RELIGION AND SCIENCE. 17 



not, and never can, fill the whole region of possible thought. 

 At the uttermost reach of discovery there arises, and must 

 ever arise, the question What lies beyond? As it is im- 

 possible to think of a limit to space so as to exclude the idea 

 of space lying outside that limit; so we cannot conceive of 

 any explanation profound enough to exclude the question 

 What is the explanation of that explanation? Regarding 

 Science as a gradually increasing sphere, we may say that 

 every addition to its surface does but bring it into a wider 

 contact with surrounding nescience. There must ever re- 

 main therefore two antithetical modes of mental action. 

 Throughout all future time, as now, the human mind may 

 occupy itself, not only with ascertained phenomena and 

 their relations, but also with that unascertained some- 

 thing which phenomena and their relations imply. Hence 

 if knowledge cannot monopolize consciousness if it 

 must always continue possible for the mind to dwell 

 upon that which transcends knowledge ; then there 

 can never cease to be a place for something of the 

 nature of Religion ; since Religion under all its forms 

 is distinguished from everything else in this, that its 

 subject matter is that which passes the sphere of ex- 

 perience. 



Thus, however untenable may be any or all the existing 

 religious creeds, however gross the absurdities associated 

 with them, however irrational the arguments set forth in 

 their defence, we must not ignore the verity which in all 

 likelihood lies hidden within them. The general probabil- 

 ity that widely-spread beliefs are not absolutely baseless, is 

 in this case enforced by further probability due to the omni- 

 presence of the beliefs. In the existence of a religious sen- 

 timent, whatever be its origin, we have a second evidence 

 of great significance. And as in that nescience which must 

 ever remain the antithesis to science, there is a sphere for 

 the exercise of this sentiment, we find a third general fact 

 of like implication. We may be sure therefore that re- 



