LECTURES AND ESS A YS 



theological minds. Is it that, while the 

 pleasure of the scientific man culminates 

 in the demonstrated harmony between 

 theory and fact, the highest pleasure of 

 the religious man has been already tasted 

 in the very act of praying prior to verifi- 

 cation, any further effort in this direction 

 being a mere disturbance of his peace ? 

 Or is it that we have before us a residue 

 of that mysticism of the Middle Ages, 

 so admirably described by Whewell 

 that "practice of referring things and 

 events, not to clear and distinct notions, 

 not to general rules capable of direct 

 verification, but to notions vague, distant, 

 and vast, which we cannot bring into 

 contact with facts, as when we connect 

 natural events with moral and historic 

 causes"? "Thus," he continues, "the 

 character of mysticism is that it refers 

 particulars not to generalisations homo- 

 geneous and immediate, but to such as 

 are heterogeneous and remote ; to which 

 we must add, that the process of this 

 reference is not a calm act of the intellect, 

 but is accompanied with a glow of enthu- 

 siastic feeling." 



Every feature here depicted, and some 

 more questionable ones, have shown 

 themselves of late ; most conspicuously, 

 I regret to say, in the "leaders" of a 

 weekly journal of considerable influence, 

 and one, on many grounds, entitled 

 to the respect of thoughtful men. In 

 the correspondence, however, published 

 by the same journal, are to be found two 

 or three letters well calculated to correct 

 the temporary Mightiness of the journal 

 itself. 



It is not my habit of mind to think 

 otherwise than solemnly of the feeling 

 which prompts prayer. It is a power 



which I should like to see guided, not 

 extinguished devoted to practicable 

 objects instead of wasted upon air. In 

 some form or other, not yet evident, it 

 may, as alleged, be necessary to man's 

 highest culture. Certain it is that, 

 while I rank many persons who resort 

 to prayer low in the scale of being 

 natural foolishness, bigotry, and intoler- 

 ance being in their case intensified by 

 the notion that they have access to the 

 ear of God I regard others who employ 

 .it as forming part of the very cream of 

 the earth. The faith that adds to the 

 folly and ferocity of the one is turned to 

 enduring sweetness, holiness, abounding 

 charity, and self-sacrifice by the other. 

 Religion, in fact, varies with the nature 

 upon which it falls. Often unreasonable, 

 if not contemptible, prayer, in its purer 

 forms, hints at disciplines which few of 

 us can neglect without moral loss. But 

 no good can come of giving it a delusive 

 value, by claiming for it a power in 

 physical nature. It may strengthen the 

 heart to meet life's losses, and thus 

 indirectly promote physical well-being, 

 as the digging of ^Esop's orchard brought 

 a treasure of fertility greater than the 

 golden treasure sought. Such indirect 

 issues we all admit ; but it would be 

 simply dishonest to affirm that it is such 

 issues that are always in view. Here, 

 for the present, I must end. I ask no 

 space to reply to those railers who make 

 such free use of the terms " insolence," 

 "outrage," "profanity, "and " blasphemy." 

 They obviously lack the sobriety of mind 

 necessary to give accuracy to their state- 

 ments, or to render their charges worthy 

 of serious refutation. 



