14 
1. In a paper which I had the honour of reading before 
your Society two years ago, I examined the Relations between 
Scientific Thought and Religious Belief in one particular 
direction. It appeared to me, that in pursuing one of the 
primary objects of this Institute, — I mean, investigating scien- 
tific questions “ with the view of reconciling any apparent 
discrepancies between Christianity and Science/'’ — a preli- 
minary question ought never to be overlooked; viz., what 
ground there is for the fe popular notions as to the authority of 
scientific thought, and its right to control and dictate to the 
intellect.” For, in discussing these apparent discrepancies, 
whatever they may be, there is some danger, if not of our- 
selves supposing, yet of allowing others to suppose, that if we 
fail in discovering the true solutions, we have to choose 
between Faith and Reason, and balance, one against the other, 
the realities of a spiritual world, and those of the world of 
Nature which is no less truly God's. I therefore thought it 
necessary to point out, that the claim, too often tacitly implied, 
if not expressly asserted, that Science is a tribunal before 
which Religion is on its trial, whether it is or is not in accord- 
ance with Reason, is wholly untenable ; and that neither on 
the plea of being the teacher of necessary truth, nor on that of 
establishing any principle contradictory of the Divine Will in 
the Universe, is Science at all competent to interfere with 
Religious Belief. Since that time a work has appeared,* 
in which the author has investigated, with singular acuteness 
and power, those claims on the part of Science which I then 
challenged. Although his line of argument is different from 
mine, — for he has discussed fully and with much skill the philo- 
sophical aspects of the question, — and though on some points 
his reasoning seems to me not conclusive, yet the practical 
results of Mr. Balfour's argument so entirely coincide with 
those which I urged as essential to truth, that, as my subject 
to-day is cognate to that which I then discussed, I will first 
confirm the conclusions of that paper by a brief quotation 
from this work of an original and independent thinker. 
2. Having observed that many believers in Religion, how- 
ever widely they differ practically from unbelievers, yet agree 
with them “ in thinking that no more certain warrant for a 
creed can be found than the fact that Science supports it ; no 
more fatal objection to one than the fact that science contra- 
dicts it '' ; the result being “ that it seems to be assumed that 
* " A Defence of Philosophic Doubt : being an Essay on the Foundations 
of Belief." By Arthur Janies Balfour, M.A., M.P. London. 1879. 
