anditisthisscepticismwhichcausesthatdreadofinquiryshownbyReligion
whenfacetofacewithScience。Obligedtoabandononebyonethesuperstitions
itoncetenaciouslyheld，anddailyfindingothercherishedbeliefsmore
andmoreshaken，Religionsecretlyfearsthatallthingsmaysomedaybe
explained;andthusitselfbetraysalurkingdoubtwhetherthatIncomprehensibleCauseofwhichitisconscious，isreallyincomprehensible。OfReligionthen，wemustalwaysremember，thatamiditsmanyerrorsand
corruptionsithasassertedanddiffusedasupremeverity。Fromthefirst，
therecognitionofthissupremeverity，inhoweverimperfectamanner，has
beenitsvitalelement;anditschiefdefects，onceextremebutgradually
diminishing，havebeenitsfailurestorecognizeinfullthatwhichitrecognized
inpart。ThetrulyreligiouselementofReligionhasalwaysbeengood;that
whichhasproveduntenableindoctrineandviciousinpractice，hasbeenitsirreligiouselement;andfromthisithasbeenundergoingpurification。§29。Andnowobservethattheagentwhichhaseffectedthepurification
hasbeenScience。Onbothsidesthisfactisoverlooked。Religionignores
itsimmensedebttoScience;andScienceisscarcelyatallconscioushow
muchReligionowesit。YetitisdemonstrablethateverystepbywhichReligion
hasprogressedfromitsfirstlowconceptiontothecomparativelyhighone
nowreached，Sciencehashelpedit，orratherforcedit，totake;andthatevennow，Scienceisurgingfurtherstepsinthesamedirection。WhenweincludeunderthenameSciencealldefiniteknowledgeoftheorder
existingamongphenomena，itbecomesmanifestthatfromtheoutset，thediscovery
ofanestablishedorderhasmodifiedthatconceptionofdisorderorundetermined
order，whichunderlieseverysuperstition。Asfastasexperienceprovesthat
certainfamiliarchangesalwayspresentthesamesequences，therebegins
tofadefromthemindtheconceptionofspecialpersonalitiestowhosevariable
willstheywerebeforeascribed。Andwhen，stepbystep，accumulatingobservations
dothelikewiththelessfamiliarchanges，asimilarmodificationofbelieftakesplacerespectingthem。Whilethisprocessseemstothosewhoeffectit，andthosewhoundergo
it，ananti—religiousone，itisreallythereverse。Insteadofthespecific
comprehensibleagencybeforeassigned，thereissubstitutedalessspecific
andlesscomprehensibleagency;andthoughthis，standinginoppositionto
thepreviousone，cannotatfirstcallforththesamefeeling，yet，asbeing
lesscomprehensible，itmusteventuallycallforththisfeelingmorefully。
Takeaninstance。OfoldtheSunwasregardedasthechariotofagod，drawn
byhorses。Howfartheideathusgrosslyexpressedwasidealized，weneed
notinquire。Itsufficestoremarkthatthisaccountingfortheapparent
motionoftheSunbyanagencylikecertainvisibleterrestrialagencies，
reducedadailywondertothelevelofthecommonestintellect。When，many
centuriesafter，Copernicushavingenunciatedtheheliocentrictheoryof
thesolarsystem，Keplerdiscoveredthattheorbitsoftheplanetsareellipses，
andthattheplanetsdescribeequalareasinequaltimes，heconcludedthat
ineachofthemtheremustexistaspirittoguideitsmovements。Herewe
seethatwiththeprogressofScience，therehaddisappearedtheideaof
agrossmechanicaltraction，suchaswasfirstassignedinthecaseofthe
Sun;butthatwhileforthecelestialmotionstherewassubstitutedaless—easily
conceivableforce，itwasstillthoughtneedfultoassumepersonalagents
ascausesoftheregularirregularityofthemotions。When，finallyitwas
provedthattheseplanetaryrevolutionswithalltheirvariationsanddisturbances，
conformtooneuniversallaw——whenthepresidingspiritswhichKeplerconceived
weresetaside，andtheforceofgravitationputintheirplaces;thechange
