any one advanced in life who has enjoyed opportunities of knowledge derived from association with men and books, and who has an inclination to reach the bottom of things by his own independent thought, is apt to arrive at conclusions regarding the world and society very different from those which had been early impressed upon him by his superiors and teachers. from a suspicion, at first reluctantly accepted, but finally confirmed beyond a doubt, he finds that he has been deceived in many things. the discovery arouses no indignation because he knows that his early instructors were in most cases the victims of misdirection themselves, and are therefore not to be held accountable for the promulgation of errors which they had mistaken for truths. his self-emancipation has so filled his mind with a better hope for the future of the world, and a higher opinion of his fellow men, that the delight and satisfaction of the discovery[pg 6] overcomes every sentiment except pity for those who had been leading him astray, and if the feeling of condemnation or censure comes to his mind at all, it is only for those few who live and thrive upon those delusions having their origin in the past, and whose chief purpose in life is to keep them alive and to bolster them up among the multitude.

in the new light that has come to him, the world and society have been transformed to his view and understanding. he discovers goodness in many places where his teachers had denied its existence, and its definition has become so changed, under his broader vision, that humanity seems teeming with it everywhere, and is ruled by it, and those departments of it most affecting society he observes to be increasing, and that instead of like an exotic in uncongenial soil, hard to be retained by mankind, it is perpetuated and cherished by natural human impulses. he finds, also, that the sum of badness in the world has been greatly exaggerated by his teachers, and that those branches of it most interfering with the welfare of society are gradually being lessened, and are likely to work out their extinction by the penalties of public disapproval. these convictions make the world seem a[pg 7] brighter and better dwelling place. they reveal to him the possibilities of its future, and tend to divert his higher aims from the obscure paths where tradition had been leading them, into more fruitful channels. the truth will have at last dawned upon him, bearing evidences in this age that none but the unenlightened can doubt, that superstition, during many of the centuries past, has belittled the world, and has discouraged humanity in improving it, under the mistaken assumption of the world’s small comparative importance in the great outcome; the circumstantial particulars, of which, it pretends to hold by divine revelation. having rid himself of these beliefs by a process of reasoning, and the assistance of the available knowledge of his time, he arrives at the conclusion that the best work of humanity is not, altogether that taught by the creeds, and that its most divinely inspired motives are those which tend to increase the knowledge of worldly things, those which add to the sum of goodness in society by exhibiting its practical effect toward happiness, and those also which assist in the great end of equalizing the burdens and enjoyments of life among all.

having these conclusions firmly established in his mind, and the undeserved reverence from early training removed,[pg 8] he becomes especially fitted to examine these old beliefs, and to pass judgment upon them, without that taint of blind devotional fervor which the unremitted teaching of many centuries has rendered current in the world. he observes of these old beliefs, that during their supremacy, when their control of society was complete and unquestioned, the material progress of mankind was least, without any compensating condition to make up for the darkness, and dead mental activity that had fallen upon it; except that apparent hypnotic influence from the doctrines taught, which made men careless of their miseries, and indifferent to the things of the earth. he observes, further, of these old beliefs, that as modern knowledge reduces their hold of authority among men, the world improves as it never did before. even charity, kindness, and good will to men, adopted, and long taught as an inseparable part of them, multiply more rapidly as their weight in the management of human affairs grow less. from these well attested facts he arrives at the conviction that those religious societies, founded upon, and which have for centuries labored to perpetuate these beliefs, either are not possessed with all the elements of human progress, or, that having many of such elements, they have others of[pg 9] such neutralizing and retarding effect as to render the first futile for such a purpose. that the latter is the case, every year added to his experience of life removes the doubt, and explains to his understanding why the religious societies of the world have failed in any great degree to advance the material and intellectual condition of mankind.

with a moral code, every provision of which plainly indicates the method of a better social state, these religious societies have indissolubly associated in their teachings certain doctrinal beliefs, originating in a semi-barbarous age, and laden with its superstitions, with that fatal assumption of divine authority which demands their acceptance every where and for all time. beliefs of such unbending rigidity, impossible adaption or amendment, and intolerance of dissent, on account of their pretended sacred character, that the world has been kept in a turmoil discussing them since their introduction, and the more salutary lessons of morality and spiritual hope have been outranked and submerged by these vain and profitless discussions. these beautiful and attractive lessons of love, kindness, and charity, exemplified and taught through a personality, whose gift of genius was to see,[pg 10] above all other men, the needs of humanity, have attracted men and women into these religious societies as the hungry are attracted by stores of food. once within their lines, and imbued with the doctrines there found, they see but little abroad in the outside world but the evil spirit of sheol. to them, its shadow rests upon much of the business of life, and with increased obscurity, upon many of its pleasures. it even shows to them among those humanities which are without their direction and cue. it is only however among the many who openly deny their doctrines and authority that the evil spirit is seen by them in all its hideous and malevolent personality, and their especial mission is to give battle in that direction. between he who doubts, no matter how respectfully, and these religious societies, are drawn their lines of kindness and charity, and with their sermons of love, and their protestations of good will to mankind fresh upon them, they are at any time, transformed, so far as their relations with a doubter are concerned, into a band of hostile and relentless savages, with inflictions of punishment, measured in degree by surrounding enlightenment, from the actual barbaric torture of the savage, to mere social ostracism and avoidance.

[pg 11]if it were the sole purpose of all christian organizations to bring into general practice the civilizing precepts of their founder, they would become the most powerful agents in the world to human advancement and the betterment of social conditions, but these precepts are made subordinate by them, and are neither valued or estimated beyond their jurisdiction. they count nothing as saving qualities without the acknowledgment of certain doctrines and methods accompanying them. those beautiful sentiments of charity and kindness, always so precious to the hearts of men, and growing more so as the ages advance, were not adopted nor promulgated entirely for civilizing purposes, but mostly with the selfish view of capturing humanity to church interests. with a like purpose, knowing the mystic tendency of the masses, the supernaturalisms, made a part of these attractive precepts, were adopted and upheld; bringing into the world an endless multitude of barren illusions, provoking acrimonious contentions among men, to no good purpose whatever, and filling the pages of history with a description of scenes that are a torture even to the memory.

it is given only to those now living, and who have experienced the longest terms of life, to personally compare[pg 12] the past with the present, so far as their limited sojourn in the world extends. they are living witnesses to the wonderful changes in society and its beliefs during the short period of two generations only. they have seen many of these ancient supernatural dreams in all their power of authority, and have watched them wilt, and finally disappear, under some silent influence, after argument and reason had exhausted themselves against them in vain. they have listened to those weekly expositions of infernal horrors, common at one time, in all the fear and trembling of childhood, and have later, witnessed the theories and beliefs which inspired them, with many others equally obnoxious to reason, relegated to silence and disuse, as antiquated and worn furniture, no longer serviceable, is consigned to the rubbish heap. only two generations ago they have seen the literature of the churches in leather bound books occupying the best filled, and most easily reached shelves of the libraries, and now laying neglected among the dust of the cellars; not one retained for reference, and even their titles forgotten. they have seen, in their time, the clutches of superstition compelled to relax its hold upon the throats of many a worthy human enterprise. they have witnessed the triumph of[pg 13] science in its many skirmishes with tradition, and have been interested lookers-on, while the famous battle of evolution raged. they have seen it from start to finish, and the amusing spectacle of its end, when theology, metaphorically speaking, dragged its bruised and trembling body out of the dust; and wiping the blood from its pale and troubled face, unblushingly declared, as it had in every like outcome before, that there had been no conflict.

