Year: 1879




sincerity in the professions that are so freely
made-would do much for the cause of
christianity throughout the world.


RELIGION AND SUPERSTITION.
These be thy gods, o Israel, which brought
thee up out of the land of Egypt.-ExoDUs
xxxu:a. ~


From the earliest ages of the world up to
the present time religion and superstition
have been almost hopelessly interviewer.
Sometimes, indeed, it has been difficult to
distinguish between the two, so intimate
have been their relations Even in the light
of the civilization of the nineteenth century
the student of theology often finds himself
puzzled to separate the one from the other,
for in the compilation of the history and
tenets of the church many of the traditions
of past ages, coupled with the superstition
of which they formed part, have been re-
tanned, incorporated with creeds and made
part of dogmas. The creeds of few scots
if any will bear careful analysis.
There is more or less of error
in all of them, and the error can be traced
directly to the superstitions that at one time
held sway over the human mind, or to the
fanaticism that characterized the middle
ages. Scarcely day passes in which record
is not made of some case in which religion
coupled with superstition has produced some
incongruous and sometimes tragical result.
The recent horror at Pocassett, in which a
father murdered his own child in obedience
to what he regarded as command from God,
will furnish an example, though an extreme
one, of the hold which superstition still re-
tains upon the minds of the religiously in
clined.


Nc one who has ever attended camp
meeting or a religions revival can have
failed to be struck with the all but
universality of superstition in the COM
position of those who take part in the
proceedings. 1t is no uncommon thing for
person, while under ''the power" to claim
to have experienced changes of heart and
even of physical conditions which put to
the blush all previous records of miracles
performed It is no uncommon thing to
be assured that q hopeless paralytic has
gone to the baptismal waters in his crippled
condition and come away few moments
afterwards restored to the full use of his
limbs. Men ordinarily truthful give cur
rency to the most absurd stories of miracles
wrought by faith in times of religious ex-
element, most of which have no foundation
whatever in fact. Some marvellous things
are sometimes observed, it is true, at such
times, but they due solely to the inhu-
ence of the mental upon the physical sys-
tenn. Cripples have been known to be
cured by the effects of fright, and it is moi
surprising that under the mental excite
ment superinduced by religious frenzy some
seemingly inexplicable results are wrought


Few religious people-in fact few people
of any sort-are entirely free from supersti-
ton. It clings with wonderful tenacity to
the mind, and appears to be increased by
meditation upon religious themes. This is
perhaps, not to be wondered at, for there is
so much that is mythical about religion thai
one naturally accepts for revealed truth
much that is simply tradition, distorted by
superstition and utterly irreconcilable with
reason. The line of demarcation between
religion and superstition is not very clearly
defined, and the less intelligent portion O.
every Christian community too frequently
get them hopelessly confused. And it is tt
be feared that those at the head of thu
church do not take the care they ought te
take to disabuse the minds of those who
look to them for advice and in
struction of the fallacies into which they
have fallen. Many of them retain thei
hold upon the public simply because of tn
ignorance of those they profess to lead. 1
their parishioners were more intelligent the,
would find their occupation gone, and hence
it is often their aim to foster rather than t,
dissipate the clouds of superstition that hanI
around and obscure the radiance of true re
ligion.


We hope tho time will soon come whel
the teachers of religion will pay more bee,
to the requirements of their high calling
and instead of seeking to intensity the gloon
of superstition, endeavor to dissipate it
Genuine Christianity needs no superstitio,
to make it more attractive, and everything
extraneous that is introduced into it's oh
servance detracts from its beauty and its
efficiency. The clergy ought to preach ant
teach the pure word, without recourse to th
unreliable traditions and superstitions of tn
past. The sooner they do it the sooner viii
they and their cause command the respect o
intelligent, thinking people. But as long a
they keep their people in ignorance the mos
dense, they will merit and receive only tn
contempt of the better class of every com
munity.


SALTWATER NEWS.
SPECIALLY REPORTED FOR THE ST. PAUL GLOBE


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