buddhism and buddhists in japan

Front matter

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Preface

This volume is the fifth to appear of the series on the “World’s Living Religions,” projected in 1920 by a Committee of the Board of Missionary Preparation in North America and intended to furnish accurate and trustworthy, though brief and popular presentations of the actual religious life of each great region of the non-Christian world. It purposes to give to students of religion in the West, and particularly to young missionaries who are planning to go to the Far East, a vivid idea of the religious conditions which exist in Japan and some understanding of the hold of Buddhism upon those who follow it.

In a true sense, the volume seeks to enable the reader to think in terms of a devotee of Buddhism in Japan, to appreciate his point of view with some sympathy, and thus be enabled to consider his religious problems helpfully. The whole series aims to be impressionistic, seeking, in this volume, to afford a clear picture of Buddhism as it works out in its normal setting in the Japanese Empire, with its practices, beliefs and adjustments. For a thoroughly scientific discussion of Buddhism in general and of Japanese Buddhism in detail, there are many available authorities which are referred to in the Appendix.

Buddhism had a thousand years of history before it reached Japan, and it has had about fourteen hundred years of interesting history there. It has developed along with Japan, the religion profoundly affecting the country and people, while these in turn influenced the religion. The outcome has been a Buddhism which differs quite - essentially from the type prevailing to-day in Ceylon, Burma, Siam and French Indo-China, and likewise from

v vi PREFACE the type prevailing in China and Korea, each of which has been represented in volumes of this series already published. Japanese Buddhism, therefore, may be roughly regarded as representing the last and highest stages of a very long and highly varied development.

Buddhism is not, however, and never has been the sole religion of Japan. It has always been closely connected with Shinto and Confucianism and has been affected by them. A Japanese takes his ethics from Confucius and a multitude of his customs from Shinto. The statement is nevertheless true that throughout most of Japan’s real history, and to a considerable degree as an important factor in it, Buddhism has been the dominant and in many ways the distinctive religion of the Japanese people, a vehicle and spur of Japanese culture, civilization and nationality. Notwithstanding a decadence from its former lofty estate, Buddhism in Japan is developing a highly educated priesthood and has a vitality to-day which must be reckoned with.

The writer of this volume has been for many years a resident of Japan, a student of things Japanese and of Japan’s religious literature, and an intimate companion of competent Japanese scholars. He has given himself assiduously to the study of the religious thought and history of Japan. In 1912 he published a study of the conditions in Japan just before the Meiji era, entitled Just Before the Dawn, which was really a survey of the times of Ninomiya Sontoku, one of the famous teachers of modern Japan. In 1914, through the University of Toronto, he published an important volume of studies in Japanese Confucianism, entitled Light from the East. In 1920 he published Progress in the Mikado’s Empire, a book for — young people. In the present volume he has sought to keep close to the explanations of Japanese customs and religious ideas which representative Japanese accept, without arguing their validity in the world of scholarship. For these he is almost entirely indebted to Japanese writers

PREFACE vii and teachers. He would like to acknowledge his indebtedness to the many who have given him valuable assistance in collecting materials.

Japanese Buddhism, as expounded by some of its devotees, has a specious likeness to Christianity which is very puzzling to a novice; and yet, as a distinguished interpreter of both Buddhism and Christianity has said, they “differ in the answers they make to the problems of life and in atmosphere.’”’ To become able to distinguish clearly between the two expressions of religious philosophy, ethics and life with assurance and yet with fairness demands patient and long-continued study. It is the hope of the editors, however, that this little volume, in connection with the two volumes on Buddhism which have preceded it, will serve to initiate and in some degree to guide that process to which every student of Far Eastern conditions should set himself.

Tue Epirors.

February, 1927.

CONTENTS CHAPTER EA EREDUCTORY =~ pur'y) ua) ac sa ees! @ II, THe EstaBLisHMENT OF BUDDHISM AS THE LEADING RELIGION OF JAPAN . . . ..

