The sun., 1873-09-13
SOME NEW BOOKg.
Max Muiicr's Introduction TO the Science Of
RELIGION.


MULLER promugates ideas which, II they work
their way into the general thought of mankind
will have far-redching consequences.
Mr.. Muller dcpreoates the anmosity which
has so long ranked In the hearts Of Christians
against the various other religions OF the world.
lie thinks that In this respect we might learn
something from those whom we are so ready To-
teach and he quotes approvinglv from the De-
claration OF Principles by which the church
founded 10y Keshub Chunder Sen prOfesses to
be guided. After stating that no created object
shall ever he worshpped, nor any man or in
feriur being or material object he treated a.
identical with God, or like unto God, or as an
incarnation Of God, aud that no prayer or hymn
shall be said unto or Ia the name Of any one ek-
cept God, that remarkable declaration con-
tinues
"No created being or object that has been or
may hereafter be wOrshipped by any sect shall
be ridiculed or contemned In the course OF the
divine service to he conducted here.
No book shall be acknowledged or received
as tho infallihe word Of God yet no book
which has been or may hereafter hc acknowl-
edged by any sect to he infallbe shall bc rdi-
Culed or condemned.
No sect shall he vlli0cd, ridiculed or hated
Mr. Mailer supplements this doctrine 10y de-
cllriug that no one whp attends his lectures on
the Science of Religion, be he Christian or jew,
Hindu or Mohanmcdan, shall hear his own
"But," says Mr. Muller, "true reverence doe.
not consist in declaring subject bccau3e it H.
dear to US, T. be unat for free aul honest in
puiry; far FROM True reverence l. shown In
treating every subject, however sacred, how
ever dear To Us, with perfect confidence; with
out fear aud without favor; with tenderness and
love, 10y all means, but, before All, with an uu-
niuching and uucpmprOmi-in. loyalty to truth
NJ Mailer Il aware of the hostility which the
very tile Of the Science of Religion, and a COM
parson Of the religions e the world in which
none can cl1im privileged position. will iro-
yoke, because they will offend that peculiar
reverence which everybody, down to the mere
fetish worshiupcr, feels for h 3 own rciis.Y ~ and
for his own God. Hut the student of the Science
u Religion ignores all claims TO superiority on
the part Of any religion. Before him, all re
lieious como up f'rcKuminati1n ON their merits,
and stand on precisely the same footing. He
wants To- find out what rcli -ion Is, what foundt-
tOn 1t has in the soul of man, aud what laws 1t
follows IN its historical growth; and he begin,
his Inquiries uncmharraAsel by prejudice
against or partially for any system of religion
whatever. In fact Mr.. Muller puts the Science
Of Religion On the same footing aud no other,
that he puts the science OF language.
Does language. he asks. excite our admira-
tion less because We know that, though the faCul-
~ ufspeakiug Is o. . work Of Him who works ia AL
Things, the Invention ot words for nauiin. each
,byCncb ~. rLin, f h n,,,, "s
Hebrew less carefully studied because II Is no
dN, ON, h1,.,r ht tiii
To- Arabic SVriar. md ancient H,byi"nianS H.,
,rcr sre,L H. b-iit' 80 az, - - - ,.,, l.. H.
r IN h, t,,,,, II ', - So So i t,,,' 4, ~
true orgin and H. unndnrncd bIs,"rS h,,,,s.
they know that everything In language that
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plurc the fact that there Il In all languages
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ana wl.d m nay, something that makes the
N'IIu "Nlh'
Why, then, Mr.. Mailer inquiries. should we
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" " ''
mas produced such great results IN other Iherc-
OF knowledge, to a study ~ relgionf And then
"c N'"''lus'
ut viii lie easily rcrccved that religion
means AT least i've very different things. Mueu
We speak = the Jewish. or the Christian, or the
Hindu religion, We mean body Of doctrines
banded down 10y tradition, or In canouical
books Ri containing all that constitutes the
faith Of jew, Christian or Hindu. Using relg-
ION m that sense, we may say that a man has
changed MS Iellsl' n, that u, tuat lac has adopt
ed the Christian Instead II the BrAhmulical
body OF religious doctrlues, lust as man may
learn 10 speak English instead OF HlndustAni.
But religion is also us ~ "a different sense. As
there II "A faculty of speech independent Of all
the historical forms 6f ianguuLt. SO tIere is a
faculty = faith In man independent Of AL his
turicu religions. !! we say that 1t Is religion
which distinguishes man from the animal. We d,
We d. not mean any special religion, hut We
mean mental faculty that faculty which, in
dependent OF, nav, ia spite OF sense and reason,
enables man To appreheud the Infinite under
different names aud under varying disguises
without that faculty no religion, not even the
lowest worship OF idols aud fetshes. would he
possible; and II We will but listen attcntlNely
w w q IAN uyar i,i an rsu.l1ns sIHaillns ni t'e
to utter the unutterable. a longing after tile ir-
hniie, love 81 God. Whether the etynui"sy
49, ''D man hs tTue NS n, tI.v d'sr,vi ~ IL
from O. az, us9,.n, he who looks upward, GER
~ u 3 ~ 'ar , VIA HN,s nlan man ls tnat ne
that he alone yenrns for something that neither
sense nor reason can supply.
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ronJititns nf that third TsI,S IH n.y., II
n,te win sense and rsasnn thc f,,,i,ityr ~ ,,r
csiviny ths Inarite .,ni'h ~ -, ~ ,hr,, ~, - al
rrii,,i"ns Ana II nIii"snuhv - 20 ~ -,
whnf IL moi wh,t ot,,,ht to hs ,h,ro ,,,li ~ n' %
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uied tn,t thers j.. i'm n'nt N ttirJ f,'''it, ,,hih
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In a r.rt,,i sense rontr,iit,..d h,' - 80 a. - W
snn mi vct yerv rasi % oS SiI 1Vt'e & eu "a
its n,,n tIo,n The ~ I'LL nus ESlu
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n aI,no is nnIa ~ I,a 80 "" hV' ,o'i.c ~ -" my
~ "'-'iS "a "S'N ~ "'NAN"tAN bHtH ISds"A duu