THE METHODS OF THE EARLY CHRISTIAN CHURCH IN DEALING WITH HEATHENISM 39
The Coincidences of the Present Struggle with that of the First
Christian Centuries—The Mediæval Missionary Work of a Simple
Character—That of India, Japan, China, and the Turkish Empire a
Severe Intellectual Struggle as well as a Spiritual
Conquest—Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, and Islam, present
Obstacles and Resistances Similar to those of Ancient Greece and
Rome—How far Contrasts Appear between the Early and the Present
Conquests—The Methods of Paul—His Tact in Recognizing Truth
wherever Found, and Using it for his Purpose—The Attitude of the
Early Christian Fathers toward the Heathen—Augustine's
Acknowledgment of the Good which he Received from Cicero and
Plato—The Important Elements which Platonism Lacked, and which
were Found Only in the Gospel of Christ—The Great Secret of Power
in the Early Church Found in its Moral Earnestness, as Shown by
Simplicity of Life, and especially by Constancy even Unto a
Martyr's Death—The Contrast between the Frugality of the Early
Church and the Luxury and Vice of Roman Society—The Great Need of
this Element of Success at the Present Time—The Observance of a
Wise Discrimination in the Estimate of Heathen Philosophy by the
Great Leaders of the Early Church—The Generality with which
Classical Studies were Pursued by the Sons of the more Enlightened
Christian Fathers—Method Among the Leaders—The Necessity for a
thorough Knowledge of the Systems to be Met, as it was then
Recognized—The thorough Preparation of Augustine, Ambrose,
Iræneus, and Others for their Work—Origen's Masterly and
Successful Reply to Celsus—The Use Made by the Early Fathers and
by the Churches of a Later Day, of the Philosophy of Plato and
Aristotle—Heathenism thus Conquered with its Own Weapons.
LECTURE III.
THE SUCCESSIVE DEVELOPMENTS OF HINDUISM 73
The Great Variety in India's Religious Systems—The Early
Monotheistic Nature Worship and its Gradual Lapse Into
Polytheism—The Influence of Environment on the Development of
Systems—The Distinction between Aryanism and Brahmanism, and the
Abuses of the Latter in its Doctrines of Sacrifice and Caste—The
Causes which Led to the Overthrow of this System of
Sacerdotalism—The Upanishads and the Beginnings of Philosophy—The
Rise of Buddhism and the Six Schools of Philosophy—Points in
Common between them—The Code of Manu and its Countercheck to
Rationalism—Its Development and its Scope, its Merits and
Demerits—The Meaning of the Word Hinduism as here Used and the
Means by which it Gained Ascendency—The Place and Influence of the
Two Great Hindu Epics, their Origin, the Compromise which they
Wrought, and the New and Important Doctrines which They
Developed—The Trimurti and the Incarnations of Vishnu—The
Deterioration of the Literature and the Faith of India—The Puranas
and the Tantras—The Parallels between Hinduism and Christianity.
LECTURE IV.
THE BHAGAVAD GITA AND THE NEW TESTAMENT 111
The Great Interest Felt in this Poem by a Certain Class of
Readers—Its Alleged Parallels to the Scriptures—The Plausibility
of the Recent Translation by Mr. Mohini M. Chatterji—Its
Patronizing Catholicity—The Same Claim to Broad Charity by Chunder
Sen and Others—Pantheism Sacrifices nothing to Charity, because
God is in All Things—All Moral Responsibility Ceases since God
Acts in Us—Mr. Chatterji's Broad Knowledge of Our Scriptures, and
his Skill in Selecting Passages for His Purpose—His Pleasing
Style—The Story of Krishna and Arjuna Told in the Interest of
Caste and Pantheism—The Growth of the Krishna Cult from Popular
Legends—The Origin of the Bhagavad Gita and its Place in the
Mahabharata—Its Use of the Six Philosophies—Krishna's
Exhortation—The Issue of the Battle in which Arjuna is Urged to
Engage—The "Resemblances" Explained by their Pantheistic
Interpretation—Fancied Resemblances which are only in the Sound of
Words—Coincidences Springing from Similar Causes—The Totally
Different Meaning which Pantheism gives them—Difference between
Union with Christ and the Pantheistic Pervasion of the
Infinite—The Differentials of Christianity.