religion with an inve t erate dislike t o every sort

,

of en t husiasm founded o n the narrow rationalism o f a

,

philosophy measured by sense We s ee t his in his O b .

j ec t i o n s to adora t ion and prayer an d t o every t hin g ,
w e
commonly call reli g ion except th e practice o f m orali t y ,

and t he assen t o f th e unders t andi n g t o t he proposition

t ha t G od exi s ts I t m us t be ackn owledged he adds
.
, ,

t hat n a t ure h as g iven u s a s t rong passion o f ad m iration

fo r whateve r is exce l len t and tha t the Dei t y possesses
,

t hese at t ributes in t he highest perfec t ion ; and yet I

asser t t ha t God is n ot t he n a t ural obj ect of any passion
o r a ffec t ion He is n o o bj ect ei t her o f the senses o r
.

imagina t ion and very li tt le o f the understandin g ; wi t h

,

o u t which i t is impossible t o excite any a ffec t ion A nd .

,

indeed I am afraid t ha t all en t husiasts m i ghtily deceive

,

t hemselves Hope an d fear perhaps a g i t ate t heir breas t s

.

wh en t h ey t hink o f t h e D eity ; o r they degrade h i m in t o

a resemblance wi t h t hemselves an d b y that means render ,

him more co m preh e nsible S uch an a ffec t ion canno t be .

require d o f any man as his du t y Neither t he tur b ulent .

passions n o r t he calm a ffec t ion s can op era t e with ou t the

assistance o f t he senses an d imag ina t ion ; or a t least a
more comple t e knowledge o f t he obj ect t han we have o f
t he Deity I n mos t men t his is t he case ; and a na tural
.

inrmity can never be a crime .

H m s
u e

This recogni t ion o f n atural inrmi t y as n on moral is -

d i f lt y a sor t o f taci t acknowledgmen t tha t th e g round o f moral

cu
a b t
ou
t h ei s m .
responsi b ili t y lies in supernatural freedom But apart .

from t his o f which m ore af t erwards t his ar g umen t for

, ,

t he impossibility o f religious emo t ion in m os t m en i s
in t erestin g when t aken in connec t ion wi t h the sympa t hy
,

which Hume avows fo r t he posi t ion o f Clean t hes o n e of ,

t he t hree in t erlocu t ors in the Dialogues on Natural

Reli g ion It is C lean t hes who t akes t he p art o f reason

.

in g himself in t o belief in an omnipoten t and all wise God -

, .

as t he supreme prin ciple in exis t ence by an in d uc t ion ,

 FIN A L S C E P T I C I S M . 119

from hu m an experience of order and m echanism in th e

world T o C lean t hes
.

the m os t a g reeable reection
,

which it is possible for human i m agination to suggest is

that of genuine theis m ; which represents men as the
workmanship o f a Being perfectly good wise and power , ,

fu l w h o having i mplant e d in us i mm easurable desires o f

, ,

good will prolong ou r existence to all eterni t y i n order to

,

satisfy these desires Hum e elsewhere expresses sym
.

pathy wit h this conclusion co m bined wi t h so m e hesita ,

tion t o receive it as tr u th o n accoun t o f the absence o f ,

adequa t e veri cation I could wish he re m arks in o n e
.
,

o f his letters I co u ld wish tha t C l e an th e s s ar g ument

,

could be s o analysed as to be rende red quite for m al and

regular T h e p r ope n sity o f the m ind tow ards i t u n less
.

th a t p r op ens i ty w er e as s tr o n a n d u n i ver s a l as th a t to
g
b eli eve i n will s t ill I a m a fraid be esteemed as
ou r s en s es , ,

suspiciou s fou n d a tion T i s here I wish for your assist

.

ance : w e m ust endeavo u r to pro v e that this propensity

is so m e w hat di fferen t fro m our inclination to nd o u r
o w n g ures in the clouds o u r faces in the moon our , ,

passions and sentiments even in inani m ate m atter F o r .

these last may and o u ght to be controlled and can ,

never be legi t imate ground of assent o r founda t ions o f ,

reasoni n g .

The legiti m acy of an extension o f experience which l
T h e i mit
recognises in it the m oral a n d r e l igi o u s pres u pposi t ions b y
wh i ch i t i s co n st i tuted i s i nvolved i n the i ssue W i th r d in g
. .

, ac c o

modern ag n os t icis m and it is interesting to nd this face 50 H u me

to face with Hume It is di fc u lt to deter m ine what his

.

nal opinion w a s if indeed he had a settled O pinion o r

, ,

how far below t he thin surface o f sense h e m eant to go .

T hat Intell igence is supre m e in the universe however ,

little this Intelligence can be an obj ect of human senti

ment w as so m eti m es strongly maint ained by h i m
,

The .

whole fra m e o f n ature he asser t s in his Natural His ,

tory o f Religion
bespeaks an in t elligen t A u t hor ; and
,

n o rational inquirer can after serious reection suspend , ,

his belief fo r a moment with re g ard to the pri m ary

principles o f ge nuine theis m Perhaps the key may .

be found in a remark he made to h i s friend Boyle ,

 1 20 P H IL OSO P H Y O F T H E I S M .

who t old h i m i t w as repor t e d t ha t h e had t hrown O ff

t he principles of reli g ion To which t he g ood D avi d
.

replied : Though I throw o u t my specula t ion s to en t er
t ain the learn ed and me t aphysical world ye t I d o no t ,

think s o di fferen t l y from the res t o f t he world as you

9)
ima g in e . Bu t t his abou t Hu me personally i s by the
way I re t urn t o a g nosticism
. .

I s th e re The scien t ic agnos ti c is ready to t ake the induc t ive

l l gl o u s

l eap in leap in t he dark with fai t h in a natural order assumed

,

t h e d ar k

to b e present i n h i s sense surround i ngs : the leap i s
l ess m t i o n
h
a1 t an t h e
'

essentially an act of faith n o t t he conclusion of a loC ical

,
g

l eap i n reason i n g emp t i ed of all t rus t an d sen se o f mystery .

t h d a I s h e n o t in like manner required u nder pressure of a
i ,
wh i ch m u s t
b e t ak en i n spi ri t ual fai th i nvolved i n i deal m an but wh i ch remai ns
, ,

dormant in m any t o accep t as reasonable tha t deeper i n

3 323;
0
,

t e r p r e t ati o n o f the universe which sees in i t t he hyper

physical m anifes t a t ion o f moral purpose ? That to do s o

is fallacious because i t su b stitutes fai t h for reasonin g
, ,

cannot p er se b e pleaded in arres t o f this fur t her leap in

imperfec t divine ligh t For every s t ep in the physical
.

in t erpre t a t ion o f t he world equally involves t he s u b s ti t u

t ion o f indemon s t ra b le tr u st fo r complete i nsigh t B oasted .

ind u c t ive verication in n a t ural scien ce is n ally an act of

fai t h no t of reasoning : we canno t demons t rate tha t what
,

has happened a million t imes mu s t happen again even ,

under wha t may seem to us similar con dition s The .

incoherent a g nosticism t ha t re t ains ph y sical s cience is

no t really a pro t est again s t faith ; i t is only an arres t of
fai t h at the point a t which fai t h advances from a narrower
to a larger interpre t a t ion o f life an d t h e universe Is t he .

arres t o f faith a t th i s p oi n t j ustied by reason ? I mus t

try to answer t his ques t ion in wh a t follows in which ,

the reli g ious concep tion o f t he universe gradually devel ,

oped i n Theistic Fai t h is o ffered instead of ei t her Monis t

, ,

speculation o r A g nos t ic despair as the nal philosophy

,

for man .
 LECTURE I .

G OD LATENT IN N AT U RE .

W E have found David Hume e merging o u t of universal D v i d a

doubt n o t by re a soning but through what i m plies faith

, ,

in nal harmo ny between human nature and the succes s t b l is h d e a e

S ion O f events in ex t ernal nature Without faith in t his gy

.
,
e
hu m an beings could not a dj u st m eans to ends or u s e their x t rn l , e e a
nd
natural powers in procuri ng any good o r avoidi ng any a

evil This harmony even Hume seems to s ay wears the n t r

.
, , a u e ,

aspec t o f what according to analogies we S hould call a

, ,

wise arrangement The course o f n a t ure o r the tem

.
,

poral succession in t he midst o f which we n d ourselves

, ,

and in which w e take o u r respec t ive parts looks s o far , , ,

like constan t adapt ation to man .

May we refer t his harmonious correlation between H w t o o

t he ma t erial world and the mind of man to persisting $ 313 1

p u rpose i n t he Universal Power ? A nd if s o must w e m ny ,

o .

also suppose t hat t he natural evolu tion with its provi ,

dential order had a n absolute be g inning in time ? Have

,

w e evidence t hat t here ever w a s a period in which there

was n o cosmos no m oral agen t s no procedure of na t ural

evolu tion including cycles o f in t e g ra tion and dissolution ?

,

Mus t we believe that when there w as n o cosmos the ,

Providen t ial Power existed u nrevealed in any form o f

,

natural m anifes t ation ; and that at a particular date

orderly nature w as ushered into existence b y a sudden -

creative act ? A nd if there h as ever been a time in

which there wa s neither cosmical cons t ruc t ion nor cos
mical dissolu t ion going on as now did there then exis t
,
 1 24 P H IL OSO P H Y O F T H E I S M .

t h e s t u ff o r m a t erial ou t of which t he orderin g and d esign

ing Power after w ards fashioned the cosmos and s e t i t s ,

evolutions agoing mat t er charged wi t h p owers which
enable the sequ ences and their cycles an d crises to persis t ,

p er se wi t hou t ,
in t erference ? O r was the cos m os ,

within which men have their experience ori g ina t ed wi t h ,

o u t pre existin g m a t erial in primordial chaos coming a o

-
, ,

cording t o t he t heolo g ical formula o u t o f no t hing no t , ,

o u t of chao t ic m ateria l Y e t a g ain is t here a more reason

.
,

a b le supposi t ion t han either o f t hese t w o namely tha t , ,

cosmical cons t ruc t ion an d disin t e g ra t ion has b een goin g o n

a lw ysa t ha t it is an u nb eginning succession and may be ,

expected t o b e endless May n o t t he Univ erse in which

I now nd myself in the deepes t interpre t a t ion which I,

can pu t u pon my experience be j us t t his un b e g innin g ,

and unendin g succession o f orderly and t herefore in t er ,

r e t ab l e cha n ges amids t which I am livin g and m ovin g

p , ,

an d having my b ein g ? May n o t t his e t ernal evolu t ion

b e the fact ?
O n f it h
e aQ ues t ions o f t his sor t charged wi t h inni t y the a g nos t ic
, ,

n a t uralis t pu t s aside as unanswerable and i m prac t ical

Engag d He does s o o n the g rou n d t ha t answers t o the m mus t b e
e . .

oth r f ith
e a

Ey gg b ecause i t d oes n o t admi t of b ein g verie d by visible

answers tha t come from a fai t h which mu s t be irra t ional
r t d c e .
,
l
s i nti
c e c
agn s ti c
o facts ; whereas o n t he con t rary answers t o questions
, ,

a b ou t t he visible causes o f even t s wi th i n the natural evo l u

t ion are accepted in a fai t h t ha t i s enligh t ened and made
precise b y t his sor t of verica t ion Bu t i f undemons t ra b le .

faith in n atural order is never t heless reasonable why ,

mu s t t eleological in t erpre t ation o f n a t ure b e rej ected ,

o n t h e ground t ha t i ts only suppor t is undemonstrable

fai t h ? The scien t ic trus t in cosmical order o n which ,

all induc t ive verica t ion depen d s canno t i t self be proved ,

by experience b ecause n o scientic interpre t ation of ex

,

p e r i e n c e is possi b le u nless t his faith is presupposed wi t h

o u t proof Reli g ious t rus t in providen t ial ac t ivi ty for
.

ever a t work t hrou g hou t the evolvin g universe as ,

well as in the s m all por t ion o f i t which for m s human

experience seems to s t and so far o n t he same foo t ing
, , , .

I f i t i s reasonable t o ass u me cons t an t na t ural or d er as

 1 26 PHIL OSO P H Y O F T H E I S M .

series of ordered evolu t ions an d dissolutions successive

cycles o r economies i n which t he existing m a t erial has

been undergoing periodic na t ural revolu t ions ; and t ha t

human beings are living here an d n o w in o n e o f t hese , ,

cycles which had i ts na t ural beginni n g in a remo t e pas t

, ,

and is destined na t urally t o pass into ano t h er economy

in a remote fu t u re ? May no t t his eternal natural suc
cession be essen t ially divine an d b e conceived o f as ,

t he unbeginning and unending revela t ion o f constant i n

t en din g Will ? Is n ot this a more reasonable hypo t hesis
than t ha t o f sudden creation which seems t o mean that ,

t he universe or the n a t ural course o f evolu t io n w as once

, ,

n o n e x istent and e n t ered into exis t ence as t he e ffect o f

-
,

the Will o f a G o d existin g an t ecedently in un b eginning

soli t ude ? Moreover if the universe mus t b e refunded
, ,

a t a particular period in t o t he Universal Power does no t

, ,

t his logic deman d an an t eceden t cause o f t h e solitary

Mind thus inferred only un der t he ordinary pos t ulate o f
,

na t ural causa t ion ?

A Qu es t i o n A ques t ion like t his w as raised as we s aw by Hume , , .

Human persons so far as natural science and his t ory

,

Hu m e . inform u s made t heir appearance in the u niverse at a

,

compara t ively late date i n rude forms o f hu m an life o n

,

t his planet This w e are told was preceded by ages o f

.
, ,

sentien t organisms an d b efore t ha t t here was only i n

,

sen t ient ma t ter I t is t herefore wi t h a ma ter i a l wor ld

.

on ly tha t w e have t o d o in th e earlier stages i f we

,

con ne o u r regard t o the cosmical economy o f which

man h as authenti c records ei t h er docu m en t ary o r in ,

the form o f geolo g ical and as t ron omical phenomena .

Hu m e sug g es t s t h at for augh t w e can know a p r i or i

, ,

mat t er may originally contain within itself t he spring

of order as probably as min d does ; and tha t there i s
,

n o more di fculty in conceivin g tha t t he several elemen t s

or molecules o f matter m ay in this way assume the mos t
exquisi t e construction than to conceive t ha t ideas in a ,

supposed E ternal Mind have fallen into t he arrange

men t which forms the succession of ideas that consti t u t e
t he min d o f G o d I f the material world was really caused
.

b y a pre exis t in g m en t al world o r Et ernal Mind t his

-
, ,
 G O D L AT E N T IN N A T U RE . 1 27

men t al world must in i ts t urn rise o u t o f a still preceding

c ause ; and so o n re gressively withou t end It were bet t er .
,

therefore the sceptic sug g ests never t o look beyond the

, ,

perceived material world an d to suppose only its natural

,

succession o f unbeginning an d u nending ch anges By .

supposing Matter to con t ain t he principle o f order within

itself we really assert i t to be God ; a n d t he sooner
,

w e arrive a t that Divin e Being s o much t he bet t er A .

m ental world o r universe o f Mind re q uires a preceding

, ,

c au se as much as d oe s a material world or universe o f ,

V isible and tangible obj ec t s S o that if merely n atural

.
,

o r c a used causality is taken as the on l y real causa t ion ;

a n d i f this requires u s to presup ose Mi n d as the natural

p
c ause o f the material w orld ; the sa m e principle o f natural

c aus a lity see m s t o require some antecede n t t o account fo r

t he ide a s th a t cons t itute Mind .

I n reply i t h as been s u ggested t hat there i s evidence A l l g d

,
e e

in his t ory that the universe w a s created o u t of nothing t h t th e p r f oo

,
a
a t a particular t ime but th ere is n o such evidence tha t its
, sm s co o
h d b
c reating Mind had also a beginni n g This argumen t is g inning
.
a a e

pressed by Dr C hal m ers in his interesti ng and eloquent

.

,

book o n Natural Theology The precise d i fference b e
.

tween the t wo he says ,

is t hat w e h a ve p r oof o f a
, ,

c ommencemen t to o u r present m a ter i a l economy but w e ,

have n o p r oof o f at co m mencement to the menta l economy

t h e Divine Mind which preceded it There is room .

fo r the question H o w came the m a ter i a l system o f thin g s

,

i n to i t s present order ? because w e h ave reason t o b e

lieve that i t h as n o t subsisted in that order fro m eterni t y .

There is n o such roo m fo r the question W h y migh t n o t ,

the m aterial h ave fallen in t o its present order o f itself ,

as well as the mental order which is conceived to have

g one before it in t he form o f a Divine Mind ? For w e
have n o reason t o believe that this mental eco n o m y
ever w as o t herwise t han i t n o w i s T he l atter question .

presumes that t he mental did begin to enter into order

o f itself, or ,
which i s th e same thing that G o d h ad a ,

com m en ceme n t In the m aterial economy w e have the

.
,

vestiges before o u r eyes o f i ts havi ng h ad an origin

o r in o t her words o f i ts being a consequen t ; and
,
 1 28 PHIL OS O PH Y O F T H E I S M .

have fur t hermore the experience th a t in every ins t ance

which comes under f u ll observation o f a similar c o n se
quent t ha t is o f a consequen t which involves as the
, ,

mundane order of t hings does s o amply t he adap tation ,

of par t s t o an end th e anteceden t w as a purposing mind ,

which descried t he end and devised t h e mean s for i t s

,

accomplishment We migh t n ot have been called u pon

.

t o m ake even a single ascen t in t he pa t h o f causa t ion had ,

t he world s t ood forth t o view in the charac t er or aspec t

o f i mm u ta b i li ty But ins t ead o f this bo t h history an d
.
, ,

o b servation of na t ure t ell o f a denite commencement t o

t he present order ; an d w e t herefore j us t follow the ligh t s
o f experience when we move upward from t he world t o

an in t elli g ent min d t ha t ordained i t It is this which .

carries us b ackward from t he worl d t o God ; an d t he

reason wh y w e do no t con t inue the re t rogression b eyond
G od is t ha t w e have no t me t wi t h an indica t ion t hat He

has had a commencemen t I n t he one case there is a .

b eginning o f t he presen t m a t er i al sys t em forced upon o u r

convic t ions b y evidence I n t he other case t he case of
.
,

t he anteceden t Mind there is n o such b eginning forced

,

upon o u r convic t ion s b y experience We h ave therefore .

ample reason for regardin g t he world as a posterior t erm ,

and seeking af t er i ts an t eceden t Bu t we h ave no such .

reason fo r t rea t ing this an t eceden t as also a posterior t erm ,

and seeking fo r i ts prior t erm in a higher anteceden t The .

o n e w e s ee t o be a changeable and a recen t world The .

o t her for aught we know may be an un changeable an d

, ,

everlas t in g G o d The o n e order t he material we know no t

.
, ,

to h ave been from everlas t in g The o t her t he men t al

.
, ,

which by all experience and analogy mus t have preceded

t he ma t erial bears no symptoms which we can discover
,

o f i t s ever havin g required any remo t er economy t o call

i t in t o bein g .

A ct s a a
What is t hus supposed t o b e proved b y his t orical
tr p h
o o ,

m y i t s l f records con t ained in Hebre w and o t her li t era t ures an d

a e ,
b e an t a
u r ls a
be
y physical vestiges recognised in geolo g y seems to b e ,

q n ue only t his t ha t t he metamorphoses which this plane t of

c o,
n t d
o
d n r
e
a su
c
oursea
h as passed throu g h in cl u de wha t are called ca ta s

t i on . tr op h es I t is assumed m oreover t ha t t hese ca t as t rophes

.
, ,
 130 P H I L OSO PH Y O F TH E I S M .

th e consider a tion o f change the convic t ion tha t na t u ral

,

sequence m ust b e always dependen t upon Power t hat is

independen t the Universal Power ? T his preconviction

does n o t res t o n an y evidence which his t ory o r external

n a t ure might o ffer in re g ard to t he b egin ni ngn es s o r
,

the unbeginningness o f existi n g natural order That order .

may be unbeginnin g and yet throughout an d fo r ever

,

dependen t an eternally dependen t cosmos an eternally

divine evolution an endless progressive crea t io n .

The o i p ss Again The progress o f scientic interpreta t ion is con

.

b i lit y o f
ti n u all y ex t ending o u r informa t ion about wha t the n a t ural
r d g
ea i n th e
u n b egin sequences are S cien t ic in quiry discovers caused causes
.
,

nin g an d
which can be presented t o t he senses and represented in
d g
u n e n in

suc ce ss io n sensuou s imagina t ion I t thus lls gaps in the physical

.

s
o f c o mi c
succession that were before conceived t o be b ridged over
h g s
c an e i n
r s
te m o f b y divine a g ency which w as dogmatically opposed to
,

r l
n at u a
t he causes tha t alone concern physical science and
s
c a u at i o n ,
d s
oe not
historical research The continuity o f na t ural change
.

s u p ers e d e beco m es less and less in t errupted by g aps in proportion ,

G od .

as science succeeds in unravelling the intricate web o f

na t ural causation : with each advance t he need is lessened

for in t erpola t in g divine interference to bridge over the
interval Bu t under an enlarged theological conception
.

of na t ure wha t forbids t he history o f this planet t hrough

, ,

all i ts changes inorganic and organic including t he e vo l u

, ,

tion of its human organisms being read throu g hou t in ,

terms o f natural causation ? What forbids t hat if no t in ,

t he future pro g ress o f discovery yet t o the mind s eye o f ,

hi g her intelli g ence t he endless natural ye t la t ently divine

,

-
procession m ay arra ng e i t self in an un b roken sys t em
o f caused causes in which every change whet her in the
, ,

his t ory o f extended things o r in the h is t ory o f conscious

lives has its physical correlative ? This Would be the
,

Universe conceived exhaus t ively in t erms o f natural

science . Tru e as far as it goes this scien t ic reading , ,

exclusively in t erms o f caused causali t y is af t er all i n ,

adequate to t he demands of the higher h om o mens u r a

criterion which is the di vi n a mensu r a criterion hu m an

ised ; it is no t eve n man s complete answer to his nal

question We need to deepen t his mechanical inter

.
 GO D L A T E N T IN N ATU R E . 131

r et a ti o n of
na t ure by a teleological in t erpre t a t ion if
p , ,

even in an unbeginning and unending na t ural world w e ,

a r e living in what is nally a divine o r superna t ural

universe .

T he natural history o f t he material world i s truly a T h e

f
history of natural antecedents which are m e t ap h orically
,
0

called ag en ts They are to us only s i gns o f their s o nl y

. o a

called e ff ects signs through which the U niversal Power

,

is con t inually presenting order meani n g and adaptations s q n s

, , e ue ce ,

to conscious persons w h o have appeared o n this planet in ,

the course o f its natural evolution S ensible si g ns not t nt .

, s a ,
ar o

operative causes make up t he visible world Nature is a gi igg

,
g
gi
nt
.

divine sense sy m bolis m adapted t o the u s e of m an With p t h l

-
.
re a e .

o u t n atural causes t here could b e no h u m anly calc u lable ,

and more o r less con trollable course o f events B u t i f

,
.

really to explain an event be to assign i t s origin and nal

cause na t ural science never explains any t hing ; its pro
,

vince is only t o discover t he divinely established custom

followed in t he na t ural succession .

Natural causat i on therefore need no t supersede Divine N t r l a u a

Providence always la t ent in t he na t ural universe The .

discovery o f a physical cause is only the discovery o f s mp t i n u o ,

1
an addit ional illustration o f the universal fact t hat w e 333335 ,
1
1
are having o u r being in an interpre t able world ; which w h i h w , c e

al though by us interpreted only i n part yet appeals to a ,

hu m an intelligence tha t p a r ti cip a tes in the omnipresent p h y s i ll y ca

in t elli g ence This presupposes microcos m ic and m acro a

t l cer

g
p re '

l e
cosmic reason the o n e in man the other in t he universe , .

The complex order o f n ature is G o d continually speaking

to us T he elaborate web weaved accordin g to laws of
.
,

natural connec t i on is a means t o t he end o f its being a

,

revela t ion t o u s o f each o t her and of God Livin g in and .

throug h this order we are living in and through perpetual

,

ac t ive providence ; in a process which may be withou t b e

ginning and may persis t wi t hout end at once na t ural
,

and supernatural outward na t ure signican t o f the super

na t ure wi t h which i t i s ani m ated S o far pantheis m ex .

p ands a narro w t heism T he idea o f cons t ant divi ne or

.

orderly determina t ion o f universal na t ure is a contribu t ion

t o tru t h which t heism receives from pan t heism Men .
,
 132 P H I LO SO P H Y OF TH E I S M .

says S pinoza have been wont t o call t ha t only whereof
,

t h e natural cause i s unknown the work of God For .

people in general t hink tha t the p ower o r providence of

God is then mos t plainly manifes t ed when t hey perceive ,

some thin g t o happen in t he course of na t ure which is

unco m mon An d in n o way do t hey think t ha t the
.

existence o f G o d m ay be more clearly proved t han from

this t ha t external na t ure do t h n ot keep her order .

Wherefore they deem tha t all t hose s et aside G o d who

explain even t s by n a t ural causes o r w h o t ry t o nd t he ,

condi t ions on which even t s n aturally depend F o r they .

suppose tha t G o d is doin g no t hin g as lon g as na t ure is ,

m oving o n in t he accus t omed order ; and on the other

hand that t he powers o f na t ure and natural causes are
,

idle whenever G o d is ac t ing by in t erference with nature .

They imagine t herefore t wo powers dis t inc t fro m each ,

o t her t o wi t the power of God and the p owers o f n atural

, ,

t h i n g s ; which last t hey suppose t o have been a t rst

determined b y G od o r as m ost nowadays express them
, ,

selves to have been created by Him

,
Bu t what they .

mean by n a tu r e and wh at by G od t hey know not ; except

, ,

t h a t they suppose the power of God to be a sor t of arbi

t r ar y re g al government and tha t they a tt ribu t e a m ec h a ni
,

cal force all its own t o na t ure The common herd t here .
,

fore call u nusual works o f na t ure miracles o r works of

, ,

God ; and partly o u t o f devo t ion partly o u t o f O pposi tion ,

t o science th ey even wish t o remain i g norant o f t he

,

na t u ral causes of events an d deli g h t t o hear o f t hin g s,

w hich they are unable to in t erpre t scientically and ar e ,

t herefore m ost ap t t o adore .

D oes The question at t he heart o f this is Whether wh a t ar e

n at u ar l called natural causes should o t herwise t han metaphorically
s
c au at i o n
, ,

ex pl i n
a b e called ca u ses The point t o b e kept in View is that
.
,

n yt h in g
a
physical causa t ion with t he alleged equivalence between
n ll y
a
,

i ts e ffec t s and i ts cau ses presents only a sys t em o f inter

,

r e t ab l e signs which because orderly i prac t ically t he

p , s , ,

lan g uage of Divine Providen ce Na t ural science unfold s .

t he cons t an t sequen ces in detail and usefully advances ,

o u r interpre t a t ion o f o u r surroundings ; each applicable

scien t ic discovery is an illus t ra t ion of i t s u t ility T h e .

1 34 PHIL OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

n ec t e d wi t h every o t her in t he pas t an d in t he dis t an t ;

,

S o th a t comple t e knowledge unmys t erious knowled g e

o f a nyth i ng is possible on l y to omniscience A ccord .

i ngl y an un condi t io n al cer t ain t y or absolu t e kn owle dge

, , ,

of all t he na t ural ca u ses an d all t he e nds o f t he t hi n gs

presen t ed in experience is unat t ainable Y e t hum an life .

rests o n t he fai t h t ha t a working in t elligence o n o u r par t

,

o f t he In t elli g ence that i s operative in n ature i s within

o u r reach t hat in t his interco u rse with the Intell e c t t h at

is laten t in nature human in t ellect n eed n ot b e pu t to con
,

fusion b y nature in the en d When w e try t o interpre t .

na t ure as a sym b olism w e of t en nd o u r hypothetical

,

in t erpre t ations veried by the even t ; althou g h there is

for u s n o de m o n s t rable cer t ain ty t hat with innu m erable ,

unknown powers in exis t ence wha t no w seems veried ,

will be u ndis t urbed This implies nal t rus t in harmony

.

b e t ween t he course of n ature and t he t h o u g h t o f man ,

which a s w e s aw w as no t foreign even to Hume Th e

, ,
.

phy sical rela t ions o f thi ngs presen t ed t o o u r senses are

t reated in o u r scien t ic interpre t ations as intelli g ible l an
g u age Tha t this n atural la n guage can in so m e measure be
.

in t erpre t ed b y man t he gradual growth o f man s science
,

of n ature is ma t ter o f f act proof May w e n ot t herefore

- -
.

b elieve that in o u r surroun di n g universe w e are con t inu

, ,

ally in t he presence o f Providential Power t hat is uni

ve rs all y an d e t ernally revealing i t self in t he articulate
language o f natural causes Are we n o t when in presence ,

o f external n ature in a condi t ion which m ay be compared

,

t o t ha t in which w e are when in presen ce of a human

bei ng wh o i s speaki n g t o us o r employi n g s ig ns that ,

enable u s t o t hink his t ho u gh t s ? O r d er and ends in the ,

n a t ural econ omy in t o which w e en t er a t bir t h may be ,

legi timately t aken as the visible expression o f a Power

which per h aps eternally uses Mat t er fo r self revela t ion -

t o persons even as m en u s e their bodily organs i n com

,

mu n ic a ti ng with o n e an other b u t with this S ig n al di ffer

ence that the na t ural succession as well as the Power at
, ,

work in and through it m ay b e unbeginning an d unendi n g

, ,

w hile th e words o f m e n are t ransitory con ventional signs .

The nally spiri t u al in t erpre t ation of all na t ural causation

 GO D LA T E N T IN NA T URE . 135

is equally valid o r a t leas t e qu ally incapable o f dis p roof

, ,

however co m plex t he nat u ral links m ay be and w h a t eve r ,

obstacles may thus be o ffered to s c ienti c discovery .

If natural caus a t ion is all ul t i m a t ely divine no increase ,

in o u r physical knowledge of the special ca u ses o r laws

which consti t ute the visible succession can dissolve th e
spiritual signicance th at is presen t in each caused cause
and in the W hole .

The very co m plexi t y o f the w eb of natural causa t io n T h m , e co

l i ty f
which man n d s that he is able only with di f culty to t h s m sp ex
e co
o
o ,
unravel scie n ti cally may perh aps itself be regarded as n d n
, a co se

m
an exa ple of adapta t ion o f ends to m eans when t his l ti
q n t d i f ue
d cu es , e
co m plexity is considered in its relation to m an The t mind .
u ca e

in tricate constitu t ion o f the cos m os seems to be t ted by n d h r a c a

t r in ac e
i t s elaborateness for educa t i ng human in t elligence and ,

provides the moral discipline i nvolved in painf u l m astery

o f the scienti c secrets o f nat u re It may even suggest .

with m ore emphasis t han a si m pler consti t ution t he con ,

stant presence o f A ctive Reason ; and in a w ay apt to

indu ce reveren t ial faith o r adora t ion when the n a t ural ,

language costs time an d labour to nd its m eanin o r g

D )

when it is physically interpre t able only tentatively and ,

at last only to a s m all ex t en t chiey for t he opera t ive

,

purposes and increase of social happi n ess .

The basis o f human life an d experience is found in t he T h e r di ca

n l f t a ac
faith that the evolving universe m u s t b e ch arged with per f i or u s s,
fe c tly good me ani n g an d purpose This does n ot depend th t t h
. a e
n i v rs
o n the tra n scendent alter n a t ive o f whether the natural
u e e
i nt w h i h o c
order with i ts di vine m eanings and a daptations had an w w k
, , e a a e

t b ir th i
absolute begi n ning or i s on the contrary an u n b egin s mi n t
, , ,
a

co c,
s

o
ning and unending revelation o f o m nipotent goodness h ti .
c ao c

n t wh n
E ither w ay w e are livi n g a n d moving and having o u r wh th r
,
or
o
e
e
e
,

being in t h e m idst o f an intelligible natural reve l ation i t v r b , e e ,

e

o u t o f which hu m an sciences gradually cons t ruct them g n t b a o e .

selves A s t he relations o f natural causality are i nt el li

.

g i b
,
l e while they are independen t of the hu m an investi

gators t rue science o f nature S O far from contradicting

, ,

the supposition that man entered at birth in t o an esse n

t i ally intelligible o r divine u niverse proceeds throughout ,

all its inquiries experiments and veri cations upon this

, , ,
 136 P H I L OSO PH Y O F TH E I S M .

tacit assu m p t ion as its ul t imate and indispensable work

,

ing hypothesis If w e are t o for m any conception o f t he

.

Universal Power i t must be the conception o f Power t hat

,

i s unconscious o r else of Po wer tha t is intelligent

,
The .

alternatives are a m aterial or a spiritual con cep t ion of the

Power nally at work in na t ure with which man is i n ,

vi t e d to c o operate by ad a ptin g na t ur a l sequences to his

-

o wn ends V i n ci tu r p a r en d o
. .

Th n d e ee I m ay be asked whe t her there is hu m an need or room

,

wh i h im
c
fo r determinin g between t hose altern a tives Can man
p ls to
e us
.

o n t h r proceed further than practically to recognise t h a t in fact

e or o e
o f th s 1 he is living in a physically interpretable u n iverse
e e a
No w I .

t n ti v
er a es ,
i ns t d f
ea do not nd that I am arrested a t this point F o r I d o
o .

r s ting i n nd t ha t W hat are called natural causes s o far as my

e

th f t
,
e ac
th t w
a
knowledge
e,
carries me are not causes i n th,
ei r o w n r ig h t .

s m h w I nd no evidence t hat m at t er can originate chan g e or

o e o ,
,
nd our
s lv s in
e e
even t hat
a
t he ter m agent is intelligible until one ,

ph y si l has h ad experience o f personal agen ts in self conscious

ca -

co s mo s activity I t ouched o n t his in t he lectures o n ma t erial

.

i s m a n d egoism and I m ust return t o it in the sequel

,
.

To ra t ionali t y in n ature all includi n g m aterialists Virtu , , ,

ally m ake their nal a ppeal To n d with the biologis t .

wha t t h e physical co n ditions are under which a human

bein g begins sentient and self conscious life is n o t to ex -
,

plain conscious in t el ligence M a tter a s w e p er cei ve i t. .

, ,

ex la i n s n o th i n n a ll Mot i on o f m olecules can only

p g y .

plain motion in other molecules and n o t even this nal ly ; ,

fo r there is n o perceptible connection be t wee n contac t o f

movin g masses in space and t he motion o f o t her masses ,

which follows A ll o n e can s ay i s that w e expect the

.
,

latter in faith when we s ee the former T he former is t o

,
.

u s t he in t elligible S ign and s o the foundation of the natural

,

prophecy o r scientic prevision u pon which w e proceed as

, ,

a venture o f faith The world presen t ed t o t he senses is

.
,

as i t were a Divine B ook o f Prophecy : if it is undivine i t

,

may in t he end deceive : a suspec t ed witness cannot verify

anything .

Lte n
o z o Consisten t undivine m a t erialism is i m possible ; bu t the
t h m t ri
numerous un conscious assump t ions o f m aterialists conceal
e a e
al i t i
s o c r

t his The ma t erialis t ic assumption as Lotze says t akes
. , ,
138 PHIL OSO P H Y O F T H E I S M .

with i t s natural laws and ends i s darkn ess ; fo r external

,

n a t ure apart from the highe r life found in man even

, ,

conceals the God whom it never t heless reveals when i t

,

is looked a t in the ligh t of t h e m oral postulates and our

spirit u al consciousness . I proceed accordin g ly t o look
a t Man as a t leas t for Man an im age or symbol o f

t he Universal Power .
 139

L E C T U R E II .

I D EAL M AN AN IMA G E OF GO D .

LA S T lec t ure partly in t ended to S h ow t ha t o b li g a t ion R tr o s p

w as , e e ct .

to presuppose divine o r perfec t order and purpose omni

present in n a t ure is independen t o f t he question whether ,

the na t ural evolution had a beginning ; and to suggest

that even if w e have been ushered in t o a cosmos tha t
had n o beginnin g w e nd ourselves n ow livi n g and
,

movin g and having o u r bein g amidst surroundings t ha t

mu st be presupposed to b e eternally tru s t worthy or
divine as a con d ition o f their being even physically
,

in t erpretable .

But o f w hose intelli g ence i s u n iversal na t u r e the ex M n nd a a

pression ? \V h a t abou t the orderi n g or designi n g Power ?

What is meant by supernat u ralness ? Have w e any ex
a m ple in experience o r i t s implicates o f a cause superior
t o the causes alone recognised in physical S cience ? D o
w e n ot nd in ourselves i n t he ego an i m plied super

n atural n ess which introduces m eani n g into t he term

,

power and may supply an a n alogy to divini t y omni
,

present in n ature the m icrocosm in m an t o the macro

c o s m which analogously reveals G o d ? These questions
lead us up t o Man an embodied m oral bei n g w h o shares ,

in divine reason an d wh o as a personally responsible

, ,

agen t is connec t ed with the divin e centre o f a moral

,

world t o which ou t w ard na t ure i s in harmonio u s subor

d i na t i o n Under this nal concep t ion every adva n ce o f
.
,

th e na t ural sciences deepens and enriche s m an s c o n c ep

tion o f God When an even t can b e referred t o a na t ural

.
 140 PHIL OSO P H Y O F T H E I S M .

cau se it is no t by t his divorce d from God if all na t ural

, ,

causation is divine .

M n in
a O ne seem s t o nd t he si g nal example of t he divine in
S p ir d e
t he spirit o f m an I n his Comm on Reason or Ration al
.
.
,

S ense o n e nds the inspira t ion o f t h e Almighty which
,

g iveth understanding We see in man a being a t once
.

n atural and superna t ural in t ermediate between bru t e and

Dei t y with in t e l ligen ce and experience that is neither
nescience nor O mniscience equally unable as Pascal , ,

s u ggests t o know all and t o be ignorant of all ; who is

, ,

g reat even in kn owing himself t o be miserable ; wh o lives

by interpre t i n g th e future t hrough the past .

O r g ni a cThe visible organic conditions under which consciou s

n d it i n s
ness makes i t s appearance in m an in terms o f which its
co o ,

n t th
,
o e
s lf n
e -
co gradual development may b e expressed in biology is surely ,
s i s l if no t t he moral and spiri t ual life ac t ually felt t hough t and
c ou e
it s l f , ,
e .

ac t ed although invisible o f which the organic mo t ions

,

are only t he na t ural occasion Conscious in t elligence is .

m anifested in an d t hro u g h visi b le processes in nature ;

b u t those visible processes are not t he invisible con
s c i o u s n es s Faith t hat I am in a divine o r interpre t able
.

world involves m ore t han percep t ion o f wha t i s sense

presen t ed Tha t sen se appe arances are virtually S igni
.

can t lan g uage I take o n t rust without having it de m on

,

s t r a t e d ; i t i s the funda m ental p ostulate in natural science ,

a s well as in every c a lculated movement in daily li fe A .

chaos o f letters o f t he alph abet presented in a heap i s , ,

not t o be confoun ded wi t h t he same le t ters organised in a

b ook and charged with meanin g s o t ha t th e reader nds
, ,

t he outside book in in t ellec t u al a ffi nity with his o wn in

t el lige n c e Man trea t s nature in t he fai t h t ha t in t rying
.
,

t o reduce i t s phenome n a to science he is trying to read an ,

intelligible n atural B ook .

S lf
e -
nco But livin g consciousness is more t han t his latent in
s i s in t el li i b il it
c ou
more too than the sensuous phenomena in
t llig n
e e ce g .
y ; , ,

which the reason laten t in na t ure receives expression .

In t elli g ibili t y a b s t rac t ed from a livin g thinker is an

, ,

emp ty abstraction Let us suppose all conscious life in .

t he universe suddenly annihilated What t hen becomes .

o f t he latent in t erpre t abili t y of na t ural phenomena : or o f

 14 2 P H IL OSO P H Y O F TH E I S M .

signican t revela t ion o f wha t God is t ha t t he universe

presen t s t o man Man the microcosm is the unique .
, ,

exa m ple in which if a nywhere withi n experience religion

, , ,

nds an i m age o f the innite God The ideal man

.

is for u s t he symbol of God in n a t ure The nite S pirit .

,

incarnate in his body is t he symbol of Innite S piri t , ,

incarna t e in the universe As t he highes t form o f human .

experience the spiri t ual life o f man in i t s full develop

m en t m ay be said t o si g nify t o man what is nal o r
supreme i n the innite reality revealing God in the only ,

w ay God can b e apprehended by man .

T h e i nad e Hence t he philosophical inadequacy of all merely b io

q u ac y o f logical in t erpretat ions o f m an their inade quacy meas

r ly
me e b io , ,

l g l
o ic a i n u r e d even by o u r modest intellec t ual resources as well ,

t er p r et a
t io ns
as for o u r m oral and reli g ious co n s t i t ution A wholly .

physiological accoun t o f action and reaction between
.

m an s ani m al organis m an d its material environmen t under

n a t ural law of selection omi t s the n ecessary spiritual i m ,

plica t es of s upernatural reason and m oral ag e ncy F o r .

i t is these t hat reveal G o d s o far as Inni t e Being can ,

b e revealed t o an in t elli g ence inter m edia t e be t ween total

nescience and O mniscience It is t hrough t hat which i s .

found by reec tion in man s invisible life o f consciousness

n ot t hrough t ha t which is presen t ed to any o r all o f his

external senses t ha t the world assu m es for him i t s nal
,

in t erpreta t ion .

T h e l an The pro g ress o f th e physical sciences is evidence t ha t

g g
u a e of
n ature i s a con t inued discourse on t he part o f the Uni
N t r
a u e an d

C mt s
o e

versal Power addressed to man in t he S i g nican t language
,

m a xi m .
of natural causes S cientic intercourse with t he u ni
.

verse is in t elligence in in t ercourse wi t h intelligence man

learning t o t hink some of the divine though t t ha t is
latent in the cosmos Y et curiously i t was a maxim o f .

Comte that the heavens declare n o o t her glory than tha t

,

o f Hipparchus Kepler New t on and the o t her illustriou s

, , ,

as t ronomers w h o have in t erpreted some of the language

,

t ha t is u tt ered by t he m asses o f m a tt er tha t occupy innite

space If t his is s o the glory of New t on s Principia is
.
,

not the glory of Newton but only o f those readers o f t he ,

Principia who are able t o unders t and i t s physical t heo
 ID E A L M AN AN IM AG E O F G O D . 14 3

ries and demons t ra t ion s If t h e Book of Nature rec e ives

.

fro m the astronomical discoverer the meaning which it is

found t o express m us t n o t the book which was supposed
,

to make Newton illustriou s receive i ts m eanin g n o t fro m ,

Newton but from i t s in t ellige n t readers

,

But it is in man s life as a m or a l being in the r es p o n R e s n nd

,
a o a

sible exercise o f deliberate Will even more than in m an , 3

$
1
18
divinely inspired with Re a son that the fac t s o f inward p n t l,
er a u ra ,

b t
experience refuse t o be read only in terms o f external f 11y
c a} 3 6 11 0

p y l S I ca
natural sc en ce ; th i s t o o af t er account I s taken o f the x p l i b l
o

i
e ca e .

i n h er i ted resul t s o f organic a n d extra organi c in terac t ion -

in t he history of the a n i m al ancestors of each hu m an

organis m and also o f the history o f the whole material
,

world of which a human bo d y is o f course a part I t is .

by possession o f m orally responsible will that m an rises

er s on above all that is physical an d imperso n al
as a
p .

His m oral personali ty is t he type of the divine prin ciple

at the he art of existence Is no t responsible will i n m a n
.

supernatural self de t er m ined no t determined by his organ

,
-
,

ism : s o that man may be said t o hold the unique position

of being at once an outcome of physical evolu t ion and ,

ye t a creative agent in respect of all acts for which

he is j us t ly responsible ? Reason and Will can n ot be
refunded into the caused causes o f science : in spiritual
action man erects himself as a personal agent above , ,

hi m self as merely an issue of t he natural evolu t ionary

sequence . Unless above hi m self a s m erely a part o f
visible nature he ca n erec t hi m self into an a c t ive rational
,

o r supernatural agent h o w m ean a thi n g is m an

, If he .

is under moral obligation to obey m ora l l aw he c annot ,

be wholly a part o f t he dependent causal mechanism .

The way of looki n g a t the universe tha t makes visible

na t ure and natural causation the highest m easure o f rea lity
must be inadequate as a philosophical theory if man is ,

an a g ent w h o is responsible for anything t h at h e does .

Rationality and morality in m an both involve m ore S i n n d c e ce a

The dogm a o f the g g m

o
t han outward physical sequen ce .

l ,

S peculative na t uralist that the outer world acts upon man p l y m r

,
o e
th n n t a
mechanically as bodies in mo t ion ac t upo n bodies at
,
a
 144 P H I L OSO P H Y OF TH E I S M .

u r l
a se res t s o t hat scientic interpre t a t ion o f experience by a
,

q u en c o .

h uman discoverer is i tself only a physical e ffect o f na t ural

causali t y o n his body is a dogma which omi t s m an s

participa t ion in divine reason and his consequen t power

,

o f distin g uishing between fancy and reality which science ,

i m plies I t s defect i s n o less obvious when the na t ur

.
,

alis t argues tha t t he relation o f motives to acts fo r which

,

a human agen t is responsible must be the same in kind

as the relation which o n e body bears t o another body ,

when motion in the o n e follows impac t by ano t her in

mo t ion ; fo r this leaves o u t o f accoun t th a t superiori t y
t o physical n ature which personal responsibility involves :
a na t ural cause is not morally responsible for any of its

physical e ffec t s In t ellectual power o f dis tinguishin g b e

.

tween t ransi t ory appearances and t he deeper relations

which t hey si g nify be t ween sensation an d natural science
i t self i s a power i n which man erec t s himself as super ,

natural above hi m self as only a par t o f na t ure

,
But .

the moral po wer of making a respon sible choice b e t ween

good and evil in action is emphatically that in which
man is free either to erec t hi m self ab ove the t e mp t a
,

t ions of sen se or t o let his proper personali ty b e merged

,

in physical n ature .

The u lti w m
I n man t o ulti ate mysteries seem t o meet t he mys

m at e my s t ery in which scientic causa t ion merges an d t h e mystery ,

t er i es o f

in ni t e o f moral or immoral will in a nite being In scien t ic .

ph y s lic a causation w e become involved in the mys t ery o f e t ern al

r gr ss nd
e e a

o f m o r al succession : S ince no na t ural cause is self determined ,

ca u s ti o n
a .
each presupposes an anterior n a t ural cause every cau se ,

in the regress being only a caused cau se O ur self .

determining in t elli g ence and respon sibility for personal

acts contradic t s supposed u niversality o f na t ural causa
tion and puts us face to face wi t h an origina t ing agent
, ,

t o whom origin ative power is a t tributed Man i nt er m e .

,

dia t e between the nescien t and the omniscie n t can neither ,

imagine nor comprehend the u niversal reality in eithe r

o f these wa y s He canno t comprehend an u n b egin
.

n ing an d unending evolu t ion among orderly dependent

chan g es nor can he comprehend a universe tha t con t ains
,

self de t ermining agen t s

- Na t ural ca u sa t ion in i t s ul t i
.
 14 6 P H IL OSO PH Y OF TH E I S M .

essay o n the hypothesis t h at animals in cluding the

hu m an ani m al are only sen t ien t au t omata
It seems .

to me he says t ha t in men as in brutes there i s n o proof
, ,

that any state o f con scio u sn ess is the cause o f change in

the motion o f t he m a tt er of t he organis m I t follo ws .

that o u r m ental condi t ions are simply the sy m bols in

consciousness o f changes which take place au t omatically
in t he organism ; and th at to t ake an extrem e illus t ra t ion
, ,

the feeling w e call volition is n ot th e cause of a vol u n t ary

ac t but the symbol o f t hat s tate o f t he brain which i s the
,

i m mediate cause o f that act S o viewe d m en are only
.
,

physical organisms not p er s ons : th ey are visible an d

,

t angible th i ngs ; with each o f which conscious life is i n

explicably connec t ed sentien t intelligen ce in m an bei n g
,

more developed in i ts organis m than in any other ani m al

organism o n t his planet But in all animals alike c o n
.
,

sciou s life is powerless : i t is to be discounted as wholly

irrelevant a t leas t in t h e scientic explan a t ion o f man
,
.

The metamorphoses which th e material world u ndergoes ,

in t he persistent processes o f n a t ural causa t ion which

science tries to formula t e are all independen t of t he self
,

conscious ego Man is n ot enti t led notwithstan ding fel t

.
,

resp onsibility for his acts to be included as a factor ,

.

I nvisible conscious agen cy is n ot a g ency ; there is only

evolution o f visible phenomena from visible anteceden t s .

We are deluded i t see m s when we suppose originating

, ,

personal a g ency ; for no act of hu m an will can either

increase o r di m inish m olecular motion in the brain : all
cerebral m otions mus t b e n aturally caused by o t her
motions organic or e xtra or g a ni c under laws which it
,
-
,

is t he ofce o f biological science to nd and for m ulate .

M st u Bu t although biology m ay reason ably conne itself to

Pm t
.

d
:p g eneralising natural sequences o f physical pheno m ena I
S T
,
o n t an

c it y
b e am unable t o s ee W i t h Hu xley h o w th i s can j u st i fy the
Egg fi
ed
n
g radual banishmen t from a ll re g io n s o f hu m an tho u ght o f

m an what w e call spirit and spontaneity ; fo r by spon
t h ou ght "
? t an e i t y

I suppose h e m ean s acts which when re g arded ,

as morally re f erable to an agen t are inferred to be there ,

fore free from n atural necessities on account o f t he ,

a g en t s s ole responsibility for them Ins t ead of t his banish

.
 IDEAL M AN AN IM AG E O F G O D . 147

men t o f spontaneity biology like every science o f visible
, ,

n ature see m s to place u s face to face with the question

,

sugges t ed by th e rela tion between material nature and

nite persons to whom moral responsibility is a t t ribu t ed .

It makes t he philosopher as k h o w the numerous see ming

i n terferences of m oral and i m moral a g en t s with t he

c ourse o f n a t ure can be reconciled with the ex clusive

su fciency o f visible causa tion which biologic a l naturalis m

presu m es Moral responsibility fo r a human ac t depends
.

upo n the human agen t w h o is m orally praised or bla m ed

for i t being so far independen t o f the natural causation
, ,

to which sta t es of the brai n are subj ect Co mm uni t y .

between the m ind that is m anifested consciously in m an ,

and the Mind latent in n ature and signied to m an by ,

interpretable sensu o us signs i s the religious pos t ula te o f,

science The possession o f power that i s above conditions

.

o f physical causation seems indispensable to an ac t for

which the apparen t agen t can be m orally praised o r

bla m ed ; although t he relation of man s moral or immoral

acts t o t he supreme order and purpose c a n be only i m

perfectly unders t ood by h i m if o u r con cep t ion o f physical
,

causali ty and o u r con cep t ion of moral and immoral agency

mus t be ultima t ely incomple t e o r m ysterious .

The exclusion o f all spiritual ques t ions n o t only from C on ,

se
m
gigg
p a
biology as a wholly physical science but also from all a

,

o

hu m an thought seems t o land the consisten t thinker i n

,

curious paradoxes I f ra t ional an d voli t ional conscious

.

life and all that i s involved in this are only irrelevan t

, ,

accidents i n the universe it seems to follo w that all ,

changes would have occurred exactly as t hey have o c

curred if rational and volitional consciousness had never
,

arisen in the universe The e ffects in na t ure wi t h which

.

m en are credited o r discredited mus t all be placed in ,

tha t case to the credi t o r dis credit of the Universal

,

Power manifested in nature What are called pro .

d u c t io n s o f m ind must b e con ceived as only part o f

t he natural issue o f hu m an organisms T he books con .

t ai n ed in the world for example would have become

, ,

wha t t hey are by a l aw of natural selec t ion under which ,

their visible contents migh t have been evolved as we have

 1 48 PHIL OSO PH Y O F TH E I S M .

t he m ye t withou t consciousness on the par t o f suppose d

,

au t hors and prin t ers The brillian t addi t ions to scien t i c

.

li t era t ure fo r which w e are grateful t o Professor Huxley ,

when w e refer them to his conscious agency are only the ,

na t ural issue of the or g anism t ha t bore his n ame i t self ,

one o f t he issu es o f t h e gradual evolu t ion o f t he ma t erial

world : his pu b lished works mi g ht h ave existed exac t ly as
t hey exis t n o w if neither his conscious life n o r any o t her
,

h ad ever made i t s appearance Indeed if consciousness .

and personal ac tivity are irrelevan t acciden t s in t he

procession o f molecular chan g es wha t proof can I h ave ,

tha t at this m omen t min e is n o t the soli t ary conscious

life in a world emp ty o f all other conscious beings ? O n
,

what reasonable ground can I asser t tha t I am n ow in t he

presence of conscious persons ; o r h o w can o n e reason
ably b elieve that the words he hears spoken are no t u n
d u l a t i o n s of the air t hat have b een natu rally caused b y
,

molecular mo t ion s in a visi b le organism themselves t he ,

natural issue o f m olecular changes in surrounding na t ure ,

conveyed all unconsciously under natural laws t o an

, ,

organ o f hearin g ? Althou g h I suppose I am n ow s u r

rounded b y conscious agents perhaps I am in t he pre ,

sence o f unconscious autom atic organisms .