with all this, and within their own era of two generations only, they have seen the world arise to such prodigies of advancement, such marvels of practical charity and such activities in the pursuit of knowledge, in so close and quick succession as to fill them with bewilderment and wonder, and they will recognize, at least such of them as reflect upon the matter, that after conflicts innumerable, and setbacks and suppressions, the scientific have prevailed over the theological methods, and are at work in all the glories of their triumph, and that the ancient modes of thought are at last masters of the civilized world after nearly two thousand years of battle. the thread of civilization has been taken up and spliced at its point of rupture sixteen centuries ago. all this activity in the building of roads, bridges and aqueducts, this tunnelling[pg 14] of mountains and rivers, this straining to make available for the services of man all the elements of nature, this untiring search to increase the comforts and conveniences of life, this higher regard for pure secular learning, regardless of where it may lead, this diversion of art from the purposes of religious expression only, to an exhibition of nature in all her beautiful forms, this greater toleration of opinion, this coming back to the earth in short, after a long period of phantom chasing in the clouds, is neither more nor less than the revival of paganism. but paganism with its brutalities filtered out, and the best, and only civilizing parts of christianity, its hope of immortality, its lessons of virtue, its brotherhood and socialism retained, the superstitions of paganism buried forever, and those of christianity gradually dropping one by one into their graves.

he, who now at three score and ten, remembers when the sound of the flint and steel was a necessary prelude to the morning fire, when the open fire place with its crane and pot hooks was the only resource for warmth and cooking, when the largest city on the american continent was without sewers or water conduits, when a river steamer was a wonder upon which the curious gazed, and ocean[pg 15] ones unheard of, when railroads were in an experimental stage, when the belief that ghosts flitted about the graveyards was unquestioned and undenied, when satan was said to have stalked upon the earth in person, his presence seriously considered and accounted for by many of the churches, when witchcraft, only in the throes of death but not yet buried, had many adherents in animated defence, when the electrical experiments of franklin were reckoned in some places as the trifling of an infidel with the spirit of evil, can best appreciate, by the comparison which reminiscence affords, of these wonderful changes in thought, and the significant accompaniment of increased mental activity in all things benefitting the race. the close relations exhibited in this comparatively brief period between the growth of rationalism, and that accelerated movement all along the line of science, learning, and everything tending to place humanity on a higher plain, is more than a mere coincidence. it is the operation of cause and effect, better understood and acknowledged upon a closer examination.

the bursting forth, as it were, during this century of the united energies of mankind in the direction of knowledge, is an expansion after the removal of a pressure that[pg 16] has borne down upon them for ages. those great things that men have accomplished lately, they were as capable of centuries ago, and it is not surprising that they had not until recently made greater advances, when we estimate the weight of opposing forces. there had been for centuries nothing more discouraging to the formation of scientific hopes and ambitions than the theological methods of thought, and the atmosphere which surrounded them. the more that atmosphere was saturated with the doctrines of the churches, the more repellent it was to any intellectual effort toward outside things, and especially one requiring such a monopoly of mental energy and attention as to interfere with the christian ideas of constant and unremitting devotion. there was no cultivated field, during the thousand years of supreme church jurisdiction, where an independent scientific ambition could germinate. within the church such an ambition was impossible. it was not only against the spirit, but the very letter of its teachings. its foundation was laid by its victory over science, in its overcome of which, it proclaimed divine assistance and authority. it already possessed a knowledge of all things appertaining to the earth and the “firmament” above it which the almighty[pg 17] desired men to know. the earth was not round, it was the center of the universe. it stood still while the sun moved daily over its surface, getting back each morning into its place with the help of angels. the rainbow was a sign placed in the heavens for a purpose. every known phenomenon of nature was accounted for by scriptural reference. the method of the creation of the world and the origin of man and of woman also, the church possessed in circumstantial detail. the moment true science began its work, and ran counter to any of this fund of knowledge, assumed to have been furnished by the almighty, the trouble began. but the trouble was not altogether with the honest investigator. if his discovery tended to disprove what was known as scriptural truth, and inadvertently had been allowed to gain the public ear, every prelate in the church began contriving to refute it. a new opportunity for fame was opened to every ambitious theologian, and there immediately began in rebuttal a spinning of texts, and a style of metaphysical argument, from one end of the church to the other, which remain to this day as the most remarkable curiosities of sinuous reasoning and constrained thought on record. all questions of a scientific character had but[pg 18] one method of settlement, were they authorized or denied by scripture? if denied as they usually were, the disturber was either burned at the stake or made to recant. fame, that chief incentive to all high effort, offered none of its rewards beyond theological circles, and during the ten centuries of complete church supremacy, any advance in knowledge which did not stir the animosity of theologians gained less public attention and applause than the wearing of a hair shirt or a crown of thorns. during a thousand years the church had kept the world slumbering in the darkness of barbarism and superstition punishing with death those it could not convince. any doubter of generally accepted beliefs, either in religion or science, who can support his position with plausable argument, is entitled at least to the consideration of being a thinker. the constant taking off of every such one, during a term counted by centuries, could have no other effect than to reduce the average of intellectual vigor in the whole. the husbandman, who removes from his acres of growing grain the tallest and heaviest stalks, and instead of saving them for seed, destroys them, insures, in time, the misfortune of dwarfed fields and diminished harvests. the church, since its complete victory over paganism in the[pg 19] fourth century, had not produced with its supreme control over all learning a single noted man of science, or one promising to be such, whom it had not either suppressed or tortured to death, not a painter or poet who had not devoted his genius principally to superstition or sensuality, not a historian whose veracity is not doubted, and not a single towering man of letters. this, too, in a people, among whom mingled the descendants of the greek masters of literature and philosophy. when, about four centuries ago, secular learning and free thought began their first open advances since pagan days, the church, finding in every such movement some disturbance of its traditions, and making no account of their benefit to mankind, brought all its powers to bear for their suppression. in laying to do so it pursued the same cruel policy it had adopted in former contests. these cruelties and intimidations were practiced at a time when within the church were openly perpetrated corruptions of the most glaring character; which together, loosened its hold upon the consciences of men, and made possible that revolt and division known as the reformation, early in the sixteenth century. coming nearer our own time, and having to[pg 20] deal with theological conditions not yet entirely removed, a little more detail is necessary.

