lecture18-第5部分

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converted　any　one　who　has　found　in　the　moral　complexion　of　the



world；　as　he　experienced　it；　reasons　for　doubting　that　a　good　God



can　have　framed　it。　　To　prove　God's　goodness　by　the　scholastic



argument　that　there　is　no　non…being　in　his　essence　would　sound



to　such　a　witness　simply　silly。







No！　the　book　of　Job　went　over　this　whole　matter　once　for　all　and



definitively。　　Ratiocination　is　a　relatively　superficial　and



unreal　path　to　the　deity：　　〃I　will　lay　mine　hand　upon　my　mouth；　I



have　heard　of　Thee　by　the　hearing　of　the　ear；　but　now　mine　eye



seeth　Thee。〃　　An　intellect　perplexed　and　baffled；　yet　a



trustful　sense　of　presencesuch　is　the　situation　of　the　man　who



is　sincere　with　himself　and　with　the　facts；　but　who　remains





religious　still。＇298＇







＇298＇　Pragmatically；　the　most　important　attribute　of　God　is　his



punitive　justice。　　But　who；　in　the　present　state　of　theological



opinion　on　that　point；　will　dare　maintain　that　hell　fire　or　its



equivalent　in　some　shape　is　rendered　certain　by　pure　logic？　



Theology　herself　has　largely　based　this　doctrine　upon　revelation；



and；　in　discussing　it；　has　tended　more　and　more　to　substitute



conventional　ideas　of　criminal　law　for　a　priori　principles　of



reason。　　But　the　very　notion　that　this　glorious　universe；　with



planets　and　winds；　and　laughing　sky　and　ocean；　should　have　been



conceived　and　had　its　beams　and　rafters　laid　in　technicalities　of



criminality；　is　incredible　to　our　modern　imagination。　　It　weakens



a　religion　to　hear　it　argued　upon　such　a　basis。















We　must　therefore；　I　think；　bid　a　definitive　good…by　to　dogmatic



theology。　　In　all　sincerity　our　faith　must　do　without　that



warrant。　　Modern　idealism；　I　repeat；　has　said　goodby　to　this



theology　forever。　　Can　modern　idealism　give　faith　a　better



warrant；　or　must　she　still　rely　on　her　poor　self　for　witness？







The　basis　of　modern　idealism　is　Kant's　doctrine　of　the



Transcendental　Ego　of　Apperception。　　By　this　formidable　term　Kant



merely　meant　the　fact　that　the　consciousness　〃I　think　them〃　must



（potentially　or　actually）　accompany　all　our　objects。　　Former



skeptics　had　said　as　much；　but　the　〃I〃　in　question　had　remained



for　them　identified　with　the　personal　individual。　　Kant



abstracted　and　depersonalized　it；　and　made　it　the　most　universal



of　all　his　categories；　although　for　Kant　himself　the



Transcendental　Ego　had　no　theological　implications。







It　was　reserved　for　his　successors　to　convert　Kant's　notion　of



Bewusstsein　uberhaupt；　or　abstract　consciousness；　into　an



infinite　concrete　self…consciousness　which　is　the　soul　of　the



world；　and　in　which　our　sundry　personal　self…consciousnesses



have　their　being。　　It　would　lead　me　into　technicalities　to　show



you　even　briefly　how　this　transformation　was　in　point　of　fact



effected。　　Suffice　it　to　say　that　in　the　Hegelian　school；　which



to…day　so　deeply　influences　both　British　and　American　thinking；



two　principles　have　borne　the　brunt　of　the　operation。







The　first　of　these　principles　is　that　the　old　logic　of　identity



never　gives　us　more　than　a　post…mortem　dissection　of　disjecta



membra；　and　that　the　fullness　of　life　can　be　construed　to　thought



only　by　recognizing　that　every　object　which　our　thought　may



propose　to　itself　involves　the　notion　of　some　other　object　which



seems　at　first　to　negate　the　first　one。







The　second　principle　is　that　to　be　conscious　of　a　negation　is



already　virtually　to　be　beyond　it。　　The　mere　asking　of　a　question



or　expression　of　a　dissatisfaction　proves　that　the　answer　or　the



satisfaction　is　already　imminent；　the　finite；　realized　as　such；



is　already　the　infinite　in　posse。







Applying　these　principles；　we　seem　to　get　a　propulsive　force　into



our　logic　which　the　ordinary　logic　of　a　bare；　stark　self…identity



in　each　thing　never　attains　to。　　The　objects　of　our　thought　now



ACT　within　our　thought；　act　as　objects　act　when　given　in



experience。　　They　change　and　develop。　They　introduce　something



other　than　themselves　along　with　them；　and　this　other；　at　first



only　ideal　or　potential；　presently　proves　itself　also　to　be



actual。　　It　supersedes　the　thing　at　first　supposed；　and　both



verifies　and　corrects　it；　in　developing　the　fullness　of　its



meaning。







The　program　is　excellent；　the　universe　IS　a　place　where　things



are　followed　by　other　things　that　both　correct　and　fulfill　them；



and　a　logic　which　gave　us　something　like　this　movement　of　fact



would　express　truth　far　better　than　the　traditional　school…logic；



which　never　gets　of　its　own　accord　from　anything　to　anything



else；　and　registers　only　predictions　and　subsumptions；　or　static



resemblances　and　differences。　Nothing　could　be　more　unlike　the