III. Tue Temprtes, SyMBoLS AND PRIESTS OF BUDDHISM: f.%-5 he, Om Me ele athe IV. BuppHisM AN OTHER-WoRLDLY RELIGION V. Present-Day BuppHism’s EMPHASIS ON MORAL, _DETTERMENT (C5. asc) ae es Be VI. PuHtLosopHicat Sects oF BUDDHISM. . VII. Socrtat Ipgeats of BuDDHISM .. . VIII. Practica, BuppHist Sects .... . IX. Tue Curist1iAN APPEAL TO BUDDHISM . . CC ONCOUSION ) csc Sys eh lo eet GO ALLS PEPER DLR uc, ie et celeste a eats

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I INTRODUCTORY

“IT am very prosperous,” said the Emperor Nintoku (313-399 A. D.), as he looked over the beautiful plains of ancient Japan after three years of benevolent effort and care for his people during a period of special economic stress; ‘I am indeed prosperous!” “How can you say that you are prosperous when your palace roof is leaking and the plaster is falling from the walls?” said a retainer who overheard the remark. The Emperor replied: “When you see smoke rising in the land you know that the people’s fires are busy. The prosperity of my people is indeed my prosperity.” This oft-repeated remark is typical of the attitude of the great rulers of Japan toward their people, especially during the first imperialistic period, when they ruled the land as a father would rule his home. The distinguished rulers of Japan, even in those early days, displayed fatherly care for their people, promoting their welfare, and, like the late Emperor Meiji, took pleasure in introducing them to a new and progressive civilization. This characteristic of the sovereigns of Japan had much to do with the introduction of Buddhism. Those _who brought the new religion from the mainland of Asia

first of all gained the approval of the sovereigns and their

immediate attendants. They deliberately adjusted their

message to the national demands of the leaders and states-

men of the time. They made such immediate contribu-

tions to the still rather primitive civilization of the coun- I try, they added in so many ways to its resources and its happiness, they helped so signally to create a real nationality out of the various subject groups who gave allegiance to the Emperor, that the historian can with difficulty imagine what would have been the development of Japan had Buddhism never entered the country. The impact of Buddhism educated the people, broadened their ideas, developed their resources and laid deep foundations for the remarkable future of the nation. Professor Chamberlain in Things Japanese declares: “All education was for centuries in Buddhist hands, as was the care of the poor and sick. Buddhism introduced art and medicine, molded the folklore of the country, created its dramatic and intellectual activities. In a word, Buddha was the teacher under whose instruction the Japanese nation grew up.” No doubt, Buddhism succeeded in those early centuries in covering every phase of life. The late Professor Gessho Sasaki has said: ‘“The soul of the culture of the Orient and that of Japan is Buddhism; the sutras of the religion are without doubt the essence of the body of the culture.”

On the other hand, Buddhism in Japan has been greatly influenced by the national and racial characteristics of the Japanese people. The Japanese people are never mere imitators; they possess what one of their scholars has described as “additive originality,” the power not only of assimilating an outside culture, but also of creating something distinctively their own. Just as Confucianism in Japan, as it developed in the Tokugawa age under the influence of Shinto, was different from that produced in China, so Buddhism in Japan is not merely a reproduction of that in China, Korea or India, but has developed indigenous sects, resulting in a religious influence and a philosophical insight which, at least in the judgment of Japanese scholars, has truly surpassed that which was introduced into Japan originally.

Any attempt to describe Buddhism as it is to-day in Japan must of necessity reveal it to be a religious system

INTRODUCTORY 3 which cannot be harmonized with modern science or with the latest developments in philosophy. Even Japanese scholars point out the necessity of such a revolution in Buddhism as will remove its animal and idol worship, its superstitious traditions, its Indian pessimism, and effect other essential changes, if it is to retain the respect of so progressive a people as the Japanese have proved themselves to be. Nevertheless, Japanese Buddhism, as it has been reorganized and purified by contact with modern conditions, is manifesting a vitality, and producing an educated priesthood, which must command the respect and consideration of all who would understand Buddhism as it is.

