Spiritual Evolution of Society 207 



It is difficult to conceive how men of such eminence 

 in their own sphere as Lankester and Elliot can limit 

 their range of vision to the narrow orbit of purely 

 mechanical laws as they affect matter and energy. 

 These constitute a very minute portion of " science," 

 and it is a pure travesty to expect intellectual men to 

 accept such a definition. In fact, as long as the 

 mechanists choose to talk of evolution, they are ad- 

 mitting something, at any rate biologically, beyond 

 their grasp, and therefore logically are bound to reckon 

 at the same time with the thoughts which move men 

 individually and in the mass, which alter the face of 

 history, and throw one back upon the argument of 

 Design on the part of an Omnipotent Eternal Power, 

 of Whom is energy, matter, life, evolution, thought, 

 spirit, truth, righteousness, and love. 



Consciousness is not unknown to science. It is 

 altering the trend of history to-day. The altruism of 

 Christian ethics is entirely a matter of consciousness, 

 and upon it the whole betterment of society depends, 

 and history proves that without it there can be no 

 permanence, for all civilisations based on the purely 

 material have declined and fallen ; they must of neces- 

 sity decay. Thus we see consciousness to be a 

 far greater power, scientifically considered, than 

 astronomy, geology, physics, chemistry, or mathe- 

 matics. These work by law, and the laws which regu- 

 late matter are necessary to the existence of man upon 

 the earth, but the happiness of men, their advance to 

 a higher order of thought and outlook, and the con- 

 summation of the spiritual evolution of the race, 

 depends upon consciousness alone. 



We have said nothing as to the evolution of the idea of 

 God among men, and there is not space, nor is it neces- 

 sary that we should deal with this fully here. We know 

 the idea of a Supreme Power has possessed the minds 



