EDITOR'S TABLE. 



267 



honest teaching of social principles by 

 the method of science. The object of 

 the students was to gain true ideas of 

 the nature and organization of human 

 society. Nothing, surely, could be more 

 pertinent, or necessary, than for them 

 to be put upon their guard against 

 sources of error in considering the sub- 

 ject. If there is a bias from theologi- 

 cal influences that is calculated to viti- 

 ate or pervert the judgment upon social 

 questions, what could be more impor- 

 tant than that it should be pointed out ? 

 In dealing with society from a scien- 

 tific point of view, Mr. Spencer had 

 to consider it in its widest relations, 

 or as manifested in varying grades, by 

 all races of men upon the earth. In 

 all forms of society religious systems 

 play a leading part, but these systems 

 are diverse and numberless. Mr. Spen- 

 cer, therefore, drew his illustrations of 

 the distorting influence of theological 

 beliefs upon views of society from differ- 

 ent quarters. Mohammedans and Fee- 

 jeeans, Catholic and Protestant Chris- 

 tians, are cited to exemplify the com- 

 mon tendencies of theological doctrine 

 to obscure the mental vision and pre- 

 judice opinion. He shows, moreover, 

 with equal force, how the anti-theologi- 

 cal bias may produce, and has produced, 

 the same perverting effects. 



The difference in the points of view 

 of the theologian and the scientist 

 comes out here sharply. Science in- 

 quires into the laws of phenomena ; so- 

 cial science into the laws of social phe- 

 nomena. As societies have developed, 

 religious systems have also grown up as 

 a part of the general phenomena of social 

 growth. Social science is concerned 

 with religion as a universal fact of hu- 

 man nature, which gives rise to uni- 

 versal social effects it deals, in short, 

 with the natural laws of universal re- 

 ligious phenomena. "With these views 

 theology has no sympathy. It is scorn- 

 fully and passionately rejected by the 

 religious devotee. His position is that 

 there is one religion that is absolutely 



true, and that all other religions are ab- 

 solutely false, and any notion of treat- 

 ing them all alike is rejected with hor- 

 ror. And tbe one religion that is true, 

 being a supernatural system, is not to 

 be studied as a natural phenomenon, or 

 by the method of science. The devout 

 mind thus recoils at the very funda- 

 mental conception of social science, 

 which it regards as the offspring of in- 

 fidelity and atheism. 



To this source of prejudice Mr. Spen- 

 cer devoted a chapter in his book, and 

 how necessary it was is now abundant- 

 ly apparent. The religious press has 

 raised a storm of denunciation against 

 the sociologist and all his books, and 

 the professor, faculty, and college that 

 have had anything to do with them. 

 Eeligious prejudices are stimulated to 

 their utmost by the odium theologicum. 

 The " Study of Sociology " is cursed as 

 a book of atheism, and the school that 

 uses it is condemned as a propagator 

 of infidelity. That stanch exponent 

 of the spirit of orthodoxy, the u New 

 York Observer," makes up a sharp is- 

 sue between Christianity and social sci- 

 ence as follows : " The traditions of the 

 college (Yale) are all in favor of the 

 Christian religion, and the public may 

 be assured that the faculty and trustees 

 will never consent to have the atheism 

 of Spencer offered to the students. 

 They can find enough of that without 

 going to college to find books in which 

 Christianity is argued against and ridi- 

 culed. We are glad that President 

 Porter stands firm, and we may also 

 add that the resignation of any pro- 

 fessor who has sympathies with Her- 

 bert Spencer will be a great advantage 

 to the college." 



The " Christian Intelligencer " says : 

 "Herbert Spencer's 'Sociology' has 

 been introduced as a text-book. The 

 faculty are divided in regard to the use 

 of such a work. The President, it is 

 said, opposes the study of a book essen- 

 tially infidel. There should be no dif- 

 ference, no discussion among honest 