the quarter century before and the century following the reformation was a remarkable era in the world’s history. it was noted throughout as a desperate and continuous struggle by men of science to dispel the darkness that had so long enveloped the christian world. the art of printing, then recently discovered, and just coming into practical working effect, and the thoughts of men thereby communicated from one to the rest with a facility never before known, had the effect of arousing mental activities everywhere. from a load only partially removed men began exploring regions of science that had been interdicted, and a great movement in positive knowledge began. the most enlightened men of the time went over to the reformation, and if within that body, they had found the shelter and encouragement they deserved, the sixteenth century and the one following it would have been the most brilliant period on record except our own, for scientific discoveries and the world’s advancement. such a conclusion is justified by taking note of the wonderful men of genius who came into the world during that time, who, with all the restrictions and limitations[pg 21] cast about them by the two churches, laid such new foundations in truth and learning, that nothing was to be done by subsequent workers in the same lines but build upon them. buffon, who may justly be called the father of natural science, with powers of research and gifts of presenting results showing genius of a high order, by his simple statement of truths which are to-day truisms in science, was dragged forth by the leaders of the reformation, and forced to recant publicly and to print his recantation. “i abandon everything in my book respecting the formation of the earth, and generally all which may be contrary to the narrative of moses.” linnaeus, the founder of a scientific system in botany, and the discoverer of sex in plants, was constantly hampered and constrained in his thoughts by the threats of the reformation. a pretended miracle of turning water into blood appeared in his vicinity, and after looking into it carefully he reported that the reddening of the water was caused by dense masses of minute insects. when news of this explanation reached the ears of the protestant bishop he denounced this scientific discovery as a “satanic abyss.” “when god allows such a miracle to take place,” said he, “satan endeavors, and so does his ungodly and[pg 22] worldly tools, to make it signify nothing.” descartes, the founder of modern philosophy, and ranked among the foremost mathematicians of his day, yet, his constant dread of persecution from protestantism led him steadily to veil his thoughts, and to suppress them when they threatened to interfere with theological beliefs. leibnitz, the great thinker, who came so near to the discovery of evolution, spinoza, and later hume, kepler, kant, newton and many others, which want of space prevents mention were likely to have done much more for science had not the theological atmosphere of the christian churches been so unpropitious.

the true story of galileo, the monumental shame of christianity, cannot be told without implicating the younger with the older church. the reformation looked on complaisantly and approvingly while this crime was being committed. it was in complete accordance with its beliefs and methods. the copernican system, on account of the adoption of which, galileo was persecuted was as strenuously and bitterly denounced by protestants as catholics. luther says “people gave ear to an upstart astrologer, who strove to show that the earth revolved, and not the sun and moon. this fool wishes to revise[pg 23] the whole system of astronomy, but sacred scripture tells us that joshua commanded the sun to stand still, and not the earth.” the recantation of this venerable scientist, worn out with imprisonment and sorrow, and in fear of torture and death, is as follows: “i galileo, being in my seventieth year, being a prisoner on my knees before your eminences, having before my eyes the holy gospel, which i touch with my hands, abjure, curse and detest the error and the heresy of the movement of the earth.” as the sphericity of the earth was suggested by aristotle, and its movement had been a matter of earnest discussion by theologians for ages, we see fit to transcribe here the argument of one of them, made a long time ago it is true, but nevertheless a fair sample of the theological methods of thought. it is copied from a book written by one scipio chiaramonti, and dedicated to cardinal barberini. “animals which move have limbs and muscles, the earth has no limbs and muscles, therefore it does not move. it is angels who make saturn, jupiter, the sun, etc., turn round. if the earth revolves it must also have an angel in the center to set it in motion; but only devils live there; it would therefore be a devil who would impart motion to the earth.” all branches of the protestant[pg 24] church condemned the theory of the earth’s movement. calvin asked, “who will venture to place the authority of copernicus above that of the holy spirit?” wesley also denounced the new theory, declaring it to “tend toward infidelity.” the grand men who were coming forward in their efforts to advance knowledge unavoidably encroached upon many of the “truths of scripture” and both churches were equally engaged in their efforts to suppress them, by argument if possible, but if not, by fire and stake. the protestant church, which has always made a claim of especial enlightenment, vied with the other in its cruel and relentless warfare upon what is known among the churches as heresy, the proper definition of which is reason and common sense. we have said that the case of galileo was the monumental shame of christendom; the case of servetus was a monumental crime, which protestantism alone must answer for.

the persecution of michael servetus by john calvin, one of the leaders of the reformation, was one of the most unjust and inhuman exercises of religious authority that the world has seen. there were many features in this tragedy of burning at the stake, that were out of the common. the victim was a man of unblemished character,[pg 25] of great learning, and a scientist, with a genius for investigation. he was a skilled practitioner of medicine, out of which profession he derived his income. he had made some advances in medical science, coming so near to a discovery of the circulation of the blood, that it is quite likely, but for his untimely death, he would have reached it instead of harvey, many years afterward. his active mind had led him to devote much of his leisure to the study of theology, and, laboring among its problems, he strove to reconcile a number of orthodox beliefs and doctrines with the scientific knowledge of his time, not combating them or contriving at their destruction, but by changing the sense of words, to make them apparently accord with known elements of truth. he was an ardent supporter of the reformation, and a friend and admirer of calvin, and he began and maintained for some time, a correspondence with him, with the view of obtaining his advice and support. the proposed modification in the sense of scriptural texts, was not favorably received by calvin, and the two were drawn into a controversy, which finally became acrimonious. the world, at present, partially recovered from its long period of hypnotized reason, is able to appreciate the small value of the questions[pg 26] which engaged these two men, and which led one to strike the other down to death, and it is also able to judge how much servetus was in advance of his adversary in their discussions.

calvin maintained, that under instructions from god, through the bible, an infant, dying without baptism, could not escape the tortures of hell, a locality described by the same authority, as a place of horrors, of endless burning amid sulphurous fires, of never ending thirst, and of a “weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth” through all time to come. servetus expressed his doubts of the justice of this infliction upon sinless infants, and attempted to show that it was not authorized by the sacred book. he also denied the doctrine of the holy trinity, as it was commonly received. he did not deny a kind of trinity in the unity of god, but believing that it was merely formal, and not personal, mere distinctions in the divine essence, and that, as generally understood, it was a dream, and an invention of the fathers of the church. he also asserted, upon good authority, that there was a christian doctrine before there was any adoption of the hebrew legends; that these legends did not become a part of the church, until nearly a century after[pg 27] the great moral teacher had met his cruel death. he also came as near as he dared, to expressing his belief, that the son was merely a man, with the divine inspiration in a large degree. such advanced ideas as these, asserted with the positiveness of conviction, and backed with unanswerable argument, were the cause of his undoing.

