BOOKS REVIEWED.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 746, 19 February 1910, Page 9

BOOKS REVIEWED.

"Religion and..the;'Modern"World." Xec- / ''.ture'sl delivered; /before-.the. Glasgow '"University! Society *. of St. . Ninian. Hodder' and Stoughton; (Wliitcombe . aiid Tombs-.) • •>". /

This* book will be of great. interest ■ to that-, largo andgrowing ' number of ' thoughtfulpeople "who are watching the process of reconstruction'" of religious be-' iiels in the light, of [modern thought It consists oi'.'a series jof lectures, each by an expert,:bn"some aspect of the relations .between scienco : and religion, 'aiid Christianity, and historical criticism. Sir Donald "Macali'ster, principal of Glasgow 'University,: in': a .'brief introduction, oxplains that the St. 'Ninia'n Society was rounded in 1907 by students of the (university for promoting the free discussion' by. its .members: of- questions- bearing on the .various ..aspects; of religion...' iiach 'cohtributoiuspeaksi for; himself without ■ committing'. aniVrie.'\clse,; or i -the' society, •to. the views she a'dvocates;. -The first lecfcuro is by. Sir ;W. Nicoll, tUe aubject being: "Sin;and Punishment:.; The' Teaching of-Hawthorne; audj Broriihg.-' It is an - able Vuponv the of-two "great lords; of-the imagination"— to those peoplewho are inclined "to treat sin; and i puiushmenH;as ghosts that affrighted" the past, but which ought to vex' us, no.loiigor.''.; :.'lt is an, appeals to experience,, and the, records of "experience. The ."'Rev..* ; W; "Ir. • Walker ■; deals': .'with

"Science and Religion with Special "Be-' . ference. to; Haeckel,",.; and . Mr. : f , 'Joseph ,H'Cabe.follows'.with a' lecture on: "The Conflict; of: Science ' and: Religion," . dealing with- the' subject ■from :tSe' point of view>f a thorough-going Rationalist. Mr." M'Cabo: states his, case with gipat clearness .and ability,.'and-if;.the leaders of religious thought really held the views he attributes , to . them,, some; of his .'arguments might be unanswerable. He divides .:the,wprld: of'thought, • as. it were, into .two. parts—the: scientific and the religious; and contends : that ,* every, advance in the' scientific explanation- of 'things lessens the spliero -of religion, so ' that oventually ( religion will; be'banished frou the universe. '- Of course no . modern theologian : would . accept", this position,., and - when; Mr. - 'M'Cabe : talks about, • mechanical: '" explanation,. Mr. Walker . replies that the very fact that -things are explainable; is proof, that there ' isintelligibility • -in, ; Nature; that her order is a rationally connected one; and he-asks: How can there.be goeh.au order unless/ Nature, is ; the product of intelligence? vWhile 'Mr. M'Cabe confidently assures'us that science has no place either for God or religion, Mr. Walker points out-that science "in its latest developments stands face to faco with a new and-deeper world of which she at present; knows : very little. Psychology and. anthropology; 1 (in . the ; wider , sense) have; been , bringing:, their- contributions, and religion itself lisis- now: found a -place in the' circle . of; the .sciences. ; Theologians: of. the modern;'.school/.are /not greatly , troubled by rationalist - demands for'-.'demonstrative /proof; of tho existence of God, and the supremacy of intuition is recognised by. a . growing school of modern .philosophy. I The logical process nearly;, always - fails- when-, we .come to Ultimate and fundamental problems'; : and in another, lecturo Dr. David Smith aptly quotes . the saying , of. Professor Percy .Gardner that "if there over lived a man who :supposed himself to be the • only conscious being in existence ho could propably never,bo refuted." Some of tho truest and;-surest things in life . cau never he proved by mere logic. A man cannot prove his own existence; ho simply knows it. One is rather staggered to find , that Mr. M'Cabe brushes aside the whole idealistic-argument in a fool- , note, tin "the. lecture following Mr. I.M'Cabc's striking defence of the materialistic philosophy. Principal Carpenter, a distinguished. Oxford 'Unitarian,' tells us that the Knowledge of God is impljeii in ..tho very structure of tho human mind, and then goes on to make an .interesting comparison between. .'Christianity and other religions. He . says it is the func--tio'ri of; historical science to sift, and ex-, plain these likenesses which point to a wider Christianity , than. can be sheltered undor any- single name—the total religious experience of,tho race. Then''comes'a very, interesting .contribution from an'expert in,tho study of comparative, re ligion, Dr. MacCulloiigh. lie subjects such, likenesses; as those referred; to by Dr. Carpenter to a searching criticism.

showing whero they hold.good and where they fail.: It" is a generally Tccogniscd fact that many of tho doctrines and much of the ritual of Christianity can be paralleled in the older* religions, and some of thcSe parallels are .very'striking, deferring to. this point Dr. • MacCollough states:—. ~ - " • ,

/"These pagan counterparts, taken in connection with similar-beliefs and pracfound everywhere throughout all religions/ low and high, show, that the need, of salvation and the hope of immortality are iustinct in man. Ho has everywhere sought their fulfilment, his soul is naturally Christian. In the Christian'verities we find the fulfilment of man's desires'. They correspond l to the elemental needs of human nature, and lwauso they:fulfil these needs.iu.a way ho other rites or myths have ever done we have a. mighty witness to their truths

