Religion and science, their relations to each other at the present day: Three essays on the grounds of religious belief

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1875. Excerpt: ... NOTE ON ESSAY II. I Have feared that some expressions in my second essay, and especially in Part V., might be understood to question the truth of some of those accounts in the Gospels which are commonly thought to be miraculous. I wish here to repeat that such has not been my meaning; and I would also add, as to one particular point, viz. a statement made upon page 217, that I feel that the language of the New Testament generally gives the idea of faith as a moral condition of receiving the blessing of healing, rather than of faith as a psychical means of cure. It would, however, agree with this last idea in some places, I think; nor are the two ideas absolutely inconsistent. I must not be understood here to question the almighty power of Our Lord. The question is as t" its mode of operation. Certainly, to my mind, many of the Gospel accounts commonly considered miraculous do not seem to involve of necessity any breach of the laws of nature; and further, I think that upon the hypothesis of a spiritual world capable at times of physical relations to the visible un1verse, possibly all those accounts may be explained without breach of continuity. What I have intended to establish in my essay, I may briefly repeat thus. The modern evidential argument requires the truth of the Gospel miracles, and the untruth of all others. To prove this last it is necessary to adopt rules of criticism so strict that when they are impartially applied to the Gospels they leave none of the miracles to be found there established as strictly miracles, except the resurrection of Christ. But these rules I hold to be too strict. For instance, I think, that it is going too far at once to set aside all accounts of visions as cases of false perception. Now, if you modify these rules, as...