methods　of　dogmatic　theology　than　those　of　this　new　logic。　　Let



me　quote　in　illustration　some　passages　from　the　Scottish



transcendentalist　whom　I　have　already　named。







〃How　are　we　to　conceive；〃　Principal　Caird　writes；　〃of　the　reality



in　which　all　intelligence　rests？〃　　He　replies：　　〃Two　things　may



without　difficulty　be　proved；　viz。；　that　this　reality　is　an



absolute　Spirit；　and　conversely　that　it　is　only　in　communion　with



this　absolute　Spirit　or　Intelligence　that　the　finite　Spirit　can



realize　itself。　　It　is　absolute；　for　the　faintest　movement　of



human　intelligence　would　be　arrested；　if　it　did　not　presuppose



the　absolute　reality　of　intelligence；　of　thought　itself。　　Doubt



or　denial　themselves　presuppose　and　indirectly　affirm　it。　　When　I



pronounce　anything　to　be　true；　I　pronounce　it；　indeed；　to　be



relative　to　thought；　but　not　to　be　relative　to　my　thought；　or　to



the　thought　of　any　other　individual　mind。　　From　the　existence　of



all　individual　minds　as　such　I　can　abstract；　I　can　think　them



away。　　But　that　which　I　cannot　think　away　is　thought　or



self…consciousness　itself；　in　its　independence　and　absoluteness；



or；　in　other　words；　an　Absolute　Thought　or　Self…Consciousness。〃







Here；　you　see；　Principal　Caird　makes　the　transition　which　Kant



did　not　make：　　he　converts　the　omnipresence　of　consciousness　in



general　as　a　condition　of　〃truth〃　being　anywhere　possible；　into



an　omnipresent　universal　consciousness；　which　he　identifies　with



God　in　his　concreteness。　　He　next　proceeds　to　use　the　principle



that　to　acknowledge　your　limits　is　in　essence　to　be　beyond　them；



and　makes　the　transition　to　the　religious　experience　of



individuals　in　the　following　words：







〃If　＇Man＇　were　only　a　creature　of　transient　sensations　and



impulses；　of　an　ever　coming　and　going　succession　of　intuitions；



fancies；　feelings；　then　nothing　could　ever　have　for　him　the



character　of　objective　truth　or　reality。　　But　it　is　the



prerogative　of　man's　spiritual　nature　that　he　can　yield　himself



up　to　a　thought　and　will　that　are　infinitely　larger　than　his　own。　



As　a　thinking　self…conscious　being；　indeed；　he　may　be　said；　by



his　very　nature；　to　live　in　the　atmosphere　of　the　Universal　Life。







As　a　thinking　being；　it　is　possible　for　me　to　suppress　and　quell



in　my　consciousness　every　movement　of　self…assertion；　every



notion　and　opinion　that　is　merely　mine；　every　desire　that　belongs



to　me　as　this　particular　Self；　and　to　become　the　pure　medium　of　a



thought　that　is　universalin　one　word；　to　live　no　more　my　own



life；　but　let　my　consciousness　be　possessed　and　suffused　by　the



Infinite　and　Eternal　life　of　spirit。　　And　yet　it　is　just　in　this



renunciation　of　self　that　I　truly　gain　myself；　or　realize　the



highest　possibilities　of　my　own　nature。　　For　whilst　in　one　sense



we　give　up　self　to　live　the　universal　and　absolute　life　of



reason；　yet　that　to　which　we　thus　surrender　ourselves　is　in



reality　our　truer　self。　　The　life　of　absolute　reason　is　not　a



life　that　is　foreign　to　us。〃







Nevertheless；　Principal　Caird　goes　on　to　say；　so　far　as　we　are



able　outwardly　to　realize　this　doctrine；　the　balm　it　offers



remains　incomplete。　　Whatever　we　may　be　in　posse；　the　very　best



of　us　in　actu　falls　very　short　of　being　absolutely　divine。　Social



morality；　love；　and　self…sacrifice　even；　merge　our　Self　only　in



some　other　finite　self　or　selves。　　They　do　not　quite　identify　it



with　the　Infinite。　　Man's　ideal　destiny；　infinite　in　abstract



logic；　might　thus　seem　in　practice　forever　unrealizable。







〃Is　there；　then；〃　our　author　continues；　〃no　solution　of　the



contradiction　between　the　ideal　and　the　actual？　　We　answer；　There



is　such　a　solution；　but　in　order　to　reach　it　we　are　carried



beyond　the　sphere　of　morality　into　that　of　religion。　　It　may　be



said　to　be　the　essential　characteristic　of　religion　as　contrasted



with　morality；　that　it　changes　aspiration　into　fruition；



anticipation　into　realization；　that　instead　of　leaving　man　in　the



interminable　pursuit　of　a　vanishing　ideal；　it　makes　him　the



actual　partaker　of　a　divine　or　infinite　life。　　Whether　we　view



religion　from　the　human　side　or　the　divineas　the　surrender　of



the　soul　to　God；　or　as　the　life　of　God　in　the　soulin　either



aspect　it　is　of　its　very　essence　that　the　Infinite　has　ceased　to



be　a　far…off　vision；　and　has　become　a　present　reality。　　The　very



first　pulsation　of　the　spiritual　life；　when　we　rightly　apprehend



its　significance；　is　the　indication　that　the　division　between　the



Spirit　and　its　object　has　vanished；　that　the　ideal　has　become



real；　that　the　finite　has　reached　its　goal　and　become　suffused



with　the　presence　and　life　of　the　Infinite。







〃Oneness　of　mind　and　will　with