S ns p h
e e I n Berkeley s Minute Philosopher E u p h rano r th e
e

,

,
n m n
o o a
ca n b ig
religious
e s
in t erlocu t or in t he dialogue which,
co n cerns t he
n i nt
ca f religiou s concep t ion of t h e universe su g ges t s t ha t we all
o ,
co ns i s have as clear an d immedia t e a cer t ain t y o f t he providen t ial
c ou

p rs n s
e o
a n d t h ir activity of G o d as each of u s has o f t he exis t ence o f person s
e
i nt nt i n s
e
around him when he sees them speak o r ac t
o .
What " .

rej oins A l c ip h r o n t he scep t ical in t erlocutor wha t " d o
, ,

you pre t en d y o u can h ave the same assurance of the bein g

o f a G o d t ha t o u can have of m i n e whom you ac t ually
y
,

s ee stan ding before you an d talking to you ? The

very same if n o t greater is the reply
,
H o w do y o u
, .

make t his appear ? asks A l c i ph ro n By the p er son .

A l c ip h r o n E u p h r an o r an swers
,

i s meant an individual ,

th i n ki ng person and not the hair skin o r visible surface

, , , ,

or any part o f the ou t ward form colour o r shape of , ,

A l c ip h ro n This t he sceptic readily allows
. And in .

gran t ing t his t he o t her rej oins you g ran t t hat in a
, ,
 150 PHIL OS O P H Y O F T H E I S M .

of t he un conscious processes of na t ural causa t ion in t h e

un i versal organism Men and animals with all t heir
.
,

so -
called works are m ovemen t s in na t urally evolved
,

machines o f all which I am perhaps t he solitary spec

,

t a t or The idea of morally responsible personali t y with

.
,

free in t endin g will as i t s implica t e i s a superuou s ,

issue of t he organism I call mine ; and a like s u p eru i ty

if an issue o f o t her org anisms as w ell as mine But .

af t er all I have n o proof t hat other or g anisms are a t

all connec t ed wi t h conscious life if all their words ,

and over t actions are wha t t hey are t hrough or g anic ,

an d inorganic na t ural causali ty alone The unconscious .

natural succession o f molecular chan g es in a human body ,

withou t t he in t erferen ce o f a ny conscious in t elli g ence
and will would be a su fcien t explana t ion of t he printed
,

essay o n animal au t om a t ism a tt ri b u t ed t o Huxley Nei t her .

world m aking nor b ook makin g would presuppose spiri t ual

- -

ac t ivity ; for worlds and b ooks would be equally the issue

o f th e orderly sequence of the visible and t a ng ible
phenomena th a t have formed themselves n aturally in t o
books an d in t o worlds .

Bo k s
o B u t wha t I must fur t her ask are na t ural au t omatic
, ,

wit h o t
u

au t h o rs .
c h anges in organisms and t hrou g h organism s in extra ,

or g anic t hings o r vi ce ver s a when the changes are t otally

, , ,

abstrac t ed from percep t ion or consciousness ? Wha t is t he

Principia or wha t the E ssay Con cerni ng Human U n
,

ders t anding without conscious intelligen ce and in t en d
,

in g purpose in New t on and Locke wh o are responsible for ,

t hem an d wi t hou t conscious ac t ivity in t heir readers

,
?

The visible words prin t ed o n t he pages of a book b ecome

s igni ca n t only when consciousness makes i t s appearance .

W hether th e rel a tion b e t ween a person and t he Visible

evolu t ion of his b ook is called a relation of cause and
e ffec t o r n o t i t i s such t h a t t he visible appearances are
,

accepted by san e minds as reasonable g uarantee fo r origi

n ati n g action o f invisi b le in t en din g mind I canno t b anish .

t h e la tt er and t hen fully t hink o u t my experience on

,

t he hypothesis o f t h e exclusive reali t y o f t he former A .

human in t en din g will is responsible for t he sensuous signs

o f deli b erate meanin g and purpose o f which a human o r
 I DE A L M A N A N IM AG E OF GOD . 151

ga n i s m is t he antecedent T he i m moral ac t for which the

.

individual murderer is held responsi b le cannot be S hifted

o ff rst to his n o n moral organis m
, and nally to t he
-
,

Universal Po wer .

Whe n the meaning o f the words ma tt er and force N t r l a u a

is considered in t he light o f o u r spiritual as well as o u r

,

sens u ous experience i t appears that the discovery of the t i ti f

, ac er s c o

natural an t ecedents of a chan g e is n o n al explanation of Eg gggi m e

it even for man ; and also that the idea of origina tin g i tl i d s ie n ex

power on which all change nally depends is go t fro m w h i h c

, ,
t t
reec t ion upon an irresistible perception o f moral r e Ef i ting

g a

sponsibility for deliberately intended acts

I ough t P w r .
,
o e .

therefore I ca n i s like an index which points t o agency
,

of p er sons as man s true conception o f ac t ive causation

o r power in hi m self and in t he universe

,
Consciousness .

o f m oral ideals implies moral obligation ; b u t t here c a n be

n o moral obligation unless there is p ower n a lly wi th i n

th e n i te ag en t to obey o r t o disobey The human subj ect .

of m oral obli g ation s o far as he is capable o f obligation

, ,

m u st be free from t he mechanism of scien t ic causa t ion .

The act must origina t e in hi m self and n o t be m erely a ,

t er m in t he passive succession of physical antecedents

and consequ ents which Visible nature presents Th e .

only really opera t ive power that enters inevi t ably into
human experience is moral o r spiritual Is n ot per .

fe c tl y rational agency the highest explanation o f the

universal evolution tha t is intelli g ible to ma n ? Per
s o n al l originated volition under obliga t ion o f duty
y ,

necessarily involved in moral responsibility is that in ,

man whic h I call s u pernatural You have the contrast .

be t ween the mechanism o f nature and the a g ency o f man

in t he familiar words o f o u r great religious poe t :

L o o k u p t o h ea v e n " th e i n d u s t r i o u s su n
A l r ea d y h al f h i s r ace h at h r u n
H e ca nn ot h al t n o r go a s t r ay
, ,

B u t o u r i mm o r ta l s p i r i t s ma y .

O ri g ina t ive Cause in shor t is reached t hrough

, ,
Co n C s l ity
au a

33252

scien ce an d in a nally e t hical concep t ion o f the
,
11 11 1 -

0
verse we have a deeper hold of reali t y than when i t Is
 1 52 P H I L OS O P H Y O F TH E I S M .

t reated only as a scien ti cally in t erpre t able sys t em of

sense sequences M a n a t h i s h igh es t acting freely under
.

m oral obligation wi t h t h e i m plied intellectu al an d m oral

,

postulates is surely a m ore tt ing key for his ultimate

in t erpretation of things than man only as an ani m al or g an

i s m abs t racted from the experience which can be dis
,

claimed only by disclaiming human responsibility The .

Macrocosm in a n alogy with the m icrocos m the Universal

Power in analogy with what is highest in man the h omo

m en su r a when h om o mea n s m an moral and spiri t ual as

,

well as m erely sensuou s th e d i vi n a mensu r a hu m anised

i n this w e see m to have the ttes t analogy within reach

for the Universal Power in which we are havin g our bein g .

rl
T he e i The nally ethical conception o f the universe involves
gi ou f c o n the idea o f obliga t ion with implied power in agents t o

,
c ep t i o n
f h
o t e or i g i nate what ought n o t t o ex i s t Rel i g i on i ncludes
.

n
I v ers e trus t in the Universal Power ; an d for those wi t h whom
reveren t ial cosmic faith in n atural order is the highes t
principle to w hic h they have risen this cosmic faith is in,

a manner th ei r reli gion B u t when faith g oes n o further

.

than the cosmic postula t e ; when i t is emptied o f the in

r e d i en t s contributed by ma n s experience o f himself as

g
a supernatural being the merely cosmic faith contains
,

no guarantee that intelligen ce m ay n o t be in the en d pu t

to confusion after external nature and human na t ure are

emptied of O mnipotent Goodness What now seems .

cosmic order may then in the end be physical and moral

anarchy and life intruste d t o a faith s o thin and shallow
,

is not wor t h living Pessimist despair ins t ead of relig ious

.
,

hope is the worship appropriate to the g od o f wholly

,

physical fai t h S o tha t althou g h this cosmic fai t h in

.

a non moral universe m ay be called religion i t is no t

-
,

religion in the moral meanin g o f t he word It wan t s a .

nal t r u st that is absolu t e and adapted t o a moral bein g

,
.

If so the morally religious conception of t he universe is

,

m ore deeply philosophical than the physically scientic .

If scientic faith is b a seless condence tha t the world will

n o t in the end pu t to i n tellectu a l confusion those wh o rely
o n the universality of its natural order reli g ious faith no t ,

only gives i t s basis t o this physical faith but is the a bsolu te ,

 1 54

L E C T U R E III .

W H AT Is COD ?

Si mo ni d s I ALL U D E D formerly to the pruden t reserve of S imonides

7
e . ,

w h o according to the story being asked by Hiero Wh a t

, , ,

G od wa s ? desired a day to think o u t the question an d ,

then two days more after t ha t con t inually enlarging the

,

t ime needed fo r t he answer bu t withou t ever being able ,

either to for m a pic t ure of God or an adequate deni t io n ,

of God A re w e be t ter prepared than S imonides ?

I s th e
.

r l igi s
e ou I have n o t en g aged with the more articula t e ques
co n p t i n t ions o f reli g ion
ce o
I am concerned wi t h t he previous
.

o f th ni
e u
v rs
e question o f the reasonableness o f reli g ious t rust in t h e
e r ea
s on b l ? Universal Power I have been aski n g how t he univer s e
a e .

should b e nally re g arded b y man ? Mus t it b e nally

u nder conceptions o f m athematical quan t ity or o f physical ,

causation only as with S pinoza an d Hume Does n o t

, .

a larger concep t ion o f what reason involves require t ha t

it should be regarded practically in analo g y with m an as
a moral agen t the centre o f the lit t le universe of his own
,

personal life ? Is t he modern physical conception of con

t i n u o u s evolution t h e highest tha t is attainable ? Is not
t his conception inadequate when measured by man as a
S piritual being ? I s t he reli g ious con ception o f the universe
t he really reasonable o n e under indispen sable m oral t rus t
,

in t he Universal P ower a t t he root o f reason in man ?

U nt h i s t i
e I have tried to present in a sympathe t ic te m per t he
c , ,
i nt r p r t
e
t i n s f th e
o
chief
o
e a
ways in which the universe has been looked a t
u ni v rs e untheistically The construc t ive concep t ions o f Universal
e . .

Materialism Panegoism and Pan t heism were tried pro

, , ,


W H AT Is GO D 3 1 55

visio nally in succession ; and I asked a candid considera

tion for wha t seemed unsatisfying in each ; while no t
overlooking the partial t ruth which gives to each what ,

s t reng t h it h as . If you would convince another who

really loves t ruth o f defec t in concep t ion you mus t try
, ,

to s ee t h e side at which things are looked a t by him ;

for o n tha t side his view o f them is probably t rue : and
by seei n g a tru th common t o him and t o you he may
, ,

more readily recognise wha t is wanting in h is o wn con

c e p ti o n
. We nex t tried provisionally the agnostic way
o f looki n g at things t o which Monis t t heories seem to
,

lead in t he end Here w e found all constructive c o n c ep

.

t ion s of the universe held in suspense and with t he m , ,

when agnos t icism is bold enough faith in experience , ,

whether sensuou s o r spiri t ual suspended ; n atural science

, ,

as well as religion subsiding in t he to t al darkness of

,

universal nescience .

Bu t the state in which o n e dou bt s about everything is T h rr e co e

1m m f
a s t ate in which man cannot live E ven o u r a n imal life ph y s i} l 0
.

ca ,

requ i res fa i th I n na t ure We cannot l i ve W i thou t eat nd r l i

. a e

ing and drinking ; and w e do n o t eat or drink without $ 2911? 1

8
faith in nutrimen t o r in the a g reeable sensatio n s which f it h
, , a .

we believe visible food t o signify when it is only see n , ,

and be fore it is tas t ed We are daily living in t he move

.

ment o r evolution which constitutes our experience H o w .

far can w e go in in t erpretin g t he m eaning of this ex

p er i e n c e ? O ugh t we t o pu t a fully religious meaning a t
las t u pon t he Whole ; o r mus t w e be con t ented to interpret
i t under t he a t tenuated religious presupposition (if i t can
be called r eligio ns ) of a wholly ph y sical or n o n moral -

order with its physical o r n on moral g od ? Does God

,
-

the Final Principle the Universal Power dissolve into

ulti m ately inexplicable and purposeless natural order ; o r
does God mean ever active mora l reason and purpose at
-
,

the root of a divinely maintained physical order in which ,

t he omnipresent power i s perfect g oodness personied ?

I s t he universe to be nally interpreted in and t hro u gh
what is found in man at his highest o r bes t man with
his ineradic able convic tion of moral responsibility and ,

his religious faith tha t even t he n at ural universe must

 156 PH I L OSO P H Y O F T H E I S M .

be a manifes t a t ion of Power he mus t t hink of as perfec t

reason and g oodness ? I s the pro g ressive evolu t ion in
S pace an d time nally in t erpre t able only in t he ligh t of
a faith which can res t absolu t ely o n nothing shor t o f
In nite Goodness ? O r must i t nally be in t erpre t ed in
t he darkness o f an inexplicable perhaps illusory n atural , ,

order wi t hou t divine centre a sham cosmos in which

,

,

t here can be n o nal t rus t o r perfec t peace ? A t t he

least i s there a nything that a bsolu tely for bid s man t o
,

interpre t the universe nally as t he revela t ion o f Powe r

that s o far as he has t o do with what is real is in analogy
, ,

with wha t is hi g hes t and b es t in himself s o t ha t Ideal

Man may b e t aken as virtu ally the ima g e o f the
Universal Power wi t h which he is connec t ed in his whole
,

living experience
Aw y a It is in t his w ay o f looking a t th e universe t hat I have
op nf e
b een
or a
approaching a human answer t o Hiero s question

p r ti l
ac ca
.

ans w r e The outcome seems already t o su gg es t that t he ques t ion

t Hi r s

o
me o
a
y b e answered as i t concerns man while by man i t
q es t i o n
u ? , , ,

remains innitely unanswerable I s n o t the deepes t an d

.

t rues t t hough t ma n can have t ha t in which t he universe

,

is conceived as th e manifesta t ion o f perfec t ly good Power ,

in moral relation t o persons who are u nder g oin g spiri t

ual educa t ion individually in a nally divine univer s e
educa t ion in an individualisin g organism consistin g in
strug g les t o rule by obeyin g na t ure wi t h which they are
con t inu ally in contac t and collision ; which in the ligh t ,

o f t heir inner consciousness i s seen t o b e a revelation o f

,

perfect g oodness ; in all which the m a t erial world b e

comes t he symbol o i Mind and t he servan t o f man I t .

follows tha t man in o n e sense may know God and yet ,

that God cannot be known innitely by man It is blended .

knowledge and ignorance real kn owled g e in par t of t ha t

, , ,

which passes hum an knowled g e Nature o r the symbolic .

,

world ; ego o r o u r supernat ural personality ; and G o d in

, ,

whom Nature and Man are reconciled all are in par t ,

o r for human purposes knowable : t hey can b e kn own as

,

far as human life needs the knowledge .

Physical science is reached in t he fai t h ven ture t ha t -

,

t he persis t en t order and purpose in na t ure will no t su ffer

 158 P H IL OS O P H Y O F T H E I S M .

of t he mos t signi can t fac t s in t he his t ory o f the devel

o p m en t of t he religious conception As well s ay t ha t
.

the astronomer mus t form astronomical scien ce with

o u t reference t o t he si g nal revelations o f as t ronomical
l a w tha t are presented in the movements o f o u r solar
sys tem as tha t the philosophical theologian mus t deal
,

with the religious settle m en t of t he universal problem

o f human life wi t hou t referen ce to the experience o f
person s powerfully inspired by t he reli g ious idea Th at .

G o d seemed to be experienced by men in the way prophe t s

and apostles s ay t hat they experienced God is a fac t i n ,

h i s t ory .

A h u m nl y a B ut is
Universal Power conceived after the an alogy
k n o wab l o f the Ideal M an an adequate conception of G o d even
e

G d o .

for ni t e in t elligen ce ? A God w h o can be fully com

prehended b y m an canno t b e Inni t e B u t i s i t reason .

able t o suppose tha t t he idea of G o d as Perfec t Man is a

philosophical solu t ion of the n al problem ; only because
it corresponds to wha t is hi gh es t in t he experience o f an
ephemeral race o f living beings o n o n e o f the lesser ,

plane t s o f a solar system ? To take this reduced nal

concep t ion o f the Universal Power looks like arrogan t
assumption which makes an insi g nican t b eing t he mea
,
:

sure o f t he In nite Reality .

A bs l t o u It would b e s o if t he human nali t y were t aken as

e
k n wl d g adequate t o t he reality B u t t he human nal conception is
o e e
t th
.

a e
h mnu not o ffered as the perfec t conception of G od taken from the
a ,

s t n dp oint divine cen t re only as t he con cep t ion of G o d necessarily

a .

t aken at the human position away from t he centre I t m ay .

be the t rue conception a t m an s in t ermedia t e position
, ,

n ei t her of nescience nor omniscience at which he may ,

n evertheless re a lise wha t is even eter n a lly t rue f o r th a t

p os i ti on a b s o l u tely r ea l knowledge o f an intelligence
that cannot b ecome omniscien t o r know reality i n d ep en d ,

en t ly of condi t ions o f ti m e and change It may be th a t .

which when held reasonably by man is su fcient t o

, ,

put h i m in w hat one may call r ela ti vely a b solu te rational

harmony wi t h t he universe ; so t hat fai t h in it is indis
pensa b le in his endeavour to live according t o t he deepes t
 W HAT Is GOD 159

a nd t rues t h u ma n relation to G o d Tha t a gradually de .

v e l o p i ng religious conception is t h e chief factor o f hu m an

progress m ay b e the supreme example o f adaptation
,

found in the co n sti t ution o f things an d s o far a ju s ti c a ,

tion of o u r faith vent u re T he religious experience of man

-
.

in the religions of the world co m bined wit h the necessary ,

inadequacy o f all hu m an conceptions o f t hings a t t he las t ,

teach the lesson tha t God is in nitely incognisable while ,

practically revealed .

D oes some o n e ask What ki nd o f S piri t o r Mind c o n I

,
s G od
s u p er c o n
i
st t t u e s G o d ? A re w e to imagine a divine consciousness s ,
ci o u s
in the for m of a succession o f cha n ging sta t es and acts like ,

those of the inner life in man ; o r instead o f th is o n e , ,

unchangin g in t uition o f all tha t is has been and i s yet to , ,

be ? It has been sug gested that God must be super

conscious Bu t superconsciousness is something t hat for
.
,

us while nominally above i s really below conscious i n

, , ,

t el l ec t and will The very a t te m p t t o conceive a super

.

co n scious Mind lands the human mind in c o n tr ad ic
t io n . We are t old t hat there may be in the in nite
universe so m ethi ng g rander and grea t er t han conscio u s
n ess ; tha t there m ay be species o f existence m odes of ,

being unna m eable by u s which are innitely superior

, ,

to co n scious n ess m ore t o b e desired than consciousness ;

,

a nd that t his existence may even be O pen to human

bei n gs in a future s t ate There may be behind the phe .

n o me n al curtain so m ething grander t han consciousness ,

w e are told Philosophers men o f science mys tics poets

.
, , , ,

prophe t s and revealers are all impotent to s ay what this

,

m ay be though they h a ve been for ever pu t ting t heir souls

,

o n the stretch to describe t his grea t and unexplored c o n

t in ent nei t her consciousness nor annihilation

,
No w .

all t his seems to i m ply tha t only superconscious G o d

would be God in any degree o f reality ; not God as ap
ro a c h e d in thought in and t hrough t he highest ideal o f
p
man Bu t the superconscious G o d leaves us with a lower
.

ide a than whe n w e think o f God as Perfect Man o r hu m an ,

ised Universal Reason known yet unknown known fo r

the ends o f o u r moral and religious life unknown because , ,

we are incapa b le of perfec t comprehension the o n e S ignal

 1 60 P H I L OSO P H Y O F TH E I S M .

exa m ple o f h o w human knowledge may b e real while th e

reality that is known su rpasses human understanding .

m
3 03 m This inco m ple t eness arres t s t he Idealism w hich dis ,

a mb u l m d o o
sa t is ed wi t h knowledge that is only in par t professes ,

to interpret all from t he divine centre in what i s t h ere ,

fore bo u nd to be O mniscience D o we nd in it m ore than

.

analysis an d synthesis of abstrac t necessities o f reason ,

ins t ead o f the expec t ed solu t ion o f all t he mys t eries o f

h u m an experie n ce condi t ioned in t ime To t he absolute
.

idealis t w h o complains o f inadequacy in a religious

conception o f the universe that is de t ermined o n the
h om o m ensu r a principle o r by wha t is divine in man o n e
, ,

can only s ay that the refu t a t ion is in h i s o w n hands .

S o lvi tu r a m b u la n d o . Le t h i m produce in a book t h e

O mniscience which t he humbler philosophy is blamed
for no t produ cing Let him rid life of all its mys t erie s
.

n o t by resta t ing t hem in new language an d ar t icula t e

form but by solving them in an all comprehensive phil

,
-

o s o h i c al imagina t ion t hus superseding moral faith by

p
ac t ually realising perfect insight of t he in nite reali t y .

Let him actually sh ow the universe in endless dura

t ion a s seen at the divine centre This would super
,
.

sede cri t icism of the in t ermedia t e posi t ion wi t h which I

am sa t is ed .

T he u lt i The mystery o f ulti m a t ely incognisable ye t revealed

D eity is t he nourishment o f religious adoration which i n ,

h en s i b ilit y s ti n c t i vel y feels t h a t o u r hi g hest e xperience mus t be all

gy g
f
n
inadequate to realise Innite Reality This is th e voice .

s s t in s
u a of religion when religion is su f cien t ly awakened in con
r vrn
e e e ce :

s c i o u s n e ss
. The visible ri t ual o f Catholicis m and no t less ,

the invisible mental i m ages o f God in popular Protes t ant

i s m when regarded as sy m bols adequate to God and not
, ,

m erely as helps t o religious devotion in m an are rej ec t ed ,

b y t he true worshipper His language is

.

Thou shalt not m ake unto t hee any g raven ima g e or ,

any likeness of any thi ng t ha t is in heaven above o r that ,

is in the ear t h beneath o r t ha t is in the water under t he

,

earth thou shalt not b o w down thyself to th em .

Cans t thou by searching nd o u t God ? cans t t hou nd

out t he Almighty unto perfection ?
 1 62 P H I L OSO P H Y O F T H E I S M .

R l i gi s
e human experie n ce yet in i t s in ni t y inco m prehensible
ou , .

It is concerned with ideas o f in ni t y which are pre

th ide e isupposed in all n a t ural o r physical and m ore deeply in
, ,

Egg f
l s
all
o
mor a l o r spiri t u al experience
i e

o
Y et i t s characteristic , .

r v r n ti l ideas c a nnot be co m pletely rounded in spec u lative i m

e e e a

f ith
a a i n at i o n because
g however
,
m uch enlar g ed they
, m u s t in ,

us at last fall short frag m en t s only of the innite Reali t y

,

i f without a con t radic t ion one m a

y speak of a frag

m en t o f in ni t y o r e xpress in ter m s o f quantity what ,

transcends quan tity .

O u r l i t tl e s y s t e m s h av e t h ei r d ay ;
T h e y h av e t h eir d ay an d cea s e t o b e ,
:

T h e y a r e b u t b r o k en l i g h t s o f T h ee ,

A n d T h o u O L o r d ar t m o r e t h an t h e y , ,
.

W e h av e fai t h
b ut w e c an n o t n o w, k
F or k n o w l ed g e i s
h o f t in g s we s e e

A n d y et w e t r u s t i t c o m es fr o m T h ee ,

A d
b eam i n a rk ne s s l e t i t g r o w
.

M an

s This unique charac t er o f man s knowle dge of God o r

?
$ 215
13 8
th e nal m eani n g of t he universe t hat inco m plete
pl i s b knowledge in which human understanding culminates in
'

e y
10 11
333333
1 moral fai t h m ay have been in Bacon s V iew when h e

s u p
m ti o n ,

warns us that perfec t ion o r co m ple t eness in divinity is
to b e not to be sou g ht For h e t hat will reduce a kn owledge
.

c e p t ed in

faith ,
I nto an art [ o r sc i ence "W i ll m ake i t round and un i form ;
bu t in divini t y m any things m us t be left a b rupt A s the .

apostle sai t h w e kn ow in part ; and t o have the form

,

o f a total as science re q u i res where there is bu t ma tt er

, ,

for a part cannot be without supplies by supposition and

,

presumption I t is t his cons tan t need in physical
.
,

science as w ell a s in ou r religiou s conceptions fo r wha t ,

Bacon calls supp lies by supposition and presumption ,

tha t m akes human experience o f real existence at last

m oral fa i th or op ti mi s t tr u st ins t ead o f innite in sight
, ,
.

R eas on is t o be dis t inguished from r eas oni ng with whic h ,

i t is often confounded A ll fruitful reasoning presupposes .

reason i e nal ra t ional trust in the reaso n able ; and

, . .
,

nothi n g can be reason ably accepted t ha t is inconsistent

wi t h t he f aith th at w e are living in a universe in which
A ctive Moral Reason is supreme O m niscience super .
 W HAT IS GOD ? 1 63

sedes those supplies by supposi t ion and presumption
which Bacon nds indispensable for limi t ed intelligence
in man . O mniscience dispenses with hypo t hesis and
a rgumen t Intui t ive thought is o u r idea of innite I n
.

t e llige n c e Human knowledge o n the o t her hand is

.
, ,

a dvanced throu g h the in t ervention o f premisses supposed ,

t o be alrea dy known b y applied reasoning in discursive

though t . Moral trust authenticates o u r i n ferential in
t e r p re t ati o n s o f what is experienced and su fciently con
n ec t s us with the Inni t e .

Indeed mere argumen t seems t o b e a mark o f n i R s o ning

,
ea

t ude in the intelligence t hat is obliged t o have recourse

to i t To minds able t o comprehend all t hin g s in all t heir fr m F in l
. o a

relations in one intellec t ual grasp inferential thought R

,
s on ea :

would be a s u p er u i ty We have a faint i llus t ration o f

.

this even in human experience Inven t ive genius dis .

cerns in a ash o f intellectual insigh t t ru t h to which

a less co m prehensive intellec t needs to be conducted by ,

slow processes o f syllogism and calculated comparison of

fac t s T he dogmatis t in con t roversy w h o never dreams
.
,

that his favourite premisses need j us t ica t ion o r admi t o f

c ri t icism is an exa m ple o f the mere arguer : ar g ument
,

is wor t hy of respec t only w hen it is used as a human

i nstru m en t for unfoldin g t ru t h It makes explicit what
.

i s implied in premisses t ha t may be false ; and the highest

m inds often s e e at once wha t others have to be led to
b y steps o f reasonin g We are told o f a great m ath e ma ti
.

o ian that he could recognise intui t ively as axioms truths

which E uclid slowly evolves as conclusions throu g h long ,

trains o f de m ons t ra t ion .

Again The living mind t hat man employs is o ne i n Finit in

. e

which conscious s t ates o r ac t s succeed o n e another in a

con t inuous series ; fo r life as we have i t is cons t an t ess i n f c o o

change . O ur daily consciousness is a procession of

blended though t feeling and voli t ion Can we suppose s t t s
, ,
.
a e ,

that any t hing like this is true o f G o d ? Is a succession

o f ever changing conscious acts going o n continuously i n
-

t h e Universal Power contemporaneously with o u r o w n

,

embodied conscious ac t s s o that the divine succession

,

o f changing conscious sta t es is withou t beginning and

 1 64 PHIL OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M ."

wi t hou t end ? S urely th i s must b e an inadequa t e way of

t hinking abou t what we in o u r ignorance call m i nd in
God ? The relation o f t ime to eternity in wha t ever w ay ,

i t is approached is t h e mys t ery of mys t eries A consciou s

, .

life that las t s for millions o f years i s supposa b le t ho u gh ,

i t t ranscends distinct human ima g ina t ion : p er sona l life

th a t h a s n o b egi nn i ng a nd no end , p a ss es h u ma n u n d er

s ta n di ng .

T he re ec Thus far we nd ourselves only on the shore of t h e

1
$ 33 3: inni t e ocean tha t con t ains t he mys t eries in which a
h ve t
a ra hum an concep t ion of God and o f Man and Nature in ,

v ers ed:
t heir nal relation t o G o d is a t last paralysed We ar e ,
.

t ravelling b y the hum an road which is as i t were at the ,

side : we canno t sound t he divine depth a t t he cen t re In .

t he end we may even re t urn t o the p l ace from which w e

s t ar t ed in t he simple creed of childhood wi t h i t s t hree ,

primary da t a ; but on o u r return we should see all t he

three in a bri gh t er light The pa t h which a t rs t vie w
.

seems to lea d t o scep t icism p u rsued t o the en d bring s ,

men b ack t o common sense idealised -
A t heism as .
,

Bacon says is rather in t he lip t han i n t he hear t o f
,

m an so that depth in philosophy b rin g e t h me n s m ind s

,

about to reli g ion if a little incline t h t hem t o atheism
,
.

As to t his o n e mi g h t s ay wi t h re g ard t o t he divine mean

, ,

ing o f hu m an li fe wha t P h i l o n o u s in t he Dialogu e say s

,

abou t h i s ques tion concerning t he meanin g of th e world of

,

Ma tt er : I do no t pre t end t o b e a se t ter up o f n e w
no t ions My endeavours t end only t o unite and place in
.

a clearer li g h t t ru t h which wa s b efore shared between

t he vul g ar and philosophers Y ou s ee t he wa t er o f yonder .

foun t ain how it is forced upwards in a round colu m n and

,

a cer t ain heigh t at which it breaks and falls back into the
,

b asin o u t o f which i t arose i ts ascen t as well as descen t

proceedi ng on t he same uniform law o r principle of gra
vi t at i o n . Jus t s o t he principles which a t rst view lead
, , ,

t o scep t icism pursued to a certain point brin g men b ack

, ,

t o common sense -
.

P hil o s o p h y Are we not nding t ha t t his is so in o u r j ourney t hrou gh ,

c o n su m '

specula t ive sys t ems an d scep t ical specula tion t owards t h e

 166

L E C T U R E IV .

PERFE C T G O O D N E S S P ER S O N IFI ED .

Th ei stic T H U S far I have t ried t o awaken reec t ion t o t he human

Phi l o s issues involved in Natural Theolo g y in t he widest sense
op h y . , ,

of the t erm For the m eaning reali ty and worth of
.
, , ,

religion in any o f i t s many historical forms merges as an

, , ,

intellec tu al inquiry in t he cen t ral ques t ion of p hilosophy

, ,

a b ou t t he e t hical valu e and mutual relations o f t he e g o ,

t he ou t ward world and the Universal Power The demand

, .

fo r Natural Theolo g y not in t he narrow b u t in t he wide

,

sense of na t ural is vir t ually a demand for t he r a ti on a le
,

o f t rus t an d h ope in t he Power we all have practically

t o do with even in o u r daily experience t hrough the ve

,

senses and a b ove all in o u r experience o f m oral agency

, .

Natural Theology is n o t merely a psychology o f religion ,

o r a compara t ive science of di fferen t forms of essential

reli g ion as t he y appear in t he his t orical evolution

,
It .

em b races t he r a ti on a le o f t he t heistic fai t h o f which r e

l igi o u s life with its doctrines and ins t itu t ions i s t he ex
, ,

pression This i s Theis t ic Philosophy with its eternal

.
,

problems In t his I pre t end to o ffer only aids to reection

.

fo r those wh o are t rying as s o m any n ow are t o think , ,

o u t fo r t hemselves t he ques t ion o f whe t her o r no t t hey

are living an d m ovin g and havin g t heir being in an

essen t ially divin e u niverse i n i t s nal principle morally ,

t rustworthy a reve l ation o f God m ore o r less frui tfull y

,

interpreted by man .

The whole his t ory of m an may b e read as t he his t ory

 P E R F E C T GOO DNE SS P E R SO N I FI ED . 1 67

of a s t ruggle be t ween nal dis t rust and nal trus t The . E ith er
o n e when intrepidly pursued leads to scep t ical aliena t ion

from a wholly unin t erpretable universe ; and life is t hen fr o m a

contempla t ed according to the individual temperament

, ,

with E picurean indi fference o r with pessi m ist despair .

p r e t ab l e
T he other inclination is t owards reconcilia t ion with t he u ni e v rse:

universe in h opeful moral faith ; even if it must be faith

,

combined with incomple t e s cientic under standing o f m

g
r gg a
u
Innity and with inabili t y t o t ra n slate i t self into physic
, e e

ally scientic imagination Nec essities of human nature m l f i th

or a
.

hinder both the t endency to a lienation and t he tendency z ln v rsa

t o perfect intellectual reconcilia t ion from being c a r ri ed P o w er

to the ex t remes of speechless and m otionless Nescience ,

o n t he one hand o r O mniscience

, on the o t her Men ,
.

could n o t live even a life of sense if t hey treated the

u niverse as wh olly unin t erpre t able ; and the p erfect com
prehension which would supersede the inevi t able i nc o m
,

l t e n e ss of faith involves t he d ei c at i o n o f man

p e ,
.

The idea of t he in ni t e in qu a n ti ty t ha t is irresis t ibly O mnip r es

h
forced upon us when w e t ry to understand perfec t ly t he fgi izg t e

space through which o u r bodies m ove the dura t ion in t n d t , e s o a

S l
which o u r lives are spen t an d the causat i on which deter
g
p ce ca
,

m ines ceaseless change is what in t roduces mystery at

,

las t in t o human experience This idea o f t he innite i y s s u e/ ac

r di ng t o
.

co
m ay nour i sh e i ther scept i cal despa i r or rel i g i ous fa i th t h w y .
e a

Looked at in one w ay it alienates man from t h e universe i n wh i h

,
c

i n which h e nds hi m self : i t shakes his trus t i n it as ,

0

in so m ething that cannot be grasped on account o f i ts ,

i nnite size as well as its physical unbeginningness and

,

unendingness Also the in nite causal regress and pro

.

gress see m s t o evade an an swer when o ne asks for i ts ,

moral character and purpose This nal in c o m p r eh en

.

s i b i li ty produces a perplexed assumption that life is

meaningless and t h e universe wholly unin t erpretable
, ,

therefore ou t side benecial intercourse ; because w e are

f or ever ba fed by th e m ysteries involved in i t s im
m en s ity eternity and endless causation
, , Y et the same .

nega t ive idea of inni ty or mysterious incomple t ability

, ,

under wh i ch all seems t o lose itself at las t in a causal

 1 68 PH I LOSO PH Y OF TH E I S M .

mys t ery b ecomes the very minis t er o f moral o r t heis t ic

,

faith when what is causal m y s t ery fo r the scien t ic u n

,

d e rs t an d ing is handled in reverential humility : it is found

t o open room fo r and even demand moral trus t i n t he
, ,

Power tha t is at the roo t o f all F o r t he convic t ion .

t hat man canno t become o m niscient is then ap t t o make

u s s ee the reasonableness o f an understan ding of t hin g s
that i s a t last de t ermined by the substitute for omniscience
found in o u r spiri tual consti t u t ion The universe is seen .

to b e t o o mysterious fo r us to in t erpret even in par t

and physically u nless we su b mit understanding to t he
,

authority o f human n a t ure as a whole in a human Faith ,

whic h includes man emo t ional and m an ac t in g super ,

naturally as well as man thinking scientically and at

,

las t necessarily ba fed by nal mystery in so thinking .

The littleness o f sel f and the mystery o f the physical

,

evolution are relieved by t he reli g ious sense o f innite

,

reality with t he elemen t o f ven tu r e which impossibility

, ,

of O mniscience necessarily involves In this disposition .

o f mind i t seems as i f

d
O u r e s t i n y , o u r b e i n g s h e a r t a n d h o m e,

I s w i th I n ni t u d e , a n d o n ly t h er e ;
W i t h h o p e i t i s , h o p e t h at c an n ever d ie,
E ffo r t a n d ex p e c t at io n a n d es i r e

d ,

A n d s o m e t h i n g e v er m o r e t o b e .

I ll u s tr a Thus i t s qu anti t a t ive inni t y or physical incomple t ,

ableness m akes the nal pro b lem of the univers e look

,

and th foreign t o the scien ti c understanding ; and at its p oin t

e ,

o f view envelops u s and o u r surroundings a t last in

,

en ec f t h t he impenetrable darkness which dissolves moral t rus t

o e .

3 ?t 1
Y e t otherwise
, regarded t his necessary margin o f mys t ery
,

b ecomes t he ligh t of life ; the explana t ion o f t he nal

trus t ins t ead of perfec t science in which human life has to
, ,

b e lived O ne nds t he Innite cas t ing i t s dark shadow

.

in Lucretius an d in David Hume i n S chopenhauer ,

and Herbert S pencer : Philo in Hume s D ialogues c o n ,

cernin g Na t ural Reli g ion is S cottish spokesman of ,

t hose wh o j ud g e reality unapproacha b le o n accoun t o f

i t s mys t erious inni t y B u t inni ty t urns its divine
.
 170 P HI LOSO P H Y or TH E I S M .

a t ing b e t ween t he universal nescience o f t he t o t al scep t i c

and the tranquil trust in providential moral order o f t h e
theis t in proportion as the physical pantheism decline s
,

into t o t al d oub t o r becomes invigorated by accep t ance o f

,

some o f t he ethical postulates tha t cons t itute theism .

Whi h f c oThe S pirit o f the t ime asks which o f t hese t hree atti
th thr
es e
i s th m st
e
t udes
o
ee
reason j us t ies as the nal interpretation
, o f man s

r s n b l l i fe i n Nature
ea o a e Mus t we be al i enated from what w e
.

t ti t d ?
a u
experience in a feelin g o f t he ultima t e meaninglessness
e
,

o f t he whole o r is a divine reconcilia t ion possi b le

,
on ,

reasonable t erm s ? I f the last wha t is the mos t real ,

recon ciliation th a t a g ood man can reach with a view t o

c o operating as it were with t h e O mnipresen t Power in
-
,

the innite or nally mysterious universe o f reality ; and

h ow may this be best expressed in terms of philosophy ?
Is it a wholly physical rela t ion of o n e th i ng t o another
th i ng ; o r mus t it be conceived as t h e relation o f a p er s o n
t o a P er son myself in person al rela t ion t o Perfec t
Goodness personied ?
A m I nl y o The answer to this ques t ion involves an an swer to
ano t her A m I only a th i ng or am I also a p er son ? Am

01
,

p rs on ?
e I obliged to believe that I origina t e acts for which I can
reasonably be bla m ed o r praised ; o r must I think of what
are called my ac t s in a wholly physical o r non moral w ay ; -

nding t ha t t hey are n o t really mine bu t vaguely m ani ,

fe s t a t i o n s o f Unkn o wable Power there b ein g n o act that

comes into exis t ence for which I alone am responsible ?
I s t he Universal Power manifes t ed only in and throu g h
continuous sequen ces in th i ngs ? May n o t this Power be
more fully and charac t eris t ically revealed in and through
moral agen t s called p ersons s o far independent o f the
,

Universal Power as tha t each of them is a b le to b r i ng i n to

exi s ten ce ei th er wh a t ou gh t or wh a t ou gh t n ot to ep i st ?
A n d th er e I must n o w ask e m phatically whe t her the deepes t ,
for e n a ny
i n a m o ra l
and truest interpre t a t ion o f hu m an experience i s that ,

r l
e at i o n t o i n wh i ch all i s re g arded merely as phys i cal o r non moral -

v
c ti e i n which self
oral conscious a ency i t self is only a physical
g
C

e ven t i n the con t i nuou s natural evolu t on ? Is not a

R s on ?
ea i

deeper an d truer n al interpretation needful accordin g ,

to which all is n ally unfolded in the li g ht o f mora l .

 P E R F E C T GOO DN E SS P E R SO N I F I ED . 1 71

re a son popularly called conscience with its sense o f

, ,

re m orse for what is ill done personally and its absolute ,

i m perativeness ? If this last is the nal relation of the

three primary da t a w e then nd ourselves in a universe
,

that is p h ysi ca lly u nin t elligible i n the end in its re g ress ,

into the unbeginning pas t and its progress in t o the u m,

endin g fu t ure ; b u t which notwi t hstandi n g this quantita

,

tive in ni t y inevitably assumes towards us moral t rust

,

worthiness and practical intelligi b ility as the revelation ,

of Perfec t Moral Reason s o tha t its secret concealed ,

from natural science in the nal mystery o f physical

causali ty is revealed (by implication ) for all hu m an pur
,

poses I S not t his t he ri al a t ti t ude which I ough t in

.
,

f aith to adop t ? It is to trea t the universe as the

revelation t o m e of perfec t m oral Personality an d n ot ,

merely as an unbeginnin g and unendin g succession o f

physical changes Is no t this the interpretation which
.

conscience and reli g ion when developed put upon what

, ,

would otherwise be a t last a physical as well as moral

chaos ? Moral personication of the physically inni t e
un iverse t ranslates its scien t ically in soluble causal prob
,

l e m into on e tha t may be morally o r humanly solved .

Natural science leaves u s at las t in an in ni t e S phere ,

the centre of which is every where and the circumference

n owhere Conscience with its implicates of personi ed
.
,

m oral obli g ation and S pirituality in man and God enable s

, ,

man to read the daily dram a o f life in t he gradual evo l u ,

tion o f inorganic and organic nature as nally intercourse ,

o f moral being with the Moral Power thus revealed ; a n d

shows us ourselves t o ourselves as living in what is more

than a physical succession because also under its hi g hes t
, ,

ideal the perfect order o f moral Providence

, .

Thus moral reason teaches u s not only t hat t he Univer S t h t o a

s al Power exis t s but what t he character of t he Universal

w lo
,
g
Power mus t be It expresses n ot the m ean i ngless vo i c e o f p t m ll y
.
, r ac a

surrounding incognisable Power bu t the hopeful voice $ 1 30 M

,

o f surroundin g morally trustworthy Power ; a voice t hat

absolutely sustains t he faith venture in a n atural order - P h y s i l ca

that will n o t n ally put u s t o confusion when w e t rust it , ,

either in the actions o f com m on life o r in our scien t ic ni ng nd ,

a
 1 72 PH I LOSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

u n end gin verica t ions inasmuch as i t is realised as providen t ial

c h ang e.
activity o f perfec t goodness ins t ead o f nally inexplicable ,

physical necessity I n t his reco g ni t ion of perfec t goo d

.

ness at t he root of all I nd myself a t h ome everywhere

, ,

because everywhere in a t rus t wor t hy universe which ,

g ives t o i t s mos t distan t place an d i t s remotes t t ime a , ,

signicance and friendliness t ha t transforms an d recon

ciles the otherwise aliena t i ng physical in nite This is .

th e ligh t tha t li g h t eth every man th a t cometh in t o t he
,

world t he peace of God t ha t passe t h understandin g .

O ne may t ake the win g s of the morni n g and y to th e

u tt ermos t par t of t he universe only t o nd th er e the ,

sam e personied g oodness which is t he supreme co nc ep

t ion h er e an d s o may everywhere recognise and rest in
,

God . In this sense God dwelle t h wi thin all t hin g s
.
,

a b ove all thin g s benea t h all t hings a b ove by power b e

, , ,

neath by sustentation wi t hin by su bt le ty rulin g above

, , ,

con t aini ng b elo w encompassing without pene t ra t ing

, ,

wi thin everywhere sustaining by rulin g ruling by su s

, ,

taining penetrat i ng b y en compassing e ncompassin g by

, ,

pene t ra t ing This is t he lan g ua g e of reli g ion especially
.
,

in Christian relig ion wi t h i t s emphatic proclamation of

,

inni t e mercy as t he implicate o f innite g oodness ; with

consequen t implication o f the purpose o f Perfect Goo d
ness to m ake all bad persons in t he universe good so far ,

as t heir personal power to make t h emselves b ad permits .

The cru d e ideas of reli g ion in children or in t he chil d ,

hood o f t he race and the inferior con cep t ions o f primi t ive
,

m o rality are really irrelevan t t o t he validity of the u n

,

folded religious concep t ion I t s j ustica t ion lies i n wha t

.

it is foun d to imply : t his is n ot righ t ly discredi t ed by the

m eanness o r incoherence of many m anifes t a t ions o f r e
l igi o n . The crude and repulsive forms which t he con t en t s
and implica t es o f either physical o r spiri t ual experience
a t rst and afterwards assumed mus t n o t prej udice t hem
at their present s t age or in a s t ill fuller unfolding The
,
.

ma t hema tical calculus is no t trea t ed as illusion b ecause

infants an d tri b es o f savages have confused ideas of number .

The postulates o n which educated intelligence no w relies

are presented in his t ory in various degrees : we accep t
 1 74 P H I L OSO PH Y CF TH E I S M .

handled by m an when i ts n al problem is re g arded as a

,

wh ol ly p h ysi ca l problem The unbe g inning and unendi n g .

m aterial rebels against t he li m its of an intelligence m eas

u r e d by sensuous quantity When ni t e in t elligence is .

thus required t o do innite work it must either beco m e ,

paralysed by paradoxes tha t arise in i t s atte m p t t o image

the necessarily unima g ina b le to subordinate e t ernity to
time o r immensi ty t o place as the physical speculator
, ,

h as to do when he resolves to dispose o f them only

physically Man in the fulness o f his being man
.

m oral and reli g ious as well as man the scientic observer

,

mus t b e i n exercise when he is confronted with the ,

nal ques t ion ; and a religious conception of the whole in ,

which t he physical o n e merges in t he end is what has ,

to be looked fo r in in t elli g ence like t he human tha t i s

, ,

intermedia t e b etween omniscience an d nescience .

Phy si l ca Na t ural science accordingly is arrested by reason when

, ,

1
$ r sn
c
the
3 0 8 11
ea o
na t uralis t proceeds t o take the nal question within
cu l min t s h i s own prov i nce The check i s ad m i n i stered Kant s
a e .
,

ml
1 11 I l o
reasoning seems to imply by showing t he contradic t ions
T ea
f
m
,

i n which we are landed if w e insist upon approaching the ,

inni t e reality n o t wi t h o u r en t ire spiri t ual humanity

, ,

but only with t he da t a an d presuppositions of reaso n as

measured by sense Faith in physical order gives support
.

indeed t o the veried hypotheses o n wh ich scientic

pro g ress turns ; but cosmical faith may mislead in the
e n d unless man can reasonably put eternal t rus t in the
,

moral perfec t ion o f t he Universal Power; ; and regard e x

r i e n c e not as an aimless procession o f sequences which
p e , ,

m a y in t he end play h i m false b u t a s manifested m oral ,

providence E ven physical interpreta t ion i n its faith in

.
,

the steadiness o f order and the adap t ation o f natural order

,

to human intelli g ence proceeds t aci t ly upon a m oral and,

religious concep t ion o f the Whole H u ma n na t ure forces .

u s t o acknowledge in existence more t han p h ys i ca l nature ,

if man is more than sentient .

F orph y si This nally religious meaning o f the t emporal drama

l f ith canno t be logically proved : but physical order assumed
f a a

n n t r l
,
i a u a
or d er p m i n all sc i en t i c ver i cat i on i s assumed w i th ou t r ea son
.
,

su pp s es whe n religious faith in the perfect goodness o f the U ni

o
 P E R F E C T GOO D N E SS P E R S C NI F I E D . 175

versal Power is withdrawn : wi t hout this deeper fai t h the m r l ,

o a

te m poral process m ay be supposed at any time to subside i gg n c e ce

into chaos to the confusion o f in t elli g ence an d m oral U ni v rs l e a

P
,

w r
reason ; s o t hat the basis even o f physical in ference m ay o e

t urn out t o be a broken reed The agnostic n aturalist is

.

e xpressing unconfessed moral faith when he proceeds upon

the validity of verication for he is taking fo r granted

tha t scienti c intelligence will n o t be pu t t o confusion
w h en i t shows its t rust in the Universal Power by i n
d u c ti ve ways o f deali n g with even t s Their p a st order .

o f se quence i s no t reaso n unless it is s o rein f orced b y

,

m oral faith as that nature is accepted as manifesta t io n

o f A ctive Moral Reason and t herefore incapable o f i m
,

posing upon u s diabolical illusion when we daily trust in

,

its physical unifor m ities .

A n idea o f t his sort was perhaps unconscio u sly at the A m r l o a

h
ggi
bo t to m o f t he vindica t ion of the veracity of human na t ure E
g
l e

a n d its facul t ies which Descar t es hints in his a u to b io i rs f

,
v ,
un e e o

graphical explanation of his o w n philosophical recovery y 1

from a s t ate o f ten t at i ve doub t about everyth i ng H o w i m p l i d i . e n

d o I know he had asked himself t ha t even in what m y

, ,

faculties mos t certainly assure me of th ey m ay n o t after all t hi v ind i

, s

be deluding me ? My rela t ion to my surro u ndin g s may f o

be nally either de t er m ined blindly o r determined not s ing?
, ,

a ccording t o perfec t moral reason but to di a bolic al caprice

, .

F o r instance am I reasonably sure that I h ave a body

, ,

only because I see my body ; or tha t other person s

e xis t
, only because I cannot help belie vin g this ? H o w
can I j ustify the f ai t h which I indulge in that the ,

c ustomary course of nature is s o unifor m and reliable

t hat I m ay expect similar issues to those which w e re

evolved under like conditions in the past ? O r what
assurance can o n e have when he looks b ack into t h e pas t
in m emory ; o r into t he distant or future in scientic
c alculation ? Why may n o t the scien t ic understanding
d eceive in th e future even al t hough it may never happen
,

to have deceived in t he pas t ? H o w do I know t hat wak

i ng percep t ion i s n o t as illusory as a drea m in sleep ?
E or all these may be experiences in a universe in which
 1 76 PH I LOSO P H Y OF T H EIS M .

t he Universal Power is b lind or insane o r perhaps a , ,

diabolical providence .

T h t r st
e Bu t if ins t ead o f t his I delibera t ely presupp ose per
u , ,
w rt h in ss
f e c t ly good omnipo t en t and omnipresen t Power e t ernally
o e
o f p i
ex er
,

e n pce operative
re I am only g iving expression
,
t o the fai t h t ha t
s pp s s is a t the roo t of all o t her faith deeper than which I
u o e
t h t th
,
a e

e xist n canno t g o If G o d or Perfect Goodness is suprem e

e ce .
, , ,

p r s nt d ex t ernal n ature and my ori g inal facul t ies cannot delude

e e e
to us in
ou r s ns s me For this w ould b e to suppose t ha t t h e Universal
e e .

an d in n Na t ure an d my n a t ure are in contradictio n s o t hat I migh t

co
,
i
s c ou sn ess
i t t b
s b e o b liged throu g hou t my experience t o b elieve a lie
o e .

b l i v d i n The presupposi t ion that for b ids the entrance of thi s

e e e .

t o t al scepticism is t he presupposi t ion tha t God or Perfect

Goodness i s omnipresent and omnipoten t The trust .

wor t hiness o f my ori g inal na t ure and the in t erpre t abili t y ,

o f universal na t ure p r es u
pp os e the cons t an t, ac t ion of
m orally perfec t Power a t t he hear t o f t he Whole .

