, 1870-05-08
THE GROTEsQuE IN RELIGION,

The GRVTESAuE LIN KEL1dluH-
Foeu. thx London Spectator.
The Pan Mau has published at length
possibility OF judF ing the wsEs Of >PEo77denca
by the external moral arandazd3 Of Naen, whach
in the form in which Parne1 had verified it,
has been referred to BY Dr. Newman in hls re-
cent book. The PAD Hat has traced the oHg-
inat story frat to ths phi!oaaphisA dis3ognsa
Of the seventeenth century, and then to "the
Ges.d Ronsdnorpns, which owes it to Orientaa
sources. A hermit, who had had great dlftt~
culties in ac9uiescipg IN the myste11ous Wa5a
Of Providence, and h1a often been dlstushed
by the doubts which thcae dihculhea hrou8hs
home to him, joins On = journey with a young
naan with whose conversation he is very much
taken. INIT who robs theit first hospitaMa auter~
tniner Of golden cup, gives the cup to the
nexl uhospstahIe entart incl. secretly straug1es
child Of their next generous host, and plscnea
their guido into tho stsear97 wheseapon taa
hermit ut 1astcan bear it no longer, denounesE
his companion's Nickedness, and ls about %
eeparate from him, when tho youth Eaveals
hi1nseK AZ m angel in disguise appointed by
God to do all these acts. The cup was an
enchanted cup which tempted the good best 70
e1cess, and its loss Was to him blessing,
vhile its gain WAS ret1louhon On tho oad
host. The destruction Of the child was neces-
sa,y to prevent the parent heazt from gettnE
f1ed On this world, and the violent death q q.
tho guide was an intetpcAition to prevent 3
murder already plotted BY that gslide.
That which, When 1t seemed to be done
By man, from human motives, bad seemed
thoroughly immoral, became . vindicatiol Of
morality when it Was seen to have been done
BY the command and for the purposes OF God
Grotesqne as this parable in some respect is
esEecia{iy Rbera the angel catches sha Euid0
between the legs and pitches him into the river
1t is not nearly 80 groteeQus rs many Of those
OF which the Legendary lors Of the middle ages
Is made up, and which are still popular IN the
Catholic parts Of Germany, in Spain, and Izc-
land. The Mouth for April haaune c1tTn very
good illustrations from Spaniah md Eish re-
Ggious legends, aud the Brothers Grimm have
collected IN their German popular stories many
that are rich in the most familiar humor, from
which the ordinary Protestant genins wonld re-
coil in horror, widely spread amongst tho
psrsartry Of Germany-stones which combine
the strangest freaks OF religious fancy With
genuinely religious ideaa-
To take an Irish nus6atiun,-ins legend re-
gend related by the Month, our Lord, walking
with ST. Peter, asks Tor admittance into peas
aut's hut for the night, whan they are most
hospitality reeeived- When leaving, the next
morning, St. Peter, with that forWa1tneas of
initiative ot which the Gospels give 70 many an
! peaeaut'a hospitality ~ think not. It is
for you" eays st. Payter,'f-tha story is sup
| posed to be told BY an 1ush peasans,-s' you
must do something for him, ,"-an admirable
dramatic toueh, showing how well the char
| thoroughly It has been realized by the common
people. Whesupon cur Lord gives way, and
tells his entertainer to look in certain pface,
| where he viii ind / piece Of money The next
year our Lord and St Peter return BY tho same
| spot, and find grand castle in the place Of
l AEah hr+ etr a nnf,ffa 1nJf1irtT fn14-
| ing that they are the same travellers Who re-
! ceiyed it year ago, bat tbs powdered foot
! man comes back with q sh.rp refusal, saying
the place is no hotel, and slams The door IN
their face-Whereupon, after brief sllenee1
usays our Lord to ST. PaEter, totid you
elements Of humor IN this story are very con-
epicuoua. The dictatonal urgencJof St. Peters
iu,pp1slreuess. and the chld-hka triumph OK
the retort with which the 41oetsiua MISTER tn
presses his superior wisdom On the bluns@s--
ing apostIe, are curious enough instances Of
the co11oquiI familiarity with which religious
ideas are treated in popular Iegends Of this
more startling instances. For example. thera
Is story Of tsilor let into Heaven by tho
easy good-uatura Of St. Peter, who, while the
Lord and Ill His apge1s are goue out walking,
climbs on to the golden throne, whence G. he esa
waaherwo1nan in the very act OF stealing 3
veil entrusted to hcr to wash, whereupon, in
/ lis righteous indignation, be dings tho gplden
footstool at the wretched thief On the
Lord's return, He misses the golden
footstool, aud inteHogntes s.; Pstz
as to whon be has admitted when
| the tailor Is accused, and compelled to coofess'
/; what he hsd done-receiving the curiously
I quaint aud yet solemn reply, 40 thou rogaei
| we're to Judge as thou judgest, what would
have become of thee long before this? Long
before this sLould have hsdi no. seats.