wasreallytheabolitionofanimaginableagency，andthesubstitutionof
anunimaginableone。Forthoughthelawofgravitationiswithinourmental
grasp，itisimpossibletorealizeinthoughttheforceofgravitation。Newton
himselfconfessedtheforceofgravitationtobeincomprehensiblewithout
theintermediationofanether;and，aswehavealreadyseen，（§18），
theassumptionofanetherdoesnothelpus。ThusitiswithScienceingeneral。
Itsprogressingroupingparticularrelationsofphenomenaunderlaws，and
thesespeciallawsunderlawsmoreandmoregeneral，isofnecessityaprogress
tocausesmoreandmoreabstract。Andcausesmoreandmoreabstract，are
ofnecessitycauseslessandlessconceivable;sincetheformationofan
abstractconceptioninvolvesthedroppingofcertainconcreteelementsof
thought。Hencethemostabstractconception，towhichScienceisslowlyapproaching，
isonethatmergesintotheinconceivableorunthinkable，bythedropping
ofallconcreteelementsofthought。Andsoisjustifiedtheassertionthat
thebeliefswhichSciencehasforceduponReligion，havebeenintrinsicallymorereligiousthanthosewhichtheysupplanted。Science，however，likeReligion，hasbutveryincompletelyfulfilledits
office。AsReligionhasfallenshortofitsfunctioninsofarasithas
beenirreligious;sohasSciencefallenshortofitsfunctioninsofaras
ithasbeenunscientific。Letusnotetheseveralparallelisms。Initsearlier
stagesScience，whileitbegantoteachtheconstantrelationsofphenomena，
andthusdiscreditedthebeliefinseparatepersonalitiesasthecausesof
them，itselfsubstitutedthebeliefincasualagencieswhich，ifnotpersonal，
wereyetconcrete。Whencertainfactsweresaidtoshow\"Nature\'sabhorrence
ofavacuum，\"whenthepropertiesofgoldwereexplainedasduetosome
entitycalled\"aureity，\"andwhenthephenomenaoflifewereattributed
to\"avitalprinciple;\"therewassetupamodeofinterpreting
thefactswhich，whileantagonistictothereligiousmode，becauseassigning
otheragencies，wasalsounscientific，becauseitassumedaknowledgeof
thataboutwhichnothingwasknown。Havingabandonedthesemetaphysicalagencies
——havingseenthattheyarenotindependentexistences，butmerelyspecial
combinationsofgeneralcauses，Sciencehasmorerecentlyascribedextensive
groupsofphenomenatoelectricity，chemicalaffinity，andotherlikegeneral
powers。Butinspeakingoftheseasultimateandindependententities，Science
haspreservedsubstantiallythesameattitudeasbefore。Accountingthus
forallphenomena，ithasnotonlymaintaineditsseemingantagonismtoReligion，
byallegingagenciesofaradicallyunlikekind;but，insofarasithas
tacitlyimplieditscomprehensionoftheseagencies，ithascontinuedunscientific。
Atthepresenttime，however，themostadvancedmenofscienceareabandoning
theselaterconceptions，astheirpredecessorsabandonedtheearlierones。
Magnetism，heat，light，etc。，whichwereearlyinthecenturyspokenofas
somanydistinctimponderables，physicistsnowregardasdifferentmodes
ofmanifestationofsomeoneuniversalforce;andinsoregardingthemare
ceasingtothinkofthisforceascomprehensible。Ineachphaseofitsprogress，
Sciencehasthusstoppedshortwithsuperficialsolutions——hasunscientifically
neglectedtoaskwhatwerethenaturesoftheagentsitfamiliarlyinvoked。
Thoughineachsucceedingphaseithasgonealittledeeper，andmergedits
supposedagentsinmoregeneralandabstractones，ithasstill，asbefore，
restedcontentwiththeseaSiftheywereascertainedrealities。Andthis，
whichhasallalongbeenanunscientificcharacteristicofScience，hasallalongbeenapart—causeofitsconflictwithReligion。§30。ThusfromtheoutsetthefaultsofbothReligionandScience
havebeenthefaultsofimperfectdevelopment。Originallyamererudiment，
