CHAPTER XI.
THE HUMAN RACE AND REVELATION.
'_The scandal of the pious Christian, and the fallacious triumph of the infidel, should cease as soon as they recollect not only_ by whom, _but likewise to whom, the Divine Revelation was given._'-- Gibbon.[37] And now let us suppose ourselves convinced, at least for the sake of argument, that man will always believe in himself as a moral being, and that he will, under no compulsion, let this belief go.

Granting this, from what we have just seen, thus much will be plain to us, that theism, should it ever tend to reassert itself, can have no check to fear at the hands of positive thought.

Let us, therefore, suppose further, that such a revival of faith is imminent, and that the enlightened world, with its eyes wide open, is about to turn once again to religious desires and aims.

This brings us face to face with the second question, that we have not as yet touched upon: will the religion thus turned to be a natural religion only, or is it possible that some exclusive dogmatism may be recognised as a supernatural re-statement of it?
Before going further with this question it will be well to say a few words as to the exact position it occupies.

This, with regard to the needs of man, is somewhat different to the position of natural theism.
That a natural theism is essential to man's moral being is a proposition that can be more or less rigidly demonstrated; but that a revelation is essential as a supplement to natural theism can be impressed upon us only in a much looser way.