RELIGION.--We find in _Sophocles_ a much purer tone of moral and religious feeling than in _Homer_. Greek thought upon divine things is expanded and purified, (i) _Higher Conception of the Gods_. The gods are still conceived of as in bodily form. Their images abide in their temples. Take them away, and the god leaves his abode. The divinities need not be present, as in Homer, in order to exert their power. The monotheistic tendency is manifest. The "gods" are referred to as if a single agency were in the writer's mind. The regal sway of Zeus is emphasized. He is less subject to Fate. (2) _Divine Government_. The gods, especially _Zeus_, are the fountain of law. The righteousness of the divine government is especially evinced in the punishment of evil-doers. Transgressors generally, and not those of the worst class alone, as in Homer, are punished in _Hades_. Pride and insolence call down the vengeance of the gods. Unsleeping justice pursues the criminal. The theory of _Nemesis_, which pursues the prosperous, if they are proud, to their hurt and ruin, is held. (3) _Number of the Gods_. The number of divinities is multiplied as time advances. The worship of the heroes, children of the gods or goddesses, grows in importance. (4) _Revelation_. There was direct revelation, it was believed, by prophecy, uttered now in an ecstatic, and now in a tranquil, mood. _Oracles_ acquired a new and vast importance. (5) _Rites_. Visible objects of devotion were multiplied; religious ceremonies ramified in all directions; sacred processions, festivals, amusements involving religious observances, abounded. (6) _Morality_. Moral excellence centered in moderation and self-government, through which the individual keeps both his own nature as to its parts, and himself in relation to others, within due limits. This spirit includes temperance and justice. The stern spirit of law prevails: the requital of injuries is approved. Yet feelings of compassion find a beautiful expression. At Athens, there was public provision for orphans and for the help of the poor. (7) _Domestic Life: Patriotism_. The wife lived in retirement, and in submission to her husband. When he entertained friends at his table, she was absent; yet domestic affection was evidently strong. Every other duty merged in patriotism. The Greek placed a great gulf between himself and the "barbarian." He was conscious of higher intellectual gifts, superior culture, better customs. (8) _Sin. The Future Life_. There was a deeper sense of sin than in the Homeric era. There was a pathetic consciousness of the trouble and sorrow that beset human life. _Hades_ was regarded as a scene of trial and judgment, and of rewards as well as sufferings. The soul was not so closely identified with the body. Death was an object of gloomy anticipation. _Pericles_, in his funeral oration for the fallen patriots, is silent as to a future life. In the tragic poets, it is only the select few whose lot is blessed.