TENDENCY OF THOUGHT. 387 



honest, and upright will be obliged to acknowledge that they 

 are no longer Christians. Neither is it in any sense true 

 that certain facts of science have rendered it impossible 

 that an honest, upright man can any longer accept the 

 fundamental doctrines of Christianity. 



How long it may continue possible to believe Chris- 

 tianity as well as the facts of Science, I shall not discuss 

 here. It is enough for me that up to this day, while 

 modern science has failed to fully explain phenomena 

 peculiar to the living world, and has infinite work before 

 her, she has not proved anything which tends in any 

 way to shake our faith in God, or to destroy our belief 

 that miracles have been performed. As for what is called 

 the " tendency of thought," this, I should think, has been 

 such as to cause many an honest, upright, scientific man to 

 regret that his work had to be prosecuted in times when 

 such thought tendency prevailed and was encouraged. The 

 tendencies exhibited by some great minds of our day are 

 certainly very strange, neither to be explained by any laws 

 yet discovered, nor to be accounted for by reason. What 

 would be the results of giving practical effect to popular 

 scientific tendencies it is perhaps better neither to enquire 

 nor think about. It is not very likely that thoughtful 

 Englishmen will immediately decide to desert the faith of 

 their fathers. They will not at once suspend the restoration 

 of their cathedrals, or pass a decree that no more churches 

 shall be built. They will hesitate before giving their assent 

 to a law which will prohibit little children being taught to 

 pray to their God. Philosophers may be half convinced by 

 new scientific evidence that in due time will be born philo- 

 sophers who will assuredly discover the means of improving, 