II The Establishment Of Buddhism As The Leading Religion Of Japan

1. The Gaming of Royal Favor

F early fourteen centuries Buddhism has had a place of importance and influence in Japan. According to tradition it was first introduced from Southern Korea in the sixth century of the Christian era.“ A Korean prince, the ruler of the state of Kudara, who was a Buddhist, sent as a token of respect and homage to the reigning emperor of Japan a golden image of Buddha, some Buddhist scriptures and some works of art, together with a message which eulogized the religion which they represented, recommending it as one which would bring “happiness and good fortune” to Japan, declaring also that it was a charm which would “open to man all the treasures he may desire.’ The gifts were accepted by the emperor and given into the charge of Soga, the leader of the liberal party at the court of that day, who was inclined to try out the new cult. Soga set up the image with every manifestation of respect in his own palace, which became a Buddhist temple, and thus initiated the new worship in Japan. The message also was given serious consideration by the sovereign and his court.

But many looked askance upon the new religion as

* It is probable that Buddhism was being introduced by immigrants from Korea at a much earlier date than is usually stated, even, perhaps, as early as the second century. The Emperor is said to have found a Buddhist symbol on the seashore. See Ashton’s Nihongi,

Vol. I, p. 219. The usual dates given are 545 a. D. or 552 A. D. (ibid., Vol. II, p. xxviii).

ESTABLISHMENT OF BUDDHISM 5 something foreign and alien to the Japanese people. A strong conservative party, who feared the anger of the ancient gods of Japan if the people should be disloyal, developed an earnest opposition. Belore—Buddhism became generally accepted, it went through a long and earth hese Eades anid with the “gia masses of the people who were - time superstitions. Immediately after Soga had enshrined the image of Buddha in his palace an epidemic broke out all over Japan. The people generally ascribed this calamity to the honors paid to the foreign god, and the conservative leaders tried to expel both advocates and image by force. The liberal forces, however, rallied to the defense of the new religion with equal determination, until after decades of conflict, in_587, led by the imperial prince, Shotoku_Taishi, they were able to overoe caaodian GF the conserintives whose leaders Pia

~The contest was an unequal one. The inflow of a welldeveloped civilization quietly and permanently supplanted the simple culture and primitive nature worship of early Shinto. Although ancient Shinto-was a polytheistic nature worship, centering largely in the worship of heroes_ and ancestors, éspécially imperial ancestors, nevertheless the emperors and rulers themselves, from the seventh to the ninth centuries;-welcomed the new culture with open arms, and not Orly became saintly devotees of the foreign religion, but were powerful promoters of foreign culture. On the other hand, the greatest Buddhist leaders wisely identified their religion with all the best elements in Japanese tradition and appropriated to themselves all the good qualities of Shinto and of Confucianism. This combination made a great contribution to that sense of reverence, loyalty and courage which has been manifested in the intense patriotism of the Japanese samurai, especially as it developed in the unwritten chivalry of the Japanese, familiarly known as Bushido. (nance

SA permanent place was attained for Buddhism when the imperial family became actual and ardent converts. The Crown Prince, Shotoku Taishi, and his imperial aunt, the Empress Suiko (593-628 A. D.), became zealous Buddhists, wheteupon the new religion was both protected and promoted. (The prince, who had been made by his aunt the real ruler of Japan, spared no pains to introduce into his country more and more of the civilization which had been developed in China. He established a constitution, the second article of which read: ‘‘Reverence sincerely the three treasures, Buddha, the Law and the priesthood, for these are the final refuge of the four generative beings and the supreme object of faith in all countries. What man in what age can fail to revere this Law. . . . If they turn not to the three treasures, wherewithal shall their crookedness be made straight.” (Brinkley, 4 History of the Japanese People, p. 140.)

