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TG Kalghatgt
Kience, but as supreme act of faith in the reasonableness of God's work as
Through the vaticinations of intellect and conscience, Dr Martineau comes nearer the cross-roads suggesting belicf in future life without specifically accepting the doctrine of rebirth He is shy of accepting the beliels of conuouity and rebirth as he has been careful not to appeal to the widespread hope and belief of a future life, which has prevailed in the world, for it 1 bardly warrantable to argue from the mere prevalence of a belief to its truth, unless it can be classed with the primary assumptions that are the conditions of all inference - a position which cannot be claimed by tbe doctrine now under consideration 17
Honcver the conditions of a responsible existence involves two stages(1) a probationary turn and (11) a retributory sequel but it may be said, there is no need to separate these and assiga them to different lives both may be provided for within the present experience of the agent's own personality And it is maintained that retributive aspect of future life bus an educative influence for persons in the earlier and cruder stages of moral culture To them it represents, under hedonistic symbols, a spiritual consummation which will fulfil the promises by transcending them The hopes and fears of future retribation are needed to play upon the conscience only in its rudimentary period 40 Dr Martineau concludes "From this wuivey of the great lines of human experience two 10ferences seem to force themselves upon us (1) that everywhere, - in our conscience, in qur physical nature, in the sentiments of associated men - there are indelible marks of a morally constituted world, moving towards righteous ends (2) That romkere within us or out of us, do we find the fulfilment of this idea, but only the incipient and often baffled tentatives for realizing it by partial approximation This is what we sbould expect to see, from the ficst station of an unfinished system, and it irresistibly suggests a justifying and perfect seyuel The vaticinations of our moral nature are thus in harmony with those of intellectual and spiritual, distractly reporting to us, that we sland 1. Divine relations which indefoltely transcend the limits of our earthly years so
Dr Martineau and other Western philosophers like Phleader, stop at the crossroad to immortality and are shy to accept the logical implications of retribution and the progress of the individual to intellectual and moral
4 47 48 49 50
Fake Dewany of man *quoted by Martineau Dr Martineau, Study of Religion, p959 Ibid. p 96! lbid. P 362 lbid p. 362
