The New York herald., 1922-03-05

Peters. Charles Scribner's Sons.
THE MODERN READERS BIBLE
FOR SCHOOLS. BY Richard u.
Moulton. The Macmillan Company.
THE SPIRITUAL LIFE. By F. Milton
Willis. E. p. Dutton & Co.
THE NONSENSE OF CHRISTIAN
SCIENCE. BY Albert Clark Wyckoff
Fleming H. Revell Company.
THE LIVING JESUS. BY Frederick
A. Wiggin. George sully & Co.
r N these five volumes, selected
from an astonishing mass of
similar current literature, we
have a fair sampling or practically
all the important varieties of the re-
ligious thought of the day. save one.
Add MIR. Bryan's presentation of cx-
treme reactionary tendencies and
the collection is complete. DR.. Pc
ters and Prof. Moulton speak for the
progressive, scientific, critical ex-
animation of the Bible and Christian
doctrines. making full use of arch9o-
logical research, scientific discovery
and literary criticism. fearless OF
consequences, and aiming. in DR..
Peters's words, at truth for truths
sake" He advises his hearers TO .'siop
thinking about defending the Bible,
and devote themselves in Bible
study as all other study, TO this
search after truth for truths sake"
Mr.. Willis represents the theosophi-
cal mystics. and the Rev. Mr.. Wig
gin the SEritualists. Mr.. Wyckoff
is the spokesman for the orthodox
Protestant churches in n vigorous
onslaught upon Christian Science.
Whether it is leading to a wide
spread religious revival or not. it
is clear that during the past twenty
years or more there has been a
strong and steadily increasing cur
rent of interest and concern In mat
ters spiritual. 1t began some time
before the war but was. naturally.
greatly intensified by that upheaval.
1t is. at least In large part. revul-
sion from the too material, mecha-
nistic conception of the universe
that inevitably arose from nineteenth
century scientific thought At one
extreme it produces a Bergson, at
the other q Bryan. In between lies
the ocean of mysticism, obscuran-
tism. with many very odd fish in Its
murky depths. and also the uneasy
bulk of the traditionally orthodox
churches which are trying to hold
fast to q revealed religion Of author
ity and at the same time to absorb
and reconcile rationalism and scien-
tific research with their tradition.
1t is probably true that, to-day. the
great majority Of the people are shll
mildly Indifferent, but there Is a
strong stirring within the mass.
The current falls into two main
streams: one sets toward an emo
tional mysticism. the other toward
frank submission to authority. When
confronted by the Unknown. or the
Unknowable. the thinking mind has
practically but three roads to choose
from: the agnostic's 81 don't know"
the mystic's evasion into a sometimes
satisfying vagueness. or the entire be-
levers acceptance Of some one else's
authoritative dictum. or revelation.
OF course, the elements mix little:
the mystical Christian Scientist Is
also submissive to a very emphatic
authority, and the thoroughgoing
Roman Catholic, Mormon or Baptist
dabbleS a bit in obscurantist vaga-
ries. But, in the main. the distnc-
ton is persistent. There is, also. one
curious thing that they have in conf
mon: that is, a strong tendency tow
ard millenarisn, n more or less Wig
orous belief in, and hope for. speedy
millennium. The genuine agnostics
are very few. The Rev. Father
Duffy is no doubt right-i his recent
statement that the only three sects
that have made very great gains re-
Gently are the Mormons. Christian