calvin, at this time, was at the head of a church already powerful. he ruled it with an autocratic will, and upon all questions of doctrinal beliefs, he was the last court of appeal. he had long accepted the homage of his followers, as one selected by the almighty for their spiritual guidance, and, with the common weakness of humanity, he became arbitrary and despotic in his management of church affairs. he was always ready to advise and direct, and in his first letters to servetus, assumed some show of argument while denying his doctrines. servetus answered him, not with that deference that his adversary usually received, but in all the spirit of earnest debate. nothing more exasperating to calvin could have occurred, and to cap the climax of affront, his adversary, a mere layman, published a book “christianity restored” setting forth his advanced views, and with a reckless temerity, sent the reformer a copy.[pg 28] the controversy between them immediately degenerated into mutual recrimination and abuse. calvin’s anger was raised to a white heat, when he saw the errors and blasphemies, as he regarded them, and which he had vainly sought to combat, confided to the printed page, and thrown broadcast upon the world. besides the alleged heretical matter of the book, he found himself taken to task, declared to be in error, and his most cherished doctrines controverted. but he discovered withal some matter in the book which pleased him. his enemy had committed himself in abusing the papacy: evidence sufficient to convict him at once of blasphemy in the roman catholic city of vienne in france where servetus then resided, and he proceeded at once to put the cruel scheme of his death into execution. by information to the authorities at vienne through dictated letters, he succeeded in having servetus thrown into prison there, from whence he escaped, and became an outcast for months. the malignant and inhuman manner in which this christian leader followed his innocent victim, could scarcely have occurred upon any other question but a religious one, and his murderous intent, from the first, is shown by a letter from calvin to a friend in which he[pg 29] says, “servetus wrote to me lately, and besides his letter sent me a great volume of his ravings, telling me, with audacious arrogance, that i should find there things stupendous and unheard of until now.” he offers to come thither if i approve; but i will not pledge my faith to him; for, did he come, if i have any authority here, “i should never suffer him to go away alive.” and he proved himself, in this instance, true to his word.

the roman catholic authorities of vienne, discovering after a while the connivance of calvin, in putting the execution of his enemy on them, contrived, it is said, to make his escape easy. they had no mind to have this work thrust upon them. they probably felt that the reformers should take care of their own heretics. servetus, after his escape, wandered about from place to place, all the time his life in imminent danger, and finally brought up in geneva, the home of calvin, disguising himself, and hiding in the outskirts. what induced him to take such desperate chances is not positively known. his intention is supposed to have been to go to naples, and to be gone from geneva on the first favorable opportunity. weary of confinement, and always piously inclined, he ventured imprudently to show himself,[pg 30] at the evening service of a neighboring church, and being there recognized, intimation of his presence was conveyed to calvin, who, without loss of a moment, demanded his immediate arrest, making his arraignment himself, and industriously working until the end, as chief prosecutor and witness. the barbaric cruelty during imprisonment to this famous man, in an eminently christian community, and by a christian leader is shown by the following letter from his prison cell. “most noble lords, it is now three weeks since i petitioned for an audience, and i have to inform you that nothing has been done, and i am in a more filthy plight than ever. in addition, i suffer terribly from the cold, and from colic and my rupture, which causes me miseries. it is very cruel that i am neither allowed to speak, nor not have my most pressing wants supplied; for the love of god sirs, in pity give orders in my behalf.” and here is another one: “my most honored lords, i humbly entreat of you to put an end to these great delays, or to exonerate me of the criminal charge. you must see that calvin is at his wits ends, and knows not what more to say, but for his pleasure, would have me rot here in prison. the lice eat me up alive, my breeches are in rags, and i have no change, no doublet,[pg 31] and but a single shirt in tatters.” thirty-eight articles of impeachment were drawn up by calvin, and after a protracted trial, wherein he acted as chief interrogator, this unhappy victim was sentenced to be burnt at the stake. servetus, during his whole examination, showed himself to be a brave, conscientious, religious man. his answers to each one of the articles was able, consistent, and would have been considered in this day unanswerable, and what is more his views have since been adopted by the most advanced of the christian sects. the following is a description of his execution recorded at that time.

“when he came in sight of the fatal pile, the wretched servetus prostrated himself on the ground and for a while was absorbed in prayer. rising and advancing a few steps he found himself in the hands of the executioner, by whom he was made to sit on a block, his feet just reaching the ground. his body was then bound to the stake behind him by several turns of an iron chain, whilst his neck was secured in like manner by the coil of a hempen rope. his two books—the one in manuscript sent to calvin in confidence six or eight years before for his stricture, and a copy of the one lately printed at[pg 32] vienne—were fastened to his waist, and his head was encircled in mockery with a chaplet of straw and green twigs bestrewed with brimstone. the deadly torch was then applied to the fagots and flashed in his face; and the brimstone catching, and the flames rising, wrung from the victim such a cry of anguish as struck terror into the surrounding crowd. after this he was bravely silent; but the wood being purposely green, although the people aided the executioner in heaping the fagots upon him, a long half hour elapsed before he ceased to show signs of life and suffering. immediately before giving up the ghost, with a last expiring effort he cried aloud, ‘jesus, thou son of the eternal god, have compassion upon me!’ all was then hushed, save hissing and crackling of the green wood, and by and by there remained no more of what had been michael servetus, but a charred and blackened trunk, and a handful of ashes.” so died in advance of his age, this victim of religious fanaticism and personal hate, a fitting triumph of the theological over the scientific methods of thought, the result among many thousands like it of the adoption of the jewish legends by christianity, and in this case, brought about by a christian leader, the founder of a creed, in which to this[pg 33] day, enough of his spirit remains to make it the greatest enemy of free thought and liberal opinion, among all the creeds of protestantism. of this disgraceful tragedy was it the spirit of the master which led the inhuman crowd to vie with each other in piling on the fagots, or was it the malign influence of a vindictive and cruel hebrew god?

every conflict between science and theology since the days of copernicus has resulted in an unequivocal victory for the former. both churches resisted the truth of the rotundity and movement of the earth as though their existence depended upon it. they fought each question as it arose in the same spirit. the mosaic account of the creation, the age of the world, the deluge, the length of man’s sojourn upon the earth, are questions as effectively settled adversely to the “truths of scripture” as the one for which galileo suffered. and yet christianity lives, and will continue to live and flourish, solely on account of the inherent and increasing affinity of the human heart as civilization advances for the precepts and example of its founder. if christianity were destined to fall by the undermining of its legends it would fall now with the recent destruction of one upon which its existence appeared to depend, which has, more than any[pg 34] other, shaped its course and laid the foundation of its rituals. the doctrine of evolution now established as a truth is the most serious and apparently destructive one that theology ever met. the fact that man has arisen from a condition of brutality, instead of fallen from a state of perfection is, to ecclesiasticism, a raking blow from stem to stern, compared with all previous battles with science as the shot of a modern thirty-two pounder with old fashioned ordinance. the legend of the fall of man, compared with all others, is the vilest. it was brought from assyria, by the hebrews, who obtained it during their captivity, from a barbarous people, among whom it was current for ages, and was thus inserted in our sacred book, proofs of which have recently been found in deciphering the ninevite records. a suspicion is not entirely without warrant that it may have been adopted with a purpose of creating miseries and sorrows in the multitude for the profitable occupation of a divinely authorized few in the business of consoling them, and right well has it fulfilled its mission. it has changed the facial expression of christendom. it has deepened the furrows of sorrow upon old age, and fixed lines of care upon the features of youth. it has brought[pg 35] the undeserved dejection of criminality, and the downcast of shame, where of right belongs the reflection of hopefulness and the light of expectancy. it has incalculably multiplied the sorrows of life, and created for each death a nightmare of imaginary horrors. this legend is the foundation and inspiration of most of the evil and cruelty that christianity has inflicted on human kind. fabulous itself, it has been the parent of unrealities, witchcraft and magic for instance, from which millions of innocent victims have been sacrificed to torture and death. it has transformed reasonable enjoyments of life into crimes by the invention of a word, which with the latitude given its definition, has kept in trembling uncertainty the innocent and harmless. to the parent it has bestowed the agony of dread for the fate of departed offspring, guileless infants, as well as the matured. this legend of the fall of man has established in the paths of life its drag net sin, a word of such unlimited theological definition, that any one of average rectitude, by some trifling inadvertance of thought or action, is likely to bring upon himself the condemnation of a frowning god; so that, the worthy as well as the unworthy, may not escape the services of theological assistance and intercession.[pg 36] but for the doubt that exists, and has probably always existed, except among the ignorant and sluggish minded, of the truth of this puerile invention, it would have reduced humanity long ago to a state of universal hopelessness and despair.