Th i s i n t s This is no t direc t ar g umenta t ive proof : when w e

o
n l
a co
si n fr m
o
t ry
c u
o
t o make it s o it b ecomes circular reasoning I t is .

p r mi ss s only the conscious expression o f a postula t e wi t hou t ta ci t

e e , ,

b t r
u g practical assen t t o which human knowled g e and human
ec o
n iti n fo o a
n ss r y agency mus t dissolve in t o t al dou b t The t ruth t ha t one
ec e a .

p st l t
o
nds in t he heart of a t temp t s to vindica t e the t r u s t w o r th i
u a e .

ness o f our original faculties o r co m m on rational sense , ,

is t ha t God O mnipotent Goodness is unconsciously

,

presupposed in t he reliableness of experien ce I f I do .

no t at leas t taci t ly indulge in t his moral faith I cannot

, , ,

even make a beginnin g in anything For unless in .

fac t I am j us t ied in interpre t ing t he universe as t he

manifesta t ion o f what in i t s ul t imat e principle is per , ,

s o ni ed m oral order and perfect goodness phen omena ,

canno t be interpreted even physically as in t h e natural

sciences an d in the common sense perceptions and acts
,
-

o f daily life A gnos t icism as to e t hical reli g ion carries in

.

i t universal a g nos t icism inclu ding physically scien t ic ,

paralysis as well as religious paralysis In t repidly pur .

sued i t is to t al anarchy o r lawlessness Cos m ic faith .

depends on ethical trus t in t he universe o f reali t y ; an d

t his moral faith in i t s reli g iou s form b ecomes t heistic
, ,
.

O t herwise even what original hum an na t ure canno t help

 1 78 PH I L OSO P H Y O F TH E I S M .

S i n nd
c e The consum m a t ion o f Mr S pencer s specula tion is t hat
ce a

R ligi s a dual universe o f m aterial an d men t al appearances is

e ou

N s ci n
e e ce .

the temporal manifestation o f e t ernally Unknowable

Po wer A ccumula t ed argumen t s and illus t rations pave
.

t he way to his conclusion that the Power underlying

appearances is t otally and fo r ever inco g nisable from ,

the limi t ation o f human intelligence Common sense he .

-
,

see m s to s ay postula t es an ultimate Po wer ; science

,

proves that this Power canno t be what we can think ;

psychology shows w h y w e ca n not and ye t are com ,

p e ll e d to believe in i t ; and in this nal asser t ion o f a

l e al i t y utterly inscrutable Religion nds an asser t ion ,

essentially coinciding with its o w n We are men t ally .

obliged to re g ard every phenomenon in experience as

the manifestation o f Power by which we are acte d o n .

O m nipresence is in deed unthinkable ; yet as experience ,

discloses no bounds t o t he universe w e are una b le to ,

think limits to omnipresen t Power b u t science teaches ,

us that it is Power Incomprehensible A nd this conv i ction .

o f Incomprehensible Power is wha t gives rise to religion

an d expresses itself in worship Religion he sugges t s .

, ,

h as vainly s t r u g gled t o u n ite more or less s cience with its

inevitab l e n escience while S cience has vainly tried t o,

con quer t his reli g ious nescience as t hough it were able ,

to convert it in t o S cience P e rmanen t peace between

.

Reli g ion and S cience is possible only when S cience b e

comes convinced that its explana t ions are proxima t e and
rela t ive and when Religion becomes convinced tha t it is
,

only t he sentimen t of that which mus t be for ever i n ex

plica b le A ccordingly Mr S pencer would divorce S cience
.
,

and Religion in the distribu tion o f goods He would .

assign to S cien ce all human knowledge such as i t seems ,

t o be and reserve all h u m an ignorance such as it must

, ,

be for Religion Reli g ion is the Unintelli g ible Feelin g

,
.

in which Knowle d ge t ha t is only seeming inevitably

merges at las t .

E mp t y Consciousness of being always in the presence of U n

s ns f
e
knowable
e o
Power seems to be Mr S pencer s nal atti t ude

U nk n w o
abl P w etowards t he u n i verse in which we are having our bein g
o er , .

s m n s

a
S tric t ly interpreted t his is t horough goin g ag nos t icism
a
,
-
 P E R F E C T GOO DNE SS P E R SO N I F I ED . 1 79

to t al nescience : and t his as I have repea t edly sugges t ed n l t

, ,
a a

leaves no roo m fo r m an to express himself at all about

a ny t hing otherwise than in t he form o f a question if n v rs
i u e e in
h
e ven t hus ; for wholly scep t ical interroga t ion necessarily
e

dies in birth : i t can only be a still b orn question Y et the

-
.

philosophy o f Mr S pencer consis t s o f m ore than universal

q uestioning . I t s nega t ive assertion of nal Unknowable
ness is co m bined with many positive assertions The .

U nknowable Po wer is a f r m ed posi t ively to be a

manifested Power : w e are told t hat the Power

ma n ifested i n th e u n i ver s e is unknown and unknowable .

But how can Power that makes i tself manifest in o u r

,

material and spiritual experience be wh olly u nknown ? ,

That looks like the self con t radictory assertion tha t the
-
,

Power is at once m anifested and not manifes t ed t hat -

w e know t ha t it exists but wi t hou t being able t o predi

,

c ate an y thin g o f it n o t even exis t ence o r existence

, ,

only when t he word is e m ptied o f all meaning That .

which manifest s itself m us t be known as far as th e ,

manifesta t ion o r revelation goes Tha t t he Inni t e

.

Reality stretches wi th ou t li mi t b eyond t he manifesta t ions

tha t are presen t ed in t he physical moral and religious , ,

experience o f m en including o f course the rational

pos t ulat es involved in this experience need no t t rans

for m t he light tha t is w i th i n th e eocp er i en ce into t he dark

n ess of total ignorance E ven if it could do this so long
.
,

as t here is light enough re m aining to enable on e t o make

t he o n e ne g a t ive assertion o f i ts e t ernal unknowable
ness he mus t have enough o f knowledge abou t the Power
,

manifested in the universe t o j ustify this nega t ion Bu t .

Mr S pencer re t ains a good deal more than wholly nega

t ive knowledge His Unknowable Power r evea ls i tself in
.

ways t hat on his o w n showing ad m it o f a hierarchy

, ,

o f sciences being formed which in t erpre t some o f i ts

,

e xperienced m anifes t a t ions And th e human sciences o f

.

t he revelations which the Unknowable Power m akes

o f itself are presented by Mr S pencer i n elaborate c o

o rdina t ion. The Unknowable Power is s o much mani

fe s te d tha t man is able to generalise i t s proceedings
c onstructive and des t ructive and t hus t o describe no t e
 180 PH I L OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

wor t hy charac t eris t ics o f its customary b ehaviour It .

seems by his accoun t t o be a Power which in i t s

, , ,

sensuous manifesta t ions is revealing i t self S lowly and

, ,

g radually in evolu t ionary order

,
A t a s t age in t his
.

process he nds s t a t es of human consciousness em erg

,

i ng in persis t en t correla t ion with organic mo t ions ; s o

,

t ha t external phenom ena are accompanied o r followed

b y correla t ive psychical phenomena The hierarchy o f .

t he n atural sciences in which t hose m anifestations o f

,

t he Unknowable Power are c o ordina t ed is surely a

,

s t an d i n g proof tha t t he Universal Power is n o t in every

way unknowable The veried con t en t s o f the sciences
.

o f matter and min d are a considera b le con t ri b u t ion t o

prac t ical knowled g e o f t he Universal Power wi t h implied ,

t rus t t oo in i ts s t eady cond u c t a t leas t in man s physical
,

in t ercourse with i t .

M ani How far t he revela t ions o f t he Universal Power t ha t

fe s t ed a r e wi t hin reach i n t he physical aes t he t ical moral
P owe r , , ,

c ann o t be an d reli g ious experience o f m en with t he indispen sa b le

,

w h o ll y S piri t ual implica t es o f t hat experience ho w far these

u nk n o wn
an d u n carry man o n t he way t o omniscience or inni t e know
k nowab l e .
led g e is of course a fur t her ques t ion E nou g h t ha t the
,
.

Universal Pow er is n o t wh o lly unmanifes t ed or unr o ~

vealed I t is dou b tless only a physical G o d an d a

.

physical religion t ha t we have in t he sequences of sense

presen t ed evolu t ion ; in t erpreted in t he sor t o f na t ural
t heology comm only called na t ural science ; sus t ained b y
t he a t tenua t ed reli gious faith which t aci t ly en t ers even
in t o physical fai th F o r t his gives only a b oun d less and
.

endless universe of th i ngs no t recognising p er s ons a t all ,

in t he moral meanin g o f personali t y .

O s cill tion
a This p h ilosophy seems t o oscillate b e t ween t he phase o f
b tw en
e e
Pan t heism which in t erpre t s t he universe as a par t ial
P nt h e
a
i s m an d revelation of inni t e n o n moral Power and t he Nescience
-
,

P yr rh o n o f t o t al scep t icism Y e t t here is in i t a t aci t t heis tic

i sm
.

fai t h so far as na t ure is t rea t ed as wor t hy of con dence

,

relia b le wha t m ay b e t aken for a t rue revela t ion o f t he

,

Universal Power s o far a t rus t worthy universe ; n o t

ei t her a b lind o r a dia b o l ical universe tha t may a t any ,

momen t paralyse human ac t ivi t y and in t elli g ence perhaps
 182 PH I LOSO PH Y OF TH EI SM .

h ar d ly less reasonable to insis t t ha t if man s nal rela t ion ,

t o God is m oral o r personal Perfec t Goodness mus t b e ,

t he subj ect of successive conscious sta t es o f personal lif e

like those of h u man in t elligence .

E x ampl s A human kn owledge o f what at last inni t ely passes

e
f 1
n w1 3g
a
o
human
1 11 0
e
knowlede
g e prac t ical knowledge o f wha t is a t last

of th t phys i cally i nco g n i sable

a is i llustrated all round t he
W hi h c
horizon o f human experience Take examples O ne can
p ss s h
. .

a e u
m ahm d r demonstra t e the g eometr i cal rela t i ons of gures ; ye t t he
u e

:ggpiim sizes inevita b ly carry t hough t is found to t ranscend huma n

i l
Immensi t y t oward w hich all ni t e places shapes and , ,

l t iv i m
a e ,

agin ati on unders t andin g ; b u t human unders t anding does not o n ,

t his account rej ec t E uclid as a b un dle of unwarran t ed

,

and illusory conclusions A g ain I am o b liged to t hink .

,

of even t s as before and af t er and I nd t hat I can m ake ,

reasonable u s e of a chronolo g ical t able ; ye t I canno t

fa t hom t he mys t ery of the t wo e t ernities into which I am
necessarily carried Fur t her t he manifestations o f na t ural
.
,

causali ty presented in sen se are interpretable in science ,

an d fo r prac t ical human purposes al t hou g h t hey are all at ,

las t involved in the impenetrable causal m ystery o f u n

beginni n g regress and endless pro g ress S i n on r oga s .
,

i n telligo In t hose cases I u nderstand i f I am n o t obli g ed

.
, ,

as t he condi t ion o f understan din g t o think in images ,

the mys t eries in t o which they resolve themselves I s i t .

'

o t herwise with man s religious faith in t he Universal
Power ? This t o o su gg es t s ques t ions which m an can as
li t tle answer a b ou t a Being as inaccessi b le as Immen
,

s i t y is from t he spaces t ha t can be comprehended in

gures o r as Et ernity is from t h e periods t ha t can b e
,

m easured in t ables o f chronology I am no t obli g ed .

t o be agnos t ic a s re g ards either t he places o r t he periods ,

because Im m ensi t y and Et erni t y raise a multitude of

ques tion s which man can never answer May n o t moral . .

and reli g ious experience o f persons includin g i t s n ec es ,

sary pos tulates reveal what is even e t ernally true

,

r ela ti vel e t ernal t ru t h wh i le i t s ultimate problem s

y
perplex man wi t h con t radic t ions if he t ries to conquer ,

them I do n o t see w h y unless I wish t o be deceived
.
, ,

I must surrender as delusion either my physical o r my

reli g ious t rus t only b ecause human knowled g e cannot
,
 P E R F E C T GOO DNE SS P E R SO N I F I E D . 183

become innite intel ligence ; or because man s i n telligo

disappears when he is asked to trans form it into the

,

O mniscience from which fai t h and mys t ery are w holly

elimin ated .

Those who with Mr S pencer turn away from a nally

, ,
A r e m en
u ninterpretable universe in despair s o t hink and act he
th r fo r
e e e

, ,
n lly ea r
tells us pathetically no t because th ey wish t o do this
, , d u c ed t o

bu t because they mus t : self deception see m s t o him the -
g s
a n o t ic
d sp r
e ai
o n ly alterna t ive to despair He acknowledges t hat there .

is n o pleasure i n t he consciousness o f bein g an inni t esimal

bubble on a globe which is itself innitesi m al co m pared
, ,

with the t otality of thin g s Those on who m t h e unpi ty .

ing rush o f changes inic t s su fferings which are O ften ,

withou t re m edy nd n o consolation in the thought that

,

they are a t the mercy of blind forces which cause in d if , ,

fer e n t ly now the des t ruction o f a s u n and now t he death

, ,

o f an animalcule C onte m pla t i on o f a universe which i s

.

with out conceivable beginning o r end and without in t el ,

ligible purpose yields no sa t isfac tion The desire t o know

, .

what it all m eans is no less s t rong i n t he agnostic than in

o t hers and raises sympathy with them Failin g to nd
, .

an
y in t erpretation himself he feels a regretful inabilit
,
y

to accep t t he interpretation others o ffer Y et these .

striking sentences do not af t er all describe a wholly unin

t e r p r e t a b l e u niverse F o r t hey i m ply knowledge that the
.

Power everywhere a t work i s blind and that man li ves ,

o n a globe that is

inni t ely small co m pared wit h what

it see m s is known to be a t otality : they i m ply too , ,

t hat enough is knowable abou t the Universal Power to

j ustify assertions about realities which must not be

a bandoned for d eceiving fancies T hey i m ply trust in .

the physical universe ; they discard as self deception th e -

religious trus t t hat is the guarantee o f the physical both

faiths logically unproved but both j usti ed in prac t ical,

reason inasmuch as witho u t t hem hu man life is baseless

, ,

and its ideal unapproachable .

Reli gious faith in t he Power that is universally opera S en s s u ou

tive in the ever chan g ing universe is not equally de F i th n d

a a

S p i r it l
-
ua

ve l o e d in all men
p n o r s o widely,
among men as the F i th
a .

degree o f faith involved in natural science H o w and w h y .

is this s o ? C oleridge s u ggests an answer : It is no t in
 184 PH I L O S O PH Y O F T H E I S M .

our power to disclaim our n ature as sentien t beings ; but

i t is in o u r power t o disclai m o u r n a t ure as moral

beings . In reco g nising t he nally e t hical and divine
cons t itution of t he cos m os
I assume a somethin g t he
, ,

proof o f which n o man can give t o another y e t every ,

man may nd for himself If any man asser t that h e .

canno t nd it I am bound to dis b elieve him

,
I can .

no t do o t herwise wi t hou t unset t ling the very founda t ions

o f my o w n moral na t ure Th e reasoners on b oth sides
.

commence by takin g something for granted But th e .

pure physicist assumes wha t according to himself he , ,

nei t her is n o r can be u nder an obli g a t ion of moral

reason t o assume If h e uses the word obligation h e
.
,

can mean only physical necessity To over t hrow faith .

i n au g ht higher than physical n ecessity is the very pur

pose o f his argument He desires you only t o ta ke f or
.

g r a n te d t ha t all reali t y is include d in physical nature ,

a n d he may then safely def y y o u t o w ard o ff his con

e lusion t ha t n othing real is excluded Tha t fai t h in .

i ts spiritu al degree o ften fails to rise into consciousness is ,

exemplied by contrast in t he men who are types o f man

,

at his best and hi ghest wh o represen t tha t in hum ani t y

w hich while normal is n ot universally awakened fel t

, ,

an d seen by saint and prophe t i n others dorman t or

o b sc u red This recalls word s lon g ago u t tered in Pales t ine
.

Blessed are t he pure in hear t fo r t hey shall s ee God , .

Su mmar y
. Q u e m n osse vi ver e The inevitable
. postula t e o f Perfec t
O mnipresen t Goodness presupposed in t he reliability o f
,

experience implies t he Et ernal Gospel G o d is love

,
.

This t herefore i s the taci t moral postula t e o f all human

, ,

in t ercourse wi t h t he Universe through experien ce and its ,

implica t es The gospel o f inni t ely merciful love implied

.
,

in omnipo t ent g oodness is la t en t in t he cons t itution o f

,

m an ; which accordingly responds to t he Chris tian con

s c i ou s n es s of this love nding t h a t faith in God m ay b e
,

come the perfec tion o f human in t elligence O mnipoten t .

Goodness is at on ce t he t acit moral presuppo sition and

highest ou t come of human experience This may b e rec .

o gni s e d in ano t her w ay at the poin t of view we are next

,

t o occupy .
 186 P H I L OSO PH Y O F TH E I S M .

T h ei s t i c These ques t ions lead to fur t her investi g a t ion o f theis t ic

$ 1311 t rust as man s n al a t ti t u d e t owards the universe This
,

t ac i t ly may be contemplated from the point of view occupied

o s t u l at f d
P
i n e x p er i
by those wh o o ffer proofs o f t he exis t ence o f God .

en c e . But the word proof must be used i n a qual i ed mean

in g when s o applied I f theis t ic faith is itself th e
.

implied condition o f a ll proof it mu s t be incapable ,

o f scientic proo f Did y o u deduce you r own being ?
.

asks Coleridge E ven t his is less absurd than the
.

concei t o f deducin g the Divine B ein g Never would y o u .

have had t he notion had you not had t he idea ra t he r

had no t the idea worked in you like t he memory of a
name which we canno t recollec t yet feel that we have ; ,

which reveals i t s exis t ence i n the mind only b y a restless

an t icipation ; an d proves its a p r i or i actuality by th e
almos t explosive instan t anei t y with whic h it is welcomed

and recognised Moral trust in t he U n iversal Power i s
.

the postulate of a nite experience Y et it may have its .

consistency with reason philosophically unfolded Are .

t he di f cul t ies involved in i t s ac t ion a t the roo t of

human na t ure as g reat as the di f culties involved in
its agnostic suspension ? A nyway in dealing wi t h the ,

ra t ionale o f t he religious conception of human life phil ,

osophy is dealing with something that is already involved

in man s experience already manifesting i t self in human

feeling conduct an d t hought We do not need t o bring

, ,
.

i t there by reasoned proofs : indeed we never bring i t ,

into existence in the form o f a conclusion directly evolve d

from nite premisses I t exis t s spontaneously benea t h ex
.

r i e n c e although its conscious grow t h in t he individua l

p e ,

m ay be repressed o r a t leas t arrested in a rudimen t ary

,

s t age The veried indu ctions o f science show unproved

.

moral t rus t in spon t aneous exercise ; but inquiry into

t he reasonableness of this t rust in the Universal Powe r
is always open to the philosophical analyst w h o cares to
reec t upon wha t he is ac t ually living by S o too with .

the more distinc t ly religious faith o n which physical t rust ,

itself in t he en d depends I t O pera t es before it is u n

.

folded p h il O S O p h i c al ly S t ill it i s open to t he philosophi c

.

analys t to reduce t o i ts elemen t s the complex fac t o f

 O MN I P O T E N T GOO DNE SS .

religious reliance on t he nal principle o f t he universe .

He m ay inquire whether a fai t h deeper than t he faith

f ound in science is only an ana chronism likely t o die ,

o u t gradually in t he fuller evolution of humanity ; o r o n ,

t h e contrary an inevitable implica t e of experience which

, ,

beco m es m ore enlightened in proportion to t he advance o f

m en in t hough t fulness and goodness .

What are called de m ons trations and logical arg u A ll g d

e e
s m l gi
m ents t hat God exists are really more o r less success l t l
co
ca
o o
e eo
,

fu l analyses o f the ra t ional i m plicates o f spontaneo u s trust l g i l nd o ca ,

a
nt l g i l
i n t he Universal Power O n wh a t s or t of P ower does faith p r fs
.
o o o
oo
ca

rely ; an d are w e j usti ed in this absolute reliance ? In f t h is m o e .

what consists the reasonableness of the concep t ion of

perfectly good Power n ally o p e ra ti ve ? These questions
'

u nderlie S O called theistic proofs each o f which t akes
-
,

its o wn w ay of showing the reasonableness of theistic

fai t h. Thus o n e w ay o f doing this is thro u gh what
is virtually a philosophical analysis of the principle of
causality t hat principle on which man rests when he con
te mp l ates the universe of change ; and this analysis i s a t
the root o f what i s called cosmological proof o f theis m .

A nother w ay of showi ng t he reasonableness o f religiou s

fai t h has been observation o f ob trusive cases o f natural
adap t ation o f means to ends especially ends tha t benet

man nal causes as they are ambigu ously called .

A dap t a t ions of this sort whether o r not they are s u p

,

posed universally t o pervade evolving na t ure at least ,

present t hemselves strikingly in organised m atter animal ,

and vegetable : the cons t ruction o f t he hum an eye is a

favourite example The universe is reported to aboun d
.

in curious and useful superhuman con t rivances m any o f ,

them signally adapted to promote human happiness and ,

i n t he lon g run t o improve m an towards whose indi

-

vidual evolu t ion and education the whole planetary evo l u

tion seems t o conspire ; as if the world were contrived
for or culmina t ed in th e evolu t ion o f m an In t his we
, , .

have the teleological explanation of religious faith and ,

t he teleolo g ical way of developing the religious concep t io n

o f the universe .

These venerable proofs are now commonly supposed
 188 PH I LOSO PH Y OF TH E I S M .

K ant

s c ri t o have encoun t ered damagin g in tellec tual handli n g on

gf t he part o f Immanuel Kan t E ver since he criticised
l

.

s c
l og i c . them they have been more o r less discredi t ed The dis
,
.

credi t is proba b ly no t undeserved if any o f them is so ,

misconceived as to be t aken for a logical proof o f man s

m oral o r reli g ious fai t h in t he Universal Power They .

are discredi t ed s o far as t hey are ni t e arguments t ha t

pre t en d to de t ermine a conclusion which being innite o r ,

unconditioned is n o t de t ermina b le by the logic o f t he

,

unders t andi n g measured b y sense F o r reasoning becomes.

a tissue o f paralogisms when i t t ries t o bring the innite

,

reality as a nite quan t i ty under lo g ical condi t ions

, ,

t ha t are adap t ed to what is nite Y e t those proofs .
,

when each is resolved in t o i t s principle help t o illus t rate ,

the reaso n a b leness and humanity of t heis t ic fai t h .

I s Th ei sm Take the Principle o f Causality E sti mate t he proof .

OI d in
ie C l t hat God exists because t he world must b e caused May
V VG
.
,
au sa

co n cep tion t he the i st i c i n t erpre t at i on o f t he un i verse be t rea t ed as

0 f th
u e
e
n i v rs e
f a i th i n th e n a l for m a n d u lti ma te app li ca ti on of th e ca u s a l

le ? In assum i ng as we must t he dependence of

.

r i n ci
p p , ,

every c h ange u pon a cause are w e no t assumin g i t s,

dependence a t la s t o n the only origina tin g cause tha t

enters as an implica t e into human experience t ha t is to

say o n A ctive Moral Reason or perfe c t ly Reason a b le

, ,

W ill ? Consider what causality n a lly means and i n

volves We all reco g nise causation as the uni versal
.

implicate o f experience in t his ever changin g world : -

w e unavoidably proceed in life o n the supposition t hat ,

because we are livin g amon g chan g es we mus t be livin g ,

amo n g causes The causal relation is o f all relations

.

t he most universal ; and for natural science physical ,

causation is nal It is the ca t egory which comprehend s

.

all change under i t self In t elli g en ce in man in a world

.

of change gives the rs t signs o f i ts activity in cravin g

vaguely for causes .

Wi t h t ou Bu t wha t sets human in t elligence a g oing in search of

f il
a
cau a s lity
?
cause ; an d wha t is ul t ima t ely mean t by the word cause ,

th r e e c oul d when i t p o m ts to t ha t of wh i ch i n t ell i gence i s i n quest ?

b e no In an immu t able universe t here would be n o need for t he
 190 PH I L OSO P H Y O F T H E I S M .

p hy s ical t ain o ther phenomena Increasing knowledge of cons t ant .

au s es
c
rela t ions be t ween ne w phenomena and t heir old e qu i va
.

lents is the minis t er o f h appiness to m ankind : human

pain s and pleasures are e ffects all dependent on natural ,

causes on causes in t he ou t side world and t hen on ,

t hose wi t hin t he human organism ; an d men are able s o ,

far t o direct t he causal currents in t o useful channels

, .

Man as the servant o f nature as Bacon advises us can , ,

do s o much an d s o much only as he has observed of t he

, ,

causal order of na t ure Human knowledge o f constant .

sequences and hu m an power are correlatives Where the .

na tural cause is no t perceived by man the natural e ffect ,

cannot b e secured by man : nature t o be co m m anded must

be obeyed : that which in o u r thought is the cause is
transformed in ac t ive life in t o o u r rule I t is only by .

obedience to t he rules o f t he universe t hat m an can

live in a universe tha t is undergoin g const an t m e tam o r
,

p h o s e s o n which human thoughts sensibili t ies an d overt , ,

actions are dependen t We are without o u r leave en .

, ,

t angled while we live i n t he u niversal web o f natural

causa t ion .

B t di
u Y e t no t withstandin g its obvious u t ility the discovery
s ,

co v y f
er
o f merely n a t ural causes leaves the cravin g o f human
o
n t r l
a u a

c au s se intelligence dissa t ised For t he predecessor o u t o f whic h .

l v s
ea e
a change has na t urally emerged and o f which the change
e v nt s n
e
,

a ll y n u i s a metamorphosis i ts elf e qually needs a causal pre

ex ,

p l in d
a e
decessor The discovered natural cause b eing only a
b s
.
,
ec au e
e v ry n t
e nite a obj
s ec t mus t itself be only ,
an e ffec t I n seeking for .

u r l s a natural cause the mind is seeking for what is n ecessarily

a c au e
i t s lf n d s
e ee
a pr d e
unsa
e
t isfying T h e cause to be. found if i t i s t o give ,

ce ss r i n unconditional relief mus t be other than th e provisional

o ,

n d l ss
,
e e
r g ss
e re
causes.
registered in physical science ; fo r each o f these
requires a precedin g natural cau se The scien t ic d i s .

c o ver y that oxygen and hydrogen are na t urally the causal

e quivalent o f water or the discovery t hat heat is a c o n

,

d i ti o n al m etamorphosis and e q uivalent o f modes o f

mo t ion h as brought t he discoverer n o nearer t he satis
,

faction which his complete spiri t ual consciousness de mands

t han he w as before he reached t hem notwithstandin g t he
useful command o f nature which growin g knowledge ,
 O M N I P O T EN T G OO D N E SS . 191

of na t ural causes carries wi t h i t The o l d form of each

.

new phenomenon as much needs t o be resolved in t o reason

as t he new form itself did ; and when w e have reached what
physical s cience accepts as i ts ideal we h ave still only ,

e nlarged o u r na t ural ou t look by a wider e m pirical general

i s at i o n
. The need for ori g inating cause which can alone ,

s atisfy reason remain s in other respec t s as urgen t as

,

before The search fo r wh olly n a tu r a l causes is like t he

.

search for the source o f a river t ha t has n o source A s .

in addi ng ni t e spaces to ni t e S paces however vast t he ,

resul t ing space becomes we are obli ged t o believe tha t w e

,

a r e no nearer Imm ensity o r Boundlessness than we were

when w e began t o add ; or as m illions o f years form a

d uration t hat is really no nearer than a si n gle m o m ent
i s t o the unbeginning an d unending Dura t ion so t he ,

e ndlessly regressive search for n a t ural causes wi t h the ,

discovery o f more and more ex t ensive physical laws o r ,

c ustomary uniformities in the natural procedure leaves

, ,

us still in search o f the operative Power omnipresen t

thro u ghou t the na tural network In truth n atural
.

c auses and na t ural evolu t ion o f phenomena explain

n othing Respo n se t o the ca u sal craving is only pro
.

visionally provided by them They presen t an orderly

.

procession o f e ffec t s not the A gen t in t he universal

d rama .

But is t he mere feeling o f discomfor t occasioned by , B ut is o u r

the ins u f ciency o f na t ural causa t ion a su fcient reason f l g
ee in of
,
d i s sat i s fac
fo r recognising more t han an ulti m ately inexplicable tion W tih
n atural causality ? I S not t his t o indulge in a ground h s r ly
t i me e
r l
n atu a
less conj ecture that since na t ural science canno t give

s
c au at i o n

a l l w e desire a divine C ause must exist ; because with r s

a e a o n fo r
,
f h
ai t in
o u t God o u r dissatisfaction must continue Is n o t this .
O m ni
to proceed upon the unproved pos t ulate tha t we canno t p o t ent
,
G o o dn s
es
be living in a universe tha t is a cons t an t source o f d is
a ppointed desire ? A re men entitled to conclude tha t
because n a t ural science gives only unbeginning and n u
e nding sequence nally unexplained there must fo r our
, ,

relief b e something more ? D oes it follow tha t because

the material world appears to the sensuous understanding

t o b e na t urally in endless orderly sequence there must ,
 1 92 PH I L OSO PH Y OF TH E I S M .

t herefore exis t O mnipo t en t Will or Perfec t Goodness ,

eternally active ?
O ur f l i ng ee If all t hat could b e found in t his rela t ion were only an
gig t h
il es
unco m for t able feeling o f causal dissa t is fac t ion the u n
es s

,
s in e
pr s e en c e sat i sed causal c ravm g w ould surely be n o s u f Ci ent

rationale o f faith in nal omnipo t ence and good n ess .

n t ml
a u O f the seemingly unbeginning and unending evolution
C au es s of changin g phenomena only an insignicant por t ion ,
o n ly n i

it s l f n
e
,
can come W i th i n t he person al experi ence of each man
a ,

i n s f i nt o r within the collec t ive experience e ven of the human

u c e
r s nf
ea o or
f ith i n
a
race To go beyond th.i s narrow exper i ence o n th e ,

G d o .

g r ou n d o
f u n easy feeli ng looks like sayi n g t ha t t here
,

m us t be more t han n atural causation t hat a wholly

physical conception o f t he world mus t b e fundamen t ally
misleadin g merely because the scien t ic supposi t ion is
u ncomfor ta bl e when we t hink it o u t ,
A n d if na t u ral .

causality mus t be the only causali t y t here is n o ground fo r ,

fai t h in a nally satisfyin g Power : w e must at last face

endless ch ange th a t scep t ical aspec t o f t he Inni t e ,

which dissolves moral trust in the idea of capriciou s

m
t e poral process evolu t ion without a cons t an t m orally
t rustworthy E volver The supposed cosmological proof of .

the reality o f th e Divine E volver becomes only o u r vag u e

feelin g o f d issatisfaction wi t h all merely ni t e quan t i t y .

W h il e But while n at ural causes t aken as ul t ima t e conceal

, , ,

n t r l
c au
a u
s ti n God
a
a
man o
as m oral a g en t presen
,
t
,
s and reveals Power ,

l i v i y i n t h e form o f or i gi n a ti ng ca u se personally respons i ble

,

exc u s e ,

iggzgl g conceals G o d only if G o d is n o t otherwise revealed

l ffects
t for e I should
, rather s ay tha t
. ex t ernal nature
G d th
o e , ,

S p ir it l as through S piri t ual experience Wi t h t his revelation

,

ua
.
,
co n t t s i u
t i n t M n ex t ernal n a t ure i tself b ecom es for us symbol i c of t he
-
o O a
v l divine : each fresh discovery o f a n atural cause may then
g0 g
a s

be in t erpreted as on ly a fur t her and fuller revelation o f

t he eternal moral Providence of which n a t ural (s o called ) -

a g ency is the e ffect and expression A fter God has .

b een found in t he m or a l experience o f m an which points ,

irresis t ibly t o intending Will as t he only kn own Cause ,

t ha t is unconditional or originating the discovery that , ,

t his is t he natural or provisional cause of t hat is recog ,

 1 94 PH I L O S O P H Y O F TH E I S M .

of th i s w e have wha t may j us t ify us in reading t he

,

universe in i t s continuous evolu t ionary process morally ,

an d re l i g iously as well as physically and biologically

, .

I n phy si l O f course n ature may also be read on ly physically o r

ca ,

:gfgg g s t rictly in t erms of n a t ural causa t ion I t is possible by

c e
.
,
e s
i nt r p r t d abstrac t ion o f all t ha t is spiritual i n m an to wi t hdraw
e e e ,

W it h
m oral colourin
ex

as it were g
0
from t h e procedure o f even t s
, ,
l
.
,
c uSl v e re
g r d 13 th and to treat t he s u c c e ss mn as n on m oral I n deed natural
a 0 e
-
.
,

n t r l
a u
o r c au s ed
science
a
requires one t o make this abstrac t ion on the ,

s s r i n Ci p l e of d i v i ded i n t ellectual labour ; and because i t s

c au e p
W h i h it c treatmen t o f phenomen a under m oral concep t ion s mi g ht
c o nt m a s
dis t urb t ha t unbiassed search fo r physical causes o r

signs o f changes which is the ofce o f t he naturalis t, .

Na t ural science has to nd t he physical se quences in t he

universe t hat are cons t an t without re g ard to the moral ,

goodness o r badness o r their ori g inating cause ,

.

S inn ers Thus t he molecular changes which succeed o ne an

:isi
t
other
a
in the
s
b rain n erves muscles an d external
,
or g ans , ,

t h l igh t
e of a mu rderer when he is enga g ed in a murder , ,

and also t he m olecular changes which occur in t he

sin c e brain nerves m uscles and ex t ernal or g ans o f a sain t
c e, , , , ,

which issue in an over t ac t o f philan thropy are , ,

or n a tu r a l sci en ce alike n o n moral o r non religiou s ; t hey

f ,
- -

are contempla t ed o u t of relation to conscience and

divine a g ency The series o f na t ural sequences in the
.

visible or g anism of the murderer is scientically as a d

mirable as those of which the visible or g anis m of t he saint
is the t heatre They are both in t erpreted under t he sa m e
.

concep t ion o f n a t ural causali ty ; and the natural causes

which t he organism o f the murderer illus t ra t es are n either
m ore moral n o r more immoral in themselves t han those

which lead up t o the m os t signal overt ac t o f al t ruism ,

o r of religious adora t ion The biology o f t he criminal .

m akes n atural s cience as well as t he b iology o f the sain t .

Natural g ravita t ion and na t ural evolu t ion are nei t her
praiseworthy n or blameworthy They are methods a o .

cording to which the Universal Power de t ermines t he

procession o f even t s .

Th e N o w j ust as the physical process o f grow t h and t he

, ,

i v ers e
D
overt chan g es in t he organisms o f criminals and saints are ,
 O M N I P O T EN T GOO DNE SS . 195

in t hemselves i ndi fferent t o t he moral concep t ions under f h ng o c a e,

which they may be br ought l n that deeper interpretation

g g;

o f the u n i verse i nto wh i ch the i deas o f moral obl i gat i on and i nt r e

t d
personality enter s o too the continuous physical evolu t ion
P re e

o f t h e universe of caused causes which for all we can

, ,

t ell is an unbeginning and unending process m ay i n like

, ,

manner be contemplated in abstractio n from t he omni

present opera t ive and responsible Power t ha t pervades t he
whole ; and t herefore in a b strac t ion from its m oral and
religious meaning In all na t ural sciences this abstraction
.

i s m ade ; leaving for their appropriated share in the inter

r e t a t i o n o f the world the of ce of lling in hitherto
p ,

undiscovered terms in the re g is t er o f n a t ural sequences ,

a n d the at t ainmen t in t his w ay of more and yet more

e x t ensive physical generalisa t ions E ach discovery in

.

science is the discovery of some t hing in the sequence of

visible nat ure t ha t w as before concealed ; with t h e often
illu strated issue tha t persons are able t o live more happily
within the na t urally determined m achine To t hink of .

t he world as t he natural process of organisa t ion and dis

or g anisa t ion the terms o f which men are bound by r e

,

gard for science and for t heir com fort to in t erpre t accordin g
,

to the es t ablished sequences th i s is t o t hink of t hings

,

as the wholly physical inquirer does B u t unless proof .

is for t hcomin g t hat a conception higher t han a physical

,

o n e ye t in harmony with it is not consis t ent with reason ;

, ,

unless the di f cul t y o f a religious or op timis t in t erpre t a

t ion o f t he world can b e shown to be grea t er than an
atheistic or pessimis t interpretation ; unless the h omo
mensu r a principle upon which
,
l n an at t enuated for m
-

natural science i t self rests for b i d s t he t heis t ic inter

,

r et a t i o n I s ay unless proof of t his is forthcoming

p , , ,

wha t is unreasonable in the religious concep t ion o f the

fac t s and laws which form the boast of m odern science ?
To invest t he discovered na t ural sequences wi t h a moral
and spiri t ual glory by reading the whole and in all its
, ,

parts in relation t o wha t is highes t in man and n o t in

, ,

relation t o his sensuous intelligen ce only t his is no t to

discredi t natural science b u t to inves t it wi t h a crown .

In t he entrance of philosophy says Bacon when t he, ,
 1 96 P H I L OSO P H Y O F T HE I S M .

secon d causes w hich are n ex t u n t o t he senses d o o ffe r

, ,

t hemselves t o t he mind of man if i t dwell and s t ay t here , ,

i t may induce some oblivion o f t he Hi g hes t Cause ; b u t

when a m an passe t h o n fur t her an d seeth t he dependence ,

of causes an d the works o f Provi d ence then accordin g

, , ,

t o t he allegory of the poe t s he will easily b elieve t ha t t h e

,

hi g hes t link of nature s ch ain mus t needs b e t ie d t o t he

foo t of Jupi t er s chair .

I f all The n a t ural and t h e reli g ious in t erpre t a t ion s o f t h e

n at u r al
w orld canno t conic t wi t h one ano t her if each discovery o f
c au s at i o n
,

i s n all y a na t ural cause i s reco g n i se d as a lso a d i vm e revela t i on ,

inv o lvin g t he m oral providence t ha t con t inuously ma lees

g
iV i n e
.

au sat i o n r

n at u a r l na t ure Those educa t ed i n th i s concep ti on no longer s ee

.

Sc i en ce in t he physical an t eceden t a usurper o f t he Un iversal o r

Divine Power Wha t g round is t here for the assump t ion
.
,

R el igi on .
t ha t t o n d t he na t ural cause of an even t is to rescue t ha t
even t as it were from divine a g ency ; and t ha t if t he
, ,

co n s t an t physical an t eceden t s of all th e chan g es t hat

occur in na t ure could b e de t ec t ed t here would t hen b e n o ,

r oom fo r G o d ? S urely t he more successfully scien t ic

inquiry is applied t o t he sequen ce s presente d in ex
p er i e n ce the ,
more fully God is revealed an d if we could
realise th e scie nt ic ideal by nding the n a t ural causes,

o f all even t s we sh ould then b e in full possession o f t he

,

self revela t ion g iven in ou t ward nature of t he Perfec t

-

Person of whom t he ideal man is t he fain t sym b ol and

,

a d um b ra t ion .

R ec o gni S uccessful search for t he ac t ual physical order o f t he

world is claimed as th e dis t in g uishing charac t er of modern
c au s at i o n , progress In t he early a g es o f t he world amon g imper
.
,

111 3 139 3 1 4

2 fec t ly educa t ed races and in d ividuals natural appear

c ap r i c mu s ,

g
a en c y ,
in an c es ord i nary as well as ex t raord i nary are referred t o
, ,

fgf f
nal
t he cap r i ci ou s personal ac tion O f spiri t s In t his crude .

r et w
5f th
e
t io n e imperfec t ly developed religion fea r is t herefore th e ,

u ni vers e characteris t ic sen t imen t A ll visible m o t ions are t h e

.

animat ed m o t ion s o f foolish i f n o t wicked S piri t s Fire , ,

.
,

air earth and water had each t heir separa t e spirits :

, ,

t hun der w as empha t ically t he voice of God The waywar d .

a g en cy o f those incalculable forces obs t ruc t ed t he philo

sophical concep t ion of universal natural or d er S cienc e .
 1 98 P H I L OSO PH Y OF TH E I S M .

u al ag n y t he con t rary each seems to present o n e side o f a truth

e c ,

nd n t r l
a

ord r n t
e
a u
co o
m mon a
to both Dependence on persons.
agents i i i th e

n ss r i l y meaning o f a g ency tha t o u r m oral experience make s
ec e a

in n i
co
intelligible
s s agents w h o exert rational will seems t o
t nte .

be t he only sa t isfying sor t of power o f which m an i s

aware It nds u nphilosophic expression in th e crude r
.

religions an d in t he supers t i t ions t hat even n o w confus e

,

Christian thou g ht which lar g ely fails to comprehend ,

how t he Power manifes t ed to man s senses mu st be a

Power that produces cosmos n o t chaos s o tha t th e ,

e ffec t s o f Divine a g en cy are universally orderly Bu t .

scien t i c fai t h has t o be pur g ed o f its supers t itions as

well as religious fai th Pro g ressive subs t itu t ion o f
.

na t ural order for capriciou s in t erferen ce n ee d not super

sede nal a g en cy tha t may b e conceived as perso n al ;
an d which in t he Perfec t Person must b e t he sustainin g
cen t re o f wha t is ultima t ely perfec t ra t ional order how ,

ever far tha t order may transcend man s limi t ed mean s
for interpre ti n g i t I t is af t er supers t i tion is exchanged
.

for t he theistic faith that t reats th e na t ural u niverse as

o n e form of t h e m a n ifes t at i on to m an o f O mnipresen t

S piri t t ha t religious thought an d scienti c t hough t c c

,

in ci d e ins t ead o f contradictin g o ne another T h en G o d

,
.

be comes m ore fully known t hrough fuller scientic ap ,

prehension o f divinely maintain ed sequen ces Neither .

t he irre g ular agen cy o f a capricious S pirit nor t he c o n ,

stan t order of visi b le e ffec t s is m an s n al conception ,

o f existence which recognises th e voice o f Conscience

,

i nvi t i n g us to comprehe n d the na t ural evolution as also

e t ernal moral providence .

S u mma ry . The lesson o f this lecture is t hat religiou s tho u g ht and

physically scie n t ic t ho u gh t a b ou t th e universe instead ,

o f destroying really stre n g then o n e another in their rec

, ,

o gni t i o n o f continuou s divine a ctivity or endless crea ,

tion u nder forms of natural order For th e natural order .

may be in t erpre t ed as a revelation o f perfec t ly reason

able W ill wi t h which man is cons t an t ly if often only
, ,

unconsciously in in t ercourse fo r g ood o r evil in p ro

, ,
 O M N I P O T E N T GOO DNE SS . 199

por tion as his individual will t ends t o assi m ila t io n wi t h

this Will o f God T h under is no longer t he voice O f an
.

interfering God because it is a s t artling phenomenon : it

,

is a revelation o f G o d because it is recognised as an event

,

t hat makes its appearance under divinely na t ural law in

t he orderly evolution

F or i f H e th u n d r by l
e aw , th e t h u n d er i s y et H i s V o i c e .

 200

L E C T UR E VI .

O MN I P RE S E N T D I V IN E A D A P TA T I O N .

R etro s p ec W E have found in m an s m oral experience of a power
ti ev .
t ha t mus t be uncaused be cause responsi b le for i t s e ffec t s
, ,

relief fo r t he causal craving tha t is a t the roo t o f all

scien t ic inquiry . This relief comes t hrou g h moral
experience in a practical form ; n o t t hrough physical
,

experience with its un b eginning and endless su cces

,

sion of natural causes D elibera t e personal voli t ion for

.
,

which a person can be j ustly praised or blamed must ,

or ig i n a te in a p er s on w h o is m orally responsible This .

u nique example o f power m ay be taken as practically and

for u s a t ype of t h e mysterious Power cons t antly a t

work a t t he hear t o f things de t ermining the physical
,

order upon faith in whic h daily life and scien t ic induc

,

tion proceed The universe m ay be treated by man as

.

for him the revelation o f moral Power even if the terms ,

ra t ional will and moral reason represen t t he Innite
Power inadequa t ely .

T w r iv l
o a There are a t last t wo rival ways o f re g ardin g t h e
u l ti m t universe
a e
Th ere is t he hypothesis o f an un b eginning and
p o st l t s
u a e .
.

unendin g physical succession o f changes me t aphorically ,

spoken o f as a chain an innite chain o f n on mor a l

-

sequences : there is also the hypothesis which withou t , ,

re m oving t he inni t e mystery o f physical un b eginning

n ess and unendingness sees in th e manifes t e d universe o f
,

things and persons interpreted in science the cons t an t

, ,

revela t ion o f ac tive m oral Reason I t i s t rue t ha t both

.

t hese hypo t heses leave u s at las t enveloped in wha t is

 P H I LOSO P H Y OF TH E I S M .

T h e c au s l
This theis t ic interpretation O f natural causa t ion whic h
a
,
an d t h e
t l e l gi l
e o o
sees Divine ca
Power pervadin g physical sequ ence can b e ,

co n ce
p distin g uished from t he teleological concep t ion o f the uni
t i n s f th
o
verse
o
implied e
i n t he popular argument for G o d fro m so m e
ni v rs
,
u e e
d i s tin striki ng superhu m an contrivances This sor t o f proof is .

gu i sh e d pop ular o n accoun t o f interes t ing ins t an ces foun d in

.

nature o f adap t ation t o hu m anly useful o r beautiful ends .

In its more philosophical form it is recognition o f adapta ,

t ion in t he cosmical evolution i n a ll th e d eta i ls a nd as a ,

wh o le a n at u ral process that has been continuously leadin g

,

o n this planet towards the evolution of Man with h i s

, ,

S piritual endo wmen t s For t h e universe in which we nd .

ourselves d oes seem to be a universe which at leas t as i l ,

lustrated by this plane t o f ours has b een slo w ly m akin g ,

for the g radual developme n t o f p er s ons as i t s ideal goal ,

.

O bs r v e The fact t hat the natural evolu t ion is found t o aboun d

a

t i on f
n t r l
a u
o
in a
no t a b le cons t ructions that have n o t been contrived by ,

co n st r e t he in t ending will o f man is pro b ably t he considera t ion

u ,

t i ns w h y t hey
o
p p l r
o u a
,thaa
t n ds m os t favour when men are asked , ,

pr f f oo b elieve that t he world depends on O mnipoten t G oodness

o ,

D iv i n ins t ead o f being an incomprehen sible accident Nat ure is

e
D s ig n
.

e
found full of adap t a t ions to and adap t ations in i t s living
.

, ,

organisms ; and inas m u ch as visible adaptation is t o,

ordinary com mon sense a S i g n o f desi g nin g m ind i t -

,

seems if we are in the presence o f striking adap t a t ions o f

,

means t o ends o f which man is n o t the contriver tha t w e

, ,

m ust be living in t he workshop o f a divine mechanist .

The striking adaptation s prese n t ed in animal organisms

need a cause : neither physical (s o called ) causes n o r -

human p ower are su f cien t explanations of constructions

s o useful o r s o beau t iful as many o f those which emerge
, ,

in t he course o f na t ural evolu t ion In presen ce o f t hi s .

S pectacle w e are invited as by S ocrates and Cicero an d ,

Paley to refer the cons t ruc t ions in question to Divin e

,

D esign The curious natural constitution o f t h e eye or

.
,

o f t he ear we are told is so adapted t o useful end s

, ,

t hat this organ cann ot b e thou g ht o f as an acciden t of

collocation in an irrational u x I t s curious correla t ion .

of means and ends was no t brough t about by a human

eye maker while it seems t o o elaborate to have b een
-
,
 O MN I P R E S EN T D I V I N E A D A P T A TI O N . 203

t he issue of an unregu l ated concurrence o f atoms We .

are obliged by so m ethi ng in mind to refer organs like

, ,

t hese to a superhuman eye maker o r ear maker E labor -

,
-
.

ate adap t ation canno t be conceived as a n uncalcula t ed

phenomeno n .

T he ready popular recognition o f the eye and other E pl n , x a a

t i n f th
instances of superhuman adap t a t ion as valid groun d for w i d ,
o o
e ao
e

t heistic faith may b e partly explained by t he w ay an p t n

, ce a ce
f th t l
elabora t e an d useful m achine brings design home strongly l gi l o
o o
e
ca
e e

t o the ordinary mind In a world full of useful adap t a

.
n pti n co ce o

m
t ions o ne see s more easily than in o t her ways t o nd f t h o e
n i v rs
,
u e e
that G o d is worki n g ; o r at least t hat G o d must have
.

b een once a t work eve n if now and during an indenite

, ,

pas t t he main t enance o f or g anic cons t ructions that at

, ,

rs t came S uddenly ready made from the Divine a r ti c er

-
,

has been intrusted t o what are called n atural causes .

If the adapta t ions are now na t ural they must have been ,

at rs t superna t ural i t is ar g ued G od mus t at leas t

, .
,

a t some prehistoric time have interfered to crea t e
,

t he organ which na t ure now propagates God see m s .

in t his way t o be speaking to men out of t he far pas t ,

even if He has lef t only nature speaking to the m a t

this hour speaking to them as one man is said t o S peak

,

to another through ac t s tha t V ir t u ally are a l an g ua g e

,

because adap t ed to convey meaning from mind to mind .

As a watch brings vividly before o n e the existence o f a

wa t chmaker s o wit h the eye s o t oo with the whole
,

hu m an body and the adap t ations which adj us t organ s to

,

environments individual minds o f men to t he universe

,

in which they awake in t o conscious life These and like .

ins t ances o f superhuman con t rivance are found to quicken

human sympathy wi t h t he Power t hat must have b een
at work before all this co u ld h ave beco m e what i t n ow
n at urally continues t o b e O ne is ready when his .
,

a tt ention is emphatically called t o abounding examples

of u seful or beautiful adaptation t o feel as if God were ,

n o merely abstrac t Being inferred through m e t aphysical

,

reasoning o r speculation ; b u t as if He were a livin g Person ,

w h ose intelligen t activity is as distinc t as the pas t

in t elligent ac t ivi t y o f a watchmaker is manifest in and ,
 2 04 P H I L OSO PH Y O F T HE I S M .

t hrou gh a watch or as t he in ven t ive power o f an artist is

,

revealed in and t hro u gh t h e pic t u re o f which his design

,

m ust have been t he source In con t emplati ng the super .

human means and ends in n ature I seem to t race t his ,

invisible Power working consciously calcula t ing mak

ing u se o f materials t hat possess l a t en t capacities for being

m ade useful to men o r other anima t ed b eings The .

chao t ic m aterials in virtue of inherent powers t aci t ly

,

,

b u t without proof a tt ributed to th em are supposed to

,

a d mi t o f adap t ations and s o help to bring a b out the ends

,

which w e now admire and bene t b y in t he course o f

n ature Thus i n t he examples o f well calculat ed c o n triv
.
,
-

an ce which the g reat m achine t he physical universe

presen t s and also in t he existence of the g rea t machine
,

itself an o b server seems t o nd r eli cs of a Great Mechan

,

ist ; wi t h as much assurance t hat He wa s in t elli g en t as

he has o f t he intelli g ence of the con t river to wh om he
spon t aneousl y refers the adap t a t ions in his w atch .

N t rl
a u a Perhaps it i s obj ected t ha t I cannot s ee t his D i vi n e
a d pt t i n s Con t river of the adap t a t ions which I thus explain
a a o
m k G d
.

a e o
V i sib l i n I t may be replied t h at nei t her do I ever really see t he
e ,

th s m
e a
h u ma n con t rivers o f constructions which I attri b ute t o
e
w y a th
as e
co nstr hum an purpose at leas t if the hu m an con t river means
uo

,

t i ns f
o
m ore t ha n the b ody o f a human bein g B u t all recognise
o a

h m n
.

u a
a rt i st m k t ha t t he visi b ly moved hum an or g anis m is charged with
a e
th e a r tis t invisi b le in t elligen t purposes s o t ha t the visible organism
vis ibl e
,

is no t merely an unconsciou s automa t on S t ill the con

.

s ci ou s i n ten ti on O f t he human ar ti c e r is as invisible as

t he Divine intending purpose is in na t ural construc t ions .

The priva t e conscious ac t ivi t y o f person s is necessarily

ou t side the consciousness o f all excep t the o n e person ,

wh ose living consciousn ess it is .

