MODERN SAINTS AND SEERS

TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH OF

JEAN FINOT

BY

EVAN MARRETT

LONDON

WILLIAM RIDER & SON, LTD. 

CATHEDRAL HOUSE, PATERNOSTER ROW, E. C. 

1920

PREFACE

_THE FOREST OF ILLUSIONS_

"Listen within yourselves, and gaze into the infinity of Space andTime. There resounds the song of the Stars, the voice of Numbers, theharmony of the Spheres. "--HERMES TRISMEGISTUS. 

_In these days the phenomenon of religion, which we believed to havereceded into the background of human life, is reappearing among us, more vigorous than ever. The four years' desolation into which theworld was plunged has rendered the attraction of "the beyond"irresistible, and man turns towards it with passionate curiosity andundisguised longing. The millions of dead who have vanished frommortal sight seem to be drawing the present towards the unsounded deepsof the future. In many cases their loss has taken all joy and colourfrom the lives of those who survive them, and tear-stained faces areinstinctively turned towards the portals of the Great Mystery. _

_Occultism is triumphant. In its many different forms it now emergesfrom obscurity and neglect. Its promises excite our deepest thoughtsand wishes. Eagerly we examine the strength of the bridge that it hasbuilt between this world and the next; and though we may see our hopesslip down between the crevices, though we may find those who have beendisappointed in a more despairing state than before--what matter? Westill owe thanks to occultism for some cherished moments of illusion. _

_The number of its followers increases steadily, for never before hasman experienced so ardent a desire for direct contact with theUnknowable. Science will have to reckon with this movement which iscarrying away even her own high-priests. She will have to widen herfrontiers to include the phenomena that she formerly contemned. _

_The supernatural world, with its abnormal manifestations, fascinatesmodern humanity. The idea of death becomes more and more familiar. Weeven demand, as Renan happily expressed it, to know the truth whichshall enable us not to fear, but almost to love, death: and anirresistible force urges us to explore the depths of subconsciousness, whence, it is claimed, may spring the desired renewal andintensification of man's spiritual life. _

_But why is it that we do not return to the old-established religions?It is because, alas, the Great Agony through which the world has passedhas not dealt kindly with any form of established faith. Dogmatictheology, which admits and exalts the direct interference of thedivinity in our affairs, has received some serious wounds. The uselessand unjustifiable sacrifice of so many innocent lives, of women, of oldmen, of children, left us deeply perplexed. We could not grasp thereason for so much suffering. Never, at any period in the past, havethe enemies of humanity and of God so blasphemed against the eternalprinciples of the universe--yet how was it that the authors of suchcrimes went unpunished?_

_Agonising doubts seized upon many faithful hearts, and amid all themisery with which our planet was filled we seemed to distinguish acreeping paralysis of the established faiths. Just at the time when wemost had need of religion, it seemed to weaken and vanish from oursight, though we knew that human life, when not enriched and ennobledby spiritual forces, sinks into abysmal depths, and that even anydiminution in the strength of these forces is fatally injurious to ourmost sacred and essential interests. _

_Attempts to revive our faith were bound to be made sooner or later, and we shall no doubt yet witness innumerable pilgrimages towards thesource of religion. _

_The psychology of the foundations of the spiritual life; themysterious motives which draw men towards, or alienate them from, religious leaders; the secret of the influence exercised by theselatter upon mankind in the mass--all these things are now and always ofintense interest. Through the examination of every kind of disease, the science of medicine discovers the laws of health; and throughstudying many religions and their followers we may likewise arrive at asynthesis of a sane and wholesome faith. The ever-increasing numbersof strange and attractive places of worship which are springing up inall countries bear witness to man's invincible need to find shelterbehind immediate certainties, even as their elaborate outer formsreflect the variety of his inward aspirations. _

_In the great forest of ecstasies and illusions which suppliesspiritual nourishment to so many of our fellow-humans, we have hereconfined ourselves to the examination of the most picturesque andunusual plants, and have gathered them for preference in the soil ofRussia and of the United States. These two countries, though in manyrespects further apart than the Antipodes, furnish us withcharacteristic examples of the thirst for renewal of faith which ragesequally in the simple soul of an uncultured peasant and in that of abusiness man weary of the artificialities of modern life. _

_Many of us held mistakenly that our contemporaries were incapable ofbeing fired to enthusiasm by new religions, whose exponents seemed tous as questionable as their doctrines. But we need only observe thefacts to behold with what inconceivable ease an age considered prosaicand incredulous has adopted spiritual principles which frequently showup the lack of harmony between our manner of life and our hiddenlongings. _

_The religious phenomena which we see around us in so many complexforms seem to foreshadow a spiritual future whose content isillimitable. _

_Such examples of human psychology, whether normal or morbid, as arehere offered to the reader, may well recall to mind some of thestrangest products of man's imagination. The tales of Hoffmann or ofEdgar Allan Poe pale before these inner histories of the human soul, and the most moving novels and romances appear weak and artificial whencompared to the eruptions of light and darkness which burst forth fromthe depths of man's subconsciousness. _

_These phenomena will interest the reader of reflective temperament noless than the lover of the sensational and the improbable in real life. _

CONTENTS

PREFACE: THE FOREST OF ILLUSIONS

PART I

THE SALVATION OF THE POOR

A. THE ORGANISED SECTS

CHAPTER

 I. THE NEGATIVISTS II. THE WHITE-ROBED BELIEVERS III. THE STRANGLERS IV. THE FUGITIVES V. THE SOUTAÏEVTZI VI. THE SONS OF GOD VII. THE TOLSTOYANS VIII. THE SPIRITUAL CHRISTIANS IX. A LABORATORY OF SECTS X. THE DOUCHOBORTZI XI. THE MOLOKANES XII. THE STOUNDISTS XIII. THE MERCHANTS OF PARADISE XIV. THE JUMPERS AND THE HOLY BROTHERS XV. THE LITTLE GODS XVI. THE FOLLOWERS OF GRIGORIEFF XVII. THE NAPOLEONITES XVIII. THE DIVINE MEN XIX. THE RELIGION OF RASPUTIN XX. THE INSPIRED SEERS XXI. THE RELIGION OF SISTER HELEN XXII. THE SELF-MUTILATORS

B. THE NON-SECTARIAN VISIONARIES

 I. THE BROTHERS OF DEATH II. THE DIVINITY OF FATHER IVAN III. AMONG THE MIRACLE-WORKERS

C. THE RISING FLOOD

 I. THE MAHOMETAN VISIONARIES II. THE RELIGION OP THE POLAR MARSEILLAIS III. THE RELIGION OF THE GREAT CANDLE IV. THE NEW ISRAEL V. CONCLUSION

PART II

THE SALVATION OF THE WEALTHY

A. RELIGION AND ECONOMY

 I. THE MORMONS, OR LATTER-DAY SAINTS II. THE RELIGION OF BUSINESS III. THE ADEPTS OF THE SUN OF SUNS

B. RELIGION AND MIRACLES

 I. THE CHRISTIAN SCIENTISTS II. SCHLATTER, THE MIRACLE-MAN

PART III

THE DEPTHS OF THE SUBCONSCIOUS MIND

 I. SECTS IN FRANCE AND ELSEWHERE II. THE RELIGION OF MURDER III. THE REINCARNATIONISTS' PARADISE CONCLUSION

MODERN SAINTS AND SEERS

PART I

THE SALVATION OF THE POOR

A. THE ORGANISED SECTS

The tragic death of the monk Rasputin made a deep impression upon thecivilised world, and truth was lost to view amid the innumerable legendsthat grew up around his life and activities. One leading questiondominated all discussions:--How could an individual so lacking inrefinement and culture influence the life of a great nation, and becomein indirect fashion one of the main factors in the struggle against theCentral Powers? Through what miracle did he succeed in making anyimpression upon the thought and conduct of a social order infinitelysuperior to himself?

Psychologists are fascinated by the career of this adventurer whoploughed so deep a furrow in the field of European history; but inseeking to detach the monk from his background, we run the risk ofentirely failing to comprehend the mystery of his influence, itself theproduct of a complex and little understood environment. The misery ofthe Russian people, combined with their lack of education, contributedlargely towards it, for the desire to escape from material sufferingdrove them to adopt the weirdest systems of salvation for the sake ofdeliverance and forgetfulness. 

The perception of the ideal is often very acute among the uneducated. They accept greedily every new "message" that is offered them, but alas, they do not readily distinguish the true from the false, or the genuinesaint from the impostor. 

The orthodox clergy of the old Russian régime, recruited under deplorableconditions, attained but rarely the moral and intellectual eminencenecessary to inspire their flock with feelings of love and confidence;while, on the other hand, the false prophets and their followers, vigorously persecuted by official religion, easily gained for themselvesthe overwhelming attraction of martyrdom. Far from lessening the numbersof those who deserted the established church, persecution only increasedthem, and inflamed the zeal of its victims, so that they clung morepassionately than ever to the new dogmas and their hunted exponents. 

These sects and doctrines, though originating among the peasantry, didnot fail to spread even to the large towns, and waves of collectivehysteria, comparable to the dances of death of the Middle Ages, sweptaway in their train all the hypersensitives and neurotics that abound inthe modern world. Even the highest ranks of Russian society did notescape the contagion. 

We shall deal in these pages with the most recent and interesting sects, and with those that are least known, or perhaps not known at all. Beginning with the doctrines of melancholia, of tenderness, of suffering, of exalted pietism, and of social despair--which, whether spontaneous orinspired, demoniac or divine, undoubtedly embody many of the mysteriousaspirations of the human soul--we shall find ourselves in a strange andmoving world, peopled by those who accomplish, as a matter of course, acts of faith, courage and endurance, foreign to the experience of mostof us. 

These pages must be read with an indulgent sympathy for the humble inspirit who adventure forth in search of eternal truth. We mightparaphrase on their behalf the memorable discourse of the Athenianstatesman: "When you have been initiated into the mystery of their soulsyou will love better those who in all times have sought to escape frominjustice. "

We should feel for them all the more because for so long they have beeninfinitely unhappy and infinitely abused. Against the dark background ofthe abominations committed by harsh rulers and worthless officials, thespectacle of these simple souls recalls those angels described by Dante, who give scarcely a sign of life and yet illuminate by their verypresence the fearful darkness of hell; or those beautiful Greeksarcophagi upon which fair and graceful scenes are depicted upon abackground of desolation. These "pastorals" of religious faith have astrangely archaic atmosphere, and I venture to think that my readers willenjoy the contemplation of such virgin minds, untouched by science, intheir swift and effortless communings with the divine. 

The mental profundities of the _moujik_ exhale sweetness and faith likemystic flowers opening under the breath of the Holy Spirit. In them, asin the celebrated _Psychomachy_ of Prudence, the Christian virtues meetwith the shadows of forgotten gods, Holy Faith is linked to Idolatry, Humility and Pride go hand in hand, and Libertinism seeks shelter beneaththe veils of Modesty. 

This thirst for the Supreme Good will in time find its appeasement in thejust reforms brought by an organised democracy to a long-sufferingpeople. Some day it may be that order, liberty and happiness shallprevail in the Muscovite countries, and their inhabitants no longer needto seek salvation by fleeing from reality. Then there will exist onearth a new paradise, wherein God, to use Saint Theresa's expression, shall henceforth "take His delight. "

CHAPTER I

THE NEGATIVISTS

The most propitious and fertile soil in which collective mania can growis that of unhappiness. Famine, unjust taxation, unemployment, persecution by local authorities, and so on, frequently lead to a dullhatred for the existing social, moral and religious order, which thesimple-minded peasant takes to be the direct cause of his misfortunes. 

Thus it was that the Negativists denied everything--God, the Devil, heaven, hell, the law, and the power of the Tsar. They taught thatthere is no such thing as right, religion, property, marriage, familyor family duties. All those have been invented by man, and it is manwho has created God, the Devil, and the Tsar. 

In the record of the proceedings taken against one of the principalupholders of this sect, we find the following curious conversationbetween him and the judge. 

"Your religion?"

"I have none. "

"In what God do you believe?"

"In none. Your God is your own, like the Devil, for you have createdboth. They belong to you, like the Tsar, the priests, and theofficials. "

These people believe neither in generosity nor in gratitude. Men giveaway only what is superfluous, and the superfluous is not theirs. Labour should be free; consequently they kept no servants. Theyrejected both trade and money as useless and unjust. "Give to thyneighbour what thou canst of that of which he has need, and he in turnwill give thee what thou needest. " Love should be entirely free. Marriage is an absurdity and a sin, invented by man. All human beingsare free, and a woman cannot belong to any one man, or a man to any onewoman. 

Here are some extracts taken from some other legal records. Two of thebelievers were brought before the judge, accompanied by a child. 

"Is this your wife?" the judge inquired of the man. 

"No, she is not my wife. "

"How is it then that you live together?"

"We live together, but she is not mine. She belongs to herself. "

Turning to the woman, the judge asked:

"Is this your husband?"

"He is not _mine_. He does not belong to me, but to himself. "

"And the child? Is he yours?"

"No, he is not ours. He lives with us; he is of our blood; but hebelongs to himself. "

"But the coat you are wearing--is that yours?" demanded the exasperatedjudge. 

"It is on my back, but it is not mine. It belonged once to a sheep;now it covers me; but who can say whose it will be to-morrow?"

The Negativists invented, long before Tolstoi, the doctrine of inactionand non-resistance to evil. They were deceived, robbed and ruined, butwould not apply to the law, or to the police. Their method ofreasoning and their way of speaking had a peculiar charm. A solicitorwho visited one of the Siberian prisons reports the following detailsconcerning a man named Rojnoff. Arrested and condemned to be deportedfor vagabondage, he escaped repeatedly, but was at length imprisoned. The inspector was calling the roll of the prisoners, but Rojnoffrefused to answer to his name. Purple with rage, the inspectorapproached him and asked, "What is your name?"

"It is you who have a name. I have none. "

After a series of questions and answers exchanged between the ever morefurious official and the prisoner, who remained perfectly calm, Rojnoffwas flogged--but in spite of raw and bleeding wounds he still continuedto philosophise. 

"Confess the truth, " stormed the inspector. 

"Seek it, " replied the peasant, "for yourself, for indeed you have needof it. As to me, I keep my truth for myself. Let me be quiet--that isall I ask. "

The solicitor visited him several months later, and implored him togive his name, so that he might obtain his passport and permission torejoin his wife and children. 

"But I have no need of all that, " he said. "Passports, laws, names--all those are yours. Children, family, property, class, marriage--so many of your cursed inventions. You can give me only onesingle thing--quietness. "

The Siberian prisons swarmed with these mysterious beings. Poor souls!Their one desire was to quit as soon as possible this vale of injusticeand of tears!

CHAPTER II

THE WHITE-ROBED BELIEVERS

Sometimes this longing for a better world, where suffering would becaused neither by hunger nor by laws, took touching and poetic forms. 

About the month of April, 1895, all eyes in the town of Simbirsk wereturned upon a sect founded by a peasant named Pistzoff. These poorcountryfolk protested against the injustices of the world by robingthemselves in white, "like celestial angels. "

"We do not live as we should, " taught Pistzoff, an aged, white-hairedman. "We do not live as our fathers lived. We should act withsimplicity, and follow the truth, conquering our bodily passions. Thelife that we lead now cannot continue long. This world will perish, andfrom its ruins will arise another, a better world, wherein all will berobed in white, as we are. "

The believers lived very frugally. They were strict vegetarians, and ateneither meat nor fish. They did not smoke or drink alcohol, andabstained from tea, milk and eggs. They took only two meals daily--atten in the morning, and six in the evening. Everything that they wore orused they made with their own hands--boots, hats, underclothing, evenstoves and cooking utensils. 

The story of Pistzoff's conversion inevitably recalls that of Tolstoi. He was a very rich merchant when, feeling himself inspired by heavenlytruth, he called his employés to him and gave them all that he had, including furniture and works of art, retaining nothing but whitegarments for himself and his family. His wife protested vehemently, especially when Pistzoff forbade her to touch meat, on account of thesuffering endured by animals when their lives are taken from them. Theold lady did not share his tastes, and firmly upheld a contrary opinion, declaring that animals went gladly to their death! Pistzoff then fetcheda fowl, ordered his wife to hold it, and procured a hatchet with which tokill it. While threatening the poor creature he made his wife observeits anguish and terror, and the fowl was saved at the same time as thesoul of Madame Pistzoff, who admitted that fowls, at any rate, do not gogladly into the cooking-pot. 

The number of Pistzoff's followers increased daily, and the sect of the"White-robed Believers" was formed. Their main tenet being_loving-kindness_, they lived peacefully and harmed none, while awaitingthe supreme moment when "the whole world should become white. "

For the rest, the white-robed ones and their prophet followed thedoctrines of the _molokanes_, who drank excessive quantities of milkduring Lent--hence their name. This was one of the most flourishing ofall the Russian sects. Violently opposed to all ceremonies, theyrecognised neither religious marriages, churches, priests nor dogmas, claiming that the whole of religion was contained in the Old and NewTestaments. Though well-educated, they submitted meekly to a communalauthority, chosen from among themselves, and led peaceful and honestworking lives. All luxuries, even down to feminine ornaments or daintytoilettes, were banned. They considered war a heathen invention--merely"assassination on a large scale"--and though, when forced into militaryservice, they did their duty as soldiers in peace-time, the moment warwas in view it was their custom to throw away their arms and quietlydesert. There were no beggars and no poor among them, for all helped oneanother, the richer setting aside one-tenth of their income for the lessfortunate. 

Hunted and persecuted by the government, they multiplied nevertheless, and when banished to far-away districts they ended by transforming thewaste, uncultivated lands into flourishing gardens. 

CHAPTER III

THE STRANGLERS

A sect no less extraordinary than the last was that of the Stranglers(_douchiteli_). It originated towards the end of 1874, and profited bya series of law cases, nearly all of which ended in acquittal. TheStranglers flourished especially in the Tzarevokokschaisk district, andfirst attained notoriety under the following circumstances. 

A large number of deaths by strangling had been recorded, and theirfrequency began to arouse suspicion. Whether they were due to somecriminal organisation, or to a series of suicidal impulses, the localpolice were long unable to decide, but in the end the culprits werediscovered. 

Were they, however, in reality culpable?

The unfortunate peasants, after much reflection, had come to theconclusion that death is not terrible, but that what is indubitably tobe feared is the last agony--the difficult departure from terrestriallife. They decided, therefore, to come to the assistance of the DeathAngel, and, when any sufferer approached the final struggle, hisneighbours or relatives would carry him off to some isolated spot, tieup his head firmly but kindly in a cushion--and soon all was over. 

Before, however, they had recourse to such drastic measures, they wouldinquire from the wizards (or _znachar_) of the district, doctors beingalmost unknown, whether the invalid still had any chance of recovery, and it was only after receiving a negative reply that the piousceremony took place. We say "pious" because there is somethingstrangely pathetic in this "crowning of the martyrs, " as the peasantscalled it. Arising in the first place from compassion, the motive forthe deed was, after all, a belief in the need for human sacrifice. Theinvalid who consents to give up his life for the honour of heavenaccomplishes thereby an act of sublime piety; but what merit has he whodies only from necessity?

The corpses were buried in the forest and covered with plants andleaves, but no sign was left that might betray them to the suspiciousauthorities. When a member of the community disappeared, and thepolice made inquiries, they always had the greatest possible difficultyin finding his remains. Sometimes even his nearest relations did notknow where the "saviours of his soul" had hidden him. 

But there was one thing that marked the discovery of a dead Strangler. His body never bore any trace of violence, and as dissection alwaysproved, in addition, the existence of some more or less seriousdisease, the sham "murderers" were eventually left in peace. A smalllocal paper, the _Volgar_ (April, 1895), from which these facts aretaken, reports that several actions brought against them ended in theiracquittal. 

Lord Avebury recounts that certain cannibal tribes kill those of theirmembers who have reached the stage of senile decay, and make them thesubstance of a more or less succulent repast. These savages act, nodoubt, whether consciously or unconsciously, from some perception ofthe misery and uselessness of old age, but the Russian peasants cannotbe compared to them. The Stranglers are not moved by any unconscioussentiment. Their belief is the logical application of a doctrine ofpessimism, whose terrible consequences they have adopted, although theyknow not its terminology. What is the life of a _moujik_ worth?Nothing, or nearly nothing. Is it not well, then, to accelerate thecoming of deliverance? Let us end the life, and, snapping the chainsthat bind us to mortals, offer it as a sacrifice to heaven! So reasonthese simple creatures, inexorable in their logic, and weighed down byuntold misery. 

CHAPTER IV

THE FUGITIVES

The suffering of a people nourishes the spirit of rebellion, enablingit to come to birth and to survive. There are some religious sectsbased exclusively upon popular discontent. The _biegouny_, orFugitives, did nothing but flee from one district to another. Theywandered throughout Russia with no thought of home or shelter. Thosewho joined the sect destroyed their passports, which were considered awork of Satan, and adopted a belief in the Satanic origin of the State, the Church and the Law. They repudiated the institution of marriage, the payment of taxes, and all submission to authority. Their specialimagery included, among other things, the devil offering a candle tothe Tsar, and inviting him to become the agent for Satanic work uponearth. Sometimes their feelings led them to commit acts of violence;one, for instance, would interrupt divine service; another would strikethe priest. A peasant named Samarin threw himself upon the priest in aRussian church, forced him away from the altar, and, having trampledthe Holy Sacraments under foot, cried out, "I tread upon the work ofSatan!"

When arrested and condemned to penal servitude for life, Samarin was indespair because the death sentence had not been passed, so sure was hethat he would have gone straight to heaven as a reward for his heroicexploit. 

CHAPTER V

THE SOUTAÏEVTZI

The Soutaïevtzi (founded in 1880 by a working-man of Tver, namedSoutaïeff) scoffed at the clergy, the ikons, the sacraments, andmilitary service, while upholding the principle of communal possession. They very soon became notorious. Soutaïeff travelled all over thecountry preaching that true Christianity consists in the love of one'sneighbour, and was welcomed with open arms by Tolstoi himself. Hetaught that there was only one religion, the religion of love and pity, and that churches, priests, religious ceremonies, angels and devils, were mere inventions which must be rejected if one wished to live inconformity with the truth. 

As to Paradise, when all the principles of love and compassion wererealised upon earth, earth itself would be Paradise. Private ownershipbeing the cause of all misery, as well as of crimes and lies, it mustbe abolished, together with armies and war. Further, Soutaïeffpreached non-resistance to evil, and the avoidance of all violence. One of his sons, when enrolled as a conscript, refused to carry arifle. Arguments and punishments had no effect. He proved that heavenitself was opposed to the bearing of arms by quoting the Gospel to allwho tried to compel him; and in the end he was imprisoned. 

Neither did Soutaïeff allow that a man should be judged by hisneighbour. "Judge not, that ye be not judged, " was his motto, and hislife filled his followers with enthusiasm, and many besides withastonishment. This uncultured peasant, who had the courage to throw onthe fire the money he had earned as a mason in St. Petersburg, whocarried the idea of compassion to such lengths that he followed thievesin order to give them good flour in place of the bad that they hadstolen from him by mistake--this simple-minded being, whose only desirewas to suffer for the "truth, " possessed without doubt the soul of asaint and a visionary. 

CHAPTER VI

THE SONS OF GOD

The "sons of God" held that men were really gods, and that as divinityis manifested in our fellows and in ourselves, it is sufficient tooffer prayers unto--our neighbours! Every man being a god, there areas many Christs as there are men, as many Holy Virgins as there arewomen. 

The "sons of God" held assemblies at which they danced wildly, firsttogether and then separately, until the moment when the women, insupreme ecstasy, turned from the left, and the men from the right, towards the rising sun. The dance continued until all reached a stateof hysterical excitement. Then a voice was heard--"Behold the HolySpirit!"--and the whole company, emitting cries and groans, wouldpursue the dizzy performance with redoubled vigour until they fell tothe ground exhausted. 

Their sect originated in the neighbourhood of a great hill, where dwelta man named Philipoff with his disciples. He had retired there to workagainst the influence of anti-Christ, and it was there that Godappeared to him, and said, "Truth and divinity dwell in your ownconscience. Neither drink nor marry. Those among you who are alreadymarried should live as brothers and sisters. "

Women were held in high esteem by the "sons of God, " being venerated as"mothers or nieces of the Saviour. "

CHAPTER VII

THE TOLSTOYANS

The numerous admirers of Count Tolstoi will find in his writings somederivations, whether conscious or unconscious, from the principleselaborated by many of the Russian sects. The doctrine ofnon-resistance, or inaction, the abolition of the army, vegetarianism, the defiance of law, and of dogmatic Christianity, together with manyother conceptions which either scandalised or enraptured his readers, were already widespread among the Russian peasantry; though Tolstoi wasable to give them new forms of expression and an original, ifdisquieting, philosophic basis. 

But even as the products of the earth which we consume return to earthagain, so do ideas and doctrines ever return to the source from whichthey sprang. A great reformer usually gathers his ideas from hisenvironment, until, transformed by the workings of his brain, theyreact once more upon those to whom they actually owed their origin. 

Renan has traced very accurately the evolution of a religious leader, and Tolstoi passed through all its logical phases, only stopping shortof the martyrdom necessary ere he could enter the ranks of the prophets. 

Imbued with the hopes and dreams that flourished all around him, hebegan, at a ripe age and in full possession of his faculties, toexpress his philosophy in poetic and alluring parables, the hostilityof the government having only served to fire his enthusiasms andembitter his individual opinions. After first declaring that themasters of men are their equals, he taught later on that they are theirpersecutors, and finally, in old age, arrived at the conclusion thatall who rule or direct others are simply criminals!

"You are not at all obliged to fulfil your duties, " he wrote, in the_Life and Death of Drojine_, 1895, dedicated to a Tolstoyan martyr. "You could, if you wished, find another occupation, so that you wouldno longer have to tyrannise over men. . . . You men of power, emperorsand kings, you are not Christians, and it is time you renounced thename as well as the moral code upon which you depend in order todominate others. "

It would be difficult to give a complete list either of the beliefs ofthe Tolstoyans, or of their colonies, in many of which members of thehighest aristocracy were to be found. 

"We have in Russia tens of thousands of men who have refused to swearallegiance to the new Tsar, " wrote Tolstoi, a couple of years beforehis death, "and who consider military service merely a school formurder. "

We have no right to doubt his word--but did Tolstoi know all hisfollowers? Like all who have scattered seed, he was not in a positionto count it. But however that may be, he transformed the highestaspirations of man's soul into a noble philosophy of human progress, and attracted the uneducated as well as the cultured classes by hisgenuine desire for equality and justice. 

Early in June, 1895, several hundreds of _verigintzi_ (members of asect named after Veregine, their leader) came from the south of Russiato the Karsk district. The government's suspicions were aroused, andat Karsk the pilgrims were stopped, and punished for having attemptedto emigrate without special permission. Inquiries showed that all wereTolstoyans, who practised the doctrine of non-resistance to evil on alarge scale. For their co-religionists in Elisabethpol suddenlyrefused to bear arms, and nine soldiers also belonging to the sectrepeated without ceasing that "our heavenly Father has forbidden us tokill our fellowmen. " Those who were in the reserve sent in theirpapers, saying that they wished to have nothing more to do with thearmy. 

One section of the _verigintzi_ especially distinguished themselves bythe zeal with which they practised the Tolstoyan doctrines. Theyreverenced their leader under the name of "General Tolstoi, " gave upsugar as well as meat, drank only tea and ate only bread. They werecalled "the fasters, " and their gentleness became proverbial. In thevillage of Orlovka they were exposed to most cruel outrages, theinhabitants having been stirred up against them by the priests andofficials. They were spat upon, flogged, and generally ill-treated, but never ceased to pray, "O God, help us to bear our misery. " Theirmeekness at last melted the hearts of their persecutors, who, becominginfected by their religious ardour, went down on their knees beforethose whom they had struck with whips a few minutes before. 

CHAPTER VIII

THE SPIRITUAL CHRISTIANS

The Slavonic atmosphere exhales an intense longing for the ideal andfor heaven. Often a kind of religious ecstasy seems to sweep over thewhole length and breadth of the Russian territories, and Tolstoi'scelebrated doctrines reflected the dreamy soul of the _moujik_ and theteachings of many Russian martyrs. It would, however, be a mistake tosuppose that it is only the peasants buried in the depths of thecountry who provide favourable soil for the culture of the religiousbacillus. It is the same with all classes--merchants, peasants, labourers and aristocrats. 

The working-classes, especially those of the large towns, usually offermore resistance to the influence of religious fanatics, but inPetrograd and Moscow they are apt to follow the general current. Lackof space forbids us to study in all their picturesque details the birthand growth of religious sects in these surroundings. We must confineourselves to one of the more recent manifestations--that of themysterious "spiritual Christians. "

In 1893, a man named Michael Raboff arrived in St. Petersburg. Peasantby birth, carpenter by trade, he immediately began to preach the tenetsof his "spiritual Christianity. " He became suspect, and with hisfriend Nicholas Komiakoff was deported to a far-distant neighbourhood;but in spite of this his seed began to bear fruit, for the entiredistrict where he and Komiakoff were sent to work was soon won over tothe new religion. The director himself, his wife, and all his workmenembraced it, and though the workshops were closed by the police, thevarious members distributed themselves throughout the town andcontinued to spread Raboff's "message. " Borykin, the master-carpenter, took employment under a certain Grigorieff, and succeeded in convertingall his fellow-workers. Finally Grigorieff's house was turned into achurch for the new sect, and an illiterate woman named Vassilisa becametheir prophetess. Under the influence of the general excitement, shewould fall into trances and give extravagant and incomprehensiblediscourses, while her listeners laughed, danced and wept ecstatically. By degrees the ceremonial grew more complex, and took forms worthy of acult of unbalanced minds. 

At the time when the police tried to disperse the sect it possessed aquite considerable number of adherents; but it died out in May, 1895, scarcely two years after its commencement. 

The "spiritual Christians" called themselves brothers and sisters, andgave to Raboff the name of grandfather, and to the woman Vassilisa thatof mother. They considered themselves "spiritual Christians" becausethey lived according to the spirit of Christianity. For the rest, their doctrine was innocent enough, and, but for certain extravagancesand some dangerous dogmas borrowed from other sects, their diffusionamong the working-classes of the towns might even have been desirable. Sexual chastity was one of their main postulates, and they alsorecommended absolute abstention from meat, spirits, and tobacco. Butat the same time they desired to abolish marriage. 