the theologians have but little left now but the miracles to defend, and although it must be conceded by them that the miracle of joshua has fallen, others whose fallacy cannot be so well demonstrated by science, are held to with the tenacity of desperation, and in utter disregard of reason and common sense. fortunately, in the interest of truth, we are given an opportunity to study the evolution of miracles, in a case so modern that every statement in proof of their fallacy can be substantiated by the current literature of the time. saint francis xavier was an earnest, sincere and truthful jesuit, whose religious services were performed in the middle of the sixteenth century. he gave up a promising career as professor in a paris academy, and in his enthusiasm and devotion to christianity, went as missionary to the far east. among the various tribes of lower india, and afterward in japan he wrought untiringly, toiling through village after village collecting the natives by means of a hand bell.[pg 37] after twelve years of such efforts seeking new converts for religion, he sacrificed his life on the desert island of san chan. during his career as missionary he wrote great numbers of letters, which were preserved, and have since been published, and these, with the letters of his contemporaries, exhibit clearly all the features of his life. no account of a miracle wrought by him appears either in his own letters or any contemporary document. more than that, his brother missionaries, who were in constant and loyal fellowship with him, make no illusions to them in their communications with each other, or with their brethren in europe. this silence regarding his miracles was clearly not due to any unbelief in them, because these good missionary fathers were free to record the slightest occurrence which they thought evidence of divine favor. one of them sends a report that an illuminated cross had been recently seen in the heavens; another that devils had been cast out of the natives by the use of holy water; others send reports that lepers had been healed by baptism, and that the blind and dumb had been restored by the rites of the church; but to xavier no miracles are imputed by his associates during his life, or during several years after his death. on the contrary we find his own statements[pg 38] as to his personal limitations and the difficulties arising from them fully confirmed by his brother workers. it is interesting for example, in view of the claim afterwards made, that the saint was divinely endowed for his mission with the “gift of tongues” to note in these letters confirmation of xavier’s own statement utterly disproving the existence of any such divine gift, and detailing the difficulties which he encountered from his want of knowing various languages, and the hard labor he underwent in learning the elements of the japanese tongue. with all this evidence, and much more available if necessary, to prove that xavier never performed a miracle the church began building them up for him, unmindful of the fact that he lived in an age of literature, books and printed correspondence, and not in those remote times when it held supreme control of all learning and communication by letters; accordingly, the first of the xavier miracles began to appear about ten years after his death. they multiplied from time to time beginning, it is reasonable to suppose, about the gossiping hearth and eagerly confirmed by the cloister, until they began to be mentioned in church literature. the first of which, a letter twenty years after his death by a jesuit father entitled “on[pg 39] religious affairs in the indies” says nothing of xavier’s miracles. the next, a publication called “history of india” thirty-six years after his death by another jesuit father dwells lightly on the alleged miracles. the next, sixty years later, a “life of xavier” shows an increase of his miracles, and representing him as casting out devils, curing the sick, stilling the tempest, raising the dead, and performing miracles of all sorts. since xavier was made a saint many other lives of him appeared, one of them one hundred and sixty years after his death, the best so far written and now esteemed a classic, in which the old miracles were enormously multiplied. according to his first biographer he saves one person from drowning by a miracle, in this one he saves, during his life time, three. in the first he raises three persons from the dead, in this one fourteen. in the first there is one miraculous supply of water, in this one three, and so on, until this date when the xavier miracles are counted by hundreds. this case of the evolution of miracles is largely copied from a recent publication of president white of cornell university. it is not only highly instructive as indicating the process by which these deceptions are evolved, but also tends to the pleasant and welcome conviction that many[pg 40] of the earnest and self-sacrificing workers in the field of christianity, to whom miracles are imputed were guiltless of them. but more than all it shows the way to a reasoning mind by which, through the present and coming rationalism, a pure and worshipful personality shall retain his hold upon the affections of men.

those men of science and independent thought who went over to the reformation, expecting encouragement and protection under it, were doomed to be disappointed. it was not a movement caused by the pressure of enlightenment. at that period, both germany and england were far below italy in their conditions of knowledge and learning. it was a rebellion caused by the oppression of evils, and a desire for change in the management of church matters only. every one of the superstitions of the old church were transferred to the new one. the same, in fact a stricter literal adherence to the words of scripture in managing the affairs of life, and in deciding questions of science, were maintained, the same incessant watchfulness toward those men of learning who were threatening the “truths of scripture” in their scientific labors, and the same cruelties invoked for their suppression, and the extinction of heresy. no more intellectual freedom was permitted,[pg 41] except upon minor doctrinal points of beliefs, and upon these there began those controversies which soon broke up the movement into factions or creeds. the intention of the new church was to do away with those rituals and ceremonies, which had been adopted from paganism as a compromise in the second and third centuries, and to bring their church back as far as possible, to that simplicity which characterized the first teachings of christianity. but the leaders of the reformation never attempted nor had they any desire to bring back that entire freedom of thought and expression which existed in the early days. no one with immunity would be allowed to deny the doctrine of the holy trinity or the truth of immaculate conception, as the old greek philosophers were wont to do. such vital questions it was torture and death to adversely consider, servetus being an early victim to such temerity. there were questions enough however within the limits of safe discussion, to set agoing those unending controversies which distinguished protestantism to this day. the newly acquired privilege of discussing sacred affairs among laymen as well as others, were indulged in to such an extent that debate between the sects, in defense of their several interpretations of scriptural texts, monopolized[pg 42] in society its hours of intercourse and conversation. when their leaders were indulging in such discussion as the dialogue between eve and the serpent; whether the serpent stood erect on his tail, or in its natural coil when it was addressing eve; fixing the hour of this remarkable event; accounting for the manner in which noah fed the animals in the ark; how fishes appeared before adam to be named by him, and such troublesome problems, laymen were mostly engaged in the examination of those doctrinal points which were dividing the movement into sects. questions that had been settled centuries before by authority in the old church were dragged forth to renewed discussion. luther was describing his frequent interviews with the devil in his bed room. demons and witches were poisoning the air, and bringing calamity and misfortune, against which there was but one safeguard and remedy, reading texts of scripture and prayer. but however the sects might differ in their understanding of the sacred language, upon a number of things they were all agreed; every text of scripture was to be taken literally; heresy could not be too severely punished; a curtailment of the pleasures of life increased the chances of heaven; the world was a “sink of iniquity” destined for[pg 43] early destruction, and presided over by a god who never smiles, and troubled by a devil who never sleeps, the latter with millions of offspring, man pursuing demons, inflicting insanity, sickness and many other of the misfortunes of life.