eachhasbeengrowingmorecomplete;theviceofeachhasinalltimesbeen
itsincompleteness;thedisagreementsbetweenthemhavebeenconsequences
oftheirincompleteness;andastheyreachtheirfinalformstheycomeintoharmony。Theprogressofintelligencehasthroughoutbeendual。Thoughithasnot
seemedsotothosewhomadeit，everystepinadvancehasbeenasteptowards
boththenaturalandthesupernatural。Thebetterinterpretationofeach
phenomenonhasbeen，ontheonehand，therejectionofacausethatwasrelatively
conceivableinitsnaturebutunknownintheorderofitsactions，and，on
theotherhand，theadoptionofacausethatwasknownintheorderofits
actionsbutrelativelyinconceivableinitsnature。Thefirstadvanceinvolved
theconceptionofagencieslessassimilabletothefamiliaragenciesofmen
andanimals，andthereforelessunderstood;while，atthesametime，such
newly—conceivedagencies，insofarastheyweredistinguishedbytheiruniform
effects，werebetterunderstoodthanthosetheyreplaced。Allsubsequent
advancesdisplaythesameresult;andthustheprogresshasbeenasmuch
towardstheestablishmentofapositivelyunknownastowardstheestablishment
ofapositivelyknown。Thoughasknowledgeadvances，unaccountableandseemingly
supernaturalfactsarebroughtintothecategoryoffactsthatareaccountable
ornatural;yet，atthesametime，allaccountableornaturalfactsareproved
tobeintheirultimategenesisunaccountableandsupernatural。Andsothere
arisetwoantitheticalstatesofmind，answeringtotheoppositesidesof
thatexistenceaboutwhichwethink。WhileourconsciousnessofNatureunder
theoneaspectconstitutesScience，ourconsciousnessofitundertheotheraspectconstitutesReligion。Inotherwords，ReligionandSciencehavebeenundergoingaslowdifferentiation，
andtheirconflictshavebeenduetotheimperfectseparationoftheirspheres
andfunctions。Religionhas，fromthefirst，struggledtounitemoreorless
sciencewithitsnescience;Sciencehas，fromthefirst，keptholdofmore
orlessnescienceasthoughitwereapartofscience。Solongastheprocess
ofdifferentiationisincomplete，moreorlessofantagonismmustcontinue。
Graduallyasthelimitsofpossiblecognitionareestablished，thecauses
ofconflictwilldiminish。AndapermanentpeacewillbereachedwhenScience
becomesfullyconvincedthatitsexplanationsareproximateandrelative，
whileReligionbecomesfullyconvincedthatthemysteryitcontemplatesisultimateandabsolute。ReligionandSciencearethereforenecessarycorrelatives。Tocarryfurther
ametaphorbeforeused，theyarethepositiveandnegativepolesofthought;
ofwhichneithercangaininintensitywithoutincreasingtheintensityoftheother。§31。SomedoindeedallegethatthoughtheUltimateCauseofthings
cannotreallybeconceivedbyusashavingspecifiedattributes，itisyet
incumbentuponustoassertthoseattributes。Thoughtheformsofourconsciousness
aresuchthattheAbsolutecannotinanymannerordegreebebroughtwithin
them，weareneverthelesstoldthatwemustrepresenttheAbsolutetoourselves
ashavingcertaincharacters。AswritesMr。Mansel，intheworkfromwhich
Ihavealreadyquotedlargely——\"Itisourduty，then，tothinkofGodaspersonal;anditisourdutytobelievethatHeisinfinite。\"Nowiftherebeanymeaningintheforegoingarguments，dutyrequires
usneithertoaffirmnordenypersonality。Ourdutyistosubmitourselves
totheestablishedlimitsofourintelligence，andnotperverselytorebel
againstthem。Letthosewhocan，believethatthereiseternalwarsetbetween
ourintellectualfacultiesandourmoralobligations。I，forone，admitnosuchradicalviceintheconstitutionofthings。Thiswhichtomostwillseemanessentiallyirreligiousposition，isan
essentiallyreligiousone——nayisthereligiousone，towhich，asalready
shown，allothersarebutapproximations。Intheestimateitimpliesofthe