When the police raided Grigorieff's workshops, they found there aboutfifty people stretched on the ground, spent and exhausted as a resultof the excessive efforts which Raboff's cult demanded of them. Attheir meetings a man or woman would first read aloud a chapter fromHoly Scripture. The listeners would make comments, and one of the moreintelligent would expound the selected passage. Growing more and moreanimated, he would finally reach a state of ecstasy which communicateditself to all present. The whole assembly would cry aloud, groan, gesticulate and tear their hair. Some would fall to the ground, whileothers foamed at the mouth, or rent their garments. Suddenly one ofthe most uplifted would intone a psalm or hymn which, beginning withfamiliar words, would end in incoherency, the whole company singingaloud together, and covering the feet of their "spiritual mother" withkisses. 

CHAPTER IX

A LABORATORY OF SECTS

We will now travel to the south of Russia, and examine more closelywhat might be called a laboratory of sects, or in other words abreeding-ground of religions whose idealism, whether foolish orsublime, is often sanctified by the blood of believers, and descendslike dew from Hermon into the midst of our busy civilisation. 

The mystical tendencies of the popular soul sometimes develop in afashion little short of prodigious, and to no country do we owe so manyremarkable varieties of religious faith as to that portion of Russiawhich lies between Kherson and Nicolaïev. There is seen in fullactivity the greatest religious laboratory in the world; thereoriginate, as a rule, the morbid bacilli which invade the rest ofRussia; and there do sects grow up like mushrooms, only to disappearwith equal rapidity. 

An orthodox missionary named Schalkinsky, who was concerned especiallywith the erring souls of the region of Saratov, has published a work inwhich he gives a fantastic picture of the events of quite recent years. He was already the author of several books dealing with the sect of the_bezpopovtzi_, and his high calling and official position combine togive authority to his words. 

When we consider the immense variety of these sects, we can easilyimagine what takes place in every small village that becomes possessedof the craving for religious perfection. Prophets, gods and demi-gods, holy spirits and apostles, all kinds of saints and mystics, followthick and fast upon one another's heels, seeking to gain the ascendancyover the pious souls of the villagers. Some are sincere and genuinelyconvinced believers; others, mere shameless impostors; but all, manifesting the greatest ardour and eloquence, traverse thecountryside, imploring the peasants to "abandon their old beliefs andembrace the new holy and salutary dogmas. " The orthodox missionariesseem only to increase the babel by organising their own meetings underthe protection of the local authorities. 

Some of the sectarians will take part in public discussions, either inthe open air or in the churches, but most of them content themselveswith smiling mockingly at the assertions of the "anti-Christian faith"(i. E. The orthodox official religion). With the new régime conditionsmay undergo a radical change, but in former times religious doubts, when too openly manifested by the followers of the "new truths, " werepunished by imprisonment or deportation. 

Sometimes the zeal of the missionaries carried them too far, for, notcontent with reporting the culprits to the ecclesiastical authorities, they would denounce them publicly in their writings. The venerableFather Arsenii, author of fifteen pamphlets against the _molokanes_, delivered up to justice in this way sufficient individuals to fill alarge prison; and another orthodox missionary crowned his propaganda byprinting false accusations against those who refused to accept thetruth as taught by him. 

In a centre like Pokourleï, which represented in miniature the generalunrest of the national soul, there were to be found among theclassified sects more than a dozen small churches, each having its ownworshippers and its own martyrs. An illiterate peasant, TheodoreKotkoff, formed what was called the "fair-spoken sect, " consisting of ahundred and fifty members who did him honour because he invented a newsort of "Holy Communion" with a special kind of gingerbread. Another, Chaïdaroff, nicknamed "Money-bags, " bought a forest and built a housewherein dwelt fifteen aged "holy men, " who attracted the wholeneighbourhood. Many men in the prime of life followed the example ofthe aged ones, and retired to live in the forest, while women went ineven greater numbers and for longer periods. Husbands grew uneasy, andbitter disputes took place, in which one side upheld the moralsuperiority of the holy men, while the other went so far as to forbidthe women to go and confess to them. One peasant claimed to beinspired by the "Holy Ghost, " and promenaded the village, summer andwinter, in a long blouse without boots or trousers, riding astride agreat stick on which he had hung a bell and a flag, and announcingpublicly the reign of Anti-Christ. In addition the village was visitedby orthodox missionaries, but, as the Reverend Father Schalkinskynaïvely confesses, "the inhabitants fled them like the plague. " Theyinterviewed, however, the so-called chiefs of the new religions, wholistened to them with gravity and made some pretence of being convincedby the purveyors of official truth. 

CHAPTER X

THE DOUCHOBORTZI

The religious ferment of South Russia was due to some special causes, its provinces having served since the seventeenth century as lands ofexile for revolutionaries of all kinds, religious, political andsocial. Dangerous criminals were also sent there, and a population ofthis nature naturally received with open arms all who preachedrebellion against established principles and doctrines. 

About the year 1750, a Prussian non-commissioned officer, expatriatedon account of his revolutionary ideas, appeared in the neighbourhood ofKharkov. He taught the equality of man and the uselessness of publicauthority, and was the real founder of the _douchobortzi_, who believedin direct communion with the divinity by aid of the spirit which dwellsin all men. The sparks scattered by this unknown vagabond flared upsome time later into a conflagration which swept away artisans, peasants and priests, and embraced whole towns and villages. 

The beliefs of the sect were that the material world is merely a prisonfor our souls, and that our passions carry in themselves the germs ofour punishments. Nothing is more to be decried than the desire forworldly honour and glory. Did not Our Lord Himself say that He was notof this world? Emperors and kings reign only over the wicked andsinful, for honest men, like the _douchobortzi_, have nothing to dowith their laws or their authority. War is contrary to the will ofGod. Christ having declared that we are all brothers and sisters, thewords "father" and "mother" are illogical, and opposed to Histeachings. There is only one Father, the Father in Heaven, andchildren should call their parents by their Christian names. 

Except for these leading tenets, their doctrine was variable, and theynot only gave rise to about a hundred other sects, but were themselvesin a continual state of evolution and change. At one time it was theircustom to put to death all children who were diseased in mind or body. As God dwells in us, they said, we cannot condemn Him to inhabit a bodythat is diseased. One leader of the sect believed himself to be thejudge of the universe, and terrorised his co-religionists. Anotherordered all who betrayed the doctrines of the sect to be buried alive, and legal proceedings which were taken against him and lasted severalyears showed him to be responsible for twenty-one "religious murders. "

CHAPTER XI

THE MOLOKANES

A sect of considerable importance, that of the _molokanes_, owed itsorigin to the _douchobortzi_. It was founded by a sincere and ardentman named Oukleïne, about the end of the eighteenth century. _Moloko_means milk; hence the name of the sect, whose adherents drank nothingelse. 

Improving upon the principles of liberty professed by the_douchobortzi_, the _molokanes_ taught that "where the Holy Ghost is, there is liberty"; and as they believed the Holy Ghost to be inthemselves they consequently needed neither laws nor government. Hadnot Christ said that His true followers were not of this world? Down, then, with all law and all authority! The Apostle Paul states that allare equal, men and women, servants and masters; therefore, the Tsarbeing a man like other men, it is unnecessary to obey him. 

The Tsar has ten fingers and makes money; why then should not the_molokanes_ make it, who also have ten fingers? (This was the replygiven by some of them when brought up for trial on a charge ofmanufacturing false coinage. ) War is a crime, for the bearing of armshas been forbidden. (It is on record that soldiers belonging to thesect threw away their arms in face of the enemy in the Crimean War. )One should always shelter fugitives, in accordance with St. Matthewxxv. 35. Deserters or criminals--who knows why they flee? Laws areoften unjust, tribunals give verdicts to suit the wishes of theauthorities, and the authorities are iniquitous. Besides, the culpritsmay repent, and then the crime is wiped out. 

The _molokanes_ have always been led by clever and eloquent men. Uplifted by a sense of the constant presence of the Holy Ghost, theywould fall into ecstatic trances, fully convinced of their own divinityand desiring only to be transported to Heaven. 

Of this type was the peasant Kryloff, a popular agitator who inflamedthe whole of South Russia at the beginning of the nineteenth century. Intoxicated by the success of his oratory, he grew to believe in hisown mission of Saviour, and undertook a pilgrimage to St. Petersburg inorder to be made a priest of the "spiritual Christians. " Poorvisionary! He was flogged to death. 

Another _molokane_ leader was one Andreïeff, who long preached thecoming of the prophet Elijah. One fine day, excited by the eloquenceof his own discourses, he set forth with his followers to conquer the"promised land, " a rich and fertile district in the neighbourhood ofMount Ararat, but accomplished nothing save a few wounds gained inaltercations with the inhabitants. On returning to his own country, hewas deported to Siberia for having hidden some dangerous criminals fromjustice. 

As the number of _molokanes_ increased, they decided to emigrate _enmasse_ to the Caucasus. Their kind actions and enthusiastic songsattracted crowds of the poor and sick, as well as many who weretroubled by religious doubts. At their head marched TerentiiBezobrazoff, believed by his followers to be the prophet Elijah, whoannounced that when his mission was accomplished he would ascend toHeaven to rejoin God, his Father, Who had sent him. But alas, faithdoes not always work miracles! The day being fixed beforehand, abouttwo thousand believers assembled to witness the ascension of theirElijah. By the prophet's instructions, the crowd knelt down and prayedwhile Elijah waved his arms frantically. Finally, with haggard mien, he flung himself down the hillside, and fell to the ground. Thedisillusioned spectators seized him and delivered him up to justice. He spent many years in prison, but in the end confessed his errors andwas pardoned. 

Many other Elijahs wished to be transported to heaven, but all met withthe same fate as Bezobrazoff. These misfortunes, however, did notweaken the religious ardour of the _molokanes_. A regular series of"false Christs, " as the Russians called them, tormented theimaginations of the southern peasantry. Some believed themselves to beElijah, some the angel Gabriel; while others considered themselves newsaviours of the world. 

One of these latter made his début in the rôle of Saviour about 1840, and after having drained the peasants of Simbirsk and Saratov of money, fled to Bessarabia with his funds and his disciples. Later hereturned, accompanied by twelve feminine "angels, " and with them wasdeported to Siberia. 

But the popular mind is not discouraged by such small matters. Side byside with the impostors there existed men of true faith, simple anddevout dreamers. Taking advantage of freedom to expound the Gospel, they profited by it for use and abuse, and it seemed to be a race as towho should be the first to start a new creed. 

Even as the _douchobortzi_ had given birth to the _molokanes_, so werethe latter in turn the parents of the _stoundists_. 

CHAPTER XII

THE STOUNDISTS

This sect believed that man could attain to perfection of life andhealth only by avoiding the fatigue of penance and fastings; and thatall men should equally enjoy the gifts of Nature, Jesus Christ havingsuffered for all. Land and capital should belong to the community, andshould be equally divided, all men being brothers, and sons of the sameGod. Wealth being thus equalised, it was useless to try to amass it. Trade was similarly condemned, and a system of exchange of goodsadvocated. The _stoundists_ did not attend church, and avoidedpublic-houses, "those sources of disease and misery. " The governmentmade every effort to crush them, but the more they were persecuted, themore they flourished. The seers and mystics among them were consideredparticularly dangerous, and were frequently flogged and imprisoned--infact, the sect as a whole was held by the Russian administration, to beone of the most dangerous in existence. It originated in the year1862, and from then onwards its history was one of continuous martyrdom. 

Like the _molokanes_, the _stoundists_ refused to reverence the ikons, the sacraments, or the hierarchy of the orthodox church, and consideredthe Holy Scriptures to be simply a moral treatise. They abominatedwar, referring to it as "murder _en masse_, " and never entered a courtof law, avoiding all quarrels and arguments, and holding it to be themost degrading of actions for a man to raise his hand against hisfellow. All their members learnt to read and write, in order to beable to study the Scriptures. They recognised no power or authoritysave that of God, refused to take oaths, and protested against thepublic laws on every possible occasion. Their doctrine was really amixture of the _molokane_ teachings and of Communism as practised bythe German colonists, led by Gutter, who settled in Russia about theend of the eighteenth century and were banished to New Russia in 1818. 

Strengthened by persecution and smacking of the soil, it was no wonderthat _stoundism_ became the religion _par excellence_ of the Russian_moujik_, assuming in time proportions that were truly disquieting tothe authorities. 

CHAPTER XIII

THE MERCHANTS OF PARADISE

Side by side with these flourishing sects whose followers could benumbered by millions, there existed other communities, founded uponnaïve and child-like superstitions, strange fruits of the tree offaith. The members of one of these believed that it was only necessaryto climb upon the roofs in order to take flight to heaven. Thedeceptions practised on them by charlatans, the relentless persecutionof the government, even the loss of reason, all counted for nothing ifonly they might enjoy some few moments of supreme felicity and live inharmony with the divine! To experience such ecstasy they despoiledthemselves of their worldly goods, and gave away their money toimpostors in exchange for pardon for their sins. 

The famous sect called the "Merchants of Paradise" was founded by apeasant, Athanasius Konovaloff. Together with his son Andrew, hepreached at Osikovka, from 1885 to 1892, the absolution of sins inreturn for offerings "in kind. " There was need for haste, he declared. Time was flying, and there were but few vacant places left in Paradise. These places were of two kinds--those of the first class, at tenroubles each, which enabled the purchaser to repose upon a celestialsofa; and those of the second class, at five roubles, whose occupiershad to spend eternity seated upon footstools. The credulous peasantsactually deprived themselves of food in order to procure their places. 

In 1887, a man who was much respected in the village sold his crops, and went to buy himself one of the first-class places. His son heardof it, and was in despair over this lavish expenditure of ten roubles. Why, he demanded, could not his father be content with a second-classplace, like so many of their neighbours?

The dispute was brought into the courts, and the old man loudlylamented the criminal indifference of his son. 

"In my poor old age, " he cried, "after having worked so hard, am I tobe condemned to sit for ever on a footstool for the sake of fiveroubles?"

Then, addressing his offspring--"And you, my son, are you not ashamedso to disregard the future life of your parent, who maintained youthroughout your childhood? It is a great sin with which you areburdening your soul. "

Places in Paradise were promised not only to the living, but also tothose who had omitted to secure them before departing on their eternaljourney. The relatives would apply to the prophet, who fixed the priceaccording to the fortune left by the deceased. 

A curious ceremonial always accompanied the payment of money toKonovaloff. It was first placed upon the ground; Konovaloff would liftit with his teeth and lay it on the table; and it was finally put inhis pocket by his son, Andrew. He was also assisted in his operationsby two old women. 

CHAPTER XIV

THE JUMPERS AND THE HOLY BROTHERS

The Jumpers, or _sopouny_, founded by one Petroff, considered it theirduty to blow upon one another during Divine Service. This arose from amisinterpretation of the ninth verse of the fortieth psalm. It wasalso their custom to pile benches one upon another and pray from thetop of them, until some hysterical female fell to the ground in areligious paroxysm. One of those present would then lean over her andact the scene of the resurrection. Petroff was a great admirer of KingDavid, and would sing his psalms to the accompaniment of dancing, likethe psalmist before the Ark. His successor, Roudometkin, reorganisedthe Jumpers, and gave their performances a rhythmic basis. Foreseeingthe near advent of the Saviour, he caused himself to be crowned king ofthe "spiritual Christians" in 1887, and married a "spiritual" wife, though without discarding his "material" one. His successors allcalled themselves "Kings of the spiritual Christians, " but they had notthe authority of poor Roudometkin, who had been removed to prison inSolovetzk. 

We may class with the Jumpers the Holy Brothers, or _chalapouts_, whobelieved in the indwelling presence of the Holy Ghost. They werevisionaries of a more exalted kind, and often attained to such a stateof religious enthusiasm that in their longing to enter heaven theyclimbed to the roofs of houses and hurled themselves into space. 

CHAPTER XV

THE LITTLE GODS

The sect of the "little gods, " or _bojki_, was founded about 1880 by apeasant named Sava. Highly impressionable by nature, and influenced bythe activities of at least a dozen different sects that flourished inhis native village (Derabovka, near Volsk), Sava ended by believinghimself to be God. 

Though naturally aggressive, and of an irascible temperament, he soonbecame as serious as a philosopher and as gentle as a lamb. Hisintelligence seemed to increase visibly. He discoursed like a maninspired, and said to the inhabitants of Derabovka:--

"If there be a God in Heaven, there must also be one on earth. And whynot? Is not the earth a creation of Heaven, and must it not resemblethat which created it? . . . Where then is this earthly God to befound? Where is the Virgin Mary? Where are the twelve apostles?"

The dreamer wandered about the village, uttering his thoughts aloud. At first men shrugged their shoulders at his strange questions. But hecontinued to hold forth, and in the end the peasants gathered round him. 

It was the sweetest moment of his life when the villagers of Derabovkaat last found the deity who had been sought so eagerly. For whom couldit be, if not Sava himself? . . . Thus Sava proclaimed himself God;gave to his kinsman Samouil the name of Saviour; to a peasant-woman ofa neighbouring village that of the Virgin Mary; and chose the twelveApostles and the Holy Ghost from among his acquaintance. Thenomination of the latter presented, however, some difficulties. TheHoly Ghost, argued the peasants, had appeared to Jesus by the riverJordan in the form of a dove, and how could one represent it by a man?They refused to do so, and decided that in future all birds of the dovespecies should be the Holy Ghost. 

The authorities began to seek out the "gods, " as they were calledlocally. Samouil was arrested and charged with being a false Saviour, but defended himself with such child-like candour that the tribunal wasbaffled. The movement therefore continued, and was indeed of a whollyinnocent nature, not in any way menacing the security of thegovernment, and filling with rapture all Sava's followers. 

It was the custom of the "little gods" to gather in some forest, andthere to hide the "Virgin Mary" in a leafy glade, and await her"apparition. " Sava himself, and Samouil, the "Saviour, " would beconcealed close at hand, and she would emerge from her hiding-place intheir company. The lookers-on then gave vent to loud cries of joy, andall united in glorifying the goodness of Heaven. The "Virgin" wore onthese occasions a rich and beautiful robe in which all the colours ofthe rainbow were blended. The company would gather round her, whilethe "Apostles" reverently kissed her feet. Sacred hymns were thensung, and the worshippers dispersed filled with unbounded ecstasy. 

CHAPTER XVI

THE FOLLOWERS OF GRIGORIEFF

The forms taken by religious mania are not always as harmless as in thecase of the "God Sava. " Ivan Grigorieff, founder of the RussianMormons, began by preaching that God created the world in six days, butby degrees he came to attack established religion as well as theexisting social order. According to him, the _molokanes_ were"pestilent, " the _douchobortzi_ were "destroyers of the faith, " and the_chlysty_ were "mad cattle. " There was only one truth, the truth ofGrigorieff!

The Bible should be interpreted "according to the spirit, " and as theApostle Paul had said that Christ was to be found in those who believedin Him, then Grigorieff could be no other than Christ. He went toTurkey, returned in the rôle of "Saviour, " and preached the necessityfor a "spiritual life. " Several women were chosen to share his lifeand that of the twelve "Apostles" whose duty it was to "glorify" him. 

Passing from one hallucination to another, he insisted on a generalcessation of labour. "Work not, " he said, "for I will be gentle andmerciful to you. You shall be like the birds who are nourished withoutneed to till the earth: Work not, and all shall be yours, even to thecorn stored away in the government granaries. "

And so the peasants of Gaï-Orlov left their fields unfilled, andcultivated nothing save hymns and prayers. They seemed to be upliftedas by some wave of dreamy, poetic madness. Even the unletteredimitated Grigorieff in composing psalms and hymns, some specimens ofwhich are to be found in Father Arsenii's collection. They breathe analmost infantile mysticism. 

 "The dweller in heaven, The King Salim, Saviour of the world, Shall descend upon earth. The clouds flee away, The light shines. . . . "

 "We will climb the mountain, It is Mount Sion that we climb, And we will sing like angels. "

When Grigorieff's mind began definitely to fail, and, forgetful ofdivine service, he passed his time in the company of his "spiritualwives, " doubt seized upon the members of his church, and they composeda melancholy psalm which was chanted to Grigorieff by his "Apostles. "

 "Father, Saviour, Hope of all men . . . Thou gavest us the spark, The spark of faith. But to-day, little father, Thou hidest the light, Thou hidest the light. . . . 

 Our life is changed. We weep for thy faith, Lost and deranged, We weep for thy holy life. Upon the Mount Sion There grew a vine of God. . . . "

Grigorieff appeared to be touched, and replied with a psalm whichexplained, in rhymed couplets, how the Holy Ghost (that is to say, Grigorieff) was walking in a garden when brigands appeared, and triedto carry him off--an allusion to some of his followers who had causeddissension by proclaiming themselves to be "Holy Ghosts. " But the sundescended upon the Garden of Paradise, the celestial garden . . . Andso on. 

One day, however, "Anti-Christ, " in the person of a travellingmagistrate, descended upon Gai-Orlov and carried off Grigorieff. Hewas sent to prison, where he died of poison administered by one of his"spiritual wives, " who was jealous of her rivals. But his teachingsdid not die with him. His work was continued by the peasantVerestchagin, with the help of twelve venerable "apostles. "

CHAPTER XVII

THE NAPOLEONITES

Imagination can scarcely conceive of some of the strange forms underwhich the thirst for religious truth in Southern Russia was revealed. In this great laboratory of sects, all the dreams of humanity had theirmore or less "inspired" representatives. Even the smallest town was inthe same case as, for example, the prison of Solovetzk, which wasusually inhabited by large numbers of sectarian leaders. A Mr. Sitzoff, who spent some time there, has published a description of thismodern Tower of Babel. 

It harboured, among others, a _douchoboretz_; a "god" of the Savapersuasion, with his wife, representing the "Holy Ghost"; a _chlyst_, who rotated indefatigably round a tub of water; a captain who claimedthe honour of brotherhood with Jesus Christ; a man named Pouchkin, whosupposed himself to be the Saviour reincarnated; a _skopetz_ who hadbrought a number of people from Moscow to be initiated into the sect ofthe Russian eunuchs; and the _staretz_ Israïl, a famous seer, whodesired to found a "Church Triumphant" among the inhabitants of theprison. 

These ardent reformers of religion made a terrible uproar during thehours for exercise, each one wishing to convert the rest, andfrequently the warders had to intervene, to save the terrified "HolyGhost, " for example, from the "brother of Christ" or the prophet Elijah. 

Before taking leave of these and other equally bizarre products of the"great laboratory, " we must mention the sect of the Napoleonites, somefew members of which were still to be found recently in SouthernRussia. William Hepworth Dixon, who visited the country in 1870, claims to have met some in Moscow, and according to him they were thenrapidly increasing in numbers. 

The _douchobortzi_ and the _molokanes_ were deeply impressed by theadvent of Napoleon the First. It seemed to them that a man who hadtaken part in so many heroic adventures must be an envoy of the Deity. They conceived it his mission to re-establish the throne of David andto put an end to all their misfortunes, and there was great joy amongthe "milk-drinkers" when the "Napoleonic mystery" was expounded to themby their leaders. It was arranged to send five _molokane_ delegates togreet the "heavenly messenger, " and five old men set forth, clad ingarments white as their beards. But they arrived too late. Napoleonhad left Russia after the disaster of 1812, and when the _molokanes_tried to follow him they were arrested on the banks of the Vistula andthrown into prison. 

The popular imagination, however, refused to abandon its idol, and theidea of Napoleon ascending into heaven continued to arouse muchenthusiasm. Many of the Napoleonites lamented the wickedness of hisenemies, who had driven him out of Russia, thus depriving mortals of asaviour from on high. 

At their meetings they spoke of Napoleon's heroic exploits, and kneltbefore his bust. It was said that when he entered Russia a star hadappeared in the sky, like that which heralded the birth of Christ; thathe was not dead, but had escaped from St. Helena by sea and was livingin Irkutsk; that one day the heavens would be torn open by a greatstorm, and Napoleon would appear as leader of the Slavonic people; thathe would put an end to all discord and, surrounded by angels and bravesoldiers, would re-establish justice and happiness on earth to thesound of trumpets. 

"The hour draws near!" This cry of supremest hope was ever upon thelips of the members of the Napoleonite church. 

But to become almost God was a promotion of which the "little corporal"had surely never dreamed!

CHAPTER XVIII

THE DIVINE MEN

The origin of this sect seems to be lost in the mists of the past. Some connect it with the teachings of Vishnu, some with mysteriouspractices of antiquity; but the "divine men" were certainly children ofthe Slavonic soil. 

Those who seek for resemblances may find certain analogies betweenthese adepts of "virginal virginity, " or of "the great garden of theTsar"--for both these names were applied to them--and the _adamites_ or_aryanists_; for eager minds seeking supreme salvation are apt to meetupon the great road that leads to deliverance. 

The rather sarcastic name of _chlysty_ (or flagellants, by which theywere also known) indicates one of the methods used by them in theirdesire to please the Lord. 

A life-and-death struggle, lasting for some centuries, took placebetween Russian orthodoxy and this sect whose socialistic ideasthreatened to overthrow the aristocratic dogmas of the official church. 

The real founder of the sect was a man named Philipoff, who lived aboutthe middle of the seventeenth century. According to him, Jesus Christwas only one of many Christs who have come to the succour of humanityduring the course of ages. The divine spirit incarnates in men of highmorality, so that Christs appear and disappear, living with and amongus from time to time. 

The chlysty, therefore, might always have one or more Christs amongthem; but all were not of equal standing. Some were great and somesmall!

Philipoff was convinced that he was the great Christ, having the rightto choose the twelve Apostles and the Holy Mother. By degrees he cameto think himself God the Father, and adopted a "divine son" in theperson of a peasant named Sousloff, who succeeded him as leader of thesect after his death. 

Another "Christ, " named Loupkin, who bestowed the title of "HolyVirgin" upon his wife, Akoumina, gave a great impetus to the growth ofthe sect. His followers proclaimed him their spiritual Tsar, andreceived him everywhere with imposing ceremonies. He allowed his feetand hands to be kissed and obeisances to be made to the "Virgin. " As aresult of his propaganda many prominent members of the orthodox churchwere won over. 

On the death of Akoumina, the rôle of Holy Virgin was taken by theCanoness Anastasia, of the convent of Ivanoff, and as time went on manyof the aristocracy of Moscow and other parts came to swell the ranks ofthe believers in the "living Christs. "

Philipoff's doctrines differed to some extent from those of Loupkin. Branches of his church were to be found in most of the Russianprovinces, and as time went on these emancipated themselves and becameindependent, and many new "Christs" made their appearance. In 1903, nearly every Russian province was said to be seriously affected by thedoctrines of the "divine men. "

Apart from the secondary articles of faith which differentiated thechurches, their main principles may be epitomised as follows:--

There are seven heavens, and the seventh is the Paradise of the "divinemen. " There dwell the Holy Trinity, the Mother of Jesus, theArchangels, and various Christs who have visited our planet. It is nota question of material bodies, but of spiritual principles. Godincarnates in good men whenever He feels it to be necessary, and thosewho are chosen for this divine honour become Christs. The Christ ofthe Gospels died like all the rest. His body is interred at Jerusalem, and his resurrection only meant the deliverance of his spirit. Hismiracles were merely symbolical. Lazarus was a sinner; Christ curedhim and made him a good man; hence the legend of the raising from thedead. The Gospels contain the teachings of the Christ of that epoch, but the Christs of our time receive other teachings appropriate to theneeds of the present day. 

The orthodox religion of Russia is a material religion, lacking theSpirit, whose presence is only to be found in the creed of the "divinemen. " In order that their truth shall triumph, these latter may belongnominally to the official religion. They may even attend its churches, but must leave their souls on the threshold. A "divine man" must guardhis soul from the "infidels, " the "wicked, " the "voraciouswolves"--thus were the orthodox believers designated. The human soulwas created before the body. (A "divine mother, " questioned as to herage in a court of law, declared that though her body was only seventyyears old, her soul had lived through nearly as many centuries. )Metempsychosis was one of their beliefs. Souls change theirhabitations, and work upwards to supreme perfection. That of a Christon earth becomes an angel after death; that of an imperfect manrequires repeated incarnations. The body is the source of evil, andthe soul the source of good. The body, therefore, with all itsinstincts and desires, must be dominated by the soul. "Divine men"must abstain from meat and alcoholic drinks, and also from marriage inthe material sense. By a singular misapprehension of the idea ofdominating the body, they looked upon marriage as a spiritualinstitution, believing that the soul of a man who had lived with hiswife in any but a fraternal relationship would enter that of a pigafter his death, and that children coming into the world throughmarriage were the joy of Satan. But love between men and women shouldexist outside the bonds of marriage, the sins of the flesh being thenredeemed by the virtues of the spirit. Adultery was thus tolerated, and even held in high honour, by many branches of the sect, whobelieved that the vulgar relations between the sexes were thusspiritually purified, and that men and women who loved under theseconditions were like the doves and turtle-doves favoured by heaven. They avoided having children, and abortion was not only tolerated butencouraged. 

Rasputin, who borrowed largely from the doctrines of the "divine men, "made great use of this strange idea of "spiritual love" in bringingabout the triumph of debauchery in the highest ranks of Russian society. 

The multiplicity of "Christs" caused some regrettablemisunderstandings, and at times actual duels took place. Thedifficulty was resolved, however, by some of the churches in admirablysimple fashion--for, in spite of all, many of these strange people wereinspired by the Gospel teachings. The opponents exchanged blows, andhe who longest continued to offer his cheek to the other was consideredto have proved himself a superior Christ. 

The _chlysty_ were divided into sections, each having its angels, itsprophets, and its Christ. They met in their "Jerusalem, " which wasusually a cellar, and their services took place at night, theparticipants all wearing white robes. The ceremonies consisted chieflyof graceful movements--first a solo dance, then evolutions in pairs, after which a cross would be formed by a large number of dancers, andfinally the "dance of David" took place, in imitation of the BiblicalKing before the Ark. The dancers then fell exhausted to the ground, their tired bodies no longer opposing the manifestation of their souls, and the prophets and prophetesses gave voice to divine inspirations. 

