and try the
more to save him. A man who loves and serves his neighbor, let him speak
ever so many words against the Son of Man, is not sinning against the
Holy Ghost. He is still open to the sacred influence--the virtue which
is ever going forth from God to heal. It is the man who in the name of
religion opposes that which he sees to be good, who is in danger of
eternal sin."

"Come, come, Wingfold! whatever you do, don't mis-quote," said the
rector.

"I don't say it is the right reading," returned the curate, "but I can
hardly be convicted of misquoting, so long as it is that of the two
oldest manuscripts we have."

"You always have the better of me," answered the rector. "But tell
me--are not the atheists of the present day a better sort of fellows
than those we used to hear of when we were young?"

"I do think so. But, as one who believes with his whole soul, and
strives with his whole will, I attribute their betterness to the growing
influences of God upon the race through them that have believed. And I
am certain of this, that, whatever they are, it needs but time and
continued unbelief to bring them down to any level from whatever height.
They will either repent, or fall back into the worst things, believing
no more in their fellow-man and the duty they owe him--of which they now
rightly make so much, and yet not half enough--than they do in God and
His Christ. But I do not believe half the bad things Christians have
said and written of atheists. Indeed I do not believe the greater number
of those they have called such, were atheists at all. I suspect that
worse dishonesty, and greater injustice, are to be found among the
champions, lay and cleric, of religious Opinion, than in any other
class. If God were such a One as many of those who would fancy
themselves His apostles, the universe would be but a huge hell. Look at
certain of the so-called religious newspapers, for instance. Religious!
Their tongue is set on fire of hell. It may be said that they are mere
money-speculations; but what makes them pay? Who buys them? To please
whom do they write? Do not many buy them who are now and then themselves
disgusted with them? Why do they not refuse to touch the unclean things?
Instead of keeping the commandment, 'that he who loveth God love his
brother also,' these, the prime channels of Satanic influence in the
Church, powerfully teach, that He that loveth God must abuse his
brother--or he shall be himself abuse