from the standpoint of their own human passionate intelligence.
Alongside the intelligence everywhere observable in the operations of
nature they placed their own passionate humanity, they projected
themselves into the universe and anthropomorphised nature. Thus came men
to regard natural phenomena as manifestations of supernatural agency;
as expressions of the wrath or pleasure of good or evil genii, and
although in our day we have made great advances in our knowledge of
natural phenomena, the majority of men still regard the ways of
providence from a false standpoint, a standpoint erected in the
interests of ecclesiasticism. Churchmanship acts as a distorting medium,
twisting and displacing things out of their natural relations, and
although this influence was stronger in the past than it is now, still
there remains a considerable residuum of the old influence among us yet.
For example, we are not yet rid of the belief that God has set apart
times, places, and duties as specially sacred, that what is not only
sinless but a moral obligation at certain times and places becomes
sinful at other times and places. Ecclesiastical influence thus
familiarises us with the distinctions of secular and sacred, and we hear
frequent mention made of our duties to God and our duties to man, of our
religious duties and our worldly duties, and we frequently hear religion
spoken of as something readily distinguishable from business. But not
only are these things separated by name from one another, they are often
regarded as opposites, having no fellowship together. Hence has arisen
in many minds a slavish fear of performing at certain times and in
certain places the ordinary duties of life, lest by so doing they anger
God. In certain conditions of society such belief, erroneous though it
be, may have served a useful purpose in restraining, and thereby so far
elevating a rude people, just as now we may see many among ourselves
restrained from evil, and influenced to the practice of good, by beliefs
which, to the enlightened among us, are palpable absurdities.