Once a year the "high ceremonial" was held. A tub filled with waterwas placed in the middle of the room, and lit up by wax candles, andwhen the surface of the water became ruffled the ecstatic watchersbelieved God to be smiling upon them, and intoned in chorus theirfavourite hymn---

 "We dance, we dance, And seek the Christ who is among us. "

In some of the churches this ceremony concluded with the celebration ofuniversal love. 

On account of its numerous ramifications, the sect presented manydivergent aspects. The _teleschi_, following the example of Adam andEve in Paradise, performed their religious rites in a state of nature;and there were other branches whose various dogmas and practices itwould be impossible to describe. 

CHAPTER XIX

THE RELIGION OF RASPUTIN

The career of Rasputin provides one of the most disquieting chapters inthe history of sexual and religious emotions, and furnishes remarkableproof of the close relationship which exists between these two sides ofhuman life, to all appearances diametrically opposed. 

The supposed monk had undoubted hypnotic powers, and through hissuccess in sending people to sleep in his native Siberian village (inthe neighbourhood of Tomsk), he earned the reputation of being a "holyman. " As they had never heard of either suggestion or hypnotism, theSiberian peasants were all the more impressed by his miracles. Beforelong he decided to make use of his mysterious power on a larger scale, and departed for St. Petersburg, where the news of his exploits hadpreceded him. The Tsarina, who suffered from insomnia, sent for him, and--thanks also to certain qualities which it is best not tospecify--Rasputin's fortune was made in a day. 

The village of his origin had an undesirable reputation, for itsinhabitants were loose-livers, and the scandal of the surroundingcountryside. But even in this environment the monk's family had madethemselves conspicuous by their low and unmentionable customs. Theyoung Gregory, known by the diminutive of Gricha, began his exploits ata very tender age, and earned the sobriquet of Rasputin, which means"debauched. " He was mixed up in all kinds of dubious affairs--forinstance, thefts of horses, the bearing of false witness, and many actsof brigandage. He was even sentenced more than once to be flogged--apenalty of which the local law-courts made generous use in those days. One of his boon companions, a gardener named Vamava, later becameBishop of Tobolsk through his influence. 

But the time came when Gricha thought it well to abandon his smallmisdoings, and take up a more lucrative trade. He discarded hispeasant costume, and adopted a robe similar to that worn by monks. Grave and serious, declaring that he was ranged "on the side of theLord, " he went about begging importunately, on the pretext of wishingto build a church. In this way he succeeded in amassing a veryconsiderable sum of money, and subsequently founded a new sect whosebizarre nature surpassed that of any others that had recently seen thelight. 

Its chief doctrines were borrowed from the _chlysty_, with somemodifications to suit the decadent atmosphere of the Russian Court. Ittaught that none could be saved without first having repented; and nonecould repent without first having sinned. Therefore to sin became aduty, and it may be imagined how full of attraction was this "religionof sin" for those who had neither the will nor the desire to practisevirtue. 

Rasputin began proceedings in his native province. He was a marvellouspreacher, and easily attracted many followers, though some of the formstaken by the new religion were indescribable. The believers of bothsexes were in the habit of assembling in an open field, in the midst ofwhich a bonfire was lighted. They would form a chain and dance roundthe fire, praying for their sins to be forgiven, as they had repentedof them. Gradually the fire would die out, and the leader thenlaunched his command--"Now, my children, give yourselves up to sin!"The sequel may be left untold, but truly the _saturnalia_ of ancientRome grow dim before the spectacle of the ceremonies established byRasputin. 

His hypnotic practices, combined with the attractions of his"religion, " only served to augment his popularity, and, burdened withpast glory, he arrived in the capital to win the favour not only ofladies of high degree, but also of many prominent members of theestablished church. 

Father John of Cronstadt, whom he first visited, was deeply impressedwhen Rasputin revealed to him the extent of his "intimacy with theLord, " and introduced him to the Archbishop Theophanus, almost as greata celebrity as himself. 

Finding it impossible to establish the Siberian practices openly in St. Petersburg, Rasputin made great use of hypnotism. The fascination thathe wielded over all in his vicinity gave authority to his words, and hedevoted himself to exorcising the demons that slept in the bodies ofthe pretty sinners of high society. In this, scourging played aconsiderable part, and as all sorts of illnesses and unsatisfieddesires were attributed to the "demons, " the number of cases treated bythe "holy man" was almost incalculable. 

Even the prelates whom Rasputin ousted from their positions in somecases still continued to believe in him after his death. The BishopHermogen, whom he disgraced at Court, declared, the day after theassassination, his conviction that Rasputin possessed "a spark ofgodhead" when he first arrived in Petrograd. 

CHAPTER XX

THE INSPIRED SEERS

The official clergy, finding it incumbent on them to defend thearticles of the orthodox faith, were themselves frequently swept awayby the storm of religious mania. Before the war the fortress ofSolovetzk sheltered quite an army of these harmless rebels, who, troubled by the general desire for human perfection, had ended inblasphemy. Especially from the monasteries were they recruited. Itseemed as though their souls were violently assaulted by devils, likethose of the anchorites of olden days. Monks and nuns alike wereequally discontented, equally eager to uproot evil, whether real orimaginary, by seeking out new ways of salvation. 

One such was the unfortunate Israïl, originally head of the monasteryof Selenginsk, later a prisoner at Solovetzk. He preached eloquentlyand fervently the renunciation of property, and persuaded his motherand sisters to abandon their worldly goods and devote themselves to theservice of the Virgin. "To a nunnery!" he cried, with all theconviction of Hamlet driving Ophelia from this world, and they sangpsalms with him and went to conceal their misery in a convent. Then, with a staff in his hand, he traversed Russia, and visited many_staretz_, or holy men. They taught him "the beginning and the middleof the end which does not exist, " but poor Israïl was still consciousof an emptiness in his heart. In the pursuit of truth he retired to avirgin forest on the banks of the river Schouïa, near the desert ofKrivoziersk, and remained there for years engaged in prayer, until atlast, touched by such piety, the Lord gave peace to his soul. Surrounded by holy books, he practised meditation, and God manifestedHis love by sending him visions and dreams which, coming direct fromHeaven, promised salvation to himself and to all who should follow him. In one dream he saw a great temple above the cave where he was praying. Millions of people sought to enter it, but could not, and shed bittertears of disappointment. One man alone could approach the altar. Itwas Israïl, the beloved of the Lord. He went straight through thegreat doors, and all the rest followed him. 

The holy man then decided that he must act as guide to his fellows who, like himself, were possessed by the fever for eternal salvation. Heknew how to distinguish between dreams sent by heaven, and thoseemanating from the infernal regions. 

It was a great day for the new religion which was to be born in thedesert of Krivoziersk when the Father Joseph came to join Israïl, thetale of whose glory by this time resounded throughout the wholeneighbourhood. They remained on their knees for whole weeks at a time, praying together. Israïl painted sacred pictures, and Joseph carvedspoons, for the glory of the Lord. An inexplicable emotion filledtheir souls; they trembled before the Eternal, fasted, and shedscalding tears; then, overcome by fatigue, fell fainting to the ground. Israïl beheld the heavens descending upon earth. They had no dread ofwild beasts, and, disregarding the need for food or sleep, they thusdwelt far from the haunts of men, in the light of Eternity. 

One day Israïl rose abruptly in an access of religious frenzy, climbeda hill, saluted the East three times, and returned radiant to hiscompanion. 

"The burden which lay at the door of my heart, " he cried, "the burdenwhich hindered my spirit from soaring heavenwards, has disappeared!Henceforward the Kingdom of Heaven is in me, in the depths of my soul, in the soul of the Son of my Father!"

He proceeded to share this kingdom with the brothers Warlaam, Nikanor, and others who had been "touched by the finger of God. " Unbelieverswere gradually won over, and a community was formed whose members livedon prayers and celestial visions, and obeyed the rules laid down forthem by Israïl. The sick were cured by his prayers, and theincredulous were abashed by the holiness of his appearance. 

His fame spread, and ever greater crowds were attracted, so that whilethe faithful rejoiced in the triumph of "the belovéd, " Israïl himselfdeemed the time to be ripe for his promotion in the ranks of sanctity. He proclaimed himself to be Jesus Christ. 

On Holy Thursday he washed the feet of his disciples, blessed the breadand wine, and distributed it to the assembled believers. 

But, alas, by this time dreams of a strangely sensual nature had seizedupon him, and seemed to pervade his whole being. 

In one of these dreams he found himself in an empty temple, and onapproaching the altar, perceived a dead woman lying there. He liftedher up, and as he touched her she showed signs of life. Suddenly, slipping from his grasp, she leapt upon the altar, and, radiatingheavenly beauty, threw herself into his arms. "Come, come, my spouse!"she said. "Come, that I may outpour for thee the wine of my love andthe delights of my Eternal Father!"

On hearing these words from the Queen of Heaven, Israïl dissolved intotears. He was filled with boundless rapture, and in his excitementcould not forbear from sharing this joyful experience with hisdisciples. 

His Golgotha was drawing near. The new religion was openly denounced, and rigorously suppressed. The apostles were imprisoned, and the JesusChrist of Krivoziersk was sent for to the town of Kostroma, that hemight give account of himself, his visions, and his crimes. Ultimatelyhe was condemned to a spell of confinement, and forced to perform themost humiliating duties. His asceticism, his many virtues, his fastingand prayers, the love which God had manifested for him--all wereforgotten, and Israïl, who had held the Queen of Heaven in his arms, was in future obliged to clean out the stables of the monastery ofMakariev, to light the fires, and prepare the brothers' baths for them. 

The "beloved of the Lord" fully expected to see the earth open andengulf his impious judges in its yawning depths--but no such thinghappened. His spirit grew uneasy, and, taking advantage of the RussianGovernment's appeal for missionaries to convert the Siberian peoples, he set forth to preach his own religion to them instead of that ofTsarism. Arrived at Irkutsk, he sought first of all to save the soulsof the chief authorities, the Governor-General and the Archbishop. Buthis efforts beat in vain against the indifference of these highdignitaries. 

"Happy are those who follow me, " he assured them, "for I will reveal tothem the secrets of this world, and assure them of a place in myFather's kingdom. "

However, they did not heed him, and horrified at such lack of faith, Israïl presented the Governor-General with a formal document on "theSecond Coming of Our Saviour Jesus Christ. " Still the souls of hiscontemporaries remained closed to the revelation, and while hemeditated upon their blindness and deplored their misfortune, he wassuddenly seized by their equally faithless representatives andtransported to the farthest limits of the country. 

There he found many of his old disciples, and proceeded to form thesect of the "inspired seers. " He taught them with all earnestness thatthey would shortly see the Lord, Saint Simeon, and the Queen of Heaven, and soon after this, when in a state of ecstatic exaltation, they did, as by a miracle, behold God surrounded by His saints, and even theInfant Jesus. 

But a new era of persecution was at hand for Israïl. Heaven wasmerciful to him, but the powers of the earth were harsh. However, themore he was persecuted, the more his followers' ardent belief in his"divinity" increased, and their enthusiasm reached a climax when thepolice had the audacity to lay hands on "the son of the Lord. " ButIsraïl was quite unmoved by the fate of his earthly body, or by theprospect of earthly punishment. His soul dwelt with God the Father, and it was with the profoundest disdain that he followed therepresentatives of evil. 

During the trial his disciples loudly expressed their belief in him, and what seemed to strengthen their faith was the fact that Israïl, like the Divine Master, had been betrayed by a "Judas. " They believedalso that his death would be followed by miracles. 

Israïl himself desired to be crucified, but Heaven withheld thissupreme grace, and also denied his followers the joy of witnessingmiracles at his graveside. The Holy Synod contented itself withsentencing him to lifelong imprisonment at Solovetzk. 

We may add that the founder of the "inspired seers" left, at his death, several volumes of verse. Unhappy poet! In the west he might havebeen covered with honour and glory; in the far north his lot was merelyone of extreme unhappiness. 

CHAPTER XXI

THE RELIGION OF SISTER HELEN

Sister Helen Petrov, of the convent of Pskov, declared in a moment of"divine illumination" that the Church had no hierarchy, that priestswere harmful, that God had no need of intermediaries, that men shouldnot communicate, and should, indeed, absolutely refrain from enteringchurches. 

It was the vision of an inspired soul, or of a diseased mind--for thetwo extremes may meet. A pure religion, based upon the directcommunion of man's spirit with God, free from false and artificialpiety, having no churches or ceremonies, but exhaling the sentiment ofbrotherly love--what a "vision splendid" is this, so often sought butnever yet attained!

In the age preceding the birth of Christ many of the finer spirits werealready rebelling, like Sister Helen, against the use of agents betweenthe human soul and God. Simeon the Just, Hillel, Jesus, son of Sirach, and many others, like Isaiah of old, besought men to cease importuningGod with offerings of incense and the blood of rams. "What is needed, "they said, "is to have a pure heart and to love virtue. " No one, however, succeeded in formulating this teaching in so sublime a fashionas Christ Himself. For what is pure Christianity, as revealed by Him, if not the divine aspiration towards Heaven of all men as brothers, without fetters of creed and dogma, and without intermediaries?

In the name of the Divine Messenger, Sister Helen protested against theerrors of men. She reproached them with their sins and their mistakes. But though the same teachings eighteen centuries before had broughtabout a moral renaissance, repeated by Helen they only caused untoldmiseries to descend upon her head. Driven from the Church andthreatened with a prison-cell, her heart grew bitter within her, andher once pure spirit was clouded over. 

A vision came to her, in which she learnt that the end of the world wasdrawing near, Anti-Christ having already made his appearance. 

"We must prepare for the Last Judgment, " she declared. "All familylife must be renounced, wives must leave their husbands, sisters theirbrothers, and children their parents. The Day of God is at hand!"

After being expelled from the convent, the beautiful Helen--for she wasbeautiful when she first gave herself to God--carried her sacredmessage to the simple-minded peasants. By them she was understood andvenerated, and their admiration filled her with ecstasy. 

Two priests and several other nuns were attracted by the reports of hersanctity, and came to join her. She still repeated that Anti-Christwas already upon earth, and that the end was near. One day she saw himface to face and tried to kill him, for the glory of Heaven, but heescaped. However, she remembered his appearance, and was able todescribe him to her followers. 

"He is no other, " she said, "than Father John of Cronstadt who, although a great worker of miracles, is in fact an evil genius in theservice of Satan. "

And all her hearers rejoiced, and paid homage to Helen's clairvoyantpowers. Their enthusiastic adulation, together with the conviction ofthe love Christ bore her, threw the good sister into a frenzy ofintense excitement, until she, who formerly had only desired toameliorate the lot of mankind, suddenly perceived in herself anincarnation of the divine. But she sought, nevertheless, to resist theidea, and said to her followers, "I am only a poor daughter of theLord, and He has chosen me to spread the truth about His sufferings, and to proclaim the great punishment of mankind--the end of the world. "

She spoke with such emotion that her hearers, visualising the agony tocome, shed tears abundantly, and prayed and fasted. But now theprophetess had another vision, for on the night before Good FridayChrist Himself appeared to her. 

"Weep not, _Helenouchka_ (little Helen), " He said. "The end of theworld approaches for the wicked, and for those who knew Me not--thepagans, Jews, and priests. But you, my faithful Bride, shall be saved, and all who follow you. On the day when the world is darkened and allthings crumble into ruins, the true kingdom of God shall dawn for thebeloved children of heaven. "

Another time Helen was overcome with joy because her heavenly Spousevisited her by night. 

"Dost thou not see, " said the divine Lover, "with what brilliance thesun is shining, how the flowers are opening, and every face isillumined with joy? These are the 'last rays' bidding farewell tolife. But thou, Helen, shalt peacefully enjoy the raptures of love. On the appointed day thy celestial Spouse, accompanied by His angels, shall come to rescue thee, and thou shalt dwell with Him three hundredyears. "

One of the priests who had adopted Helen's religion composed numeroushymns in her honour, and these were chanted in chorus by the believers. The opening line of one which was sung to greet her when she awoke eachmorning, ran as follows: "Rejoice, Saint Helen, fair Bride of Christ, rejoice!"

Poor Saint Helen! She was not allowed to enjoy her heavenly idyll forlong. Just when the new religion promised consolation to so many, thebelievers and their prophetess were delivered up to the rigours of thejustice of this world, which called down upon their heads in turn thecatastrophe of the "day of judgment. "

CHAPTER XXII

THE SELF-MUTILATORS

The thirst for perfection, the ardent desire to draw near to God, sometimes takes the form of an unhappy perversion of reason and commonsense. The popular soul knows no hesitation when laying its offeringsupon the Altar of the Good. It dares not only to flout the principlesof patriotism, of family love, and of respect for the power and thedogmas of the established church, but, taking a step further, will eventrample underfoot man's deepest organic needs, and actually seek todestroy the instinct of self-preservation. What even the strictestreformers, the most hardened misanthropists, would hardly dare tosuggest, is accomplished as a matter of course by simple peasants intheir devotion to whatever method of salvation they believe to be inaccordance with God's will. Thus came into existence theself-mutilators, or _skoptzi_, victims, no doubt, of some mentalaberration, some misdirected sense of duty, but yet how impressive intheir earnestness!

The sect having been in existence for more than a century ought perhapsto be excluded from our present survey; but it has constantlydeveloped, and even seemed to renew its youth, so merits considerationeven if only in the latter phases of its evolution. 

The _skoptzi_ were allowed, at the beginning of the twentieth century, to form separate communities, and the life of these communities underquite exceptional social conditions, without love, children, marriageor family ties, offers a melancholy field for observation. Indeed, these colonies of mutilated beings, hidden in the depths of Siberia, give one a feeling as of some monstrous and unfamiliar growth, andpresent one of the most puzzling aspects of the religious perversionsof the present age. 

After being denounced and sentenced, and after performing the forcedlabour allotted to them--a punishment specially reserved for themembers of sects considered dangerous to orthodoxy--the _skoptzi_, menand women alike, were permitted to establish their separate colonies, like those of Olekminsk and Spasskoïe. 

The forced labour might cripple their limbs, but it did not weakentheir faith, which blossomed anew under the open skies of Siberia, andseemed only to be intensified by their long sufferings in prison. 

The martyrs who took refuge in these Siberian paradises were verynumerous. It has been calculated that at the end of the nineteenthcentury they numbered more than sixty-five thousand, and this isprobably less than the true figure, for, considering the terribleordinances of their religion, it is not likely that they would troublemuch about registering themselves for official statistics. We maysafely say that in 1889 there were about twelve hundred and fifty inthe neighbourhood of Yakutsk who had already accomplished their term offorced labour. They formed ten villages, and it would be difficult tospecify their various nationalities, though it is known that inSpasskoïe, in 1885, there were, among seven hundred and ten members ofthe sect, six hundred and ninety-three Russians, one Pole, one Swede, and fifteen Finns. 

To outward view their colonies were rather peculiar. Each village wasbuilt with one long, wide street, and the houses were remarkable forthe solidity of their construction, for the flourishing gardens thatsurrounded them, and for their unusual height in this desolate landwhere, as a rule, nothing but low huts and hovels were to be seen. Ahouse was shared, generally, by three or four believers, and--perhapsowing to their shattered nervous systems--they appeared to live in astate of constant uneasiness, and always kept revolvers at hand. The"brothers" occupied one side of the building, and the "sisters" theother; and while the former practised their trades, or were engaged incommerce, the women looked after the house, and led completely isolatedlives. On the arrival of a stranger they would hide, and if he offeredto shake hands with one of them, she would blush, saying, "Excuse me, but that is forbidden to us, " and escape into the house. 

The existence of the "sisters" was indeed a tragic one. Deprived ofthe sweetness of love or family life, without children, and at themercy of hardened egoists, such as the _skoptzi_ usually became, theirsequestered lives seemed to be cut off from all normal human happiness. 

According to the author of an interesting article on the _skoptzi_ ofOlekminsk, which appeared in 1895 in the organ of the then-existingRussian Ethnographical Society, these women were sometimes of anastonishing beauty, and when opportunity offered, as it sometimes did(their initiation not always being quite complete), they would marryorthodox settlers, and leave their so-called "brothers. " Cases are onrecord of women acting in this way, and subsequently becoming mothers, but any such event caused tremendous agitation among the "brothers" and"sisters, " similar to that provoked in ancient Rome by the spectacle ofa vestal virgin failing in her duty of chastity. 

Platonic unions between the self-mutilators and the Siberianpeasant-women were fairly frequent, so deeply-rooted in the heart ofman does the desire for a common life appear to be. 

The _skoptzi_ loved money for money's sake, and were considered theenemies of the working-classes. Although drawn for the most part fromthe Russian provinces, where ideas of communal property prevailed, theydeveloped into rigid individualists, and would exploit even their own"brothers. " Indeed they preyed upon one another to such an extent thatin the village of Spasskoïe there were, among a hundred and fifty-two_skoptzi_, thirty-five without land, their portions having been seizedfrom them by the "capitalists" of the village. 

Their ranks were swelled chiefly by illiterate peasants. As to theirreligion, it consisted almost exclusively in the practice of a ceremonysimilar to that of the Valerians, the celebrated early Christian sectwho had recourse to self-mutilation in order to protect themselves fromthe temptations of the flesh. [1]

The lot of the _skoptzi_ was not a happy one, but they were upheld andconsoled by their belief in the imperial origin of their faith. According to them, Selivanoff, the prophet and founder of the sect, wasno other than the Tsar Peter the Third himself (1728-1762). They didnot believe in his assassination by the Empress Catherine, but declaredthat she, discovering to what initiation he had submitted, was seizedby so violent a passion of rage that she caused him to be incarceratedin the fortress of Petropavlovsk. From there they believed that he hadescaped, with the help of his gaoler, Selivanoff, and had assumed thelatter's name. What strengthened them in this belief was the markedfavour shown by the Tsar Alexander I for Selivanoff. Alexander beingnaturally inclined to mysticism, was impressed by this strangecharacter, and requested him to foretell the issue of the war withNapoleon. He was equally well disposed to the sect of MadameTartarinoff, which closely resembled that of the self-mutilators, and, influenced by his attitude, all the Russian high officials feltthemselves bound to pay court to the new religions. One of theImperial councillors, Piletzky, who was supposed to be writing a bookrefuting the doctrines of the _skoptzi_, defended them, on thecontrary, with such warmth that his volume--obviously inspired by theopinions of the Court--was prohibited by the Bishop Filarete asAnti-Christian. 

But though they could talk volubly of the illustrious origin of theirleader Selivanoff, "the second Christ, " and of their "divine mother, "Akoulina Ivanovna, their doctrines were in fact obscure and nebulous, and they avoided--with good reason--all religious argument. Theyinsisted, however, upon the sacredness of their initiationceremony--which invariably ended in deportation for life, or thedelights of the prison-cell. 

From the physiological point of view, the _skoptzi_ resembled theEgyptian eunuchs, described by M. Ernest Godard. Those who hadundergone the initiation at the age of puberty attained extraordinarymaxillary and dental proportions. Giants were common among them, andthere was frequently produced the same phenomenon that Darwindiscovered in the animal world--enlargement of the pelvic regions. 

This doctrine, which ought to have repelled the populace, attractedthem irresistibly. The young, the brave, and the wealthy, in the fullflower of their strength, abandoned at its call the religion of lifeand yoked themselves to that of death. It seemed to fascinate them. After conversion they despised all human passions and emotions, andwhen persecuted and hunted down they took their revenge by expressingprofoundest pity for those who were powerless to accomplish the act ofsacrifice which had brought them "near to divinity. "

They often let this pity sway them to the extent of running into dangerby preaching their "holy word" to "infidels. " Like the ascetics ofAncient Judea, who left their retreats to make sudden appearances inthe midst of the orgies of their contemporaries, these devotees ofenforced virginity would appear among those who were disillusioned withlife, and instruct them in the delights of the supreme deliverance. Intheir ardent desire to rescue all slaves of the flesh, some richmerchants of Moscow, who had adopted the doctrine, placed the greaterpart of their fortunes at the disposal of their co-religionists, and inthis way the sect was enabled to extend its influence throughoutRussia, and even into neighbouring countries. 

At one time in Bucharest and other towns certain carriages drawn bysuperb horses attracted much admiration. These were some of thestrange presents--the price of a still stranger baptism--with which the"Church of the Second Christ" rewarded its members!

[1] Valerius, passionate and devout at the same time, was the first tosacrifice himself thus on the altar of purity, following the example ofOrigen, who had used this heroic method to safeguard the virtue of thewomen of his _entourage_. But while Origen was rewarded for his actionby the Patriarch of Jerusalem, Valerius was expelled from the church, and retired to Arabia, where his sect flourished in the third century(A. D. ). 

B. THE NON-SECTARIAN VISIONARIES

In addition to the sects having their prophets and leaders and acertain amount of organisation, almost every year in Russia saw--andprobably still sees--the birth of many separate heresies of shortduration. For instance, in one part a whole village would suddenly beseized by religious ardour, its inhabitants deserting the fields andpassing their time in prayer, or in listening to the Gospel teachingsas expounded to them by some "inspired" peasant. Or elsewhere, thewomen would all leave their husbands and depart into the forests, wherein the costume of Mother Eve they would give themselves up tomeditating upon the sins of humanity and the goodness of God. 

On the outskirts of a village near Samara, in East Russia, a foresterwas one day attracted to a cabin by the resounding cries and groansthat issued from it. On entering, a strange sight met his eyes--threewomen, completely naked, praying and weeping. They were likeskeletons, and one of them died soon after being forcibly brought backto the village. In spite of all entreaties she refused to let theorthodox priest come near her, and begged that no cross should beplaced over her grave. 

The police searched the forest, and found several other women in asimilar condition. Inquiry revealed that they had left their homes inthe neighbourhood of Viatka in order to expiate the sins of theirfellows. For nourishment they depended on herbs and strawberries, andprayer was their sole occupation. Their unquenchable desire was to beallowed to die "for the greater glory of Jesus Christ. " They belongedto no sect, and did not believe in sacred symbols or in priests. Inorder to get into direct communication with God, they discarded theirgarments and lived in a state of nature, eating nothing but what theycould find by the wayside. Thirty or forty of these women weregathered in and sent back to their homes. 

The peasants of the Baltic Provinces, although better educated thanthose of Southern Russia, became victims of religious mania just asfrequently. It was in the Pernov district that the cult of the godTonn was brought to light. The chief function of this god was topreserve cattle and other livestock from disease, and to gain hisfavour the peasants brought him offerings twice a year. His statue wasplaced in a stable, and there his worshippers were wont to gather, praying on bended knee for the health of their cows and horses. Intime, however, the statue was seized by the police, to the great griefof the peasants of the district. 

In another part there dwelt a magician who was said to cure all bodilyills by the aid of the sixth and seventh books of Moses. 

The tribunal of Kaschin, near Tver, once had occasion to judge apeasant named Tvorojnikoff who, as a result of his private meditations, had succeeded in evolving a new religion for himself and his friends. After working for six months in St. Petersburg as a mechanic, andstudying the "vanity of human affairs, " he came to the conclusion thatorthodox religious observances were an invention of the priests, andthat it was only necessary to believe in order to be saved. 

An action was brought against him, whereupon his mother and sister, whowere called as witnesses, refused to take the oath, that being "only aninvention of men. " Tvorojnikoff described his doubts, his sufferings, and the battle which had long raged in his soul, and declared that atlast, on reaching the conclusion that "faith is the only cure, " he hadfound happiness and peace. 

"What have I done to be punished?" he demanded. "What do you want withme? Instead of sending me to prison, explain how I have sinned. Readthe Gospel with me!"

But his entreaties were ignored. The "religious expert, " who waspresent in the person of a delegate of the ecclesiastical authorities, thought it beneath his dignity to discuss eternal truths with apeasant, and the poor dreamer received a sentence of imprisonment. 

The Russian legal records are full of the misdeeds of many such, whosesole crimes consisted in dreaming with all sincerity, and in spite ofcruel deceptions and disappointments, of the day when man should atlast attain perfection upon earth. 

CHAPTER I

THE BROTHERS OF DEATH

From time to time this thirst for the ideal, this dissatisfaction withthe actual, gave rise to a series of collective suicides. We mayrecall the celebrated propaganda of the monk Falaley, who preached thatdeath was man's only means of salvation. He gathered his unhappyhearers in a forest, and there expounded to them the emptiness of lifeand the best method of escaping from it. His words bore fruit, and thesimple peasants who heard them decided to have done with "this life ofsin. "

One night eighty-four persons congregated in an underground cavern nearthe river Perevozinka, and began to fast and to pray. The peasantsgathered round their improvised camp, built of straw and wood, ready todie when the signal was given. But one woman, taking fright at theidea of so horrible a death, fled and warned the authorities. When thepolice arrived, one of the believers cried out that Anti-Christ wasapproaching, and the poor creatures then set fire to the camp anddied--as they thought--for Christ. 

A few fanatics who were saved received sentences of imprisonment anddeportation, but one of them--Souchkoff--succeeded in escaping, andcontinued to spread "the truth of God. " Whether it was his owneloquence or the misery and despair of the people that helped hisdoctrine, it bore at any rate such fruits that soon afterwards sixtyfamilies in one locality made up their minds to die _en masse_, believing that simple murder--the murder of the faithful by thefaithful--would hasten the day of supreme deliverance. A peasant namedPetroff entered the house of his neighbour, and killed the latter'swife and children, afterwards carrying his blood-stained hatchet intriumph through the village. In the barn of another a dozen peasantsgathered with their wives, and the men and women laid their heads uponthe block in turn, while Petroff, in the rôle of the angel of death, continued his work of deliverance. He then made his way to a hut nearby where a mother and three children awaited his services, and finally, overcome with fatigue, he laid his own head on the block, and wasdespatched to eternal glory by Souchkoff. 

But the kind of death recommended by Chadkin about the year 1860 waseven more terrible. In this case it was not a question of a wave ofmadness that came and passed, but of the prolonged torture of death byvoluntary starvation. 

Chadkin's teaching was that as Anti-Christ had already come, there wasnothing left to do but escape into the forests and die of hunger. Whenhe and his adherents had reached a sufficiently isolated spot, heordered the women to prepare death-garments, and when all were suitablyarrayed, he informed them that in order to receive the heavenly graceof death, they must remain there for twelve days and nights withoutfood or water. 

