The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1892-02-12
GREAT AMERICAN PAGAN.
lngersoll Restates His Position on
the Religious Questions or
the Day.
"All Religions Are Simply Codes
Of Morals Plus Somethings
Else"

Of Morals Plus Something,
ssFrsedom OF Religion Means Destination
OF ENTHUSIASTICALLY IL = Sufficient
@ Guide, He Thinks.
New YonK, Feb. ll-Col. Robert q. In
interview in which he outlined his position
in religious matters more definitely than he
has heretofore done. It will be widely read
on that account, not only by thoss who are
in accord with him. but by those who diff
fer with him on every point, and by those
who IRE to some extent neutral.
What il your idea as to the difference
between honest belief, as held by honest re-
ligious thinkers and heterodoxy?" asked
the reporter.
''Of course, I believe that there are thou
sands OF men and women b honestly be-
lisve, not only in the improbable, not only
in the absurd, but in the impossible. Hets
srod0xy, 10 called, occupies the halfway
station between superstition and reason. A
hereto is one who is still dominated by re-
legion, but in the east of whose mind there ia
q dawn. He is one who bns seen the morning
star. He has not entire confidence in the
day, and imagines in some way that even
the light he sees was born Of the night. In
the mind Of the hereto darkness and light
are mingled. The ties of intellectual kin
bred bind him to the night. and yet he has
enough of the spirit Of adventure to look
toward the east. or course / admit that
Christians and heretics are both honest.
A real Christian must be honest and q real
hereto must be the same, All men must
be honest in what they think; but all men
are not honest in what they say. In the in
visible world of the mind. every man is
honest. TIL Judgment never was bribed.
Speech may be false. but conviction il al
ways honest. 80 hat the difference be-
tween honest belief, as shared by honest
religious thinkers and heretios, isa differ
once Of intelligence. 1t. is the difference
between q ship dashed to the dock and one
making q voyage; it is the difference be-
tween twilight and dawn-that is to say,
between the sominQ Of the night and the
coming Of the morning."
Are women becoming freed from the
bonds of e~ectarianism?"
women are less calculating than men.
As q rule they do not occupy the territory
81 compromise. They are natural ex-
tremists. The woman who ia not domi-
mated by superstition ia apt to be absolutely
shackles of superstition she has NO appre-
hension, no fears. She feels that she is on
the open sea and she cares neither for wine
nor wave. An emancipated woman never
can be Ie-enslaved. Her heart goes with
her opinions, and goes first"
do you consider that the influence of
religion is better than the influence Of lib
eralism upon society; that ia to say, ia
society less or more moral, ia vice more or
less conspicuouS"
"Whenever q chain is broken an obllga-
ton takes its place. There is, and there
The freer q man is. the more responsible,
the more accountable he feels. Conse-
uuontly, the more liberty there is, the more
morality there is. Believers il religion
teach us that God will reward men for
good actions, but men who are intellectu-
ally free know that the reward Of q good
action cannot be given by any power, but
that it is the natural result of the good ac-
ton. The free man, guided by intelligence.
knows that his reward is in the nature Of
things and not in the caprice even of the
infinite. He is not a good and faithful
66rVnnG. I10 IL uu 1uto1Alp6ub ludu. Lie
vicious arc ignorant. Real morality is the
child Of intelligence. The free and intelli-
gent man knows that every action must be
Judged by its consequences. He knows
that if he does good he rears a good har-
vest; he knows thnt if he does evil he bears
q burden, and he knows that these good
and evil consequences are no determined
by any infinite master, but that they live
in and are produced by the action them
Selves" #E.- MI @.r
Can you SEQ q tendency toward denomi-
national consolidation through the devel-
opment Of liberal thought"
II cannot. Wherever religions are free,
and when all kinds of faith have immuni
ties, the tendency is to destroy snpersti-
ton. All religions had liberty in Rome.
Each man had the right to worship his own
god. to fall upon his knees before his own
ideal. These gods. being brought together,
were found by actual experience to be
destruction of religion. In Rome, after
people we're allowed to worship their own
gods, all gods fell into disrepute. 1t will
be SO in America. Here is freedom Of reli-
gion, and all devotees find that the gods Of
other devotees are just as good rs theirs.
others are answered precisely as their
prayers are answered. The Protestant God
is not better than the Catholic, and the
Catholic is no better than the Mormon,
and the Mormon IS no better tlan nature
for answering prayers. In other words, all
prayers die in the air, which they uBelessly
agitate. There is undoubtedly q tendency
among the protestant denominations to
unite. In q few years, If nll should unite,
they would hardly have power enough to
obstruct, for any considerable time, the
march of the intellectual host destined to
conquer the world. But let us all be good
natured-let US give to others all the rights
that we claim for ourselves. The future. l
believe, has both hands full of blessings
for the human race"
Col. Ingersoll also replied In detail to the
various clorgymen who attacked his "Christ-
mas sermon.' This reply filled seven col
umns in the Evening Telegram.
the paper for which it was written. Dis
cussing DR.. De Costa's attack, Col. Iuger-
soil says: 1.-THE Rev. DIR. De Costa, draw
ing a distinction between Christianity and
'churchanity,' claiming, Of course, to be
governed himself by Christianity, calls me,
in an exceedingly argumentative way, "a
tiger,' and then to clinch the argument,
suggests that after all, I may be an ass I'm
der a tigers skim Fearing TINT u loop
hole might still be left, he asserts that
some 20 80 far us to assert that he (msan-
ing me) holds r brief for Satan. and ia do
ing the best he can for his CLIENT He
makes the familiar assertion that by it's
fruits We may know Christianity Now,
if by Christianity he means kind
ness, candor, the spirit of investigation, OBJ
servation, reRson-in other words, if he
calls them 'Christianity'-then there need
be no dispute. But is this true? Every re-