in these beliefs the two churches were in entire accord and must equally answer for the miseries and cruelties they have inflicted upon humanity in enforcing them. theories and doctrines so persistently advanced and upheld by both churches, and which have proved so disastrous to humanity do not properly belong, and should have no place in christianity. they are not only without the authority of the master, but are mostly in opposition to his teaching and example. the most harmful of them owe their origin to the fables and myths introduced into the sacred book second-hand from egyptian and oriental sources, centuries before the christian era, and it is not surprising that legends due to the faculty of romance in the minds of some barbarous assyrians or pharos, far back in the cradles of humanity, when introduced as foundations for rules of life, and as explanations of the mysterious processes of nature along the whole line of human advancement should have been constantly rejected[pg 44] and denied by the reasoning portion of mankind, and it is scarcely conceivable that now, within a few months of the twentieth century, they should be upheld by both churches as inspirations of the deity. not so surprising either when we consider that for seventeen centuries, the undeveloped minds of youth in all christendom, have been moulded into the acceptance of beliefs, which, had they been presented without that gradual absorption in which reason takes no part would have been long ago rejected on account of their improbability. in no place is this better understood than among the churches, and as a consequence, they have been in perpetual contention with each other for the early education of youth.

the most inspiring and hopeful spectacle in all humanity is an assemblage, wrapt in the devotional exercises of christianity, listening attentively to the eloquent ministrations of an earnest leader, who pleads the cause of virtue and charity as it is exhibited in the written life and character of the model man. the great central story never wearies in interest, and never grows old; a willing sacrifice and suffering for the benefit of mankind. such never failing kindness, such lessons of brotherhood, such love for men, such tenderness for children, such consideration[pg 45] beyond his time for women, and with such a pathetic and suffering end as to capture their emotional natures for all time. and above all bringing the tidings of a hope, that comes to men, as a boat of rescue comes to a storm-tossed ship slowly sinking into the depths; so cherished in christian households as to become a worshiped member of them, to be defended as one of them, upheld if need be by force of arms and sacrifice of life. and the lesson of it all, and the hopefulness and inspiration of it all is, that wherever mankind dwells, be it in castles or cottages, amid the crowds of cities, or among quiet country fields, there are laurels everywhere among them all for him who will sacrifice himself that others may gain; esteem and veneration among them all for him, whose life is pure, and whose ways are ways of kindness and charity. vice can never reign supreme but for a time amid such inherent affinity for goodness implanted in every human heart, and as the days of general consent and unobstructed knowledge enlighten and control the affairs of men, more and more certain, as time rolls on, will come protests and rebellions against the temporary triumph of evil.

of that entrancing story which has captured civilization,[pg 46] and has come to be a part of it, what is there in the master that deserves such barbaric surroundings; such inconsequential details of obscure and barbarous lives; such vindictive retaliations and brutal conflicts, sacrilegiously involving the deity as a promoter of them; wild fictions of early ages, inventions of the infancy of man, conflicting accounts of historical events, fragmentary parts by different persons at different periods; explanations in many branches of science, now known to be mistaken and absurd, and containing texts, that either openly sanction or have been twisted into service of the most stupendous outrages that humanity has suffered.

“considering the asserted origin of these records—indirectly from god himself—we might justly expect that they would bear to be tried by any standard that man can apply, and vindicate their truth and excellence in the ordeal of human criticism. we ought therefore to look for universality, completeness, perfection. we might expect that they would present us with just views of the nature and position of this world in which we live, and that, whether dealing with the spiritual or material, they would put to shame the most celebrated productions of human genius, as the magnificent mechanism of the[pg 47] heavens, and the beautiful forms of the earth are superior to the vain contrivances of man. we might expect that they would propound with authority, and definitely settle those all important problems, which have exercised the mental powers of the ablest men of asia and europe for so many centuries, and which are at the foundation of all faith and all philosophy; that they should distinctly tell us, in unmistakable language, what is god, what is the world, what is the soul, and whether man has any criterion of truth; that they should explain to us how evil can exist in a world, the maker of which is omnipotent, and altogether good; that they should reveal to us in what the affairs of men are fixed by destiny, in what by free will; that they should teach us whence we came, what is the object of our continuing here, what is to become of us hereafter. and since a written word claiming a divine origin must necessarily accredit itself, even to those most reluctant to receive it, its internal evidences becoming stronger and not weaker, with the strictness of the examination to which they are submitted, it ought to deal with those things that may be demonstrated by the increasing knowledge and genius of many anticipating therein his conclusions. such a work noble as may be its origin,[pg 48] must not refuse, but court the test of natural philosophy, regarding it not as an antagonist but as its best support. as years pass on and human science becomes more exact and more comprehensive, its conclusions must be found in unison therewith. when occasion arises they should furnish us at least the foreshadowings of the great truths discovered by astronomy and geology, not offering for them the wild fictions of earlier ages. they should tell us how suns and worlds are distributed in infinite space, and how, in their succession they come forth in limitless time. they should say how far the dominion of god is carried out by law, and what is the point at which it is his pleasure to resort to his own arbitrary will. how grand would have been the description of the magnificent universe written by the omnipotent hand! of man they should set forth his relations to other living beings, his place among them, his privileges and responsibilities. they should not leave him to grope his way through the vestiges of greek philosophy, and to miss the truth at last, but they should teach him wherein true knowledge consists, anticipating the physical science, physical power, and physical well being of our own times, nay, even unfolding for our benefit things that we are still ignorant[pg 49] of. the discussion of subjects, so many and so high, is not outside the scope of a work of such pretensions. its manner of dealing with them is the only criterion it can offer of its authority to succeeding times.”[a]