Through the influence of these imperial converts Buddhism became fairly well established. Many of the customs and forms of worship which are cherished in Japan to-day were introduced under their patronage. (he popular festival held on the birthday of Buddha and the festival for the dead were first celebrated in 606 a. D. )The Prince himself established the custom, which is quite characteristic of Buddhism in Japan, of giving to laymen a place of prominence in religious affairs. He himself conducted - special lectures on the Buddhist scriptures at the imperial palace. The Empress encouraged the Buddhist habit of showing mercy for all living creatures by substituting a party to gather medicinal herbs for the poor and needy in . place of a hunting party. Under such eager imperial patronage, Buddhism became strongly established among the leading classes in Japan. At the same time the masses, to whom the religious philosophy of Buddhism meant little, had reason to appreciate the spirit of kindness thus popularized. When Prince Shotoku Taishi died, he was ranked as a saint and invoked as the very incarnation of

ESTABLISHMENT OF BUDDHISM 7 the Goddess of Mercy. “The old wept as though they had lost their beloved child; the young as if they had lost a fond parent; the farmer ceased from his plow, and the

_ pounding woman laid aside her pestle.” The people said:

“The sun and moon have lost their brightness ; heaven and earth have crumbled to ruin; henceforth in whom shall we put our trust?” * In Korea the death of the Imperial

Prince was commemorated by his former teacher, Eji,

_ who said: “Surely in the Prince, Buddha has lived again.”

2., The Upbuilding of Japanese Civilization During the next two hundred years Buddhism became deeply identified with the national life of Japan under the

_ patronage of the imperial rulers and of their leading statesmen. |The Emperor Kotoku (645-654) went so far as to reject Shinto altogether, cutting down its groves of sacred trees and destroying its beautiful shrines. Bud-

_ dhist services were held in the imperial palace itself and in r the offices of state at provincial capitals. Special religious gatherings, not unlike modern summer schools, were held

_ for the reading of the scriptures and for the promotion of | meditation. To show his complete loyalty to his faith the

Emperor granted amnesty to prisoners, set free six hun-

_ dred slaves, encouraged acts of mercy, and even went so _ far as to forbid his people to fish or hunt. The Empress __ Jito (687-696) set a white swallow free as a symbol of _ her desire to express a spirit of mercy. On a certain day _ each province held special ceremonies at which some liv- _ ing animals were set free as a similar token. This explains the prevailing custom at Buddhist funerals to-day of setting caged birds free to symbolize the merciful spirit of the deceased.

Many stories have come down from this era relating the effectiveness of prayer to Buddha in times of sickness or famine by those who truly possessed this spirit of “mercy. One story found in the Nihongi tells of Shinto

2 See Nihongi, Ashton’s translation, Vol. II, p. 148.

leaders in a time of great drought who sacrificed horses and cattle before their gods, beseeching them for rain, and of the Buddhist priests who decorated the images of the Buddha, read the scriptures continuously, and called, without result, for public repentance and prayer ; until at last the Empress Kokyoku (642-645) prayed with her face turned to heaven, whereupon rain fell in abundance for days.

During these years Buddhism gradually established its hold upon the masses in Japan. Temples were built everywhere and the sacred books were made available to all the people. Small Buddha shelves or shrines were established in the homes of the people, so that Buddhism was given a real place in family life. Mystic influences and protective values came to be ascribed to these shrines and to the customs built around them. Thus at a date when imperialism and the papacy were just beginning to test their strength in Europe in a certain hostility and rivalry, the imperial family and the Buddhist hierarchy in Japan united their efforts for the good of the common people. In Japan, as in Europe, ecclesiasticism really triumphed, since the Emperor Shomu (742-749) was willing to bow in submission to the “three treasures.”” His consort, the Empress Komyo, became famed for her piety and devotion. She built a charity hospital and devoted her energy to the needs of women and children, of widows and diseased persons. She is even represented as having sucked the poison from the sores of the Buddha himself, who appeared to her in the guise of a loathsome leper.

