New-York daily tribune., 1849-06-13
Christian Faith Mr Thoresu-~e must presume

I
.oberiy-says
In nv Pantheon. Pan .rl rei-ns IN bis pri.une 20
~ win his rud4v face. his flowing beard and Li.
.hs--y BODY his pipe and his crooA, A. rympn kcho
and Id. ch1s.n daughter lano ior the great god Pan
i not dead ~ ruulored Perhaps OF al tfe gods
of Nm Tnelsri ard 0f ancient Grsece most con
w.. u-rnsrasie addition to the OLD mythology j.
due o. his sra-tl@ Christian fable With Wha; pains
and f..-. and blood fhesc centuries have woven this
sli added t % The myth lio-y 90 mankind The new
Pr0refrer- WIKI Vlat miraculous consent md ps
fercc and p.r-istency has this myhg- been stamped
upon the memory Oi toe race T. would seem a % b.
gero In the progress of oHr mythology t0 iethrone
Iehavah and cr0wn Chri-t in his stead.
10 10 d. not trs-lcai lie w. i'e i1en know not
uhaf fo cab T. such story a. that 81 jesus Chr..t
he tory ~ Jerusalem s1y. being part of tlc u
vcr.al History The naked, the emha.med. incurred
desfn u jerusalem fr-!t - deso.ate hs-trt-S % d.
Ia Ta-s0. foeIn trust some thing are swectly hurci
Consider me -nspq-h ifrscity T'h which hy preach
Christianity s-L W hat are time and space % Chris
ranitv eighteen hundred ycars, and new world '-
that the humble lfc of Jewish peasant should have
force 70 make a Ner-NorS bishop hgp'ed. Forty
tour lamps the IN Of kings. now burning IN ace
called he Holy -sru.chre "A church bell ringing -
some unaffected ifars shed - pilgrim On Mount
Calvary within the week.
Jerusalem Jerusalem. when forget thee may my
right hand forget her cunning.
By the waters of Babylon there We sat down and
W. wcpt when remembered Zion
d" trust that some may be- IS near and dear 20
Ruddha. Christ Ncfeub0r-. who are without The
pale % 'nFlr Cnurcif- II rNf 70 o. Nfl-
tan % appreciate the beauty and sigucano Of the te
Of Christ know that some will have hard thoughts
~ me when they hear their Christ named beside my
BudIha vet I am sure that ] willing they should
love their Christ than my Buddha for the love u
the main thing. and Ike him too. Why need Chris
ta ans be .ull int0lersnt and superstitious
The reading which love best Is the Scriptures Of
the seyersi nations though happens that am better
acquainted with those OF the Hnioos the Chinese and
the Persians than Of the Hebrews which have come
20 last Give me one Of these Bibles, and you have
silenced me for while
We have quoted fair proportion OF our authors
smartest Pantheistic sentences, but there is sno
ther in which he directly asserts that he con
siders the Sacred Books Of the Brahmins in no.
thing inferior TO the Christian Bible. Ii was
hardly necessary to say IN addition that he is not
well acquainted with the ,tter-the point worth
considering is rathcr-ongh nat an author 10
make himself thoroughly acquainted with book
which, if true. is Of such trsnscenient importance
before uttering opinions concerning il calculated
70 shock and pain many readers, not to speak OF
those who will be utterly repelled by them Can
that which Milton and Newton so profoundly
revererced lsnd they had studied il thoroughly
be v isely turned off by youth as unworthy OF
even confederation Mr.. Thoreau's treatment of
this subject seems revolving alike to good sense
aHi good taste. We ask him 20 weish all he has
offered with regard to the merits of the Christian
as compared with other Scriptures against the fol
loving brief extract from the last Edinburgh Re
view
The Bible supposing /; other than prc,ends 20 be,
presents with singular phcnomcnon m the space
which occupies throughout the continued history Of
literature. We nothing Ike Il, and 10 may We'll
pcrpeN the iuhdc 10 account iorit Nor need his "a
gacify disdain 90 enter little more deeply into IL
possible than h. cis usually inclined 90 10. 10 has
not been given 70 any 0flT book OF religion thus 20
triumph national prejudces. and lodge Itself -
curely in the heart Of great communiues,-varyi by
every conce able diversity Ot language. manners
customs and indeed agreeing in nothing hut yenera
ton tor itscf IL adopts itself with facility 10 the rcvo
utuns OF thought and feeling which shake 90 pieces
a things else snd heNihly accommodates itself 10 the
progress OF society and the change of CIVILIZATION
Even couquests-the dis0rganI1aton OF old nations
the formation Of new-do not affect the continuity of
IT, empire II lays hold Of the oi the old. and
trsnsm CRATES with the spirit OF humanity attracting
TO ITSELF hF rs own moral power, ia az ine 'oilhuHi
tics u enters. cea-ccss intensity oi effort tor Ns
propagation. Illustration. and defense Other y-tem-
of religion are usually delicate cNoucs end viii not
bear iransplaning The gods of the nations local
deiies. srd reluctantly quit their native soil at a..
events they patrOnize only their tVOute races, aud
perish az when the tribe or nation Of their wor
shippers becomes extinct often long before Nothing.
indeed i more difficult than to make foreigners feel
anything but the utmost indifference except ~ an Oh
Of philO.ophic curiosity about the religion OF
other nations. and no portion OF fnfiT natonA Attfh
ture u regarded a. more tedious or unattfactFe th
that which treats Of ihcr theology The elcgsnt my
thoogies Of Greece and Rome made no proseytes
among other nations, and fell hopeessy the moment
'iey fell The Koran of Mahome has. % it true been
propagated by the sword but n has been propagaied
by nothing else and its dominion has been limited 70
those nations who could reply 20 that logic II the
Bible be- fsse the facility with which II overeaps thc
otherwise impassabe boundaries OF race and chime,
and dOmiciates itself among many different nations.
a-surcdly far more striking and wonderful proof oi
human ignorance. perersencss and stupidity, than j.
Afforded IN the limited prevalence of even the moss
abect supersiitons or u 10 really has merits when,
H0psh fable have enabled II - impose 30 compre.
heusvey and yauousy on mankind, wonderful indeed
must have been the xii IA - composition go wonder
il that the Infde himself ought never 20 regard
10 but with the pr0foundsst reverence far too sue
ccssfu and sublime fabrication ~ admit thought OF
scOr rdIcUe. IN his lsst illness, few days before
his death W scott asked Mr.. Lockhart 70 read 10
him Mr. Lockhari inquired what book he would like
Can you ask'' said sir Waller there Is but ONE
and requested him 20 read chapter oi the gospel oi
| John. When viii an 6qEdi genius 70 whom aN the
realms Of hctiOn familiar A. 10 him, say the like
OF some prOessei revelation or ryinaing among race
and associated with history and cline as foreign az
those connected with the birthplace OF the Bible from
those Of the ancestry OF -ir Walter scott Can we oy
any stretch 81 Imagination, suppose some waiter
scott OF A new race in Australia south Africa say
| ing the Of the Vedas the Koran -
Albeit We love not theologic controversy, We
profier our columns TO Mr.. Thoresu, should he see
fit to answer these questions. We would have
preferred 10 pass the theme in silence, but our ad-
miraton OF his book and our apprehension OF It's
Pantheism forbade that course. May we not hope
that be will reconsider bis too rashly expressed
notions on this head