Ten Great Religions; An Essay in Comparative Theology; A Comparison of All Religions, by James Freeman Clarke .. by James Freeman Clarke

Author:James Freeman Clarke [Clarke, James Freeman]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Religions, Christianity and other religions, Islamic Studies
ISBN: 9781418150099
Google: 0bDpAAAACAAJ
Publisher: Scholarly Publishing Office, University of Michigan Library
Published: 2003-12-31T18:30:00+00:00

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But do thou, O Zeus, all-bestower, cloud-compeller!

Ruler of thunder! guard men from sad error.

Father! dispel the clouds of the soul, and let us follow

The laws of thy great and just reign!

That we may be honored, let us honor thee again,

Chanting thy great deeds, as is proper for mortals.

For nothing can be better for gods or men

Than to adore with perpetual hymns the law common to all.

The result of our investigation thus far is, that beside all the polytheistic and anthropomorphic tendencies of the old religion, there yet lingered a faith in one supreme God, ruler of all things. This is the general opinion of the best writers. For example, Welcker thus speaks of the original substance of Greek religion:239—

"In the remotest period of Greek antiquity, we meet the words θεός and δαίμων, and the names Ζεός and Κρονίων; anything older than which is not to be found in this religion. Accordingly, the gods of these tribes were from the first generally, if not universally, heavenly and spiritual beings. Zeus was the immortal king of heaven, in opposition to everything visible and temporal. This affords us a permanent background of universal ideas, behind all special conceptions or local appellations. We recognize as present in the beginnings of Greek history the highest mental aspirations belonging to man. We can thus avoid the mistaken doubts concerning this religion, which came from the influence of the subsequent manifestations, going back to the deep root from which they have sprung. The Divine Spirit has always been manifested in the feelings even of the most uncultivated peoples. Afterwards, in trying to bring this feeling into distinct consciousness, the various childish conceptions and imperfect views of religious things arise."

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