Early Religion of India allied to Magianism.-Origin of the Brahminical idolatry. The Buddhists and Jains.-Who was Buddha?-Polytheism and Pantheism characterised.-Actual nature of idolatry as now practised. -The Vedas.-The Pooranas.-The Tantras.-Reformed Sects.-The Sikhs.-Lamaism.-Religion of China-Of Japan-Of Birmah and Siam. -Illiterate Superstitions.-State and Prospect of the Heathen world . . 645 AN ANALYTICAL VIEW OF ALL RELIGIONS. CHAPTER I. What is a Religion ?-How many Religions are there?-Which is the true Religion?-Which is the true Church? "Ir is a great fault," remarks Jeremy Taylor, "that men will call the several sects of Christians by the name of several religions."* Widely and essentially as Christians may differ among themselves, that religion which they profess in common, is one. That there can be but one true religion, almost all persons will admit; and few in this country will dispute that Christianity is that only true religion: but in what the marks of its truth consist, distinguishing it from all false religions, and what constitutes its oneness, amid all the diversities of opinion which divide the Christian world, are points respecting which much error and confusion of ideas prevail. Nothing has tended to perpetuate this confusion, and to increase this perplexity, more than the catalogues of sects and heresies, and the dictionaries of creeds and denominations, which affect to give a view of the religious world, but which, by erecting every trivial difference, every transitory form of fanaticism, and every insignificant division, • "Liberty of Prophesying," § xvi. B into a distinct genus, set at defiance all system or rational classification. In the moral picture, by this worse than Chinese perspective, the great and the small assume the same apparent dimensions, and every object is seen distorted. The first question which presents itself is-WHAT IS A RELIGION? Without involving ourselves in etymological researches, we may answer this by saying, that, as religion signifies, in common acceptation, our duty to God, a religion must be taken to mean that which teaches or prescribes the matter of religious duty, or, in other words, that which is due to God; including what is to be believed respecting Him, and the homage and service which He claims. By religion, as a quality of the mind, or religiousness, we understand a habit of reverence towards the Divine Being. But, by a religion, we understand, a system of religion; that is, a system of faith and worship. According to this received definition, a religion, whether true or false, presupposes a divine revelation as its basis. Without some communication from the Deity, faith, which every religion prescribes and demands, would, at best, be limited to a belief in the Divine Existence. But the uncertain guesses of the bewildered mind could never afford a solid foundation for devout belief or intelligent worship. Accordingly, every religion is professedly derived from a revelation from Heaven, and rests its pretensions either upon the immediate inspiration of its ministers, or, upon the Divine authority of its sacred books. A belief in Divine Inspiration, therefore, is a first principle of religion in the human mind; ranking next, in importance, to a belief in the Divine Existence. A religion, being founded upon a revelation or divine communication, must be true or false, according as such revelation is authentic or spurious. The credibility of the religion depends upon the marks of authenticity,-the evidence of divine authority which it bears. But its authority does not consist in its credibility, or in the means of ascertaining its divine origin, but in its being really what it professes to be, prescribed by the Deity, or, as to the matter of belief, given by inspiration of God. He who does not believe in the inspiration of the sacred books of the religion, cannot believe in its divine authority; and, not believing in that, he cannot be regarded as really believing in the religion itself. If, then, every religion presupposes a revelation from which it derives itself, and that revelation is, for the most part, professedly contained in its sacred books, we are prepared to answer the next question which presents itself; namely, HOW MANY RELIGIONS ARE THERE IN THE WORLD? Just so many as there are revelations, real or pretended. All the religions of the world may therefore be reduced to a very brief catalogue. Considering the Jewish religion, for the present, as an imperfect Christianity, we may thus enumerate them. I. The Religion of the Bible. II. The Religion of the Koran. III. The Religion of the Zendavesta. IV. The Religion of the Brahminical Scriptures; the V. The Religion of the sacred books of Boodhism. To which we may add, as a sixth class, those illiterate systems of superstition, which, while professedly resting upon supernatural communications and traditions, have no sacred books. The next question that arises is, WHICH IS THE TRUE RELIGION? The proper answer is, That which is derived from the true revelation. No two of these religions can be true, because they are all essentially at variance upon fundamental points. It is indeed observable, that the first three religions partially agree, as regards the unity of the Supreme Being. The Koran, moreover, recognises the divine authority of the Jewish Scriptures, and the prophetic mission of Jesus Christ. If, therefore, the Koran were true, it would follow from its testimony, that the Jewish and Christian religion must be regarded as true also. But the religion of the Koran does not agree with the Christian revelation; so that, if the Bible is true, the Koran cannot be. The only books that can for a moment be brought into comparison, are these two; and the result of that comparison is decisive. There being, then, but one true revelation, there can be but one true religion, and that is found in the Bible. All who acknowledge the divine authority of the Bible, may be considered as so far holding the true religion. Thus, the religion of the Jews, who believe in the Scriptures of the Old Testament, is in itself true; but, inasmuch as they do not understand their own Scriptures, they cannot be said truly to hold it; and, inasmuch as theirs is not the religion of the whole Bible, it is negatively untrue, as all denial of the truth amounts to, or involves, falsehood. All who acknowledge the authority of the whole Bible, may claim to be classed with the holders of the true religion, and are accordingly, in common language, spoken of as Christians. Nothing more can be meant, when we speak of Christian nations, or even of Christian churches, than that they are bodies composed of such as professedly acknowledge the Christian religion to be the only true one, and the Holy Scriptures to be the depository of that religion. But, whether the individual holds that religion truly, or not, such expressions leave undetermined. A man may be a Christian in his religion, without being religiously Christian; without being truly of the religion which he recognises as true. Those persons who deny the essential doctrines of the Christian system, cannot be regarded as individually entitled to the name of Christians, in the higher sense: still, they may be spoken of as forming a Christian sect, inasmuch as they professedly acknowledge the authority of the Christian Scrip tures. We may seem, however, to have gained little by ascertaining that the only true religion is contained in the Bible, when so many different and widely varying systems of faith and practice present themselves, each claiming to be the religion of the Bible. The question, Which is the true religion? seems but to return under a slight modification-Which is the true Bible religion? Or, if it be wrong to call the several sects of Christians by the name of several religions, WHICH IS THE TRUE CHURCH? In order to meet this inquiry, it will be necessary to determine how many distinct societies or congregations there are, laying claim to this character, and how they are to be |