Ad p t a aAno t her circums t ance less obviou s t han t he mere fac t

,

t i n f th
of adaptation pro b ably contribu t es t o m ake n a t ural
o o e
n i v rs t
,
u e e o
M n a .
adaptations t ou ch t he popular ima g ination forci b ly ,

awakening the idea o f a Divine Designer For t he .

adapta t ions seem to conver g e empha t ically upon Man .

Wi t hdraw men and sentien t anim als for ever from the
world and what need for useful or b eau t iful adap t a
,

t ion ? The physical universe evolves in ways many o f

 206 P H I L OSO P H Y O F T HE I S M .

ra t h er than moral implica t es o r spiri t ual insi g ht is t he ,

basis o f Hume s reasoning in his History o f Reli g ion

when he concludes that th e whole frame o f na t ure h e

speaks an intelligen t A u t hor and t ha t no ra t ional in ,

u i r e r can after serious reec t ion suspend his belief for a

q , ,

m ome n t wi t h regard t o t he primary principles o f genuin e

theism an d religion M oreover this genuine t heism
.
, ,

on Hum e s premisses is only t he attenua t ed t heism ,

which infers from s ome observed cosmical a d ap t a t ions

, ,

t he past operation o f an intell igen t cause o f those
adap t a t ions while lef t in doub t abou t o m nipo t en t an d
omnipresen t goodness Granting t he relevancy o f th e .

human a n alogy h e migh t s ay an intelli g e n ce o t her

, ,

than human seem s t o have b een at some pas t t ime

a t work in Na t ure But as t o th e good or b ad character
.

of this intelli g en t an t ecedent or t he ex t en t O f his ,

power t he empirical da t a leave him una b le to de t ermine

,

any t hing : perfec t reason and perfec t goodness would be

in excess of the only premisses which his philosophy

allowed him to u s e A nd t hus his s o called god is
.
-

only o ne intelli g ent b ut perhaps d eceivin g or even m a

,

li g nan t agen t added t o the a g en t s w e are accus t omed

, ,

t o nd i n our experience o f human contrivers He o ffers .

u s a go d that s t ill needs G o d .

Pr f oo of The ar g u m en t for G od t ha t is grounded o n cer t ain

d iv in e
s t riking adapta t ions long favoured in popular theolo g y
a d p t ti n
a a o
,

th t i
a roughly handled b y S pinoza cri t icised by Kan t d is
s , ,

b s d nl y credi t ed b y some speculative na t u ralists o f t his genera

a e o
on t ikin
s rg
ad pt
a tion
a
is in danger o f losing the value that really
ti ns in
o , b elo ngs to it as a rational auxiliary to the theistic in t er
a d eq t ua e.
,

r e t at i o n which w e are led t o p u t upon the universe by

p
the inevi t a b le moral implica t es o f human experience .

Presuppose perfect moral reason o r goodness as what is ,

always and everywhere ac t ive at the hear t o f exis t ence ;

th en with this inevi table me t aphysical founda t ion o f
,

human experience si g nal ins t ances of adap t a t ion t o man

,

that present themselves bring vividly home the c o nc ep

tion o f D ivine in t endin g mind a t t he roo t o f all ; no t
withstan d ing the mix t ure o f malconstruc t ion misery , ,
 O M N I P R E S E N T D I V I N E A D AP T A TI O N . 207

a nd in which this plane t a b ounds

s in B u t to i nfer .

t he o m nipresence o f perfect wisdo m and merciful love , ,

s o lel
y fro m striking speci m ens of t ness t ha t occur
in o u r observation of the ex t er n al world is to beg a ,

conclusion unduly assu ed m no t o ne logically gath

e red . T he divine conclusion i s i nn i tely in excess o f
the nite pre m isses : the largest collection o f super
human cons t ructions can yield only a more o r less prob
a ble n i te inferen ce : t he nite can never be logi ca lly
t ransfor m ed into t h e innite T he observed da t a per
.

haps sugges t some intelligent contriver o f the observed

c ontrivances analogous to t he mind supposed in the
,

human con t river o f a machine bu t wanting in the ,

unique inni t y o r absoluteness t hat is Divine .

O ther defects in t he supposed d ed u ction of t he Divine The rg a u

me nt s ee m s
D esigner fro m occas i onal striking i n stances o f c o n tri v
,
to m k a e
a n ce in n a t u re suggest the m selves if the observed
, , G od au t h r o

of a d ii
facts are presented to prove the in nite conclus i on and ,
cu ly
t in ,

not merely to awaken the in nite postulate o r o t her o rd r h

e t at

wise t o awaken o u r laten t faith an d hope in God as t he H m ye a

,
Sh w H i
o s
pri m ary necessity in any intercourse with the uni verse .
s k ill in
How o n e may ask can t he analo g y o f a human artist and o ver co m
, ,
ing it
his work apply a t all to t he divine artis t whose power is
.

s upposed to be boundless and w h o must therefore be the ,

Agent responsible fo r the ma t erials which in the rela ,

tion o f D esigner he is alleged to have adapted wi t h more

, ,

o r less di f culty t o his en ds ? ,

Why sho u ld adapt ation of
r es i s ti ng m a ter i a l be par t o f the work o f the Power on ,

which the m a t erial wi t h all its qu alities o r m odes o f b e

,

haviour mus t o n the divine i n terpretation n ally depend

, , ,

This looks like supposing G o d to cause a difculty only ,

i n order tha t He may af t erwards S ho w His skill and

s treng t h in i t s removal .

A g ain The introduction o f a Divine Designer has

. A nd t o

been reclaimed a g ainst as interference with t he pro r di t
c o nt a c
,
u n i v rs l e a
vince which science must keep secure for natural e vo l u ity f o

tion only which because n at ural is dogmatica lly as r ti n l

a o a
, ,
ord r e .

s umed t o be undivine Na t ural uncalculating evolution

.

m ust receive w e are t old all the glory o f the useful a n d

, ,

b eau t iful contrivances by which t h e inorganic world and its

 2 08 PH I L OS O PH Y O F T H E I S M .

or g anisms con t ribute t o t he wan t s of living b eings V is .

ible sequen ces in their cus t omary evolu t ion i t is asserted , ,

are all w e have to do wi th and i t is worse than superuous ,

t o inves t th em with purpose E ven al t hou g h some n atural .

e ffects involve adap t ations which if their an t eceden t cou ld ,

have been a human h a n d w e might refer t o t he hand ,

as their cause never t heless experience o f na t ural evolution

,

shows t ha t in t he a b sence o f t he hum an hand physical

, ,

causes spon t aneously under n a t ural law transform t hem

, ,

selves by slo w de g rees in t o t h ose useful and b eau t iful

mecha n ism s which in t heir former ignorance men re ferred
, ,

to th e interference of G o d O u r o wn experience o f .

w h a t na t ure without capricious an d unscientic divine

in t erferen ce d oes g radually t rans form itself into demon ,

stra t es t ha t supernatural in terposi tion is superuous .

Na t ural evolu tion is foun d in fact t o issue in wha t w e , ,

call con t rivance ; b u t t h e con t rivances are see n to b e

issues of wholly na t ural anteceden t condi t ions which ,

need no conscious desi g n o r predestination To assume .

arbi t rarily t he interven t ion o f a designing force is to
wi t hdraw at t en t ion from wha t alone is o f prac t ical i m

port ance in m an s in t ercourse with wha t is around him
t o wit Visible ca u ses which men are a b le in some d egree
, ,

to adap t as means t o desirable ends V isible causes are .

the only causes o n whic h o u r organic pleasures and pains

depend Man i t is alleged h a s n o t hing t o do with a
.
, ,

Universal Power about which n a t ural scien ce can s ay

,

no t hing b ecause it is outside sensuous experience

, .

N t r l
a u a A recent criticism o f Lord S alis b ury s Bri t ish Associa

C s ti n
au a o
tion address illustra t es this I t was made by D r Weis
m y
.

a ex
p r ss
e m ann t h e eminent n aturalis t I t contains t he following
,
.

D i v in
e
remarkable senten ce
The scien t ic man may no t
:

D s ign
e
assume the exis t en ce of a designin g force as Lord S alis
.

bury su gg es ts ; fo r b y s o doing he would surrender t he

presupposi t ion o f his research t he comprehensibility o f

nature . N o w b y t he comprehensibility o f nature
, ,

I suppose Dr Weismann means the presupposition ,

t hat cha n g es in nature mus t b e in all cases the issue or

me t amorphosis o f ascertaina b le na t ural causes wha t ever ,

else t hey m ay b e o r m ay imply ; so that t he par t icular

,
 210 PH I L OS O PH Y O F T H E I S M .

cause . Y et t hroughou t his remarks t he am b i g uou s ,

word force i n i t s una n alysed physical application
, ,

obscures h is meaning ; which had already b een confused

by t he dogma t hat divin e design is necessarily i nt er

ference wi t h order in n a t ure ; o r an in t ervention t o
supplemen t t he forces o f Nature j ust where they b reak

down . I t cann o t b e interferen c e o r superuou s

in t ervention if intending Will is the on ly originating
,

cause cons t ant sequence being th e divinely ordered an d ,

t herefore physically interpretable effec t , .

A d ap t e r
Fur t her Adapta t ion s seem in fac t to be slowly
.

s
t i o n m ay
evolved according to n a t ural laws in a progress t hat
o n l y gr d
, ,
a u
a ll y v lv
e o e, of t en looks likes re g ress ; but notwi t hs t andi n g t his they
ac c o r d i ng m ay b e a na t ural revelation o f G o d If morally intendi n g
to n t r l
.

a u a
l aw , an d p ower is t he on ly po wer to which man can refer change ;
y et b e and if cons t an t activity o f this power is an implicate of
fs
m an i e t a
s
tion o f fai t h in n atural order it follows that gr ow th o r evolu ti on
, ,

c o nt inu o u s n o t of h a n d p r od u cti on i s th e true analogy t o t he mani

dv i in e
,

a g y
en c .
fe s tat i o n o f G o d that is presented in persis t ent creation
by evolu t ion Providen t ial evolution includi ng occa
.

i
s o a n l crises o f natural disintegra t ion i n an essen t ially
superna t ural process issui ng from an unbeginning pas t
, ,

with i t s ou t come in an unendi ng fu t ure th i s rather than

,

sudden divine interference with t he divine continui t y of

even t s b ecomes the theistic conception of universal con
,

t r i van c e in n ature under t he dynamical conception of

,

t he physical universe Crea t ion becomes Universal Pro

.

vid en ce or divinely adap t ed na t ure

,
E volution o r m eta .

morphosis is b o t h na t ural an d divine th e visi b le grow t h ,

as it were o f t he universal or g anism in which human ,

or g anisms na t urally ye t supernat u rally live an d move

, ,

an d have t heir bein g A universe char g ed t hroughou t in

.
,

each and all of i t s par t s with n atural adapta t ion may t hen
,

be read as the expression o f living and ac t in g Reason ,

revealed throughout the Whole The striking examples .

illustrate for popular use pervadin g purpose in t he physi

, ,

cal drama ; they come home t o t he ordi n ary mind in the

way charac t eris t ic ac t ion s and habi t s o f a man s t rikingly
reveal his inner life .

The idea of t he physical u niverse as n o t nishe d pro d uc t

 O M NI P R E S E N T D I V IN E A D APTATI O N . 211

b u t con t inuous na t ural process

wi t hou t limits i n analogy I s th ni e u

s o far with the brief con t inuous life of a plan t o r an ani mal

IS hin t ed at

t he scep t ical in Hume s Dialogues l d pt sa a a a

as a more reasona b le nal conception o f Nature t han tha t $ 123 5 1

which likens i t t o a machine constr u cted by a mechanis t g r wth ; o

a t a given t ime Ye t Philo makes t he t aci t assumption

.

tha t if cosmical adap t ations are in fact successive ou t h m mmy e o

c omes o f natural order under a l aw o f na t ural selec W l r d

if
e

tion le t us suppose t h ey cannot n eed omnipresent i n
,

tendin g mind to direc t t he m The course o f na ture .

wha t ever tha t means is credi t ed with the collocations :
they are S imply a par t o f t he cus t omary behaviour o f

Na t ure ; as if Na t ure s cond u c t migh t ultimately b e other
than divine o r m orally trus t worthy conduct Take t he .

following in one o f t he u t terances o f Philo There are

other par t s o f t he u niverse besides the m achines o f human
invention which bear a greater resemblance t han t his
,

t o the fabric of the world and which therefore a fford a ,

be tt er conj ecture concerning t he universal origin o f t his

sys t em . These parts are animals and vegetables The .

world plainly rese mb les an animal o r a ve g etable more

than i t does a watch o r a knittin g loom Its cause -
.
,

t herefore i t is more probable resembles the cause o f the

, ,

former than the la tt er The cause of the former is genera

.

tion or ve g eta t ion The cause therefore of the world we

.

m ay infer to be some t hing similar o r analogous to genera

tion or ve g etation In l ike manner as a tree S heds i t s
.

seed into the neighbouring elds and produces other trees , ,

s o t he great vegetable t he world n a tu r a l ly produces with

, ,

in itself certain seeds which being scattered in t o the

, ,

surrounding chaos vege t a t e in t o n ew worlds O r if for

, .
,

t he sake o f variety (fo r I s e e n o other advantage ) we ,

should suppose the universe to be an animal : a come t

is as it were the eg g of this animal An existing tree
, , .

b estows orde r and org anisa t ion on t he tree which S prin g s

from i t wi t hou t itself knowing t he order ; an animal in ,

the same m anner on its o s p ring without foreseein g what

,

is don e ; and instances o f t his kind are even more frequent

in t he world than t hose o f order which arise from conscious
reason and contrivance To s ay t ha t all this order or ad
.
 212 P HI LOSO PH Y OF TH E I S M .

ap t at i o nin animals and vegeta b les proceeds ul t ima t ely

from design i s begging t he question ; nor can that great
poin t be ascer t ained o t herwise t han by proving a p r i or i
both t ha t order i s from its na t ure insepara b ly connec t ed
with t hough t an d t ha t it can never of i t self or from
, ,

ori ginal u nkn own principles belon g t o ma tt er ,
Now if .

visi b le natural sequence mu s t be taken as Philo takes it , ,

for our last word abou t the universe pro b a b ly the n atural ,

processes o f vege t a t ion an d o f t he birth of animals m ay

g ive a b e tt er nal concep t ion o f t he Whole t han any
o t hers su gg es t ed b y t hose natural processes which come

within m an s experience Bu t if all n a t ural causes mus t
.

t hemselves b e e ffec t s ; if our interpre t a t ion o f such e ffec t s ,

as cases o f na t ural laws i t self depends upon moral reason

,

for the fai t h which m akes it possible and ena b les u s with ,

condence t o put even physical in t er p re t a t ions upon

changes ; if moreover t here is no t hin g in t he physical
, ,

interpre t a b ili t y o f even t s t ha t is incon sisten t wi t h a

co ordina t e theis t ic interpreta tion o f them ; and if this
-

deeper interpreta t ion o f their na t ural modes o f behaviour ,

adap t a t ions or cons t ruc t ions is required to mee t man s

, ,

g enuine S piritual n eeds i f all t his be so wh y should ,

na t ural causation when some o f its elaborate c o n s tr u c

,

t ions are ascer t ain ed by in quiry b e regarded as s o far ,

necessarily empty of God ? Why must I assume t ha t

each fresh discovery of wha t is called a na t ural c o n
t r ivan c e is a discovery t ha t relieves the natural e ffec t
o f connec t ion with O mnipo t en t G oodness ?

Et ernal It is t he overwhelming idea o f t he innity o f t he

ev o lu t i o n
of th e
universe when it arises in a physically scientic ha b i t
,

u ni e v rs e ,
of t hough t tha t seems t o oppress Philo and those w h o
,

k
t a en s c ep
like him t hink only physically with what if t hey
t ic a lly , ,

p r lys s
a a
,

e t hink t hings o u t becomes a despairi n g sense of t he to t al

,

f it h i n
a u nin t erpretabili t y o f experience i t s unin t erpretability
d i v in e
,

d sign
e .
even up to t he extent to which physical observers pro
fess t o read it in t o na t ural science Philo t akes hold .

of t he Inni t e by i t s agnos tic handle ; and so instead ,

of i ts mys t ery quickenin g reverential faith t he innity ,

seems to disin t egrate experien ce The i n c o m p r eh ens i .

b ili t y of physical experience with i t s nal n e g ations in

,
 214 PH I L OSO PH Y O F T HE I S M .

resem b li ng those which g ive expression t o s t ates of con

sciou s life in myself so m e t hin g in me makes me re g ar d ,

t his as si g nican t of a livin g inte l lige n ce other than my

o wn In all cases orderly adaptation o f means to ends
.

whether presented in human or g anisms and their move

men t s in t h e organisms an d m ovemen t s O f animals or
, ,

in t he universal evolution obli g es m en to trea t t he mani

fe s t at i o ns o f adapta t ion as a revela t ion of d esi g n When .

over t ac t ions which involve skill are performed t hrough

o u r or g ans as t hey often are without ou r own conscious
, ,

agen cy we are o b liged t o refer t hem t o a n o th er intendin g

,

in t elli g ence Is n o t Na t ure t he providential working o f

.

O mnipresen t Min d ?
W m y e a The prese n ce o f adapta t ion in th e passive evolu t ions o f
n ature m ay be af rm ed al t hou g h w e are unable t o en t er
p ti a ou
,

wi t h t i n i m ag i n a ti ve t hough t i nto t he consc i ous l i fe o f the pro

ou
mg ab l e d u c ti ve Power Altho u g h t h e u n iverse as re l a t ed t o us
3 mf pl l y m an i fes t s s u i C i en tl comprehens i b le exam ples o f means
9
.
, ,
o co re

h d
eh u y
th d pt adapted t o human com fort it would b e presump t u ous t o
m g gO W
e a '

,
6
infer from t his that the In t elligen ce manifeste d in t h e
produc t ion of those natural adapta t ion s m ust calcula t e
as m en do We cann o t en t er in imagin a t ive t ho u ght
.

even in t o t he men t al sta t e o f t hose bei ngs we call i n

fer i o r animals w h o are s o grea t a m ys t ery to us : w e are
,

in n i t ely less able in t he case o f the Universal Desi g ner .

Y et man sees in na t ural adapta t io n s what h e m ay with

m oral condence proceed upon as sign s o f wha t h e can ,

trea t only as co n sciously calculating mi n d s t ill with

o u t power t o realise adequately what fo r wan t of mor e ,

expressive la ng ua g e he calls In n i t e Mind , .

N at u a r l I h ave s o far dis t i n guished adap t a t ion in na t ure from

jigl ig
l t elf
n s
order in nature Y et looked a t more deeply no t only
.
, ,

a d p t atio n
a d o fai t h in omnipresent physical law an d faith in omni ,

presen t adapta t ion rise o u t of t he cons t i t u tion of man

,

p r et ing in . in t he universe bu t t he two faiths appear t o coincide at

,

t el l igen c e
last F o r natural uniformi ty is adapta t ion o f the world t o
.

t he service of man If we could suppose ourselves living i n

.

a ph y sical chaos i n s t ead o f living in wha t faith accep t s as

,

a physical cosm os ; and if in this supp osed chaos we coul d

 O M NI P R E S EN T DI V I N E A D APTATI O N . 21 5

be endowed wi t h o u r presen t moral and re l igious con

s t i t u t i o n w e sh ould s t ill it would se em be obliged to
, ,

suppose that t he apparen t chaos must have its na l ou t

co m e in th e cosmos o f a reasonable world But in t hose .

circumstances besides g reatly increased strain upon o u r

,

faith in perfec t goodness at the heart o f the chaos w e ,

should lose the educational and o t her advantages n o w

a fforded in a world so adapted to u s that w e gradually

learn how to regulate o u r conduct in i t especially as ,

m inis t ers in a social sys t em .

T he divine consti t ution o f physical order with i t s T h p , e ur

natural evolution in u niversal adaptations m ay seem a M tt r nd p s f o e o

,
a e a
roundabou t m e t hod for accomplishing what Innite Power ph y si l ca

might be supposed to provide without mat t er i mm ed i t i n in

,
d p t
,
a a a

o
ately by m iracle What is t he purpose o f an organism so r l t i n
.
e a
,

curiously construc t ed a s t he eye one may as k if God t m n o a .

, ,

could m ake human spirits able t o experien ce the conscious

s t ate called seei ng withou t an eye ; o r wha t need for
the complex s t ruc t ure o f our bodies if w e could have ,

the whole percipien t an d consciou s life w e pass t hrough

be t ween birth an d death as unbodied spirits ? If those
elaborate construction s are n o t needed t o serve the c o n
scious life with which they are found connected h ow a r e ,

th ey a d ap ta ti on s ? This raises questions abou t Matter and

its relation t o S pirit on which I have already touched
, .

T he lesson o f t his lecture is tha t divine desi g n is a S mm r y

,
u a .

conception involved in na t ural orderly evolution and tha t ,

whether Nature is contemplated as a whole o r in each o f ,

i t s organis m s and each o f its eve nts Divine adaptation .

pervadi n g the whole involves design in every event in the

history o f each individual even as gravita tion is illus
t r a t e d in t he fall of t he mos t insi g n icant grain o f sand .

The universality of adaptation the idea o f in t endin g

m oral providence in all cha nge see m s as reasonable as
t he universality of gravit at ion o r O f evolution within their
,

narrower spheres Nothi n g is too great o r t o o li t tle for

.

natural l a w : nothing is t o o great or t oo little for provi

dential purpose Universal Providence is b y implication
.

special as universal g ravita t ion is special : the very idea

,

o f natural law is essentially construc t ive and t eleolo g ical .

 L E C T U R E V II .

P HI L O S O P H I CA L O R THE O LO G I CA L O MN I S C I E NC E .

T h e S ci I H AVE b een trying to S ho w t hat t hose are proceedin g

en c e o f
R lg
e i ion
unreason a b ly an d therefore unphilosophically who t rea t
, ,

ll
h as c o ec t t heis t ic faith o r t he disposi t ion to put a nally e thical
,

f s
e d ac t
an d religious i n t erpreta t ion upon t h e universe as persons
h h
w ic s u g
,

gs h
e t t at who are indul g i ng what is only i g norant sentiment char
r l
c it i c a ac t e r i s t i c o f some men and som e races of men at cer t ain
an a lys s i
, ,

ll
w i d is s t ages i n t he evolu t ion of mankind sen t iment which may

co vre t ry t o t ake t he form o f t ho u gh t but which to advanced ,

r s n
ea o
t hou gh t is t ransitory fancy soon t o become an an achronism
in t h i s t i
e c , ,

f it h
a . if it i s n o t already t his amo ng the educated The his t oric .

fact of t he permanen ce in many for m s o f t he disposi t ion

, ,

t o worship the Universal Power o r invisi b le b ackground ,

o f human life with th e immense inuen ce t he reli g ious

,

con ception h as in the developmen t o f man might sug g est ,

t hat theistic fai t h and hope in t he Power universally a t

w ork must b e resolva b le into reason if it is not even ,

Universal Reason i t self in i t s m os t real manifesta t ion .

The m odern S cience o f Reli g ion h as accumula t ed evidence

tha t reli g ion is t he po t ent fac t or in his t ory ; al thou g h th e
human disposition t o interpre t experience in t he lig ht of
supernatural power is found t o d egrade t he in t erpreter ,

when a faith essen t ially e t hical presen t s i t self as non moral -

,

o r as supers t ition Bu t even in supers t i t ion one can

.
, ,

t race an ineradica b le dissatisfaction wi t h wha t is merely

ni t e and some t imes a sense of dutiful conformi t y t o
,

enno b li ng ideals And in all this t heism appears in g erm

. .

Ances t or worship o r priestcraf t o r dread o f the unknown

, , ,
 218 P H I L OSO P H Y O F T HE I S M .

provisio n ally relieved by the n atural causes o f scie n ce

may be nally a n d reasonably p ut t o rest It seem s .

to be true philoso p hy th a t man should accept th e only

r es ti n
g sort o f cause t hat experience o ers t hat e x em
ff

p l i e d in his idea o f his o w n moral responsi b ility Its .

adoption t ransforms t he o t herwise wholly physical an d

unsatisfyi ng universe in t o wha t when t hus more deeply ,

conceived and more considerately lived i n is found to be ,

universal moral order o r moral providen ce

, .

T he o mni B ut t he impo t ence o f physical phen omena a b s trac t ed ,

p r es n c
e e
fr o m t h e S piritual ac t ivity which they thus m a nifest is
o f D e sig n
,

i n N at r e
u .
no t t he only groun d in reason t hat sus t ains theis t ic faith
in the Universal Power A perce p tion of the powerless
.

ness of outward t hin g s p er s e makes t he percipient ready

,

to acknowledge O mnipoten t Goodness M ens agi ta t m o lem . .

Y et this is no t all th a t th e chan g ing world is ap t t o

awaken There are more precise signs of Min d con
.

t i n u al ly operative in Nature We nd na t ural means

.

o b viously adap t ed to issue gradually in useful or beauti

ful ends : the or g anised m a tt er o f the world aboun ds
in them The calcula t ing t hough t latent in Na t ure
.

becomes more apparent wi t h each advance o f natural

science ; and especially since t he modern idea o f orga n ic
evolution has formulated scientic in t erpre t a t ion For .

wha t at o u r human poin t of view is calle d Divine

, ,

D esign is recognisa b le n o t only in s t riking in s t ances

, ,

of na t ural adap t ation like those on which Paley dwells

, ,

bu t in the very no t ion o f progressive orderly evolution .

Isola t ed examples sin g led o u t by o ld fashioned theologians

,
-

as proofs o f t he interference of a calculatin g and con t riving

Po wer are no w scien t ically explained as g radual processes
, ,

in terms o f na t ural l a w The human body and i t s organs

.

m ay be accounted for w e nd by natural causes causes

, ,

long and slowly operative A n d the whole physical world.

may t urn out in t he progress of physical science t o

, ,

consist o f slowly formed ins t ances o f n atural c o n s t r u c

tion useful o r beau t iful adap t ations of means to human
an d oth er ends bu t all arisi ng as sequences in the process
,

o f n a t ural causation Th e visible m achine o f Na t ure

.

seems to b e con t inually shedding construc t ions an d adap

 PH I LOSO PH I C AL O M N I S C I EN C E . 21 9

t at io n s ,
evolved accordi ng t o wha t i s called natural selec

t ion o r in other natural modes o f behaviour But the
,
.

ambiguous Power called Nature is only metaphorically

doi n g t his o r d oing anything I ts pheno m ena present

,
.

n o proof of t heir originating agency ; we nd in m an o n l y

power that mus t be hyperphysical because man is able t o ,

be mor a l or immoral T he great na t ural machine is charged

.

wi t h divine activi t y an d all i t s evolutions ad m i t o f a

,

t eleological as well as a physical interpre t a t ion Natural .

causes explain su fciently for sense and scien t i c under

,

s t anding the visible organisation O f man as well as his

, ,

special organs such as the e y e o r t he c ar But this physic

, .

ally scienti c expla n a t ion is always only p r ovi si ona l ex

planation The world may also be conceived as t he design
.

o f wh a t a t t he human point of View m a y be called perfec t

, ,

in t endi ng Will ; S O that co n stant ra tio n al providence may ,

a t the end be credited wi t h the adap t ations t hat are gradu

,

ally elaborating i n every particular of the n atural outcome .

O n the supposition tha t scien t ic inquiry veri es t he l a w

o f universal n atural evolu t ion science is only disclosing
,

n a t ural adap t ation s t ha t are in process of slow continuous

forma t ion the l aw o f evolutionary procedure being the
S cienti c expression o f how the continuous creation pro
c e ed s .The Power t hat keeps t he whole in motion is t he n
though t of as Pow er t ha t is e ter n ally makin g for useful and
beautiful rela t ions of means to ends in t he vir t ually living ,

m
organis tha t is commonly called Nature and in issues
o f gradually increasing value measured by the satisfac t ion ,

which they a fford to man w h o is himself t he hi g hest of,

t he providen t ial ou t comes o n this planet Na t ure t hus .

,

con t e m pla t ed becomes in o u r V iew charged with Pur

,

pose and a revela t ion of the Divine to which awakene d

, ,

divinity laten t in man responds in in t ellec t ual and moral

, ,

sympa th y This is j us t to s ay that G o d is t he real cause

.

in all natural causes those making either for t he in t e g ra

tion o r for t he disintegration o f the presen t w orld In .

ei t her w ay in t egra t ive o r disin t egra t ive na t ure continu

o u sl reveals G od
y .

It is only when t he nal mys t ery o f t he physical innity T h e ina

f l
o f Na tu re is t aken wan t only b y i t s atheistic handle tha t P h ysm l
,
 2 20 PH I L OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

m y s t er y wan t o f physical omniscience is produce d as reason

ou r
ne d n t
e
fo r refusin g t o read experience theis t ically
o
F o r t he
p r lys
.

a a e
p o w r f world would be scien t ically unin t erpreta b le if man were
e o ,

i nt r p r t
e
o b li g ed
e
t o t urn away from all a tt empts t o explain even
i ng w h t a
d s nt r i t s physical laws un t il he had relieved himself o f t he
oe e e ,

i nt nal p h ysi ca l mys t ery by risin g in t o O mniscience

o ou r ex
I .

pe i n
r e ce
canno t m ove locally from where I s t and if I am b ound
.

, ,

b efore I do so t o have a p erfect kn owled g e of t he universe

, ,

and t o be in t his way independent of nal fai t h ven -

ture An d the fai t h tha t t he orderly evolu t ion o f nature

.

i s a his t ory o f P u rpose may b e conrmed by O b servatio n ,

of na t ural means in remarka b le rela t ions to animal ends .

S i gn l a When par t icular na t ural cons t ruc tions like t he eye in ,

n t r l
a u a
man or wings in a b ird are appealed t o as signs t ha t
a d pt
a a
, ,

ti ns
o d in t elli g en t a g ency mus t have been a t work in overcomin g
an
u ni v rs le
t he resistance of in t rac t able ma t erial by adroi t com b in a
a
n t r l
,
a u a

d esign t ion .
and colloca t ion like a human a r t i c er laboriously

m aking a machine t he idea of Divine D esign presen t s
t wo d ii c u l t i es In t he rs t place i t represen t s n a t ural
.
,

law o r qualities o f ma tt er as in conict with t he
, ,

Designer This is s o no doub t when t h e artis t is a m an

.
, ,
.

But if G o d is vaguely credited wi t h t h e natural la ws and

qualities themselves as imposed b y Him upon Ma tt er in ,

some prehistoric period in t he illimi t a b le Pas t accordin g ,

t o t he crude idea of creation this looks like G o d ,

m akin g a di f cul t y a t rst for t he pleasure of overcoming ,

i t af t erwards In t he seco n d place t o g roun d fai t h in

.
,

di vi n e desi g n o n visi b le adap t a t ions in par t icular ins t ances

, ,

supposed t o be independen t of physical law run s the risk ,

o f having s u ch superna t uralness discovered t o be after all

an issue o f a n atural process ; and wi t h t his t he divine

design disappears i f w e must a s sume t ha t when a con
s t ruc tion is proved t o b e natural i t mus t th er efor e n ot b e ,

due t o the Divine Power But i t is otherwise when .

some t hing no t proved to b e unreasonable in t he conscious

, ,

constitu tion o f man ma kes u s s ee in all n a t ural processes ,

and issues really divine processes and issues ; so t ha t

whenever useful o r b eau t iful adap t a t ions of means t o
ends in organic s t ruc t ures o r o t herwise are na t urally
, ,

evolved th i s evolu ti on h owever s low a nd gr a du a l is ri g htly

, , ,
 222 P H I L OSO P H Y O F T HE I S M .

of reali t y in t he absence of t hought t he contradic t ion ,

implied i ii t he supposi t ion o f the u niverse existing wi t h

o u t Mind is a principle which h as t aken different forms in
,

t heological and philosophical speculation O ught it t o b e .

accep t ed as t he basis o f t heism ? Is Inni t e Mind t he

ra t ionally necessary presupposi t ion of any possible reality
From Pla t o t o Hegel th e a b stract necessity for Universal
,

Reason is a prin ciple that has in di fferent forms per

va d ed philosophy Throu g h this necessi t y t he indi
.
,

vidual thinker essayed to secure for hi m self a m ore

co m m anding position than t he individual consciousness of
a hum an mind see m ed t o s upply It is ar g ued that .

one s intellec t ual hold o f t he universe cannot b e depend

en t on one s o w n la t ely b orn isolated self For a hu man
, , .

b ei n g t o a t tain in t ellectual possession of reality he must ,

someho w become involved in a higher Reason t han his

individual reaso n : he nds himself more t han an orpha n
S pirit o r spiritual ato m : he mus t therefore be somehow
i d en ti ed wi t h th e Universal Reason S o regarded my .
,

t rue self is found in propor t ion as it unfolds to be Uni

, ,

versal Consciousness : what i s called reason in me nds

j usti cation in the discovery tha t Reason nally is not
mine individually but min e in s o far as God lives i n
,

me My self is t ruly and innitely realised in G o d and

.

t he indi vidual orphan isola t ed self is renounced the

, , ,

m ore th e individu al man b ecomes divine The essen t ial .

divini ty of wha t i s truly real is discovered when we learn

t o rise above the physical sciences and enter in t o t he ,

central Philosophy of Being which is t heology under ,

ano t her nam e theolo g y tha t deserves t he prou d t itle

o f science of scie n ces .

r
V a iou s A posi t ion aki n to this is I t hink t aken in the chief
, ,
p h as e s o f forms o f ontological proof o r constr uctive necessi t y for
t h i s o nt o ,

l o gicall y God I have descri b ed i t perhaps more according to t he

.

n ec e ss r y
a

t h ei s m.
manner in which i t appears in the idealistic thou g h t
o f t his g eneration than in its earlier forms O ne recog .

n i s es it ho wever in t he Idealism o f P a t o where things

, ,
l ,

presen t ed t o sen se dimly symbolise t he full rational real

i t y t owards which individual m an approximates as he ,

rises from con t in g ent appearances and uctua t ing ,

 PH I L O S O PH I C A L O MN I S C I E N C E . 223

o pinions and en t ers into t he intellec t u al necessities o f

,

Universal Reason Tha t Thought which transcends each

.

private consciousness an d can be entered into only

,

thro u gh mystical ecs t asy alone con t ains t h e secre t o f the

,

universe w a s t he supre m e lesson of Plotinu s in later and

,

m ore adventurous Platonis m Recognition o f an a b .

s tract necessity for D ivine o r Perfect Being as involved ,

in the very idea of perfection perv ades the once cele ,

b r at e d theistic reaso n i n gs o f S t A ugustine S t A nselm , ,

a n d Descar t es Perfection in i d ea it w as argued mu s t

.
, ,

in clude existence ; for an idea cannot be perfect u n less

c onceived to be real not mere illusion S o the Divine
,
.

Reality is involved in t h e very idea o f absolute perfection

that i s latent i n us all : thought necessarily underlies
e xistence : universal though t mu st underlie universal
reality : real exis t ence needs thought t o realise it These .

a r e v a ried expressions o f a principle which appears at

t he bo t to m o f this abstract t heism E xpressed in crude .

form t his looks like the childish fallacy t hat because I

, ,

fancy t hat a thing or a person exis t s the thing o r person ,

must therefore really exist But to s ay tha t the existi n g .

reality i m p l ies etern al reason i s very di fferent fro m saying

t hat m en s contingen t fan c ies abou t nite thi n gs m ust all

be realities ; o r fro m j ustifyi n g Kan t s caricature o f this

theis t ic p roo f as if it were equivale n t to saying Because

, ,

I i m agi n e I h a ve m oney in my purse it mus t be true that ,

I have i t . T hat there i s an intellectual necessity for
G o d involved in o u r ideas of space and i mm ensity dura ,

tion and eternity is another form o f ontological argumen t

,

f o r theism : it appears in S amu el Clarke s once f a m ous

d e m onstration that God exis t s A nd the religious phil .

o sophy o f S t A nsel m and Descar t es is a sort o f antici

a tio n o f th e ess e is ci i f Berkeley itself dimly
p p er p o ;

,

a ntici p ated long before S t A nselm in the T o a il r e vo e t v

'

, ,

r e zea l el va t
. at t ributed to Parmenides That Universal
,
.

M ind o r the In nite is b y necessi t y the p r i u s of , ,

individual th ings and person s an d presupposed in their ,

e xistence is the constan t refrain in Berkeley s
,
S iris in
,

which the inevitable demand for Divin e Reason as the ,

nally unitin g principle is rei t era t ed at di fferent points

,
 224 P H I L OSO PH Y O F T HE I S M .

of vie w C omprehending G o d and t he crea t ures in one

.

general notion w e m ay truly say according to Berkeley
, , 2

t hat all t hings t oge t her make o n e Universe or 7 5 n d u

,
.

But if we should s ay all things make one God this he , ,

t h inks would be an erroneous n otion of G o d ; n e ver th e

,

less it would no t amount t o Atheism so long as Mind o r ,

I nt ellect was admitted to be the Universal Power It is .

n ever t heless he thinks more respectful and consequ ently

, , ,

the truer notion o f God to suppose Him neither made up ,

o f parts nor to be Himself a part o f any Whole whatever

,
.

The in t ellec t ual need for recognising tha t the u niverse

m us t be constituted in Universal Reason is t he chief
lesson o f Berkeley s S iris a b ook of pre g nan t aphorisms

and a step in developmen t o f t he conception t hat divine

synthesis is the necessary founda t ion o f all t hat is real .

O n to l o g i lca The recogni t ion by Leibniz of universal ideas inna t e in ,

n ss it y t he universe and in the human mind in its pre estab

ec e -

f
or D i tye a
,

i n L i b ni
e zlis h e d harmony with t he universe con t ains a germ o f ,

n d s in a p r i or i theis m Kan t s philosophical revolu t ion made

a ce
.

K nta
h i m the Copernicu s of philosophy and theolo g y in accept
.

ing conditioned human thou g ht as for m an the cen t ral , ,

and re g ulative principle o f h i s universe instead o f sup

posing thought an d its i m plica t es t o be nally explicable
by visible causes as ma t erialistic na t uralism dogmatically
,

does Kan t open ed the way to the t heolo g y o r philosophy

.

o f H e el If human experience of the u niverse is real

g .

experience it must be i n telligi b le e x perience : its i ntel l igi

,

b ili ty is i t s j u s t i cation Kno wledge even hopeful .

,

desire to kno w presupposes that wha t is sou g ht in

,

experience must respond to in t elli g ence The pos t u .

late that we are really livin g in a knowable world ,

already m ore o r less interpreted by m an is an element ,

in th e rationale o f theistic fai t h : as w e have seen i t ,

adapts itself to theism E x t ernal nature is instinc t ively .

t reated by us all in the w ay a book is treated by its

intelligent reader We exp ect t o nd meaning in our .

experience this expectant trus t s u pposes that experienced

n ature i s reasonable But t he Reason th a t is implied i n
.

intelligible expe rience making i t interpretable is not , ,

merely my individual o r private thinkin g ; nor can i t be

 226 P H I L O S O PH Y O F T H EIS M .

course with the Universal Consciousness ; o r if ano t her ,

mode o f expression be preferred t he be g inning of the ,

revela t ion in and to u s o f the Universal Consciousness .

I t is approach o n o u r part and self revela t ion on Go d s ,

-

par t which b ecomes more full and ar t iculate wi t h human

,

progress in divine philosophy .

H g li n
e e a Followin g this line o f ar g umen t o r specula t ion we nd ,
ont l g i
o o l ourselves becoming involved a t las t in some t hing no t
ca
Th i m
c s .

unlike t he dialectical procedure of He g el F o r his philo .

sophy is nally an d throughou t t heology perhaps t he

mos t comprehensive an d elaborate theology that modern
t hinking has produced ; and which indirec t ly more t han ,

by direc t adoption has been givin g form to t he relig

,

ious thought o f this a g e I t s sympathe t ic introduc t ion to

.

t he E n g lish speaking w orld is lar g ely due to an eminen t

-

countryman a former Gi fford Lec t urer Dr Hu t chison

, .

S tirli ng s S ecret o f He g el pu b lished in 1 8 6 5 m arks an

,

epoch in o u r insular philosophy with corresp onding en ,

largemen t in subsequent reli g ious thought I ts appear .

ance w as almost con t emporaneous wi t h t ha t o f ano t her

memorable b ook representative o f t he opposite pol e
,

o f philosophy yet not without af ni t y in i t s compre

,

h e n s iven e s s t o Hegelian theolo g ical t hou g h t I mean

the Firs t Principles followed by a S yn t he t ic P h il o s o

,

phy which Mr Her b ert S pen cer has con t ri b u t ed t o the
,

intellec t ual life o f his generation Indeed his philosophy .

o f f
the universe is a sor t o inver t ed He g elianism res t ing

o n an empirical base an d constructed by g eneralisation n o t

, ,

b y necessi t ies o f ra t ional dialectic Its apo t heosis is the .

fo r ever Unkn owa b le Power a t the ex t reme opposite to t he

,

po t en t ial if not actual O mniscience professed by He g el .

T h e T h eo He g elian dialec t ic is virtually Hegelian t heolo g y It .

l gi l
o ca
is a Philosophical Theism which is bound t o supersede
Ph il s ph y
o o
f H g el

o e Fai t h b y a perfect theological S cience Indeed He g el s
. .

in t eres t in the nal pro b lem seems to b e religious and

Christian as much as intellectual A s with A risto t le .
,

and still more with Aquinas t h e o l gy is wi t h hi m t he ,

consumma t ion o f philosophical specula t ion if no t exac t ly ,

in Bacon s sense
t he S abbath and port o f all m an s
,

la b ours and pere g rinations .
 PH I L OSO PH I C A L O MN I S C I E N C E . 227

Hege l ian dialectic migh t be described as an exhaustive D i l l

a ec t i c a
E l VO u O D
intellectual evolution o f wha t is put in a less ar t iculate
w ay in the cosmological argument founded o n t he need
for cause There one nds rest in the agency of God
.
,

or,
in the language o f t his class of t hinkers in t he ,

Universal Cons ciousness The Hegelian pro g ressive and

.

ascending synthesis is a process which is adopted t o

S how ar t icula t ely t he inadequacy of each lo wer and there

fore more abstract principle o f t h ought It expresses the .

need for ascending regressively from the ex t reme i n ad e

q u ac
y o f Abs t rac t Being to the inni t e fulness o f the con
c rete Divine Reality making manifes t t hat the universe

in i t s concre t eness necessarily presupposes inni t e wealth

in its Divine ground This dialectical evolution is not
.

o l d fashioned deduction unfolded in t he way conclusions

-
,

i n g eome t ry are drawn o u t o f axioms and denitions in

which they are logically involved ; nor is i t induction fro m
fac t s in t he w ay natural causes are generalised in physical
,

science I t is an intellectu al cons t ruction of what is pre

.

s upposed i n the lower and more abs t ract principles o f

thou g ht pur g ed of the inadequacy and error that per

,

t ains t o t hem when they are t aken as ultimate Thus .

a bs t rac t Being must be less adequate to express t he

innite weal t h of D ivine Bein g t han the hi gher ca t e g ory
o f change or Becoming : this in turn is less adequate
, ,

than Bein g that is de t ermina t e ; and so on till God ,

in His fulness is reached in the innite thought

t o be realised more and more fully in t he progressive
conscious intelligence o f mankind This regressive
.

dialec t ical ascen t promises at each stage o f advanc e a

, ,

fuller conception o f G o d till at las t God is found by the

,

philosopher in the form o f ra t ionally articulated Universal

C onsciousness shared unconsciously by t hin g s and con
,

s c i o u s l y by persons E ach s t ep o n the ascent on accoun t

.
,

o f i t s s t ill unsatisfying abstrac t ness craves a richer or

,

more concre t e thought ; without this fur t her develop m ent ,

the j u d gmen t is left scep t ical between a f rmation and

n ega t ion The consequent intellec t u al unres t is the move
.

men t which carries the individual mind upward until ,

it nds complete sa t isfaction in the universal rational

 228 PH I LOSO PH Y OF TH E I S M .

ar ticula t ion or God Dialec t ical developmen t o f t he

.

divine t hou g h t in i t s hierarchical g rada t ion is the

, ,

Hegelian unfolding o f philosophical t heism The i n divi .

dual t hinker po t en t ially iden t ical wi t h God t hrough t he

, ,

unconscious presence o f the philosophically ar t icula t ed

reason innate in t hings and persons b ecomes consciously
, ,

iden t ie d wi t h God o r t heological in propor t ion as he

, ,

comes t o see wha t is implied in having his b ein g in

Universal Reason He b ecomes aware o f his par t icipa
.

t ion in Dei t y b y t ransla t in g in t o science wha t w as

,

o t herwise h eld in the imperfec t form o f feeling Philo .

S ophy b ecomes Chris t ian fai t h tr a ns la ted i n ter ms of

th ou gh t : t he t ran slation makes explici t t he r ea son la t en t
in the feeli ng renderin g all in t o in t elligible divine uni
verse This philosophy would be reli g ion in i t s i ntell e c
.

t ual form assimilatin g Chris t iani t y as t he o n e ca t holi c

,

reli g ion I t vir t ually claims t o b e reli g ion S O far as

.
,

reli g ion is in t ellec t ual o r t heolo g ical ; no t necessarily

t o t he exclusion o f religion in t he more prac t ical form
o f feelin g emo t ion and fai t h An d if t heolo g y i s t he
, ,
.

in t ellec t ual in t erpre t a t ion an d c o ordina t ion o f m an s

-

nal rela t ion to t he divin e universe o f reality Hegelian ,

philosophy is He g elian t heolo g y ; the t wo are s yn o n y

mous . He g elian dialec t i c becomes theology or divine ,

t hou gh t ela b ora t ed s u b sp eci e eeter ni ta ti s as S pinoza ,

would say I t appears as if at t he opposi t e pole t o every

.

m odica t ion o f agnos t icism Never t heless the elas t ici t y

.

o f He g elian t hou g h t allows t he ex t remes unexpec t edly t o

approach o n e another .

Q u es t i o n s Is a philosopher j us t ied b y fac t s an d reason when

t ed
iggz
g he announces the discovery o f t he perfec t ra t ional ar ti c u
T h is m
e of la t ion o f t h e universe in t he Universal Reason called God
Hgle e
I S all t ha t is implied in the actual exis t ence o f th i ngs and ,

a b ove all in t he moral a g en cy o f p er sons relieved of ,

mys t ery ? Are t h e eni g mas which have pu t s o severe a

s t rain u pon faith found t o disappear by a comple t e trans ,

la t ion o f t heis t ic faith in t o t heis t ic t hou g ht d i al ec ti

cally unfolded ? I S fai t h foun d t o b e exchanged for per
fee t in t ellec t u al Vision in an in t elligi b le reconcilia t ion o f
,
 23 0 PH I L OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

in t elli g i b le science ? D oes it do more t han cover wi t h a

n ew vocabulary what is s t ill mystery hid in n al nu
knowableness as dis t inguished from human knowledge ?

Or o f t im e
( )
2 Then there i s t he mystery of endless existence in ,

l sn ss
es e ,
i t s rela t ion t o m easurable t i m e the al t erna t ive of unbe
co mb i n d e
wit h h i sg inni n g and unending n atural succession ver su s a t imeles s
to i l
r ca
r e l it y ?
a
consciousn ess While human
. u nders t anding has to fac e

t his mys t ery o f mys t eries h o w does th e dialec t ical pro

,

c e d u r e t ransform t he fai t h in t o science ? Is what w e

call pas t o r fu t ure really pas t o r future ? I S th e na t ural
evolution which faith assumes t o b e in real fullmen t
g radually in t ime i s all t his illusion ; s o tha t wha t ever
h appen s mus t as a t emporal b e unreal and t he words
, , ,

b efore and af t er sym b ols o f error ?
Lot e z , In rela t ion t o all t his I nd wisdom in words of per h aps
t he m ost considera t e thinker amo n g later Germ ans The .

words sug g es t t he in adequacy o f a b s t rac t reason t o ex

plain mys t eries which n ever t heless it m ay enable us t o
,

c o ordina t e bu t only in sub ordina t ion t o t h e m oral fai t h

-
,

which I have tried t o S how is m an s nal a t titude
, ,

t o t he universal problem The universal propositions
.
,

upon which human kn owledge depen ds says Lotze are , ,

j ud g men t s which do n o t tell us tha t anythi n g con cre t e

is o r is t akin g place ; t hey only declare what mus t exis t
, ,

o r mus t t ake place i n case cer t ain imperfec t ly known

,

con di t ions should act u ally occur : t hey merely expres s

g eneral rules which w e must follow in t he in t ellec t ual
construc t ion o f t he con t ent o f o u r ideas O n t he con .

t r ary t hose proposi t ions upon which t he S pecial in t eres t

,

o f reli g ion depends for example t h a t God has crea t e d

,

t he world and that t he soul o f man survives death

,

t hese are j udgments which asser t particular concrete fac t s .

The r s t m en tioned general proposi t ion s are nothing b u t

-

abs t ract expressions of for m s o f activity accordin g t o which

reason in i t s o w n abstract na t ure must be exercised O n
, , .

t he other hand dec l ara t ive propositions which assert fact s

,

wi th respect t o t h e orderi n g o f a w orld tha t i s more t han

a b s t rac t reaso n canno t with equal legitimacy be regarded
,

as t he inna t e endowmen t of o u r intelli g ence only b ut are ,

in some sort the resul t of o u r experience .
 P H I L OS O PH I C A L O M N I S C I E NC E . 23 1

Thus the r a ti ona le o f t he reli g ious conception o f the S c i en c e

u niverse see m s to resolve at last in t o the faith which is
a nd F hai t

inco m ple t e science sustained by the spiri tual constitution

,

of m an accordi ng to the h omo m ensu r a or t he d i vi n a

,

m en su r a humanised as t he only legiti m ate hu m an atti

tude in the end . This implies an i m portan t question
abou t the limiting conditions o f human understanding ,

which I will nex t consider .

 L E C T U R E V II I .

F N I AL F AI T H .

Th e n l a T HE
nal human problem about t he universe may be
p r o b l em taken as man s signal obj ect
lesson for illus t ratin
-
g the
o f th ni
e u
v rs i t h limi t of his power t o comprehen d the da t a o f sensuous
e e s e
s ign l h and moral experience
a o
Can our nal rela t ion to t he
j t l ss n
.

se -
e o
for m realities
ea s u r be foun d through exercise o f understanding only ?
i ng m n s n ableness o f o u r nal interpre t atio n

i nt l l i
Must
a not t he reaso
e
gn e ce of life in t he u n iverse depend o n o t her resources t han
.

those provided by scien t ic in t elligence ? Must no t o u r

emo tional and m oral cons t i t ution be at work when w e ,

seek to assure ourselves as to how the world tha t w e

are living and having our bein g in is ultima t ely a ffected
towards us ? I S it possible for m an t o elimina t e al l in
it that is mys t erious o r incomple t ely subj ect to h i s intel
,

l ige n c e ? Is an all comprehending vision o f the in ni t e

-

reali t y in a wholly u n m ys t erious either in t ui t ed o r logic

, ,

ally articula t ed sys t em within reach ? Is man poten tially

, ,

omniscien t if n o t as ye t perhaps wi t h a full conscious

,

omniscience in any case ? Can his in t elligence dispe n se

with a necessary rem ainder o f t he inco m ple t ely i nt el li
g ibl o left for op timis t fai t h t o assi m ilate ? I s no t the
,

con t rary supposition impossible unless m an is identied ,

wi t h God his incarna t e consciousness comple t ely o n e

with t he Universal Consciou sness ? If impossible moral ,

trust an d hope mu s t be ma n s hi g hest form o f life at las t

in rela t ion t o wha t i s comple t ely in t elli g ible only at the

Divine cen t re from which he is e t ernally ex cluded as
, ,

en t rance into i t would m ean d ei c ati o n Under these .

 2 34 PH I L OSO PH Y O F T HE I S M .

of s
m an

and t he n al combina t ion of agnosticism with gnostic i sm ,

k n wl d g
o e e .

in which t he las t word i s moral faith in t he perfect good

ness o r reasonableness of the end towards which all thi ngs
are makin g towards which in vir t ue o f the moral p o s
,

tula t e implied in experience w e are obli g ed t o assume,

that t hey are m akin g John Locke w a s in this matter

.

t h e earlies t spokesman o f m odern religious tho u g h t F or .

i t w as he who deliberately raised th e ques t ion of the

limits of a human unders t anding of the re alities : he
would even unduly restr ain at t empts to translate human
faith into t he divine Vision Locke s et t o work t o nd
.

how far a human understanding co u ld go in knowledge .

