good and evil. Theories of their relation to man are at tinier 
met with; and expectations of judgment to come are often 
connected with them. A doctrine also of man’s ultimate pei- 
sonal annihilation in a remote future is (somewhat inconsist- 
ently perhaps), prevalent in certain civilizations, and, still 
more, a belief in transmigration of souls, which is apparently 
regarded by our writers with more favour. — (p. 23). 
6. As to some “ Unseen Universe,” there thus has been 
almost a consensus of belief. People who had been 
as to C 'a” doubtful of their own attainment of life hereafter, 
seen universe. stm liad held that there were “ immortals,” who 
even might communicate with earth. 
In fact, this particular expectation of some Divine communi- 
cation from the Unseen ivas very keen, and widely spread among 
civilized nations at the time of the birth of Christ (p. 24). At 
this point, then, our authors leave the pre-Christian ages ; and 
they pursue their subject into Christian times, in the following 
way : — 
The coming and the teaching of the great Christian Master 
marks an epoch in the history of belief in a Future Life. His 
followers connected His alleged Resurrection from the dead 
with man’s rising hereafter to a bodily future of a much more 
definite kind than had hitherto been professed by any philo- 
sophy. Yet the future “ bodiliness ” which was thus taught did 
The Chris- not altogether reproduce that which we recognize in 
aT n to ach th! the present life. It was termed a “ spiritual bodili- 
FutureLife. ness,* and was not unlike that which was attributed 
by the Jews <f to angels.” Christ’s descriptions of it t meant 
to be such, no doubt, as the national and local traditions would 
assimilate. Heaven, or the immediate “ paradise” of souls at 
least, was “ Abraham’s bosom ” ; and “ Hades was a, place 
of torment (Bmravoe) for some, and “ repose” {irapaKXrimg) 
for others. Gehenna was so called, as if a “ valley of llinnom, 
— the place outside Jerusalem for putrefaction and fires, with 
rites of lamentation. § 
7. No doubt the value of this teaching would depend on the 
person and authority of the teacher ; and here new inquiries 
arise, since a great difference of opinion prevailed, even among 
Christ’s own followers, as to His Person and His exact position. 
(This our authors slightly describe, p. 28.) Apparently during 
His life, His own relation to the Universe and its laws, so 
far as commonly known at this time, was similar to ours: 
* 1 Oor. xv. 44. t St. Mark xii. 25. £ St. Luke xvi. ad fin. 
§ St. Matt. v. 29 : viii. 1 2. 