bench. chairs, nay, not even any toasting-
I one Of them down st ainners- Hero shall n5
| one punieh, but I alone, tho Lord" Still
moro startling IN its apparent deliberate ten
derness fer devi1-may -carish good nature and
daring, Il the story Of Brother Lustg (Rsother
Merry" to translate lia namo into English)
friendship IN all sorts Of unscrupulous and
profane ways, and At length disgusts st. Peter
90 much that the apostle declines his further
company, bestowing upon him, however, 1t
thing fhat the owner wishes for is Immediately
conveyed. This tho apostle gives him profess
edlY to remove al motive for breaking the
commandments, rather ahortsighte11y how
ever, as the scareg1aca uses it to rob people
D. parpoaeas He most humo1ous hun o % use o SoTaVsr ns
which he makes Of the knapssek is to render
it subservient to bis sa1vation- He offers to
sleep in a honse haurted By nine devils, WHO
always torture and Kill anyone who ventures
to sleep there Brother Lnstig, qui+a undis-
mayed at their diabolic dance round him.
wishes them all into his hapsack, and then
takes it straight to q hlacksmith's, telling him.
TO hammer away 1t it With al his might, which
he does in srite Of the shriekB Of the iupris-
oned devils, and when be opens the hapsack
fold Of the knapeack acustlea away TO hell
Atlength as he eFows old, Brother Lushg
stsfe, and consnits q a1 hermit WI Who tsIla HTh
him there are two WAYS he can go,-ona
broad and pleasant % bel, anaone marrow and
Brother Lustig, g Il were to take Tie narrow
and rough road, 80 he goes straight OF to he'll
and ssks for admission. Luckily for him, how
ever, the little sentinel at the gate Is the very
devil which had escaped frum his kuapsacE-
= ag m Iasnes on to shs highest authority, aayiug,
I'll knapsacl, but ut 10 price let him in, OK
Else be VII xish the whole Of he'll into his
kn9psae&- He once gave ne the nsstieas pos-
1ble hsnomering in it." Thereupn Brother
Lusdg Is refused entrance into hell, f,whezeupon
he says very composediy that he has no ch0ice
whese or other" be remarks, :: / must stsy."
At the gate Of heaven he finds st. Peter, who
re1nses him sdmittance, whereupon the sIy
fellow, with IN air of hurt feeling,
inHtste On returning the kuapsack, for
hs will not keep present at all
tfum an acquaintance who ia 80 little inclined
to befHend him. St. Peter takes bsck the
knapsacb Brother Lustig wishes himself into
it, and 80 outu1annuv1es the saint, md takes
tho Kingdom Of Heaven, not indeed by force,
but BY craft, We could multiply these Illus
trations Of the Eeck1esa rse and abuse Of erp-
teeque humor in medinval religious legends
almost to my extent But these Illustrations
VIII be sufficient for our purpose, which il siru
ply to ask how far the habit Of familiar and
even grotesque Illustration Of religious
creeds has genuinely Anti-relieious
tendency, how far it msY be posaiblo
That P1otestants, in preferrinp 10 hnst the
whole rarge Of this subject with 40 sedu1ous
: leselse and ave, have lost power while gain
ns m9asy homan Catholics, We are all
aware, assert that it is the unrea1ty Of Pho
seeta1ttftn, its habit Of halt-ahutting its eyes
n order 70 give fictitious myateEy 10 religt-
Jus OBJECTS, its fear OF realizing tha tchos or
what u involved III any faith, its preference for
mere visionary studies to that realization OF
'ellg7ous objects which enables US to 'swa1k
oand tfem, AZ Dr. Newman SAYS, which alone
.anfe 1ta T. forzo1 Of this familiar and sometimes
humorous treatment Of the apostles and saints.
md not uuftBquantIy even Of cur LurJ hi,o-
e9, so common n Roman Catholic cauntrieA
md Roaan Catholic agea.
An Engfishnan IN BonloEne hotel, IN
t1shnE upon Hne poisnTte after bis soup. wa
loored Then tbs disrnayed domestic TUNED at
.sy, Would you mind speaking English. air z