In their judgment his heaven and hell are here, and the
gods who make and the devils who unmake civilizations are humans, not
good or bad divinities.

This is the conclusion of a rapidly increasing number of educated
people. A century ago only a few men of science and scientific
philosophers had reached it, not twenty five per cent, but now the
percentage is nearly ninety and it will soon be ninety-nine. The time is
coming, and in the not distant future, when no educated man shall look
to the god of any supernaturalistic interpretation of religion for light
or strength, and when none shall hope for a heaven above the earth or
fear a hell below it.

Heav'n but the Vision of fulfill'd Desire,
And Hell the Shadow from a Soul on fire
Cast on the Darkness into which Ourselves,
So late emerg'd from, shall so soon expire.

--Omar.

Joseph McCabe and Chapman Cohen are among the most brilliant of present
day writers on scientific and philosophic subjects. They are not
socialists, but both see that modern socialism and orthodox Christianism
are utterly irreconcilable incompatibilities.

"How is it that on the Continent democratic bodies are so
sceptical, or sceptical bodies so democratic? Precisely because
they doubt (or reject altogether) the Christian heaven. They want
to make this earth as happy as it can be, to make sure of happiness
somewhere. Having taken their eyes from the sky, they have
discovered remarkable possibilities in the earth. Having to give
less time to God, they have more time to give to man. They think
less about their heavenly home, and more about their earthly home.
The earthly home has grown very much brighter for the change. The
heavenly home is just where it was.

"The plain truth is, of course, that the sentiment which used to be
absorbed in religion is now embodied in humanitarianism. Religion
is slowly dying everywhere. Social idealism is growing everywhere.
People who want to persuade us that social idealism depends on
religion are puzzled by this. It is only because they are
obstinately determined to connect everything with Christianity, in
spite of its historical record. There is no puzzle. We have
transferred our emotions from God to man, from heaven to
earth."--Joseph McCabe.

"Socialists who have one eye on the ballot box may assure these
people that Socialism is not Athei