UltimateCause，itdoesnotfallshortofthealternativeposition，butexceeds
it。Thosewhoespousethisalternativeposition，assumethatthechoiceis
betweenpersonalityandsomethinglowerthanpersonality;whereasthechoice
isratherbetweenpersonalityandsomethingthatmaybehigher。Isitnot
possiblethatthereisamodeofbeingasmuchtranscendingIntelligence
andWill，asthesetranscendmechanicalmotion？Doubtlesswearetotally
unabletoimagineanysuchhighermodeofbeing。Butthisisnotareason
forquestioningitsexistence;itisratherthereverse。Havewenotseen
howutterlyunableourmindsaretoformevenanapproachtoaconception
ofthatwhichunderliesallphenomena？Isitnotprovedthatwefailbecause
oftheincompetencyoftheConditionedtograsptheUnconditioned？Does
itnotfollowthattheUltimateCausecannotinanyrespectbeconceived
becauseitisineveryrespectgreaterthancanbeconceived？Andmaywe
notthereforerightlyrefrainfromassigningtoitanyattributeswhatever，
onthegroundthatsuchattributes，derivedastheymustbefromourown
natures，arenotelevationsbutdegradations？Indeeditseemsstrangethat
menshouldSupposethehighestworshiptolieinassimilatingtheobject
oftheirworshiptothemselves。Notinassertingatranscendentdifference，
butinassertingacertainlikeness，consiststheelementoftheircreed
whichtheythinkessential。Itistruethatfromthetimewhentherudest
savagesimaginedthecausesofthingstobepersonslikethemselvesbutinvisible，
downtoourowntime，thedegreeofassumedlikenesshasbeendiminishing。
Butthoughabodilyformandsubstancesimilartothatofman，haslongsince
ceased，amongcultivatedraces，tobealiterally—conceivedattributeof
theUltimateCause——thoughthegrosserhumandesireshavebeenalsorejected
asunfitelementsoftheconception——thoughthereissomehesitationin
ascribingeventhehigherhumanfeelings，saveinidealizedshapes;yetit
isstillthoughtnotonlyproper，butimperative，toascribethemostabstract
qualitiesofournature。TothinkoftheCreativePowerasinallrespects
anthropomorphous，isnowconsideredimpiousbymenwhoyetholdthemselves
boundtothinkoftheCreative。Powerasinsomerespectsanthropomorphous;
andwhodonotseethattheoneproceedingisbutanevanescentformofthe
other。Andthen，mostmarvellousofall，thiscourseispersistedineven
bythosewhocontendthatwearewhollyunabletoframeanyconceptionwhatever
oftheCreativePower。Afterithasbeenshownthateverysuppositionrespecting
thegenesisoftheUniversecommitsustoalternativeimpossibilitiesof
thought——afterithasbeenshownwhybytheveryconstitutionofourminds，
wearedebarredfromthinkingoftheAbsolute;itisstillassertedthat
weoughttothinkoftheAbsolutethusandthus。Inallwayswefindthrust
onusthetruth，thatwearenotpermittedtoknow——nayarenotevenpermitted
toconceivethatRealitywhichisbehindtheveilofAppearance;andyet
itissaidtobeourdutytobelieve（andinsofartoconceive）thatthis
Realityexistsinacertaindefinedmanner。Shallwecallthisreverence？orshallwecallitthereverse？Volumesmightbewrittenupontheimpietyofthepious。Throughtheprinted
andspokenthoughtsofreligiousteachers，mayeverywherebetracedaprofessed
familiaritywiththeultimatemysteryofthings，which，tosaytheleast
ofit，isanythingbutcongruouswiththeaccompanyingexpressionsofhumility。
Theattitudethusassumedcanbefitlyrepresentedonlybyfurtherdeveloping
asimilelongcurrentintheologicalcontroversies——thesimileofthewatch。
Ifforamomentwemadethegrotesquesuppositionthatthetickingsandother
movementsofawatchconstitutedakindofconsciousness;andthatawatch
possessedofsuchaconsciousness，insistedonregardingthewatchmaker\'s
