The Christian Foundation, Or, Scientific and Religious Journal, March, 1880Various
Religion
The Christian Foundation, Or, Scientific and Religious Journal, March, 1880
Various
Religion and science -- Periodicals
When such a state of society is brought about in this country the infidels
will have more _hell_ than they will relish. Listen once more, “Man’s
right to be self-governed is, equally with his desire to be so,
_self-evident_.” How are these infidels going to have self-government and
intolerance by law in matters of religion and state? This Godless infidel
says, “But what is most insultingly _termed_ ‘elective franchise’ is the
farthest thing possible from self-government.... The _popular_ free
discussion of affairs of the last degree of complication, religious and
state affairs, except during the _crisis_ period of revolution, only
renders that worst of despotisms, anarchy, chronic; it seats in the social
organism that political gangrene, demagogism, which has always hitherto
sooner or later required the cauterization of military despotism in order
to save even civilization. Despotism is the most inveterate of all the
diseases of the social organism which ignorance has inflicted; nay, it is
a complication of all its diseases. What, my fellow-man, would any of you
think of the physician who should consult with an individual organism with
a view to taking that organism’s opinion as to what course he (the
physician) had best pursue in order to cure him (the organism) of
scrofula, complicated with every other bodily disease to which flesh is
heir?... Evidently, church and state management require art and skill
infinitely superior to what ‘supernaturalism’ and its legitimate child
monarchism, or its bastard issue, caucus-and-ballot-boxism, are capable
of. From the dissecting-room, the chemical laboratory, the astronomical
observatory, the physician’s and physiologist’s study—in fine, from all
the schools of science and arts should human law be _declared_, instead of
being ‘enacted’ in legislative halls by those who in every respect besides
political trickery, fraud and ‘smartness,’ are perfect ignoramuses.” How
is all this to be reconciled with the ideas of self-government set forth
by this author and copied in this article? Who are to be the doctors, and
who are to be the patients? When _popular_ discussion is confined to art
and science, only as it may be used in order to keep it out of religious
and state affairs, who are to be the _popular_ free disputants? When
legislative halls are done away, along with their _progenitors_, elective
franchise and representation, and law emanates from all the schools of
science and art by “declaration,” will men be more ready to obey?
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account