THE BLUE SKY 



63 



The faith is strange with us now, and yet how 

 well founded it was in natural religion. In- 

 stinctively all races of men, whether savage 

 or civilized, lift the hands and raise the eyes 

 toward the heavens as though heyond the blue 

 dome rested the seat of final justice, and its 

 shining light was a manifestation of Supreme 

 Power. The spiritual in man has always looked 

 upward and counted the future ahiding-place 

 as somewhere beyond that sky ; but the light 

 wherewith God "covereth himself as with a 

 garment " is no longer regarded as a token and 

 a message a call to thanksgiving and to prayer. 

 The muezzin's voice, the angelus bell some 

 human ritual now bends the knee where once 

 the white dawn drew all eyes as to the open 

 gate of paradise. In the long centuries of his- 

 tory how many prophets and peoples have gone 

 their way to the grave following symbols of 

 their own making devices that have turned 

 to dust and mingled with human clay ! How 

 many times has the old order changed ! How 

 many times have new faiths, new symbols, new 

 signs arisen ! Yet the light in the east has 

 never changed, never lost its lustre. Its glory 

 was from the beginning as it shall be to the 

 ending. Modern science may write it down as 



In ancient 

 religion. 



The dawn 

 as a symbol 



