Project Gutenberg's The Sympathy of Religions, by Thomas Wentworth Higginson

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Title: The Sympathy of Religions

Author: Thomas Wentworth Higginson

Release Date: June 14, 2008 [EBook #25792]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

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Transcriber's Note

Greek has been transliterated in this version of the e-text, and is
surrounded by + symbols, +like this+.

THE
SYMPATHY OF RELIGIONS.

AN ADDRESS,
DELIVERED AT HORTICULTURAL HALL, BOSTON,
February 6, 1870.

BY
THOMAS WENTWORTH HIGGINSON.

BOSTON:
_REPRINTED FROM THE RADICAL._
OFFICE, 25 BROMFIELD STREET.
1871.

THE SYMPATHY OF RELIGIONS.

BY THOMAS WENTWORTH HIGGINSON.

Our true religious life begins when we discover that there is an Inner
Light, not infallible but invaluable, which "lighteth every man that
cometh into the world." Then we have something to steer by; and it is
chiefly this, and not an anchor, that we need. The human soul, like
any other noble vessel, was not built to be anchored, but to sail. An
anchorage may, indeed, be at times a temporary need, in order to make
some special repairs, or to take fresh cargo in; yet the natural
destiny of both ship and soul is not the harbor, but the ocean; to cut
with even keel the vast and beautiful expanse; to pass from island on
to island of more than Indian balm, or to continents fairer than
Columbus won; or, best of all, steering close to the wind, to extract
motive power from the greatest obstacles. Men must forget the eternity
through which they have yet to sail, when they talk of anchoring here
upon this bank and shoal of time. It would be a tragedy to see the
shipping of the world whitening the seas no more, and idly riding at
anchor in Atlantic ports; but it wou