how unlike this is our asserted sacred book, with its fables, its myths and legends, its deadly texts that have scourged mankind. by its pretension of divine authority, carrying forward into our civilization superstitions, that otherwise would have melted away under the light of knowledge; putting a limit to learning, obstructing it, and denouncing it, in many of its branches; paralyzing thought, and substituting in its stead a blind faith, instituted and cultivated by ecclesiasticism, to bring men under its control; holding up as an example of divine favor, the low moral standard of barbaric times; recounting murders, incests, adulteries and obscenities, that would have banished the book long since from the regions of refinement and civilization, but for its assumed origin, and which serve, by their easy and undenied access to young minds, as a stimulation to destructive pruriency; sanctioning human slavery, and encouraging bloodshed by battle; setting an example of extortionate tithes for the[pg 50] support of ecclesiasticism; uttering the most heart-rending curses, as coming directly from the almighty, for failure to comply with his assumed commands, and which have been made the example, authorizing the horrible cruelties inflicted upon mankind by the churches, literary models as they are of those anathemas, interdicts, and excommunications, by which the older church terrorized humanity for fifteen hundred years. “i will also do this unto you, i will even appoint over you terror, consumption, and the burning ague, that shall consume the eyes, and cause sorrow of heart, and ye shall sow your seed in vain; for your enemies shall eat it.” “i will also send wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children, and destroy your cattle, and make you few in number, and your highways shall be desolate.” “for they went and served other gods, and worshiped them, gods whom they knew not, and whom he had not given unto them; and the anger of the lord was kindled against this land to bring upon it all the curses that are written in this book.” “do not i hate them o lord that hate thee, yea i hate them with a perfect hate.” “thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.” “a man, also or a woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that is a wizard, shall surely be put to[pg 51] death.” “and ye shall chase your enemies, and they shall fall before you by the sword.” solely on the authority of such deadly texts as these, and the book is full of them, the world has been overspread in blood. it was these that gave spain a pretended sanction of the lord to exterminate fifteen millions of people in mexico and peru, with a better and higher civilization than itself, and to rob them of their wealth and possessions. it was these, and such as these, that authorized and instigated the inquisition, which from 1481 to 1808, put to torture and horrible death by burning, 340,000 human beings. it was these that induced the massacre of st. bartholomew with its 30,000 victims of fire and sword; the english persecutions under bloody mary, in which three hundred fellow-creatures perished; the almost total annihilation of the albigenesis in the south of france. this war was carried on with more ferocious cruelty than any ever recorded in history; the fanatical fury of the soldiers was stimulated by the exhortations of the clergy. at the storming of baziers, when it was proposed to spare the catholics, a monk exclaimed, “kill all, god will recognize his own,” and the atrocious precept was but too well observed. the war terminated by the complete devastation[pg 52] of the country, and the almost complete extermination of its inhabitants. following along in the bloody path of these barbaric scriptural commands, we have to record the witch burnings of europe and america, during the term of christian supremacy, calculated in the hundreds of thousands; the crusades, and purely religious wars since the time of constantine, whose victims are beyond computation; and all this to no other purpose or end, but that the world should be forced into the belief of, what is known to be, the theological system of a low social development; this the terrible cost to humanity, for the adoption and systematic retention by the churches, of the ancient jewish beliefs and modes of thought; this the infliction, that ecclesiasticism might prevail, using the sermon on the mount to capture the consciences of men, and scourging them with the mandates, curses and punishments of a hebrew divinity, to bring them into line for its purposes. in taking these jewish annals to its heart, making them a part of itself, as objects of example and worship, has not christianity retarded the advance of mankind? has it not, by them, obstructed knowledge, prevented a greater expansion of human sympathy, and prolonged the betterment of social conditions?

[pg 53]in these days of enlightenment and higher thought, the vestiges are everywhere seen of our fifteen centuries of misdirection. almost every christian life bears the impress of these cruel hebrew traditions. the commander of a battleship in the war with spain, after his slaughter of numbers of the enemy, assembles his men to give “thanks to the lord,” and the next moment cautions them not to cheer because “the poor fellows are dying,” illustrates, that mingling of jewish superstition with the teaching and example of the master, to be observed everywhere in our present civilization. the inherent religious impulses of mankind—natural religion—some of which, finding no more congenial quarters, is attracted to the churches, regard war with feelings of greater repulsion than does orthodox theology, indoctrinated in the belief of its divine sanction, and consequently, the success of the american arms, so plainly due to natural causes, was celebrated by the churches in the usual ancient hebraic method by “thanks to the lord.” the supreme intolerance of christianity which has wrought such havoc with mankind, is plainly due to the suggestions of hebrew scripture, and it is only the natural religion within the churches, and that large portion outside of[pg 54] them, which is forcing christianity into a purer worship, and destroying its superstitions. it demands for all things, holy as well as unholy, the right of critical examination, and it sees but little else in our sacred book worth preserving, outside the sermon on the mount, and its extensions. it is this natural religion of conscience, encouraging and encouraged by science and reason, which has wrested the control of civilization from ecclesiasticism. its intellectual strength prevails at last over the intellectual strength of theology; but the unthinking of the multitude are many, and the battle commencing four centuries ago still lingers, theology backed by its weak numbers, its old weapons destroyed, and science by its strong men with searchlights.

but the searchlights of science can not disturb the heart of christianity. its doctrine of atonement, destroyed by the established truth of evolution; its account of the creation and the deluge, proved to be fables; its miracles discredited, and many of them demonstrated by science to be untrue, it still holds within itself, an element which is in harmony with the aspirations of mankind for the coming betterment on earth and hereafter. all these things that it has lost are but perverted[pg 55] offrisings from its body, not a part of the body itself. “love one another. do unto others as you would that others shall do unto you,” are the golden words that have established it in the world as a living moving power. of these its soul and life are composed, and these no arrow of science can reach. its dogmas aside, every human being within the precincts of civilization is born a christian, and but for its early perversion at the hands of a crafty priesthood, its intolerant and cruel career from forced and unworthy association, all men, learned as well as unlearned, would be working in its ranks.

it came into the world and entered society, making its way from below upward. like all movements coming out of the lower levels, it was socialistic. its originator, for he cannot be called its leader, was the first person who had ever appeared in the world as the instigator of a great reform movement benefitting the whole of mankind without some apparent or suspected motive, in denial of his absolute unselfishness, and the movement in its early stages, partaking and wholly composed of his inspiration, was a pure unselfish socialism. its members were bound together by the closest brotherhood, loving and caring for each other by divine command; declared equal by a[pg 56] mandate of heaven, in an age when three-fourths of mankind were outcasts, uncared, neglected, and abused by a cruel oligarchy, slaves and dependents, among whom it was a misfortune and misery to have been born, and having a religion so purposeless and unpromising as to afford nothing but a momentary spectacular display. to these people the new religion was as congenial and welcome as the warm sunshine and verdure of summer after a long sojourn in the arctic. its doctrines touched society where it had most need of their humane precepts and uprising. for nearly a century no system of dogmas, no doctrine of atonement, no extensive church authority had been determined, and the whole stress of religious teaching was directed toward the worship of a moral ideal, and the cultivation of moral qualities. its numbers, which had been looked upon until then, by the higher and governing class with either contemptuous silence, or occasional argumentative opposition, were become so increased that their political weight gave promise of a new field for the exercise of authority and power, and from thence on began that addition of intellectual forces which have so completely changed its character.

