OP THE SPIRIT. 273 



institutions. Whereas the second view dealt mainly 

 with the phenomena of individual and subjective be- 

 lief, this new view deals with religions as objective 

 phenomena in the life of civilised as well as savage 

 nations and in the progress of culture ; it deals with the 

 spiritual life of humanity on a large scale. In this 

 country these studies, since the time of Max Miiller, 

 have been known as Science of Eeligion. 



These historical studies have been conducted from many 

 sides and by adherents of very different and opposite 

 schools of thought. All schools agree in maintaining 

 that historical facts in great number and on a large scale 

 must first be collected and correctly established, before 

 any valuable inferences can be drawn. But in spite 

 of proclaiming this purely inductive position, they have, 

 without exception, had to start with certain preconcep- 

 tions gained by theory or imported from other fields of 

 research. Philosophical criticism has latterly been much 

 occupied in showing both that such preconceptions have 

 here as elsewhere existed, and what they have been. This 

 produced a tendency to admit frankly that some prin- 

 ciples and general points of view are required, and should 

 be clearly stated and not tacitly or surreptitiously in- 

 troduced. Thus has been brought about a reversion 

 from the so-called historical method to logical, metaphys- 

 ical, and psychological positions, with the desire to gain 

 from them some basis or some well-defined lines on which 

 the enormous accumulation of historical facts and details 

 can be arranged and their significance estimated. 



This tendency has gone hand in hand with other in- 

 fluences, and has led back to a study of the position 



VOL. iv. s 