He was th e rs t ann ounced represen t a t ive o f this investi

g a ti o n Y.et one n eed n o t take hi s fa m ou s E ssay in

,

w h ich the in quiry is only ini t iated as an ade quate settle ,

men t o f o u r present question abou t the power o f m an as

a thi n ker to think all mys t ery out o f his universe as from ,

the Divine C entre ; in a philosophy o r theology which

should m ake all tha t is presented fully u nderstoo d .

Locke only opened t h e w ay to the ques t ion n o w a t issue

between thorough going agnosticism t horough goi ng ,
-

gnosticism and the conciliation o f the t w o in the optimis t

,

f aith w hich accepts something from each o f the extremes .

The questio n cam e to a crisis when the n ine teenth ce n t ury

w as confron t ed by o n e p h ilosophy that foun d its apo t heosis
in the Unknowable an d another philosophy which seems
,

to claim Innite Reali t y as within comprehension .

T h e in nit e The p h il O S O p h i c caution t hat is characteris t ic o f Locke

o c ean o f
n d s u t teran ce in sentences in his E ss ay which t ell o f

B ei ng ,

i t s occasion and desi g n Th e E ss ay w a s the issue o f the

.

.

perplexities in which human u nderst a n d i n g is in volve d

when man t ries t o co m prehend all m ysteries This it .

w as ,
Locke tells u s which g ave the rs t rise to t his
,

E ssay concerning human understandi n g For I though t .

that th e rst step towards satisfying several inquiries

the mind o f man w as very apt to run i n t o w as to take ,

a View o f our o wn understanding examine our o wn ,

powers and s ee t o what things they were adapted Till

,
.

that was do n e I suspected we began a t the wrong end

, ,

and i n vain so u g ht fo r satisfaction in a quiet an d sure

 FINA L FA ITH . 235

possession o f t he t ruths that most concerned us whilst w e ,

let loose o u r tho u ght in the vast ocean o f Being as if

all t ha t bou n dless extent were t he n a t ural and undis
t d possession o f human unders t andi n g wherein there
p u e ,

w as n othing exe m pt from i t s decisions o r that escaped i t s

co m prehension Th u s men ex t ending t h eir inquiries be
.

yond their capacities and le t ting their tho u ghts wander

,

into t hose d epths where they can nd no sure foo t ing it ,

is no wonder tha t they raise ques t ions and m ul t iply dis

pu t es ; which n ever co ming to any clear resolution are
, ,

proper only t o increase their doubts an d t o conr m the m ,

a t las t in perfect S cep t icism Locke s tone in this e n
.

t e r p ri s e has been d epreca t ed as an illus t ration of the

specula t ive indi fference and compromising intellectual
m ediocrity o f a practical E nglish m an We are also told .

t h at the only w ay to determine the extreme resources

o f man s understanding is fo r men to make trial : let

u s en t er t he water without rs t seeking t o nd in t his

, ,

abs t rac t way whether we are able to swi m ; let u s per

,

sis t in trying in hope o f attaining in t ellec t ual visio n o f

,

the innite universe of reality .

T o s h o w tha t human kn owledge o f t he universe mus t C r i t i i s m c

s


a t las t be left inco m ple t e o r charg ed with mys t eries
, ,
ea

presupposes that reality i s know able by m en although m n , a .

divi n e omniscience is no t within his reach Now the i n .

u i r er w h o recognises tha t he already knows someth i ng

q ,

m ay perhaps nd points at which reason i t self forbids

further approach to co m pleteness u nder th e inevitable ,

human condi t ions o f t hought and experience the point ,

fo r instance at which understanding is arrested by the

,

absence o f experience ; o r by the discovery that there

are indispensa b le constituents and convict ion s o f hu m an
n ature which are spoiled whe n they are t aken as rendered
in t he professedly all co m prehensive philosophy It m ay
-
.

be found that such conviction s cannot be held in S pirit

u al integri ty in the purely intellectual w ay inas m uch as
m
the S pirit in an emotional and moral as well as i ntel

lectual m ay be required as o u r at t i t ude towar d s what

t he hu m an mind can only in part realise in speculative
imagination If it should turn o u t o n inquiry t o be s o
.
,
 236 PH I L OSO PH Y O F T HE I S M .

wha t I called ma n s participa t ion in t he Universal
Reason would t hen b e n a lly an ac t o f t rus t t rus t in

what his spiri t ual cons t i t u t ion requires and authorises ,

bu t which he is una b le to unfold in a wholly u n

mys t erious philosophy In this way su b mission to what .

i s reasonable would at last bear t he character o f s u b

mission t o tr u sted a u th or i ty It would be t he issue o f .

the livin g ac t ion o f th e wh ole m a n a t h i s b est in response ,

t o t he inni t e o r nally divine univers e t o which he ,

awoke in dim sense percep t ion a t rst This is wha t I

-
.

mean when I speak o f human at t emp t s t o de t ermine

t he nal meaning and ou t come of the universe as bein g , ,

in t heir hi g hes t possible human form r ea son a b le fa i th ,

ra t her t han comp leted s ci ence Man as Goe t he says is .

, ,

n o t b orn to solve scien t ically t he pro b lem o f t he uni

verse bu t ra t her t o n d o u t where the pro b lem begins
,
.

I n it n ls I s not t he o t herwise impassa b le gulf b etween O mn i sc

a
o t me
u co
i e n c e t owards which advance in ou r s cientic know
,
m ns

a
k n w l d ge led g e is n o more an approach than addition o f nite
o e
f th
spaces is an approach t o immensi t y or addition o f nite
o e
n i v rs
,
u e e
t k es th
a t imes an e approach t o Et ernity an d ou r scientic under
f rm f
o
standino
g o f the universe t hus prac t ically crossed s u f c i
m r ll y
o a
r s on b l e
ea ently a for human purposes ? I t is bridged over by o u r
f ith
a
spiri t ual humani t y in its rationally authorita t ive b e
.

, ,

cau se indispen sable needs o u r larger reaso n enlarged

, ,

in fai t h reason au t horita t ive as dis tinguished from ,

sensuous understandin g ? I call our nal faith and hope

a u th o r i ta ti ve reason s o far as i t is fai t h an d hope i m
,

posed by somethin g i n the mind di fferen t fro m logical

premisse s : i t cannot b e shown directly to con t radic t logical
in t elligence although t he reality cann o t b e adequately r e
,

presen t ed in scien t ic imagination This may be adap t ed .

for man while inni t ely insu fcien t

,
A s distinguished .

from complete knowledge t his nal t rust accepts t he ,

necessary s cien t ic incompleteness in a fai t h which at

least cannot be disproved an d which accep t s symbol or ,

ri t ual in lack of t he unrealisable in i m a g inative t hought .

R s n in
ea o F a i th tr u s t a u th or i ty These words seem not u n
M n th s
.

a u

b ms
ec o
t t e d t o express the nal a t titude o f the human spirit t o
e
n ll y n wards t he universe i n which we nd ourselves Properly
a a .
 23 8 PH I L OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

k no w man by physical m e t hods an d in t he physically scien t ic

, ,

l edg " ,

m eaning of the term knowledge Y e t in a larger m eanin g

e
.
, ,

t his nal faith o r t rus t is i t self called knowled g e as when

S t Paul says I know in whom I have believed o r when
, ,

S t John ex claims t ha t w e kn ow tha t w e kn ow Him The .

kn owledge tha t G o d is love is t he inevi t able i mp l i
cate o f nal faith in O mnipo t en t Goodness .

T h d tif l e I seem to nd t his philosophy incipien t in those ap h o r

u u

O b di ne
isms e
of ce
Bacon which e xpress nal faith in physical na t u re
f nd r
.

o u e
S t n ding In words spoken by Jesus i n Palesti ne o ne nds nal
a ,

in M n fai t h as t he m oral and spiri t ual a t ti t ude towards t he Uni

a

t tho e
r ti n l
a o versal Power In t he n atura non n i s i p a r en d o V i n c 1 tu r
a .
,

au t h r it y B acon s t rikes t he key n o t e o f reverential submission t o an

o -

autho ri t ative voice whic h must no t be gainsaid al t hough

, ,

i t is only imperfectly comprehensible accepted a t last in

an ac t o f obedience rather t han o f Vic t orious in t elli g ence .

A nd is no t a like idea a t t he root of t he declara t ion t ha t

if an y m an wi ll d o God s will he shall know ? N o t

t hrough man exercisin g himself as a thinkin g being only ,

b ut through the response of the en t ire man still in an

incomple t e kn owledge I t is only thus tha t i t is open
.

to man t o dispose o f his supreme problem wi t h i t s inni t e ,

in t ellec t ual burden Perhaps the chief prot o f s t rug g lin g

.

for the perfect vision may b e the profound reli g i ous lesson
o f i t s inaccessi b ili t y .

R vl e e aThe perfect science in which human spiri t s only par

f
gggilgth o o h i human t hought if t he time measured consciousness
t ic i p a t e is reveren t ial su b mission even in t h e most phil
s
e
t
ac u a s p c ,
-

n i v rs
u

th t a
of
e
ni
ar e
te
e in t elli ence and omniscience
g
D
are at t he end har
i mp r f tl y m o ni s ed only i n un i ma g i nable though t
e ec And w e must also .

submi t t o the mystery of man s personal power t o create
a ny h y acts tha t ou g h t n o t to be acted acts inconsisten t wi t h D ivine ,

M n a Reason and fo r w hich the hu m an person n o t the Power

, ,

a t the heart o f t he universe is alon e responsible These , .

t w o with other mys t eries bar perfect vision The burde n .

o f the rst is not removed b y explaini n g away history an d ,

resolving t he whole a t las t in t o Universal C onsciousness

freed from t he illusion o f succession ; n o r is the mystery
o f t he o t her relieved b y disclaiming moral responsibili t y

fo r man and t hinking of persons as non moral

, The -
.
 F I N A L FA I T H .

reali t y of a pas t and a future dis appears in the o n e ex

pla n ation s o t hat the words before and after b e co me
,

meani n gless wi t h consequent s cepticism as to evolution

,

o f external nature and o f m a n A nd if God can be self

.

revealed as real agen t in wha t are called i m m oral acts of

man how can this be reconciled with th e inevi t able self
,

accusa t ion o f which t he immoral man is conscious which ,

pos t u lates that h e is the origin o f the a cts ? O r h o w does

i t co n sist with o u r reprobation of the im m oral person ?
I t is dif cul t to s ee that modern thought of t he Hegelian D o we
sort has done much towards translating even these two rl f
nd e i e
fo r th e
mysteries a n eternally evolvin g universe an d morally , ys r s
m t e ie
of en d
responsible personality o u t of the darkness in which they l ssn ss
e e
m ust remain unless man can become G o d Philoso phy .
an d

mo r l
a

may S ho w no t withstanding tha t those dualis m s continu e vil i n

, ,
a bs l t e
o u
o u s change and absolute endlessness physical causality i d l is m ?
ea

a n d moral freedom are n ot n ec ess a r i ly i n con s i s ten t w i th

r ea s on. I t may also S ho w that m or a l reason obliges us to

live under their pressure alt h oug h w e cannot fully thi n k
,

either o f the m out in a scientic image but must be con ,

tent wi t h a fr agment at the las t Moreover a Univers a l .

,

Conscio u sness that is supposed to re d uce to illusion the

te m poral processio n of events and t o explain away the ,

moral economy o f persons w h o are independent enough

to originate ac t s that ought n o t t o be acte d t his Uni

versal Consciousness o r sys t e m of rational rela t ions while

, ,

c alled S pirit begins to rese m ble t he Universal S ubstance
,

o f S pinoza o f which no t hing could be predicated while

, ,

i t takes only a semblance o f m eaning from the illusory

things and persons presented in ti me The i n tellectual .

vision which w as t o give relief see m s to an imperfec t

G o d i n a g radual process of self development revealed -
,

in what is after all an illusory revelation a t leas t if

w e are bound t o think G od revealed in and t hrough the
conscious acts o f persons who ar e no t really persons .

O n the o t her hand is it more than t he preten ce o f a

, T he or

perfectly explained organic u nity that Hegelian thought g a ni c
u ni t y
presents if it saves t he reality of out ward events and o f
, , i s i nc o m
n i te persons with their self ori g inated changes ; a n d if I l et el b

-

i m g i n bl
a a e
it is t to rescue divine perfection f rom responsibility u n i t y if ,
 24 0 P H I L O S O PH Y O F TH E I S M .

it s v sa e imm oral
fo r actions of men ? I t is true tha t individual
n it p e
persons er
are n o t conceived b y t he Hegelian t o be m e c h an i
s o n l it ya .

cally parts o f God although they have t heir t rue reality ,

in Him ; bu t t heir or g anic uni t y in H i m seem s to b e

only a term to cover a relation still lef t in the mys t ery

o f necessarily incomple t e i m aginative thou g h t I t is an .

organic u nity t hat passes human realisation ; al t hou g h it

is innocen t o f the gross idea which makes all things and
all pers on s only physical par t s o f O ne B oundless S u b
stance o r physical e ffec t s o f O ne Unknowable Power
, .

A nd t h That He g el an d m any w h o are called He g elians mean

e
, ,
my s t ri s e e
o f n d l ss
e
their e
nal though t t o b e consis t en t wi t h the actu ali t y of
n sse nd the world and wi t h t he moral personali t y o f m an I do not
a , ,
m r l vil
o a e
deny ; nor perhaps can o n e fairly in t erpre t t his philosophy
ar e o nl y
v rb l l y
e a o r t heology pan t h eis t ically in t he obnoxious sense that
r el i v ed
e
involves nal moral and therefore nal physical agno s ti
.

, ,

c is m Its fu n damen t al unity is perhaps elastic enou g h to

.

admit o f b eing interpre t e d so as t o comprehen d b u t in some

s t ill mys t erious way t h e world of successive n a t ure an d ,

the world of hum an spirits without sp oiling the actual ,

i t y o f the world o r t he freedom of persons t o create actions

,

referable to t heir responsible causation But i f so t his .

,

implies t he need for faith o r incomple t ed knowled g e a t , ,

las t Y e t we were led t o expect t hat through Hegelian

.

dialec t ic n al faith could be wholly t ra n sla t e d in t o philo

S O p h i c science with t he burden o f i t s mys t ery all removed
,

n o t merely wi t h t he mys t eries verbally articulated in a

more scien t ic form If there is here more than amended .

sys t ema t ic expression o f the o ld di fculties o n e fails t o ,

n d i t as long as no t wi t hstanding Hegel the burden still

, , ,

oppresses that resiste d all former a t tempts s o t o think ou t

the universe as to eliminate for example the t w o m y s , ,

t e r i es which I have t aken as illus t ra t ions o f man s i n ad e

~

q u a c y o f imagina t ive though t Philosoph y still remains .

knowledge o f some t hin g t hat in the end passes realisable

kn ow l edge known for t he ends of a life which can be
,

lived well if we will ; unknow n because inconceiva b le ,

in the i n ni te n es s of reality I t only sh ows the con .

s t ructive c o opera t ion of h u ma n in t elligen ce in a world

-

conceived af t er all from t h e human poin t o f Vie w S o .

24 2 PH I L OSO PH Y O F T HE I S M .

philosophy with i t s interpre t a t ion o f t he universe o f

,

thin g s and persons in t erm s o f the Universal Reason The .

or g anic uni t y o f Nature and Man in G o d then admits
the moral freedom of a g en t s responsible for themselves
when t hey ac t immorally and also t he reality o f t emporal
,

succession . Iden t ity with Universal Reason and o r ,

g a nie u n i t y o f the universe are then as emphatic expres

,

sions of t he t ru t h t hat men are n ot isolat ed psychological

,

a t oms bu t members o f a moral t o t ali ty in which nal

, ,

moral fai t h in u s is sure t o nd sympathetic response in

t he in completely comprehended Divine Power perpe t u ally ,

active at t h e centre of the Whole S o th e furth er m an

'

pene t ra t es t he more fully divine order discovers i tself ;

,

m ore an d more of what correspo n ds to o u r n al faith is

reco g nised in t he principles th at are determining the
his t ory of t he world ; an d it is see n t hat while m en are ,

free to resis t G od by doi n g evil it is in their har m ony

,

with what is divine that the highes t freedom is to b e

found S o understood Hegelian S peculation becomes only
.
,

a more elaborate dialec t ical expression of man s d i s sat is

faction with the transitory phenomena O f sense in percep ,

tion of which hum an life begins ; and o f t h e O bli g ation

which t he reason that we call ou r s nds to s e e th e universe
o f chan g e in dependence o n the Perfec t Reason that in

broken form is involved in o u r exp erience but under wh i ch ,

we n ever fully comprehend the Whole It becomes a .

Vindica t ion o f the universe as incapable o f bein g conceived

,

as mindless purposeless evolu tion o f phenome a as the

,
n

revela t ion ins t ead o f S piri t to spirits thus relieving the

chill of abstrac t physical science wi t h the warm t h of

O mnipresen t life an d love In t he intellectual analysis
.

of Religion o n e may in this w ay be helped to recognise

,

his o w n m oral personality by i t s mysterious a fnity wi t h

,

the divine system in which i t is involved But even .

this philosophy would be at last an expression o f reason

in t he form o f fai t h founded upon needs i n heren t in
,

i m perfec t human co m prehension A t the bes t i t would.

represen t t he mos t intellec t ual way o f bearing a burden

t ha t is to o heavy for scientic ima g ination It would be .

man s philosophical acknowled g ment o f absolu t e depend
 F I N A L FA I T H . 24 3

e nce upon t he Universal Power t ha t he is never theless

mysteriously able t o resist in his volition s and volun t arily
,

formed habi t s B ut the funda m ental fai t h is weakened

.
,

and dog m atic t emper is encouraged when all assumes the

,

appearance o f being fully t ranslated into philosophical

thought The la ten t rationality o f t he faith may be j us t i
.

e d while i t can never be unfolded by m an in an ex

,

h au s ti ve speculative imagina t ion o f the Reality . T he

j ustica tion o f the faith lies in t his that t he universe o f
experience dissolves in pessi mist doub t when i t s sustaining
inuence is withdrawn The ulti ma t e foundation o f proof
.

must be incapable o f direct proof and i n tellectual reserve

,

S hould be the characteristic o f all hu m an philosophy .

Final Faith is taci t or i m plied trus t t hat nothin g can F in l a

F it h nd
happen i n the t e m poral evolution which will nally pu t t o i ts E nig ma a
a
i n c o mp r e
.

con fusion the moral reason la t en t in Man

h e n s ib l e as the world s his t ory o f mingled good and evil

may appear In what follows we are to con t e m plate the

.

Grea t E nigma which t hreatens t o transform Final Faith

in t o Total D oubt .
 L E CTUR E I .

E VI L O N TH IS P LANE T .

I H AVE been trying t o S how the implica t e in reason T h e

s
which de m ands li a l t rust in the Universal Po w er d if l typ r m u e e
cu
that is nally ope rative i n t h e universe and s o at t he
.

hear t o f experience The ques t ions which next mee t us

.

are concerned wi t h the supre m e di fculty which theis t ic

faith and hope encounter in a universe which at least , ,

o n this pla n et presen t s a strange mixtu re o f what is

,

bad with wha t is g ood This is an obs t acle t o the r e

.

l igi o u s interpre t ation o f t he world which mus t be ,

h ones t ly me t But rst recollect wha t we have alrea d y

.

found .

I t appeared t ha t human experience in the universe T h E th i e

l F n ou
tacitly presupposes t he e t hical tr u stwor t hiness o f the d t i n f ca

a o o
Power t ha t is continuously revealing i t self in i t s events th ni . e u

Knowledge dissolves and conduct is par alysed o n t he s u p v rs e e.

, ,

position tha t t h e Universal Power m ay b e morally u n

trus t worthy ; and the world therefore even physically , ,

uninterpre t able because order i n the evolution of i t s

, ,

events is n o t t o be depended on
,
S uch a universe .

would be either intended to put u s to intellectual and

m oral confusion ; o r if it be an unintended and ao
,

c i d e n t al issue
,
which may return to chaos i t s events ,

would b e equally liable to traverse expectation in t he

end Moral trust in a p erfec t ly reasonable universe is
.

the needed postulate of experience for really unders t and ,

in g any fact o r ch ange This fundamental moral t rust at

.
,

t he root o f experience is commonly sub conscious ; it is

,
-
 24 8 PH I L OSO P H Y O F T HE I S M .

involved however in t he t rust we all pu t in our percep

, ,

tions of things presen t in o u r memories and in the uni

, ,

for m ity of n ature In all these I nd ethical fai t h tacitly

.

implied : a moral acknowledgmen t that the recollections

of memory an d t he supposition o f physical order cannot
, ,

be transi t ory illusions in a t emporal procession o f changes

,

that is all hollow an d decep t ive an d the whole per ,

fo r m an c e the m anifesta t ion n ot o f trustworthy b u t o f , ,

m ali g nant or indi fferen t or irrational Po wer

, , F o r our .

activity in t he universe is dependent on the optimis t

fai t h t ha t t he universe with which we are in cons tant
,

communica t ion t hrou g h experience must be morally

trus t wor t hy per fec t ly good omnipo t en t Power or Per
s o n al i ty being t herein omnipresen t .

C ns ci en e
o c In t his ethical root o f experience o ne nds the germ ,

nd C s
a

al it y
au
of Theis m I t is t h e practically harmonisin g prin cip l e of
.

t he t hreefold articulation o f realised exis t ence the three

.

primary d a t a from which we all s t ar t Th e universe of .

reali ty is nally a mor a l unity incomple t ely c o mp re h en ,

si b le in human in t elli g ence but which moral reason o b liges

,

man t o suppose somehow consisten t wi t h ideal perfection

in the Power t ha t is continually at work in the hear t of
it. Cosmic faith unconsciously involves t his t heis t ic
faith ; for even physical i n t erpre t a t ion o f cosmical order
must b e interpre t a t ion o f t hat in whic h morally trust
wor t hy Power O r Personali t y is bein g ph y sically revealed .

N o w origina t ing p ower i s recognised b y man only in

,

morally responsible Will ; and there is no reason to sup

pose th at physical causa t ion is more th an t he lan g uage of
A ctive Reason o r Will No merely n atural cause ca n be
.

o th er t han a caused cause all at las t e ffec t o f moral

power which m an con ceives o f as vi t al o r consci ous
,

power All S O called natural agency may reason ably be

.
-

re g arded as divine agency ; t h e issue not indeed o f ,

capriciou s will but o f perfect and constantly operative

,

Reason in the form o f Will which may b e t rusted n o t ,

to lead u s in t o illusion a s practical interpreters of i ts

,

revelations given through nature and in man

,
.

T he ph ysi We have found t o o that the universe may no t u n

, ,

c al u ni reasona b ly be interpre t ed as a universe char g ed t hrough

 250 PH I LO SO P H Y OF TH E I S M .

of unbeginning and endless cha ng e need not dis t urb the

,

eternal necessities of moral O blig a tion and the fai t h that ,

man s highest rela t ion in al l this is to Universal Power that

is morally reliable A l t h ough clouds and darkness are
.

roun d a b out the revelation of this Power which is r e ,

veale d in ex t ern al n at u re and in t h e spirit o f m an yet ,

righ t eousness and j u d g ment mus t be t he es t ablish

ment of i t s throne ; and o u r use o f experien ce p r es u p
poses t hat the whole n atural process must be m aking for
the ri gh t eousness in wh i ch is the divine ideal .

D r u a ti o n Wh at is ni t e in quanti t y a n d i t s Innite are m y s teri

j fl d o u s l y blended in o u r idea o f duration a t once innite
l
e e
n it u d e and nite subj ect t o nite measures o f time yet nally
, ,

i m measura b le T ei th er w ay incomprehensible The tem

ggg g
in l i
i e
poral process i nev i t ably resolves a t las t i nto w h a t
.

e je g gu s

60 th e t ranscends temporal li m i t s s o tha t the is sues are p er

,
t 1 .

c ei ve d only as w h at i s beyond i mag i na t i ve t ho u g h t .

y et n l a F o r interminable duration is unimagina b le ; a million o r ,

a million ti m es a million of years being still nite i s
, , ,

of G od . i m ag inable al t ho u gh a human imaginatio n canno t dis

t i n c tl y picture s o prolonge d a succession : bu t en d less n ess
is absolutely unpicturable for a pic t ure contradic t s
,

the t hough t : yet t o suppose dura t ion an illusion i s

n o t less incomprehensible S uccession or change is thu s
.

at on ce cognisable and in co g nisable in hum an i n te ll i

gence s ig nally illustra t ing what the u niverse o f o u r
experience in s o many ways illus t rates when intelligence ,

measured by sense tries fully to realise the Power o r

Personality that n ally anima t es t he whole God like .
,

dura t ion is at once in t ellectu ally appreh ended an d ye t t h e

,

n al mys t ery revealed for m an in m an ; and in all na t ural

,

causation wh en extern al n ature is con ceived according t o

,

t he analogy o f what i s hi g hest in m a n .

p er s o n The word person has been obj ec t ed to as un t fo r
a itl y .
desi g na t i n g t h e omnipresen t Power o r Principle t hat
pervades an d harmonises th e cosmic or g anism maki ng i t s ,
.

evolutions the obj ect o f more o r less developed morally

religious trust an d adoration t o t he persons it contains
, .

To our crude idea o f personali t y the Universal Power

as personal see m s a contradic t ion Inni t e Bein g it i s
.
,
 E VI L O N T H I S P L A N E T . 25 1

ar g ued because all comprehensive mus t be the negation

,
-
,

o f personali t y : for personali t y is antithetical t o so m ething

else t hat is n o t personal an d therefore excluded from t he

,

person This see m s t o mak e personality nite S o I am

. .

asked by a critic to explain how O mnipresent Being can

be personal : ubiquity and personality seem t o h i m i rre c o n
c i l ab l e as ligh t and darkness .

T hose who allege this obj ection t o the nally e thical P rs n l it y e o a

t t r ib as a
o r religious interpretation o f existen ce seem t o include
t d by u e
in t h eir idea o f personality what I shoul d exclude as m n t th a o e
U n i v rs l
irrelevan t ,
irrelevan t perhaps even when the term P w r o e
e

.
a

is applied to human beings cer t ainly when applied t o ,

the Universal Power D oes no t the faith o n which ex

.

p e r i e n c e r e p o s eS t he faith t h at t he universe is nally

trust w or thy and that I am m orally free put man in
,

an eth i ca l relation to this Power ? N o w if person as
, ,

distinguished from thing is t aken as a t erm w h i c hz
,

signalises m or a l relation an d i m plies m oral as con t r asted

,

with merely mechanical or physical agen cy ; and i f the

unive rse in i ts nal prin ciple is practically t reated as an
, ,

obj ect o f moral t rust when we live in obedience to its

,

laws does not t his m ean t hat it is vi r tu a lly personal ,

for us revela t ion of a person rather than o f a thin g that

w e are in cons t an t communication wi t h Perfect Person ,

n o t merely with in nite Thing ? I f o u r deepest relation

must be ethical trust in perfec t wisdom and goodness ,

m aking for the g oodness o f all ni t e persons in all worlds

trust in t he adaptations o f the universe to all who
are willing to be physically an d m orally adapted to
i t this prac t ically m eans t hat o u r deepes t relation
to reality is ethical ra t her than physical : t hat p er
son a li ty in stead o f th i ngn es s is the highest form under

which m a n can conceive God This i s nal moral per .

s o n i c at i o n o r religious concep t ion

,
of t he universe o f,

experience .

But t his primary and inevitable moral pos t ulate does T h I n e

n ot oblige o r even permit t hose who for the reason ll y n i t e or

, ,
na

no w sug g ested speak o f God as Person to a f r m of my s t r i s e ou

P
G o d all tha t is i nvolved in o u r imperfec t personality
9 15 0 :

any more t han t he use o f t he common ter m dura t ion ,

 252 PH I L OS O P H Y O F T HE I S M .

when we speak o f a shor t duration an d e t ernal dura t ion ,

obliges us to suppose tha t e t erni ty mus t be condi t ione d

like m easurable ti m e The personali t y o f God need
.

n o t mean tha t t he Bein g adumbra t ed in Na t ure and Man

is e mb odied and individual self conscious life like the -
,

human t ha t God is or g anise d and e xtended as man now
, ,

is o r omnipresen t as in sensuous ima g ina t ion ; o r t ha t

God has a c o n s c i o u s fe x p eri en c e t ha t is subj ect like ours
,

t o change o f conscious sta te Ubiquity an d eternity we

.

have found t o be for u s t erms which e xpress commin g led

comprehension and necessary incomprehensibility The .

Augus t inian Et ernal Now ins t ead of conscious change
A as appropria t e t o Divine I n t elli g ence h ardly helps us ; for
, ,

sub t raction o f Pas t and Future seems no t t o consist wi t h

the reality o f chan g e an d o f evol u t ion o r with di fference ,

b etween wha t has happened and wha t has n o t yet

happened I t seems t o dissolve all supposed past an d
.

prospec t ive reali t ies in t o illusions Personality in m an .

,

moreover implies m emory ; bu t we are no t bound to

,

s uppose tha t the religious con ception o f t he universe i m

plies memory i n the Perfect Person wi t h whom all
e xperience b rings u s in t o cons t an t in t ercourse Also a .

human in t elligence o f t he world involves reasonin g o n ,

the par t o f hum an persons ; b u t i t does n o t follow t h a t

t he Perfec t Person who speaks to us in t he universe o f
na t ure and man must be conscious o f deducin g con
e lusions from premisses o r o f g eneralisin g under con
,

diti o n s of inductive calcula t ion The personali t y o f
.

God is a formula which implies tha t in rela t ion to us ,

o r a t the human point o f View t he Universal Power ,

manifested in na t ure an d in m an must be regarded a t ,

las t e t hically no t physically t herefore as an imperfec t ly

,

conceived Person n o t as an imperfectly conceived Thin g

, .

T h e ph y . But the nal mys t ery of unbe g innin g and unending

si l y
ce Hl cosmos and o t hers involved in physical evolu t ion are not
s

m
, ,
f
li i t af t er all the pressin

g
burden and mystery o f t his unin
t
V er s e i p ot ell igib l e world For a universe in which the nite in
.

333,23;n qu anti t y and the innite are s o blended as in t he end to

a n ll y
a t ranscend human science is not inconsisten t with absolu t e
,
m r l 0
o a "
lial t rust o n the par t o f the persons who are participa t in g
 254 P H I L OSO PH Y O F T H E IS M .

pu t in t he moral perfection and consequent m akin g for

goodness in all persons fo r the sake o f goodness i n t he ,

P ower that is at t he roo t o f all ? The universe n ow be g ins

t o look un t rus t w or t hy its phenomena therefore u n int er ,

r e t ab l e an d human life hopeless

p ,
.

H w o n ca It is a fact tha t s omeh ow person s o n this plane t are

ore P n o t as they ough t to be
81
E xperience shows o u r world to
gt n b

ec l o e

p r d i t d b e now i n a very s t ra n g e s t ate as B i shop Bu t ler used
e ca e ,

o f t h U ni t o s a ; an d i t d oes not appear tha t i t w a s ever not s o

e

v rs l
e a
y ,

p w r
o e o r t ha t all men W i ll ever be found perfec t ly good
,
H ow .

ggg i
tl tl
t hen can the Universal Power b e O mnipoten t Goodness
la
,
r s

l d i n when t h e continuous evolu t ion o f blended things and

r e v ea e

t h f r m f persons in which t he charac t er of t hat Power is supposed

e o o
,
a w ld or
wh i h n
e
to be
ee
revealed con
_ t a i ns ev i l ? A pers on s
,
character i s
t ina vil ? j udged of by his ac t ions :
s e t he ac t ion o f t he Power t ha t
is continu ously opera t ive in t he universe o f our e x p eri
en ce when it issu es in evil seems inconsis t en t wi th t he
, ,

pri m ary moral pos t ula t e o f e xperience .

O u r exp i I t is true t hat m an s experien ce o f the universe is con

er

i
n ed t o a very n arrow corner o f i t c h i e to t his rem ote
gigat g
s c
o y ,

s nti nt
e t ransi t ory plane t an d to a small par t of wha t i t contains
e
.

E pl n t and self consc i ous perso n s ex i st only W i th i n t h i s l i t tle

lng
1S
n
In deed
s o
a
as
e
far as man s knowledge ,
goes sen t ient beings
,
,
a nd vn e e
-

plane t ; which t hu s fo r him contain s a ll t h at m akes t h e

S n d
e ee a n a l problem in t eresti n g and ominou s If o u r un i verse
p
.

d r t i n had consisted only o f m olecules and m a tt er in m o t ion

u a o
,

withou t sentient beings an d responsi b le persons w h o , ,

feel and t hink and will its t heistic si g nicance would

, , ,

b e gon e in the absence o f all wh o could realise i t , .

A par t from the rela t ions o f outward things t o t he s en

t ient and person al life o f which o u r wo rld is the scene ,

wha t good or evil can be at t ribu t e d t o dead mat t er ?

The mixed g ood an d evil o f the universe as far as m an s ,

experience can carry him resolves into the g ood o r evil ,

that is found in the sensi t ive intellectu al and moral , ,

s t ate o f li vi ng beings o n this plane t B ut what are .

t hey w e m ay be asked as exa m ples o f th e Whole ? O ur

, ,

plane t compared to the s t ellar system is less than a grain

, ,

o f san d compared to all the g rains in the sol a r system ;

and i t s living occupants m ay be more insignican t in

 E V I L O N TH IS P LAN ET . 25 5

rela t ion t o the Whole than the living occupants o f t h at

grain of sand in relation to all the living beings t h at
i nhabit t h e earth N o r after all can m an reasonably
.
, ,

a ssume th a t th e possession o f moral a g ents is a pec u liari t y

o f this plane t alone in t he stellar universe E ach o f .

t h e innu m erable m illion s o f suns wi t h their atten dant

plane t s may be similarly occupi ed ; o r some may be

e mp t y and o t hers crowded wi t h living bei n gs ; and per

so n al life need n o t be conned to organisms located o n

planets o r e xclude spirits able to range through sp a ce o r
, ,

even existing une m bodied T here m ay be sentien t bei ngs .

whose i n tell igence is b rought by th ei r senses into relatio n

wi th a material world tha t presents no n e o f the q u alities
which matter presents to u s ; inas m u ch as they a r e
endowed with n one o f our senses but instead w i t h ve , ,

o r fty or ve h u ndred senses wholly alien to those

,

o f m an These a n d innu m erable other p oss i b i li ti es are

.

open a n d m ay m i n i m ise inde nitely the i m porta n ce o f

,

the m i n g led good and evil in t he current o f m oral and

s entient life as it ows thro u gh m e n and other a n i m als
,

o n this pla n et s o limited in i t s extent and with a duration

, ,

s o brief of i t s individual e m bodied lives .

Bu t after all these li m itations do no t m uch a ffect the B t th i s u

present ques t ion Et hical t rust in the absolute perfection r l i v t h

.
d s n t oe o
e e e e
o f t he po w er at work in the universe i s inconsisten t with d i f l ty cu
f n y Ev i l
any evil in its rem o t es t corner as m uch as with a universe b ing
,
o

e
a

o f u n mixed e v il F a ls u s i n u n o f a ls u s i n omn i b u s
.
,
T rust f n d .
ou

n y wh r
is sh aken even in a man w h o is an y where o r at any ti m e , ,
a e e,
in ni a u
doing what i s wrong ; and n o m a n is omnipotent a n d v rs wh i h e e c

o m niscient Much m ore m ust a single evil des t roy w e ar e

b l ig d t
.

o e o
ethical trust and h ope in the Univers a l Power To believe s pp s .
u o e

in Perfect Goodness i s to believe that a ll i s a t f i gh t th i l l y

'

e ca
tr st u
t o be ; and this f aith is disturbed i f a ny th i ng is found w rt h y t o a

ex i st i n g w hich ought not to exist h owever in Sign i c an t t h r t ,

e oo .

th e place in which it is found an d however rare the ,

occurrence O ne such issue seems t o darke n In nite

.

Goodness And fo r m a n t h e iss u es o n t h is planet are his

.

all in all He interprets the m oral u n iverse by t h e o n ly

.

speci m en of it w hich enters into h is limited experience .

N o w the hardest difculty which man has to m eet i n

,
 25 6 PH I L O S O P H Y O F T H E I S M .

T he e x ist
pu tt ing a religious interpretation upon the universe is not
e n ce Ofl lV

i ng b i ng s
e
the existence o f n at u ral causes un warran t ably supposed
i n th e t o expel instead o f to reveal God I t i s the bad state in .

s t r ng m
w hich man n ds and o t her sentient bei gs on
a e
e n n t o o
s t t in
a e , ,

h h
w ic
h s on
t o e
n o t s o distinguish the possible fro m the impossible as t o
h s pl n t
t i a e

are fo n d assert wi t h some theological pessimists that this is the

u .

worst world possible ; n o r even that it is s o bad t ha t it

were b e tt er for men to pass for ever o u t o f conscious life
t han t o persis t in it under the given conditions Y et .
,

a t t he least t he history of thi s plane t forms a revelation

,

of O mnipo t en t Goodness u nlike wh at an intelligent being ,

o b li g ed to presuppose g oodness in t he universe might be ,

ap t t o expec t .

T h i s d ii Philo puts t h e case plainly in Hume s D ialogues : I t

cu l t y as
must I t hink b e allowed that if a limited human intel
put by
, ,

D av i d l ige n ce utterly u nacquainted wi t h the actual universe

, ,

Hu m e .

were assured before trial that it w as the produc tion of

, ,

a very good wise an d powerful Being he w ould in h i s

, , ,

co nj ec t ures form b eforehand a very di fferen t n otion o f it

from what we nd i t t o be by experience ; nor would he
ever imagi n e m erely from th e se attributes o f its cause o f
,

which he was previou sly informed t ha t t he e ffect could be ,

so full o f vice and misery and disorder as it a ppears in

this passing life S upposing indeed tha t this person
.
, ,

were bro u ght in t o t he w orld assured (on a p r i or i grounds )

t hat i t was the workmanship o f such a sublime and b e n e v
olen t B eing h e mi g ht perhaps be surpr i sed at the dis
,

appoin t ment but would n ever retract his form er belief if

, ,

founded o n any solid argumen t ; since such a limited

intelli g ence must b e sensible of his o w n blindness and
ignorance and mus t therefore allow t hat there ma y be
,

m any solu t ion s of t hese pheno m ena which will fo r ever

escape h is comprehension But supposin g which is t h e .
,

real case wi t h re g ard t o man t h at this intelligen t crea

t ure is n o t a n teced en tly convi n ced o f a S upreme I n t e llig
ence b en evolen t a nd p owerfu l bu t is left to gather such a
, ,

b elief s olely from the appearances o f things this entirely ,

al ters the case ; nor will he ever n d any re a son fo r such

a con clusion He m ay be fully convinced o f the narrow
.
 258 PH I L O S O PH Y O F T H E I S M .

de th a ac t s incon sisten t with obligation t o m an and G o d ; dea t h

ar e ,

$ 1232
h
which painfully separa t es persons uni t ed in fellowship and ,

s nt d in brings the cur t ain down before the act is well begun an d al
e e ,

}
t; most before the dying persons have had t ime t o know where
f fh and w h they e xist th I suppose so m e f the
es e
o ni
e u y ,
a r e ,
o ,

v rse e
evils which o n this s m a ll planet seem a t variance wi t h
, ,

even fairn ess in the Universal Power o u faith in whom ,

hum an kn owledge and li fe tacitly repose It is su s .

i i u s fac t s like these t h a t tend to paralyse the primary

p c o

e t hical postulate o f hum a n experience F o r w h a t cr imes .

_ _

do ani m als endure the t or m e nts w hich s o m any undergo

i n t he evolu t ions o f n ature ? What go od p u rpo s e i s

served by the miseries o f which things are n atural causes

t o m e n an d to other a n i m ated b ei n gs all
;
n atu ral causation is re ally divine causatio n under natural

conditions must all b e c au se d by God ? O n this planet

,

Nature of t en looks cruel and unrelenting or a t leas t ,

indi ffere n t t o th e p ains an d pleasures of its sentien t

inhabi t ants An d th e see m ing cr u elty o r indi fference
.

is fo r all w e can tell prese nted o n a greate r scale in

, ,

other parts o f the s t ellar u nive rs e than o n t his li t tle

planet D o n ot stars s ddenly disappear
. u i n collision ,

it may be wi t h other stars involvin g w e may fan cy

, , ,

the su dden death In agony o f their sen t ien t passengers ;

or continuou s S u ffering beforehand w hile the natural ,

chan g es were g radu ally u n t ti ng their world for livin g

occupan t s ?
Th xist
e e Bu t the greates t enigma presented t o man is the exist
ff fgvil i n ma n of what ou g ht n ot to exis t
ence t he rise o f
,
a

i n th i p t what philosophers call

s er mo ral e vil o r what C hristian e
,

v rs
e e IS
theologians call S in Must n o t th at which moral reason
.

th n l
e pronounces t o be a b solutely i ncons i stent W i th t h e V i tal
a

ised moral obligation which the religious conception

f it h
a involves
.
and o n which
,
o u r faith nally reposes m us t ,

n ot th a t b e contradictory of theistic faith and O p e h ?

Pain error an d death m ay be evil only as seen at a
, ,

human point o f vie w S in is absolutely evil Pain is the . .

correlative o f pi t y and sympa t hy : i t i s a natural and

f )i there
. fore divine m ean s for the education o f spiritu al life .

More over the assumption tha t pleasure ought to be the

,
 E VI L O N T H I S P L A N E T . 2 59

s upreme f moral agen t s is one which reason would

nd i t di t o sus t ain The ideal o f wha t Cudworth
.

c alls th e intellec t ual system o f the universe is some
t hing higher t han pleasure as one may argue from t he
,

c onsti t u tion o f man an d its still dormant ideal .

Bu t the con tinued presence o f wha t is u n condi ti ona lly F S i n or

.

b a d can n ot b e disposed of in this way How t o relieve g i g g k

.
o r
l e

t h e mystery of m oral evil including what seems an unfair

, p l iin d ex a e

d is t ribution of pleasure and p ain and an unfair adj us t l re

,
y
men t o f individual opportunities fo r moral g row t h has Evil , .

been the hum a n perplex i ty from the beginning I t nds .

expression in Hebrew poets like Job and in Greek drama ,

t i s t s like E s c h y l u s Can i t be reconciled wi t h nal moral

.

tr u s t and hope in t he Power tha t is u n iversally revealed

i n external and spiri t ual experien ce o r mus t we subside ,

i n t o total scepticism ?

That this universe of com min gled good and evil mus t E ith er

b e the issue of a cons t an t struggle be tween t wo rival gigs?
E ternal Po wers t he o n e benevolen t the o t her malevolen t
, , ,
or e ls e

i s an ancien t explana t ion of t h e s e strange appearances ggf g gg l

l '

e
The explanation is sy m bolised in the Z oroastrian anti t hesis w h ll y i n
o

o f O rmuzd and Ahriman and i t is n o t without advoca t es
,
l ga?
a
in the modern world I t s i m plied subversion o f the primary
. off er d as e
l t i ns
e t hical postulate withou t which experience is untrust :i

, i
t vi
worthy must alone discredit this dualis t hypothesis with
, ,

those W ho are no t prepared t o yield a t last to uni

vers al agnos t icism and pessimist despair A like difculty .

a t tends t he Monis m which concludes either tha t the

, ,

Universal Power revealed in the world is a Power o f

, ,

m ixed g ood and evil correspondin g to the m ixed pheno

,

m en a which surround us ; o r else t ha t i t is Power blindly

indi fferent to happiness or misery moral good or moral evil ,
.

Manichean dualism in t he form o f t wo e t ernal Powers

, ,

good and evil and Monism or a single eternal Power

, , ,

par t ly good and partly evil o r else indi fferen t are bo t h

, ,

inconsistent with the indispensable moral fai t h and hope .

A gain The t radi tion al t eaching of popular Christian

T e mp t a
.
f
th e
theology a tt ributes the evils which a fict men and other

o f the race

a nimated h e i n s o n t his planet to a
g fal l o n ly a p ro

 260 PH I L O SO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

vi s i o na man as su ch from i t s divine ideal in t o a mainly ani

l ex of , ,

Pl n t n
a
mal and sinful condi t ion caused b y t he t emp t at ion o f a
a lo '

supremely wicked person t he D evil in W hom t he E vil in , ,

t he universe is personied The rst man yielded t o t he .

D evil in consequence all men are predisposed t o sin and

su ffer t hrou g h inherited O pposi t ion to t h e Divin e I deal
,
.

This m ay sa t isfy those who do no t care t o press th e

ques t ion Bu t i t only moves t he mystery a s t ep b ack
.
,

while i t even ag g ravates i t I t t hrows n o li ght upon .

t he mix t ure o f evil wi t h g ood in t he u niverse even if ,

t he fac t s on which it proceeds are admit t ed Wi t h this .

E vil S pirit t he occasion of wickedness in m an an d sin in ,

consequence involved in th e na t ural his t ory o f t he human

race t he fac t of i t s pre exis t ence in the W icked S piri t -

remains un explained ; wi t h t he added di f cul t y o f a n a tu r a l

t rans m ission of s in which see m s to reduce sin t o physical
,

evil ; t o tr ansform m oral o r immoral persons in t o non

moral t hin g s ; and t o des t roy personal responsibili ty If .

t he D evil is an E ternal Power c o ordinate wi t h God we ,

-
,

are lan d ed in Manicheism with i t s t w o gods neither o f , ,

which can properly be called God and the issue is an

un t rus t wor t hy universe If he is a fallen nite person .
,

h o w entered m oral evil into him ? The difculty is aggr a

vat ed Wha t is immoral some h ow arose in t he D evil
.
,

and is n o w na t urally transmi tt ed amo n g men in a uni ,

verse which i s nevertheless postulate d to b e a revelation

, ,

o f O mnipo t en t Goodness .

C n m r l
a These conjec t ures all fail t o j us t ify tru s t and hope in
o a

of
t he Power universally a t work in t he universe which con
n it p e t ains w ha t ought n ot t o exist There are o t her co nj ectures
o
er .

n ht
accordin g t o which s i n i s explained away F o r t hey imply
zg f t
a ?
.
o e
i nt t
r ac t hat i t s appearance 1 s u ncond i ti ona lly n ecessar y i n a world
o f n i te persons Finitude mu s t include imper fection i t
tt r
.
,
a e
or
m ey i t v i s argued
e eh C on t ras t o r an t i t hes i s i s unavo i dably i nvolved
.

b in individuali t y which must b e t he product o f opposed

ffgd ,

Ewe}
a
, forces and charac t er is n aturally formed b y the struggle
es e ,

n s o f ev i l W i th g ood
e a
Good it is assumed can exis t only by
.
, ,

co t I O n W i t h existing E vil : a tt rac t ion involves repulsion ,

and posi t ive involves nega t ive electricity In innite u n .

individual Power alon e can perfec t ion be realised wi t hou t ,

 262

L E CTUR E II .

TH EI S TI C O P T IMI SM .

A t s th
c at M O R A L evil is no t an abs t rac t ion I t I s ac t ually found i n
.

fgggfg
t
d a ,
t he lives o f h uman persons w h o occupy this planet .

The appearance o f S ex t us Tarqu i n that m onster of

.

foun d in ,

m en

cruel t y is t aken by Leibniz as an example o f t he lurid

,

fac t s which t hreaten to paralyse t heis t ic faith casting ,

dou b t o n t he moral meaning of t he universe Leib niz .

t ries to ex plain t hem in th e celebra t ed optimis t t heory

unfolded in his T h odic e

.

Bu t Tarquin and Nero
and Caligula are n o t singular among monsters w h o have
appeared in human form an d occupied thrones as well
,

as places from t hrones downwards in the history o f ,

mankind t o the presen t hour t he source o f told an d

u n t old misery in myriads o f living bei n g s For moral
.

evil is found in more t han a fe w persons E xperienc e .

o f men sug g ests a mys t erious t endency in m an to decline

from his true ideal ; a disposition which se ems t o

work in human bei ngs from t he b eginnin g o f their per
so n al life ; W hich w e are conscious ought to b e resis t ed ,

an d agains t which t he policy of mankin d ough t t o be a

cons t ant stru ggle sus t ained in persis t en t endeavour to .

recover divine life an d rise in to the ideal man I h .

deed t he reli g ious concep t ion of t he universe is s t rangely

ap t t o decay no t withs t andi n g t he h O p e and courage which
,

i t s development in spires . The ingenuity o f some is ex

h a n s t ed in searchin g for ar g uments throu g h which t o
escape from t heistic hope in t he Universal Power an d ,

t o conclude t hat conscious life is no t wor t h living ;

 T H E I S TI C O PTI M I S M .

so t ha t the sup re m e end o f man should be to ge t o u t of

consciousness nally ; if it i s possible for a being wh o is
O nce conscious to beco m e nally i m pe rson al an d u n c o n
scious H o w a n d w h y there should especially n o w in
.
,

E u rope be this pessi m ist disposi t ion this pre f ere n ce of

, ,

t he m erely physical faith th a t t a ke n alone is untrust

worthy instead O f n al f aith in t h e trust w orthiness o f
,

the Whole i s dif cult t o u n dersta n d

, The perverted .

an d degradin g for m s which re l igio n of t en assu m es prob

ably i n par t a cco u nt fo r it i n a re ned civilisation .

O n t he whole w e nd that m uch which ought n ot t o T h pp r

,
e a a
t l n en
exis t and which need n o t exist i s f ound in t his corner s is t y f
, ,
en c
uco

o
o f the universe ; w hatever m ay be the c ase in othe r Ev il i t h

n e
ni v rs
planets o r a t other periods t h a n that sec t ion o f u n be W i t h m r l
,
u e e,
o a
ginning duratio n which is e m b r aced i n our o w n scanty t r s t i u n
th
historic record T he existen ce o f W hat o u ght not t o exis t v r l
.
n
,
e
e u
s a
i

in a universe which i s tacitly a ssu m ed as a conditio n of P w r , o e .

experience t o b e sel f revel a tion o f O m nipotent G ood

,
-

ness is the perplexi ty o f persons w h o desi r e to retai n

,

m or a l faith in the nal o u t c o m e o f experie n ce as the ,

divin e basis o f life T he sel shness inj u stice and cruel ty

.
, ,

found amo n g m e n ; n o t to speak of the cruel i n d iffe r

ence o f external n ature to the hap piness of livin g bein gs ,

seems n o t t o consist with the n atural evolution being a

ma n ifes t ation o f perfectly trustworthy charac t er in the
Universal Power I t inclines the sceptic to treat the
.

Whole as non mor al o r funda m entally i m personal It

-
,
.

sugges t s surrender o f the lial tr u st and hope that the

Power to which what is highes t i n m an responds is c o n
t i n u all y at w ork in a n d around u s in order to assimilate
, ,

all persons t o Himself A universe i n w h ich n othing tha t

.

ought not t o appe ar ca n ever m a ke its appe arance seems , ,

in o u r rst t hought to be the only possi b le ma nifestation

,

of the in nitely good Power pres u pposed in the religious

conception whic h is the tacit basis o f e xperience Doe s .

no t t he rise into life of that whic h conscie n ce oblige s m a n

to condemn as absolutely evil involve either imp e r f ec t ,

goodness o r de cien t power either w ay the n al u n

trustworthiness o f all that man has to rest o n eve n for ,

interpretin g matter ? Does n o t t h e existence of vi c e an d ,

 2 64 PH I L OS O PH Y O F T H E I S M .

i t s con t inue d t olera t ion on this plane t mean n o t inni t e , , ,

goodness b u t indi fference to goodness on the par t o f t he

,

O mnipo t en t Power ? The supposed divine guaran t ee fo r

indu cti ve fai t h in experience i t mig h t b e ur g ed mus t , ,

b e a Power t ha t is ei t her n o t willing to hin d er t he

f en tran c e o f wha t ought not t o enter
; o r no t a b le t o do so ;
) lo r else b o t h willing an d able The las t supposi t ion alone .
,

i t i s taken for g ran t ed corresponds t o t he idea of omni ,

po t en t m oral perfec tion But tha t t he Power at t h e roo t .

o f all is n o t both able an d willing t o bar the exis t ence o f

what ou ght n o t t o exis t seems proved b y t he fac t t ha t ,

m oral and physical evil exis t s a t leas t in o u r li tt le plane t ,

ary home Th e sin and the s u fferin g tha t abounds in

.

human life an d h Sb nti n t l ife here ar g ues ei t her im

I i
'

, ,

poten ce o r imperfec tion a t work in an experience such

as t h i s ; and i t p ro d u c es paralysis of fai t h and hope
'
'

Wh en t his human ex p erience is t aken as sufcient proof

of indi fferen ce and impotence combined in the Universal
Power .