The popular following which Buddhism gained was not, of course, due to its intellectual impression. To the masses the distinctions embodied in the many sects were quite unintelligible. But the outward glory of a religion which presented a magnificent ritual, an imposing temple, gorgeous processions, richly clothed priests, waving banners, mystic mutterings, incense, bells, chants and pray-

ESTABLISHMENT OF BUDDHISM 9 ers, and which promised a future life of happiness and the service of learned and potent magicians, as they were viewed by the devotees,—these elements made Buddhism popular. | The culmination of this long period of religious development was commemorated by the erection of a huge bronze image of the Buddha at Nara, the ancient capital of Japan. The image represents the Buddha in a sitting posture. It is fifty-five and a half feet high, the face alone measuring sixteen feet in length. On either side of the image two bronze attendants, each thirty feet high, stand ready to do his bidding. The order for the erection of this image was given by the Emperor Shomu in recognition of the peace which the country enjoyed through the “‘influence and authority of Buddha.” In that order the Emperor declared his ability, power and right to erect _ the image, and his hope that all would codperate with him _ spontaneously and willingly. He said: ‘Those who help in this great work should have pure hearts, performing their tasks so as to bring joy to all.” ° Voluntary assistance was welcomed; even a contribution of grass or earth - was appreciated, but “no official shall be allowed to extort _ money from the people for this great work.” It required _ nearly five hundred tons of copper to make the body, and - seven hundred and fifty pounds of refined gold. The work _ was brought to a conclusion through the earnest prayers of the Emperor and his people. In response to an imperial order to pray for the gold necessary to finish the _ image, gold was found in Mitsu province, so that the image was completed in 752, in the reign of the Empress | Koken, the daughter of the Emperor Shomu. _ Tradition says that the Empress Koken was an incarnation of the Goddess of Mercy. She took as deep an interest in the completion of the image as her father had taken; she even stooped and with her own hands handed copper to the workmen. On the celebration of Buddha’s - * Brinkley, History, p. 193.

birthday she and all the officials of state assisted in the ceremony of pouring sacred tea over the head of the great image. Later, during the ceremony of “opening the eyes” or unveiling the great image, she led the procession in which all civil and military officials took part. The most distinguished figure among them was the high priest who came from India to preside over the festivities. Buddhism was now supreme in Japan. When completed the temple over the great image was endowed with taxes from five thousand houses and ten thousand cho * of land; a great bell, thirteen and a half feet high and weighing four tons, was placed in the court. An imperial order stated that the imperial line should respect this temple, because the prosperity of Japan depended upon it: “Let him who violates this command perish in the depths of Hell.” The Buddhist conquest of Japan now seemed complete. The Emperor was well aware that there was still a strong conservative party which worshiped the tutelary gods of Japan, and which would be prejudiced against any attempt to favor the foreign religion at the expense of Shinto. To overcome this prejudice he sent Gyoki, a famous priest, to consult the ancestral goddess at Ise. Gyoki was very popular with the common people, so much so that in his early days he had been cast into prison as a dangerous man. While he moved about among the people, repeating Buddhist scriptures and prayers, he sympathized in a practical way with all their interests, built irrigation ponds, bridges, roads and harbors, gave special help to the poor and needy, and provided hot baths for the people. He is even credited with opening a free dis- _ pensary and with introducing the potter’s wheel. Hence, when he returned from Ise and reported that on the seventh day of his religious devotion before the national shrine the great door had opened and the national god had declared in a loud voice: “The true form or reality of Buddhism is the sun that shines to clear away the long “One cho is 2.45 acres.

ESTABLISHMENT OF BUDDHISM II night of birth and death; it is the moon that melts away the dark clouds of human passion; your request is as a favorable opportunity to me; it is as if a ship for which I had been waiting had arrived,” the people were convinced that the great Sun Goddess of Japan and the Buddha from India were the same. This conclusion was strengthened when the Emperor announced that it had also been revealed to him in a dream.

