Priests are fond of telling us that conscience is "the voice of God within us." To some men it appears strange that the voice of the same God should frequently induce men to oppose each other with such particular bitterness. This objection is sometimes met by the explanation that although it is the voice of God speaking through the medium of our souls, we fail to recognize or interpret rightly its significance. This explanation, again, is not altogether satisfactory, since, if that were the case, the voice of God must be so uncertain a guide it were better not to rely on it. When we look back through the pages of History and consider the actions of men and the motives to which they ascribe them, and see what an orgy of blood, of persecutions, of burnings, of torturings, of blind passions and religious frenzy, of diabolical imaginings and monstrous eschatology has been conceived at the instigation of conscience and religion, and prescribed in the name of God, we are inclined to inquire more deeply into the meaning and credentials of this watchword of all ages. FOOTNOTES: [4] "Hypocrites, who from interested motives profess opinions which they do not really believe, are probably rarer than is usually supposed."--"Rise and Influence of Rationalism in Europe." [5] A few years ago the Animal Defence and Anti-Vivisection Society distributed pamphlets from their headquarters in Piccadilly, beginning "Do not ask of your doctor his opinion on this matter, ask your _conscience_," etc. [6] This distinction is commonly made between conscience and the intellectual faculty of reason; thus, when a man says, "My conscience tells me," he usually means, "No _reason_ will deter me." [7] Mormon leader and preacher, died in 1877, leaving seventeen wives. [8] The establishment of _bona fide_ membership of either of the above-mentioned religious societies (_inter alia_) by a "conscientious objector" was recognized by Military Service Tribunals (acting under official instructions) as sufficient cause for a verdict of exemption. [9] "Rationalism in Europe," 1913 edition, p. 167. [10] "Conscience, its Origin and Authority" (1915). [11] "Conscience, its Origin and Authority," p. 150. [12] "Orthodoxy," p. 137, quoted by G. L. Richardson. II THE VALIDITY OF MORAL JUDGMENTS