actionsasdeterminedlikeitsownbyspringsandescapements;weshould
simplycompleteaparallelofwhichreligiousteachersthinkmuch。Andwere
wetosupposethatawatchnotonlyformulatedthecauseofitsexistence
inthesemechanicalterms，butheldthatwatcheswereboundoutofreverence
sotoformulatethiscause，andevenvituperated，asatheisticwatches，any
thatdidnotventuresotoformulateit;weshouldmerelyillustratethe
presumptionoftheologiansbycarryingtheirownargumentastepfurther。
Afewextractswillbringhometothereaderthejusticeofthiscomparison。
Wearetold，forexample，byoneofhighreputeamongreligiousthinkers
thattheUniverseis\"themanifestationandabodeofaFreeMind，like
ourown;embodyingHispersonalthoughtinitsadjustments，realizingHis
ownidealinitsphenomena，justasweexpressourinnerfacultyandcharacter
throughthenaturallanguageofanexternallife。Inthisview，weinterpret
NaturebyHumanity;wefindthekeytoheraspectsinsuchpurposesandaffections
asourownconsciousnessenablesustoconceive;welookeverywhereforphysical
signalsofanever—livingWill;anddeciphertheuniverseastheautobiography
ofanInfiniteSpirit，repeatingitselfinminiaturewithinourFiniteSpirit。\"
Thesamewritergoesstillfurther。Henotonlythusparallelstheassimilation
ofthewatchmakertothewatch，——henotonlythinksthecreatedcan\"decipher\"
\"theautobiography\"oftheCreating;butheassertsthatthenecessary
limitstotheonearenecessarylimitstotheother。Theprimaryqualities
ofbodies，hesays，\"belongeternallytothematerialdatumobjective
toGod\"andcontrolhisacts;whilethesecondaryonesare\"products
ofpureInventiveReasonandDeterminingWill\"——constitute\"the
realmofDivineoriginality。\"***\"WhileonthisSecondaryfield
HisMindandoursarethuscontrasted，theymeetinresemblanceagainupon
thePrimary;fortheevolutionsofdeductiveReasonthereisbutonetrack
possibletoallintelligences;nomerumarbitriumcaninterchangethefalse
andtrue，ormakemorethanonegeometry，oneschemeofpurePhysics，for
allworlds;andtheOmnipotentArchitectHimself，inrealizingtheKosmical
conception，inshapingtheorbitsoutofimmensityanddeterminingseasons
outofeternity，couldbutfollowthelawsofcurvature，measureandproportion。\"
ThatistosaytheUltimateCauseislikeahumanmechanic，notonlyas\"shaping\"
the\"materialdatumobjectiveto\"Him，butalsoasbeingobliged
toconformtothenecessarypropertiesofthatdatum。Noristhisall。There
followssomeaccountof\"theDivinepsychology，\"totheextent
ofsayingthat\"welearn\"\"thecharacterofGod——theorder
ofaffectionsinHim\"from\"thedistributionofauthorityinthe
hierarchyofourimpulses。\"Inotherwords，itisallegedthattheUltimate
Causehasdesiresthataretobeclassedashigherandlowerlikeourown。*
Everyonehasheardofthekingwhowishedhehadbeenpresentatthecreation
oftheworld，thathemighthavegivengoodadvice。Hewashumble，however，
comparedwiththosewhoprofesstounderstandnotonlytherelationofthe
Creatingtothecreated，butalsohowtheCreatingisconstituted。Andyet
thistranscendentaudacity，whichthinkstopenetratethesecretsofthe
Powermanifestedthroughallexistence——nay，eventostandbehindthat
Powerandnotetheconditionstoitsaction——thisitiswhichpassescurrent
aspiety！Maywenotaffirmthatasincererecognitionofthetruththat
ourownandallotherexistenceisamysteryabsolutelybeyondourcomprehension，containsmoreoftruereligionthanallthedogmatictheologyeverwritten？Meanwhileletusrecognizewhateverofpermanentgoodthereisinthese
persistentattemptstoframeconceptionsofthatwhichcannotbeconceived。
Fromthebeginningithasbeenonlythroughthesuccessivefailuresofsuch
conceptionstosatisfythemind，thathigherandhigheroneshavebeengradually
