New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1895-06-23
THE FOUNDATIONS OF BELIEF.

Mr. Herbert Spcncers healtn Is, uhioi 'uii"'''''
precarious; but his answer to certain crltic'snls
of him In Mr. Arthur J. Balfours recently pun
lished book shows that his intellectual strength
has suffered no decline. Indeed. IL Is not 100
much TO say that he has driven the Drliilant
statesman into a corner whence he VIII nhu
Il difficult TO emerge with the honors OF war
one Of the striking assumptions In Mr.. Balfours
hoo, was that there are certain needs and asplra-
.ions In mans nature which make the belief in
= Runr Power necessary Mr.. Spencer shows
that this is purely an anthropoccntrlc argument
which proves too much. 1t would FORCE U.S.
he saws 10 accept the Mahometan's belief IN
PARADISE Of hours, and the liindoo's belier mat
he nav ascend to heaven by placing himseH
under the wheel Of Juggcrnauts car IL res'S
ON the ludicrous assumption that the universe
exists solely TO satisfy mans needs ana asplr"-
tions whereas man IS IAN infniteslnal DupDlc
ION 4 globe that Is itself infnitesimal compared
with the totally Of things" The surrounding
world has not been arranged 10 ft the physicai
nature Of man: but conversely, the physlcai
p,,uro of man has BEEN moulded to tit the sur
rounding world.
Rut Mr.. Balfour falls into n still greater incon-
sistency. While assuming that there must be
IS otherwise incxplicablc." he proceeds to make
the negative assumption that man cannot Under
stand how God created and sustains the uni
verse why should assume an explanation
for the one mystery and not for the other? asks
Mr. Spencrf II Mr. Balfour IS content TO let
one ultimate difficulty remain without solution,
why should ne feel impcled 10 tax Our creduli'y
by evolving out Of his own inner consciousness
a solution for another ultimate dllhculty! Inc
question IS searching one, and exposes the Pill
falls that are always 10 be found In the pain OF
those who reason from assumptions to facts.
one Of the strongest positions In Mr. Baifour
book was his demonstration that In many things
our conduct Is decided by authority rather than
by reason Mr.. Spencer admits this, but calls
attention to the fact that 1t Is only by the e1er-
else Of reason that the claims OF authority are
admitted 50 that in the last analysis reason
must always be the final authority. Moreover.
waiyIng for the time being the question OF rea-
son. We are confronted today by two conflicting
sources " authority that of religion ana mat
~ science And taking Mr.. Balfour on his own
ground I, will have 70 be- admitted That the
world to-day Is coming 10 pay more regard 20
the authority ~ science than 10 that OF religion
Investigation is constantly tending 10 confirm
the posiulates of science. and Just as constantly
tending TO disprove or make less certain many
Of the pos,ulates Of theology Hence. con
cludcs Mr. Spencer. III reason whenever 1t abdi-
Gates In favor Of authority. has to choose be-
tween IN. two. 1t IL compelled 10 accept the
"auihoriiy ~ science rather than tina, II theology
when they are In conflict So far from strength
".nlng his own position by showing how large
n share authority has and ought TO have In de-
! "tcrmlnlng our beliefs. II seems TO me that MT
"Halfrr strengthens the position Of his oppo
"nenfs"
Mr. Spencer again agrees with his critic In the
uos,ulate that out Of the depths ~ unfathom-
able mystery the ccrtitudes Of religion as well
~ IL scicnc. may emerge. But II" c0InDats me
further assertion Of Mr. Balfour that they actual
Is do emerge or. rather. he maintains that so
many contradictory conceptions OF God have
emerged out II the mystery that surrounds us
that they mutually destroy each other. Besides
This II 1, 10 be remembered that while time and
investigation confirm the dlcta ~ science they
rob many of the assumptions Of theology OF their
most robus, attributes. The world to-day has
droppc, the old idea Of God rs magnihed man:
th. conception ~ Power which manfests Itself
! in thirty millions Of suns making a bargain
with Abraham and being swayed by anger. jcal-
onsy and revenge is today unthnkablc. Yet
that was the primal conception ~ God when
n "ctnnrpcd" out Of the mystery 81 things.
Those. who accept religion on the authority Of
= divine revelation will not be troubled by Mr..
Spenccr's brilliant article but to those who try
10 prove religion rs they would problem in
geometry 1t will suggest many difficulties.