THE UNIVERSAL AND ABSOLUTE RELIGION 387 



regard for intellectual supremacy." Romanes then clearly saw 

 the principle we have above enunciated, that faith in the Christian 

 sense is essentially a right attitude of personality to the light one 

 has, from whatever source derived. It could not be otherwise 

 than that those who close so many avenues of the soul in the 

 interest of " speculative supremacy " should thus blindly miss 

 the way to God. It is such blindness of heart that our Lord had 

 in mind when he said: " I thank thee, O Father . . . because thou 

 hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed 

 them unto babes." The essential difference in habit of mind 

 between a child and a mere creature of intellectual prudence is 

 this, that a child allows its whole composite being to act and the 

 philosopher does not. 



Now, Christianity risks everything as to its acceptance or rejec- 

 tion with him who will put its proposals to the experimental test. 

 The method of Christianity corresponds to the laboratory method 

 of modern science; it puts the inquirer into the laboratory, and 

 it says, " There are the chemicals, the test tubes, the crucibles, 

 the dynamos, etc.; now by personal, executive acts, enter into 

 relations with the author of these; use them and get your experi- 

 enced results. Those results you will find to correspond with the 

 really true and worthy dogmatic theorems of your text-books; and 

 wherein they do not, you must revise your text-books." Thus 

 Christianity shines in its own light; the attempt to illuminate it 

 by an external artifice is like holding a candle before the sun; 

 it casts a shadow. 



Christianity as thus relying upon its self-evidencing power is 

 adapted to appeal instantly and everywhere, in all conditions, to 

 all types of earnest life, without fear of any rival. Its practical 

 difficulty, indeed, is to get human nature into a state of such 

 teachableness as will really test it. When, however, the test is 

 applied, the divine attestation is always forthcoming, and the way 

 is prepared for Christianity's acceptance. 



IV 



But again, Christianity is adapted to become universal in its 

 prevalence, because it reveals a doctrine of Providence as able to 

 tranquilize and bless human life, irrespective of outward or mate- 

 rial conditions. This doctrine is posited on the assumption that 

 the soul has but one final and absolute need, and that is God. 

 By the Providence of God we mean the assurance, so emphatically 

 given in the Scriptures, that all the circumstances and events of 

 life, as subservient to the grace of God, are working together for 

 good to the soul that is filial, that is trustful and submissive, 