Frightful were the sufferings endured by these martyrs. The cries ofthe children, as they writhed in agony, were heartrending, but Chadkinand his followers never wavered. At last, however, one of thesufferers, unable longer to face such tortures, managed to escape, andChadkin, fearing the arrival of the police, decided that all the restmust die at once. They began by killing the children; next the womenand the men; and by the time the police appeared on the scene thereremained alive only Chadkin and two others, who had forgotten in theirfrenzy to put an end to themselves. 

CHAPTER II

THE DIVINITY OF FATHER IVAN

It seems enough, in Russia, when a single individual is obsessed bysome more or less ridiculous idea, for his whole environment to becomeinfected by it also. The ease with which suggestions make their wayinto the popular mind is amazing, and this reveals its strong biastowards the inner life, the life of dreams. The actual content of thedreams is of small importance, provided that they facilitate the soul'sflight to a better world, and supply some link in a chain which shallattach it more firmly to the things of eternity. Consequently, thosewho have any supernatural experience to relate are almost sure to findfollowers. 

An illiterate woman named Klipikoff one day proclaimed the good news ofthe divinity of Father Ivan of Cronstadt. The incredulous smiles ofher fellow-citizens were gradually transformed into enthusiasticexpressions of belief, and Madame Klipikoff proceeded to found aschool. About twenty women began to proclaim openly throughoutCronstadt that Father Ivan, the miracle-worker, was divine, and he haddifficulty in repudiating the honours that the infatuated women triedto thrust upon him. According to the priestesses of this"unrecognised" cult, Father Ivan was the Saviour Himself, though he hidthe fact on account of the "Anti-Christians"--that is to say, thepriests and the church authorities. Those who were converted to thenew doctrine placed his portrait beside that of the Divine Mother, andprayed before it. They even fell on their knees before his garments, or any articles belonging to him, and though the old man expressedhorror at such idolatry, he nevertheless permitted it. One of thelocal papers described a ceremony that took place in one of the houseswhere the pilgrims, who journeyed to Cronstadt from all parts ofRussia, were lodged. Father Ivan deigned to give his benediction tothe three glasses of tea that the hostess proffered him, and after hisdeparture she divided their contents among the assembled company, inreturn for various offerings. 

There were, however, cases in which, instead of kneeling before thegarments of miracle-workers or committing suicide, the visionariesstrove to reach heaven by offering up the lives of their fellow-men insacrifice. 

In the law-courts of Kazan a terrible instance of one of thesereligious murders was brought to light. It was revealed that theinhabitants of a neighbouring village had suspended by the feet abeggar named Matiounin, and then, opening one of his veins, had drunkhis blood. 

There are throughout Russia many records of proceedings brought againstsuch murderers--for instance, the tragic case of Anna Kloukin, whothrew her only daughter into an oven, and offered her charred body toGod; and that of a woman named Kourtin, who killed her seven-year-oldson that his mortal sins might be forgiven. 

The vague remembrance of Abraham, who offered up his only son, and theconviction that Anti-Christ, "born of a depraved woman, a Jewess, "travels the earth in search of Christian souls--these are the mostobvious motives for murders such as we have described. Their realcause sprang, however, from the misery of the people and theirweariness of life. 

By a kind of reaction these murders--whose perpetrators often could notbe found--frequently gave rise to even stranger crimes anddisturbances. Suspicion was apt to fall upon any Jews dwelling in thedistrict, and there resulted trials, such as that of Beilis, or Jewish_pogroms_ which filled the civilised world with horror. 

CHAPTER III

AMONG THE MIRACLE-WORKERS

The pilgrims and "workers of miracles" who wander through Russia canalways find, not only free lodging, but also opportunity for makingtheir fortunes. Their gains mount, often, to incredible figures, andthe faith and piety that they diffuse have both good and bad aspects. There are places, for instance, like Cronstadt, which, at one timeinhabited mainly by drunkards, became before the war a "holy town. "Apart from Father Ivan and his peculiar reputation, there were hundredsof other pilgrims who, though quite unknown on their arrival, soongained there a lucrative notoriety. 

One of these was the _staretz_ (ancient) Anthony, who in three or fouryears amassed a considerable fortune. His popularity attractedrepresentatives of all classes of society. People wrote forappointments in advance, and went in order of precedence as to afashionable doctor. It was quite common to have to wait ten or fifteendays for the desired interview. In Petrograd, where the populationbelonged half to the twentieth and half to the sixteenth century, Anthony was quite the mode. The _salons_ literally seized upon him, and, flattered and fondled, he displayed his rags in the carriages offashionable women of the world, while the mob, touched by the spectacleof his acknowledged holiness, gave him enthusiastic ovations. Hisjourney from Petrograd to Cronstadt was a triumphal progress. Thecrowds pressed around him and he walked among them barefooted, in spiteof this being expressly forbidden by law. Finally, however, the policewere roused, and one fine day he set forth at the government's expensefor the "far-off lands"--of Siberia. 

Cronstadt, town of drunkards and of miracle-workers _par excellence_, boasted about two hundred _staretz_. The most famous among them werethe four brothers Triasogolovy--Hilarion, James, Ivan and Wasia. 

The crowds, who had formerly visited Cronstadt only on Father Ivan'saccount, became ever greater, and were divided up among the varioussaints of the town, one of the most popular being Brother James, whoundertook to exorcise demons. 

His methods were simple. A woman once came to him, begging to bedelivered from the numerous evil spirits that had taken possession ofher soul. In view of their numbers, Brother James felt it necessary tohave recourse to heroic measures. He rained blows upon the penitent, who emitted piercing shrieks, and as this took place in the hotel wherethe "holy man" was living, the servants intervened to put an end to thesufferings of the "possessed" one. But Brother James, carried away byenthusiasm in a good cause, continued to scourge the demons until thewoman, unable to bear more, broke the window-pane and leapt into thestreet. Crowds gathered, and the Brother, turning to them, prophesiedthat shortly he would be--arrested! Thereupon the police made theirappearance and removed him to the lock-up, and the crowds dispersed, filled with admiration for Brother James, who not only coped withdemons, but actually foretold the evil that they would bring upon him. 

In addition to the genuine visionaries, there were many swindlers whotook advantage of the popular credulity. Such was the famous pilgrimNicodemus, who travelled throughout Russia performing miracles. In theend the police discovered that he was really a celebrated criminal whohad escaped from prison. 

But Nicodemus was, as a matter of fact, better than his reputation, for, in granting absolution for large numbers of sins, his charges wererelatively small. He is said to have assured whole villages of eternalforgiveness for sums of from twenty to a hundred roubles. 

Frequently some out-of-work cobbler would leave his native village andset forth on a pilgrimage in the character of a _staretz_; or some"medical officer, " unable to make a living out of his drugs, wouldestablish himself as a miracle-worker and promptly grow rich. When one_staretz_ disappeared, there were always ten new ones to take hisplace, and the flood mounted to such an extent that the authoritieswere often powerless to cope with it. Persecution seemed only toincrease the popular hysteria, and caused the seekers after truth toact as though intoxicated, seeing themselves surrounded by a halo ofmartyrdom. 

C. THE RISING FLOOD

CHAPTER I

THE MAHOMETAN VISIONARIES

The flood of religious mania reached even beyond the borders ofEuropean Russia, and its effects were seen as much among the followersof other religions as among the Christians. 

Mahometanism, although noted for its unshakable fidelity to the dogmasof Mahomet, did not by any means escape the mystic influences by whichit was surrounded. To take one example from among many: in the monthof April, 1895, a case of religious mania which had broken out amongthe Mahometan inhabitants of the south of Russia was brought before thelaw-courts at Kazan. It concerned a set of Tartars called the_Vaïsoftzi_, which had been founded in 1880 by a man named _Vaïsoff_, whose existence was revealed in unexpected fashion. A lawyer havingcalled at his house, at the request of one of his creditors, Vaïsoffshowed him the door, explaining that he did not consider himself underany obligation "to repay what had been given to him. " The otherreturned later, however, accompanied by several policemen, andVaïsoff's adherents then attacked the latter, while chanting religioushymns and proclaiming the greatness of their leader. They nextbarricaded themselves into the house, which was besieged by the policefor some days, during which prayers issued from it towards heaven andstones towards the representatives of the law. Finally the rebels wereoverpowered, and sentenced to several years' imprisonment. 

The police had a similar experience on another occasion when they triedto arrest one of the _Vaïsoftzi_, but in the end they got the upperhand, and several Tartars were delivered up to justice. 

After being judged and sentenced, they presented themselves before theCourt of Appeal, but when the usual questions were put to them, allbegan to pray and sing loudly. Silence was at last reestablished, andthe judge again asked one of them for his name and profession. "Whoare you, that you should question me?" was the reply, and once againall chanted together in chorus. The Tartars who had crowded into thecourt seemed deeply impressed by this attitude, and the judge thoughtit well to dismiss the prisoners while the case was considered. Theywere brought back to hear the sentence, and again began to sing theirprayers and hymns, while one of them cried out: "I am the chief of theheavenly regiment; I am the representative of Vaïsoff upon earth; andyou, who are you that you should take upon yourself the right to judgeme?" The others then calmly continued their interrupted song to theLord, but they were all condemned to a period of forced labour, andtheir spokesman, in addition, to twenty-five strokes with the birch. 

CHAPTER II

THE RELIGION OF THE POLAR MARSEILLAIS

Let us now travel to the extreme north, to the land where dwell theYakuts, the Marseillais of the Polar regions. Living a life of gay andcareless vagabondage in this snowy world, they took part in one of themost characteristic episodes of the general religious upheaval. 

At Guigiguinsk, a straggling village on the borders of the ArcticOcean, lived a Yakut tribe already converted to Christianity. Theirnew faith had not in any way modified the happy-go-lucky nature of theinhabitants of this frozen land; neither had it in any way clarifiedtheir religious conceptions. "There are many gods, " said they, "butNicholas is the chief"--and no matter how miserable their life, theydanced and sang, remembering no doubt how in their ancient home in thefar-off south, their ancestors also sang, filling the whole world withtheir gaiety. Theirs was a fine climate and a fine country! The sunoften shone, the grass grew high, and the snow only lasted for sixmonths in the year. So everyone talked and danced and sang. Therewere orators who held forth for whole days; there were dancers whodanced for weeks and weeks. From father to son these two rulingpassions have been handed down even to the Yakuts of the present day. Now, as in former times--as when Artaman of Chamalga "so sang with hiswhole soul that the trees shed their leaves and men lost theirreason"--the Yakuts sing, and their songs disturb the "spirits, " whocrowd around the singer and make him unhappy. But he sings on, nevertheless; though the whole order of nature be disturbed, still hesings. 

Now, as in former times, the Yakut believes in "the soul of things, "and seeks for it everywhere. Every tree has a soul, every plant, everyobject; even his hammer, his house, his knife, and his window. Butbeyond these there is _Ai-toen_, the supreme, abstract soul of allthings, the incarnation of being, which is neither good nor bad, butjust _is_--and that suffices. Far from concerning himself with theaffairs of this world, Ai-toen looks down upon them from the seventhheaven, and--leaves them alone. The country is full of "souls" and"spirits, " which appear constantly, and often incarnate in the shadowsof men. "Beware of him who has lost his shadow, " say the Yakuts, forsuch a one is thought to be dogged by misfortune, which is always readyto fall upon him unawares. Even the children are forbidden to playwith their shadows. 

Those who desire to see spirits must go to the _Shamans_, of whom thereare only four great ones, but plenty of others sufficiently powerful toheal the sick, swallow red-hot coals, walk about with knives stickinginto their bodies--and above all to rejoice the whole of nature withtheir eloquence. For the Yakuts consider that there is nothing moresacred than human speech, nothing more admirable than an eloquentdiscourse. When a Yakut speaks, no one interrupts him. They believethat in the spoken word justice and happiness are to be found, and intheir intense sociability they dread isolation, desiring always to bewithin reach of the sound of human voices. By the magic of words, anorator can enslave whole villages for days, weeks and months, thepopulation crowding round him, neglecting all its usual occupations, and listening to his long discourses with unwearied rapture. 

Sirko Sierowszewski, who spent twelve years in the midst of thesepeople, studying them closely, affirms in his classic work on theYakuts (published in 1896 by the Geographical Society of St. Petersburg) that their language belongs to a branch of the Turko-Tartargroup, and contains from ten to twelve thousand words. It holds, inthe Polar countries, a position similar to that held by the Frenchtongue in the rest of the world, and may be described as the French ofthe Arctic regions. The Yakuts are one of the most curious races ofthe earth, and one of the least known, in spite of the hundreds ofbooks and pamphlets already published about them. Their young menfrequently appear as students at the University of Tomsk, though theyare separated from this source of civilisation by more than threethousand miles of almost impassable country. The journey takes fromfifteen months to two years, and they frequently stop _en route_ inorder to work in the gold mines, to make money to pay for theirstudies. These are the future regenerators of the Yakut country. 

About thirty years ago there arrived among these care-free children ofnature a Russian functionary, a sub-prefect, who took up his residenceat Guigiguinsk, on the shores of the Arctic Sea. He was a tremendoustalker, though it is impossible to say whether this was the result ofhis desire to found a new religious sect, or whether the sect was theresult of his passion for talking. At any rate, he harangued thepopulace indefatigably, and they gathered from all quarters to listento the orator of the Tsar, and were charmed with him. 

In one of his outpourings he declared that he was none other thanNicholas, the principal god of the whole country, and his listeners, who had never before beheld any but "little gods, " were filled withenthusiasm at the honour thus bestowed upon their particular district. The sub-prefect ended by believing his own statements, and accepted inall good faith the homage that was paid to him, in spite ofChristianity. A writer named Dioneo, in a book dealing with theextreme north-east of Siberia, tells us that even the local priesthimself was finally converted, and that after a year or so the Governorof Vladivostock, who had heard rumours, began to grow uneasy about hissubordinate, and despatched a steamer to Guigiguinsk to find out whathad become of him. Upon arrival the captain hastened to fulfil hismission, but the people suspected that some danger threatened their"god" and took steps to hide him, assuring the inquirers that he hadgone away on a visit and would not return for a long time. Asnavigation is only possible in those parts for a few weeks in the year, the captain was obliged to return to Vladivostock. Another yearpassed, and still there was no news of the sub-prefect. The captainreturned to Guigiguinsk, and having received the same reply as beforeto his inquiries, made pretence of departure. He came back, however, the next day, and with his sailors, appeared unexpectedly among theYakuts. 

An unforgettable spectacle met their eyes. 

The little town was _en fête_, church bells ringing, songs and reportsof firearms intermingling. Great bonfires flamed along the seashore, and a solemn procession was passing through the streets. Seated on ahigh throne in a carriage, the sub-prefect, the "great god" ofGuigiguinsk, was haranguing the crowds, with partridges' wings, ribbons, tresses of human hair and other ornaments dear to the Yakuts, dangling round his neck. To his carriage were harnessed eight men, whodrew it slowly through the town, while around it danced and sang_shamans_ and other miracle-workers, accompanying themselves ontambourines. Thus did the believers in the new religion celebrate thehappy escape of their "god" from danger. 

The appearance of the captain and his armed men produced a sensation. The "great god" was seized and carried off, and forced to submit, subsequently, to all kinds of humiliations. 

CHAPTER III

THE RELIGION OF THE GREAT CANDLE

On the outskirts of Jaransk, in the Viatka district, a race called the_Tcheremis_ has dwelt from time immemorial. While Russian scholars, like Smirnov, were employed in unveiling all the mysteries of theirpast, the authorities were endeavouring to imbue them with Russianconceptions of religion and government. But these people were noteasily persuaded to walk in the right way, and from time to time therearose violent differences of opinion between them and therepresentatives of officialdom. 

In 1890, at the time of the Scientific and Industrial Exhibition atKazan, an appeal was made to the Tcheremis to send some objects ofanthropological and ethnographical interest. They responded by sendingthose representing their religion, for, having rejected orthodoxy, theywished the beauties of their "new faith" to be admired. They thereforeexhibited at Kazan large spoons and candles, drums that were used tosummon the people to religious ceremonies, and various other articlesconnected with their mysterious beliefs, and the Committee of theExhibition awarded them a medal for "a collection of invaluable objectsfor the study of the pagan religion of the Tcheremis. "

The natives, knowing nothing of the complicated organisation ofscientific awards, simply concluded that the medal had been given tothem because their religion was the best, and the leader of theircommunity wore it round his neck, and recounted everywhere how "out ofall the religions that had been examined at Kazan, only that of the'Great Candle' had been found to be perfect. " All the believersrejoiced over the prestige thus won by their faith, and a wave ofreligious ecstasy swept over the country. Three of the fathers of thechurch affixed copies of the medal to their front doors, with theinscription: "This was given by the Tsar to the best of all religions, "and the people made merry, and gave themselves up to the bliss ofknowing that they had found the true and only way of salvation, asacknowledged by the representatives of the Tsar himself. 

Poor creatures! They were not aware of the contents of Article 185 ofthe Russian criminal code, which ordained that the goods of all whoabandoned the orthodox faith should be confiscated, until theyexpressed repentance and once more acknowledged the holy truths of theofficial church. So it came about that in spite of the triumph oftheir religion at the Exhibition of Kazan, legal proceedings began, andin 1891 and 1892, as many as fourteen actions were brought against theadepts of the Great Candle, and numbers of them were sentenced toimprisonment and to the confiscation of their goods. All this in spiteof the fact that their beliefs did not in any way threaten to underminethe foundations of society. 

"There are six religions contained in the books which the Tsar hasgiven to his people"--they said, when brought before the tribunal--"andthere is a seventh oral religion, that of the Tcheremis. The seventhrecognises neither the sacraments nor the gospel. It glorifies God inperson, and the faith which has been handed down from father to son. It has been given to the Tcheremis _exclusively_, because they are apoor, unlettered people, and cannot afford to keep up priests andchurches. They call it the religion of the Great Candle, because intheir ceremonies a candle about two yards in length is used; and theyconsider Friday a holiday because on it are ended the prayers whichthey begin to say on Wednesday. "

When questioned by the judge, the accused complained that the orthodoxclergy expected too many sacrifices from them, and charged them heavilyfor marriages and burials, this being their reason for returning to"the more merciful religion of their forefathers. "

According to the _Journal of the Religious Consistory of the Provinceof Viatka_, the Tcheremis were guilty of many other crimes. They didnot make the sign of the cross, and refused to allow their children tobe baptised or their dead to be buried with the rites of the orthodoxchurch. Truly there is no limit to the heresies of men, even as thereis none to the mercies of heaven! Further, the missionaries complainedwith horror that, in addition to seven principal religions, theTcheremis acknowledged seventy-seven others, in accordance with thedivision of humanity into seventy-seven races. 

"It is God, " they said, "who has thus divided humanity, even as He hasdivided the trees. As there are oaks, pines and firs, so are theredifferent religions, all of heavenly origin. But that of the Tcheremisis the best. . . . The written Bible, known to all men, has beenfalsified by the priests, but the Tcheremis have an oral Bible, whichhas been handed down intact, even as it was taught to their forbears byGod. . . . The Tsar is the god of earth, but he has nothing to do withreligion, which is not of this world. "

The prayers of these dangerous heretics, who were punished like commoncriminals, mirror the innocence of their souls. They implored God topardon all their sins, great and small; to grant good health to theircattle and their children. They thanked Him for all His mercies, prayed for the Tsar and all the Imperial family, for the soldiers, forthe civil authorities, and for all honest men; and finally for the dead"who now labour in their celestial kingdom. "

The tribunal, however, implacably brought the law to bear upon them, and thinking their punishment too great for their crimes, they hadrecourse to the Court of Appeal, where they begged to be judged"according to the good laws of the Tsar, not the bad ones of theConsistory. " But the sentence was ratified, and the religion of theGreat Candle procured for its followers the martyrdom that they had solittle desired. 

CHAPTER IV

THE NEW ISRAEL

Although most of the sects of which we have spoken sprang from theorthodox church, the _molokanes_ and the _stoundists_ were indirectfruits of the Protestant church, and even among the Jews there werecases of religious mania to be found. 

Leaving out of account the _karaïtts_ of Southern Russia, formerly the_frankists_--who ultimately became good Christians--we may remark fromtime to time some who rejected the articles of the Jewish faith, andeven accepted the divinity of Christ. Such a one was Jacques Preloker, founder of the "new Israel, " a Russian-Jew philosopher who discoveredthe divine sermon on the Mount eighteen hundred and seventy-eight yearsafter it had been delivered. This was the beginning of a revolution ofhis whole religious thought, which resulted in 1879 in the founding ofa new sect at Odessa. The philosopher desired an intimate relationshipwith the Christian faith, and dreamed of the supreme absorption of theJewish Church into that of Christ. In his new-found adoration for theChristian Gospel, he tried by every means in his power to lessen thedistance between it and Judaism, but, though some were attracted by hisardour, many were repelled by the boldness of his conceptions. 

Towards the end of his life, the bankrupt philosopher, still dignifiedand serious, although fallen from the height of his early dreams, madehis appearance on the banks of the Thames, and there endeavoured tocontinue his propaganda and to explain to an unheeding world thebeauties of the Jewish-Christian religion. 

CHAPTER V

CONCLUSION

It is as difficult to pick out the most characteristic traits of theinnumerable Russian sects as it is to describe the contours of cloudsthat fleet across the sky. Their numbers escape all official reckoningand the variety of their beliefs renders classification very difficult. In these pages the sectarian organism has been presented in its mostrecent and most picturesque aspects, and its chief characteristic seemsto be that it develops by a process of subdivision. Each existing sectdivides itself up into various new ones, and these again reproducethemselves by breaking apart, like the first organisms in which lifewas manifested on the earth. Every separated portion of the parentbecomes an offspring resembling the parent, and the number of divisionsincreases in proportion to the number of adherents. As in theprotozoa, multiplication commences with a mechanical rupture, and withthe passage of time and the influence of outside elements, the sectsthus born undergo visible modifications. By turns sublime oroutrageous, simple or depraved, they either aspire heavenwards ordebase the human spirit to the level of its lowest passions. 

Making common use of the truths of the Gospel revelations, they includeevery phase of modern social life in their desire for perfection. Liberty, equality, wealth, property, marriage, taxes, the relationbetween the State and the individual, international peace, and theabolition of arms--all these things, even down to the very food we eat, become the prey of their reformatory ardour. 

The sects that abound in Anglo-Saxon countries do little but copy oneanother in evolving new and amazing variations of Bible interpretation. Confined within these limits, they rarely even touch upon the seriousproblems that lie outside the text of the Gospels, and we might say ofthem as Swift said of the religious sects of his day--"They are onlythe same garments more or less embroidered. "

But the Russian sects vividly reveal to us the secret dreams andaspirations of millions of simple and honest men, who have not yet beeninfected by the doctrinal diseases of false science or confusedphilosophy; and further, they permit us to study the manifestation inhuman life of some new and disquieting conceptions. In their depths wemay see reflected the melancholy grandeur and goodness of the nationalsoul, its sublime piety, and its thirst for ideal perfection, whichsometimes uplifts the humble in spirit to the dignity andself-abnegnation of a Francis of Assisi. 

The mysticism which is so deep-rooted in the Russian nationalconsciousness breaks out in many different forms. Not only poets andwriters, painters and musicians, philosophers and moralists, butstatesmen, socialists and anarchists are all impregnated with it--andeven financiers and economic reformers. 

Tolstoi, when he became a sociologist and moralist, was an eloquentexample of the mental influence of environment; for his teachings whichso delighted--or scandalised, as the case might be--the world, weremerely the expression of the dreams of his fellow-countrymen. So wasit also with the lofty thoughts of the philosopher Soloviev, the_macâbre_ tales of Dostoïevsky, the realistic narratives of Gogol, orthe popular epics of Gorky and Ouspensky. 

The doctrines of Marx took some strange shapes in the Russian _milieu_. Eminently materialistic, they were there reclothed in an abstract anddogmatic idealism--in fact, Marxism in Russia was transformed into areligion. The highly contestable laws of material economics, whichusually reduce the chief preoccupations of life to a miserable questionof wages or an abominable class-war, there gained the status of averitable Messianic campaign, and the triumphant revolution, imbuedwith these dogmas, strove to bring the German paradox to an end, evenagainst the sacred interests of patriotism. The falling away of theworking-classes and of the soldiers, which so disconcerted the world, was really nothing but the outer effect of their inner aspirations. Having filled out the hollow Marxian phraseology with the mysticidealism of their own dreams, having glimpsed the sublime brotherhoodwhich would arise out of the destruction of the inequality of wages andincomes, they quite logically scorned to take further part in thestruggle of the nations for independence. Of what import to them wasthe question of Teutonic domination, or the political future of otherraces?

It is much the same with the peasant class. The partition of the landis their most sacred dogma, and they can scarcely imagine salvationwithout it. This materialistic demand, embellished by the dream ofsocial equality, has become a religion. Mysticism throws round it anaureole of divine justice, and the difficulty--or the impossibility--ofsuch a gigantic spoliation of individuals for the sake of a vagueideal, has no power to deter them. 

The land--so they argue--belongs to the Lord, and the unequal way inwhich it is divided up cannot be according to His desire. The kingdomof heaven cannot descend upon earth until the latter is divided amongher children, the labourers. 

The far-off hope of victory faded before these more immediate dreams, and the continuation of a war which seemed to involve theirpostponement became hateful to the dreamers; while the emissaries ofGermany took advantage of this state of affairs to create an almostimpassable gap between the few who were clear-sighted and the mass whowere blinded by visions. 

The extreme rebelliousness which characterises the Russian religiousvisionaries is manifested to an almost equal extent by all politicalparties and their leaders. Consequently the spirit of unity whichprevailed (during the war) in other countries met with insuperabledifficulties in Russia. 

The whole nation seems to have been driven, by the long suppression offree thought and belief, added to the miseries brought about by the oldrégime, to take refuge in unrealities, and this has resulted in a kindof deformity of the national soul. It was a strange irony that eventhe aristocracy should end by falling victim to its own environment. Exploited by miracle-mongers, thrown off its balance by paroxysms ofso-called mysticism, it disappeared from view in a welter of practicesand beliefs that were perverse and childish even at their best. 

TRANSLATOR'S NOTE

It seems appropriate to call attention here to an article from the penof Prince Eugène Troubetzkoy, Professor of Law at the University ofMoscow, which appeared in the _Hibbert Journal_ for January, 1920. Writing apparently in the autumn of 1919, the Prince declared that thecivil war then in progress in Russia was "accompanied by a spiritualconflict no less determined and portentous, " and pointed out that thedoctrine of Bolshevism was a deliberate distortion of Marxism, _immediate revolution_ having been substituted by the Bolshevists forthe _evolution_ preached by Marx. He went on to say that one of themost striking characteristics of Bolshevism was its pronounced hatredof religion, and especially of Christianity, the ideal of a life beyonddeath being "diametrically opposed to the ideal of Bolshevism, whichtempts the masses by promising _the immediate realisation of theearthly paradise_. " And, Bolshevism's practical method for realisingits Utopia being "the armed conflict of classes . . . The dream of theearthly paradise, to be brought into being through civil war, becomesinstantly the reality of hell let loose. " After dwelling in detail onvarious aspects of the situation, the writer makes some statementswhich will be of special interest to readers of M. Finot's study ofpre-war religious conditions in Russia. He speaks of the growth ofunbelief among the masses, and declares that "the empty triumph ofBolshevism would have been impossible but for the utter enfeeblement ofthe religious life of the nation"; but--and this is the point ofinterest--"thanks to the persecutions which the revolution has set onfoot, there has come into being a genuine religious revival. . . . TheChurch, pillaged and persecuted, lost all the material advantages ithad hitherto enjoyed: in return, the loss of all these relative valueswas made good by the absolute value of spiritual independence. . . . This it is that explains the growing influence of the Church on themasses of the people: the blood of the new martyrs won theirhearts. . . . These awful sufferings are becoming a source of newpower to religion in Russia. " The Prince then describes the completereorganisation of the church which was carried through at Moscow in1917-18, and the restoration of the patriarchal power in the person ofthe Archbishop Tykone (now Patriarch), a man of great personal courage, high spirituality, and remarkable sweetness of disposition. The peoplerallied round him in enormous numbers, attracted by his courageousresistance to the Bolshevist movement--(a resistance which had thenfrequently endangered his life, and may since have ended it)--and byhis determined avoidance of all pomp and ostentation. In the greatreligious processions which took place at that time, hundreds ofthousands passed before him, but he had no bishops and very few clergyin his retinue, only one priest and one deacon. When urged to adoptmore ceremony and display in his public appearances, he replied, "Forthe love of God, don't make an idol of me. " He was always ready with ahumorous word, and filled with a serene and unshakable confidence, evenin the most dangerous situations. The people looked upon him as "HolyRussia" personified, and said that "the persecutors who would haveburied her for ever had brought her back to life. "

In an appendix to the above-quoted article appears a statement "from aresponsible British source in Siberia" to the effect that "a strongreligious movement has begun among the laity and clergy of the RussianChurch. . . . The _moujiks_ are convinced that Lenin is Anti-Christ;"and an urgent appeal for Russian Testaments and Bibles to be sent fromEngland, the writer having been told by a prominent ecclesiastic that"Russian Bibles are now almost unprocurable. "

Thus, having long revolted from orthodoxy in the day of its materialprosperity, the masses seem, in the day of adversity, to be returningto it. Further developments may, of course, take place in almost anydirection, but we may rest assured of one thing--that no changes ofgovernment, however drastic, will ever succeed in stamping out themystical religious strain which is so deeply embedded in the soul ofthe Russian people. 

PART II

THE SALVATION OF THE WEALTHY

A. RELIGION AND ECONOMY

CHAPTER I

THE MORMONS, OR LATTER-DAY SAINTS

In the American of the United States there exist two distinctly opposednatures: the one positive and practical, the other inclined tomysticism. The two do not clash, but live, on the contrary, onperfectly good terms with one another. This strange co-existence ofreality and vision is explained by the origin of the race. 

