EVOLUTION AND THE HIGHER HUMAN LIFE 293 



of right living. Social customs are almost invariably 

 intertwined with religious views, among savages as well 

 as among the more advanced Mohammedans whose 

 rules relating to family organization form an integral 

 part of the whole cult. The emotional elements play a 

 large part in some cases, in the fanatical creeds of the 

 Dervish and Mahdist and in the "revivals" under nearer 

 observation. In Greek cosmology and worship, aesthet- 

 ics figured to a large degree. Temperamental and 

 other psychological characteristics have profound effects 

 upon religions, which we may illustrate by such extreme 

 examples as the austerities of New England and Scotch 

 Presbyterianism and the contrasted liberties of the 

 natural religions of tropical races. But all of these ac- 

 cessory elements belong to other well-defined depart- 

 ments, some of which have already been considered, 

 and among the materials of their proper divisions they 

 find their interpretation and historical explanation in 

 evolution. It is with the basic elements themselves 

 that we are now concerned. 



Only within recent years have systematic attempts 

 been made to classify religions on the basis of impersonal 

 objective study. Throughout all times men have in- 

 stinctively set up their own religion as the only true one, 

 besides which all others are designated simply as false — ■ 

 a very natural distinction, but one which is too naive for 

 science, as well as one that takes into account subjec- 

 tive or personal values which are not to be considered 

 in an objective comparison and analysis. The linguis- 

 tic basis was first employed by Miiller, with the result 

 that religions were placed in the category of evolution- 

 ary accompaniments of the other mental possessions 