every change instituted by its new leaders was with[pg 57] the sole purpose of increasing its numbers and of augmenting its political weight. they began by making a compromise with paganism in adopting some of its rituals, pandering to the imaginations of the uncultivated multitude by spectacular display, inventing a system of church government with an executive head, adopting the jewish annals for its organic laws and modes of thought, cultivating a belief in miracles and increasing them on every opportune occasion, until with the one end in view of overcoming the world as c?sar did with his legions, more bloody than c?sar, taking into their hands a movement full of humanity, instituted by men in the lower walks of life to soften their hard lines and give them new hopes, and to increase their sympathies and feelings of brotherhood, it became, and in many parts of the world remains to this day, under its attached dispensation of ecclesiastical dogma and control, a handmaid of kings and emperors in oppression, an upholder of deadly superstition, an intimidator of free thought and free learning, an unconcerned looker-on upon the miseries of life beyond its proselyting interest, careless of the whole world and its affairs, except so far as it can profit by its theory of exclusive salvation, and the mouth piece in cant phrases,[pg 58] which have long since lost their force and meaning, of a lingering barbarism.

and yet the world was never so much in need of a pure christianity. an expanded benevolence cherished and assisted as much by skepticism as the churches is one of the characteristics of modern society. although the physically strong do not prey upon the physically weak as pitylessly as in the olden time, the financially strong are preying upon the financially weak with as little conscience, and the intellectually strong are preying upon the intellectually weak with as much cunning, as they were in barbaric times. civilization has increased the two last mentioned evils. the straggling masses under a load of grinding wealth, in their better knowledge are no longer appeased by the promises of an adulterated and composite christianity, whose chief business for centuries has been to set before them an awaiting paradise, in recompense for their earthly wrongs; but now, the multitude impressed with a knowledge belonging to these times, is proof against these allurements. the toiling millions who make easy places for the few, and increase their wealth, and who have carried out to a successful end the brilliant material advancement which surrounds us, is the world[pg 59] proper, all the rest are merely dependants. into this world and down among these quarters from whence it came christianity must prepare itself to re-enter, and of this the shadow is already to be seen. it must discard its dogmas and superstitions, which it has even now consigned to partial obscurity and silence, and in place of them, take on the things of the world. it must go among the money changers of the temples, and into the halls and by-ways of legislation, giving battle everywhere with evil; for it is through these that the world is given or denied its betterment, and it must set science on its right hand, recognizing it as an attribute of the deity. christianity with this companion, its pure ideal recovered from its ecclesiastical mists, setting out on its new journey through the world, blazing the way for truth instead of suppressing it, conforming itself in all ways to the natural religion of mankind, would become to humanity what the sun is to the earth, comforting the souls of men by its hopes, enlarging their charities by its precepts, and warming into life many a germ of virtue and goodness, which else, would never have blossomed, to shed its moral fragrance on the earth.

[pg 60]the foregoing was written to indicate that line of thought, whose convictions are briefly expressed, here and there, through the pages of this little book, now offered to the public in its third edition. it is always safer and pleasanter to deal with received theology in the spirit of reverence, usually found in literature; thus offending no one, and meeting the approval of a worthy and influential class; but, there are other reasons why an adverse criticism of theological methods and beliefs, are not so often publicly exploited as their importance to society deserves. in the first place experience has shown that errors of religious belief, fixed upon the mind in infancy and youth, are seldom removed by discussion. we are not yet arrived at that stage, when the love of truth so predominates in the minds of men, that they will sacrifice every prejudice, and reject all opposing influence to obtain it. christianity has imposed an elaborate system of prejudices on every young mind within its jurisdiction and they have become entwined with all the most hallowed associations of childhood, appealing so strongly to the affections, that any expressed denial of their exact truth excites, in most cases, a feeling of resentment, and often stirs to petty persecution. a[pg 61] large majority of the human race accept their opinions from authority, and all authority heretofore has encouraged beliefs, which appear so inseparably connected with the moral well being of society, and which hold in continued supremacy, institutions and modes of thought whose subversion it is alleged would be in many ways dangerous. yet, the fact remains that it is mostly through its inroads upon these old beliefs that the world has arrived at its present stage of progress, and the opinion of orthodox theologians that they should be retained in their entirety, or of others that they should be abolished, cuts no figure; because, whether for good or evil in the opinions of men, providence has ordained, that those only which represent the truth shall live, and knowing this of a certainty, it becomes of the greatest interest to discover what society is likely to lose or gain by that modification of religious beliefs, wherein only the truth shall remain. if we cannot foretell this future condition with certainty, it is largely foreshadowed by past and present experience. what the world has lost in the modification of religious beliefs, would be hard to find, what it has gained would take volumes to recount. in the most important of all human interests, liberty of person,[pg 62] liberty of conscience, and liberty of speech, there has been, as yet, no adequate acknowledgement by mankind of the great services of the silent and avowed skepticism which brought about the consummation of these blessings. the writings of moses, the recorded wisdom of solomon, the encyclicals of popes, and the sermons of bishops and priests, both protestant and catholic, in their rising up of the lowly, in their encouragement of brotherhood, and in that exact and even justice to all men, so far as their practical services to humanity in these directions can be measured, sink into an empty insignificance, when compared with those organic declarations and laws, upon which this great republic was founded, and which were the outcome and product of a then recent enlightenment, due to the combined efforts of european skeptical writers, who by their genius of sarcasm and incisive argument, were disturbing the old theological modes of thought, and awaking the world to wide strides in rationalism. that these new american rules of political equality, beacons of liberty for men to follow and admire, obtained their inspiration and incentive from those new lights in literature, which, at that time, were stirring the world of thought, there can be no question. in these[pg 63] famous american documents, were embodied the practical carrying out of principles, enunciated, and suggested by the european writers, and the most active of the men engaged in the noble work of forming the new government, are known to have been disciples of these leaders of anti-theologic thought. our declaration of independence and federal constitution, stand, to-day, grand achievements of modern scientific thought, and conspicuous triumphs of rationalism, over old methods, foreshadowing in these, its great works, a better wisdom to govern the affairs of men, than all the ages guided by hebrew tradition. yet, in these documents will be seen an overflowing of natural religion, and the spirit of the master. “do unto others as ye would that others shall do unto you.”

if we have for more than fifteen centuries, yielded ourselves to doctrines, conveyed to us through all the highways of life, so assiduously, that neither infancy, youth, manhood or old age, have escaped their tireless importunities for acceptance; doctrines, which consign seven-eighths of humanity to eternal torture for no faults to most of them but a lack of opportunity, which under providence has been denied, it is not unreasonable to conclude, with this experience of the mutability of human[pg 64] understanding, that there are other beliefs fastened on our minds by ages of custom and mistaken thought, equally untenable, which may be as justly placed in our catalogue of errors. where then shall we look for truth? authority, as we have seen, is not an infallible guide. we shall never know how much the industrious promulgation of error is due to the selfish love of corporate power, how much to a pure benevolence. neither are the brightest minds safe monitors in all things of thought. aristotle defended slavery, hobbes persecution, johnson witchcraft, and gladstone religious superstition; but, for all that, we shall never arrive at the extremity of despair; for a cultivation of the mind, the deductive use of positive knowledge, and the untrammeled exercise of reason, lead to truth, as directly, as the line of gravity points to the center of the earth, and only by these will its reign be established in the world.

w. s.