The American is, to a very great extent, a descendant of rigorousPuritanism. The English, who preponderated in numbers over the otherelements of the European immigration into North America, never forgotthat they had been the comrades of Penn or of other militantsectarians, and never lost the habit of keeping the Bible, the ledger, and the cash-book side by side. They remained deeply attached to theirreligion, which they looked upon as a social lever, although for manyof them their faith did not go beyond a conviction of the immanence ofthe supernatural in human life. Thus it was that their spirits wereoften dominated by a belief in miracles, all the more easily becausetheir intellectual culture was not always as highly developed as theirbusiness ability, and consequently the clever manufacturers ofreligious wonders were able to reap incredible harvests among them. 

There is perhaps no country where the seed sown by propagandistssprings up more rapidly, where an idea thrown to the winds finds moresurely a fertile soil in which to grow. A convinced and resolute man, knowing how to influence crowds by authoritative words, gestures andpromises, can always be certain of attracting numerous followers. InAmerica the conditions are without doubt propitious for the founders ofnew religions. 

I

How is a new religion started in the United States? Joe Smith wakes upone morning with the thought that the hour has come for him to performmiracles, that he is called thereto by the Divine Will, that theexistence and the secret hiding-place of a new Bible printed on sheetsof gold have been revealed to him by an angel, and that its discoverywill be the salvation of the world. He proclaims these things andconvinces those who hear him, and the Book of the Mormons which heproduces becomes sacred in the eyes of his followers. 

In ever-increasing numbers they hasten first to Illinois, then to Utah;and when Brigham Young, Smith's successor, presents the Mormon colonywith religious and political laws which are a mixture of Christianity, Judaism and Paganism, and include the consecration of polygamy, theyfound a church which claims more than a hundred thousand adherents, andis ruled by twelve apostles, sixty patriarchs, about three thousandhigh priests, fifteen hundred bishops, and over four thousand deans. 

After being dissolved by the decree of the 10th of October, 1888, theChurch of the Latter-Day Saints seemed to be lost, without hope ofrevival. The State of Utah, where Brigham Young had established it in1848, was invaded by ever-growing numbers of "Gentiles, " who werehostile to the Mormons, but these latter, far from allowing the debrisof their faith to bestrew the shores of the Great Salt Lake, succeeded, on the contrary, in strengthening the foundations of the edifice thatthey had raised. The number of its adherents increased, and the colonybecame more flourishing than ever. If, at one time, it was possible tospeak of its dying agonies, those who visit it to-day cannot deny thefact of its triumphant resurrection. 

Two principal causes have been its safeguard: the firm and practicalworking-out of the economic and philanthropic principles upon which itsorganisation has always rested, and the resolute devotion andcapability of those who direct it as the heads of one great family. Every member is concerned to maintain the regular and effectivefunctioning of its mechanism, and all work for the same ends in aspirit of religious co-operation. 

We must not lose sight of the fact that in addition to the elementsthey borrowed from Buddhism, Christianity, Gnosticism and Islam, theMormons introduced into their new Gospel a social ideal inspired by theCommunistic experiments of the first half of the nineteenth century. The founders of Mormonism--Joseph Smith, Heber Kimball, George Smith, the brothers Pratt, Reuben Hedlock, Willard Richards, and BrighamYoung--were not visionaries, but men risen from the people who desiredto acquire wealth while at the same time bringing wealth to those whotook part in their schemes. We find in their doctrine, and in theirlegal and religious codes, not only the idea of multiple union claimedby Enfantin and his forty disciples of Ménilmontant, but also thetheories of Buchez, who desired to free labour from the servitude ofwages, to bring about solidarity of production, and to communalisecapital, after first setting aside an inalienable reserve. Theyfollowed the example of Cabet in making fraternity, which shouldguarantee division of goods, the corner-stone of their socialstructure, and, avoiding the delusions of Considérant and otherCommunists, they brought about, stage by stage, the rapid and lastingdevelopment which has characterised their successive establishments inMissouri, Illinois, and on the borders of California. 

II

Militant as well as constructive, the Mormon leaders, like many otherreformers, believed themselves to be charged with a mission from onhigh, and were quick to condemn as rebels all who failed to rally tothe standard of the "Latter-Day Saints. " Joe Smith was not contentwith making thousands of converts, but, after having turned his colonyat Independence into an "Arsenal of the Lord, " and surrounding himselfwith a veritable army, he proclaimed that, as the Bible gave the saintsempire over all the earth, the whole State of Missouri should beincorporated in his "New Jerusalem. " The "Gentiles" replied with adeclaration of war, and Joe Smith and his twelve apostles were seized, publicly flogged, divested of their garments, tarred and feathered, andchased out of the State with shouts and laughter and a hail of stones. 

The Mormons took up arms. The Governor of Missouri called out themilitia. Vanquished in the encounter that followed, the Mormons had toabandon all their possessions and take flight. They then founded atown called Far West, and remained there for three years, at the end ofwhich time fresh aggressions and more battles drove them out of theState of Missouri into that of Illinois, where they built the largetown of Nauvoo. Many thousands of fresh recruits were won over, butonce again their designs for the acquisition of land--as well as ofsouls--stirred up a crusade against them. Joe Smith and the otherleaders of the sect were taken prisoners and shot--a procedure whichendowed Mormonism with all the sacredness of martyrdom. To escapefurther persecutions, the Saints decided on a general exodus, and thewhole sect, men and women, old people and children, numbering in allabout eighty thousand souls, set forth into the desert. 

It was a miserable journey. They were attacked by Red Indians, anddecimated by sickness; they strayed into wrong paths where no food wasto be found; they were buried in snowdrifts; and many of them perished. But the others, sustained by an invulnerable faith, and by the undyingcourage of their leaders, pushed on ever further and further, until inthe summer of 1847, after the cruel hardships of a journey on foot overnearly three hundred leagues of salt plains, the head of the columnreached the valley of the great Salt Lake. Here Brigham Young'sstrategic vision beheld a favourable situation for the re-establishmentof the sect. He himself, with a hundred and forty-three of hiscompanions--the elite of the church--directed the construction of thebeginnings of the colony, and then returned to those who had been leftbehind, bringing back a caravan of about three thousand to the spotwhere the New Jerusalem was to be built. 

It was given the name of Utah, and Filmore, the President of the UnitedStates, appointed Brigham Young as governor. The latter, however, desired to become completely autonomous. He was soon in conflict withthose under him, and his open hostility to the American constitutioncaused him to be deposed. His successor, Colonel Stepton, finding thesituation untenable, resigned almost at once, and the Mormons, recovering their former militancy and independence, then sought to freethemselves altogether from the guardianship of America, and to be solemasters in their own territory. In order to reduce them to submission, President Buchanan sent them a new governor in 1857 with some thousandsof soldiers. The Mormons resisted for some time, and finally demandedadmittance into the Union. Not only did Congress refuse this request, but it passed a law rendering all polygamists liable to be broughtbefore the criminal courts. The War of Secession, however, interruptedthe measures taken against the sect, which remained neutral during themilitary operations of the North and South. Brigham Young, who hadremained the Mormons' civil and religious head, occupied himself onlywith the economic and worldly extension of his church, until in 1870, five years after the termination of the war, the attention of Congresswas once more directed towards him. For the second time the Mormonswere forbidden by law to practise polygamy, under penalty ofdeportation from America, but they resisted energetically and refusedto obey. Defying the governor of Utah, General Scheffer, they ralliedfanatically round Brigham Young, who was arraigned and acquitted--andthe Mormon Church remained ruler of the colony. 

After Young's death, government was carried on jointly by the twelveapostles, until on October 17th, 1901, George Smith was electeduniversal President of all branches. 

A Frenchman, Jules Rémy, who visited the Mormons some time back, hasgiven a striking description of them:--

"Order, peace and industry are revealed on every side. All thesepeople are engaged in useful work, like bees in a hive, thus justifyingthe emblem on the roof of their President's palace. There are masons, carpenters, and gardeners, all carrying out their respective duties;blacksmiths busy at the forge, reapers gathering in the harvest, furriers preparing rich skins, children picking maize, drovers tendingtheir flocks, wood-cutters returning heavily loaded from the mountains. Others again are engaged in carding and combing wool, navvies aredigging irrigation canals, chemists are manufacturing saltpetre andgunpowder, armourers are making or mending firearms. Tailors, shoemakers, bricklayers, potters, millers, sawyers--every kind oflabourer or artisan is here to be found. There are no idlers, and nounemployed. Everybody, from the humblest convert up to the bishophimself, is occupied in some sort of manual labour. It is a curiousand interesting sight--a society so industrious and sober, so peacefuland well-regulated, yet built up of such divers elements drawn fromsuch widely differing classes. . . . 

All these people, born in varied and often contradictory faiths, brought up for the most part in ignorance and prejudice, having lived, some virtuously, some indifferently, some in complete abandonment totheir lowest animal instincts, differing among themselves as toclimate, language, customs, tastes and nationality, are here drawntogether to live in a state of harmony far more perfect than that ofordinary brotherhood. In the centre of the American continent theyform a new and compact nation, with independent social and religiouslaws, and are as little subject to the United States government thatharbours them as to that, for instance, of the Turks. "

Such they were, and such they have remained, ever developing theiractivities and industries, and--as another traveller has said--havingno aim save that of turning their arid and uncultivated "Promised Land"into a fertile Judea--an aim in which they have marvellously succeeded. 

III

Mormonism owes its success chiefly to its practical interpretation ofthe Communistic ideals, and to its determination to encourage labour bymeans of religion and patriotism, setting before it as object thesatisfaction of each individual's social needs, under the direction ofthose who have proved themselves capable and vigilant and worthy ofconfidence. It is a republic from which are banished the two mostusual causes of social collapse--idleness and egotism; a hive, according to its founder, in which each bee, having his particularfunction, is always under the eye of those who direct individualactivities in the interests of collective welfare. The President ofthe Mormon Church is its moving spirit. He surveys it as a whole, encourages or moderates its energies, according to circumstances, preserves order and regularity, and exercises his paternal influenceover every cell of the hive, giving counsel when needed, redressinggrievances, preventing false moves, yet leaving to every corporationnot only its administrative freedom but its own powers for industrialextension. 

Under these conditions the Church of the Latter-Day Saints unites thesocial and economic advantages of individual and collective labour. The corporations are like stitches that form a net, holding togetherthrough community of interests and a general desire for prosperity, yeteach having its own separate formation and the power to enlarge itselfand increase its activities without compromising the others orlessening their respective importance. One of the most remarkable isthe "Mercantile Co-operative Society of Sion, " the central departmentof wholesale and retail trade. It was founded in 1863 by BrighamYoung, who was its first president, and is in direct relationship withthe Mormon colonies all over the world, having a capital fund of morethan a million dollars which belongs exclusively to the Mormons. Itsorganisation, like that of all Mormon institutions, is based upon thededuction of a tithe of all profits, which practically representsincome tax. The "Sugar Corporation" has an even larger capital, andwas founded directly by the church through the advice of Brigham Young, who recommended that Mormon industries should be patronised to theexclusion of all others. The salt industry also is of much importance, the Inland Crystal Salt Company having at great expense erectedelaborate machinery in order to work the salt marshes around the GreatLake, and to obtain, under the best possible conditions, grey saltwhich is converted into white in their refineries. Other corporationsunder the presidency of the supreme head of the Mormon Church are the"Consolidated Company of Railway Carriages and Engines, " the "SionSavings Bank, " the "Co-operative Society for Lighting and Transport, "and the chief Mormon paper, the _Desert Evening News_, which is theofficial organ of the church, and has a considerable circulation. 

IV

These corporations are not only commercial or industrial institutions, but are animated by a spirit that is pre-eminently fraternal. Theirheads are concerned with the well-being of every member, and material, moral or intellectual assistance is given to all according to theirneeds. 

To each corporation is attached a "delegate, " whose functions do notappear to be of great importance, but who renders, in reality, servicesof considerable value. The man who holds this post is one ofunimpeachable honesty and integrity, with a kind and conciliatorydisposition, chosen for these qualities to act as intermediary betweenthe bishop and the "saints" of all classes, from the highest to thelowest. He has free entry into the Mormon homes, and is always readyto give advice and counsel to any member of the church in his district;and he even penetrates into the houses of the Gentiles, wherever aMormon, man or woman, may happen to be employed. Take, for instance, the case of a young Scandinavian servant-girl, living with"unbelievers. " The mother, who had remained in Europe, wished torejoin her daughter, but the girl had not been able to raise more thana third of the sum necessary to pay the expenses of the journey. Thedelegate took note of this and referred the case to the bishop, who, after inquiry, sent the old mother the required amount. 

Again, two neighbours might be disputing over the question of theboundary between their respective properties. The delegate would doall in his power to settle the affair amicably, and to restore harmony;and failing in this would bring the two parties concerned before thebishop. Or there might be an invalid requiring medicine and treatment, an old person needing help, a layette to be bought for a new-bornchild--in all such cases the delegate sees that the needs are supplied, for the strength of this Church of the Latter-Day Saints lies in thefact that all the Mormons, from the President down to the humblestworkman, call themselves brothers and sisters and act as such towardsone another. Thanks to the delegate, who is friend, confidant andconfessor in one, immediate help can be obtained in all instances, andno suffering is left unrelieved. 

Thus it comes about that there are no poor among the Mormons, and veryfew criminals. The delegate has no need to search into the secrets ofmen's minds, for all are open to him. To a great extent he is able toread their innermost hearts, for men speak freely to him, without veilsor reservations. As far as is possible he sees that their desires aregranted; he notifies all cases of need to the Relief Societies; heconducts the sick and aged to the hospitals; he is the messenger andmouthpiece for all communications from the people to the bishop andfrom the bishop to his flock. 

It is the delegate also who is charged with the duty of seeing thatone-tenth of each person's income, whatever its total sum may be, iscontributed for the upkeep of the Mormon faith and its church. Hereminds the dilatory, and admonishes the forgetful, always in friendlyfashion. In fact it is he, who--to use a popular expression--bringsthe grist to the mill. This contribution of a tenth part obviates allother taxation, and as it is demanded from each in proportion to hismeans, its fairness is disputed by none. 

V

Brotherly co-operation also prevails in the Mormon system ofcolonisation. The leaders of the church have always been aware of thedangers of overcrowding, and at all times have occupied themselves withthe founding of new settlements to receive the surplus population fromthe centres already in activity. It is for this reason that the churchhas been so urgent in seeking and demanding new territory to irrigateand cultivate, in Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Arizona, Idaho, and evenas far afield as Canada. The transplanting of a swarm from the parenthive is undertaken with the greatest care. Let us take for example thecolonisation of the Big Horn Valley, in the north of Wyoming. Beforecoming to a decision the apostles themselves inspected the locality, which had been recommended as suitable for a new colony of saints. Finding that it fulfilled all requirements, they published theirresolve in the official Press, and invited all who desired to becomemembers of the colony to present themselves before their bishop withthe necessary guarantees. The President of the church then sought outa brother capable of organising the scheme, and this brother, proud andgrateful at being chosen for such a mission, sold all his goods andtook up his new responsibilities. On the appointed day the newcolonists grouped themselves around their leader, with their wagons, baggages, provisions, agricultural tools, horses and cattle, and so on. One of the twelve apostles being appointed as guide, they set forth forthe Big Horn Valley. Here they built their dwelling-places, dug acanal to provide water for the whole settlement, founded all kinds ofco-operative societies, including one for the breeding of cattle--andprospered. 

In this way, upon a Socialism quite distinct from that of the Europeantheorists, and differing widely from that practised by the NewZealanders, are built up institutions, which have given proof, whereverstarted, of their power of resistance to human weaknesses. The Mormoncolonies, fundamentally collectivist, like the sect from which theyoriginally sprang, still bear the imprint given to them by theinitiators of the movement. Each one becomes industrially andcommercially autonomous, but all are firmly held together in a commonbrotherhood by the ties of religion. The Big Horn Mormons, although sofar away, never for a single day forget their brothers of Salt LakeCity, and all alike hold themselves ever in readiness to render mutualassistance and support. 

VI

The Mormon considers activity a duty. Co-operation implies for him notonly solidarity of labour but union of will, and these principles areapplied in all phases of his public or private life--in politics, education, social conditions of every kind, and even amusements. Heholds it obligatory under all circumstances to contribute personal helpor money according to his means, knowing that his brothers and sisterswill do likewise, and that he can rely upon them with absolutecertainty. 

Nevertheless, dissension does occasionally arise in the heart of thisclose-knit brotherhood. The authority of the President, or that of theapostles and bishops may be the cause of rivalries and jealousies, asin the case of Joseph Morris, Brigham Young's confidant, who wished tosupplant his chief. He and his partisans were assaulted and put todeath by Young's adherents. A spirit of discord also manifests itselfat times in the national elections, and there are plottings andintrigues, especially when there seems to be hope of supremacy inCongress, or when one of the twelve apostles offers himself ascandidate for the Senate without first consulting the Mormon Church. 

Such shadows are inseparable from all human communities. What it isimportant to study in the Church of the Latter-Day Saints is theevolution of a communism which has more than half a century of activityto its credit, and which, in contrast to so many other fruitlessattempts, has given marked proofs of a vitality that shows no sign ofdiminishing. 

CHAPTER II

THE RELIGION OF BUSINESS

Joe Smith was, to speak plainly, nothing but an adventurer. Havingtried more than twenty avocations, ending up with that of agold-digger, he found himself at last at the end of his resources, anddecided, in truly American fashion, that he would now make his fortune. He thereupon announced that he was in close communication with Moses, and that he had in his possession the two mosaic talismans, Urim andThummim, and the manuscript of the Biblical prophet, Mormon--the latterhaving as a matter of fact been obtained from Solomon Spaulding, pastorof New Salem, Ohio, in 1812. 

It was different with John Alexander Dowie, who with remarkable wisdomseized the psychological moment to appear in the United States as aBarnum and a Pierpont Morgan of religion combined. By what was anindisputable stroke of genius, he incorporated into his religion themost outstanding features of American life--commerce, industry, andfinance, the tripod upon which the Union rests. What could be moreup-to-date than a commercial and industrial prophet, business man, stock-jobber, and organiser of enterprises paying fabulous dividends?And--surely the crowning point of the "new spirit!"--the man who nowdeclared himself to be the most direct representative of God upon earthwas accepted as such because people saw in him, not only the Messianicpower that he claimed, but an extraordinary knowledge of the value ofstocks and shares side by side with his knowledge of the value of souls!

He was of Scottish origin, and had reached his thirtieth year beforehis name became known. As a child he was disinclined to take religionseriously, and had a habit of whistling the hymns in church instead ofsinging them. Later he was distinguished by a timidity and reservewhich seemed to suggest that he would never rise above the environmentinto which he had been born. His studies and his beliefs--which forlong showed no sign of deviating from the hereditary Scottishfaith--were under the direction of a rigidly severe father. At the ageof thirteen his parents, attracted by the Australian mirage of thosedays, took him with them to Adelaide, and he became under-clerk in abusiness house there, serving an apprenticeship which was to proveuseful later on. At twenty he returned to Edinburgh, desiring to enterthe ministry, as he believed he had a religious vocation, and plungedinto the study of theology with a deep hostility to everything that wasoutside a strictly literal interpretation of the Scriptures. Full ofdevotion and self-abnegation in his desperate struggle with the powersof evil, he read the Holy Book with avidity, and was constant in hisattendance at theological conferences. Thus, nourished on the marrowof the Scotch theologians, he returned to Australia and was ordained tothe priesthood at Alma. Soon afterwards he was appointed minister tothe Congregational Church in Sydney, where his profound learning washighly appreciated. 

He who desires to attract and instruct the masses must have two gifts, without which success is impossible--eloquence and charm. Dowie hadboth. As an orator he was always master of himself, yet full ofemotion, passionate in his gestures, and easily moved to tears. 

We must admit that he did not, like so many others, owe his influenceto his environment. In New South Wales, where he made his _début_ as apreacher at Sydney, his eloquence and his learning made so great animpression--especially after he had emerged victorious from acontroversy with the Anglican bishop, Vaughan, brother to theCardinal--that the governor of the province, Sir Henry Parkes, offeredhim an important Government position. He refused to accept it, desiring, as he said, to consecrate his life to the work of God. Persuaded--or wishing to persuade others--that he had been personallychosen by God to fulfil the prophecy of St. Mark xvi. 17, 18, he tookup the practice of the laying-on of hands, claiming that in this way, with the help of prayer, the sick could be cured. On these words ofthe evangelist his whole doctrine was based. Through assiduous readinghe familiarised himself with medical science, as well as withhypnotism, telepathy and suggestion, his aim being to organise anddirect a crusade against medicine as practised by the faculty. Hegathered together materials for a declaration of war against themedicos, attacking them in their, apparently, most impregnablepositions, and showing up, often through their own observations, thefatal inanity--in his eyes--of their therapeutics. At the same time hemanaged to acquire experience of commerce, finance and administration, and, thus equipped, he opened his campaign. Thaumaturgy, science, occultism, eloquence, knowledge of men and of the world--all these hebrought into play. The prestige he gained was remarkable, and ofcourse the unimpeachable truth of Bible prophecy was sufficient toestablish the fact of his identity with the expected Elias!

"Logic itself commands you to believe in me, " he said in his officialmanifesto. "John the Baptist was the messenger of the Alliance (whichis the Scotch Covenant), and Elias was its prophet. But Malachi andJesus promised the return of the messenger of the Alliance, and ofElias the Restorer. . . . If we are deceived, it is God who hasdeceived us, and that is impossible. For the office with which we arecharged is held directly from God, and those who have helped us infounding our Church, and who have given us their devotion, testify thatthey have been instructed to do so by personal revelations. "

All the believers in Dowieism affirmed that John Alexander Dowie wasElias the Second, or Elias the Third (if John the Baptist wereconsidered to be the Second), but Dowie himself went further still. Hewas too modern to base his influence on religion alone, and he actuallyhad the cleverness to become not only a banker, manufacturer, hotel-keeper, newspaper proprietor, editor and multi-millionaire, butalso the principal of a college and the "boss" of a political partywhich acknowledged him as spiritual and temporal pope and numbered oversixty thousand adherents. He had ten tabernacles in Chicago, and ruleddespotically the municipal affairs of one of the suburbs of the city. 

II

It is interesting to study closely the way in which Dowie graduallyattained to such a powerful position. Up to his arrival in Chicago, and even for some years after it, his career differed little from thatof the ordinary open-air evangelist with long hair and vague theories, such as may be seen at the street-corners of so many English andAmerican towns. In New South Wales his excessive ardour at temperancemeetings in the public squares caused such disorder that he was twiceimprisoned, and he came to the conclusion that Melbourne would offerbetter scope for his mission. He went there to establish a "FreeChristian Tabernacle, " but almost immediately an epidemic of feverbroke out, and he became popular through his intrepidity in visitingthe sick, whom he claimed to be able to cure by a secret remedy, theuse of which, as a matter of fact, only resulted in augmenting thelists of dead. But to his religious propaganda the Australians turneda deaf ear, and after persevering for ten years he gave up, partlybecause the authorities had intimated that he had best pitch his campelsewhere, partly, perhaps, because he was glad to leave what he laterreferred to as "that nest of antipodean vipers. "

We find him in San Francisco in 1888, preaching his new religion atstreet-corners, and once more causing almost daily disturbances by thevigour of his eloquence. Here again his hopes miscarried, and fromthenceforward he fixed his eyes on Chicago, where he should "meet thedevil on his own ground. "

This final resolution bore good fruit, for Chicago is pre-eminently"the city of Satan, " and those who desire to wage war against him canalways be sure of plentiful hauls, whatever nets they use. It is thattype of American town where all is noise and animation, where thepopulation is cosmopolitan, and confusion of tongues is coupled with aneven greater confusion of beliefs; where it is possible to pursue theavocations of theologian and pork-butcher side by side, and no one issurprised. Called "Queen of the West" by some, Porkopolis (from itschief industry) by others, it is a giant unique in its own kind. Whileits inhabitants, in feverish activity, climb or are rushed in lifts tothe nineteenth and twentieth storeys of its immense buildings, there isheard from time to time a call from regions beyond this life ofincessant bustle; the voice of a preacher dominates the tumult, andthis million and a half of slaughterers of sheep and oxen, jam-makersand meat-exporters, factory-hands, distillers, brewers, tanners, seekers of fortune by every possible means, suddenly remembers that ithas a soul to be saved, and throws it in passing, as it were, towhoever is most dexterous in catching it. In such a _milieu_ Dowiemight indeed hope to pursue his aims with advantage. 

His personality had a certain hypnotic fascination. His eloquence, hispatriarchal appearance, his supposed power of curing even the mostintractable diseases, his use of modern catch-words, his talent fordecorating the walls of his little temple with symbols such ascrutches, bandages and other trophies of "divine healing, " all combinedto bring him before the public eye. He had a dispute with the doctors, who accused him of practising their profession illegally, and anotherwith the clergy, who attacked him in their sermons; the populace wasstirred up against him, and laid siege to his tabernacle, and hehimself threw oil upon these various fires, and became a prominentpersonage in the daily Press. 

It is true that the arrest of some Dowieists whose zeal had carriedthem beyond the limits of the law of Illinois was commented upon; thatlong reports were published of the death of a member of the Church ofSion who had succumbed through being refused any medical attention savethat of the high-priest of the sect; that much amusement was caused bythe dispersal of a meeting of Dowieists by firemen, who turned the hoseupon them; and much interest aroused by the legal actions broughtagainst Dowie for having refused to give information concerning theBank of Sion. All these affairs provided so many new "sensations. "But what is of importance is to attract the public, to hold theirattention, to keep them in suspense. The time came when it wasnecessary to produce some more original idea, to strike a reallydecisive blow, and so Dowie revealed to a stupefied Chicago that he wasthe latest incarnation of the prophet Elijah. Then while the seriousPress denounced him for blasphemy, and the comic Press launched itsmost highly poisoned shafts of wit against him, the whole of Sionexulted in clamorous rejoicings. For the prophet knew his Chicago. Credulity gained the upper hand, and the whole city flocked to thetabernacle of Sion, desirous of beholding the new Elias at closequarters. 

III

The definite organisation of Dowieism--or Sionism, as it is moreusually called--dates from 1894. From this time forward Dowie ceasedto be merely a shepherd offering the shelter of his fold to thosedesiring salvation, and, allowing evangelisation as such to take asecondary place, became the director, inspector and general overseer ofa religious society founded upon community of both material and moralinterests, and upon fair administration of the benefits of a commercialand industrial enterprise having many sources of revenue. In thissociety, political, sociological and religious views were combined, sothat it offered an attractive investment for financial as well asspiritual capital. Dowie was not only the religious and temporalleader of the movement, but also the contractor for and principalbeneficiary from this gigantic co-operative scheme, which combinedselling and purchasing, manufacture and distribution, therapeutics, social questions and religion. 

Like most founders of sects, the prophet of the "New Sion" was at firstsurrounded by those despairing invalids and cripples who try all kindsof remedies, until at last they find one to which they attribute therelief of their sufferings, whether real or fancied. Such as thesewill do all that is required of them; they will give all their worldlygoods to be saved; and they paid gladly the tenth part which Dowieimmediately demanded from all who came to him, some of them evenpouring their entire fortunes into the coffers of the new Elias. Theranks of his recruits were further swelled by crowds of hypochondriacs, and by the superstitious, the idle, and the curious, who filled histemple to such an extent that soon he was obliged to hire a large hallfor his Sunday meetings, at which he was wont to appear in greatmagnificence with the cortège of a religious showman. 

These displays attracted widespread attention, and indeed Dowieneglected nothing in his efforts to make a deep and lasting impressionon the public mind. Here is the account of an eye-witness:--

The prophet speaks. The audience preserves a religious silence. Hisvoice has a quality so strange as to be startling. To see that broadchest, that robust and muscular frame, one would expect to hear rollingwaves of sound, roarings as of thunder. But not so. The voice isshrill and sibilant, yet with a sonority so powerful that it vibrateson the eardrums and penetrates to the farthest corners of the hall. 

Presently the real object of the sermon is revealed. The enemies ofSion are denounced with a virulence that borders upon fury, and thepreacher attacks violently those whom he accuses of persecuting hischurch. He poses as a martyr, and cries out that "the blood of themartyr is the seed of faith"; he pours out imprecations upon otherreligious sects; calls down maledictions upon the qualified doctors, who are to him merely "sorcerers and poisoners"; consigns "the vipersof the press" to destruction; and, carried away by the violence of hisanathemas, launches this peroration upon the ears of his admiringaudience:

"If you wish to drink your reeking pots of beer, whisky, wine, or otherdisgusting alcoholic liquors; if you wish to go to the theatre andlisten to Mephistopheles, to the devil, to Marguerite, the dissolutehussy, and Doctor Faust, her foul accomplice; if you wish to gorgeyourselves upon the oyster, scavenger of the sea, and the pig, scavenger of the earth--a scavenger that there is some question ofmaking use of in the streets of Chicago (_laughter_); it you wish, Isay, to do the work of the devil, and eat the meats of the devil, youneed only to remain with the Methodists, Baptists, or such-like. Sionis no place for you. We want only clean people, and, thanks to God, wecan make them clean. There are many among you who need cleansing. Youknow that I have scoured you as was necessary, and I shall continue todo it, for you are far from clean yet. "

Then, entering into a dialogue with his hearers upon the vital point ofSionism, he asks:

"Does America pay her tithe to God?"

The audience replies "No. "

"Do the churches pay their tithes to God?"

"No. "

"Do you yourselves pay your tithes to God? Stand up, those of you whodo. "

The listeners stand up in thousands. 

"There are a number of robbers here who remain seated, and do not paytheir tithes to God. Now I know who are the robbers. Do you know whatshould be done with you? I will tell you. There is nothing for youbut the fire--the fire! Is it not villainy to rob one's brother?"

"Yes. "

"Is it not villainy to rob one's mother?"

"Yes. "

"Is it not the vilest villainy to rob God?"

"Yes. "

"Well, there are some among you who are not ashamed of committing it. You are robbing God all the time. You are like Ahaz, the Judean kingfamed for his impiety, and if you remain as you are, you will be doomedto eternal death. To whom does the tithe belong? What is done withit? I am going to answer that. If anyone here says that what Ipossess is taken out of the tithes, he lies--and I will make his liestick in his throat. The tithes and all other offerings go straight tothe general fund, and do not even pass through my hands. But I have aright to my share of the tithes. Have I--or not?"