T h th is
e e The reli g ious concep t ion of the universe is necessarily
t i i nt r
op t imis t in as far as it implies t h at the Universal Power
c e
p r t t io n
o a
,

o f th e is perfec t ly g ood To believe in G od is t o b elieve t ha t

.
,

ni v rs i
u e
O p ti mi s t
e
whe s
t her o r no t men are as good as t hey migh t b e an d ,

t herefore ough t t o b e t he Divine Idea in t he W hole could

.

not be be t ter To suppose t ha t the n atural procedure of

.

th e Universal Power is a revela t ion which contains what

is bad seems t o mean t hat the universe is n ot the ou t come
, ,

o f perfect goodness but o f a Power tha t is indifferent, ,

or even hos t ile t o wha t morally ought t o b e ,

This .

Power wha t ever o t her n ame might b e given t o i t coul d

, ,

no t b e called God when God means in nite goodness per ,

s o ni ed : only a s s u ch is G o d t he g roun d o f the absolu t e

t ru s t tha t nei t her o u r physical n or o u r moral experience

,

in t he cosmos ca n in the end pu t the persons w h o

have the experience t o intellectual o r moral confusion .

To s u ppose that the Divine I d eal embodied in t he uni

verse could b e b e tt er than i t is means t ha t evil more or ,

less b elongs to t ha t Ideal ; t hat t he Universal Power is

morally un t rustworthy in s t ead o f bein g t he personie d ,

moral o b li g a t ion implie d in t he primary pos t ula t e o f life

 266 P H I L OS O PH Y OF TH E I S M .

or mo r al t he mora l perfec t ion o f t he Universal Power ; o t her s

; ggf
h

r
p explain
sa '

away moral evil making it an un condi

,
t ional
n ecessity of all nite beings ; o r trea t ing i t as an unreal
n ega t io n for which n o power a t all can be presupposed
,

not t o speak of a tt emp t s t o hide t h e dif cul ty o f m oral

evil in m an b y referrin g i t in an aggrava t ed form t o o
, , ,

t o the personal a g ency o f a superhuman spiri t o r t empter ,

.

Manichean du alism ; monis t ic indi ff erence if no t m alev ,

o l en c e ; an a b solu t e necessity for evil in a universe ,

which consis t s o f ni t e t herefore necessarily imperfec t , ,

bein g s necessi t y for evil caused by intrac t able Mat t er

t hese are all specula t ions which either des t roy moral faith
in t he Universal Power o r t ake away t he difference ,

be t ween what i s an d wha t ou gh t t o b e They leave u s in .

a universe tha t reveals persisten t collision b e t ween t w o

rival Powers o f g ood and evil or t h a t reveals a Universal
P ower indi fferen t t o good even in t endin g evil ; o r nally ,

a universe t hat consis t s o f n o n moral thin g s only t o t h e -

,

exclusion of persons good or bad .

A n nw u The ques t ion w h y God ad mi t s into t he universe wha t

ar

giggg i
is b ad seems t o,
involve an u nproved assump t ion It .

as u m s t h a t d ivin ely n ecess i ta ted a b sence o f evil mus t b e

s e w

i ii: i t s el f alone g ood s o t h at o nly i mpossibility o f evil

_ ,

ev
eh m aki n i t s appearance i s consisten t wi t h O mnipoten t
g u a

G OO S What ought n o
e t t o exist i t is assumed canno t , ,

coexis t wi t h God But has t his do g ma ever been proved ?

.

Can i t be shown tha t the di f culty of subsumin g a mix ed

u n iverse u nder t he reli g ious o r opti m is t conception is as
g rea t as t ha t involve d in t otally a g nos t ic pessimism with
t h e arrest which this pu ts upon a l l in t erpre t a t ions o f ex
r i e n c e including even those o n which life i t self depends
p e , ,

s o tha t suicide is its logical issue ? Cosmical trus t in

experien ce is inconsis t ent wi t h a radically u n t rus t wor t hy
universe .

M st u a Perhaps i t m ay t urn ou t af t er all t hat t he roo t question -

here is Whe t her it is morally n ecessary t h a t t he univers e

d
u n i v rs h e in which t he S upreme Power is r eveal ed s h o u l d b a a uni
e e
n i v rs
a u
verse
e e
only of th i ng s to t he exclusion o f i ndi vi d im
, l p ersons ,
4
n" f f
.

o o
h eh m ml we h o as moral agents
,
mus t be ab le t o m ,
a k
d
e th em se lv es b a_d -

t h i ng s ; May t he perfe ct ideal include the existence of p er s ons

or
 67
6
T H E I S TI C O P TI M I S M .
)
n-l

with the implied possibili t y o f their maki ng themselves m y it n t a o

bad and keepi n g t hemselves bad which last means ni t l s in l de a o c u

,
p e er
m aki n g t he m selves gradua l ly worse ? N o w a m aterial s n s wh , o , o,

m st h v u a e
persons th i ngs w h ic h exis t as a means for i nte r c o mmu n bs l t
-
a o u e

i c ati o n o f persons and for their in t ellec t u al an d spiritual p w r t o e o

,
m k a e
education seems t o be the sor t o f universe w e nd our t h ms lv s e e e

selves ih if w e m ay j udge by the appearance it presents

h
b d ? a

in this l i ttle corner T he m or a l education o f man looks

.

like a c W en m a er is regar e
mean a t the highest h u ma n point o f V iew ; for I am
,

far from supposi n g that the universe is only this o r no t ,

m uch more t han this ; o r that if m a n could become

divinely o m niscient the w hole di fculty might n o t dis
appear i n the full light o f perfec t reason
,
Bu t as the .
,

case i s man can in t erpret the universe only under human

,

conditions A h omo men s u r a i n terpretation o r a D i vi na

.
,

m ensu r a hu m anised gives h i m the hu m anly related uni

,

verse which i s really all that he has to do w ith

,
An d .

this h u ma n mea n i n g m ay be even e t ernally true under

the human relations : at any rate it is enough for o u r ,

spiri t ual a s well as physical life .

May it not be that the perfect ideal o r wha t ough t C n p ,

a er

to exist accordi ng t o the innitely good sys t e m o f the i n ir t f s ns f r o ,

ee ,
V ue o
universe includes the p oss i b i li ty of the entrance into exist t h ir m r l
, e o a
p rs n l
ence and the continuance of states o f human bei n g s which t t
, ,
i
e o
o re
a

y
ought not to exist ; but which do not exist by an absolute s i st , as
w ll t
necessity only in and through the will of personal a g ents ss imil t
,
?
a
e as
a e,
o

A S moral a ge n hs p e rs o n s must be f ree to o r igiil ggw o l un d iv ine

, ,

t ary acts tha t are bad or u n d i vm e as well as r o lnntary l i f x i s t e, e ,

th is
,
in
t

a e
acts the divine order acts o f whic h t i l l y i n ca

t y must t be the ori g inating causes if th ey t p t b?l er re a e

n iv rs
,
u e e
may be held m orally responsible fo r the ac t s Now have .

w e su f cient reason t o t ake for granted that a universe in

Which inni t ely good Power i s revealed mu s t be a universe
that consists only o f n aturally necessitated an d therefore ,

M ay i t not contain r e s p9_n s b ly acting

__i
nd its larger issues in their educa
Does n o t n ecess i ta ted absence o f s in
and sorrow mean no n exiSt en c e of p ers o ns a nd existence o f
-
,
 268 P H I L OSO P H Y O F T HE I S M .

unconsciou s things only ; o r a t mos t o f conscious au t oma

tons not properly persons ? And is th i s necessarily t he
hi g hes t ideal o f the universe that man even can form ?
O n t he contrary is not a world t hat includes persons
,

b etter than a wholly non moral world from which persons -

,

are ex cluded say o n accoun t of t he risk of the en t rance

into exis t ence o f what ou g h t n ot to exist throu g h the ,

personal power t o ac t ill implied in morally responsible

individual a g ency ? I f s o m ay no t a cts whi ch ough t n ot ,

to ex is t enter in t o ex is t e n c e t h rogh the agency o f persons , ,

perfect o r d i vi n e i d eal o f th e W hole ?

' '
'

Persons or dependen t bein g s who c a n o rigi nat e volun t ary

,

acts that ought not to be acted need no t be excluded if , ,

God can admit an d sustain persons consisten t ly wi t h p er ,

feet Goodness G o d ca nn ot m ake actual wha t involves

.

express contradic t ion namely t he e xis tence o f a person

4 -
,

who is no t a person ; for individual personali t y involves

If t his Se em s t o limi t

responsible freedom to ac t ill .

Omnipotence o r make God nite t he al t erna t ive supposi

, ,

tion that th e e xistence of beings wh o are morally r e

sponsi b le for t heir acts is impossible for God in a perfectly
consti t u t ed universe is s urely not less a limita t ion o f
,

omnipotence I t is a limi t ation too tha t is imposed only

.
, ,

on the ground of a residuu m o f incomple t e or mysterious

conception implied in t he idea of individual o r nite per
s o n al i t y ; whilst the obstacle t o a b eing existing who is ,

at once a responsi b le person and ye t unable to ac t freely , ,

lies n o t in its m ere mys t eriousness b u t in i ts eviden t ,

a b surdi t y
w
.

A o nt rc a
i n c
h a c ontradic t ion presen t e d in t he s upposition

di t y
id l
c or

ea t
of
a
f r ee i ndividu al agen t s w h o a r e n o t f ree t o d d w h at o u gh t

d

,
n ot t o b
e The asser t ion that the inni t e r fe c
'

o n e inc o ne ? p e
l d ing nd tiO n of G o d necessita t es t he persis t en t g oodness o f all
c u a
e x l d in g
c u
indivi d l b eings living in t he divine universe is t o asser t t ha t
ua ,

p rs ns
e o
irrationality
, rather than reason is at the roo t of all .

ca nn t b o e
t h D i v in
e I t is no abate m ent of omnipo t ence tha t an express con
e
or P rfe t trad ic tio n cannot b e realised by O mnipo t ence A con
e c
i de l
.

a
t r ad ic t io n in terms is irrational : to s ay that if God is
.

perfec t free agen t s ca n not produce voli t ions that they

,

ou g h t no t t o produce and that con t radic t moral reason ,

 27 0 PH I L OSO PH Y O F TH E I S M .

r
el eya n t A person whose
. immoral volitions could no t ,

according to the divine laws o f na t ure be followed by ,

t he changes which he in t ended would still remain r es p o n ,

sible fo r t he deliberate intention ; b ut plainly not for

physically impossible consequ en ces these bein g divinely ,

determined according to the mechanism o f n ature and ,

s o withdrawn from man s personal power and there

,

fore from his personal responsibility His responsibility .

'
fo r badness is measured by his power t o make W hat
s
s
accountable : h e cannot be the real a g ent of an ac t
which has n o t originated in himself bu t which must ,

b e referred t o the ordered course o f Nature as an ,

e ffec t then n o t o f his imperfectly reasonable will bu t

, ,

o f A c t ive Reason in G o d q u e t i o n about

. -

"

t he existence o f wicked acts , and who is responsible fo r

them turns upon the previous question Whether the
,

human person is the p ower t o whom the ac t is nally .

J
whe
-
t her acts apparently his are i n reality

Onl y I i at u r al e ffec t s of caused causes an d nally of the

' '

,

Universal Power ? D oes I ough t mean that I ca n ,

o r only t h a t N a tu r e G od ca n ? I t is impossible
for fallible m e n t o perceive in each case with infalli b le
c er t ain t y th e lin e which separates overt acts for which

an individual person is responsible and events which ,

s hould b e referred t o the divine mechanism o f nature .

We often cannot know whether the over t action is the

m an s o wn ac t ion for which he alone can be blamed ;

,

o r how far it is due to the m echanis m o f nature or o f

socie t y fo r which he is n o t responsible B ut moral .

responsi b ility is measured b y personal power to do or

n o t do that fo r which there is moral responsi b ility A .

pe r s gn is m gr a l,

Ly respons
_
ible only _
fo r s elf ori g inated
volition and for ex t ernal cha nges w hich h e foresees that
,

t he volition will be n aturally followed by according to ,

t he order o f nature .

P rs s
e on as Personal origination of ac t s in m oral freedom from the ,
r l
e at e d to Power tha t operates in all n a t ural uniformi t ies I assume
t l ,

gi gi
n on. t o be t he fundamental postulate of i nd i v i dual respons i b i l i t y .
 TH E IST I C O P T I M I SM . :2 7 1

S o th a t a who l ly p h ysi c a l s c ien c e of m an w h i c h c on c erns ,

i t self on l y wi t h t he n a t ural law s of whi c h t he human b ody

is t he t hea tre overlooks t ha t b y w hi c h man is dis t in
,

u i s h e d a s a ra t ion al sp i ri t t h at whi c h m a kes hi m a

g
s y m b o l o f t he in ni t e l y g oo d P o w er or c o n s t an t A g en t ,

i n t h e physi c al uni v erse S o far as a person i s rea l ly

.

a person s o f a r a s th ere a r e even t s fo r which h e

a lon e is m ora ll y responsi bl e h e is i n a manner ex t rica t ed

from t he me c h a nism of na t ur a l causa t ion ; b e ca use h e is

in clu de d i n t ha t hi gh er economy t o whi c h t he na t ural
me c hanism is in ha rmonious su b ordin ati on and for t h e ,

s a ke of whi ch i t a p pears t o ex i s t .

A no t her ag en c y t h a n t he h uman O pera t es i n and t hrou g h I n d ivi du al

o ur in t e ll ec t u a l a nd emo ti on a l cons ci ousness ; b u t t h e g it
p o w er t o or i g i na t e de l i b era t e vo l l ti o n s for w h i c h h e i s i mpli e s
l p
m er '

responsi b le mu s t b e th e person s o w n w h o i s responsi b le fgi dh

t

for t hem : h e c anno t b e on l y the i r n at ural ca use ; nor c an p ersons

t hey b e na t ura l ly c aused w hi c h is in th e end t o b e ,

d ivine l y c aused : t hey mus t ori g ina t e in t he i n div i d ual b d , a ,

i f h e is responsi b le for th em A nagent c anno t b e person .

al ly respons ib le w ith o ut or ig ina ti ve i n div i dua l po w er .

O n e may u n d er th e i deal of n at u r al n ecessi ty s up pose a

"

universe i n w h ich A ll is n at u re a l th ou gh i t ma y b y a ,

ct ion b e c a ll ed divine na t ure ; a nd th is suppose d u ni

v erse may seem more wor t hy tha n t he a ct ua l uni v erse ,

w ith i t s s i ns and sorrows on th is plane t Bu t i t would .

b e a u ni v erse free from th e ri sk of wi c ked persons on

mor a l t rial only on c on d i t ion t h a t it mus t also b e emp t y
'
,

of o d persons on mor a l t r ia l To re l ieve t h e universe

'

g o .

o f a ll r i sk of any thi n g exis t in g in i t whi c h ou g h t no t t o

e xis t persons on moral t r i al mus t b e reduce d t o non

,

m or al th in g s M oral l y accoun t a b l e a g en t s mus t b e ex

.

c l uded To ar gu e that t h e i deal of t he u n i verse canno t

.
_ _.

b e perfe ct a nd t ha t t he U pive rs al P o w er c anno t b e ever

,

a c t ive and in ni t ely ood i f mor al evi l w i h n at ur all y

\
g , t ,

c onseq u en t su ff erin g i s fo nd a ny wh ere i n i t imp l ies

, , ,

d oes i t no t that
,
God ca n n o t b e God if w e n d a _
,

plane t con t ain i n g perso nal a g en t s on m oral tri al ? A

c ircl e d es tit u t e of th e essen tia l proper t ies of a c ir cl e

c o u ld as w ell b e s u pposed t o exis t as a ni te person ,

 P H IL OS O P H Y 0F THEISM .

on moral t rial w h o is w a n t in g i n wh a t i s essen ti al t o

,

a person on moral t rial .

Th e re al S o th e real q u es t ion seems t o b e a prev i ous q u es t ion

i
$ fg th e exis t ence of i n d i vi d u a l p er sons is cons isten t
s:

t h e ex i s t M ay depen
fdfvi l ua
keep th em
p er s on i selves
s s b elow t he i r i deal ; and if some of th em do s o w h y ,

i t nt
CQ D S S
are
e
n o t suc h a g en t s for ever w i th dr a wn s o th a t mor a l
W it h th
,
el s
t i c p t im e v1 1 may a t leas t no t b e an endless elemen t i n ex i s t ence ?
o
i m?
s
O ffences mus t needs c ome if p ep s ons exi st ; b u t th e

w oe i s t o th e persons b y wh om t hey come I ndeed .
,

person s may seem t o i nvolve risk of e vi l as lon g a s th ey

exis t I t does no t appear th a t even om nipo t ence ca n
.

exclude w h a t o ugh t no t t o ex i s t w h i l e th ere are b e i n g s ,

w h ose essen ti al c h ara ct er i s t ic i s t h a t th ey are a bl e t o ,

b rin g thi s i n t o ex i s t ence ; an d w h o c a nno t lose power of

res i s ti n g t he d i v i ne order and of excludin g d i vine lif e
,

from t heir l i ves with o ut los i n g th eir mora l per s onal it y

,

an d b e c om i n g only non mor a l th in g s -

.

I a un i
s I s m a n abl e t o show t ha t only a w orld emp ty of p ei sons '

hi
ver s e r
co nt m a
c s
an b
c
e a divine world t ha t t he div i n e w or l d mus t b e

p ersons a world cons i s t i n g only of th n s i n c lu dm cons c i ous

i g g
3 1 3 t h i n g s or a u t oma t ons but with o ut moral personal it y ?
10 3 9 11
,

$ 32?n Would it e n h an c e th e perfe cti on of God i n N a tu re t hat

free t o no thi n g in t he form of g ood and ev i l h u man ag en cy s h o ul d
m k th m
a e e

se lv es b d a ppe a r i n v olved i th e course of na tu re th a t eV 1 l s h ould

a n

%
1 ec es
b e ex c l ude d b y g oodness i n th e form of mora l ly t r i ed
,

personal l i fe b ein g also ex c luded ? I s it on l y on th os e

vor tl y a n d t erms th a t man can consen t t o re g ard th e u n i v erse r e
i l
l

l igi o u s ly as th e revela t ion of t r u s t wor th y P ower v it alis

,

in g a perfe ct moral i dea l ? A re we o b li g ed t o s ay th a t ,

t he p resence of a s i n g le ev i l even under t h i s condi t ion i s , ,

ne c ess a rily in c onsis t en t w i th a re ligi ous c on c ep ti on of t h e

Wh o l e and t herefore wi t h presuppose d perfe ct g oodnes s
,

of t he Universal P ower A d i v i ne l y ne cess it a t ed g oodnes s

.

in all persons wh i ch des t roys respon s i b ili t y and t herefore

, ,

t he g oo d ness i t se l f is self con t radi ct ory A responsi b le

,
-
.

ag en t mus t b e in t rus t ed with p o w er t o d i s t ur b t h e as

sum p tion t h at a ll pe rsons i n a d i vi ne u n i verse m u s t b e
,

al w a y s g ood .
 2 74 PH I L OS O PH Y or TH E I S M .

th en R ome b ec ame a g rea t emp i re with i ll u s t r i ou s ex ,

a mples of man li ness ; t hou g h a l l t h i s i s as no th in g

t o t he n a l iss u es of t ha t e t ernal ideal in w hi ch wi c ked
Tarquin and t he g loriou s R oman E mp i re are found as ,

h ereaf t er t o b e re ali sed i n admir i n g t hou ght when af t er , ,

a pass ag e from thi s mor t al s t a t e t o a b e tt er th e g ods ,

s h all h ave made us a b le t o conce i ve th e W h ole .

Th e ar gu A n o bj ec ti on t o th e reli g io u s meanin g of th e un i verse

ment o f w hi c h u n derl i es thi s al l e g ory of L ei b n iz m ig h t b e su g
L ei b n i z .

g es t ed .C an a P ower w h i c h sus ta ins a u niverse th a t

con t a i ns ev i l w h en e it her th e ev i l mi g h t h ave b een lef t
,

9 ou t or th e u niverse no t h ave c ome in t o ex i s t e nce b e

, ,

said t o do w h a t i s perfec t ly g ood ? God m a kes a w orld

{
i n w hi c h th ere i s ev i l w h ic h could no t h ave b een made

with o ut ev i l i n it b u t w hi c h need n o t h ave b een made

,

all T h e i nferen c e seems t o b e th a t th e power t o

'

at .

which thi s m i xed world is all referre d h as no t done wh a t

\
\
ou ght t o b e done L e ib.n iz rej e ct s t he assump t ion th a t
\ un i verse in which th ere i s ev i l m a y no t b e t he b es t
a

world ; for it may b e th a t th e evi l i s t he na t ural p a ren t

of th e g ood A n imperfec ti on i n par t may b e needed
.

fo r th e perfe cti on of t he Whole A g eneral will prefer

.

a g rea t vic t ory w ith a w oun d t o loss of t he b a ttl e w ith

ou t th e w ound S i n m a y in t roduce i n t o th e universe
.

s ome th in g b e tt er t h a n wha t could h ave b een b rou g h t in t o

exis t ence b u t for s in I n t h at c ase a w or l d with s in i n
.
,

i t is con cl uded t o b e b e tt er t h a n a w orld wi th ou t s i n .

Bu t L e ib n iz fa i ls t o s h o w h ow th e supposed b es t i deal
makes th e ev i l found in th e w orl d i ne v i t a b le or h ow a ,

w orld in w h i ch n o t hin g c ou l d ex i s t th a t ou g h t no t t o
exis t m i ght n o t b e .

Th e i n f su Th i s form of t he i s tic op t im i s m seems t o make moral

i n y of
c e c
h i s o p t im evil no t some thi n g w hi ch th ere i s a n u n c ondi t ional o b l i

m at i o n t o c ondemn b u t r at her w h a t mus t b e admi tt ed as

is .
g ,

in i t se l f g ood on ac c ou n t of it s c onsequen c es It a l so
,
.

seems t o imply an in a dequa t e c oncep ti on o f t he ori g in

a t in g power of p er s ons i n v ir t ue of t heir indi v idu a l r e
,

spons ib ili ty t o b ri n g in t o exis t en c e w h at ou g h t no t t o

,

exis t and i s no t b rou g ht in t o exis t en c e b y div i ne

,

necess it y I f moral personal it y i s ori g ina ti ve t o th e

.

T H E I S T IC O P T IMI S M . 2 75

e x t en t of th e ac t s for w hi ch th e person i s a cc o u n t
a bl e th en as I h ave b een ar gui n g th e ques ti on
,

reso l ve s i n t o t he c ons i s t en c y of t he ex i s tence of persons ,

a bl e t hemselve s t o make t hemselves b ad with mora l ,

perfec ti on i n th e Un i versal P ower C an b e i n g s ex i s t

.
,

u nder a reli gi ous concep ti on of th e u n i verse w h o are ,

a b le to r esi s t moral reason or th e w i ll of God th a t all

,

p ersons should b e g ood .

Tha t th e gl or i e s of R ome s h o u ld make th e cr i mes of I t e m t s e s o

S ex t u s only rela t i vely cr i mes a b solu t ely g ood b y a

but ,
.
,
.

n ecess i t y w h i c h omn i po t ence i s una b le t o over c ome i s t l y g oo d , u e .

a n uns ati sfy i n g i dea . It seems t o rel i eve th e d i fcu l t y

b y expla i n i n g away moral e vi l or b y t ransform i n g it , ,

a t a hi g her poin t of V ie w i n t o g ood ; so th a t t he w ors t

,

c r i mes are rela ti vely b ad b u t really g ood It seems t o

, .

i mply th a t S ex tu s co u ld no t h elp b e i n g b ad or ra th er ,

t ha t w h a t we re g ard as a b ad S ex t us wa s r ea lly a g ood

S ex tu s w h en looked a t i n all h is conseq u ences t o th e
,

u n i verse . H e i s w h a t h e i s b y a necess it y of ex i s t ence ,

no t b y a personal ac t of hi s own t ha t is i ndependen t of

i deal necess i t ies ; and h e mi ght b u t f or h i mself a lon e , ,

th er th an h e ac t ually was T hi s i s t o make .

r tu n a t e ,
no t b l a me wor t hy F or moral ev i l .

is wh a t ou g h t no t t o ex i s t t ha t for w hi ch th ere i s no
a b solu t e necess it y . S i n i s t he un i q u e e ffe ct of th e person
whose vol u n t ary ac t it i s C an th e un i verse no t b e nally
.

div i ne even if it con t a i ns per s on s w h o are a b le t o make

,

and keep th emsel v es u n d i vi n e ?

B u t af t er all t his moral t r i a l of persons w ith ou t th e i r Th e p tim
, ,
o

o w n leave ; th eir n it e w eakness and i g norance on acco u n t ,

of
of i nd i vidual per c ep t ion b ein g n ecessarily only percep ti on ex i st en c e ,

i n par t ; and t he d i s tri b u t ed m i ser i es of men and o th er s e n

t ien t b e i n g s irre gul arly form a s t ran g e a nd unexpec t ed n at iv e t o
,

sor t of revela tion of mora l ly t r u s tw or t hy Universal P ower y .

T h e pers i s t ency and ex t en t of th e lur i d fac t s are s t i l l u nt ru s t

o

th Y
i nsuf cien t ly expla i ned b y th e referen c e of ac t s t h at u n i ver s e
,
W OF

ou g h t no t t o b e a ct ed t o th e or i g i na t i ve a g ency of persons m m; .

n t w it h
Un d er th is condi t ion one mi g h t h ave expec t ed t o nd t d t
,
s an
o
in

i s
g
some persons res i s t i n g o t h ers perfec t ly c onformed t o t he re mai nd e
, , r

i deal of moral reason The mora l ly downward t endency

.
f m y t y o s cr
276 PH I L OS O PH Y O F T H E I S M .

whi ch all men h ave t o res i s t s ugg es t s a rema i nder o f

,

mys t ery in per s onal it y w hi c h per h aps man i s no t a b le t o

remo v e : n o i nd i v i dual person i s w h olly i nd i v i d u al B u t
.

incomple t e knowled g e a s d i s ti n gui s h ed from a b sol ut e con

,

t r a di c ti o n leave s room for th e op ti m i s t concep ti on th a t i s

,

presupposed i n a rel ig iou sly c once i ve d un i verse nally ,

t r u s t wor th y th erefore for life i nsp i red b y h ope

, . P ess i
m i s t do ubt w hi c h i s s u ici dal for ex ti nc t ion of consc i o u s
l i fe wo u ld b e th e only e s cape from an exper i ence th a t may
i n th e end dece i ve an d i ssue for all i n an o ut come of w o e
,

thi s do ubt i s i mposed no t b y i ncomple t e knowled g e

, ,

w ith it s rema i nder of mys t ery but only b y a comple t e

,

percep ti on th a t th e u n i verse a s we nd it mu st con t rad i c t

perfec t g oodne ss W h en th e necessary al t erna ti ves are
.

th ei s ti c Op ti mi sm and a th ei sti c p ess i mi sm I fa i l t o nd i n

,

reason a necessi t y for th e s ui ci dal al t erna ti ve ; and I nd

th e oppos it e al t erna ti ve s u ppor t ed b y all th a t i s high e s t i n
m an T hi s i s n o t demons t ra ti on like p u re ma th ema ti c s
. .

Bu t i s it no t eno u gh t o s a ti sfy hi m w h o s eek s t o b eco m e

w h a t h e o ught t o b e
 2 78 PH I L OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

th e i r i deal of D e it y in th e wan t of it refus i n g t o re c o g

n i se i n consc i ous l i fe t h e presuppos it ion of all real ex i s t
ence l n h i gh e s t perfec t ion i n God s h ared on l y i n par t in ,

hu man b ei n g s .

M or l e vil
a W h en I speak of th e oppos it e c o n c ep t ion t o all thi s as .

gn igg g
an l
i op ti m i sm,
I m u s t explain w h a t I mean T h e i s t ic op ti m
. i sm
s ib i l it y if doe s no t mean th a t th e universe con ta ins no thi n g that
,

O u g h t no t t o ex i s t ; it refers any moral ev i l th a t does appear

s on b ly
a
w hi le it o ught no t an d need no t t o th e origi na ti n g wil l
,

Eggfji g l of persons w h o en t er i n t o n a t ure wi th po w er t o m ake th em

l
,
ua
p ersons on s elve s b ad T h e r i se of ev i l i s con t in g en t upon th e un i
.

mom l t i L r a
verse b e i n g a u n i ver s e th a t i ncl u des persons no t th in g s ,
.

on l y ; a un i verse t oo w hich a t o u r hu man poin t of view

, , , ,

seems t o evolve i n order t o b e a s c h ool for th e pro g ress

2 an d moral t r i al of persons T hi s i nvolves m oral or sp i ri t ual
.

rela ti ons amo n g persons pres u pposed i n moral persona lit y

, ,

a s well as p h ysi c al rela ti ons amon g thi ng s ; and it o b li g es

u s t o look a t na t ural ca u se s i n a high er l ight th an p h ysi
cal s ci ence does A b ove all i t i mpl i es th a t human persons
.
, ,

n it e i nd i v i du a ls may m a ke th ems elves b a d

,
I f th e r e .

l igi o u s or O p ti m i s t concep t ion of th e universe includes

per s ons s u per i or t o thi ng s and th ei r rela t ion s th en th e

en t rance of w h a t ou ght no t t o ex i s t seems an i n evi ta b le

)
con ti n en c
g y E.xclus i on of th e p oss i b i li ty of evil or i m ,

moral resis t ance t o t h e d i v i ne i deal th e resis ta nce lead

i n g t o suppress i on of th e h i gh er l i fe i n th e resis t in g persons

see m s t o con t radic t th e i dea of moral perso n ali t y edu c a ,

ti o n and t r i al A world of ni t e persons m u s t b e cap a ble

,
.

of b ei ng m a d e b a d b y th e p er s on s of wh om i t con si s ts Th e
[en t r a nce i n t o th e i r lives of voli t ions whic h th ey ou g h t no t
, .

;

t o h ave willed i s no t perm i ssion of w h a t mi g h t h ave
'

l b ee n preven t ed b y th e Universal P ower m akin g and

lkeep ing a ll persons perfe ctly g oo d
,

To keep persons .

)
p erfe ctl y g ood b y an i rresis t i bl e necessi t y would b e t o
,

t ransform a spir itu al world of persons in t o a phys i cal or

,

non mor al world of c ons ci ou s au t oma t ons : th e s o c alled

- -

persons woul d c e ase t o b e moral l y personal ; th e i r moral

t ri al would b e an i ll u sion .

N n mor al
o - P ersons are more emp h a ti cally real th an ma t erial thi n g s ,

t h ings m t
i f thi n g s are only pass i ve or i m po t en t
us
B ut th e real .
 HU M A N PR O G R ESS . 279

exis t ence of ma t er i a l th in g s and of indiv i dual persons b e t re at e d ,

t wo pos t ula t e d exis t en c es in t he t hree fold ar t icul at ion of al th o ugh

- m 33 ,

re al i t i e mus t mean t ha t ne i ther t h i n g s nor persons are t h e y are

A s
on l y i ll usory modes of God th e thi r d pos t u l a t ed rea lit y ligh
, .
(

A nd ma t er i al t hin g s m u s t at l eas t h a ve o utw ard rea l i t y Sign

t,

{ enou gh t o b e a v ai l a b le media of i n t ercommuni ca t ion b e

s.

t ween cons ci o u s persons t hey mus t a fford an in t erpre t a bl e

sys t em of ou t w a rd si g ns c har g ed w i th [ meanin g s w h ic h
, \

s c ien c e m a y in t erpre t : t he y mus t b e a b le t o c onvey mean

in g ou t of one mind more or l ess adequa t e l y in t o ano th er
, ,

m i n d We pra ct ic all y nd at l eas t th is amoun t an d kind

.

of real ity implied i n t he ma t er i al wor l d .

Bu t alth ou g h m at er i al thi n g s are in some i mperfec tly Th e on l y

k
c ompre h ended wa y more an d o t her t han pr i v at e pheno gggf

mena of my indiv i dua l c ons c iousness I h a ve no reason gt i d , u s h

vm
t o suppose th a t t hin g s l ike persons are au t hors of a ct s ; gi g
, ,
l l
v l
e

w hi c h wou l d imp l y th a t t hey c an ori g in at e e ffec t s Wi t h whi ch .

less or more in t e l li g ence w e ac t ual l y d is t in g u i s h th i ngs i d

l fg
I
'

r a es
, .

f rom s elf ; and b o t h from G od th e su s t ainin g po w er in

,

th in g s and in persons ; we d i s ti n g uis h ou r selves from tt b t d a rl u e

th i ngs espe c ially in v i r t ue of our b ein g endowe d w it h

,

personali t y w hi c h as far a s th e responsi b le ac t ivi t y ex i n d ivid ual

, ,
P m e ns
t en d s ena bl es ea c h person t o make himse l f b ad A nd '

.
,

t his ag en c y of persons canno t I t h i nk b e sh own t o b e

, ,

in c onsis t en t w i t h t he ca usal con cat en at ion of physi c a l

\n at ure of w hich in d eed t he person needs t o avai l h imse l f
,

in a ll over t free a ct ion I n d ividu al persons are th e only

.

ori g ina ti n g powers in ex i s t ence kno w n t o m a n over and ,

ab ove t he Un i versa l P o w er Why should th is res i st in g

.

po w er of persons t hro ugh wh i c h t hey may refuse t o a s

,

simi l a t e th e d iv i ne l i fe ne c essari l y con t ra d i ct th e na ll y

,

o p t imis t or re l i g ious c on c ep t ion of t he universe ? T his

w ou l d imp l y t h at an in d ividual person cou l d no t exi s t in
a div i n ely m ai n ta ined a nd ordered wor l d ; and t h at t he
Uni v ersa l P ower cou l d b e reve a led on l y in and t hrou g h
t he d ivine a g en c y man i fes t e d in un c ons c ious t h i n g s or
, ,

in c ons c ious a u t oma t ons ne it her g ood nor b a d mor all y

,
.

Bu t one may s t i l l ask ho w a universe t h at c on ta ins B t wh t u a

w ith in i t thi s possi b ly di s t ur bi n g e l emen t of in d ividu a l p er s on s

personal a g ency can b e kep t b y God i n harmony W i t h i ts w ere t o
 280 PH I L OSO PH Y O F TH E I S M .

m ai n tai n D ivi ne ideal ? I f a un i ver s e w hi c h dele g a t es ind i v i d u al

t h emselves power t o persons t o make and keep th em s elves i n s t a t e s
i n p erm a ,

nen t res i st in wh ich t hey ou ght no t t o ex i s t i s a un i verse th a t God

,
an c e t o ca n manife s t H i mself i n i s it no t a u n i verse th a t may

t h ei r d ivi ne
i d e al nally b e conver t ed i n t o moral c h ao s b y th e per s on s i n it
even whi le it m ight con ti n u e a p h ys i cal cosmo s
; so th a t
ab a t emen t of evil on th is plane t wo u ld b e i mposs ib le ?
M ore tha n thi s may no t per s ons w ith th e i r i mpl i ed power
, ,

o f i n iti a ti n g evil g radua l ly make th e w or l d of person s a

,

w or l d i n wh i c h a l l per s ons make th emselve s w h olly and

nally h ad ? M ay no t th eir moral t r i al lead t o u n i
v ersa l and unendin g moral d i sorder ; so that e th ical rel igi on
w ou l d in fac t b e ex ti n gui s h ed b y th e moral persona lit y
on w hich I h ave ar gu ed th a t it res t s ? T h e ex i s t ence of
persons w h o as persons are free t o b ecome permanen t ly
, ,

b ad ; w h o canno t b y any power div i ne or o th er h e hi n

, ,

dered from b ecom i n g b ad w it hou t b ein g red uc ed t o i rre

,

A
spons ib le thi n g s seems t o i mply th e p ossib i li ty of a world

,

in whi c h all persons are a t las t irre c overa b ly b ad and b e ,

c om i n g worse W h a t th en b e c omes o f t he op ti m i s t con

.

c ep t i o n of ex i s t ence ? The i s ti c fa ith wo u ld tu r n ou t t o b e

a f allac i ous g uaran t ee for th e moral cosmo s w hich it pre
supposes as th e nal ou t come T h e u n i verse o f per s on s
.

w ould t hen h ave b ecome a un i verse of dev i l s s u rely no t

a poss ib le man i fes t a ti on of th e morally perfec t O mnip o
t ence th a t i s ine vit a bl y ass u med i n all our i n t erco u rse
w ith our u nconsc i o u s and consc i o u s s u rro u nd i n g s .

Wh y i s T h us th e ex i s t ence of persons w h ose personal it y ena b le s

,
t h ere a th em t o make and keep th em s elve s b ad i s th e Grea t
u n i verse no
I
,

t em p or al I E n i g ma of fa ith and is a t leas t ev i dence of th e sci enti c

,

evo l uti on l i m it a ti on of ou r nal con c ep ti on To resolve th e en ig ma

.

we s h ould need t o know why th e rel igi o u sly t r u s t ed

u n i verse of th in g s and persons ex i s t s a t all why it h as ,

ex i s t ed and why i t wi ll con ti nue t o ex i s t if i ndeed
, , ,

t o pu t th e pro b lem thu s i n t erms O f ti me doe s no t t ake i n

w h a t is i rre l evan t a t th e nal po i n t of V i ew The reason .

for God and for th e u n i verse of thi n g s and persons i n

,

w hich H e is con ti n u ously reveal i n g H imself mu s t b e th e ,

i nsol u b le pro ble m ; ye t w ith o ut solv i n g i t w e canno t b e

s u re th a t o u r knowled g e i s comple t e eno ugh t o s h o w th a t
 282 PH I L OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

B ut
p ro -
o
B ut even pro g ressi v e a b a t emen t of th e ev i l t h a t i s
no w m i xed wi th th e g ood i n persons and th e i r soci al ,

i n an e conomy on thi s plane t seems b y it self i nadeq u a t e t o ,

f t
:ggfggg

I
reconcile
es
w ith perfe ct l i al t rus t th o s e s t ran g e appearances
not if i t whi c h su gg es t s c ep t i c al pess i m i s m I n th e rs t place i t
,
.
,

does no t expla i n h o w under O mn i po t en t Goodness th ere

, ,

plai n can b e n eed for pro g ress i ve i mprovemen t w h y th e wor l d

"
P mt
r es
s h o u ld req ui re t o b e i mproved ins t ead of b e i n g perfec t
an d p re ,

vi v from th e rs t F or pro g ress presupposes p reV W VII ;

ou s e
7\
.
, ,

i n all developmen t th e an t e c eden t S tate i s in feri o r t o th e

consequ en t s t a t e T h e ev i l w h ich c al l e d fo r th e pro g ress
'

k .
,

i ve c orrec t ion h as s ti ll t o b e explained W h y was th e

, .

world ever i n a s t a t e whic h required pro g ress i ve i mprove

m en t ? M ore th an t his i f a person s depar t ure from th e
,

d i v i ne i deal of hu man i t y th e ac t of t he person hi mself

if h e i s fo u nd w i l li n
g w h a t h t: ou ght no t t o w i ll and. ,

w h a t h e nee d no t h ave wi lled thi s means more th an

p h ys i cal i mperfec ti on w hi c h may b e improved b y p h ys ic a l
,

evolu ti on : it impl i es no t merely rela ti ve i mperfec ti on ,

l w hic h may g radually d i sappe a r : t h i s is a b solu t e ev il

a .

It i nvol v es ev il th a t i s b l amewor th y and th a t i s no t ,

removed b y i mprovemen t of s urroundin g s or b y exp and ,

in g personal i n t e l l ig ence .

U nd m n e o N o t w ith s t andin g th e s e d i f cul ti es fa ith in a g radual ,

su me d a b a t emen t of ev il b y th e me th od of pro g ress i ve evolu ti on

p ro g ess r
, ,

i s u n t t o i s now a favour i t e S O I en ti c fa i t h : t h i s fa i th may even

b e re g arded as t h e form w hi c h an unconsciou sly rel i g i ou s
faith .
c on c ep ti on of th e u n i verse i s a s s u m i n g i n professedly ag
nos ti c m i nds F or fa ith i n h uman pro g ress i s of th e na t ure
.

) o f rel igi o u s t rus t s c i en t i c ally ver i ed b y a narrow and

u ncer t a i n exper i en c e I t i s t aken for g ran t ed th a t th e
.

fa c t s mus t s ig ni fy pro g ressive i mprovemen t on t h e w h ole ,

a nd al so t h at pro g ress may b e expe ct e d t o per s is t in an

i nde ni t e fu tu re Tha t th e pro g ress i ve evo l u tion is t o
.

b e end l ess or i f no t endless t ha t it is i n some fu t ure

, , ,

t o rea c h perfec ti on and t hen pers i s t i n perfec t ion mus t

, ,

b e reache d i n mora l fa ith I ndeed we are i nv it ed b y .

some exposi t ors of pro g ress i ve evol uti on t o a n t icip a t e

in th e far f u tu re re g re s s ins t ead of perfec t ion e v en -

nal des t r u c ti on of al l th e produc t s of pro g ress i n man

 H U M A N PR O G R ESS . 283

kind d i sin t e gra t ion of th e plane t it self w i t h c onsequen t

, ,

disappe a ran c e of a ll l i v in g a ct ors in t he me a nin gl ess

dr a ma t h at w a s once a ct ed on t he e a r th of w hi c h w i t h , ,

t he n al ex t in ct ion of th e p la ne t a l l c on c eiva bl e re c or d ,

mus t b e for e v er l os t The universe wi ll t hen b e c ome

.

wha t i t w ou ld ha ve b een if men a nd t he o t her li vin g ,

b ein g s on t h i s ear t h h ad ne v er b een e v o l ve d .

Y e t so m e wh o profess t o rej ec t t he re l i g ious c oncep t ion I n i t nc o s s

o f t h e u niverse seem no tw i t hs ta n d in g t o nd a sor t of

Sffljgf l g

th eis t i c sa t isfac ti on in an a tt en u a t ed empiri c al f a i t h in t i c f i th i n a

hu m a n adv a n c emen t They mee t t he n al di fc u lties of

.
P ro g re ss '

t hou g ht b y repea t in g th e w ords pro g ress de v e l op ,

men t , evo l u t ion w hi ch i n s t ri ct ness on l y su gg es t
t he mode in w h ic h t he uni v erse s o f a r as i t is physi ,

cal l y c ons t i t u t e d seems in th e mean t ime t o b e b eh av in g

,

i t se lf ; or in w h i c h i t h a s b een b ehavi n g it se l f as f a r as ,

men c an s ee b ac k in t o t he pas t ; a n d in whi c h w i t hou t

w arr a n t i t is expe ct e d t o b eh a ve t hro u g h an inde ni t e
fu t ure t his t oo no tw i t hs t andin g a n ag nos t i c w i t h d r awal

, ,

of t he i s t ic f ait h or re a sona b le a ssur a n ce of th e n al t rus t

,

w or thi ness O f t he e v olu t ion S pe c u l a t ive j u s ti ca ti on of.

exp ecta n t t rus t is supposed t o c onsis t in veri cat ions ,

O ffered b y physi c al phenomena t h at h a ve b een emp t ie d of

moral re a son a n d w hi c h m a y t herefore b e t he S p or t of

,

m a l i g n or in d i fferen t or irr at ion al Universa l P o w er

, ,
F or .

n o t hin g deeper is re c o g nise d b y t hose wh o acc ep t on l y ,

t h i s a tt enua t ed reli g ious con d en c e in t he improvin g

t enden cy of m a n ; an d w h o in d u l g e in i t seemin g l y u n ,

c ons c ious t ha t even t h i s S O fa r as i t g oes c on t r a di ct s t heir

, ,

ag nos t i c renuncia t ion o f nal mor a l f a i t h .

The c o nc ep t ion o f m a n as at presen t in physi c a l T h t l c so r o

l
pro g ress t owards a happy mi ll ennium may h owever b e ffl f

, ,

ll

a mi t i g a t ion of t he eni g m a o f t he b ad found mixe d s o

f a r wit h th e g oo d in a wor ld s t i ll t re at ed as in t erpre t
,

a b le and t herefore s o far t rus tw or t hy

,
It has b een N oe l . l e

ca l l e d me l iorism

I n ad equa t e a s a found at ion f or
.

t heis t i c f a i th in t he n at ur al evolu t ion or a s a n ex h m , ( a ,

l
p l an at ion of th e mix t ure of e v i l t he ide a of g r ad u al gi t lift w l
, ,
''

e v en if of t en in t errup t e d individua l and so c ia l am el io r a mm

, ,

ti on i s never th e l ess f u l l o f human in t eres t an d i s i ll us ,

 284 PH I L OS O PH Y O F T H E I S M .

t r a t ed b y many fac t s I ndu l g ence i n th e i dea i s na tu ral

.

t o g oodness and n o bi l it y of ch arac t er It g ives l i fe t o .

g enero u s h ope and h elps t o corre ct sel s h i nd ivi dual i sm

, ,

b y edu c a t in g th a t lar g er i nd i v i dualism w hi c h nds th e t r u e

id eal of a person i n unsel s h rela ti ons t o o th er per s ons ,

a n d devo t ion t o th e person i ed O mn i po t en t Goodness If .

th ose now livin g are no t t hemselves ac t ually t o see th e

b es t i ssues t here i s s till consola t ory fai th i n th e m i llenn i al
,

c o m fo r t and sa ti sfac ti on of la t er g enera t ions A n d a ll .

t h is b e c a u se a t enden c y t owards a hi g h er ideal s eems n ow

i
vi s i b le ; and th e t endency i s t rus t ed i n l i ke o th er na tu ral ,

la w s even w h e n th e t r u s t i s no t con s c i ou s ly reli g ious

, .

P resen t i lls i t seems may well b e endured b y thi s g enera

, ,

t ion a s g rea t er i ll s were endured b y p as t one s on a c coun t

, ,

o f t h e po t en ti al prom i se of g ood i n s t ore for o u r s u ccess

ors t h i s par t ly b ecause we nd th e ex i s tin g g enera ti o n

s h ar i n g i n th e advancemen t and also b eca u se th e i dea ,

m akes u s h appy i n thi nkin g th a t we can con t r ibut e t o

it s fuller a tt ainmen t b y our s u c c e s sors S oci a l ac ti v it y .
,

sus tai ned b y th is sor t of fa ith in th e Un i versal P ower ,

seems t o S hed li gh t i n th e darkne s s for a g enera ti on ,

u n usually perplexed b y pess i mis t despair T hi s i m .

pe rfec t form of moral h ope in th e P ower a t th e h ear t

o f th e un i verse may b e more s i n c ere and prod u c ti ve
o f g ood i n some w h o pro fes s a g nos ti c i na bi l it y
,
th an i n ,

th e con v en ti onal rel i g i on i n t o w hi c h sc i en t i c a g nos ti c i s m

h as in t rodu c ed a needed d i s tu r ba nce .

T h e N ew H u m a n pro g ress i s a t any ra t e a favo u r it e wa t c hw ord
, ,

an d t h e i n th e n i ne t een t h c en t ur y It i s t he expre s s i on of a con

O l d as
.

c e p t i o n i n whi c h we are educa t ed

,

al t ern a par tly b y th e rap i d ,

t i vel y incre a se of man s po w er t o adap t na tu ral c a u ses t o h uman

i d e al s .

p u rposes o b v i ou sly renderin g th is plane t more t t o b e

,

li v ed i n com for t a b l y It has no t b een always so ; nor i s it

.

so no w in al l m i nds The i deal of pro g ress l i es i n th e

.

fu ture : some men and per h aps some g enera t ions h ave
found th ei r i de a l i n th e p a s t or in th e f utu re only so far
,

as i t i s l ike th e pas t T h ere a re always th ose g iven t o

.

ex c ess iv e a dmira t io n of an ti q uit y and t hose w h o ind u l g e ,

an ex cess i ve appe ti t e for wh a t i s n e w F e w as Bacon r e .

,

m arks are s o h appily t empered th a t th ey can h old t h e

,
 286 PH I L OSO P H Y O F T H E I S M .

R e gress ; P as t presen t s persons w h ose in t e l lec tu al or spir itu a l de

pm
g g v el o p m e n t seems i n ad v an c e of a ll presen t per ha ps of al l
s

,
s
th ro u gh fu t ure exam p les P ersons a re impor t an t fac t ors of hu man
,
.

P ersons :

pro g ress and th e la w s wh i c h de t ermine th e appear a n c e

,

a nd educa ti on of epo c h m a kin g men are o b s cu re W h o i n

-
.
,

su cc eed i n g g enera t ions h a s surpassed A r i s t o t le i n compre

,

h e n s i ve i n t ell ig en c e ? S o c ra t es and t he H e b re w prophe t s

were foll o wed b y a g es of c ompara ti ve moral and sp i r it ual
darkness S ain t s and mar tyrs h ave s h o w n a self s ac ri c e
.
-

forei g n t o t h e exper i ence and sympa thi es of s el s h an d

fai t hles s s uc cessors T hi n g s an d persons are s o com
.

m i n g l ed i n th e s t ream of t ime th a t th e on wa rd c urren t

i s of t e n d i s t ur b ed an d dee ct ed T h e a ct ion of e x c e p .

t io n a l persons men of g eni u s for g ood or evil s eems t o

i n t erfere w ith a p h y s i c a l order w h ic h fai t h mi ght expe ct
t o n d con t in u ously pro g ress i ve T h a t mank i nd s h ould.

b e only i n pro g ress no t a ct ually perfec t from th e rs t

, ,

m ay b e impl i ed i n th e ide a of moral personal it y A

7
.

world of persons could no t b e a world of always perfec t

p ersons P rov i den t ia l pro g ress no t perfe cti on from t h e
.
,

b e g i nnin g appears as th e condi ti on su it ed t o mora l a g en t s

, ,

d i s ti n gu ished from na t ura l thi n g s A nd th e i mprovemen t.

of m ank i nd as I t hink Wordswor th somew h ere su gg es t s

, ,

i s n o t like a R om a n road w h ich g oes s t rai g h t t o it s g oa l ;

it i s ra t her l i ke a wi nd i n g ri v er frequen t ly for c ed t o t urn
,

b a c k w ard i n order t o over c ome o b s t acles wh ic h c a nno t

b e d i re ct ly eluded b u t mo vi n g i n consequ ence of th e
,

de c e t i o n with add iti on al for w ard imp u lse .

P ai n an d Ph ys i cal and in t elle ct u a l ev i l p a i n as well as i gn o r

EgEzgiss ance and error seem t o b e means of advancemen t

e

an d en d . t o w ards th e i mperfe ctl y c ompre h ensi b le end t o w h ic h

th e universe i s mov i n g I t is commonplace t o su g g es t
.

th a t t he pa i n wh i c h is i mp li ed i n dissa t isfac ti on i s an
i nd i spensa bl e mo t or force a t t h e roo t of ad v an c emen t
,

i n hum a n socie t y S ympa th y w it h su fferin g i s nee d ed

.

for e d uca ti on i n g oodness R e a son i s b rou ght ou t of t he

.

dorman t s t a t e i n t o th e c ons c io u s s t a t e in man b y t h e d i s ,

c omfor t o f i t s b ei n g s t ill p a r tly dorman t T h e une a siness .

of i g norance an d error i s t he mo t i v e t o d i scovery Tha t .

we are o ut of h armony w ith our di vi ne idea l makes u s

 H U M A N PR O G R ESS . 28 7

u n s a t is ed : t his evokes inna t e d i v i n e reaso n The e d u .

c a t in g i nuen c e of pain may b e res i s t e d i f a person wi ll s

,

t o persis t in a s t a t e in wh ic h h e ou gh t no t t o exis t B u t .

i t s di v ine i nuen c e is in innumera bl e ways on t he S i d e

o f w ha t ou gh t t o b e and w h a t mi g ht b e b u t for ev i l
,

i n th e person w h o resis t s t ha t edu c a ti n g pre s sure of

n at ure whic h i s rea ll y di vi ne power
, .

We ha ve s ome ill us t ra t ion O f pro g ress th rou gh apparen t I nt ll e ec

r e g ress
, i n th e pas t h is t ory of p h ilosop h y and t heo l o g y .

