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sex…deities and obscene rites in polytheism； and ecstatic
feelings of union with the Savior in a few Christian mystics。
But then why not equally call religion an aberration of the
digestive function； and prove one's point by the worship of
Bacchus and Ceres； or by the ecstatic feelings of some other
saints about the Eucharist？ Religious language clothes itself in
such poor symbols as our life affords； and the whole organism
gives overtones of comment whenever the mind is strongly stirred
to expression。 Language drawn from eating and drinking is
probably as common in religious literature as is language drawn
from the sexual life。 We 〃hunger and thirst〃 after
righteousness； we 〃find the Lord a sweet savor；〃 we 〃taste and
see that he is good。〃 〃Spiritual milk for American babes； drawn
from the breasts of both testaments；〃 is a sub…title of the once
famous New England Primer； and Christian devotional literature
indeed quite floats in milk； thought of from the point of view；
not of the mother； but of the greedy babe。
Saint Francois de Sales； for instance； thus describes the 〃orison
of quietude〃： 〃In this state the soul is like a little child
still at the breast； whose mother to caress him whilst he is
still in her arms makes her milk distill into his mouth without
his even moving his lips。 So it is here。 。 。 。 Our Lord desires
that our will should be satisfied with sucking the milk which His
Majesty pours into our mouth； and that we should relish the
sweetness without even knowing that it cometh from the Lord。〃
And again： 〃Consider the little infants； united and joined to
the breasts of their nursing mothers you will see that from time
to time they press themselves closer by little starts to which
the pleasure of sucking prompts them。 Even so； during its
orison； the heart united to its God oftentimes makes attempts at
closer union by movements during which it presses closer upon the
divine sweetness。〃 Chemin de la Perfection； ch。 xxxi。； Amour de
Dieu； vii。 ch。 i。
In fact； one might almost as well interpret religion as a
perversion of the respiratory function。 The Bible is full of the
language of respiratory oppression： 〃Hide not thine ear at my
breathing； my groaning is not hid from thee； my heart panteth； my
strength faileth me； my bones are hot with my roaring all the
night long； as the hart panteth after the water…brooks； so my
soul panteth after thee； O my God：〃 God's Breath in Man is the
title of the chief work of our best known American mystic （Thomas
Lake Harris）； and in certain non…Christian countries the
foundation of all religious discipline consists in regulation of
the inspiration and expiration。
These arguments are as good as much of the reasoning one hears in
favor of the sexual theory。 But the champions of the latter will
then say that their chief argument has no analogue elsewhere。
The two main phenomena of religion； namely； melancholy and
conversion； they will say； are essentially phenomena of
adolescence； and therefore synchronous with the development of
sexual life。 To which the retort again is easy。 Even were the
asserted synchrony unrestrictedly true as a fact （which it is
not）； it is not only the sexual life； but the entire higher
mental life which awakens during adolescence。 One might then as
well set up the thesis that the interest in mechanics； physics；
chemistry； logic； philosophy； and sociology； which springs up
during adolescent years along with that in poetry and religion；
is also a perversion of the sexual instinct：but that would be
too absurd。 Moreover； if the argument from synchrony is to
decide； what is to be done with the fact that the religious age
par excellence would seem to be old age； when the uproar of the
sexual life is past？
The plain truth is that to interpret religion one must in the end
look at the immediate content of the religious consciousness。
The moment one does this； one sees how wholly disconnected it is
in the main from the content of the sexual consciousness。
Everything about the two things differs； objects； moods；
faculties concerned； and acts impelled to。 Any GENERAL
assimilation is simply impossible： what we find most often is
complete hostility and contrast。 If now the defenders of the
sex…theory say that this makes no difference to their thesis；
that without the chemical contributions which the sex…organs make
to the blood； the brain would not be nourished so as to carry on
religious activities； this final proposition may be true or not
true； but at any rate it has become profoundly uninstructive： we
can deduce no consequences from it which help us to interpret
religion's meaning or value。 In this sense the religious life
depends just as much upon the spleen； the pancreas； and the
kidneys as on the sexual apparatus； and the whole theory has lost
its point in evaporating into a vague general assertion of the
dependence； SOMEHOW； of the mind upon the body。
We are surely all familiar in a general way with this method of
discrediting states of mind for which we have an antipathy。 We
all use it to some degree in criticizing persons whose states of
mind we regard as overstrained。 But when other people criticize
our own more exalted soul…flights by calling them 'nothing but'
expressions of our organic disposition； we feel outraged and
hurt； for we know that； whatever be our organism's peculiarities；
our mental states have their substantive value as revelations of
the living truth； and we wish that all this medical materialism
could be made to hold its tongue。
Medical materialism seems indeed a good appellation for the too
simple…minded system of thought which we are considering。
Medical materialism finishes up Saint Paul by calling his vision
on the road to Damascus a discharging lesion of the occipital
cortex； he being an epileptic。 It snuffs out Saint Teresa as an
hysteric； Saint Francis of Assisi as an hereditary degenerate。
George Fox's discontent with the shams of his age； and his pining
for spiritual veracity； it treats as a symptom of a disordered
colon。 Carlyle's organ…tones of misery it accounts for by a
gastro…duodenal catarrh。 All such mental overtensions； it says；
are； when you come to the bottom of the matter； mere affairs of
diathesis （auto…intoxications most probably）； due to the
perverted action of various glands which physiology will yet
discover。 And medical materialism then thinks that the spiritual
authority of all such personages is success