New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1894-07-20

| vary end n, the world" Mr. Lilly remarks that
the parody is very neat 1t is neat because II mas
! an atmosphere Of truth. There Is no dihlcu'ty'
even for one who considers the defects OF 'h'
| Arabian character In taking for a moment INC
! position Of a man like Louder, VINO act"di''
/ n,ourned the overthrow OF the Moors in SPAIN
"How fourishing." he permits one OF MS i"'as
mary conversationalists 70 say. was Spain uh-
der the Saracens during great part OF the hh'ie"
mum, What pleasure and politeness. what cn'>>
airy and poetry. what arts and sciences. ID lie.
cities. What architecture within her walls an.
round about! What bridges, What fountains
What irrigation, Look at her now under her
Bourbons!
But neither In priority nor originality hoi "
numbers can Islam be deemed dangerous riVa'
~ Chrtstendom. The proof OF its vitality as
compared with Buddhism is that 1t Is sun
growing organism with efficient Observation-Disclosures
for propa eating its faith But II has failed MIN
erto where Christianity has succeeded that Is
among the highly civilized races Here Chils-
tianIty holds the place which 1t won ages ago
But Christianity is far from being um'eu' il"0
tcally the question has 10 significance Out d.
speculative publicst Mr. Lilly has the rgh' u
inquire which Of the numerous Christah sec'S
has the best right to survive. He dwells On INC
actual and vital union of Europe "i'hi" o"o
church during the Middle Ages. but comedies that
no such thing can be brought about IN the 4u-
ture As between the State religions ana 'he
poroo, Church he has little difficulty. after con-
ceding all that can be said about the corrrpuo"
- tho nanacv and its cruelty in the past. in
showing that Rome has vitality wh1Ch IFS -
walls lack But he simply ignores the phenomena
that are moS interesting 10 the outsider. the SUD
lavman in religion. That hierarchies should
Nd
tho modern air Of freedom for the individual was
- no exnected But the vast growth OF those
orqorisms which were known as independent III
the times Of English Pur!ianism seems to MN
matter unworthy of mention. All ne KNOWS
about the United States. apparently. Is that the
neople in this country are inclined TO ecceh'r'l-
ties of belief He passes In silence the rac' 'n"t
there are religious systems In this country anu
in other countries as strict In doctrine as 'd'"''-
cism itself in which the separate groups are COM
pIete self-governing units. II Bunseh was Ils"'
in his "Hippoytus" early Christianity had the
same local freedom. But the spread oi euucd'ioh
has made possible to millions what was only
the privilege Of the few in past ages, ana II mas
made clear to the multitude the limitations 81
tho creod that were once the professional mys-
terry OF a priesthood. Mr.. Lilly has his hihs al
"1,he Nonconformist Conscience" The phrase
longer has anything nut a I'h''N"' ''r'
canoe even in England. But Nonconformist ira
ditlon. which knows orders nor ranks IN rehg'
ion. is a vital and growing thing. and MT Lily
book Is defective from his own point OF We" III
that he makes attempt TO show now Il can
ha onnosed nor even how bridge can be bull'
between the Roman hierarchy and the strenuous
,ndjv,dualism Of modern life In the Middle Ages
what NAV be called the peasant religion had no
modus vivend 1t was subject to Intolerance &C.
centr,cities of faith and conduct. These dele''S
have disappeared simply because the peasant mas
become a different creature. But above a certain
narallel OF latitude he has never been g'od
catholic and the universally OF Catholicism VIII
depend IN the future not on the answers 10 prop
,ams IN science and philosophy which Mr. LILY
shows the church can give. but on what II mas 70
saw 10 people who have somehow manager 10
combine a chidke faith with very penetra'iNe
insight One may profess a profound reverence
for the wisdom Of Leo XIII and yet be permit
ted TO wonder how an encycical from MIN "o"u
read TO the American Baptsts or Congregations
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