The Ancient Religions of the World.

Thames Star, Volume VII, Issue 2558, 19 March 1877, Page 3

The Ancient Religions of the World.

Let us try to show in w.hat sense a truly scientific study of Religion is possible, what materials there are to enable us to gain a trustworthy knowledge of the'principal religions of the world. It would-be,perhaps more interesting were yteTi.to''lKfiis}i'''B.t once into the "ancient temples'to look at the broken idols of the past, and ,discover, if possible, some of the fahdamental ideas that found expres sion.in,those ancient systems of faith and Worship.; But in order to explore with r^eaL ad.Vant?ge; any; ruins, whether of stone or, thought, it is necessary that we abiQu][d..kn.ow swhere to look and how to look.. ,: io -,• -.:'<.•<. ■:.:■■-.-.. ■■.-■■ ■. Wo;judge,-if he had before him the worst of criminals, would treat him as most historians and theologians have treated the religions of the world. Every act in tfre-lives: of; their founders fwhich shows that they were but men,.is eagerly seized and -judged' wilho'iit niercy ; every doctrine" thai; is:!'npt guarded is interpretatedTln the, wolst sense that it will, bear,; every act of worship that, differs from;their own way of serving God is held.up,.tpiidicule and contempt. And this is not done r by accident, but with a set,pnrppsevnay,: with isoniething of that artificial sense: of duty which stimulates

theiCOuns.eliforthe defenco to see nothing

bufcram'angel in >his own client, and anyan angel in the plaintiff on the othe»«side. vThe result has beenr-as it ootrMTnoFbe otherwise—a complete mis-oarSfiage-Jjcff "justice, an utter .misappreBen^sionW'tihe- real character and purpose iff'tiie^'ticieiii'iieligibns of'mankind ; ,and, 4s^";&^c^sKr^ Qonkequence, a failure in T peculiar features which i^Hy.V.d.isSng^uim; ; Christianity jrom all , the world, and secure to itji bjeculiar ; place in "the fiisiQify-iMiithe -world far -away; from ■^aßishth*,vZoroasterj and Buddha, from Mosesiand Mohammed, ;from Confucius ahdiliioitse;' Byundulyd^reciating all other religions,l wel hare placed our own iftipbsitioiPwhich its founder never in-; . tcttded'for/it'r-^e have iornifr away from the* ie&ntext of loth'e history of the *rorld!( i;";wehave igPQffd, or wilfully narrow©^ *tfie ; siin^ry ;_Umes. and. divers manner's in' the time's,, past God spak^e Jto^hejlaiher^by.theiprophets; and insteaft '.of^iieqognising .e.hristianity as qomlng^jii^lieiuilpgsQf time, and as the fulfilment of the Hopea and desires of the SFiQlfe WPEJdj we have ourselves tQik>okr ttpdn its advent as the only broken link; m iihafci unbroken' ehaiDV^whtch is rightly.lcajie&.s tUe ißi fine government of the world. ~—;..~ '.-

.Nay, worse tßan Jtlns-:. there are people who,irolricinere-igtioraiice of reKgfoffsW Mankind, have adopted as6c-. triri,e m%l?etitiphristiaii"thati any that could b'^Tottna fii^tfie pages of the religious bpgks of anjtiguity,..yi2, that all .the, nations 6f"tffe'eartn, Before ihe rise of Christianty were mere outcasts, forsaken and forgotton flif rth^r Father .mv heaven, without a fconwledg©^of CSl Ggd, without a hope of ■" Balvatipn.;,,lf a .comparative .study of the j religions oj> the 'world produced but this Bnee result,, that it drove -this-godless heresyiOut/Of every' Christian heart, and made us see agiaifl; iii the: whole history of the ■wbrld'stfte-e'tiernal wisdom and love of God towards all his creatures, it would haye;dqn;eag^opdrwork. "-'-:, ■';■■,■ - :An6. it*is liigh: time that this good work should, be done, We Jiave learnt to do justice fo^the^ncient p'oStryi the systems of philosophy, and "the; works of art of nati6fts I:difiering from qurselves :in many ; Wetcani admire the,temples of ithe anciep,t Vorld, whether in Egypt, • Batylpn,, djc jßreece;... we rcan stand in raptures ..before the statues, of -Phidias ; and only whenjwecapproach the religious conceptions which; find: their expression. in Ithe-Temple:^ of Minerva and in the statues oof tfupiier we turn away with 'pityi'andiscorn; 'we call; their gods mere idols End ;imag'e'si,;and class their worshippers r^ Pe'rikles, r;'Phidias,' Sokrates, "ftfiH 5 Plato^with'the worshippers of stocks 'ai^d!stqnes. Idono't deny that the re- • of. th'e'^Babylonians, Egyptians, and ,|u|t-o|:eryorsi:,parii^ in their.later; stales;'"but i maintain that ;the fact of \ these ancient people having any religion' at alJtifihpweTeroimperfect, raises them! higher-and brings them nearer to us than; all iheir.w]ls&s o£ af tj>*H their poetry, all; 4h^e«.pjiiloßophy.--. : |^either their-art; nor tliefr poetry, nor their philosophy, would '■ liayfe^en; possible withputtreligign ; L and: if we Wt look without prejudice, if we but judge, as we Otfght always to judge,! wjjth J,pve^fnd .charity,, we? sHallTje'surprised /ak tuat new world of beauty and truth -like the azure of a .vernal sky, rises before-us frpnv behind the 'clouds of the ancient' mythblbgiesi If, we believe that there is a God, an,d' that J-he !X'created !;ih!eayeri anol 'earth, ''and:

vthtft- He Tufetb? the world 0 by JHTa in-j #jc)seasing prQyjdence, we/cannot believe that million? pi JtLuman. beings, all created 'liKd, ottrselyes in" the image'of God, were, -in ttneii 1--t^me *df ignoi'ariee, ?«o utterly abandoned that' their whole "religion was a t falsehood, -ibeir whole worship i:a- /farce, , their whole.life> a mockery. An< honest and independent study of the religions of the world willrteach us that it is not so— will ttach .p^^jthe-same Wesson w^ich it taught St.,Augustihe, ; that there is no re-: ligion which grains ef truth". 1" lTay,''it'"will teach us..more ;. iti x w^ll.enable us to see in the history, of'the! jll'ahcieht "religions,Tinore clearly 4 lthan -any-; where , else, the diyine educatibn of the* human,,race., :t ,....'^.';'_;';" ; p' . " ' ' I I know tH.is'ls^a.'view which has been much objecte'dto',, but I hold it as strongly as ever. If we.nxusKnbt read in the his'tpry, ofjthe whole Jhutnan race .the daily lessbns*l)f Ja divine teacher .and guide, if there is no purpose, no inqreasing purpose in the succession of the'religions ot the world, then \fe. might as well, shut up the godless book of history altogether, and look upon.mea.as po belter than the grass which to-day is;ln.the field and to T morrow ia cast into the Wen.—Max Miiller.