' Dr. rightly. insists on tho , necessity of distinguishing between, "historic founders/' such.,a9 Christ, Zoroaster, : Confucius, and Buddha, and the 1 gods and culture (heroes, of nature cults ; also, of . distinguishing between Christ 1 and; other"founders. To take one illustration, he points out that "the story of Christ's death and resurrection shows no real likeness to the ' pagan cults :, or myths beyond tho general" ideas of death and; Tevival. In the -6no : case we.. are dealing vith' .what: was from : the first regarded' as Historic fact,; in the- other with extremely fluid and varying myths." Tho Gospels enshrine the historic facts on ; which Christianity rests, ' and "you do not get rid 'of facts by. simply proposing..to give, au artificial mythological explanation of them." Dr. David Smith give 9 !ah intei-esting statement on. the 'idea of-.God as conceived and taught by. Jesus, and Dr. Aloffatt deals with. "Modern- Criticism and the Eeligion of Jesus", ;iii; an able' and illuminating maimer, father':Gerard, contributes 'a brief,' but •very clear, explanation of "the Catholic • conception of , the religious teaching of Jesus Christ,": and the much-discussed question'of, "Paulinism and the Religions of: Jesus" •is ably handled, by Dr. MilThevvohmie as a whole is' full of ;i|leas,' . and enables , the average man. to get r an intelligent grasp l of ' some of the 'leading- religious problems of the present day. In .a recent; volume- of Cambridge .'essays, Dr.- Inge,, .the • Lady. Margaret Professor of; Divinity, " stated that each ■generation "hope/to, have its. message,;, adapted io its own needs, solving its own. problems;-'a*message; new in form, but not- new in-substance, and. not less ! .truly the 'word9'of the Logos-Christ than those ■ which •He actuaUy uttered, while He tabernacled among men in . Galilee ;und Judaea" This, is the spirit in which mostiof the contributors to "Religion and itbe-Modern World", appear, to, have I .handled their subjects. • ' /

"Southern .Rhodesia.". By Percy P. Hone. Bell's .Colonial Library. - .Wellington: i 'Messrs. .Whitcombe 'and Tombs. ' 7s. ;■ -Gd. . >'•'.v.'.v

> ; This.,.took • represents : a Very .' complete; ,history of;the administrative"and iridus-' ■trial development ' of' Southern .Rhodesia• since its occupation by- the British : South 'Africa, Company. This enormous territory! which comprises. ,the districts of Matabeleland and Hashonaland, and includes' the towns of .Buluwayo and-Salis-. "bury, lias still-a population of less than .15,000'.-.': Both itsxhief centres of-popula-tion arei connected by railway with Cape Town, and are stated to. have "more.public advantages ; than many a town, in 13ng- : , land."v vSouthern Rhodesia, admits •; the author,, "cannot- as; yet bo considered , a poorvman's/country, i.e.; ,a/country, , in' iphich-;a man can- easily 'make a/living, withw Only a small, amount of moneyj at his. disposal.; farming, mining, and trans-; port-riding.'itbov three . principal - industries at : 'present carried; on, , all, require' a capital- much-i greater than is necessary to .colonists I .who go .out 'to. seek their forthncs'iin.; Canada,' But those who have cxpefienced .the.-uplull l 'toil of the Cana-. dian'' colonies, and have afterwards found their .'way into Rhodesia,"would never exchange the new country of their adoption,', for .the old .life of .the -Rocky Mountains. or, ithe. : wheat lands of Manitoba, with:'the. hard manual labour, the sever-,, itf bf.cjimitisr-and the years pfidrudgeryi beforecondition of relative'.ease . and, comfort can be'.; reached;- This' life bf stern , discipline and :'-toil, : ; thou?h\it ,qf} .fersSd splendid.school-'.for; building, up -a. greati.natiorii- is -liot. attractive ' to", those" who', have , the capital to seek a more romantic' existenca, especially " when this, is to! bo found,in a .(topical "country with a-: temperate climate;'. in a. land abounding in wild-'game, whefe the'isupply ofnative labour 'enables a. white' man to make" a living free from eicessive'inanual toil; a country, too,,..wliere., there: >is\always .a chance of , winning or losing a fortune, ands- 'abovo' l all; .'a . land : undeveloped, boiindless;:.in ,its unknown resources' and possibilities.". IK' Hone's ■book.'cbmbinffi in. an-.excellent : manner '.the 'funbtibns.' of a ; history and "of „an, official year' bookr One feels that there cannot be muchmore worth saying about Rhodesia than finds d;plaoe in this substantial,volume. Prom a' report by Mr. '11.l 1 . J. Hannon,' tlie SuDerintendent of. Agricultural ■ Co-opera-iibri in Capo' Colony, which'is included-by the. author,' one learns that from an agricultural point of view Rhodesia is perhaps the finest , country Mr. Hannori had ever seen.- ■ Knowing 1 almost' every country north of the "Equator, he; states:' "I cannot remember having • seen anywhere so-remarkable a combination of all those qualities of soils that in' the hands of a capable and. intelligent', people are the essential elements of agricultural prosperity'.' VOn some estates,l saw as many as four varieties of soils, each in itself peculiarly suited for certain kinds of cropping.''-.. The country-is .at .present in an' untamed, state, but in a few years, many:.areas f of Rhodesia should become, in Mr.-.Hannbn's opinion; the richest pastoral land,in the :vorld. : .