208 Darwinism and Other Essays. 



have come to an end, and the historical theory he 

 has learned to regard as antiquated and unsound, 

 and he therefore frankly declares himself an op- 

 ponent of Christianity, and stigmatizes as dishon- 

 est all description of the Christian religion as a 

 morality, or sentiment, or ethical impulse. With 

 the same frankness he expresses himself about 

 beliefs which " Christianism " has always held 

 dear, in language, and still more in a tone, calcu- 

 lated to exasperate the Christian world to the 

 last degree, so that a leading orthodox reviewer 

 has been led to recognize in him the " fool " de- 

 scribed by the Psalmist who has " said in his 

 heart that there is no God." This is, however, 

 inaccurate, for Mr. Stuart-Glennie is certainly no 

 atheist. It is the very purity and sensitiveness 

 of his theistic instinct that leads him, like Theo- 

 dore Parker, to condemn as degrading much that 

 still finds a place in popular theology. One 

 might, indeed, even plausibly question the pro- 

 priety of Mr. Stuart-Glennie classifying himself 

 as an anti-Christian, were it not that he is so ex- 

 plicit in defining what he rejects as Christianity. 

 But, in truth, such questions of nomenclature are 

 idle, for " Christian " is a word of such wide and 

 vague connotations that, however well adapted 

 At may be for various religious uses, it possesses 



