Some Observations Upon the Civilization of the Western Barbarians, Particularly of the English: made during the residence of some years in those parts.Swazey, John B.
Philosophy
Some Observations Upon the Civilization of the Western Barbarians, Particularly of the English: made during the residence of some years in those parts.
Swazey, John B.
England -- Social life and customs
Nor is this madness, this fanatical fury, wholly expended. Education
has not yet raised these Western tribes into the enjoyment of a
rational worship--of a rational morality--of a life, calm, tolerant,
and beneficent. They have never attained the civilisation of our
Central Kingdom, and to the wisdom of our illuminated Confutse.
There is morality to be found among them, and a few worship, purely
and simply, the God of Heaven, and look with untroubled hearts upon
the senseless superstitions. The masses are, however, still held in
them; and the High Castes either hold to the prevailing idolatries,
or pretend to do so. This old Jewish Worship, with its _rites_ and
pretensions, fastened upon tribes by Priests and the Roman power,
is still dominant in the West. In England to-day it is the same
superstition, only the Queen is Pope, instead of the Man at Rome. For
this the English are _damned_, as worthy of Hell-fire, by Roman Pope
worshippers; and the English return the curse. A constant _Bugbear_
[Do-nki] to the English mind is, that the more powerful Roman Pope may
get into England again; then, what horrors! Nor does this frightful
_chimera_ alone alarm the lower people; the most learned Englishmen,
and their wisest, exert their minds in writing and in preaching against
this terrible thing.
To me this seemed strange--incredible. The English Barbarians are, in
general, sharp enough; they are learned in many things; they can see
the absurdity of Eastern superstitions; they denounce the Roman-Pope
worship as worthy of _hell_; but they worship a Queen-pope at home, and
the same Christ-Jah-god and "sacred writings" which the Romans worship.
They believe, as do the Roman-pope worshippers, that all who do not
worship the _sacred writings_ and the _Christ-Jah-god_, and accept of
the Priest-_Church_, will inevitably burn for ever in fires of Hell;
yet, because of the separation as to Pope worship, each regards the
other _sect_ with a hatred only appeased by sending each the other
to the dreadful Hell! How incredible that the human mind--the active
and skilled human mind--should alarm itself and others for fear of the
worship of a Pope--a man: and really think the condition of the human
soul would be hopelessly wretched--if it mistook the right object of
worship--the idol of Rome, or the idol of England! The intellect truly
employed would be directed to the overthrow of _the superstition_ and
its objects of idolatry altogether. The Roman or the English Pope--the
Roman or the English _sect_--what matter? Both alike indifferent and
worthless to an intelligent worshipper of the SUPREME LORD OF HEAVEN
(Hoang-chan-ti). His worship is elevating, supporting a clean morality,
tolerant, benevolent--a morality found wherever man is found; debased,
more or less, as man be debased, or as he may be sunken in vicious or
cruel superstitions.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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