New Publications [pp. 857-860]

.NEw PUBLICA4 TIONS.
NEW PUBLICATIONS.
THE CLOTHES OF RELIGION: A Reply to Popular Positivism. In two
Essays and a Postscript. By Wilfrid Ward. London: Burns & Oates;
New York: The Catholic Publication Society Co.
The reading world is not likely to speedily forget the celebrated conflict
between Mr. Herbert Spencer and Mr. Frederic Harrison, which took place
about a couple of years ago, when Agnosticism and Positivism clashed together, and, being both earthen jars, each pretty effectually smashed the
other. The controversy between these two leaders forcibly brought to
mind the famous conflict of the Kilkenny cats, who went at each other
tooth and nail until they had completely annihilated each other.
It is easy to destroy that which has no solid foundation. When leaders
of Agnosticism and Positivism, and of other isms built upon foundations
of sand, fall upon each other, mutual destruction follows. But nature abhors a vacuum. The world must inevitably turn from these exploded
isms to find the dome of St. Peter's still towering aloft. The church built
upon a rock must sooner or later claim undivided attention.
Whoever helps in allaying the clouds of dust that these false isms have
stirred up performs a great work to humanity by aiding a distracted people to feel and to perceive God's own sunlight. The little book before us
contains a very complete and satisfactory answer to Positivism-especially
satisfactory because it does not content itself simply with the work of destruction-Positivism, after all, has found few adherents-but also has in it
a strong argument for the claims of religion. In his preface Mr. Ward
says:
"A religion which is to do the work of a religion, and to influence the lives of the mass of
mankind, must have that within it which can appeal to the multitude as a motive force for action, and no amount of ingenuity expended in the superstructure will enable it to stand if this
foundation is wanting. Suppose that the cardinal ideas of Christianity were deficient in this
respect-suppose that the character of Christ entirely failed to appeal to mankind as an inspiring model, and suppose it were impossible to lead men to trust in his merits or to believe in
the reality and efficacy of his aid; establish these simple defects in the Christian system and you
have sounded its death-knell so far as its capabilities as a really influential religion go. There
is no occasion to criticise St. Augustine, St. Thomas Aquinas, Suarez, Vasquez, or to touch on
the elaborate and ingenious developments and superstructures wrought by subtle intellects in
successive ages above the root-doctrines. The foundation is rotten, and all that rests on it, however intrinsically beautiful or well constructed, must fall with it."
Mr. Ward shows most clearly how rotten is the foundation of Positivism, and at the same time makes us feel the strength of Christianity. His
work, therefore, is something better than the mere work of destruction.
The two essays which make up the little book were originally printed in the
National Re-view. The first essay, "The Clothes of Religion," was published
soon after Mr. Harrison's essay, "The Ghost of Religion," which shows the
absurdity of Mr. Spencer's worship of the "Unknowable." While agreeing
with Mr. Harrison as to the absurdity of the worship of Spencer's "Unknowable," Mr. Ward goes further and shows the absurdity of Mr. Harri
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