"Yes. "

"Yes, and I shall take it when I have need of it. It is you whom Iaddress--you vile robbers, hypocrites, liars, who pretend to belong toSion and do not pay the tithe. Do you know what is reserved for you?You will burn in eternal fire. Rise--depart from Sion!"

But no one departs. All the defaulters hasten to pay, for the prophetinspires them with a terror very different from their dread of thetax-collector, and there is no single example of one sufficientlyobstinate to brave his threats of damnation. 

In other ways also Elias was all-powerful. He made a mock of politicalor ecclesiastical elections, holding that a leader's power should notbe subject to suffrages or renewals of confidence. Thanks to thesesermons, dialogues, and the general _mise en scène_, the autocracy ofDowie was beyond question. 

IV

The new Elias called himself "the divine healer, " and, like Schlatter, he attracted all who believed in the direct intervention of God, actingpersonally upon the sufferer. In their eyes he was simply therepresentative of God, source of health and healing. It was not he whobrought about the cures, but God, and therefore the payments that weremade to him were in reality payments to God. This teaching was largelythe source of Dowie's power. 

There were two large hotels in Chicago which were continually filled tooverflowing with pilgrims from all parts who came to seek "divinehealing. " These left behind them sums of money--often considerable--intoken of their gratitude to God; not to the prophet, who would acceptnothing. 

It is obvious that if none of his cures had been effectual, Dowie, inspite of his power over credulous minds, could not have succeeded. Thaumaturgy must perform its miracles. If it fails to do so, it is afraud, and its incapacity proves its ruin. But if it accomplishesthem, its fame becomes widespread. These miraculous cures generallytake place, not singly, but in numbers, because there are always peoplewho respond to suggestion, and invalids who become cured when theobligation to be cured, in the name of God, is placed upon them. ThusChicago saw and wondered at the miracles, and had no doubts of theirgenuineness. 

There was the case of Mr. Barnard, one of the heads of the NationalBank of Chicago, whose twelve-year-old daughter was suffering fromspinal curvature. She grew worse, in spite of all the efforts of themost eminent doctors and surgeons, and it seemed that nothing could bedone. The child must either die, or remained deformed for the rest ofher life. The father and mother were overcome with grief, and afterhaving gone the round of all the big-wigs of the medical profession, they tried first bone-setters, then Christian Scientists, withoutavail. Finally they went to Dowie, who had already cured one of theirfriends. Up till then they had not had confidence in him, and theyonly went to him as a counsel of despair, so to speak, and because acareful re-reading of the Bible had persuaded them that God could andwould cure all who had faith in His supreme power. Dowie, perceivingthat they and their daughter had true faith, laid his hands on thechild and prayed. In that same moment the curvature disappeared, andthe cure was complete, for there was never any return of the trouble. 

In recognition of this divine favour Mr. Barnard, who had hithertobelonged to the Presbyterian Church, voluntarily joined the Sionists, and became their chief auxiliary financier. Dowie made him manager ofthe Bank of Sion, under his own supervision, and confided to him thefinancial administration of the church. 

Similarly a Mr. Peckman, whose wife he cured, and who was leader of theBaptist Church of Indiana, gave thanks to God and to Dowie, Hisprophet, by founding a colony affiliated to Sionism which paid itstithes regularly. 

There are many other examples of successful cures, but also manyfailures. These, however, did not lower the prestige of the modernElias, who said to his detractors: "God has the power to cure, and allcures are due to Him alone. He desires to cure all who suffer, for Hispity is infinite; but it may very well happen that the consumptives andparalytics who come to me after being given up by the doctors, are notalways cured by God, however much I pray for them. Why is this? Thereason is simple. Disease and death must be looked upon as ills due tothe devil, who, since the fall of the rebellious angels, is always in astate of insurrection against God. And it is certain that whoever hasnot faith--absolute and unquestionable faith--is in the power of Satan. The Scripture tells us precisely, 'he that believeth and is baptisedshall be saved; he that believeth not is condemned. ' When a suffereris not healed through my intercession, it means that in the strugglefor that particular soul, the devil has been victorious. "

So, supported by this thesis, Dowie triumphed over the objections ofhis critics, not only in the eyes of Sion, but of all Chicago. Evenwhen he lost his only daughter, Esther, his authority was in no wayaffected. 

Esther Dowie was twenty-one, and the pride of her father's heart. Shehad finished her studies at the University of Chicago, and a happyfuture seemed to be opening out before her. One day in the month ofMay she was preparing for a large reception which was being held inhonour of young Booth-Clibborn, grandson of General Booth of theSalvation Army. The event was an important one, for it was hoped thatthis meeting would bring about an understanding between theSalvationists and the Sionists, and Miss Dowie wished to give thevisitor the most gracious welcome possible. She was lighting aspirit-lamp, for the purpose of waving her hair, when a draught of airblew her peignoir into the flame. It caught fire, and the poor girlwas so terribly burned that she succumbed soon afterwards, although herfather and all the elders of the Church prayed at her bedside, andalthough Dowie permitted a doctor to attend her and to make copious useof vaseline. After her death, the jury decided that she must have beenburnt internally, the flames having penetrated to her throat and lungs. Before she died she begged her father to forgive her for havingdisobeyed him--for Dowie strictly forbade the use of alcohol, even in aspirit-lamp--and implored the adherents of Sionism not to exposethemselves to death through disobedience, as she had done. 

The attitude adopted by the prophet under this blow was almost sublime. Letters of condolence and of admiration rained upon him. He wept overhis daughter's dead body, and was broken-hearted, while, instead ofdrawing attention to the extenuating circumstances for his owninability to save her--as he would have done in all other cases--hefervently prayed to God to forgive her for having sinned against thelaws of Sion. His grief was so sincere that not only the Sionists butthe whole of Chicago joined in it. 

Lack of faith was not the only thing that prevented cures. Omitting topay the tithes could also render them impossible; for the tithes weredue to God, and those who failed to pay them committed a voluntaryoffence against the divine power. When we remember that there were atleast sixty thousand Sionists, it is obvious that these tithes musthave amounted to an enormous sum--and of this sum Dowie never gave anyaccount. His spiritual power was founded upon his moral power. It iscertain that he tried to influence his followers for good in forbiddingthem alcoholic drinks and gambling, and in advising exercise andrecreation in the open air, and the avoidance of medicaments and drugswhich he believed did more harm than good. He said to them--"Yourhealth is a natural thing, for health is the state of grace in man, andthe result of being in accord with God, and disease has no other causethan the violation of law, religious or moral. " He ordained that allshould live in a state of cleanliness, industry and order, so thatcommunal prosperity might be assured. And of this prosperity whichthey owed to God and to His representative, what more just than that apart of it should be given to God and to Dowie, His prophet? What morelegitimate than that there should be no separation between the materiallife and the spiritual life?

He had a special machine constructed which registered, by a kind ofclockwork, the intercessions made on behalf of the various applicantsfor healing. Each one would receive a printed bulletin, stating, forexample--"Prayed on the 10th of March, at four o'clock in theafternoon, John A. Dowie. " If the patient was not in Chicago, Dowiewould pray by telephone, so that the immediate effect of the divinepower might be felt. He also made use of a phonograph for recordinghis homilies, sermons and prayers, and these records were sent, at afixed price, to his adherents in all parts of the world. 

V

The city of Sion lies between Chicago and Milwaukee, about forty-twomiles to the north of the former. It comprises an estate of 6400 acreson the shores of Lake Michigan. This land--some of the best inIllinois--was let out in lots, on long lease, by Dowie to hisfollowers, and brought in thousands of dollars yearly. At the sametime that he created this principle of speculation in land, he was alsoengaged in founding a special industry, whose products were sold as"products of Sion. " His choice fell upon the lace industry, and thanksto very clever management he was able to establish large factoriesmodelled on those of Nottingham, employing many hundreds of workerswhose goods commanded a considerable sale. 

Before he undertook its organisation the possessions of the Church werefew. Fifteen years afterwards, it had a fortune of more than a millionpounds. 

In order to carry out his plan of building a town in which neitherspirits nor tobacco should be sold, and which should be inhabited onlyby Sionists, it was necessary that all the land should belong to him, and he had to reckon with the probably exorbitant demands of thesellers. To circumvent these his real intentions had to be hidden, andwith the help of his faithful auxiliaries this was successfullyaccomplished. 

I do not know what has become of Sionism during recent years. Will thedynasty be continued after the reign of John Dowie by that of his sonWilliam Gladstone Dowie; or will the death of the prophet, as stated bythose who have seen the eclipse of other stars of first magnitude, bethe signal for the dissolution of the sect?

What matters, however, is the genesis and not the duration of anenchantment which has united around one central figure, so manythousands who thirsted for the simultaneous salvation of their soulsand of their purses. 

CHAPTER III

THE ADEPTS OF THE SUN OF SUNS

Nearly all Communistic theories when applied in practice provefailures, but there seems to be one infallible safeguard--that suppliedby religion. Faith, when mingled with the trials and disenchantmentsof life, appears to mitigate them, and communal experiments based onreligious beliefs nearly always prosper. This applies to thehalf-religious, half-communal sects of modern Russia, and the principlehas also been adopted by the American apostles of communism. 

One of these, Dr. Teed of Chicago, understood it well, and his sectwas, in fact, merely a religious sect based on the principle ofcommunal possessions. Its adherents took the name of _Koreshans_, after the title _Koresh_ (or the sun) boasted by its founder. He, _Koresh_, "Light of Lights, " "Sun of Suns, " was called by Heaven toteach the truth to mortals, and to show them which road to eternalsalvation they should follow in order to prosper upon earth. Foundedin Chicago, the sect moved recently to Florida, and there, from day today, Teed had the satisfaction of seeing the number of believerssteadily increase. 

He had at first to put up with a good deal of ridicule, for histeaching, based upon that of Fourier, and incorporating some of themystical ideas of Swedenborg, was not at all to the taste of hisfellow-citizens. The doctor then evolved the brilliant idea ofdividing his system into two doctrines--the way to heaven, or themystical doctrine; and the way to earthly prosperity, or the economicdoctrine. It was permissible to follow the second without adopting thefirst, and the result may easily be guessed. Attracted by the prospectof terrestrial benefits, believers flocked to the fold, and invariablyended by accepting the second half of the teaching also (the mysticaldoctrine), all the more willingly because their material happiness andprosperity depended on the degree of their "union" with the founder. 

The mysticism of _Koresh_ had some novel features, for the Americandoctor saw the wisdom of making use of some of the prestige latelygained by science. His religion, consequently, was essentiallyscientific. He, _Koresh_, was the "unique man, " who, thanks to his"scientific studies" and to "celestial inspiration, " could understandthe mysteries of nature. He had reached the summit of scientificknowledge and the greatest possible human perfection--that is to say, "sainthood"--and all who approached him were made participators in his"holiness. " Thanks to this gift, pertaining only to _Koresh_, hisfollowers could "enjoy the bliss of heaven upon earth"; for the Kingdomof God upon earth was near at hand, and _Koreshism_ was preparing theway for its disciples. 

But what had to be done in order to attain the higher degrees ofsalvation? Teed was a sufficiently clever psychologist to know thatnothing fascinates the crowd so much as mysteries and things thatcannot be understood, and he acted accordingly. 

His doctrine is so obscure that only those claiming divine illuminationcould hope to find their way amid its cloudy precepts. Let us give anexample:--

"In recognition of the principal source of the force of the intrinsicand innate life of the Christian revelation, the _Koreshan_ doctrineelevates the founder of Christianity to the place of father, becomeperfect, thanks to the sacrifice of his son, which it has been given tous to understand by the flesh of Jehovah. "

The believers could give it whatever meaning they liked, and for thosewho despaired of understanding this part of the _Koreshan_ revelation, the prophet kept in reserve thousands of other dogmas, all equallyenigmatic and equally obscure. We will not attempt to discuss them!

The teaching included the attainment of perfection through marriage, and claimed omniscience for _Koreshism_, which could throw new lightupon all things, including such subjects as astronomy and philosophy. The earth is not round, light is not diffused, as science teaches, andman has not five senses, but seven--so said _Koresh_. He described hisdoctrine as communistic and co-operative. The use of money wasforbidden, its place being taken by cheques representing the amount ofservices rendered to the community. 

The colony founded at Estero, in Florida, was almost exclusivelycommercial and industrial, not agricultural like most communalsettlements. Electric railways and factories were built--and are stillbeing built--there, for steam, like money, is banned in the colony of_Koresh_; while being in possession of a seaport, the _Koreshans_propose to enter into commercial relationship with the whole world. 

The Bureau of Equitable Commerce directs the business affairs of thecommunity, and at its head is the chief of the Commonwealth (or publicfortune). All the inhabitants share in the general prosperity, and inorder to prevent the more capable individuals from developing intocapitalists, the fortunes of all are carefully equalised by means of aprogressive tax upon income. The land belongs to all, and isnon-transferable, like the factories. No payment is demanded ofnew-comers; it is enough if they bring the moral capital of anirreproachable life, and are good workers; and any poor people whodesire to seek salvation in the colony are enabled to travel to it bycontributions from the public funds. Absolute tolerance of all beliefsforms the spiritual basis of the sect. 

New Jerusalem, the capital of the colony, covers about eighty-sixsquare miles, having streets four hundred feet in width, and separateindustrial quarters. The business affairs of the community areundeniably prosperous. 

B. RELIGION AND MIRACLES

"O men born upon earth, why abandon yourselves to death, when you arepermitted to obtain immortality?"

HERMES TRISMEGISTUS. 

CHAPTER I

THE CHRISTIAN SCIENTISTS

The marriage between Science and the Bible, brought about by Mary BakerEddy, has given birth to a most prosperous sect. In this amalgam, theChristianity is not of the purest, and the Science appears rather inthe form of the negation of its own principles; but so great ishumanity's desire for the union of revelation and experience thatbelievers crowd from all parts to range themselves behind the hewbanner. 

There is something almost disconcerting in the ardour and devotion ofMrs. Eddy's followers. Truly, in the success of Christian Science wesee one more proof of the ease with which a new religion can be startedif, in addition to faith, it concerns itself with man's earthly welfare. 

The founder of the sect was a clever woman. Well aware of the powerand fascination of the mysterious, she exploited it with a profoundunderstanding of the human heart. She mingled the realities of lifewith the mysteries of thought, and the sun of her revelations is alwaysveiled by intangible clouds. From her gospel one might cull at randomscores of phrases that defy human understanding. "Evil is nothing, nothing, mind or power, " she says in _Science and Health_. "Asmanifested by mankind, it stands for a lie, nothing claiming to besomething. " And again--"Mortal existence has no real entity, but saith'It is I. '"

The nonsensicalness of her phraseology can find no comparison save inthe inconceivable chaos of her teachings. She goes so far as to implythat the supreme effort of a woman's spirit should suffice to bringabout conception. Jesus Christ having been conceived of the HolyGhost, she suggests that man should follow this example, and renouncethe lusts of the flesh. "Proportionately as human generation ceases, the unbroken links of eternal, harmonious being will be spirituallydiscerned"--and in another place, "When this new birth takes place, theChristian Science infant is born of the spirit, born of God, and cancause the mother no more suffering. "

In the explanations of the Bible given in her _Key to the Scriptures_we are told that when we come upon the word "fire, " we are to translateit as "fear, " and the word "fear" as "heat"; while we must rememberthat Eve never put the blame for her sin upon the serpent, but, having"learnt that corporeal sense is the serpent, " she was the first toconfess her misdeed in having followed the dictates of the fleshinstead of those of the spirit. 

Like all prophets and saviours, Mrs. Eddy was crucified during herlifetime. She had to engage in a continuous struggle with the envy andjealousy of those who sought to misrepresent her teachings and bringher glory to the dust. But she was far from being an ordinary woman, and even in childhood seemed to be marked out for an exceptionalcareer. At the age of eight, like Joan of Arc, she heard mysteriousvoices, and her mother, who was of Scottish origin and subject to"attacks of religion, " remembered the story of the Infant Samuel andencouraged her to speak with the Lord. But Mary was alarmed by thevoices, and wept and trembled, instead of replying to them like a goodchild. 

About her forty-fifth year, however, being in the grip of a seriousillness, she did hold converse with the Lord, who told her how shemight be cured. She listened and obeyed, and was cured. This was her"great initiation. " She then retired from the world, and spent severalyears engaged in meditation and prayer, while her study of the Biblerevealed to her the key to all mysteries, human and divine. 

The deductions of her philosophy are often characterised by anastonishing naïveté. "God being All-in-all, He made medicine, " shetells us; "but that medicine was Mind. . . . It is plain that God doesnot employ drugs or hygiene, nor provide them for human use; else Jesuswould have recommended and employed them in His healing. "

She frequently makes use of ingenious statements whose very candour isdisarming, but she had considerable dialectical gifts, and can arguepersuasively, especially against spiritualism. In _Science and Health_she violently denies the authenticity of spiritualistic phenomena, "Asreadily can you mingle fire and frost as spirit and matter. . . . Thebelief that material bodies return to dust, hereafter to rise up asspiritual bodies with material sensations and desires, isincorrect. . . . The caterpillar, transformed into a beautiful insect, is no longer a worm, nor does the insect return to fraternise with orcontrol the worm. . . . There is no bridge across the gulf whichdivides two such opposite conditions as the spiritual, or incorporeal, and the physical, or corporeal. "

In the confusion of precepts and principles championed by Mrs. Eddythere are sometimes to be found thoughts worthy of a greatmetaphysician. Her teaching, when purified from admixture, does at anyrate break away energetically from all materialistic doctrines. 

Her literary output was considerable, for in addition to her gospel, _Science and Health_, she wrote _The Concordance of Science andHealth_, _Rudimentary Divine Science_, _Christian Science versusPaganism_, and other works, including some verse. 

The Christian Science churches, with their adherents, who number morethan a million, are spread all over the world, each having anindependent existence. They are found chiefly in the United States, England, Germany, and the British Colonies. The number of "healers"exceeds several thousands, for the most part of the female sex. InFrance the first "Church of Christ, Scientist" has been founded inParis, in the Rue Magellan, under the name of Washington Palace. 

The Christian Science leader denounced the established churches andspared them no criticism, and her doctrine contained a seed of truthwhich enabled it to triumph even over its own lack of logic andcoherence. 

The world, submerged in matter, either denies spirit or turns away fromit. Mrs. Eddy exalts the power of spirit above that of matter, theuniversal goddess, by means of statements which are heroic rather thanscientific. 

Matter does not exist. God is all, and God is spirit; therefore all isspirit. Matter is not spirit, but is a fiction which only exists forthose who persist in believing in it against the evidence of facts. Asmatter does not exist, and is only a lie and the invention of Satan, the body, which we see in the form of matter, does not exist either. The suffering caused by the body is simply an "error of mortal mind, "for since the body does not exist, there can be no such thing as bodilysuffering. Therefore instead of concerning ourselves with the healingof the supposed body, with the prevention or cure of pain andsuffering, we must go straight to spirit. Spirit is perfect, and thethought of pain or disease can have no place in it. Let us then leavethe curing of our bodies, and seek to rectify our spirits. 

Doctors and surgeons, on the contrary, follow the errors of centuriesin concerning themselves with the body, and causing it to absorb drugswhich, having no connection with disease, can neither cure nor relieveit. "Mind as far outweighs drugs in the cure of disease as in the cureof sin. The more excellent way is divine Science in every case. . . . The hosts of Aesculapius are flooding the world with diseases, becausethey are ignorant that the human mind and body are myths. "

A follower of the "true doctrine, " according to Mrs. Eddy, is never illfor the simple reason that he does not believe in the body or in any ofits infirmities. If he should be overtaken by illness, it is becausehis spirit is ill, and his faith not sufficiently pure. 

From this results a very simple method of healing. The "healer" merelyseeks to re-establish the faith of the sufferer, and to convince him ofthe non-reality of his illness. No medicine is given, the treatmentconsisting of thoughts and suggestions from _Science and Health_. Christian Science healers need to have a robust and unshakable faith, for if they do not succeed in their task it is because their own spirithas been infected by doubt. 

Mrs. Eddy declared that our concrete and practical age required, aboveall, a religion of reality; that men could no longer be content withvague promises of future bliss. What they needed was a religion of thepresent that would end their sufferings and procure for them serenityand happiness on earth. The title of "applied Christianity" has beenadopted by Christian Science, which advises us to make use of theteachings of Jesus in our daily life, and to reap all the advantages ofsuch a practice. We have need of truth "applied" to life just as wehave need of telegraphs, telephones and electric apparatus, andnow--say the Scientists--for the first time in man's existence he isoffered a really practical religious machinery, which enables him toovercome misfortune and to establish his happiness, his health, and hissalvation on a solid basis. 

The Scientists claim to have recourse to the same spiritual law bymeans of which Jesus effected His cures, and they declare that itsefficacy is undeniable, since all Mrs. Eddy's pupils who use it areable to heal the sick. One may suggest that Jesus performed miraclesbecause He was the Saviour of the world. Mrs. Eddy replies thatstatements are attributed to Him which never issued from His lips; thatHe said (in the Gospel according to St. John) that it was not He whospoke or acted, but His Father; and stated elsewhere, that the Soncould do nothing of Himself. Also that Jesus never sent His disciplesforth to preach without adding that they should also heal. "Heal thesick, " was His supreme command. And that He never counselled the useof drugs or medicines. 

The healing of the sick, according to Mrs. Eddy, was one of the chieffunctions of the representatives of the Church during the first threecenturies of Christianity, her subsequent loss of importance and powerbeing largely due to the renunciation of this essential principle. 

Healing is not miraculous, but merely the result of a normal spirituallaw acting in conformity with the Divine Will. The leader of the new"Scientists" explains that Jesus had no supernatural powers, and thatall He did was done according to natural law. Consequently everybody, when once brought into harmony with spiritual truth, can accomplishwhat He accomplished. 

Some of Mrs. Eddy's statements have an undeniable practical value. Forinstance, she attacks "fear" as one of the chief causes of humanmisery, and declares that it is wrong to fear draughts of air, or wetfeet, or the eating and drinking of certain substances--and wrong, above all, to fear microbes. 

But exaggeration is always harmful. The total suppression of fearwould mean the suppression of often necessary and desirableprecautions. In order to succeed, however, a religion has need of theabsolute, for conditional truths are not likely to impress the public;and the founder of Christian Science was well aware of this. 

Health, according to the Scientists, is truth. In order to enjoyexistence, we must live in the truth and avoid sin, and ultimatelydeath itself will disappear, being entirely superfluous. Jesus saidthat whoso believed on Him should never see death, and He would nothave said this if death were necessary for salvation. Thereforebelievers are taught that humanity will in time conquer sickness anddeath, and that this blessed consummation will be reached when humanbeings attain to the heights of the Christian Science "gospel, " and areguided by it in all the thoughts and actions of their everyday life. Other equally enchanting prospects are conjured up, like mirages in thedesert, before the dazzled eyes of Mrs. Eddy's followers. Making useof the ancient conception of angels, she teaches that such beings arealways close at hand, for angels are "God's thoughts passing to man;spiritual intuitions, pure and perfect. " "These angels of Hispresence . . . Abound in the spiritual atmosphere of Mind. "

Thus Christian Science is seen to be a religion of health, longevityand happiness, the fruits of spiritual action; a religion which deniesboth the theoretical and practical existence of matter. 

There are, however, occasions when the invocations of "science" provepowerless to deal with rebellious matter. But this does not embarrassMrs. Eddy. She considers that her doctrine is in advance of the age, and that men themselves must progress in order to rise to its level. Their spirits will then become pure and perfect, and matter will haveno more power over them. Man will be able to live quite differently, for hygienic conditions--even those considered most indispensable--willno longer be of any importance. 

One of the most irresistible attractions of Christian Science lies inits declaration that it will be possible at some future time toovercome death--a dream that has been known in all epochs. Yet, forall our love of life, how unprofitably we squander it! Our normal lifecould be prolonged to a hundred and fifty, or even two hundredyears, [1] but we have stupidly imposed upon ourselves an artificialbarrier which we scarcely ever surpass!

Mrs. Eddy knew well what charm the possibility of destroying the "Kingof Terrors" would add to her doctrine, and she made effective use of it. 

We may note that the idea of overcoming death can be traced back forsome three thousand years or so. Hermes, the "Thrice Greatest One, "taught that only "by error" had death become installed upon our planet, and that nothing in the world could ever be lost. "Death does notexist; the word 'mortal' is void of meaning, and is merely the word'immortal' without its first syllable. " He taught further that theworld was the second God, immortal and alive, and that no part of itcould ever die; that "the eternal" and "the immortal" must not beconfused, for "the eternal" was God Uncreate, while the world which Hehad created and made in His own image was endowed with His immortality. Hermes also suggested that it was only necessary to send our bodilysensations to sleep in order to awake in God and rejoice in immortality!

There was a close relationship between Hermes, the Essenes of Egypt, and St. John, the author of _Revelation_. Indeed, if we searchcarefully, we find that the Gnostics of every school believed in thepossibility of banishing death from the earth. 

"Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall neverthirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well ofwater springing up into everlasting life. " (St. John iv. 14). 

And what superiority over the claims of Mrs. Eddy is shown by Hermes, when he declares that in order to reach the spiritual worlds we onlyneed to free ourselves from sensation!

Unsuspected sources of inspiration, as yet unutilised, abound in thewritings of the Pythagoreans, the Essenes, and even the Neo-Platonists. The creators of future religions are likely to draw much water fromthese wells, but Christian Science can lay claim to be the first tohave made use of the mysticism of the past in a practical fashion, sothat its adherents rejoice in the prospect of endless life, even as didthe visionaries of former ages. 

When one examines the doctrine closely, its lack of originality becomesapparent. The idea that matter does not exist has had numerousprotagonists in the realms of philosophy, and is ardently defended byBerkeley. In the dialogues of Hylas and Philonous, the latter speaksof the "absolute impossibility" of matter, which has no existence apartfrom spirit. But Mrs. Eddy succeeded in giving this purelymetaphysical conception a concrete value in the affairs of every-daylife. 

She opened the first _School of Christian Science Mind-healing_ in 1867with one student; towards the end of the century her followers numberedclose on a hundred thousand; while to-day the "Mother Church" can boastover a million adherents, to say nothing of its financial resources. 

Without doubt suggestion is the basis of the miraculous cures which arethe pride of Christian Science, but the prophetess and her followershave always denied this. As Jesus ignored the power of suggestion, they also must not only ignore it, but wage merciless war upon it. They deny both suggestion and matter, while making use of each--butneither the use of suggestion nor the doctrine of the non-existence ofmatter could alone or together have procured for the new sect its trulyphenomenal success. That is due largely to ingenious methods ofpublicity, on the most modern lines (and is not advertisement itselfone of the most effective forms of suggestion?). When one miraculouscure after another was announced, money flowed in, and Mrs. Eddy madeuse of it to increase the numbers of believers. Adapting herself tothe mentality of her hearers, or readers, she demanded large fees forthe manifestations of the "spirit" which was incarnated in herself andher helpers, and left behind her when she died, an immense personalfortune, and hundreds of prosperous churches. "Matter" does not seemto be altogether negligible, even for pure spirits who do not believein its existence, and consider it an invention of the devil!

[1] See _La Philosophie de la Longevité_ (Bibliothèque de PhilosophieContemporaine, Félix Alcan, 12th edition), by Jean Finot. 

CHAPTER II

SCHLATTER, THE MIRACLE-MAN

The town of Denver, the "pearl of Colorado, " was _en fête_. Hundredsof thousands of pilgrims were flocking to it from all parts of America, and all, immediately they arrived, made straight for the house ofAlderman Fox, where dwelt Francis Schlatter, the greatestmiracle-worker of the century. For two months Denver was able tocontemplate an unparalleled variety of invalids with illnesses bothrare and common, all--or nearly all--of whom departed reassured as totheir progress, if not completely cured. The trains were overcrowded, the hotels overflowed with visitors, and all the States rang with hymnsof praise in honour of Schlatter, the saint of Denver. 

But perpetual joy is not of this world. On the 14th of November, 1895, there were still thousands of people outside Alderman Fox's house, buttheir grief and despair were pitiable to witness. The women sobbed, the men cursed, and all this, mingled with the woeful complaints of thesick, created an extraordinary atmosphere in the usually gay andcheerful town. 

The cause of it was that Saint Schlatter had fled from Colorado withoutwarning in the night--whether for a short time or for ever nobody knew. The news spread far and wide, the affair assumed the proportions of apublic calamity, and the _Rocky Morning News_ and other Coloradojournals shed copious tears over the sad lot of the abandoned pilgrims. Even the American newspapers, which so often foresee events that neverhappen, had not been able to foresee this thunderbolt that haddescended in the midst of their readers. 

On the previous day the saint had, as usual, given his blessing to thethousands of pilgrims gathered from all quarters, and had appeared tobe in his customary state of serene kindliness. Nothing had suggestedhis desertion--for the disappointed crowds considered it a desertionindeed. Even Alderman Fox, deeply troubled as he was, could offer noconsolation to his fellow-citizens. He, who was formerly stone-deaf, had gone one day to see Schlatter at Omaha, and when the latter tookhis hand his deafness had completely disappeared. Full of gratitude, he offered Schlatter a large sum of money, which was refused. He thenoffered the hospitality of his house at Denver, and this beingaccepted, Schlatter arrived there, preceded by the glory of his saintlyreputation and his miraculous cures. Two months passed thus, and neverhad prophet a more devoted and enthusiastic disciple than the worthyalderman of Colorado's capital city. Then fell the blow!

When Alderman Fox had entered his guest's room the night before, thebed was empty. Dressed just as he had arrived, in his unique costume, Schlatter had disappeared, leaving behind him as sole trace of hisvisit this message:--"Mr. Fox--my mission is ended, and the Fathercalls me. I salute you. Francis Schlatter. November 13th. "

After that he was sought for in vain. He who "intoxicated the weaksoul of the people"--to quote one of the Colorado clergy--and made theland of sin ring with songs of heavenly triumph, had completelydisappeared. In the words of another of them, "the plant that hadgrown up in barren soil was withered away by the wrath of God. "

But the grief of those who had believed in him lasted for many years. 

