far as it
remains purely symbolic and does not attempt to rationalize its
symbolism, a dogmatic religion must always contain within the
circle of its creed many profound and illuminating secrets. The
false and ephemeral portion of a dogmatic religion is its
metaphysical aspect, because the whole science of metaphysics is
an ambiguity from the start, since it is a projection of one isolated
attribute of the complex vision.

What the apex-thought of the complex vision does is to undermine
metaphysic; not by the use of metaphysic but by the use of the
rhythmic totality of all the attributes of the soul. The philosophy of
the complex vision has its metaphysical, as it has its psychological
and its physiological aspect, but its real starting point must
transcend all these, because it must emanate from personality. And
personality is something super-metaphysical; as it is something
super-psychological, and super-physiological.

The creed of a dogmatic religion is not to be condemned because it
calls upon us to believe the impossible. Some sort of belief in the
impossible, some primordial act of faith is an essential part of the
process of life and, without it, life could not continue. It is where
dogmatic religion attempts to justify its belief in the impossible by
the use of metaphysical reason that we must regard it as an enemy
of the truth of its own symbolism.

The supreme example of the evil and dangerous influence of
metaphysic upon religion is to be found in connection with that
inscrutable nothingness behind the universe, and also behind the
objective mystery out of which the soul creates the universe. I
refer to that ambiguous and unbeautiful phantom, which has
acquired for itself the name of "the absolute," or the parent or first
cause of life.

That the conception of "the sons of the universe," to which certain
basic facts and experiences in regard to the intercourse between
living human souls has led humanity, is not a metaphysical
conception, is proved by the fact that it is a conception of a reality
existing inside and not outside the ultimate unity of time and
space. Any pure metaphysical conception must, as we have seen,
remain outside the categories of time and space, and remaining
there bear perpetual witness to its essential unreality.

The sons of the universe are living personal souls; and being this,
they must be, as all personalities are, super-metaphysical,
super-psychological, and super-physio