reached;anddoubtless，theconceptionsnowcurrentareindispensableas
transitionalmodesofthought。Evenmorethanthismaybewillinglyconceded。
Itispossible，nayprobable，thatundertheirmostabstractforms，ideas
ofthisorderwillalwayscontinuetooccupythebackgroundofourconsciousness。
Verylikelytherewilleverremainaneedtogiveashapetothatindefinite
senseofanUltimateExistence，whichformsthebasisofourintelligence。
Weshallalwaysbeunderthenecessityofcontemplatingitassomemodeof
being;thatis——ofrepresentingittoourselvesinsomeformofthought，
howevervague。Andweshallnoterrindoingthissolongaswetreatevery
notionwethusframeasmerelyasymbol。Perhapstheconstantformationof
suchsymbolsandconstantrejectionofthemasinadequate，maybehereafter，
asithashithertobeen，ameansofdiscipline。Perpetuallytoconstruct
ideasrequiringtheutmoststretchofourfaculties，andperpetuallytofind
thatsuchideasmustbeabandonedasfutileimaginations，mayrealizeto
usmorefullythananyothercourse，thegreatnessofthatwhichwevainly
strivetograsp。Bycontinuallyseekingtoknowandbeingcontinuallythrown
backwithadeepenedconvictionoftheimpossibilityofknowing，wemaykeep
alivetheconsciousnessthatitisalikeourhighestwisdomandourhighestdutytoregardthatthroughwhichallthingsexistasTheUnknowable。§32。Animmensemajoritywillrefuse，withmoreorlessofindignation，
abeliefseemingtothemsoshadowyandindefinite。\"Youofferus，\"
theywillsay，\"anunthinkableabstractioninplaceofaBeingtowards
whomwemayentertaindefinitefeelings。ThoughwearetoldthattheAbsolute
istheonlyreality，yetsincewearenotallowedtoconceiveit，itmight
aswellbeapurenegation。InsteadofaPowerwhichwecanregardashaving
somesympathywithus，youwouldhaveuscontemplateaPowertowhichno
emotionwhatevercanbeascribed。Andsowearetobedeprivedofthevery
substanceofourfaith。\"Thiskindofprotestofnecessityaccompanies
everychangefromalowercreedtoahigher。Thebeliefinacommunityof
naturebetweenhimselfandtheobjectofhisworship，hasalwaysbeento
Manasatisfactoryone;andhehasalwaysacceptedwithreluctancethose
successivelylessconcreteconceptionswhichhavebeenforceduponhim。Doubtless，
inalltimesandplaces，ithasconsoledthebarbariantothinkofhisdeities
aslikehimselfinnature，thattheymightbebribedbyofferingsoffood;
andtheassurancethatdeitiescouldnotbesopropitiatedmusthavebeen
repugnant，becauseitdeprivedhimofaneasymethodofgainingsupernatural
protection。TotheGreeksitwasmanifestlyasourceofcomfortthatonoccasions
ofdifficultytheycouldobtain，throughoracles，theadviceoftheirgods，
——naymightevengetthepersonalaidoftheirgodsinbattle;anditwas
probablyaverygenuineangerwhichtheyvisiteduponphilosopherswhocalled
inquestionthesegrossideasoftheirmythology。Areligionwhichteaches
theHindoothatisisimpossibletopurchaseeternalhappinessbyplacing
himselfunderthewheelofJuggernaut，canscarcelyfailtoseemacruel
onetohim;sinceitdepriveshimofthepleasurableconsciousnessthathe
canatwillexchangemiseriesforjoys。Norisitlessclearthattoour
Catholicancestors，thebeliefsthatcrimescouldbecompoundedforbythe
buildingofchurches，thattheirownpunishmentsandthoseoftheirrelatives
couldbeabridgedbythesayingofmasses，andthatdivineaidorforgiveness
mightbegainedthroughtheintercessionofsaints，werehighlysolacing
ones;andthatProtestantism，insubstitutingtheconceptionofaGodso
comparativelyunlikethemselvesasnottobeinfluencedbysuchmethods，
musthaveappearedhardandcold。Naturallytherefore，wemustexpectafurther
stepinthesamedirectiontomeetwithasimilarresistancefromoutraged
sentiments。