Schlatter was born in Alsace in 1855, and after his arrival in Americahe followed many avocations, finally adopting that of a "holy man. "With head and feet bare, he traversed the States from one end toanother, and proclaimed himself a messenger of heaven. He preached thelove of God and peace among men. He was imprisoned, and continued topreach, and though his fellow-prisoners at first mocked at him, theyended by listening. 

He only had to place his hand on the heads of the sick, and they werecured. After being released from prison, he went to Texas. Hispeculiar dress, bare feet, and long hair framing a face which seemedindeed to be illuminated from within, drew crowds to follow him, and hewas looked upon as Elijah come to life again. 

"Hearken and come to me, " he said. "I am only a humble messenger sentby my Heavenly Father. "

And thousands came. He cured the incurable, and consoled theinconsolable. Once he was shut up in a mad-house, but emerged morepopular than ever. Then he went on a pilgrimage through the towns ofMexico, preaching his "Father's" word among the adulterers of goods andthe Worshippers of the Golden Calf. An object of reverence andadmiration, he blessed the children and rained miracles upon the headsof the sick, finally arriving at San Francisco in 1894. From there, still on foot and bare-headed, he crossed the Mohave Desert, spentseveral weeks at Flagstaff, and then continued his wanderings among theIndian tribes. They recognised his saintliness and came out in crowdsto meet him, amazed at the power of the Lord as manifested by him. Hespent five days in the company of the chief of the Navajos, performingmany miracles, and filling with wonder the simple souls who crowdedround to touch his hands. After having traversed several otherdistricts, he stopped at Denver, which became his favourite residence. In this paradise of the New World his most startling miracles tookplace. It became known as his special town, and from all parts thereflocked to it believers and unbelievers, good, bad and indifferent, attracted by the fame of the heavenly messenger. Women and menfollowed in his train, expressing their admiration and gratitude; eventhe reporters who came to interview him were impressed by hissimplicity, and described in glowing terms the miracles accomplished bythe "prophet of Denver. "

The American journals which thus put themselves at his service throw astrange light upon this twentieth-century saint. For Schlatter theSilent, as some called him, only became eloquent when in the presenceof newspaper reporters. He took heed to "sin not with his tongue, " asthe psalmist sings, and "kept his mouth with a bridle" and "held hispeace, " as long as "the wicked" were before him; but when confronted byreporters his thoughts became articulate, and it is only through themthat his simple "Gospel" has been handed down to us. "I am nothing, "he would say to them. "My Father is all. Have faith in Him, and allwill be well. " Or--"My Father can replace a pair of diseased lungs aseasily as He can cure rheumatism. He has only to will, and the sickman becomes well or the healthy one ill. You ask me in what does mypower consist. It is nothing--it is His will that is everything. "

One day when a crowd of several thousands was pressing round him, Schlatter addressed a man in his vicinity. 

"Depart!" he said to him, with a violence that startled all who heard. "Depart from Denver; you are a murderer!"

The man fled, and the crowd applauded the "saint, " remarking that "itwas not in his power to heal the wicked. "

Faith in him spread even to the railway companies of New Mexico, forone day there appeared a placard of the Union Pacific Railway statingthat those of the employees, or their families, who wished to consultSchlatter would be given their permits and their regular holiday. Following on this announcement, the _Omaha World Herald_ describes theimpressive spectacle of the thousands of men, women and children, belonging to all grades of the railway administration, who went to theholy man of Denver to ask pardon for their sins, or to be healed oftheir diseases. 

Thus did the transport systems, combined with the newspapers, payhomage to the exploits of the new prophet. 

And still the miracles continued. The blind saw, the deaf heard, andthe cripples walked. The lamp of faith lighted in New Mexico threw itsbeams over the whole of America, and the remarkable charm ofSchlatter's personality influenced even the most incredulous. 

The fame of his deeds reached Europe, and some of the English paperstold of cures so marvellous that New Mexico bade fair to become therefuge of all the incurables in the world. 

In the _Omaha World Herald_ a long article by General Test waspublished, in which he said: "All those who approach him findconsolation and help. Dr. Keithley has been cured of deafness. . . . I have used spectacles for many years, but a touch of his hand wasenough to make me have need of them no longer. "

One of the officials of the Union Pacific Railway, a Mr. Sutherland, after an accident, could neither walk nor move his limbs. He was takento Denver, and returned completely cured, not only of his inability towalk, but also of deafness that had troubled him for fifteen years. 

A Mr. Stewart, who had been deaf for twenty years, was also completelycured by the saint. Nothing seemed able to resist his miraculouspowers. Blindness, diphtheria, phthisis, all disappeared like magic atthe touch of his hand; and gloves that he had worn proved equallyefficacious. 

A Mrs. Snook, of North Denver, had suffered from cancer for somemonths, when, worn out by pain, she sent to the holy man for the loanof one of his gloves. He sent her two, saying that she would becured--and she was cured. The same thing happened with John Davidsonof 17th Street, Denver; with Colonel Powers of Georgetown; and a dozenothers, all of whom had suffered for years from more or less incurablemaladies. 

An engineer named Morris was cured of cataract instantaneously. Atotally blind wood-cutter was able to distinguish colours after beingtouched by Schlatter. A Mrs. Holmes of Havelock, Nebraska, had tumoursunder the eyes. She pressed them with a glove given her by theprophet, and they disappeared. (This case is reported in the _DenverNews_ of November 12th, 1895. )

Gloves began to arrive from all parts, and lay in mountains onSchlatter's doorstep. He touched them with his hand, and distributedthem to the crowd. _Faith_ being the sole cause of the cures, it wasunnecessary, he said, to lay hands on the sick. When he did so, it wasonly in order to impress the souls of those who had need of this outersign in order to enjoy the benefits sent them by the Father through Hisintermediary. This explains how Schlatter was able to treat from threeto five thousand people every day. He would stand with outstretchedhands blessing the crowds, who departed with peace in their souls. 

And the "pearl of Colorado" rejoiced, seeing how the deaf heard, thecripples walked, the blind saw, and all glorified the name of the Saintof Denver. 

His disinterestedness was above suspicion, and the contempt that heshowed for the "almighty dollar" filled all the believers withastonishment and admiration. 

"What should I do with money?" he said. "Does not my Heavenly Fathersupply all my needs? There is no greater wealth than faith, and I havesupreme faith in my Father. "

Gifts poured in upon him, but he refused them all with his customarygentleness, so that at last people ceased to send him anything butgloves. These, after having touched them with his hands, hedistributed among the sick and the unfortunate. 

His fame increased with the ardour of his faith. Suspicion wasdisarmed, and great and small paid him homage. Out of touch as he waswith modern thought, and reading nothing but the prophets, he attainedto a condition of ecstasy which at last led him to announce that he wasChrist come down from heaven to save his fellow-men. Having lived solong on the footing of a son of God, he now was convinced of his directdescent, and his hearers going still further, were filled withexpectation of some great event which should astonish all unbelievers. 

Under the influence of this general excitement he proceeded to undergoa forty days' fast. He announced this to his followers, who flocked tosee the miracle, preceded by the inevitable reporters; and whilefasting he still continued to heal the sick and give them his blessing, attracting ever greater crowds by his haggard visage and his atmosphereof religious exaltation. 

Then, having spent forty days and forty nights in this manner, he satdown at table to replenish his enfeebled forces, and the beholders gavevoice to enthusiastic expressions of faith in his divine mission. 

But the famished Schlatter attacked the food laid before him with anardour that had in it nothing of the divine. The onlookers becameuneasy, and one of them went so far as to suggest that his health mightsuffer from this abrupt transition. 

"Have faith, " replied Schlatter. "The Father who has permitted me tolive without nourishment for forty days, will not cease to watch overHis Son. "

The town of Denver formed a little world apart. Miracles were in theair, faith was the only subject of conversation, and everyone dreamedof celestial joys and the grace of salvation. In this supernaturalatmosphere distinctions between the possible and the impossible werelost sight of, and the inhabitants believed that the usual order ofnature had been overthrown. 

For instance, James Eckman of Leadville, who had been blinded by anexplosion, recovered his sight immediately he arrived at Denver. General Test declared that he had seen a legless cripple _walk_ whenthe saint's gaze was bent upon him. A blind engineer named Stainthorpbecame able to see daylight. A man named Dillon, bent and crippled byan illness several decades before, recovered instantaneously. When thesaint touched him, he felt a warmth throughout his whole body; hisfingers, which he had not been able to use for years, suddenlystraightened themselves; he was conscious of a sensation ofinexpressible rapture, and rose up full of faith and joy. A man namedWelsh, of Colorado Springs, had a paralysed right hand which wasimmediately cured when Schlatter touched it. 

All New Mexico rejoiced in the heavenly blessing that had fallen uponDenver. Special trains disgorged thousands of travellers, who werecaught up in the wave of religious enthusiasm directly they arrived. The whole town was flooded with a sort of exaltation, and there was arecrudescence of childishly superstitious beliefs, which broke out withall the spontaneity and vigour that usually characterises themanifestation of popular religious phenomena. 

What would have been the end of it if Schlatter had not so decisivelyand inexplicably disappeared?

It would be difficult to conceive of anything more extraordinary thanthe exploits of this modern saint, which came near to revolutionisingthe whole religious life of the New World. The fact that they tookplace against a modern background, with the aid of newspaper interviewsand special trains, gives them a peculiar _cachet_. Indeed, thespectacle of such child-like faith, allied to all the excesses ofcivilisation, and backed up by the ground-work of prejudices from whichman has as yet by no means freed himself, is one to provideconsiderable food for reflection for those who study the psychology ofcrowds in general, and of religious mania in particular. 

The case of Schlatter is not a difficult one to diagnose. He sufferedfrom "ambulatory automatism, " the disease investigated by ProfessorPitres of Bordeaux, and was a wanderer from his childhood up. Incapable of resisting the lure of vagabondage, he thought it should bepossible to perform miracles because it was "God his Father" who thusforced him to wander from place to place. "All nature being directedaccording to His Will, " said Schlatter, "and nothing being accomplishedwithout Him, I am driven to warn the earth in order to fulfil Hisdesigns. "

Being simple-minded and highly impressionable, the first cure that hesucceeded in bringing about seemed to him a direct proof of hisalliance with God. As Diderot has said, it is sometimes only necessaryto be a little mad in order to prophesy and to enjoy poetic ecstasies;and in the case of Schlatter the flower of altruism which oftenblossoms in the hearts of such "madmen" was manifested in his completelack of self-seeking and in his compassion for the poor and sufferingwhich drew crowds around him. As to his miracles, we may--withoutattempting to explain them--state decisively that they do not differfrom those accomplished by means of suggestion. The cases of blindnesstreated by Schlatter have a remarkable resemblance to that of the girlMarie described by Pierre Janet in his _Psychological Automatism_. 

This patient was admitted to the hospital at Havre, suffering, amongother things, from blindness of the left eye which she said dated frominfancy. But when by means of hypnotism she was "transformed" into achild of five years of age, it was found that she saw well with botheyes. The blindness must therefore have begun at the age of sixyears--but from what cause? She was made to repeat, while in thesomnambulistic state, all the principal scenes of her life at thattime, and it was found that the blindness had commenced some days aftershe had been forced to sleep with a child of her own age who had a rashall over the left side of her face. Marie developed a similar rash andbecame blind in the left eye soon afterwards. Pierre Janet made herre-live the event which had had so terrible an effect upon her, inducedher to believe that the child had no rash, and after two attemptssucceeded in making her caress her (imaginary) bedfellow. The sight ofthe left eye returned, and Marie awoke--cured!

The saint of Denver could not, of course, make use of methods adoptedby doctors in the hospitals, but he had something much stronger andmore effective in his mysterious origin, his prophet-like appearance, and his airs as of one illuminated by the spirit. Suggestion, whenacting upon those who are awake, spreads from one to another like anattack of yawning or of infectious laughter. Crowds are credulous, like children who look no further than their surface impressions. 

The case of W. C. Dillon, who had been bent and crippled for years, butwas able to straighten his limbs at once under Schlatter's influence, recalls that of the young sailor in the household of Dr. Pillet, whofor several weeks was bent forward in a most painful position. He hadreceived a severe blow at the base of the chest, after which he seemedunable to stand upright again. He was put into a hypnotic sleep, andasked if he could raise himself. 

"Why not?" he replied. 

"Then do so, " said the doctor--and he rose from his bed completelycured. 

A remarkable thing with regard to Schlatter's cures is that they wereso frequently concerned with cases of paralysis. Now Charcot hasproved that such cases are usually found in hysterical subjectssuffering from amnesia or anaesthesia (general or partial loss ofsensation), and according to modern medical research paralysis andanaesthesia are almost identical. We know, further, with what easehypnotic suggestion can either provoke or dispel partial or generalanaesthesia, and this applies equally to partial or general paralysis. 

Paralysis is often, if not always, due to a simpleamnesia--forgetfulness to make use of certain muscles--which can beovercome by suggestion. Schlatter, with his undeniable hypnotic power, had consequently small difficulty in accomplishing "miracles"--that isto say, in producing incomprehensible and inexplicable phenomena. 

His custom of dealing with people in crowds gave him greater chances ofsuccess than if he had merely treated individual cases. "Faith is theonly thing that cures, " he declared--and, as if by magic, his hearersbecame possessed of faith and intoxicated by the benefits obtained fromhis divine intervention. 

Truly the life of this impulse-ridden vagabond, so lacking inself-interest, so devoted to the needs of the sick and poor, throws anew light upon the souls of our contemporaries. There seems to existin every human being, no matter how deeply hidden, an inexhaustibledesire for contact with the Infinite. And this desire can be as easilyplayed upon by the tricks of impostors as by the holiness of saints, orthe divine grace of saviours. 

PART III

THE DEPTHS OF THE SUBCONSCIOUS MIND

CHAPTER I

SECTS IN FRANCE AND ELSEWHERE

During the second half of the nineteenth and the beginning of thetwentieth century, scarcely a single country has been free fromreligious manifestations of the most varied kind, all concerned withnew ways and means of attaining salvation; and if one were to includeall the different phases of occultism as well, one would be astoundedat the mystical ardour of which modern humanity is possessed. 

From the spiritualists and the theosophists to the crystal-gazers andthe palmists, all these occult practices are, in reality, merely theresult of a more or less intensified desire to communicate with thespiritual worlds. 

France, although considered a country pre-eminently sceptical, has notescaped the general tendency, for even in what appeared to be the mostrationalistic epoch--that of the Revolution--the "Cult of Reason" wasfounded, to be succeeded by the "Religion of the Supreme Being"introduced by Robespierre. And what numbers of new sects and religionscan be recorded since then!

There was, first of all, the _Theophilanthropy_ of Jean-Baptiste Cheminand Valentine Haüy, representing the faith of those who love man inGod, and God in so far as He loves man. The Empire, in persecutingthis doctrine, only added to its vitality, for it has hot even yetcompletely died out. 

The religion of Father Enfantin, which had a great vogue in the lastcentury, conformed in many respects to the name of its founder. Manand woman, united by religion, were to form priests "in duplicate" forthe guidance of their flock, young and old, lovers and married couplesalike. The Saint-Simonites--so admirable in some ways--alliedthemselves to this doctrine, and succeeded in attracting a number ofsympathisers. 

The life of French sects has always been of short duration, thoughthere have existed among them many that in other countries wouldcertainly have won for their founders the laurel-wreath of fame. Suchwas, for instance, the _Church of France_, inaugurated by the AbbéChatel, whose idea was to entrust sacerdotal functions to the mostworthy among his followers, by means of a public vote. The sectprospered for a time, but soon disappeared amid general indifference, and the Abbé ended his days as a grocer. 

The doctrine of Fabre Palaprat had more success, being drawn from theesoteric teachings of the Gospel of St. John. He either suppressed ormodified many of the Catholic dogmas, abandoned the use of Latin andinaugurated prayers in French. 

The _Fusionists_ were founded by Jean-Baptiste de Tourreil. After adivine revelation which came to him in the forest of Meudon, nearParis, he broke with Catholicism and preached the intimate union of manand nature. He anticipated to some extent the naturalist beliefs whichspread through both France and England at the beginning of the presentcentury, and his posthumous work entitled _The Fusionist Religion orthe Doctrine of Universalism_ gives an idea of his tendencies. Therewas an element of consolation in his doctrine, for the harmony betweenman and the universe, as taught by him, renders death only aprolongation of life itself, and makes it both attractive and desirable. 

The _Neo-Gnostic Church_ of Fabre des Essarts was condemned by Leo XIIIwith some severity as a revival of the old Albigensian heresy, with theaddition of new false and impious doctrines, but it still has manyfollowers. The Neo-Gnostics believe that this world is a work ofwickedness, and was created not by God but by some inferior power, which shall ultimately disappear--and its creation also. While theManichaeans teach that the world is ruled by the powers of both goodand evil, God and Satan, the Neo-Gnostics declare that it is Satan whoreigns exclusively upon earth, and that it is man's duty to help tofree God from His powerful rival. They also preach the brotherhood ofman and of nations, and it is probably this altruistic doctrine whichhas rendered them irresistible to many who are wearied and disheartenedby the enmities and hatreds that separate human beings. 

In 1900, after a letter from Jean Bricaut, the patriarch of universalGnosticism in Lyons, the Neo-Gnostics united with the Valentinians, andtheir union was consecrated by the Council of Toulouse in 1903. Butsome years afterwards, Dr. Fugairon of Lyons (who took the name ofSophronius) amalgamated all the branches, with the exception of theValentinians, under the name of the _Gnostic Church of Lyons_. Theselatter, although excluded, continued to follow their own way ofsalvation, and addressed a legal declaration to the RepublicanGovernment in 1906 in defence of their religious rights of association. 

In the Gnostic teaching, the Eons, corresponding to the archetypalideas of Plato, are never single; each god has his femininecounterpart; and the Gnostic assemblies are composed of "perfectedones, " male and female. The Valentinians give the mystic bride thename of Helen. 

The Gnostic rites and sacraments are complicated. There is the_Consolamentum_, or laying on of hands; the breaking of bread, or meansof communication with the _Astral Body of Jesus_; and the_Appareillamentum_, or means of receiving divine grace. 

In peculiarities of faith and of its expression some of our Frenchsects certainly have little to learn from those of America and Russia. 

The _Religion of Satanism_--or, as it was sometimes called, the_Religion of Mercy_--founded by Vintras and Boullan, deserves specialmention. Vintras was arrested--unjustly, it seems certain--forswindling, and in the visions which he experienced as a result of hisundeserved sufferings he believed himself to be in communication withthe Archangel Michael and with Christ Himself. Having spent abouttwelve years in London, he returned to Lyons to preach his doctrine, and succeeded in making a number of proselytes. He died in 1875. Someyears afterwards a doctor of divinity named Boullan installed himselfat Lyons as his successor. He taught that women should be commonproperty, and preached the union with inferior beings (in order toraise them), the "union of charity, " and the "union of wisdom. " Hehealed the sick, exorcised demons, and treated domestic animals withgreat success, so that the peasants soon looked upon him as superior tothe curé who was incapable of curing their sick horses and cattle. 

Vintras had proclaimed himself to be Elijah come to life; Boullanadopted the title of John the Baptist resurrected. He died at thebeginning of the twentieth century, complaining of having been cruellyslandered, especially by Stanislas de Guaita, who in his _Temple ofSatan_ had accused Boullan of being a priest of Lucifer, of making useof spells and charms, and--worst of all--of celebrating the Black Mass. 

The founder of the _Religion of Humanity_ had a tragic and troublouscareer. Genius and madness have rarely been so harmoniously combinedfor the creation of something that should be durable and of real value. For one cannot doubt the madness of Auguste Comte. It was manifestedin public on the 12th of April, 1826, and interrupted the success ofhis lectures, which had attracted all the leading minds of the time, including Humboldt himself. After a violent attack of mania, thefounder of the philosophy of Positivism took refuge at Montmorency. From there he was with difficulty brought back to Paris and placedunder the care of the celebrated alienist, Esquirol. He was releasedwhen only partially cured, and at the instigation of his motherconsented to go through a religious marriage ceremony with MadameComte, after which he signed the official register _Brutus BonaparteComte_! The following year he threw himself into the Seine, but wasmiraculously saved, and, gradually recovering his strength, herecommenced his courses of lectures, which aroused the greatestinterest both in France and abroad. 

The Positivist leader had always shown signs of morbid megalomania. His early works are sufficient to prove that he was the prey to anexcessive form of pride, for he writes like a Messiah consciouslytreading the path that leads to a martyr's crown. His private troublesaggravated the malady, and the escapades of his wife, who frequentlyleft his house to rejoin her old associates, were the cause of violentattacks of frenzy. 

Later the philosopher himself was seized by an overwhelming passion forClotilde de Vaux, a writer of pretensions who was, in reality, distinguished neither by talent nor beauty. The feeling that sheinspired in him has no parallel in the annals of modern love-affairs. After some years, however, she died of consumption, and the germ ofmadness in Comte, which had been lying latent, again showed itself, this time in the form of a passionate religious mysticism. His deadmistress became transformed, for him, into a divinity, and he lookedupon everything that she had used or touched as sacred, shuttinghimself up in the midst of the furniture and utensils that hadsurrounded her during her life-time. Three times a day he prostratedhimself, and offered up fervent prayers to the spirit of Clotilde, andhe often visited her grave, or sat, wrapped in meditation, in thechurch that she had frequented. He sought to evoke her image, and heldlong conversations with it, and it was under her influence that hefounded a new religion based chiefly on his _Positivist Catechism_. Inthis cult, Clotilde symbolised woman and the superior humanity whichshall proceed from her. 

Although a profound and original thinker, Comte was like the rest inconsidering himself the High Priest of his own religion. He sought tomake converts, and wrote to many of the reigning sovereigns, includingthe Tsar; and he even suggested an alliance, for the good of thenations, with the Jesuits!

But to do him justice we must admit that he led an ascetic andsaint-like life, renouncing all worldly pleasures. An Englishman whosaw much of him about 1851 declared that his goodness of soul surpassedeven his brilliancy of intellect. 

Though he had so little sympathy for the past and present religionsupon whose grave he erected his own system, he himself reverted, as amatter of fact, to a sort of fetishism; and his "Humanity, " with whichhe replaced the former "gods, " manifested nearly all their defects andweaknesses. 

In his _Sacerdoce_ and _Nouvelle Foi Occidentale_ the principal ideasare borrowed from inferior beliefs of the Asiatic races. Heincorporated the arts of hygiene and medicine in his creed, anddeclared that medicine would reinstate the dominion of the priesthoodwhen the Positivist clergy succeeded in fulfilling the necessaryconditions. 

The remarkable success of this religion is well known. Numerous sectsbased on Comte's doctrines were founded in all parts of the world, andhis philosophy made a deep impression on the minds of thinking men, whoassisted in spreading it through all branches of society. Even to-daybelievers in Positivism are found not only in France, but above all inNorth and South America. In Brazil, Comte's influence was bothwidespread and beneficial, and the very laws of this great Republic arebased on the theories of the Positivist leader. 

The value of certain of his fundamental doctrines may be questioned, equally with the ruling ideas of his religion, his Messianic rôle, andhis priesthood. But there is nevertheless something sublime in theteaching that individual and social happiness depends upon the degreeof affection and goodwill manifested in the human heart. This is nodoubt one reason why the adherents of the Positivist Church are sooften distinguished by their high morality and their spirit ofself-sacrifice. 

In addition to purely local sects and religions, France has alwaysharboured a number of _Swedenborgians_, whose beliefs have undergonecertain modifications on French soil. For instance, thaumaturgy wasintroduced by Captain Bernard, and healing by means of prayer by Madamede Saint-Amour. But Leboys des Guais, the acknowledged leader of thesect about 1850, reverted to the unalloyed doctrines of the founder, and thanks to Mlle. Holms and M. Humann, and their church in the Rue deThouin, the Swedenborgian religion still flourishes in France to-day. 

The _Irvingites_, founded in Scotland towards the end of the eighteenthcentury, also made many French converts. Irving preached the secondcoming of Christ, and believed that the Holy Ghost was present inhimself. He waited some time for God the Father to endow him with themiraculous gifts needed for establishing the new Church, and then, finding that many of his followers were able to heal the sick withsurprising success, he concluded that heaven had deigned to accept himas the "second Saviour. " He organised a Catholic Apostolic Church inLondon, and proclaimed himself its head; while in Paris the principalchurch of the sect, formerly in the Avenue de Ségur, has now been movedto the Rue François-Bonvin. Woman is excluded from the cult, andconsequently the name of the Virgin is omitted from all Irvingiteceremonies, while the Immaculate Conception and the Assumption of theVirgin are denied. 

But many other sects exist in addition to those already mentioned. Often their life is short as a summer night, and they appear anddisappear, leaving no trace behind them save a passing exaltation inthe hearts of their followers. Those who join them seem for a time tobe satisfied with dreams and illusions, but usually end by returning tothe bosom of the established Church--or by being confined in an asylum. 

These innumerable sects with their illusory pretensions serve todemonstrate the truth of our thesis--that the most ardent desire ofpresent-day humanity is for the renewal or transformation of the faithto which it has grown accustomed. 

A well-known critic has claimed that it is possible for all thedramatic or comic incidents that have been played in all theatres ofall ages to be reduced down to thirty-six situations from the use ofwhich not even a genius can escape. To how many main variations couldwe reduce the desire for reform displayed by our religiousrevolutionaries? The search for salvation takes on so many vague andincalculable shapes that we can only compare them to clouds that floatacross the sky on a windy day; but there are, all the same, signs ofkinship to be discovered even between the sects that appear to befurthest apart. 

The _Chlysty_, from whom the religion of Rasputin was partly derived, show some resemblance to the "Shakers, " and to the ChristianScientists, both of whom have evolved along lines diametricallyopposed. The "Shakers, " direct descendants of the Huguenots, teachthat the end of the world is at hand, and that all men should repent inpreparation for the coming of the heavenly kingdom. Their meetingshave always been characterised by visions and revelations, and theysing and dance for joy, leaping into the air and trembling with nervousexcitement--to which fact they owe their name. 

In tracing out their history we find many striking analogies with thesects of our own day. It was in 1770 that the "Shakers" believedChrist to have reincarnated in the body of Anne Lee, the daughter of aManchester blacksmith. Although married, she preached--like Mrs. Eddya hundred years later--the benefits of celibacy, the only stateapproved by God. Her convictions were so sincere, and her expressionof them so eloquent, that when charged with heresy she succeeded inconverting her accusers. The cult of virginity was adopted by herfollowers, who considered her their "Mother in Christ, " inspired fromon high; and when she counselled them to leave England and emigrate tothe New World, they followed her unquestioningly, even to embarking inan old and long-disused vessel for the Promised Land. Arrived there, however, their lot was not a happy one, for they met with muchpersecution, and Anne Lee herself was imprisoned. But after herrelease she preached with greater force and conviction than ever theend of sexual unions and the near approach of the Kingdom of God. Hereloquence attracted many, and even today her religion still hasfollowers. Among their settlements we may mention that of Alfred, Maine, where a number of "spiritual families" live harmoniouslytogether, convinced that the Kingdom of God has already descended uponearth, and that they are existing in a state of celestial purity likethat of the angels in heaven. They refuse to eat pork or to make useof fermented drinks, and dancing still plays a part in their religiousservices. Sometimes, in the midst of the general excitement, a sisteror a brother will announce a message that has been delivered by someunseen spirit, whereupon all the hearers leap and dance with redoubledvigour. 

To-day, even as a hundred years ago, the "Shakers" affirm, not withoutreason, that Heaven and Hell are within ourselves, and that that is whywe must live honestly and well in order to share in the heavenlykingdom from which sinners are excluded. Just so do ChristianScientists declare that we may be led by faith towards heaven, happiness and health. 

Even murder, that most extreme perversion of all moral feeling, hasbeen adopted as a means of salvation by several Russian sects as wellas by the Hindus, evolving in widely contrasted environments. Thegeneral desire to gain, somehow or other, the favour of the "EternalPrinciple of Things, " thus expresses itself in the most varied and themost unlikely forms, one of the most striking being that of the"religion of murder, " which throws a lurid light upon the hiddenregions of man's subconscious mind. 

CHAPTER II

THE RELIGION OF MURDER

There are certain periodical publications which as a rule are neitherexamined nor discussed. Yet their existence dates back for many years, and in this age of filing and docketing they must by now provide aregular gold-mine for the study of human psychology. What increasestheir value is that they avoid all attempt at "literary effect. " Nopicked phrases, no situations invented or dramatised to suit the tasteof the author; nothing but facts taken from real life and recorded bythe functionaries of His Majesty the Emperor of India. We arereferring to those very interesting _Reports of the Indian Government_to which we owe practically all our knowledge of fakirism and itsmiracles, of the artificial conservation of human life in the tomb, andof the strangulation rites of the Thugs. They are indeed a valuablecontribution to the study of the perversions of religious faith--thatmost alluring and yet least explored section of psychology. 

A librarian at the British Museum showed me some years ago one of themost suggestive documents that the art of cartography has everproduced. It was the famous map prepared by Captain Paton, about 1890, for the British Government, showing the various neighbourhoods in whichthe Thugs had strangled and buried their victims. Drawn up accordingto precise information furnished by several leaders of the sect, itindicated every tomb in the province of Oudh, where the majority of theworshippers of the goddess Kali were to be found. The writtendescriptions that accompanied the map were particularly interesting, for--like Swift, when he enumerated the benefits that would accrue tothe starving Irish people if they killed their children like sheep andate them instead of mutton--Captain Paton felt himself compelled torecord the glorious deeds of some of the most valiant of the Thugs. Hegave details which would have rejoiced the imagination of a de Quinceyor an Edgar Allan Poe. About 5200 murders had been committed by acompany of forty people, all highly thought of and commanding generalrespect. At their head was the venerable Buhram, who laid claim to 931assassinations during his forty years of religious activity in theprovince of Oudh. The second in merit, one Ramson, had strangled 608people. The third, it is true, could only claim about 500, but he hadreached this figure in thirty years, and had made a record of 25murders in one year. Others had to their credit 377, 340 and 264assassinations respectively, after which one dropped from these heightsto figures of twenty, ten or even only five annual murders in honour ofKali. This record undoubtedly represented the supreme flower of thereligion of this goddess, who not only taught her followers the art ofstrangulation, but also succeeded in hiding their deeds from thesuspicious eyes of unbelievers. 