S ys t ems seem t o t he super cia l s t u d en t t o suc c eed one ill u st r at e d
a no t her in an aimless ser i es w i t hou t permanen t ad va nce h i s

,
y of .

The slow a nd O f t e n i n t errup t e d e d u cat i on of human i n phil o s o ph y

t e l l ige n ce and th e na tu ral a d ap t a ti on of eac h sys t em t o d 1
ggy
u 190 '

th e a g e i n w hich it evolved i s ap t t o b e over l ooked as

'

, ,

t h e d i vi ne c ondi t ion of i ncreas i n g i ns ight Y e t th rou g h

.

o u t th e i n t e l le ct ual se ct s and sys t ems of t he pas t an

un c eas i n g if un c onsc i ou s purpose has b een runn i n g ,

s o th a t t he th ou gh t s of men h ave g radu a lly widened

w i th th e pro c ess of th e s u ns . The h i s t ory o f h uman
th ou g ht appe a rs as pro g ress i ve deve l opmen t O f t en i n
t er r u p t e d in re g ress th e i ssu e of a c omposi t ion of for c es ,

e a c h in a dequ a t e and th ere f ore wh ile in vo g ue a so u r c e of

,

d issa t isfac t ion t he d is c on t en t an impu l se t owards wider

,

a n d deeper concep t ions .

H as n o t th e ap p aren t ly confuse d philosophic pas t b een Th e me an

re a l l y a s t ru ggl e in whi c h forms of id ea li s tic c ons t ru cti on
, ,

w herein th e secre t of t he u n i verse i s supposed t o b e n d c om a .

e v olved o ut of a s i n g le prin c iple are arr a yed agai ns t

,

d i fferen t p ha ses of scep t ica l pess i mism wi th consequen t forc es a s

,

d espair of any reason b e i n g lat en t in t he uni v ers al mo v e

m en t ? Y e t i s no t th e g radu al ou tc ome of t h i s c on t in u
o u s s t ru gg le id eal is ms opposed and slow l y corre ct ed b y
s c e p tica l c r itici sm a n earer a pproa ch t o t he ph i losop h y

wh i c h a c k no w le d g es a s i t s c onsumma t ion w i t h in c reasin g

,

i n t e l l i g en c e th e mor a l f a i t h a nd l i gio u s c on c ep t ions t ha t

,

a r e i n t ermedia t e b e tw een t he para l ysis of N es c i e n c e a nd ,

th e D ivine Thou g h t or O m n isc en c e whi c h in i t s in ni ty

,

e vades t he ph i losop h i c g rasp of man ? The pr act i cal i m

possi b ili t y o f permanen t ly s ub s i din g in t o t he t o t a l dou bt
 288 P HI L O S OP HY O F T H EIS M .

w hi c h a b andons l i fe a s u n i n t erpre t a b le e ith er as a ,

w h ole or i n any of it s par t s ; t o g e t her with th e repea t ed

failure of a tt emp t s t o c omprehend th e W h ole lead th e
ph i losopher in t o th e i n t ermed i a te pa th of t r u s t i n t he

re l i gi ous concep ti on O f th e W h o l e as th e al t erna ti ve for

,

man H ere never th eless hi s i n t ellec tua l ac ti v it y needs t o

.
, ,

b e q u i c kened from t ime t o ti me b y con t roversy b e t ween

,

O mniscien t I deal i sm and S c ep ti cal E mp i c i sm W ith an

'

i r refuta ble fa ith i n th e reasona b lenes s of th e W h ole h e ,

l i ves ass u red th a t no thi n g can p ut e ith er sci en ti c or

moral in t elli g ence t o permanen t confus i on and so m ake ,

th e f u nd amen t al fa ith of reason un t ena b le To follo w .

th i s p ath in t ermed i a t e b e t ween N es ci en c e and O m ni s c

i en c e i s t o a c knowle d g e men as m ore th an an i m a ls ,

ye t less th an God ; th rou g h t he i r or g anisms par t of

N a t ure w hile i n th e i r sp i ri tu al ex perience t h ey i n de
,

g rees par ti c i pa t e in D iv i ne l i fe and reason A p hi lo s op h y .

which looks only t o man s v i s ib le or g anic conne c ti on w it h
A n a t u r e is lo gi cally a th e i s t ic and t o t ally a g nos ti c Th e .

i n t ermed i a t e is s t amped upon all o u r exper i ence We .

are al i ke u n ab le t o know al l an d t o remain ig noran t of all .

Y e t unless we know a ll i t may seem that we canno t

, ,

know a ny ; s i nce e a ch n it e th in g a n d i nd i v i dual person i s

conne ct ed w it h every o th er and i s expla i ned only w h en
,

s een in ra ti onal correla ti on w ith every o th er B ut i n .

h umanly pro g ress i ve ph i losop h y and th eolo g y many thi n g s

m u s t in th e end b e lef t a b r u p t .

Is not T h a t th e pro g res s i ve i mprovemen t of man i nvolve s

t h ei stic g radual ex ti nc ti on of th e reli gi ous c oncep ti on of th e u ni
fait h so
,

fa r a s it i s verse and th a t t he nal v i c t ory of th e g rad u al na t ural

,

S t ron g a n d
i nt ellig ent evo l u t ion w i ll con s i s t in th e d i sappearan c e of thi s con
,

t h e fu n da c ep ti o n i s th e i nco h eren t p hi losop h y wh i c h A ugu s t e

,

m en t al C om t e helped t o di ffu se i n E urope and A mer i ca i n th e

fa ct or i n
h u man passin g g enera ti on R el ig ion (i n an u nreasona b le form )
.

p ro gr ess i s assumed t o b e an anachronism w h ich th e hu m a n ,

race in civi li sed c oun t ries h as already nearly ou t

, ,

g rown s o t ha t every wh ere i t i s fo u nd in a slow decay

,

m a in tai nin g a lan g u i d life amon g persons of i mperfec t

i n t ell ig ence b u t s o incons i s t en t wit h s o ci a l advancemen t
,
 290 P H I L OSO PH Y O F TH E I S M .

C omt e S o C om t e represen t s a b s t rac t me t ap h ys i cs as s ub vers i ve

ass u mes of crude t heolo g y in th e pro g ress i ve evol uti on and p h ys ic al
th e inc on , ,

s i st en c y o f sc i ence as i n t he end d i sin t e g ra t ive of b o th I n ea ch s t ep .

t h e i stic of advan c e t oward s th e wh olly p h ys i cal and a l one l egiti

wi t h ph y
s ic al fa i t h .
ma t e i n t erpre t a ti on o f th e u n i verse h e s ees th e re t rea t of
,

a b s t rac t m e t ap h ys i cs and of s u pers titi o u s th eolo g y whi ch ,

i s all th a t h e reco g n i s es from th e t err it ory conq u ered b y

,

sc i ence ; s o th a t w h en th e sc i en ti c vic t ory i s u n i versa l ,

th e u n i verse w i ll b e s een t o b e i ncap ab le of b e i n g i n t er

re t e d i n t h e l ight of ne c ess iti es of rea s on and of re
p ,

l igio u s fa ith i n every form B u t man mus t th en h ave

.

l o s t th e nal fa ith an d h ope b y whi c h I h ave ar gu ed th a t

,

h i s i n t erpre t a ti on eve n o f p h y s i cal na tu re i s s u s t a i ned

th rou gh ou t and i n wh i c h hi s m oral s t ren gth cons i s t s
,
.

I nst e ad o f D oes no t a deeper p h ilosop h y th an th a t of C om t e pro

r e c o gn i s i n g c o ed on th e pr i nc i ple th a t th e p hys i cal i n t erpre t a ti ons
i n d ivi ne
mor al t r u st of sc i ence i n s t ead of excl u din g enl ight ened me t aphysi c al
,

t h e re ason and rel igi o u s i n t erpre tati ons i s it self i nd i spensa b ly s u s

ab l e fo u n ,

dati on an d t ai n ed b y th ese ; th a t ever advanc i n g discover i es of na t ural

-

cu l mi n a mean i n g s and of na t ural re l a ti ons of means and ends are

ti on o f , ,

s ci en c e .
d i scover i es of cond iti ons wh i c h so far express d i v i ne i de a s ,

and w hi c h thu s condu ct t o th e re l i gi ou s c oncep ti on in ,

fa ith th a t t he Whole is th e expression of th e perfec t

g oodness or i n t end i n g R eason ? W h olly a g nos tic fai th
i n pro g ress i s necess a r i ly i nco h eren t : accord i n g t o it s
profes s ion it i s wan t in g i n th e m oral assuran c e t h a t no t
, ,

wit hs t and i n g i n t ervals of seem i n g re g ress thi n g s mu s t b e

,

work i n g t o g e th er for g ood t o all th ose w h o are s t ru gg l i n g

t o l i ve i n c onform it y w ith div i ne i deal and law as i n ,

n a t ure and in man a nd i n w h ose per s ons th e h u man

,

w orld i s a c cord i n g ly b ecom i n g more d i v i ne I n s h or t .

,

t he fa ith i n pro g res s i nvolves b y i mpl i ca t ion a te l eo

, ,

lo g ica l concep ti on and th ose w h o real l y accep t it m u s t b e

,

a t leas t u nconsc i o u sly s u s t a i n i n g th e ms elve s i n th e i s ti c

t r u s t and h ope .
 LE CT U RE IV .

MI RA C U L O U S IN T ERF ERENC E . W H AT I S A MI RA C LE ?

T HE pop ul ar i de a of mira c le as divine in t erfere nce w i t h

,
Th e i d e a
t he d ivine order in na tu re is asso ciat ed w i th fur th e r o f mirac l e ,
,
a nd i t s
reve l a t ion of God t o m a n and p a r t icular l y wi th t he
, c onne ct i on
e ni g ma of moral evi l on t h i s p l ane t A revela ti on of Go d wi t h fai th
in th e
.

re
a s humanised in t he i de a l m a n C hris t Jesus i s re g a r d e d l ig i
ou s or
a s m i ra c u l ous en t r a n c e of God in t o man f or re c o v erin g o p t i mi s t
,
c on c e p ti on
t o g oodness persons w ho have made t hemse l ves b ad b u t , o f th e uni
wh o mi ght b ecome g ood in response t o t his mira c ulo u s r e verse .

vela t ion of d i vine mercy or appea l t o pres u pposed b u t

,

d orman t fa ith and hope in O mnip o t en t Goodness To g i ve

.

e mp h asis t o t his appe al t o l a t en t re l i g i ous fai t h and t o ,

it s culmina t i on i n a supreme o bj ec t f or fa ith h ope an d , ,

love th a t is more e a sily con c eiv ab le b y m a n th an C m

n i o t en t Goodnes s va gu e l y r so n i e d t o make i t em
p p e ,

p h a ti c or a s ig n a l example of D i v ine a d ap tat ion physi

,

ca l mira c les are alle g ed C hris ti ani ty i s ab ove a ll o th ers

.

t he form of rel ig ion of wh i ch t he c lai m is presen t ed i n t h i s

par ti cular w ay P hysi c a l wonders are more or l ess a s so
.

c iat e d t r a di ti onally wit h o t her reli g ions ; b ut th e one for

wh ic h a suc c ession of th em i s claimed in j us t i c a t ion o f ,

it s fuller and more hu manised re v e l a t ion t ha t is re g arded

as in it self a m i racle some h o w super i or t o d i vine n at ura l

,

l a w i s th e Ch ris t ian i n c lud i n g i t s e a rly H e b rew deve l op

,

men t The Jews cra v ed m i ra cl es ; t he Greeks preferre d

.

sc i ence and were repelled b y a re l i g ion t ha t w as re p re

,

sen t ed as a mira c le or t ha t asked men t o see Go d

,

s i nall a m i raculous res u rrec t ion

y .
 292 PH I L OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

Q u es ti ons A ll thi s su g g es t s a pr i or q u es ti on W h a t i s a
m i racle ?
s ugg est e d I f i t i s c on c e i ved as an ex t ernal even t or as a sp i r itu al
b y th e s u p ,

pos iti on o f exper i ence w hi c h canno t b e expla i ned b y d i v i ne power

,

mi racu l o u s n ormal e it h er i n o ut ward na tu re or i n h uman na tu re and

,
i nt f
er er
e n c e wit h w hi c h mus t th erefore b e referred t o God u nder som e ,

t h e D ivi ne d i fferen t concep t ion t h i s ra i ses a q u e s ti on a b o ut th e s or t

n atu ral ,

or d er
.
of even t s and i nward exper i ences th a t can an d th ose th a t ,

canno t b e s c i en tic ally expla i ned b y d i v i ne ca u sa ti on

, ,

accord i n g t o na tu ral cond iti ons I s m an a b le t o d i s

.

t i ngu i s h b e t ween w h a t i s d one i mmed i a t ely b y God

accord i ng t o n a tu ral la w and w h a t i s done mirac u lo u sly
, ,

or i n i sola ti on from na tu ral s eq u ence I s h e t t o de t er

m i ne exac t ly th e la t en t capac it y o f hi s own d i v i nely
i nsp i red s p i r it m i nd i n it s th e i s ti c fa ith ? W h a t a b ou t
,

th e rela ti o n of m i raculous o ut ward even t s and m i raculou s ,

men t al exper i ences t o th e pro g re s s i ve evol uti on s u pposed

,

t o de t erm i ne mank i nd and t o b e w ithi n th e h or iz on o f

,

man s i n t ellec tu al v i s i on ? I s a m i racle an even t th a t c an
h armon i o u s ly a s s i m i la t e w ith th e pro g re s s i ve evol uti on i n

na tu re ; or w ith th e or igi nal i n s p i ra ti on w hi c h gi ve s

man u n der s t and i n g i n th e form of C ommon R eason ?
,

I s a m i racle a p h enomenon th a t Un i versi ti es R oyal ,

S ocie ti e s or per s ons w h o devo t e th emselves t o th e i n t e r

,

p r e t at i o n of na t ure ca n h ave t o do w ith ; or i s it s ome

thing s o ou t s i de na t ure and o ut s i de hu man a g ency th a t
, ,

it m u s t b e kep t apar t as fore ig n t o sc i ence some thi n g

,

even on w hic h reason mu s t no t exerc i se it self ? I s

m i rac u lo u s revela ti on of God t o b e ass i m i la t ed th ro ugh
s ome mys ti cal process ; or th ro ugh a b so lut e dependence on
ex t ernal au th or it y po s tu la t ed a s i nfalli b le O r may it b e
t es t ed i n th e ord i nary cr iti cal w ay b y th ose acc u s t omed
, ,

t o wei gh ev i dence ? A g a i n i s a m i racle an i n t erferenc e

,

for a purpose b y God wi th God s ordinary laws i n na t ure

or i s i t thi s only rela ti vely t o hu ma n experience ? W h a t .

i s t h e c r it er i on of m i rac u lous as d i s ti n gui s h ed fro m

,

na tu ral even t s ; or of m i rac u lo u s as d i s ti ngui s h ed

, ,

from normal spir itu al exper i en c e ? M en d i ffer w i dely i n

th e i r i deas of w h a t i s and i s no t na tu rally and spir it
u al l y poss ib le wi t hou t i n t erference
, A n even t w hi c h
.

i n one a g e i s cons i dered m i rac u lo u s ly d i v i ne i s af t er

 2 94 PH I L OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

conseq u ence of ar bit rary will on th e par t of th e Un i versal

P ower ? I S n o t th e mirac u lous i ssue supposed t o a fford
a g uaran t ee for fai th in th e d i v i ne i n f a l l ib i l i t y of t h e
persons wh o appear as pas s ive in th e m i rac u lous i n t er

ference w h a t s eem t o b e th ei r words i nves t ed wi th a

d i vine i nfalli bi li t y th e insp i red person s or g an i sm as it
,

were th e a u t oma tic medi u m of a perfe ct oral m essa g e

or b ook ? F o r if a c la i m t o mir ac ulo u s i nfall ibi l it y ,

appare n t ly ver i ed b y ful lmen t of th e c la i man t s pre
di ct ion o i hi s own resurre ct ion af t er h is dea t h cou ld tu rn ,

ou t af t er a l l t o b e false t h i s wo u ld imply t h at th e Un i
,

ver s al P ower was m orall y u n t rus t wor th y b e c ause i n

th is i ns t a n ce th erefore poss ib ly i n o th ers an i mpos t or ;
, ,

s o th a t w e are pu t t o m oral and i n t ellec t ual c onfus i on .

The ph y si A gain . A re no t m i raculous i n t erference s even t s free

ca l m a rv e l s
o f mo d ern
from na t u ral c auses This de n iti on removes th em fro m
s ci en c e , sc i en ce w h ic h canno t de a l wit h e v en t s t ha t h ave n o na t ural
,
a n d ph y
i al m i r a
s c
cause : science th e i ss u e of search for na tu r a l c auses c an
, ,

cl es . h ave no th i ng t o say t o p h enome n a for w h ic h i t is assume d

th ere c a n b e n o pla c e in th e n a t ur a l evolu t ion of th e
cosm i cal sys t em S c i en ti c exper i men t i s b r i n g i n g in t o
.

l i g h t innumera b le na t ural causes an d e ffect s hith er t o u n

suspe ct ed and i n it s li ght men are a b le t o adap t t o h uman
,

c onven i ence in u nexpec t ed wa y s t he c osm i c we b in wh i c h

we n d ourselves i nvo l ved A pplied d i scoverie s of c au sal
.

conne cti ons amon g p h enomena are ca l led m i racles of

s ci ence ; b u t th ey are mira cu lo u s only b ecause th ey s ur
pr i s e men n o t b eca u se th ey are even t s d i vor c ed from all
n a tu ral c a u ses w hi le apparen t w ithi n t h e cosm i cal sys t em
,
.

A re mira T hu s excl u d ed from sc i ence p h y s ic al m i racles m ay als o

,
c l es a s
,
seem t o b e no t less remo t e from me t ap h ys ic s I n me t a
i s o lat e d .

even t s o ut
,
p h ys ic al p h ilos op h y w h a t sa t is es mus t involve some
o f pla c e i n t hin g xed and n al w h e th er w ith perfe ct compre h ens i on
t h e ph i l o
S o phi c al or omnis c ien ce o ut of w h ic h al l mys t ery is el i m i n at ed
, .

r at i on al e or th ro u g h nal fai th in which w e are moved t o u n c o n

o f faith ? ,

d i ti o n al t ru s t no t wi t hs t andin g it s necessary remainde r

,

of i n c omp l e t e knowled g e or mys t ery Bu t p h iloso p h y

.

t urns aw ay from wh a t i s only occa s i ona l i so l a t ed , ,

t rans it ory wh a t b elo ng s only t o ti mes and places t o
 M I R A C U L O U S I N T E RF E R E NC E . 295

wh at h as happened on l y in a c er t ain ye a r and on l y on ,

some spo t espe c i all y some t h i n g l on g p a s t and s o l ess

, ,

and less impressive in t he presen t as t he years ro ll on , ,

l e a vin g t he m i ra c ulou s even t at an ever in c re a sin g -

d i s ta n c e I sola t ed h is t ori c al fa ct s do no t ass i mi lat e wi t h

.

e t ern all y xed p h i l osop hy The w onderful even t s r e

.

por t e d a s h a v i n g made t heir ap p e a r a n c e in t he w orld ,

w hi c h f orm t he s t o c k o f ph y si cal mira cl e p er so look ,

unassimi lat ive I f t hey a re nei t her o ut ward even t s t h at

.

are na t urally b o u n d up wi t h t he d i vine c osmica l s y s t em ,

nor d i vine inspira t ions la t en t in t he S piri t of man t h e y ,

seem t o b e i n ca p abl e of conne c t ion un t t o harmonise , ,

w i t h t he mora l and l ia l f a i t h w hich I h av e pu t b e f ore

you as th e e t ern a lly reasona b le a tti t ude of man t o wa r d s
,

O mnipo t en t Goodnes s .

A s even t s t h at w ere only o cc asion a l and t h at are sup Mu st

,

11
posed t o b e a b so l u t e l y isol at e d so far a s n at ur a l ca us at ion
,
$1 0 93
is c on c erned o u r informa t ion a b ou t p a s t mira c les can b e i n c o urs e
,

l
on l y ex t ernal and em p iri cal d ependen t on a hum a n t es t i g
,
e
mony t ha t is g r ad u a l l y b ecomin g inaudi b le i f indeed i t gr ad u all y ,

i s no t unhear d a ft er th e l apse of a g es D av id H ume re w

.

g ? O I lC

a rg ued th a t m i ra c les m u s t b e i mposs i bl e t o prove a t l eas t

.

so f a r as t heir eviden c e d epends on his t ory a nd t rad it ion ;

b e c ause f a i t h in individua l t es ti mony c an never b e a s
c re d i b l e as t he c osm ic fa it h th a t every even t mus t ha v e
a na t ural c ause : hu man experien c e of t he uniform it y of
t he physical evolu t ion is more credi b l e t han any his t oric
re c or d o f i t s non uniformi ty ca n b e : w it nesses are found
-

fall i bl e b u t t he course o f n at ure i s never found f a ll i bl e ;

,

and even i f an infa l li bl e w i t ness c ou ld b e produ c ed w he n ,

pi tt ed aga ins t t he infa l li b l e na t ura l or d er t he c o n trad ic ,

t ion b e t ween t he t wo infalli bl es cou l d on l y produ c e s c e p t i

ca l para l ysis O f a ll fai th i n t o whi c h a th inker b a fed b y
, ,

w h a t i s self c on t rad i c t ory ine v i ta b l y su b sides Bu t le a v

-

, .

in g o ut of accoun t t his in g enious lo g i c al pu zz le of D a v id

H ume w hi ch exer c ised a pas t g ener ati on ; and g r a n t in g
,

t ha t w i t hin n arrow l imi t s of t ime t h e o cc urren c e o f a n

, ,

even t t ha t h ad n o na t ur al c ause ma y b e made c re d i b l e

th rou g h t r a di t ion c an i t remain credi b l e af t er t he la p se

,

of a g es h as lef t t he repor t ed mir ac le a t a n immeasur a b l e

 296 PH I L OSO P H Y O F T H E I S M .

d i s t ance To d ay th e records of mank i nd m ay m ake u s

.
,

cer t a i n of even t s th a t h appened a few h undred or even a ,

fe w th o u sand years a g o B ut w h a t can b e t he i r cred i

,
.

b i li ty af t er m an h as ex i s t ed on th e plane t for hu ndreds

of th ousa n ds of years ? H ow m u s t p h ysi c al m i racles look
th a t are rep or t ed t o h ave occ u rred m i ll i ons o f years b efore
C an even t s s o i nconce i va b ly remo t e b e s ti ll availa b le for
s t ren gt hen i n g and enl ig ht en i n g rel igi ou s fa ith and h ope
in th e Un i versal P ower ; and can th ere th en b e any secur it y
for an expanded fai th and h ope th a t depends u pon an
even t a tt es t ed b y thi s u n i ma gi na b ly prolon g e d t rad iti on ,

i ns t ead of u pon G o d per s on i ed i n na t ure i n th e moral ,

i mpl i ca t e s of reason an d found b y d i v i ne developmen t of

,

th e S p i r it la t en t i n m an w hi c h as i n s p i ra ti on of th e
, ,

A lm ight y gi ves hi m u nder s t and i n g ?

,

If an even t T h e cr iti cal t emper m ight su gg e s t o th er o b s t acles t o a

c all e d mi r
p hi lo s op hi cal reco g n it ion o f even t s s u ppo s ed t o i n t r u de
ac u l o u s
s h o uld p a in t o cosm i cal order m i rac u lo u sly or uncond iti oned b y ,

p e ar c o u ld
, any p h y s ical ca u se N o t on l y i s hi s t ory a precar i ous
th e sp ec .

t t or b e
a veh i cle for th e conveyance of i nforma ti on a b o ut any even t ,

c ert ai n and i ncreas i n g ly s o th ro u gh th ousands or m i ll i ons of

t hat it wa s
not cau se d year s b u t o u r ve senses are fo u nd t o de c e i ve u s even
,

by G o d wi th reg ard t o presen t even t s : men no t or i ously m i s t ake

n aturall y ?
th e i r own falli b le i n t erpre t a ti ons of wh a t th ey see for
some thi n g ac t ually seen T h e ig noran t s eek for wonders ;
.

and no t re s pond i n g t o th e i nsp i ra t ion awakened i n th e
,

prop h e t s i magi ne th a t th ey would b e pers u aded i f th ey
,

sa w a man r i se from t he dead M i racles are fo u nd i n th e

.

early hi s t or i es of rel igi on B ut d i d th e repor t er s see

.

wh a t th ey b el i eved t hey saw ? P rej ud i ce i s ap t t o

i ndu c e i n t erpre t a ti ons of presen t ed p h enomen a th a t are
i n h armony wi th th e sen ti men t th a t i s dom i nan t i n th e
s pec t a t or : v i sual percep ti ons produced b y th e dominan t
i dea are m i s t aken i n a rude a g e for real iti e s The .

record of m i ra c les i s i n thi s w ay ap t t o b e po i soned a t

it s sour c e . Unperceived even t s are s u pposed t o b e

perce i ved : t he fanc i ed percep ti on i s only t he spec t a t or s
m i s i n t erpre t a ti on of w h a t happened O r i f th e even t .
,

did h appen i s th ere g ro u nd in reason for th e as s u mp

,

ti on th a t it was an even t d i vorced from ever y na t ural

 298 P H I L OS O P H Y OF T HEIS M .

even t s t h at a r e p hys i c a l l y expl ic a b le are allowed t o b e

as ye t i f n o t for e v er inexp l i cabl e b y man ; b u t i t i s t aken
,

for g r a n t ed th a t t h ey migh t a ll b e referred t o n at ur al c auses ,

i n a t rue a nd fu l l i n t erpre t a t ion of n at ure b y b ein g s o f ,

lar g er in t el l i g en c e and more var i ed experience tha n man .

Is no t n a T h e prev a i l i n g d isposi ti on t o s e e m i ra c les i n th is li gh t

tu re a s
, re c al l s our na ll y th eis ti c in t erpre ta t ion of physic a l causa
u n i v ers al
p vi d n
ro e t ion a lre a dy explained W h a t is me a n t b y n at ure a nd
.
,

t ial or d er , wh a t b y t he n a t ur al causa t ion w hic h a p h ysi c al mira c le i s

i t se lf m i r
a cu l o u s sup posed t o supersede ? I f na t ure means only w ha t
i s c oex t en s ive w i t h t h e u l t ima t e l y mys t eriou s su cc ession
of phys ica l c a uses an d if a ll p h y si c al even t s are s uper
,

na t ur all y c a used ca u s a ti on b y i n ten d ing Wi ll b e i ng t h e

o n ly ori gi n at in g po w er of w hi ch man h as ra t ion al a s sur

an c e t hen t he e v ol v in g universe i t self mus t b e a c ons t an t

mir a cle We a re al l l i vi n g and m o vi n g a n d ha v in g our

.
, ,

b ei ng i n a possi b ly u n b e g innin g and u nendin g order o f

c osmi c al ch an g e t ha t is a b so l u t ely t rus t ed in as t h e ,

mira c u l ous or n at ur all y inexp l i ca b l e manifes tati on of pro

, ,

vi d e n t i al mora l R eason . I s t here any w ay of nal l y c on

c e i vi n g t he uni v erse t h a t is s o re a sona bl e s o s at isfyin g t o ,

m a n as h e ou g h t t o b e as t his i s ? I t carries b ack al l

,

physi c al in t er p re t a b i l i t y of n at ure i mmed i a t ely t o t he

e t ern a l moral A g en t ; a ll o t her s o ca l l ed cause s ex c ep t
-

persons wh o c a n m ake th ems elves b a d b e i n g onl y me ta

,
~

h o r i c al l ca uses really t he p a ssive su b j e ct s of e v o l u t ional

p y ,

m e t amorphosis Ca n any par t i c ular phys i c a l m i ra c le b e

.

so mira c ulous one i s ready t o ask as thi s cons ta n t

, ,

m i r ac le of t he un iv erse of t h in g s a nd persons c on t in u ally ,

presen t ? I t loses i t s novel ty an d c e a ses t o su gg es t i t s

,

mir ac ulousness on l y on acc oun t of i t s c ommonness a nd

, ,

t he u nr eec t i ng prej udi c e t ha t t o dis c o v er t h e phys ic al

,

cau se of an e v en t i s t o d i s c over t ha t God i s n ot th e a g en t

i n it s ou tc ome s o t h a t ea c h d i s c o v ered p h ys i c a l c aus e

seems t o pu t God f a r t her away A me t aphori c al po w er
.
,

a tt r i b u t e d t o t he ma t eri a l ca use is in th is wa y made t o

,

n a rro w t h e sph ere of div i ne opera t ion ; s o t ha t in t he ,

e v en t of a u ni v ersal v ict ory of na t ural scien c e D i vine ,

P o w er w o u ld b e t o t a l ly superseded and t he universe r e

,
 M IR A C U L O U S IN T E RF E R E NC E . 299

g arded a t las t under a w h olly na t ur al or n on re l i g ious -

c on c ep t ion wi t h i t s mys t er i ous pas t and f u t ure e mp tied

,

of mor a l me a nin g .

S o th e physi c al u niverse i t se l f c a n b e c once iv ed as a I no t th e s

c ons t an t mira c le under order a nd a d ap tat ions w hi c h are

,
r
t he persis t en t expression of a ct i v e m ora l R e a son M a n v l l . e ous ,

nds no o t her orig in at ive po w er t han spiri t u a l power .

I s no t O mnipo t en t Goo d ness i t m ay even b e aske d Zggt i n

cla

, , ii

mor e i mpressively i nvolved i n t he uni v ers al p hysica l evo it c a n b e ?

l u ti o n on whic h inevi t a b le fai th and hope pu t n all y

,

th e rel igi o u s i n t erpre tat ion t h a n in oc ca siona l mira c les

, ,

w hic h are also re f erre d t o t he imme d ia t e ag en c y of

God i n some a b normal exer c ise o f d i v ine po w er ? I s
,

n o t th e g r a du a l evolu t ion of t he so la r sys t em a g r ea ter

m ira cl e if one may speak of de g rees of t h e mira c u l ous
, ,

t han t h e repor t ed arres t of t he s u n upon Gi b eon or of ,

t h e moon i n t he va ll ey of Aj al on ? I s no t t h e g r a du a l
e v olu t ion of t he l iv in g or g anisms (man in cl u d e d ) whi ch
t h i s plane t now con ta ins as mu c h a m i racle a s t he re t urn
,

t o l i f e on t h e s a me p l ane t of a man t ha t w as dead ?

, ,

The physi call y c on d i t ioned un i verse th rou g h ou t p res u p C n s p e c ial ~

a

poses per v adin g P erfec t Goodness as th e g round a t le a s t

,

un c onscious l y a ssumed for t rus t in na t ur al l aw It pre d i in t h n

. v e a
ll nt
supposes a cons t an t mir ac le if mira c u l ous power me a ns d

t
a e ve s

po w er t ha t i s mor all y f ree Tha t re l i g ious con c ep t ion

.

?
mus t b e narro w w h i c h f a i l s t o s e e immedia t e act ion of ar e

God i n a ll t h at o cc urs un d er c ondi t ions of na t ur al u ni

form ity ; or w hi c h l ooks for dire ct di v ine a ct ion on l y in

in t erferen c e w ith div i ne n a t ur a l l a w When c e t he
.

suppos it ion th a t God mu s t b e some h o w more at t he roo t

of spe c ia l c re at ion a nd mira cl e t han at t he roo t of
u n i versa l m ora l provi d en c e ; a nd more in some pro v i
de u ces t han in th e universal pro v ide n c e w hi c h c ompre
h ends a l l p a r tic ulars i n all re l a t ions in c lud i n g all t h at
,

con c ern ea c h m an ? H ow is t here so m e t hin g more d i v ine

i n preservin g t hree men in a fur n a ce t h a n t here is in re
when i t is na t ura l ly b urni n g or in r a in w h en i t i s nat urall y
,

fal li n g ? I s t he inc a rna t ion o f Go d in t he per f e ct M a n

more m i ra c u l ous t han th e norma l in c arna t ion o f G o d in
N a t ure and in M an ?
 3 0O P H I L OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

Mu s t t h e H ere f u r th er ques ti ons ar i se M u st all even t s th a t

.

U n ivers al h appen b e physi c ally c ondi ti oned ? D o p h y s i c i al even t s

P ower at,

th e h e art i n a ll c ases need t o h ave causes i n th e ma t er i al world ,

o f all ph y a s th e i nd i spensa b le cond iti on of th eir o c c u rrence ? Is
s ic l or d er
a ,

b e m an i th e c ons t an t m i racle of th e un i verse i n i t s na t ural u n i

f t d l
es e a
fo r m i ti es th e only poss ib le m i rac l e ? I s it th e only
wa y s u n d er
law s o f d i v i ne revela ti on th a t i s rea s ona b le ? W h e th er th e c on
ph y s ic al s t an t m i racle b y whi c h t he w orld i s kep t i n it s prov i
or d er ? ,

den ti al na t ural order w h en measured on l y b y th e V i s ib le

,

i s su es i s or i s no t g rea t er th an th e arres t of t he s un
,

or moon or th an t he res u rrec ti on of a person w h o wa s

,

dead may th ere no t b e room under a more c o mp reh e n

,

sive D i v i ne S c i ence th an th a t exempl i ed i n m a t er i al

seq u ence for an occasi ona l occurrence of even t s th a t are
,

n ot th e o ut come of d i v i ne ac ti on cond u c t ed u nder cond i

t ions of na tu ral law but i n wh i c h th e Un i ver s al P ower

,

i s uncond it ioned b y whi le i n h armony w it h O pera ti on and

, ,

c h an g e ac c ord i n g t o p h ysical l aw ? The div i ne ma i n

t en an ce of ou t ward na t ure may i nvolve g rea t er power
th an any occas i on a l m i racle N o twith s t andin g i n a u n i
.
,

verse c h ar g ed th rou gh ou t wi t h A dap t a ti on i n w hi c h ,

every even t i s no t on l y connec t ed u nder na t ural law

w ith every o th er but i n w hi c h every even t is a mean s
,

t o w h a t appears t o man as a des ig ned end and th e W h ole ,

as des ig ned b y P erfec t Goodness t o make persons g ood i n ,

cl u d i n g th ose w h o h ave made th emselves b ad in our

,

concep ti on of a un i verse th u s t eleolo g ic ally c ons t i t u t ed ,

are we a t l ib er t y w ith o u r weak i n t el l i g en c e and narrow

,

exper i ence t o a s s u me do g ma ti cally th a t p h ys i cally con

,

d it i o ne d ac ti v it y of th e Un i versal P ower is th e o n ly sor t

of d i v i ne ac ti vi t y th a t i s reaso n a bl e or a dap t ed t o th e
,

Whole ? M ay t here no t b e div i ne des ig n i n occas i onal

m i racle s th a t appear t o man a t leas t t o b e i ndependen t
, ,

of a l l na t ural c a u ses if no t of ra ti onal order ?

,

I s p roo f P ro b a b ly man s t eleolo gic al c oncep ti on of t he u n i verse

of th e i s no t adequa t e t o de t erm i ne wh e t her p h ys i cal even t s c a n

i mp o iss
b il it y o f make th e i r appearan c e i ndependen t ly o f phy s ica l laws ,

s p e c ial th rou g h th e a g en c y of th e P ower th a t a ls o opera t es a s

m ir a cl e s ,

p ossi b l e ,
it seems norm a lly accord i n g t o p h ys i ca l me t hods
,
. If
u n d er t h e thi s b e so it seems t o follow th a t th e impos s i b ili t y of a
,
 3 02 PH I L O S O PH Y O F T H E I S M .

t h u s leads t o u n i versal scep ti c i sm I n o t h er words t o .

,

i n t erpose o c c a s i onal m i racles i n th e p h ys i cal sys t em would

b e t o make i t o th er t h an th e perfe ct ly co h eren t sys t e m
whi c h s c ience presupposes t ha t it mus t b e A nd s o we .

are asked t o conclude th a t th e en t rance in t o ex i s t en c e

of any v i si bl e e ven t or any spir it ual ex p e ri en c e o f
, ,

wh ic h no n at ur al a c coun t c an b e g iven i s impossi b le , .

D oes no t All thi s m ig h t b e su f cien t i f th e u n i verse were a ,

th i s argu w h olly n on moral universe i f i t c ons i s t ed of th i n s only

g
-

men t p ro ,

c ee d u p on and no t a l so th is t oo in i t s h i gh es t hu manly kno w n

t oo n arrow a spec t o f g ood and b ad p er s ons w h o are l i m it e d i n i n
a n p
co ce
,

t i on f
O t e ll ige n c e a nd exper i ence F or in th e case suppo s ed t he
.
,

what i s only sor t of science possi b le woul d b e i n th e sc i ences com

d i vi nel y
re ason a b l e m o nly ca l led na t ural w hi c h searc h for cons t an t an t e

,
,
i n a uni c eden t s of even t s I t m igh t also b e an argu men t i f men
.

v erse t hat ,

i n c l u d es were only consc i ous au t oma t a w h o could h ave no more ,

p erson s , th an a physi c ally sc i en ti c i n t eres t i n t h emselve s or in

or b e in g s
wh o c an any t h i n g and who
,
c o u ld no t i n an
y d eg r ee make or u n
, ,

m ak e t h em make th e i r ow n c h arac t er Bu t thi s i s no t th e u n i verse i n

.

se lv es b ad ? wh ic h m a n nds h i mself T hi s i s a world i n w hi c h men

.

can and O f ten d o a c t b adly an d i n w hich ac c ord i n gl y

, , ,

with o ut unrea s on God m ay b e re v ealed u nder a high er

,

order t han can b e measured b y man i n t erms of p h ysi c al

c onnec t ions th a t are v i s ib le i n na t ure ye t no t i nc o n s is t
en t wi th t hese The ex i s t ence of persons may req ui re in
.

reason an unfold i n g of a larg er div i ne A dap t a t ion t han

appears i n p h ysi cal causa ti on measured only b y h uman
science It seem s cons i s t en t w i th reason t h a t t he p h ysi
.

cal me th od s h ould no t b e th e h igh es t form i n whic h

O mnipo t en t Goodness i s revealed even in th e ma t erial
world ; an d also t h a t i n th e nal ra ti onale of th e u n i verse
, ,

th e order of ex t ernal na tu re s h ould h ave a s ub ord i na t e

pl a ce i n a h armony of th e W h o l e wh i c h may exceed
,

man s specula ti ve i ma gi na t ion

.

The ki n g A t a ny ra t e miracles canno t b e i rre g ular e ven t s i f ,

d oms o f
i rre g u lar

means i rra t iona l or capr i cio u s o n t he p a r t
N ature an d
o f G ra c e : of t he t rus t ed Un i versal P ower S O far as i t i s reve l .

Th in g s an d a t ion of God mira c le mus t b e t he man i fes t a t ion of perfec t

P ersons ,

rea s on Bu t does i t fo l low th a t a ll th a t h appens m u s t

.

.
 M IR A C U L O U S IN T E RF E R E NC E . 3 03

in reason b e na ll y refera bl e t o p h ysi ca l ca uses ; or th at

ph y s ic al d i vine sys t em m ay no t b e s u b ordina t e t o w hi l e ,

ca p ab le of ha rmonious a ssimi lat ion w i t h a H i g her Id e al , .

There may b e no p h ysi ca lly n a tu r a l l a w o f o cca siona l

mira cl es dis c o v era b le an d ye t t here may b e re a son in

,

t h em M att er is th e or ga n and serv a n t of h uman a nd

.

d i vi ne S pir it Bu t do we kno w enou g h ab ou t t he o f ce

.

o f t he physical s y s t em in t he e c onomy of t he uni v erse t o

j us t if y t h e assump t ion t ha t iss u es ca nno t a pp ear i n t he

m at eri a l w or ld or in a hu man mind in d e p en d en tl y of a ny
, ,

h i ca l l a w of God in na t u re t ha t c an ever b e c ons t rued

p y s

in s ci en c e ; ye t w it hou t c on t ra d i ct in g or in t err u p t in g a ny

of th ose la w s ? I hold says L ei b ni z t h at w hen God
, ,

w orks mira cl es H e does i t n o t in order t o supp l y t he ,

wa n t s of na tu r e b u t t hose of gr a ce ; an d w hoever t hinks

,

o t her wise mus t h av e a v ery mean no t ion of t he w is d o m

a n d po w er of God O cca sion al mir acl es m a y b e in t h a t
.

ca se d ivine a ct s proper t o a u ni v erse t ha t in c ludes p ersons

,

o r mor al a g en t s ; w hi l e they w oul d b e ou t of p l ac e in a

uni v erse o f t h i n g s who l ly under me c hani cal rel at ions
, .

I f God is mira c ulous l y re v e al ed i n t he sense t h a t Th e i r har

t h e n at ural is n a lly de v e l ope d in t o supern at ur a l re v el
a t ion t h en th e super c ial a n t i t hesis o f n at ure an d super
,

n a t u r a l d i sap p ears A nd u nder th e l imi tat ion o f human

.

in t e llig en c e th e mora l response w hi c h th e d eeper or

, ,

s o ca l l ed mira c ulous revel at ion re c eives from t h e s p iri t u al

-
,

c ons t i t u ti on lat en t in man w ou l d b e t h e e vid en c e of i t s

d i v ini t y A ll t he more if i t c oul d b e sh own t h a t t he re v e l
.

at ion w e call m iraculou s more di s t inc tl y unfol d s t he i m

p l i cat es of th eis tic f aith and hope and is there f ore more ,

ri c h l y di vi ne and reasona b le t han th e more a tt enu at ed ,

re v e l a t ion of O mnipo t en t Goodness that is t a c i tl y pre

supposed in all experience .

Bu t i f i n th e pro g ressive developmen t of t h e human

,
That C h r i s
min d a nd o u r increased kno wl e d g e o f n at ur a l ca uses
, ,
be
m a n s c oncep t ions of w h a t is n at ural s h ould b e c ome so

f nd t o
ou
/
en la r g ed as t h at th e w h o l e C hris t ian con c e p t ion of G o d R
all?
shou l d b e seen t o a r i se ou t of t he ord i n a ry c ourse o f g io n , w o u ld
na t ure C hris t ian fai th wou l d t hen b e dis c o v ered t o b e th e no t it
nu d W i
.

ne
mos t na t ura l rel i g i on of all b u t sure l y no t on t ha t acc oun t
,
 3 04 PH I L OS O PH Y O F T H E I S M .

u nd i v i ne M a y no t t h i s m i rac u lous revela ti on of P er
.

fec t Goodness t h erefore mak i n g for th e g oodne s s of all

,

persons b e la t en t in th e pr i mary pos tu la t e of all hu man

,

exper i ence w h ich t ac it ly as s umes th e nal t rus t wor thi ness

, ,

and s o th e omn i po t en t g oodness of th e Un i ver s al P ower

,

as th e essence of o u r nal fa ith ? I n th e deeper and wider

mean i n g of na tu ral all revela ti on of God m u s t b e i n
,

h armony w ith w h a t i s nally na tu ral ; o th erwi se it -

co u ld no t b e th ou ght or reasoned a b o ut F or th ou ght .

or reason i n g so far a s it i s appl i ca b le i mpl i es ra ti onal

, ,

co h erence i n th a t w hi c h i s th o u g ht or reasoned a b o u t ii
no t under laws of p h y s ic al cause s ye t u nder t eleolo gi cal
,

rela ti ons of means and end o r of ye t hig her ca t e g or i e s i n

th e i n t ellec tu al s ys t em of th e u n i verse P ro b a b ly th e .

le git ima t e i dea of an occa s i onal m i ra c le is t o b e looked
for in o u r t eleolo gi cal reason It i s an even t i n na tu re
.

th a t i s i ncapa b le of red u c ti on b y man u nder th e p h ys i cal

concep t ion thu s rema i n i n g always a p h ys i cal mys t ery
O f th e h u man po i n t s of v i ew ; w hi le it per h aps adm it s
of explana t ion u nder th e t eleolo gi cal concep ti on i n w hi c h
, ,

t h e un i verse i s t aken as th e reve l a ti on of D i v i ne D es ig n .

A d ee p en O rdered h uman pro g re s s an d m i racle or w h a t i s called

,
i n g at on c em i raculo u s i n t erference are th e s e t wo con icti n g i deas ?

o f th e
i d eas o f T h e s u ppos it ion of th e i r i ncons i s t en c y may expla i n th e
u n i v ers al scep ti cal sadness re g ard i n g man whi c h h as d i ffu sed it self
n atu r al
or d er an d
,
i n th i s nine t een th c en t ury i n E u rope and elsew h ere .

o f t h e u l ti
Bu t may no t an h ones t ly a g nos ti c sp i r it i ll u s t ra t e i n
m at e m i r
a culo us thi s ins t ance t oo h o w cr iti cal ne g a ti on is really a fac t or
,

ness o f t h e in pro g ress i ve movemen t t owards a l a r g er af rma ti ve

U n i ver se
fai t h ? F o r i s no t t he n i ne t een th cen tu ry i n co u s e
.

q u e n c e of t h i s ne g a ti ve cri ti c i s m clos i n g w ith

, a pro
fo u nder sense th an th e world h as b efore reac h ed a t once ,

of th e u n i versali t y of p h ys i cal law and O f mirac u lo u s ness

,

a t th e roo t of t he u n i verse D o w e no t b e gi n t o s ee th a t
th e n al presuppos iti on of O mn i po t en t Goodness a t th e
cen t re i s no t s u b ver s i on of phys i cal order and sc i ence but ,

ra th er it s founda t ion and it s life ? V i s ib le na tu re appears

no lon g er on th e hollow nal fo u nda ti on of a do g ma ti cal
p h ys i cal u n i form it y Benea th thi s o th erw i se u ncer t a i n
.
 3 06

LE C TURE V .

THE F IN AL V E N T U RE OF T H E I S TI C FAI TH .

P h i l osop h y P H I L O S O P H Y a c c ord i n g t o P la t o i s med it a ti on u pon dea th

, , .

i s me d it a T hi s is th e voi c e of poe t s and thi nkers ou t s i de and with in

ti on u p on
D e at h
. Ch r i s t endom T h a t expe ct a ti on of dea th makes h uman
.

life misera b le and th a t th is m i ser y may b e removed b y

,

th e p hi losophy w hich sees only th e pe ac e of e t ernal sleep

i n th e d i ssolu ti on of th e b ody i s th e key no t e of th e mos t
,
-

su b l i me poem in R oman l it era t ure T h e nal des t iny of .

men h as a tt ra ct ed c on t empla ti ve th ou ght i n th e suc c es

sive g enera t ions whi c h h ave p assed in t o th e darkness ,

askin g w h i t h er th ey w ere g o i n g ? T h e b ooks whi c h re c ord

h uman c onj e ct ures ab ou t th e se c re t kep t b y dea t h m ight
form a li b rary T h ey b elon g t o an ci en t med i eval and
.
, ,

modern t imes i n all coun t r i es an d r ac es A mon g our

, .

c oun t rymen it i s th e th eme of th e C ypress Grove o f
,

Will i am D rummond th e pensive poe t o f H aw th ornden

, .

T h e med it a t i v e t enderness o f Words w or th s E ssay upon

E pi t ap h s presen t s d ea th i n one aspec t t aken a t a h i g her ,

po i n t i n h is O de on I n t ima ti ons of I mmor ta li t y .

M ora l fa ith i n th e i mmor t al it y o f man t em p ered b y ,

modern dou bt i s t he no t e of Tennyson i n I n M emoriam
, .

I saa c T a y l or s T h eory of A no th er L i fe i s a n i n g enious

exer ci se o f ima g ina t ion i n an ti cipa t ion of th a t w hic h

follows de ath
Th e n al
.

p rob l em ,
D ea th is dire ct ly concerned with th e nal hum a n pro
a s relat e d b lem as re g ards one onl y o f i t s t hree da t a n a me l y th e ,
t o th e c ons ci ou s e g o d i s ti n g uished from ou tw ard t hin g s a nd
d e at h o f
M en. from God A m I t o b e na ll y a nd for eve r self conscio u sly
.
-
 TH E FIN A L V E N T U R E O F T H E I S T IC F A I TH . 307

d i s ti nc t from uncons c io u s M a tt er and from th e Uni versa l

,

P ower ? A m I so mixed up wi th t he ma t erial wor l d in ,

w hi c h I nd myse l f no w i n c arna t e t h at I mus t s h are t he

,

f at e of my b ody and c ea s e for ever t o b e consc i ous as soon

,

a s I h a ve c e a sed a t dea th t o b e visi b ly i ncarna t e ? The

w orld o f wh ic h my b o di ly or g anism i s a p a r t is th e
, ,

s u bj ec t of cons t an t me t amorphoses A m I on l y one of

.

th e ephemer a l me t amorp h oses in t o wh i c h ever c han gin g -

M a tt er na tu r a lly resol v es it self ? C an I b e only t his if ,

I nd my i nv i si b le self d i s ti n g u is h ed b y a u ni que per

sis t en t id en t i t y t hrou g h all chan g es of th is em b odied
l ife ? O ur b o di es and ou tw ard t hin g s are in cons t an t

u x : iden tity a pplies t o th e m only me t aphori c al l y A .

hu man e g o of h alf a cen t ury ag o is c onnec t ed w i th th e

human e g o of t o day i n ano th er w a y th an t ha t in w h i c h
-
,

his b ody now i s c onnec t ed w i th hi s b ody of ha lf a

c en t ury a g o . A f t er a fa i n t or a dream l ess s l eep we
, ,

c anno t b u t connec t ,
as n u mer i ca lly one th e e g o b efore,

t hose in t erva l s of unconsciousness and t he e g o af t er t h em .

S a ni t y requires th a t I should pr acti ca ll y ackno wl e dg e t h i s

u nique pers i s t en t sameness A n d we are o bliged t o a s
.

s u me that h u man persons in a d d it ion t o t his im p erfec tly

,

c omprehende d di fferen c e b e t ween t he mse lv es a n d t hin g s ,

h ave a mys t er i ous po w er of m a kin g t hemsel v es b a d of ,

which one nds no t r ac e in b o d ies .

A ll t his r a ises t he supre m e human ques t ion Wha t is D oes th e

t he rela t ion of t h is n o w c ons c io u s p erson t his persis t en t
c ons c i o u s
p er s on
su bj e ct of ever cha n g i n g pains and pleas u res t his c re at or
-
fi n all y

of g ood or ev i l ac t s t o t he disso l u t ion of his v isi b l e ce as e t o b e

c on s c i ou s
o r g an i sm ? I s t he se l f cons ci ous e g o t ransi t ory so t ha t a t
-
, wi t h t h e
d ea t h alon g w i t h t he or g a n i sm w i t h whic h l ife i s no w di ss o l ut i on
,
o f hi s
in cons t an t c orre lati on t he hi t her t o con t inuous se l f
, li o d y ?

c ons c io u sness also dissolves D o hum a n b ein g s c ease for

e v er t o b e cons ci ous w hen th ey c e a se t o si g nify t he i r
,

c o n s c ious act i v i t y v i si b ly ? O n t h i s p l ane t a l one one nds

h undreds of mil li ons of cons ci ous persons i n ea ch g enera
t ion s ig nifyin g t o one ano t her t heir i nvisi b l e c ons c iou s
a c t iv it y some of th em sho w in g t he s i g ns on l y for a fe w
h ours a fe w i t m ay b e for a hundred ye a rs a f t er w hi c h
,

t he org an i sm disso l ves and t here is n o more any si g n

,
.
 3 08 PH I L OSO PH Y O F TH E I S M .

Th e n u A re th ere any fac t s w hi c h th e l i v i n g may reco g n i s e

, ,
i qu en es s
o f t h e self w hi ch show t ha t moral ag en t s may not b e so i n v o l ved
c ons ci o u s in t h e me ta morp h oses of na tu re as t ha t th e d i ssolu ti on o f
p erson i n,
h i s b ody i n dea th m u s t mean th e nal ces s a t ion of th e
c on t r a s t
wit h t h e self consci o u s person
- ? Th ere is a t any ra t e some th in g
p erenn ial u niq u e i n self conscious personal it y
-
P ersons are under
chan g e i n .

n ature .
sp i r itu al rela ti ons as well as under p h ys i ca l rela t ions ;
,

and b y th e i r i nd i v i d u al personal ity th ey a re d i s ti n g uis h ed

, ,

b o th from th e Un i versal P ower and from o ut ward th in g s .