Murders followed thick and fast, one upon another, but though thousandsof Hindus, rich and poor, young and old, were known to disappear, theirterrified families scarcely dared to complain. English statisticiansgo so far as to say that from thirty to fifty thousand human lives weresacrificed every year on the altar of this fatal goddess, who, desiringto thwart the growth of the too prolific life-principle in theuniverse, incited her worshippers to the suppression and destruction ofhuman beings. But while using her power to shelter her followers fromsuspicion and discovery, Kali expected them, for their part, to takecare that none witnessed the performance of her duties. One daymisfortune fell upon them. A novice of the cult had the daring to spyupon the goddess while she was occupied in destroying the traces of herrite, and Kali's divine modesty being wounded, she declared that infuture she would no longer watch over the earthly safety of herfollowers, but that they themselves must be responsible for concealingtheir deeds from the eyes of men. Thus, after having worshipped herwith impunity for centuries, the Thugs all at once found themselvesexposed to the suspicions of their fellow-countrymen, and above all, ofthe British Government. Captain Sleeman played the part of their evilgenius, for in his anger at their abominable deeds he decided, in spiteof the resistance offered by the heads of the East India Company, towage war to the knife against the religion of Kali. Such alarmingreports were received in England that at last the home authorities werearoused, and in 1830 a special official was appointed to directoperations (the General Superintendent of Operations against Thuggee). Captain Sleeman was chosen to fill the appointment, and he dedicated toit all his courage and practically his whole life. The tale of thetwenty years' struggle that followed would put the most thrillingdramas of fiction in the shade. 

In the works founded on Captain Sleeman's reports, and above all in hisown official documents, are found remarkable accounts of the ways inwhich the Thugs lured their victims to their doom. 

A Mongol officer of noble bearing was travelling to the province ofOudh accompanied by two faithful servants. He halted on his way nearthe Ganges, and was there accosted by a group of men, polite in speechand respectable in appearance, who asked permission to finish theirjourney under his protection. The officer refused angrily and beggedthem to let him go on his way alone. The strangers tried to persuadehim that his suspicions were unjust, but, seeing his nostrils inflateand his eyes gleam with rage, they finally desisted. The next day hemet another group of travellers, dressed in Moslem fashion, who spoketo him of the danger of travelling alone and begged him to accept theirescort. Once more the officer's eyes flashed with rage; he threatenedthem with his sword, and was left to proceed in peace. Many timesagain the brave Mongol, always on his guard, succeeded in thwarting thedesigns of his mysterious fellow-travellers, but on the fourth day hereached a barren plain where, a few steps from the track, six Moslemswere weeping over the body of one who had succumbed to the hardships ofthe journey. They had already dug a hole in the earth to inter thecorpse, when it was discovered that not one of them could read theKoran. On their knees they implored the Mongol officer to render thisservice to the dead. He dismounted from his horse, unable to resisttheir pleadings, and feeling bound by his religion to accede to theirrequest. 

Having discarded his sword and pistols, he performed the necessaryablutions, and then approached the grave to recite the prayers for thedead. Suddenly cloths were thrown over his own and his servants'heads, and after a few moments all three were precipitated into theyawning hole. 

It may be asked why so much cunning was needed in order to add a fewmore members to the kingdom of the dead. The reason is that the Thugswere forbidden to shed human blood. The sacrifice could only beaccomplished through death by strangling. It might often be easyenough to fall upon solitary travellers, but woe to the Thug who in anyway brought about the shedding of blood! Consequently they had to haverecourse to all sorts of ingenious methods for allaying suspicion, sothat their victims might be hastened into the next world according tothe rites approved by their implacable goddess. They believed indivision of labour, and always acted collectively, employing some toentice the victim into the trap, and others to perform the act ofstrangulation, while in the third category were those who first dug thegraves and afterwards rendered them invisible. 

The murders were always accomplished with a kind of cold-bloodedfanaticism, admitting neither mercy nor pity, for the Thug, convincedthat his action would count as a special virtue for himself in the nextlife, also believed that his victim would benefit from it. 

Feringhi, one of the most famous of Indian stranglers, who also held aresponsible official position, was once asked if he was not ashamed tokill his neighbour. 

"No, " he replied, "because one cannot be ashamed to fulfil the divinewill. In doing so one finds happiness. No man who has once understoodand practised the religion of Thuggee will ever cease to conform to itto the end of his days. I was initiated into it by my father when Iwas very young, and if I were to live for a thousand years I shouldstill continue to follow in his footsteps. "

The Thugs of each district were led by one whom they called their_jemadar_, to whom they gave implicit obedience. The utmost discretionreigned among them, and they never questioned the plans of theirsuperiors. We can imagine how difficult it was to combat a fanaticismwhich feared nothing, not even death; for when death overtook them, asit sometimes did, in the performance of their rites, they merely lookedupon it as a means of drawing nearer to their goddess. 

The origin of this extraordinary religion seems to be hidden in themists of the past, though European travellers claim to have met with itin India in the seventeenth century. We may note that during theMahometan invasion all sorts of crimes were committed in the name ofreligion, and possibly the murders in honour of Kali were a survivalfrom this time. As years went by the sect increased rapidly, and manyof the most peaceable Hindus were attracted by it, and joined it in thecapacity of grave-concealers, spies, or merely as passive adherents whocontributed large sums of money. In Sleeman's time about two thousandThugs were arrested and put to death every year, but nevertheless theirnumbers, towards the end of the nineteenth century, were steadilyincreasing. (Of recent years, however, a considerable diminution hasbeen shown. ) In 1895 only three are recorded to have been condemned todeath for murder; in 1896, ten; and in 1897, twenty-five; whiletravellers in Rajputana and the Hyderabad district speak of much higherfigures. The Thugs always bear in mind the maxim that "dead men tellno tales, " and their practice of killing all the companions of thechosen victim, as well as himself, renders the detection of theircrimes extremely difficult; while their mastery of the art of gettingrid of corpses frequently baffles the authorities. Further, theterrified families of the victims, dreading reprisals, often fail toreport the deaths, so that the sect has thus been enabled to continueits murderous rites in spite of all measures taken to stamp it out. 

They avoid killing women, except in the case of women accompanying aman who has been doomed to death, when they must be sacrificed in orderto prevent their reporting the crime. Stranger still, they admit thatmurder is not always a virtuous action, but that there are criminalmurders which deserve punishment. 

"When a Thug is killed, " said one of them to the celebrated Sleeman, "or when one does not belong to the sect, and kills without conformingto the rites, it is a crime, and should be punished. "

They seem to experience a strange and voluptuous pleasure whenperforming their rites of strangulation--a pleasure increased, nodoubt, by the knowledge that their goddess looks on with approval. Yeteven the most hardened among them is capable of the greatest chivalrywhen women are concerned, and a rigorous inquiry into the details ofthousands of their crimes has failed to reveal any single attempt atviolation. A Thug returning from one of his ritualistic expeditionsmay show himself to be a good and affectionate husband and father, anda charitable neighbour. Apart from numerous acts of assassination, onwhich he prides himself, his conduct is usually irreproachable. Nowonder that he fills the English magistrates with stupefaction, andthat justice does not always dare to strike when it can act moreeffectively by persuasion or seclusion. 

All things evolve with the passage of time, and in the twentiethcentury even the rite of strangulation has undergone changes. From themain sect of Thuggee, other branches of a new and unlooked-for typehave sprung. These, instead of strangling their neighbours, prefer topoison them, the virtue being the same and the method easier and moreexpeditious. Their proceedings, though more difficult to control, arequite as lucrative for Kali, the devourer of human life, and if theyhave made their goddess less notorious than did the Thugs, theycertainly worship her with equal ardour. 

CHAPTER III

THE REINCARNATIONIST'S PARADISE

Amid luxuriant vegetation, in an enchanting position overlooking thePacific Ocean, flourishes the religion of reincarnation "withoutbeginning and without end. " Its followers, gathered there from allparts of the world, steep themselves in the atmosphere of fraternallove and general benevolence which is exhaled by this doctrine of theevolution of souls, leading to ultimate perfection. 

The scenes which greet the dazzled eyes of the visitor are of suchextreme beauty that he might well believe himself to have beenmiraculously transported to ancient Hellas. Greek theatres and templesgleam whitely in the shade of majestic palm-trees, and groups of youngpeople dressed like the youths and maidens of ancient Athens may beseen taking part in rhythmic dances and elaborate processions. 

Amid the dirt and chaos of our modern world this Grecian city seems tohave sprung up as by a miracle, fully reconstituted not only in itsouter appearance but also in its inner life of harmony and peace. Theosophists of every degree, who in other lands seem so often to losethemselves in a mist of vague dreams and metaphysical speculations, have here succeeded in expressing their ideals in concrete form. 

Why postpone the paradise promised by Karma, the fundamental law oflife? Why not seek to enjoy it now, without delay? So a number of thescattered disciples of Madame Blavatsky, following their new guide, Catherine Tingley, set to work to construct their holy city inCalifornia, on the shores of the Pacific, like the Jews who followedMoses to the Promised Land. 

These teachings, handed down through untold ages, rejoice to-day in asetting that would surely have astonished their Hindu or Egyptianprogenitors; and the revelations which came to Madame Blavatsky afterher discovery of the forgotten truths of a dim and distant past bidfair to revivify our time-worn planet. Since the war there has been atremendous revival of theosophical propaganda in allied and neutralcountries, in the Old World and in the New, and without doubtTheosophy, together with Christian Science--to which it is in many waysopposed--is destined to undergo striking developments. 

The new theory of metempsychosis saw the light about fifty years ago. It was brought to the United States by Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, aRussian lady of noble birth and high educational attainments, whosethought had been influenced partly by the esoteric wisdom of the pastand partly by the religious unrest of her native land. 

The doctrine of reincarnation has been accepted in India and Egypt forat least three thousand years. It was taught secretly in theEleusinian mysteries. The philosophy of Pythagoras and of Plato isdeeply impregnated with it. The Early Christian Church, as well as theGnostics, admitted it tacitly, but in the fourth century it wascondemned by the Fathers of the Church and banished from orthodoxChristianity. Nevertheless it has always had an irresistibleattraction for thoughtful minds, and many of the greatest thinkers, artists and poets of all ages have been firmly convinced of its truth. 

Once installed in New York the Russian prophetess sowed far and widethe seeds of her new faith, whose consolatory doctrine attracted manywho were saddened by the phenomenon of death, while at the same time itbrought her many enemies. 

After a time she departed for India, where her teachings becameconsiderably enriched and widened by local and historical influences. She died in London in 1891. 

We will pass in silence over the calumnious and dishonourableaccusations which poisoned her years of triumph, and with which it hasbeen sought to tarnish her memory. In these days we slander ourprophets instead of killing them--a procedure which may cause themgreater suffering, but has no effect upon the spread of their doctrines. 

Madame Blavatsky's philosophy is set forth in a series of elaborateworks of which the chief are _The Secret Doctrine_, the _Key toTheosophy_, and _Isis Unveiled_, constituting, according to the author, a key to the mysteries of ancient and modern science and theology. Tothis medley of thoughts and facts drawn from the mystical wisdom of allcountries and all ages, the magic of the writer's style gives apeculiar force and flavour, and though she may not always convince, shecertainly offers food for thought and speculation--which is, perhaps, even more essential. 

Her frequent lack of precision and clearness seems only to enhance theeffect of her affirmations and revelations. A prophet who could easilybe understood by intelligences of all grades would soon come to grief, for religious teachers, like philosophers and metaphysicians, seem tobe esteemed and admired largely in proportion to the vagueness of theirdoctrines. The works of Madame Blavatsky are worthy of being classedamong the most obscure, and for that very reason have every chance ofendurance. 

In spite of the differences that arose among the principal Theosophists(who included Colonel Olcott, William Q. Judge, and Annie Besant) aftertheir leader's death, Catherine Tingley succeeded in rallying largenumbers of the American believers to her banner, and founded a colonyat Point Loma, California, under the name of "the universal andtheosophical brotherhood, " which was approved by the Theosophicalconferences held in New York and Chicago in 1898. 

Theosophy is in fact a philosophy of altruism, whose main tenets arebrotherly love and justice. By following truth the soul becomespurified, and after a life consecrated to others and guided by the lawsof justice, the individual may hope to reincarnate in some higher form. As the poet of Sakuntala has said--"In other existences we all haveloved and wept"--but the divine Kalidasa teaches that past lives shouldnot be spoken of, "for the mystery of rebirth is sacred. "

The duality of our being is shown, on the one hand, in our earthly sinsand failures, and on the other in the spiritual aspirations which everurge us on to greater heights. The law of Karma affirms therelationship between cause and effect, and teaches that "as a man sows, so shall he also reap"--and consequently, the better our thoughts andactions now, the greater our advancement in the next life. 

It is in the teachings of the divine Krishna that we find the originalsource of the greater part of modern Theosophy. His precepts are fullof consolation for restless minds, and have the power to reconcile usnot only to death, but to life. 

In the vast store-house of the world's legends there is none morebeautiful than that of the immaculate maiden Devaki, who in a divineecstasy, amid strains of celestial music, brought forth the child ofMahadeva, Sun of Suns, in perfect serenity and bliss; while the storyof Krishna's life, his dangers and temptations, his virtues and hisbeauty, his wisdom and his final supreme initiation, has provided theHindu world with conceptions of a grandeur, originality and depthrarely met with elsewhere. To this well of wisdom came Plato andPythagoras, and drew from it the chief ingredients of theirphilosophies; and here, too, we receive from the lips of Krishna, thirty centuries before the birth of Christ, the first faintintimations of the immortality of the soul. 

He taught his disciples that man, living upon earth, is triple inessence, possessing spirit, mind and body. When he succeeds inharmonising the two first, he attains the state of _Sattva_, andrejoices in wisdom and peace. When he succeeds in harmonising mind andbody only, he is in the state of _Raja_, which is unstable anddangerous. When the body preponderates, he is in the state of _Tamas_, "that bindeth by heedlessness, indolence and sloth. " Man's lot dependstherefore on the correlation of these three states. When he dies inthe state of _Sattva_, his soul rises to regions of the utmost purityand bliss, and comprehends all mysteries, in close communion with theMost High. This is true immortality. But those who have not escapedfrom _Raja_ and _Tamas_ must return to earth and reincarnate in mortalbodies. 

In later years Hermes Trismegistus, the Thrice-Greatest One, furtherdeveloped these principles, adding to them the mystical treasures ofEgyptian wisdom. It has been said by Lactance that "Hermes, one knowsnot how, succeeded in discovering nearly all the truth. " During thefirst few centuries of the Christian era his works enjoyed aconsiderable vogue, and he also had a very great influence on theRenaissance period. The Hermetic books, with all their mysteries, havebecome part of the theosophical gospel, as well as the doctrines ofPlato and of the Neo-Platonists, Plutarch's treatises on Isis andOsiris, the philosophies of Plotinus and Iamblichus, the teachings ofPhilo and of the Gnostics, and the works of innumerable others, who inseeking to throw light on the super-physical realms seem often only tohave succeeded in plunging them into greater darkness. Augmented byall these obscure products of philosophy and metaphysics, the newTheosophy gives the impression of a gigantic and impenetrable maze, butit must be admitted that its followers have drawn from it maxims whosejustice and high morality are beyond question. 

The general trend of its teachings is indicated by the followingsublime passages from the Bhagavad Gita, or Lord's Song:--

"He attaineth Peace, into whom all desires flow as rivers flow into theocean, which is filled with water, but remaineth unmoved--not he whodesireth desires. Whoso forsaketh all desires and goeth onwards freefrom yearnings, selfless and without egoism--he goeth to Peace. . . . Freed from passion, fear and anger, filled with Me, taking refuge inMe, purified in the fire of wisdom, many have entered into My Being. However men approach Me, even so do I welcome them, for the path mentake from every side is Mine, O Pârtha. "

But the many imitations and variations of this wonderful Song havedespoiled it of some of its freshness and beauty, so that in these daysit is rather like the airs played on barrel-organs whose originaltunefulness is forgotten through wearisome repetition. 

Theosophists are also concerned, with studying the sevenfold nature ofman and of the universe, with the existence of invisible worlds, thegraduated stages of death and rebirth, and the attainment of divinewisdom through perfect purity of life and thought. They are opposed toracial prejudices, social classifications, and all distinctions thatseparate and divide mankind, and they inculcate the greatest possiblerespect for, the widest possible tolerance between, the world'sdifferent religions. Like Christian Scientists they do not believe inthe practice of hypnotic suggestion, but they disagree with thematerialism of the Scientists, holding that, in the search for truth, purity of life is the one essential, and worldly prosperity of smallimportance. 

In 1912 and 1913 Mrs. Tingley visited Europe and made numerous convertsin England, Italy, France, Germany and the Scandinavian countries, while the Theosophical Conference held at Point Loma in 1915, in theinterests of peace and universal brotherhood, was an immense success. The Theosophists have always been ardent workers in the cause ofinternational peace, and while awaiting the dawn of a New Age when warshall be unknown, they strive to forestall its advent in theirCalifornian paradise. 

Dramatic and musical performances are given in theatres built in theGreek style; there is a college of Raja-Yoga, where thousands of pupilsof all races are initiated into the mysteries of Karma andReincarnation; a School of Antiquity, "temple of the living light, "where the secret of living in harmony with nature is taught; frequentlectures, conferences, sports and games; while animated conversationsconcerning memories of past lives have an undying fascination for theadherents of this doctrine which sends so many missionaries out intothe world every year. 

Unlike other sects, the Theosophists do not seem anxious to publishtheir numbers abroad--whether because they make too many converts, ortoo few, it is impossible to say!--but there must certainly be hundredsof thousands scattered throughout the United States, India, and theAnglo-Saxon countries. 

TRANSLATOR'S NOTE

The foregoing chapter scarcely seems complete without some reference tothe other two centres where an attempt has been made to express theideals of Theosophy in concrete form--one in the East, at Adyar, Madras, the other in the West, at Krotona, near Los Angeles, California. The former came into being in 1882 under MadameBlavatsky's own leadership, and has grown from a small property of only27 acres to one of 263 acres. With its many fine buildings it has ariver-frontage (on the Adyar river) of one mile, and a sea-frontage oftwo-fifths of a mile. Here Mrs. Besant--World-President of theTheosophical Society, apart from Mrs. Tingley's followers--makes herhome, leaving it only for periodical lecturing tours throughout India, or for visits to London and other European centres. Her lectures atQueen's Hall, London, in the years immediately preceding the war, andagain in 1919, were remarkable for the crowds who flocked to listen toone who, whether her views find agreement or not, is universallyadmitted to be in the front rank of living orators. Adyar possesses anexcellent library, with many valuable books and manuscripts relating tothe ancient religions of India; a publishing house, the Vasanta Press, whence are issued yearly numerous theosophical books, pamphlets andmagazines, for purposes of study and propaganda; a lecture hall whichseats 1500 people, but into which as many as 2300 have found admittanceon special occasions; a Masonic temple; an extensive building for thehousing of resident students; and very beautiful grounds with apalm-grove and an ancient banyan tree, in whose shade many of the mostimportant theosophical lectures and conferences are held, and aroundwhich more than 3000 people of all nationalities have often beengathered to hear the discourses of the President and her colleagues. Astriking feature of the grounds is the massive sculptured trilithons, about 2000 years old, brought from a ruined temple in southern India, and erected here in picturesque surroundings. 

The colony at Krotona is of more recent origin, and its environment issimilar in some respects to that of Point Loma. Founded in 1912 by A. P. Warrington, the head of the American section of the TheosophicalSociety under Mrs. Besant's leadership, it stands on high ground on theoutskirts of Hollywood, a suburb of Los Angeles, with magnificent viewsof the Santa Monica Mountains and of the valley leading to the seatwelve miles away. This "Institute of Theosophy" takes its name fromthe School of Science, Art and Philosophy founded by the greatPythagoras, and aspires to be to-day what his Krotona was in thepast--a centre of spiritual enlightenment. It is run on co-operativelines, and on a non-profit basis. There are no "servants" in thecommunity, and the means of support is from a ground-rent or taxcharged to each house-builder, from the renting of rooms, and fromvoluntary donations. The buildings are in picturesque Moorish orSpanish style, their white walls gleaming amid the brilliant flowersand luxuriant greenery of this favoured climate. They include a fineLending Library and Reference Room, a scientific research laboratory, apublishing house, an administration building, and many pretty villasand cottages. There is also a temple, in whose auditorium religiousceremonies, meetings, lectures and concerts take place, and an open-airstadium where each year a miracle play is to be produced, the one firstchosen being a dramatisation of Sir Edwin Arnold's "Light of Asia, "which ran for three weeks in the summer of 1918. 

The English Headquarters of the Society are now at 23 Bedford Square, London. 

CONCLUSION

"Tell us then, Mary, what hast thou seen upon thy way?"

"I have seen the shroud and the vestments and the angelic witnesses, and I have seen the glory of the Resurrected. "

Saints and prophets of all lands and all ages bear an unconsciousresemblance one to another. The craving for truth, the unquenchabledesire to escape from reality, leads them into realms of mystery anddream, where simple peasants and labourers, religious men andagnostics, philosophers and mystics, all meet together. Theirunsuspicious minds are easily dazzled by the least ray of light, anddeceived by the most unlikely promises, and it is not surprising thatthey are often imposed upon and led to accept false ways of salvation. 

Many of the mystics show a desire to revert to the EsotericChristianity dear to Saint John, the disciple whom Jesus loved; or tothat of Mani, whose doctrine--unjustly distorted by his detractors--wasconcerned with direct initiation and final mergence in the Divinity. But it is not easy to progress against the stream of the centuries, andwith the Catharists of Hungary, the Albigenses of Provence, and theTemplars massacred in the name of St. Augustine--that ancient Manicheanwho became the worst enemy of his fellow-believers--EsotericChristianity seemed to have died out. Nevertheless the desire for ithas never been destroyed, and continues to inspire the teachings of allthose who revolt against dogmas that tend to restrict the soul'sactivities instead of widening them. 

Logically, all viable religious evolution is a departure from theChristianity which has moulded our present-day thought and morality andis the centre of all our hopes. But every new revival has to reckonwith it. Madame Blavatsky, for instance, made Gautama Buddha--theking's son who became a beggar by reason of his immense compassion formankind--the central pivot of her esotericism, which was Buddhistrather than Christian in essence; but Annie Besant, the spiritualleader of modern Theosophy, has returned to Christianity andacknowledges the divinity of the Son of Man. This symbolic exampleshould reassure Christian believers, showing how even those who departfrom Christianity contribute, in spite of themselves, to its continuousgrowth. 

Crowds of new phenomena are now demanding entry into the divine city ofreligion. There is, first of all, science, undertaking to present uswith a morality conforming to the Gospel teachings, which it claimshave become a dead letter. But if twenty centuries of Christianityhave not transformed human nature, neither has science. Materialismand commercialism have failed just as the Church, with her spirit ofexclusion and domination, has failed. The fact that all these haveworked separately and in hostility to one another is perhaps thereason, for mutual understanding and respect, once established betweenthem, might well result in a new revelation worthy of the new humanitywhich shall emerge from this tragic age. A superior idealism, at oncereligious, social and scientific, must sooner or later bring new lightand warmth to the world, for a world-crisis which has shaken the veryfoundations of our existence cannot leave intact its logical corollary, faith, in whose vicinity threatening clouds have long been visible. Asat the dawn of Christianity, the whole world has seemed to be rent bytorturing doubts and by the menace of an approaching end. After havingbeen preserved from destruction by Christ for two thousand years, itsuddenly found itself in the throes of the most appalling upheaval yetexperienced, with the majority of its inhabitants engaged in amurderous war. The dream of human brotherhood, glimpsed throughout thecenturies, seemed to be irretrievably threatened, and once more arosethe age-old question as to how the Reign of Love was to be introducedupon earth. 

The present era shows other striking analogies to the early days ofChristianity, as, for instance, in the democratic movement tending toestablish the sovereignity of the people. But it is no longerexceptional men, like prophets, who proclaim the dawn of the age ofequality, but the masses themselves, under the guidance of their chosenleaders. In the book of Enoch the Son of Man tears kings from theirthrones and casts them into Hell; but this was only an isolated seerdaring to predict misfortune for those who built their palaces "withthe sweat of others. " The old-time prophets desired to reduce the richto the level of the poor, and a man denuded of all worldly goods washeld up as an ideal to be followed. This naturally necessitatedmendicity, and it was not till some centuries had passed that theChurch herself became reconciled to the possession of riches. Our ownage, however, desires to uplift the poor to the level of the rich, anda more generous spirit is manifested, in accordance with the progressmade by the science of social reform. Still it is, at bottom, the samespirit of brotherhood, enlarged and deepened, which now seeks to levelfrom below upwards instead of from above downwards. Distrust andsuspicion are directed chiefly towards the "New Rich, " products of thewar, who have built up their fortunes on the ruin and misery of others, and to these might be addressed the words of Jesus to the wealthy ofHis time--"Be ye faithful stewards"--that is to say, "Make goodinvestments for the Kingdom of God in the interests of your fellow-men. "

We are witnessing a revival of the "good tidings for the poor, " in whommay be included the whole human community. For the revolution ofto-day differs from that of the simple Galileans, and is of grave anduniversal portent, proceeding, as it does, from men who have thoughtand suffered, and profited by the disorder and misery of thousands ofyears. 

The Gospel is in process of being renovated. All these new churchesand beliefs can only serve to strengthen the great work in which the"Word" is incarnated. Whether produced by deliberate thought or byunconscious cerebration, whether professed by "saints" or practised by"initiates, " they hold up a mirror to the soul of contemporary humanitywith all its miseries and doubts; and for this reason, whatever theirnature or origin, they are deserving of sympathetic study. 

There are great religions and small ones, and as with works of art, weare apt to find in each, more or less, what we ourselves bring to it. Jeremiah, when travelling through Ancient Egypt, felt indignation atthe sight of gods with hawks' or jackals' heads; while the touchingconfessions of the dead, consigned to papyrus--"I have not killed! Ihave not been idle! I have not caused others to weep!"--only drew fromhim exclamations of anger and contempt. Herodotus, a century later, also understood nothing of this world of mysterious tombs, with itsmoral teachings thousands of years old, or of the great spiritualrevelation with which the land of the Pharaohs is impregnated. Bothalike--Jeremiah, unmoved by the cruelty and hardness of Jehovah, Herodotus, oblivious to the sensuality and immorality of his own gods, who, according to Xenophon, were adepts at thieving and lying--shooktheir heads in dismay before the Egyptian symbols. But Plato, on thecontrary, was able to appreciate the harmonious beauty of a divineTrinity, sublime incarnation of that which is "eternal, unproduced, indestructible . . . Eternally uniform and consistent, and monoeidicwith itself. "

There are, no doubt, many Jeremiahs to-day, but there are alsounderstanding souls capable of taking an interest in even the mostbizarre manifestations of religious faith. These throw a revelatorylight upon some of the most painful problems of our time, as well asupon the secret places of the human soul where lurks an ever eagerhope, often frustrated, and alas, often deceived. 

All religious sects and reformers since the time of Christ have onlysucceeded in modifying, renovating, uplifting or debasing the eternalprinciples already enunciated by the Son of Man. He it was who foundedthe integral religion for all time, but as it permits of the mostvaried interpretations, innumerable and widely divergent sects havebeen able to graft themselves upon its eternal trunk. After Him, saidRenan--who has been wrongly considered an opponent of Christ--there isnothing to be done save to develop and to fertilize, for His perfectidealism is the golden rule for a detached and virtuous life. He wasthe first to proclaim the kingdom of the spirit, and has establishedfor ever the ideal of pure religion; and as His religion is a religionof _feeling_, all movements which seek to bring about the kingdom ofheaven upon earth can attach themselves to His principles and to Hisway of salvation. 

Further, any religious movement which appeals to our higher instinctsmust eventually contribute to the triumph of human brotherhood and tothe beautifying of human life--which increases the interest of studyingall attempts at revival and reform. Such a study will prevent us frombeing overwhelmed by the uglinesses of life, or from becoming sunk in amorass of material pleasures, and will open up ways of escape into theheavenly realms. 

The true teaching of Jesus has, as a matter of fact, never yet beenrealised in practice. It holds up an ideal almost unattainable formortals, like the light of a fixed star which attracts us in spite ofits unthinkable distance. But we may, perhaps, by roundabout ways, ultimately succeed in giving a definite form to the Platonic dreamswhich ever hover around the shores of our consciousness. Among the"saints" and "initiates" who work outside the borders of accepteddogma, there are often to be found some whose originality and realspiritual worth is not generally recognised, and instead of turningaway from their "visions" and "revelations, " we should rather examinethem with close attention. Even if our faith gains nothing, we shallbe sure to pick up psychological treasures which could be turned to theprofit of science. 

We have been re-living, in these recent years, the "desolation" of theprophets, only that the suffering of the few in former times becamewith us the suffering of all. There is the same difference between thetroubles of ancient Judea and those of the modern world, as there isbetween her miniature wars and the colossal conflict whose aftermath iswith us still. 

Yet now, as in the time of Isaiah, the nations long for eternal peace, and the desire for a world more in harmony with man's deepest thoughtsand wishes is one of the dominant causes of religious schism and revolt. 

Let us hope that the world-wide catastrophe that we have witnessed mayyet lead to the realisation of the ideal expressed by Jesus, and by theancient prophet before Him:--

"And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people:and they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spearsinto pruning hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. " And again--"The work ofrighteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietnessand assurance for ever. And my people shall dwell in a peaceablehabitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places. "

Many are being stirred to new life and action by dreams which hold, inalmost every case, some fragment of the longed-for truth, howeverfoolish or illogical in expression; and we should in consequenceapproach the dreamers with all the sympathy of which we are capable. Often their countenances are made beautiful by love, and they will, atthe least, provide us with a golden key to the fascinating mysteries ofman's subconscious mind. What though their doctrines vanish from sightunder the scalpel of analysis? It is no small pleasure to contemplate, and even to examine closely, such delightful phantoms.