C an we reasona b ly thi nk of moral a g en t s and n on moral -

thi n g s as al i ke in des ti ny ye t u n l ike i n th e u n i q u e

,

ra ti onal consciousness con ti n u o u s i den tit y and moral

, ,

responsi bi li t y w hich only persons pos s ess dur i n g thi s

, ,

ep h emeral em b od i ed ex i s t ence ? M u s t we s ay al i ke of ,

m en and b ru t es th a t as th e one d i e th s o d i e th th e
, ,

o th er ; yea t hey h ave a l l one b rea t h ; s o th a t a man

,

h a th n o pre em i nence a b ove a b eas t ; for all i s van ity

-
.

A ll g o u n t o one place ; al l are of th e d u s t and all tu r n ,

t o dus t a g a i n ? C an w e even prove th a t phys i cal dea th
i s th e nal ex ti nc ti on of all an i mals excep t m a n ? D oe s
th eis ti c fa ith in th e f u ll developmen t of w h ic h we c an
,

reall y enj oy c ons c iou s l i fe does thi s nal moral t r u s t

j u s t ify u s in an t ic i pa t in g n o t only f u t ure even t s i n thi s
,

world but also persis t en t persona l cons ci o u sness aft e r

,

b odily d i s s ol uti on ? W it h ou t an i mpl i ed m oral fa ith i n th e

mora l t rus t wor thi ness of th e Un i versal P ower we h ave ,

n o as s u rance ab ou t a ny th i ng fu tu r e : o u r mos t na tu ral

an ti c i pa t ions may all b e pu t t o c onfu s i on : we canno t
c oun t on order or on adap t a t ion i n na t ure It i s b y
, ,
.

t rus ti n g e th ical omn i po t en c e w ith all t h a t t h i s i ncl u des

, ,

th a t we c an know and ac t no w D oes thi s fa ith i n w h ic h.

,

h uman life is roo t ed also i nvolve reasona b le h ope th a t

,

p h ys ic al dea t h w i l l no t make an end of personal l i fe ; an d

th a t some th i ng more manifes t ly d i v i ne th an th e s t ran g ely
m i xed exper i ence of th e u niverse we h ave on th is plane t
m ay b e expe ct ed O ur b odies are no t o u r u n i q u e per s on
al it y : th ey are consc i o u s persons as revealed t o th e senses .

C ali a n C an an a t hei s t reasona b ly expe ct t o l i ve af t er hi s

ath ei s t
p h ysical dea t h ? I wo u ld pu t a prev i ous que s t ion C an
r e a son a b l y ,

b e l i eve i n a th eis t s w ith unreason only reco g n i sed a t th e roo t of A ll

, ,
 310 PHIL OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

fores h adowed i n th e ch a r a cter of th e U n i versal P ower ;

no t wi th s t and i n g th e s t ra ng ely m i xed s t a t e of thi s corner
of th e universe and it s apparen t ly capric i o u s d i s t r ib u ti on
,

of h appiness and pa i n ?
An al o gi es B u t w h ile all expec t a ti on i s essen ti ally th e i s t ic fa ith ,

and s c ien ti c expe ct a ti on i s more in t ell ig en t fa ith th er e

of ,

c ons c i o u s i s a d i fference b e t ween sc i en ti c prev i s i on of th e t emporal

fu tu re w ithi n th e presen t world an d pre vi s i on of l i fe af t er
,
:

ph y s ic al th e na tu ral d i ssol u ti on of t h e or g anism th rou gh w hi c h ,

Eg m f i ncarna t e on th i s p l ane t i n h i s o w n place and t i me I f

l h nd
a
t h e person now reve als hi mself t o o t h er persons and l i ves ,
ei r su
i n y
c e c . , .

th e consc i o u s i nd i vid u al e g o i s a unique sor t of b e i n g i n

th e u n i verse t he dea th of th e or g an i sm t o w hi c h h is
, ,

personal l i fe i s now i n correla ti on i s also a u niq u e fa ct , ,

in th e sense th a t no adequa t e ana l o g y t o h is own dea th

can b e found wi thi n th e presen t experience of any
liv i n g man N o do ubt l i fe i n hu man persons h as a l read y
.
,

persi s t e d th rou g h c r it ical c h an g es : a l l an i m a l life i ll u s

t ra t es th is . L ife i n th e wom b and l i fe af t er bi r th ; l i fe
,

w ith th e b ody en t ire a n d life af t er th e b ody h as b ee n

,

depr i ved b y ac ci den t or o th erw i se of i mpor t an t org ans

th ese are fam i l i ar ch an g e s af t er w hi c h th e consc i ous per
,

s on is s ti ll foun d s elf consc i ous I n dreamless sleep or i n

-
.
,

a sw oon th e c on ti nu it y of th e consc i ous l i fe seem s t o b e

,

in t errup t ed . S l eep says S ir Tho m as M ore i s th e b ro th er

,

,

of dea th i n w h i ch we seem t o d i e wi th ou t really dyi ng
, .

S h akespeare c onceives sleep as th e de ath of ea ch d a y s

l i fe a nd all o u r l ittl e l i ves are rounded w ith a sleep .

Bu t i n thi s su fc ien t analo g y w i th dea t h is wan ti n g Th e .

pers i s t en c y of th e person is h ere veri ed : th e b roken .

c ons c i ousness re tu rns in t o con t in uit y w ith it s pas t : mem

ory c an cross th e g ulf of th i s t emp orary d ea th moreover ,

th e org anism of th e person was u ndissolved i ns t ead o f ,

s h arin g in th e u ncons ci o u s ne s s of s l eep b y a t emporary

p h ys ic al dissolu ti on A nalo gi es of animal t ransforma ti on
.

th e ca t erp i l l ar t r a nsformed i n t o th e butt ery for i h

,

S t ance are al l found i nadequ a t e wh en compared w it h ,

th e v i s i b le consequences of p h y s ic al dea th i n man .

U n i qu e T h e pro bab le e ffec t of th e d ea th of a person s p h ys i ca l

11 9 5 3 t h e or g an i sm upon hi s self conscio u s and perc i p i en t li fe can

-
 T H E FIN A L V EN T U R E O F T H E I S T IC F A I T H . 311

hardly b e de t ermined b y fa ct s like t hese F or t he pro .

p h eno me
b l em w hi c h t he disso l u tion of t h e human b ody p resen t s H
E S

I y s c a,
is a b s o l u t e l y sin g u l ar Li v in g men ca nno t se ttl e i t b y
. d eatl z i t l is
{f
r ei gn t o
ex p erimen t a s t hey c an de t ermine b y experimen t th e
,
m
.

fi ii
e e
l
o u tc ome o f s l ee p or a t ran c e ; for i n order t o do t his th ey e i e

w ou ld need t o die and h ave person al exper i en c e of t he

, P e t s o ns

issue N or h as th e eni g ma b een so l ved b y comm u ni c a t ion

.

w i t h persons w h o h ave die d : one e ffec t o f dea t h seems t o an d i t

b e t o wi t hdr a w th e ma t er i al medium of c ommun ic a t ion
b e tw een th e l i vin g and t he de a d T h e iss u e of th eir
.
o u r on l y
dea th i s no t communi c a t ed b y dead persons ; and n o per
s o n now liv in g h as m a de t he experimen t o f d yin g and c at i on wi th
re t urn i n g i n t o thi s em b odied l ife A ll e g ed a pp a ri ti ons
.
t h e d e ad

an d mess ag es from depar t ed persons g ive no l i g h t I f .

f a i th i n th e con t in ue d c ons ci ousness of p h ysi c a ll y dead

persons a f t er th eir dea th mu s t depend upon t hese sources ,

i t seems t o ha v e no suppor t in evidence .

Y e t it does no t fo ll ow t h at t he hope t ha t de ath i s no t F ait h i n

t he na l en d o f i n d ividua l persons i s b a seless N O dou b t Per s i st en c e
fp n l
.

o er so a
t he c a se i s no t f ul l y a nalog ous t o or il lus t ra t ed in t heis
, , c on s c i o u s
t i call y s us t a i n e d ordinar y expe cta t ion or previsions in
,

n at ur a l s ci ence ; i ts si n g ul a ri ty l ies par tl y in thi s th a t not n that o

t h e physi c a l mediu m of veri c a t ion is n at ura ll y wi th acc o un t

1
.

d r aw n in dea t h Bu t t o a ssume w i t hou t proof th a t a

.
, ,

c ons c ious person is s o dependen t for his c ons ci ous l i fe

upon h i s presen t or ga nism t h at his c ons ci ous l ife mu st
,

c e a se w hen t his org anism d issolves is t o b e g th e ques t ion

,

w e are med it a t i ng a b ou t The ques t ion is w he t her t he

.
,

visi b l e d i ssolu t ion ne c e s sar i ly si g n i es t he invisi b le dis

solu t ion ; an d i t wi l l no t serve t he i n t eres t of reason t o
ta ke t his for g ran t ed w it hou t permi tti n g a ny mode of
de t erm i nin g t h e pro b a b i l ity o th er t han th e physi c ally
s c ien t i c mo d e
.

F or one t hi ng we nd a w i d espread f ait h i n a l l a g es

, , ,
It is ,
in i n

g gg
r l e
and amon g va rious n at ions a nd r ac es of men t ha t human ,
f
persons som eh ow survive t h e p hysi c a l c risis of or g a n i c c on c e p ti on ,

disso l u ti on A r t i c ula t e c on c e p t ions of wha t fol l o w s d e ath

.
$ 3:
a

dou b t less v ary wid e l y in th e t ra d i t ions and re l i g ions of

,

mank i nd an d i n t he fan c ies of indivi d ua l s Bu t w hile

,
.
 312 PH I L OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

th ere h a s u sually b een a s cep tic al m i nor it y th e m a s s of ,

m ank i nd i n th e anci en t med i eval and modern world

, , ,

i n th e E as t and th e Wes t i n E g yp t P ers i a I nd i a

, , , ,

Greece and R ome Jews M o h ammedans Ch r i s ti an s

, , ,

en t er t a i n an expec t a ti on th a t persons pers i s t af t er dea th ,

w h e th er i n a lower and m ore a tt en u a t ed or i n a no b ler

l i fe th an th a t exper i enced b efore th ey d i ed T h e con .

c e p t i o n i n mos t ca s es i mpl i es th a t th e p ost m or tem ex i s t

ence i s no t w h olly u nem b od i ed ; th a t th e person re t a i ns ,

or g a i ns af t er dea th some i n t an gib le g hos t ly form of

,

em b od i men t ; or else af t er an i n t erval of u nem b od i men t

, ,

recover s p h ys i cal rela ti ons i n s ome wor thi er form a

b ody S p i r it ual i ns t ead of th e presen t l i m iti n g b ody i n

,

and th ro ugh w hi c h sp i r itu al consc i ousness h as on ear th

b ecome i nd i v i d u al Tha t a sp i r itu al b ody s u cceed s th e
.

na tu ral b ody i s th e fa ith of mos t Ch r i s ti ans .

G en ui ne T h a t all g enu i ne C ommon F ai th or th e common ra ti onal ,

C ommon s en s e of mank i nd i s d i v i nely t r u s t wor th y b ecause i n s p i red
th e , ,

d ivi ne i n b y God i s a pos t ula t e on w h i ch s ci ence i t self res t s i n

, ,

sp i ati on all it s prev i s i ve i nferences S c i en t i c ver i ca ti on as I

r
wh ic h
.
,

giveth h ave th ro ugh o u t ar gu ed i s nally u ncon s c i o u s rel igi o u s

,

u n d er t r u s t I t h a s b een s cien ti cally ver i ed th a t th e s u n

st an d i n g
.
.

w i ll r i se t o morrow ; but ti ll th e s u n s h all h ave ac tu ally

-

r i s en th e a ss er ti on only expresses fa i th i n th e d i v i ne
,

na tu ral order A ll expec t a ti on s c i en ti c or common i s

.
, ,

so far a leap i n th e dark ; it i s t aken w ith o ut t he l ight of

sen s e T h e expec t ed even t h a s no t th e proof a fforded b y
.

fel t percep ti on ti ll th e even t h as h appened I f s en s e were .

o u r only l i g ht it wo u ld follow th a t we m u s t remain i n th e

,

darkne ss of dou bt a b ou t ever y fu t ure even t To b e p ra c .

t i c ally cons i s t en t i f we i ns i s t th a t th a t only can b e

,

reasona b le i n t o w hi c h no i n g red i en t of mora l ven tu re

en t er s we mus t cease t o l i ve ; for life depends u pon
,

expec t a ti on and expec t a ti on pos tu la t e s f aith i n t he d i v i ne

,

reasona b leness of th e un i verse ; wh i c h i mpl i es th a t men

w i ll no t b e nal l y p ut t o s c i en ti c confus i on b y reasona b le
s ub m iss i on t o thi s moral fa ith I f th ey m u s t th e u n i .
,

ver s e would b e u nd i vine i llus i on .

S c i enti c T h e w i despread fa ith i n personal pers i s t ence th ro ugh

p revi s i on
,
and af t er p h ys i cal dea th i s i ncapa b le of exper i men t al
,
 314 PHIL OS O PH Y O F T H E I S M .

organ ism ,
wi despread delus i on and anac h ron i sm w hich ma y b e ex ,

affor d s t d t o disappear wit h th e g radua l i n c rease of h uman

p e c e
,

p er s e, no
re a s on for c u lt ure A g ener at ion led b y t h ose w h o are phys ic al l y
.

ex p e ct i n g s c ien t i c in th e i r wh ole h a bit of re a sonin g i s na t ur a ll y

s u r vival ,

o f th e s c ep t i c al a b o ut wh a t canno t b e t es t ed b y v i s ib le ex p er i
c on s c i o u s men t ; d i s t rus t ful of w h a t are called me ta p hys ic al n e c es
p erson
S i ti es ; and even dis t r u s t ful of t he m oral fa it h on w hich
.

th e i r p hys ic al s ci en c e i t self uncons ci ous l y t o th emse l ves

, ,

c ons ta n tl y depends I f one do g ma t i c ally asser t s th a t all

.

ques ti on s of f a ct wh e th er a b ou t th in g s or persons m u s t
, ,

b e de c ided b y p h ysic a l t es t s only an d rej e ct s h yper ,

p h y si c al suppor t s as ab s t rac t or fan ci f u l t he i ssue o f ,

human dea th is removed from reasona b le i nves tig a ti o n ,

alon g w i th th e re moval of th e v i s ibl e and t an g i b le med i um

wh i ch c onnec t s th e cons ci ous person w i th p h ysical science .

O nly as I h ave s ai d t h e same do g ma t ic assump ti on i s

, ,

b o u nd t o remove a l on g w it h t h i s ques ti on all s c ien ti c

, ,

q u es t ions t o g e th er for na t ural s cience a t las t d epends

upon fai th t ha t is h yper physi c al -
Unless we h y per
.

physi c a ll y ass u me t h e ra ti onali ty or t rus tw or t hiness of

t h e Uni vers a l P o wer na t ure m u s t rema i n s c i en t i c al l y
,

un i n t erpre t a b le b eyond th e momen t ary da t u m of ac tu al

,

feel i n g wh ic h i so lat ed da t u m p er se i s u n i n t elli gib le

.

D if cu lti es Bu t le t u s face some of th e p h ysi ca l d i f c u lti es w h ic h

t hat b ese t b ese t f a i t h in th e pos th umo u s cons ci ous persis t ence of t h e
th e idea
o f p osth u ind i vidu a l i sed an d i nvis ib le person F or one t hin g our .
,

mo u s p er experien c e of th e rela t ion b e t w een th e v i si b le or ga nism

son al c on
i
sc ou s n es s ,and t he invisi b le c ons c ious l i fe and fee l in g i s t ha t

i n a ph y c h a n g es in th e one are fo u nd i n a cons t an t c orrespond i n g

i ll y
s ca
s ci ent i c c onne ct ion wi th c h an g es i n th e o th er : th e experimen t al
ag e li k e t h e i nferen c e would ac c ordin gly b e that t o t al dissolu t ion of
p resen t ,

t he b ody mus t un d er na t ural l aw b e follo w ed b y c orre

.

, ,

s p o n d i n g cessa ti on of c ons c ious personal it y ; th a t th e dis

solu t ion of th e b ody mus t invo lv e th e d i sso l u ti on of t he

c o ns c ious person al life th a t h as b een u niformly c on
d i ti o n ed b y t he b ody and made man i fes t t o o th er persons
,

only in and t hrou g h th e b ody A g ain a separa t ion of t he

.
,

persona l c ons c iousness fro m th e or g an i sed m att er in w hi ch

i t i s no w i nvo l ved i s b y u s u nima gi na b le W h e n th e .
 T H E F I N A L V E N T U R E O F TH E I S T I C F A I TH . 315

sensuous ima g ina t ion t ries t o rea l ise se lf c ons c ious l i f e -

af t er i t h as c ease d t o b e i n c arn at e t he u n b o d ied l i f e is ,

in ni t e l y more mys t erio u s tha n a ny supposed ch a n g e

o f l o cal i t y or of em b odimen t whi c h a m a n could pas s
, ,

th rou gh To b e t ranspor t ed i n th e b o d y i n t o one of

.

t he nei ghb our i n g pl a n e t s s t i ll more in t o one o f t h e

,

imme a sura b ly remo t e s t e lla r sys t ems wou ld b e a n a pp al ,

l in g prospe ct for a human b ein g ; b u t aft er a l l i t w ou l d

no t b e l ife o ut of a ll em b od imen t p lac e l ess i f no t ,

a l so ti meless l ife ; and so lita ry t oo b y disso l u t ion of th e

, ,

fam il iar me di um of commun ic a t ion b e tw een p ersons .

Timeless per h aps ; for wi t hou t per c ep t ion of mo t ion in

,

spa c e wh a t c on c eiva bl e mea su r e o f d ura t ion remains :

,

w ith o ut th e a ccus t omed me a sure of dura tion whi c h t h e

periodic movemen t s of th e pl a ne t s supply dis t in ct i d eas ,

of dura ti on w ou l d disappear leav i n g t he perso n p rac ti

,

c all y in a placeless and t ime l ess l ife M emory t oo i f no t .

, ,

t o t a l ly emp t ied of t he i d ea of ti me is confron t ed b y t he ,

ul t ima t e di f c ul t y of re c o ll e cti n g a person al h is t or y spre ad

over i nnumera bl e millions of year s no t t o spe a k o f i ts
en d lessn es s w hic h raises an a b solu t e l y in c on c eiv a b l e issue
,
.

L an g ua g e t oo some sor t of sensi b le or pi ct ured sym b o l
is now no t only t he me d ium of c o m munica t ion b e tw ee n
persons b u t also an in d is p ensa bl e c ondi t ion o f so l i ta ry
,

th ou gh t A r t i c ula t e l an g ua g e is an ag g re gat e of v isi b l e

.

or audi b le si g ns w h ich nee d s c on t inue d re lati on of p er

,

son a l consc i ousness t o th e sensi b le w or l d The d isso l u t ion .

of t his c onne ct ion seems t o wi t hd r aw a n indis p ens ab l e i n

s t rumen t of in t e ll i g en t life w i t hou t w hi c h l i v in g t hou gh t
,

mus t d i e The on l y cons c ious l ife w hi c h perso n s on e a r t h

.

have any experien c e o f or w hi c h is possi b l e t o im a g ine

, ,

i s em b o di e d cons c ious life A n d t h e presumed u n c o n

.

s c i o u s n e s s or impersonal exis t ence of m e n b efo r e t heir b ir t h

, ,

i s in phys ic al analo g y w i t h an assump t ion o f t heir u n c o n

s c i o u s n e s s after d ea t h Then t he mo d ern w ho ll y se n suous
.

imag ina ti on w orks in ano t her wa y E x cl usi v e a tt en t ion .

t o visi b le a nd t an g i b le phenomen a m a kes t he i nvisi b l e

supposed re al i ties of a S p iri t ual p ersona l i ty l ook l ike
emp t y a b s t r a c t ions H en c e t h e fa vouri t e a ssum p t ion
.
,

t ha t i f th e cons c ious spiri t pers i s t s a f t er t he d e at h of ,

 316 P H IL OSO P H Y O F T H E I S M .

it s v i s ib le or g an i s m it mu s t b e i n correla ti on w ith an
,

or g anism s ubj ec t t o cond iti ons of place and ti me l i ke th ose

,

w it h w hi c h w e are fam i l i ar A nd thi s narro w p h ys ic al

.

c oncep ti on of poss ibi l iti es su gg es t s th e p h ys i cal d i f c u l t y

of an overcrowded ma t er i al world even w ith i t s milli o ns :o f ,

s u ns and t he i r sys tems in w h ic h i n th e i n n it e f u t ure , ,

w ith it s endless a c c u m u la t ion of persona l or g anisms room ,

canno t b e fo und for all i n plane t ary h omes I f th ey .

m us t a c cum u l at e i n endless m i ll i ons on every s t ar and

plane t it seems t o th e ima gi na ti on th a t thi s mu s t i n ti me
,

i ss u e i n de c i en t p h ys i cal accommoda ti on .

Th e in d e
a T h ese are ill u s t ra ti on s of perplex iti es of s ensuo u s im
agi n at i o n i n deal i n g wi th a q u e s ti on fore ig n t o th e co u rse
,

ar g u ment s of na tu re so far as na tu re comes w ithi n th e e x p e ri

,

f
or Pe ?r
ence of persons no t ye t dead S c ep ti cal s i lence seems th e
son al l i fe .

a ft er d eath appropri a t e a tti t ude of th o s e w h o s u ppose th a t fai th f u l

,

ne ss t o t r uth make s i t neces s ary t o accep t only p h y s i cal

cr it er i a and s ensu o u s i ma gi na ti on for th e de t erm i n a ti on of
, ,

all q u es ti ons T h ey ask h o w p h ys i cal analo gi es can adm it

.

th e real it y of a l i fe w h ic h no one now liv i n g can i ma gi ne ,

far les s ver i fy b y experimen t a l i fe a b s t ra ct ed from all

,

th a t i s p h y s ical W h o can re s t u pon prem i sses of ex

.

p e r i e n ce an i nference a b sol ut ely s i n g ular re g ard i n g th e ,

inv i s ib le des ti ny of c on s c i o u s person s w h o th us far h ave ,

found th emselves always i ncarna t e th e i r s elf con s c i ous -

i nd i v i d u ali t y b e gu n and ma i n t a i ned b y th e i ncarna ti on ?

M et ap h y B ut i f con ti n u o u s person al l i fe af t er p h ys i cal dea th i s

9 1
i ncapa b le of p h ys i cal proof th ro ugh sc i ence per h ap s i t
'

ment s s h ow ,

th ea b ts r ac t can b e s h own t o b e metap h ysi ca l ly n ec ess a r y A b s t rac t .

P oss i b i l it y i m po s s ibi l it y of th e nal ex t inc ti on of any consc i o u s per

,

r at h e r t h a n
s on h a s b een asser t ed as a h yper p h ys i cal reason for i n
o

t h e fact ,
-

0 f self ferr i n g th e per s i s t ence of th e con s c i o u s person no t wi th ,

s t andin g th e dea th o f hi s b ody B ut thi s a b s t rac t as s er ti on

.

a ft p h y i can h ardly b e accep t ed a s a fo u nda ti on for a c oncl u s i on

er s
ca l d thea
a b o u t a fu tu re fac t ; al th o ugh it may s u g g es t need for so

u n i que a ques ti on as th e i s s u e of dea t h b e i n g t rea t ed

d i fferen t ly from ques ti ons a b o ut even t s th a t can b e seen .

T h e do g ma of w h a t i s am bigu o u s ly called th e na tu ral
i mm or t al ity of man i s ano th er for m of me t ap h ys i cal po s
 318 P H I L OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

percep ti on of colours w ith ou t th e per ci p i en t posse ss i n g

,

eyes and of sounds with ou t ears ; for s ee i n g and h ear

, ,

i ng are s t a t es of c onsc i ousness w hi ch m ay b e s u pposed

,

g oin g on indepe n den t ly of or g anised ma tt er .

Th e y fai l t o These a re spe cul a ti on s They t end t o S how th e a bstr ac t

.

s i bi li t
p os y of mu c h t h a t exceeds p h y s i cal i ma gi na ti on and
i m sug
c s , sensuous experience ; b u t th ey are t oo remo t e from ma tt er
n of fa ct t o over c ome th e scep ti cal presump t ion t o w hi c h
$ 233?
so l t i on
u th e v i s ib le dissolu ti on of th e b ody gi ve s rise A b s t ra ct .

? of a h ypo th e ti cal f utu re : th ey excit e dreams w ith ou t

gig reason i n g and easiness t o s uppose leave u s s ti ll i n fron t

,

de t erm i n i n g t h e reasona b leness of fa ith i n th e dream .

T he et h i cal T h u s exclus i ve phys i cal science a ffords n o ev i dence th a t

a per s on pers i s t s i n consc i o u s li fe af t er hi s presen t i n car
p erson al n a ti on h as ended i ndeed su gg es t s on t h e whole th a t th e
,

consc i ous person h as ende d t oo ; and a b s t rac t me t ap h ys ic al

specula ti on a b o ut personal ity w hil e it expand s spec u la t ive
,

vis i on i s ye t una b le t o sus t a i n reasona bl e b el i ef B u t are

, .

we s ti ll lef t i n ig noran c e w h en we t urn from ou t ward

,

n a t ure and a b s t rac t me t ap h ys ic s t o th e ra ti onal i mpl i ca t es

of t he i s tic fa ith ; wh en we i n t el lig en tly acknowled g e th e

O mn i po t en t Goodness pres u pposed i n th e t r i plici t y of
our pr i mary da t a ; an d aft er we h ave ree ct ed u pon
t he inspired spir it ual c ons tit u ti on la t en t i n man h ardly ,

e v oked i ndeed i n t o consci ousness i n m any no t fully ,

evoked in any ? D oes thi s i nward i nsp i ra ti on of th e

A l mi g h t y re v ea l that th e condi t ions u nder w hi c h t he
moral a g en t i s ma i n t ained i n hi s presen t phys ic al or g an
i s ati o n are i nade qu a t e t o th e m oral mean i n g an d c h ief
en d of m a n ? Wou l d c essa ti on of i nd i v i dual personal l i fe ,

af t er ex i s t ence in th e b ody for only a few days or
, ,

even a h undre d years really p u t mor a l i n t ell i g en c e t o

,

confusion a nd so ra i se do u b t even a b o ut t he phys i cal i n

,

t e r p re tab i l i ty of ex t ernal n atu re w h en per s onal e x p e ri

,

ence co ul d b e only a hollow momen ta ry dream ? I s t here

no t some t hin g t oo i n th e i nvolu n ta r y en t ran c e i n t o exis t
, ,

ence of i n d i vi d u a l p er sons w ho unlike th i ngs and t he i r

,

pass i ve me t amorphoses a re all responsi b le for t he i r own

,

c h arac t er a b le t o resis t as well as t o accep t th eir div i ne

,
 TH E F I N A L V E N TU R E OF TH E I S T I C F A I T H . 319

idea l is t here n o t some t hin g in t his t h at op p oses i t se l f
t o th e ide a of persons w i t hdr aw n f rom responsi b l e p er
s o n al i t in t o n a l un c onsciousness a l mos t a s soon t heir
y ,
as

persona l i ty b e g ins ? I s n o t t he su pp osi t ion of t h e an

n ih il a t i o n of b ein g s of t his sor t b efore t he y h av e h ad C
,

t ime t o dis c over wh at and w h ere t hey are a n issue ,

t ha t is ou t of h a r m ony w i t h imp l i c a t es of our inevi ta b l e

f a i t h a nd hope in th e omnipo t en t g oo d ness an d in ni t e
mercy of th e P o w er t ha t mus t b e e t ern all y m a kin g for
th e g oodness of ba d persons ? D oes su ch a n ad mission o f
persons for a momen t in t o a d an g erous mor al t ri al on a
, , ,

p l ane t th a t seems t o have h ad th em a s t he c hie f en d o f i t s

e volu ti on no t l ook like ca pri c e o f unreason ra t her t h a n
,

m a nifes t a t ion of omnipo t en t g oodness ? Ca n t h e s u p

pos iti on of t he dissolu ti on of c ons c ious persons i n t h e
d ea t h of t heir b odies b e re c onci l e d w i t h t rus t a n d hope
in t he perfe ct g oodness of t he Univers a l P o w er w hi c h ,

I h ave u r g ed as a t on c e t he t a c i t a ssump tion in a l l

h uman experien c e and t he l as t w or d o f t rue phi l o
,

s op h y ? I f pos it ive a nswers t o t hese ques t ions a b ou t

m ora l a g en t s like men seem presump t uous at t he ,

poin t of v iew t o w hi c h t he h u m a n ques t ioner i s c on

n e d remo t e in t e ll e ct ua ll y from t he in ni t e c en t re
d oes no t t heis tic fai t h at le a s t im p ly t h at c o n d en c e
in O mnipo t e n t Goodness i s t he on l y re a son a b le p rin c i p l e
a cc or d in g t o w hic h man c an d ie as w e ll a s l i v e ; a n d t h at

t o d ie in t h i s m oral ven t ure in a d i v ine uni v erse m ay

b e e t hi c al l y b e tt er for t he l i v i ng t h a n a d e m ons t r at ion
w hich w ou l d supersede edu c a t ion o f mor al f a i t h ? To
th ose w hose li v es a re ha b i t ua ll y dire c t e d in t h eis t i c t rus t
t o wa rds t he rea l is at ion of t heir t rue s p iri t u al i d e al physi ,

c al d ea t h is no t a l e a p in t he da rk , b u t r a t her in t h e
d ivine l i g ht w hi c h i ll umin at es a ll presen t experien c e .

I n t he d i v ine u n i verse o f t heis t i c fa i t h m a n c a n m ake

his exi t from t he b o d y in t h e assur a n c e t h at i t is w e ll ;
,

n o t kno w in g w hi th er h e i s g oi n g

y e,
t l ike t he pa t riar,
ch .

H ope of t h e c on t inued exis t en c e o f hum a n p er s ons n o t ,

w i t hs t an d in g t he d is a p p e a r a n c e o f t heir b o d ie s is n o t
, ,

indeed like f ai th in t he omnipo t en t a n d o m ni p resen t

g oo d ness of th e Univer s a l P o w er a n in di spens a b l e p os t u
 320 P H IL OSO PH Y OF THEIS M .

la t e of all relia b le i n t erco u rse i n hu man exper i ence w ith

th e evolvin g universe of th in g s and persons ; b u t i t s
scep t i c al dis i n t e g ra ti on surely d i s tu r b s thi s f u ndamen tal
fa it h a nd s o t ends t o t o t al pess i m i s t do ubt
, .

I s th e The en ig ma of moral ev i l leaves us i n fron t of a fur th er

t f
Egl gi lf
r
ques t ion ra i sed
, b y th e v ery hope of pos th umo u s l i fe I s .

G oo d i n t h e th e exis t ence of persons w ho can make and keep t hem

se l ves b a d only a t rans it ory epi s ode i n th e hi s t or of th e
Egggg
e
or y
onl y t n i
ra un i verse ; or m u s t th ere b e for ever b ad pers ons i nc reas
s ,

t Y?
or
i n g i n n um b er and i ncreasin g ly b ad ? N o t w it hs t and i n g
,

th e am b i gu ou s a ppearance w h i ch th e world of sen t ien t and

moral b ein g s presen t s i n thi s c orner and t h e i rre g ular
,

adj us tmen t s of pleasure and pa i n t o th eir g ood and evil

ac t s s o ap t t o paralyse fa ith and h ope are pa i n and

, ,

error and V i ce i n th e div i ne univer s e in th e end t o d i s

appear b y perfec t ly reali s ed g oodness i n all persons em ,

b od i ed o r un b odied and in all w orlds

,
A re a ll cer t a i n a t
las t t o b ecome wh a t t hey ou ght t o b e ; c er t ain i n t he end
t o realise i nd i v i dually th e d i vine ideal of man ; or a t leas t

t o b e for ever approac h in g t o th is on th e pa th w hic h
,

s hi ne th m ore an d more u n t o t he perfec t day ?
C njo ec The a lt erna ti ve answers t o th is supreme qu es ti on are
t res
u '

f u ll of di f c u lti es whi c h seem t o b e inc a pa b le of se tt le

men t T h a t th e i mmoral a g ency of persons th e i r per
.

s onal power t o depar t fro m th eir moral ide a l deepened

and per h aps nally con rmed b y h a bit m ay b ecome an

a b solu t ely nal elec t ion t o ev i l by th ems elves whi c h ,

even O mn i po t en t Goodne s s n ot over c ome consis t en tl y

ca n

w it h th e free persona lit y of t hose w h o per s is t in keepin g

th emselves u n di v i ne i s one conj ec t ure : it i nvolves th e
mys t ery of th e ex i s t ence i n th e d i v i ne u n i verse of i n
numer ab le pers ons l i v i n g e ndlessl y i ncreas in g i n n u m b er
, , ,

and a ll b e c omi n g w orse O n th e o th er h and th a t con

.
,

sc i ou s persons as well as t he i r presen t b odies are

, ,

capa b le of ex ti nc ti on b y th e U ni versal P ower ; th a t

only t he moral l y pro g ressive w h o have w ith drawn res i s t
,

ance t o w ha t is d i vine nally re t ain consc i o u s person a l

,

l i fe w hi le a l l who pers i s t on t he downward g rade are

,

nally red u ced t o u nconsciousness s o th a t ev i l l i fe dies

3 22 PH I L OSO PH Y O F T H E I S M .

th e only se ttlemen t th a t i s poss ib le for man Those ag ain

.

w ho ins i s t upon th e p h ys ic al me th od of i n v es t i g a ti on a s
th e only a venue t o t ru th lo gic ally con c lude th a t t he div ine
,

or n al h uman ques ti on i s an i dle ques ti on Bu t i t s

.

scien t i c insolu b ili t y I h ave t ried t o s h o w need b e no

, ,

i ns u per ab le b ar t o a reasona b le se tt lemen t i n th eis t i c ,

t rus t and h ope as t h e al t er n a t ive t o t o t a l u n c er t a i n t y and

,

despai r i n case of th e a b sence of omn i presen t omn i po t en t

, , ,

an d o m n i sc i en t Goodness .
 326 P H IL OSO P H Y OF TH EISM .

i nt ell i c ip l e
I seemed t o b e l os i n g myself in a mean i n gle s s
.

u i v erse
n emp t y of p ersons moral or i mmoral man
t h e t ru e w i th a l l his pre t ended sc i ences th e l at es t p h enomenon ,

i n an inexp lic a b le process i on th e reve lat ion i f it c an b e

,

q u es ti on ca ll e d,
reve l a ti on of a P ower
,
c oncernin g wh ich I d a re
no t pos t ula t e enou gh t o j us ti fy me in c on c lud i n g any
th in g l n doin g or an ti cip at in g any t hin g
,
D espair is .

t h e i ssue of th e endeavour th us t o c ompre h end a s O ne

S u b s t ance and P o w er th e reali t y i n t o whi ch we en t er
w h en we b e c ome per ci pien t of thi n g s and self cons ci ou s -
.

The h m o Bu t i s th ere no t I proceeded t o ask myself i s th ere

o

fgg f
f l
no t anoo
th er me th od i n w hi ch th e nal q u es t ion a b ou t my
d e ali n g l i fe i n t h e un i verse may b e de a l t with ? A l th ou gh I
1
3321 canno t g ra s p t he W h o l e as i f it were a n it e prem i ss
1

ti on ab o ut i n a s ci en ti c ar g umen t may I no t i n some o th er way , , ,

t h e ni
u
come p r ac ti cally i n t o reasona b le rela ti on w ith th e W h ole

v erse o f
re al iti es M ay I 11
,
I n i n t er c ourse Wi th i t u nder rela t i ons of ,

a kno w led g e th a t i s s ti ll h uman ye t rela ti ons even

e t ern a lly necess a ry i n man s l i m it ed and in t ermed i a t e po i n t
,

of V iew ? M ay no t th e u niversa l real it y b e s u f cien t ly

i n t erpre t a b le b y and for m an on th is h om o mensu r a
, ,

principle ? B u t th e n it m u s t b e th e c omple t e or i deal

M an no t man a s a sensuous i n t ell ig ence only nor ye t
, ,

as purely i n t elle ct ual om itti n g h i s dis ti n g uis h in g moral

,

and spir itu al experience P hys ic al or na t ura l s ci en c e

.
,

c oncerned w ith non moral t hin g s is an i nadequa t e ap -

,

pl ic a ti on of th e h omo men su r a I n a deeper or more .

real u s e of th a t me th o d th e Uni v ersal P ower mus t b e pos ,

t u l at e d as O mnipo t en t Goodness T h e D i vi n a mensu r a .

s o human i sed i s b y i mp l i c a t ion t h e roo t of h u man life
a nd k n o w led g e .

Thi e vi u M an s na l re l a ti on t o th e u niverse o f t hin g s a nd per

a

med m
sons w orked ou t on th e lar g e h o mo m ensu r a princi ple
, ,

does no t ra ti onalise th e u nivers a l reali t y w i th S p i no z a

or H e g el in an O mn i scien c e w h ich elimina t e s mys t ery ;
n or does it l eave man paralysed in t o t al un c er t a i n ty ,

w ith D av i d H ume It pos t ula t es morally perfe ct

.

P ower a t th e roo t of exper i ence w ith a b a c k g rou nd of ,

i nev it a bl e mys t ery a revela ti on t his w hic h may b e

,

come enou g h for man w h i l e i t leaves some th in g t ha t ,

 A R E T R OS P E C T . 3 27

i s b y man spe c u lat ive l y u nim a g in a b l e It reco g nises t he .

vi a m ed i a in t e ll e c t u all y in t ermedia t e b e t ween O mn is c

,

i e n c e and N escien c e Un a b le t o s ee t he Who l e f ro m t he

.

D ivine C en t re we a re o b l i g ed t o pos t u lat e P erfe ct Good

,

ness o f t he Universa l P ower t his la t en t in a ll man s

in t er c ourse W it h m a ni f es t ed rea l i ty a worki n g pos t u l a t e

foun d c h a r g ed w it h mean i n g in propor t ion a s t h e persons ,

who t h i nk and a ct u pon i t a p proach t o t he idea l M a n .

H ow has t h i s me th o d f a red wi t h us on t ri a l ?
I n t he r s t pla c e our pos t u lat e w as j us t i ed b y t he
, Thi s n al
i mpossi b i lit y of in t el l igibl e experien c e or of moral condu ct moral p os
,
tu lat e a n
wi th ou t t r u s t and h ope in t he invisi bl e P o w er t h at i s i ndi p ns
s e

omnipresen t I n t er c o u rse wi t h th in g s and persons p r e abl e as

.

s ump ti on
s u mes moral con den c e i n t h e P o w er a t work t hrou g hou t
.

t he W h o l e T o s u ppose prac t i c al indi fferen c e t o g oodness

.

i n t he Un i versal P o w er is vir t ua ll y t o for b id s c ien t i c

,

or mor a l in t ercourse w ith th a t P ower as presen t ed in ex

p e r i e n ce We mus t avoid a nal l y undivine Uni v erse
.

as we avoid a suspec t ed man I n all cal c u l a t ed act ivi t y .

we a t leas t un c ons c iously t ake for g ran t ed t he ethi ca l

, ,

r eli a bi li t of th e mys t er i ous P o w er revealed in ph y si

y
ca l an d human h i s t ory The a b so l u t eness of .

O b li g a ti on and th e imposs i b i l ity of in t erpre t in g ourse lv es

,

or our surroundin g s if th e na t u ral evo l u ti on i s ei t her a pro

,

lon g ed a c c i d en t emp t y of mor al me a nin g or a re v e lat ion

, ,

of d i ab o l i ca l purpose in ei t her of t hese wa ys pu tt in g us

t o in t e ll ec t ua l an d moral confusion is w h at j us t i es t he
t heis t i c or mora l c on c ep t ion a s na l The su fc ien t reas .

for i t s a dop t ion is t ha t un l ess an op t imis t fa i t h is t he

,

nal fai th t here c an b e no t ru t h a b ou t a ny t h in g I f t he

,
.

l ife that emer g es b e tw een b ir th and dea t h rises o ut of and ,

su b si d es in t o a n a ll y unin t e ll i g i b l e or mor all y un t rus t

,

wor t hy un i verse one c an onl y say L e t me es c ape from

, ,

conscious l i f e and t hus pra cti call y f rom t he c on c re t e uni

,

verse and re tu rn i n t o t he un c ons c iousness ou t of whi c h I

,

i nvo l un t ari l y emer g ed w hen I w as b orn H is o w n a n ni .

h il a ti o n b ecomes t he c hief end o f t he c ons c ious e g o if

i ndeed af t er paralysis of t he f und a men t a l e t hi cal p os t u
,

la t e one ca n ha ve an y end t o s t ru gg le for a n d mus t no t

, ,

passively su b side in t o speechless mo t ionless a g nos ti c ism ,

.
 3 28 PH I L O S O PH Y O F TH E I S M .

s urr en d er I n all in t ercourse w it h t he universe le t me th erefore

n al re g ard myself a s a p er s on dealin g w it h O mnipo t en t
$ 321
13

p o s tu lat e Goodness th ere i n i mp li ed and par t ia ll y revealed

,
Le t .

m l y st s m e t ake th is a s th e cons t an t pos t ula t e in al l in t erpre t a

u man
a
1 11
t ni g n
e
g t i ons
g e, of exper i ences Bu t t h i s i s t o assume that e t h i cal
.

nd d s m
ieg t s ra e
fai
l
th is th e indispens ab le r a ti on a le o f human life it s
ex p eri en c e S i l en t ly
,
a cc ep t ed prel i m i nary i n i t s re l i g i ous develop

men t th e c ulm i na t ion of it s deepes t and t rues t phi l osop h y .

M oral fa it h i s deeper th an t he d eepes t possi bl e in t e ll e ct ual

d ou b t and i s pres u pposed i n all dou bt th a t i s reasona b le
, .

The e th ical t r u s t n eeded for pro g ressive in t erpre t a t ion of

,

exper i en c e i n s c ience supersedes t he pess i m i s t dou bt and ,

d espair a b ou t every thi n g i n t o w hi c h monis t spe c ul a t ions , ,

s t r ictl y i n t erpre t ed at la s t reso l ve H o w ever s ym pat h e ti

,
.

cally one t ried t o en t er i n t o th e ag nos t ic c oncep ti on as

nal th ere was always fou nd b elow i t a g erm of moral
,

con dence in th e ch a r a cter of t h e P ower th a t i s unive r

sally opera ti ve as P o w er th a t is ne ith er i ndi fferen t t o

,

p h ys i cal and moral order nor di ab olic but perfe ctl y g ood , , ,

and t herefore mak i n g fo r th e g oodness of al l person s in th e

u n i verse S o th e D i v i ne I deal is presumed t o b e t o
.

make and keep moral a g en t s in th e s t a t e i n wh ic h t hey

ou ght t o b e ; and s omeh ow t o res t ore th em t o g oodness i f ,

any of th em h ave m a de t hemselves moral l y b ad .

T h e i nc ar T h e U niy er s al O mnipr esen t P o w er ma y b e t r ul y sa i d

_ _

n"? 0 f
ga d n
r0 1
t o b e on sp eak i n g t erms w i th man i n a nd t hro ug h a ,

N atu re cosm i c a l and moral order w h i c h i n al l i t s r a m i c at i ons i s

r esu med t o b e in t erpre t a b le b eca u s e c h ar g ed with a ct ive
p ,

wh ich t h e moral reason ; no t c apr i c i ous b u t a b so lut ely g ood ,

mv a l th ou g h man s i na bi l it y t o occupy th e D i vine C en t re

g

er?
OW CI I S

vir tu all y m u s t leave m u c h th a t i s p h ys i ca l ly or morally i n e x p li c

9n P S k ea
a b le T h a t th e I n n it e P ower should b e on spe a kin g
m g t erms
.

wi t h men t erms ,
Wi th m a n th rou g h th e sense sym b ol i sm of n a t ure
,

and th e i nw a rd i nsp i ra t ion of th e spiri t a b ove al l in th e ,

ideal M an thi s i s surely no t inconsis t en t wi th ul t im at ely

i nac c essi bl e mys t er i ousness i n t he God we h ave con

ti n u al ly t o do w i t h R evela ti on of God i n t elli g i ble enou gh
.

t o re gu la t e man s l i fe in an o th er wi se mys t er i o u s uni

verse seems th e way o f answeri n g n a l ques ti ons t ha t

,

is adap t ed t o m an D i vine p r es enc e th r o u gh o u t th e

. _ _
 330 P H I L OS O P H Y O F T H E I S M .

a mor all y t rial mor a l l y responsi b le persons w h o h ave p ower t o

, ,
n

make an d keep t hemse l ves b a d no t w ith s t andin g t he r i

un iv erse of t h i s d i vm e exper i me nt r at her th an th a t t here S h oul d
,

3, ? no t b e persons on mor al t rial a t al l b u t i ns t ead a w ho ll y

gn
tg
11 l s
,

u nt t
ru e non mora l or physi c al l y ne c essi tat ed universe I f one
-
, ,
.

w th m s t akes ac c oun t of fa ll i bl e mora l a g en t s on pro b a t ion a s a t

or es
,

leas t t h e h u ma n ly r ela ted purpose w h ic h th e Who l e is

m a k i n g for a t th e only h uman po i n t of V iew it may we l l
, ,

b e th a t t he uni v erse emp ti ed of persons even su c h per

sons as men h a v e m a de th emsel v es would realise a less

d i v i ne i deal t o th a t u nder w h ic h s in and su ffer in g appear .

S i g ns o f M oreover one may s u gg es t th a t t he en ig m a presen t e d

,
.

we
P
i
rog
m p rove
r ess
o n t h i s plane t i s rel i eved b y th e s ig ns of hu man pro g ress
men t ,
also presen t ed w h en i ts h i s t ory i s i n t erpre t ed as d i vm ely
,

condu ct ed educa ti on of a l l who will perm it t hemse l ves t o

b e d i v i nely educa t ed P ro g res s i ve improvemen t on t he .

wh ole b u t whic h of t en seems t o conver t pro g ress in t o

,

re g ress ra th er th an ori g i na l and endless moral p e r fe c

t ion may b e t he only e conomy adap t ed t o a d i vine w or l d
th a t i n cludes p er sons on tr i a l .

A lar gar S t ill more when th ere i s reasona b le roo m for a rein
v l mn
{fa n th e
l
e a
for c emen t of t he pro g ressive mo v emen t b y wha t t o us
m iy
er e may see m un i que a ct i on of th e Un i ver s a l P o w er at ,

h l
P y
one adap t
sI Ca
sundry t imes and i n d i vers manners accordin g to a ,

e d t o m ak e ra t i onal order more c omprehens i ve t han t ha t wh i c h men

,

ggf g sense may b e c a l led miraculous de t erm i ned b y i t s rela

reco g nise i n t he i r p h ysi c al experience and w h i ch in t his
t a
,

mp h

a
e l e
in th t ions t o persons w h o h ave made t hemselves b ad in rej e ct
y1 ,

3? i n g t he div i ne i deal ; s o t ha t th e i r dorm a n t fa it h and hope

h
P y i l s sa h as t o b e vi vi e d and enl ig h t ened in order t o t heir mor a l ,

p n n e
ex e e c
recovery all t hrou g h divine i n c arn at ion in t he I deal

M an th e c onsumma ti on of divine i ncarna t ion i n E x t ernal

,

N a t ure .

Th e con d i F ur th ermore s c ep tic al d i s i n t e g ra ti on of nal fa ith and

,
f
33 n l fe h ope in t he Un iv ersa l P ower m a y b e arres t ed b y th e con
1 3 0
.
,
1a i
on e art h S i dera t i on th a t t he presen t t r ag edy of S i n and su ffer i n g on
m to
S ee
t h i s plane t i s no t ex t ended enou g h i n t i m e and pl a ce
as k u n d er ,
t h e t h e i stic t o expla i n i t s n a l mean i n g and un i versal i ss u es T h e .

P ostu lat e c ur t ain falls a t t he b e g innin g of th e rs t a c t I f men

:

for it s re c .

t i t i o n or are l i v i n g i n a moral l y t rus tw or th y u n i verse

ca i n l i al ,
 A R E T R OS P E C T . 331

c on den c e t ha t t he issues need no t i n t h e en d p u t t h em t o ex plan a

in t e ll e ct u al an d mora l c on f usion t his w ou ld seem t o im p l y t i on
.

for t hem a l on g er a nd la r g er life t h a n t h at on t his e a r th

a l i f e in w hi c h perfe ct ion w i ll b e fou nd b y t h e t ried a g en t s

t o un d erl i e t h e app a ren t i ndi ffere n c e c a p ri c e or c rue lty

, ,

of th e se c u l ar d r a ma F or ph y si cal de at h n eed no t e nd
.

th e c ons c ious l ife of persons who die p hysi call y ; a nd t h e

prim a ry mora l pos t u lat e of ex p erien c e m a y e v en im p l y a
reasona bl e fa ith and hope t h a t t his is no t s o in a di v i n e l y ,

c ons t i t u t ed uni v erse . T h e mor a l c haos no w on t hi s

p lane t s o ap t t o b e dis i n t e g r at i v e of mor al t rus t in t he
,

Un i versal P o w er and th ere f ore in a ll hum a n experien c e

, ,

m a y b e re l ieved th rou g h a n o w in c on c eiv ab le aft er l ife -

O f th e moral a g en t s ,
a ft er t he c ur t ain f all s in d ea t h .

T h ese consi d er at ions a fforded b y a l arg er phi l oso p h y

,
Aid s t o
t han t he s c ien c e w hi c h i s on l y physi ca l c an O ffer ten d t o p erpl exe d
,
fai t h .

sus t ain th e mor al t ru s t an d hope in th e U n ivers al P o w er

wh ic h i s a t th e roo t of exper i en c e wi t hou t w hich human
l ife i s h ol l ow i l lu s i on no divine voi c e h e a rd in t he
,

drama of N a t ure no spiri t ual inspira t ions i n a n d th rou g h

,

M an t he who l e unin t erpre t a b le human na t ure i n all

,

,

i t s fa c u lti es an d inevi t a b le pos t ula t es a v ai n il l usion It

,
.

i s t he ine vi t a b le s c ep t i c a l a nd p essimis t al t erna t ive in t his

d i l emm a th a t makes t h eis t i c op t imism w i t h it s r a t ion al
,

c onsequen c es t h e hi g hes t hum a n phi l oso p hy ; s o t h at w e

,

a re o b l i g ed in re a son t o res t in n al f a i t h an d hope u n ,

l ess i t s in c o h eren c e ca n b e d emons t r at e d disso lv in g ex ,

p e r i en c e a nd i t s d ivine pos t u l a t e a,
l on g w i t h s c ien c e a nd
g oodness in a c ommon ruin The ex t in ct ion o f t heis t i c
,
.

f a i th i s t he ex t in ct ion of re a son i n m a n .
3 34 IND E " .

ada p tati on 2 0 2 i 2 1 4 III i n di D es i g n i n n at u r e 2 0 2 tf it s re l a

, , , .

vidua l person al a g en c y m a y b e ti on t o m a n a n d it s s u pe rh u m a n
u n divi ne or s i n f u l 2 6 2 ff a n d re lati ons 2 0 4 ff , ,
.

m i r a c l es 2 9 4 ,
D e vil 2 6 0 .
, .

C h a l me r s T h om a s on c r e ati on 1 2 7 D i on y s i u s pse u d o 1 6 1
, , , , .

ff
.
D ivi n a C omme dia 4 6 ,

.

C h r i s tia n it y a n d P hil osop h y 2 0 D r u mmon d o f H awth o r n d en 3 0 6

, , .

4 6 6 4 8 3 a n d N at u r al T h eo
, ,
D alit y o f th e n it e u n iv e r se 3 0 u ,

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,

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 I ND E" . 335

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a n d ca u s a l it y 9 2 3 h o w c on , .

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,
w a r d thi n g s 2 8 h i s re c o g n iti on , ,

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mor a l a ge n c y 1 4 5 14 8 150 v idu al E go u p on G d 3 1 h i s

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336 IN D E " .

n all y pe rf e c t m o ral t ru s t w o r th i M o r e S ir T h om a s 3 1 0
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ness o f th e u n i v e r se o f r e alit y 1 8 4 ,
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.

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,

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,
338 IND E " .

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,

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2 66 .

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,
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,

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-
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1 69 1 73 ,

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.

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t o tal s c ep tici s m it s l o g i c al alt e r V o ltair e , 89 .

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, , .

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.

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e vil 2 5 8
, 265 329 an d , Z or oas t e r ,
259 .

P R I NT E D BY \V I L L I M I BLA( K W O O D A 1\ D S O N S