3. The Absorption of Shinto

id Shortly after the capital of Japan had been moved to Kyoto in 794, two famous priests returned from China and helped to complete the virtual absorption of Shinto. One of them, Dengyo Daishi (767-802), went to the summit of the wooded Mount Hiei near Kyoto, where he built a little hut and began his solitary religious devotions. It was his purpose to introduce some new elements into the Buddhism of Japan and to found a new sect, but, fearing the conservative party, he was very cautious in his methods. One beautiful moonlight night, wrapt in deep meditation, he received an inspiration. He reported that he had seen three lights which on closer scrutiny he recognized as S’akyamuni, the Buddha, Yakushi, the god of medicine, and Amida, the god of measureless light and life. When he inquired their names they ordered him to draw the Chinese characters for “mountain kings,” the names of the Shinto gods of the mountain. As he expounded this vision he interpreted it to mean not only that the Buddhist and Shinto deities were identical, but also that a new sect should be established in Japan after the Chinese model.

The other priest, Kobo Daishi (774-835), had an even more clever device to convince the people that Buddhism was just the same as Shinto. He identified the Sun Goddess of the inner shrine at Ise (Ama-Terasu), “ruler of the plane of high heaven,” with the material world (womb-stores-world) of his sect; and Kuni Toko Tachi of the outer shrine at Ise with the spiritual world (diamond world) of the sect. These two worlds in its thinking are two parts of one reality. To realize the significance of this identification one need only recall the statement of the great Shinto scholar, Motoori Norinaga, who said: “Who has said such an absurd thing as that Kuni Toko Tachi is the god in the outer shrine? The god in the outer shrine is the female servant of the Sun Goddess.”’

By these and many other devices the leaders of Buddhism attempted to absorb the Shinto deities entirely into the Buddhist pantheon. The Shinto shrines were transformed into shrine-temple combinations. Even at the shrines at Ise during different periods prominent Buddhist deities were identified with the national gods as incarnations of them. For over a thousand years, until the revolution of 1868, this device retained a powerful influence over the people. At the time of the enthronement of the present emperor it was reported that the coronation ceremony, the greatest of all Shinto rites, had been in abeyance for over two centuries.

4. Troubles and Struggles

As Mohammed degenerated when his early struggles were over, and as abuses crept into the church at Rome after her sovereignty became supreme, so it was with Buddhism in Japan. Almost as soon as her political conquest of Japan had been accomplished Buddhism became the instrument for promoting the selfish ambitions of the powerful Fujiwara family, who played upon the piety of the Empress in order to induce the imperial family to abdicate its power and become Buddhist devotees. Tradition says that on the very night of the supreme triumph of Buddhism, when the imposing statue of the Buddha — had been unveiled at Nara, the Empress retired to the home of her favorite, Nakamaro Fujiwara, whom she loved intensely. She bestowed on him vast wealth and gave him the resounding title of “the Conqueror.” She

ESTABLISHMENT OF BUDDHISM 13 immediately retired from public responsibilities and became a nun. Later on, becoming enamored of the priest Dokyo, she forgot Nakamaro. Trouble arose at once between these two, each aspiring to leadership. The nominal emperor, Junin, her son (758-764), rather favored “the Conqueror,’’ who attempted to assassinate Dokyo. The retired Empress raised an army which defeated and killed ‘the Conqueror” and caused the banishment of the Emperor to the lonely island of Awaji, where he died shortly afterward. The Empress then again ascended the throne as the Empress Shotoku (765- 770). She made Dokyo her chief adviser and the pope of Buddhism with a palace as rich as her own. He went so far as to suggest that he should ascend the throne as her imperial consort. At first the Empress was inclined to consider the proposition favorably, but finally she sent Wake-no-Kiyomaro to consult the oracle at the imperial shrines. Attempts were made to bribe Kiyomaro to favor Dokyo’s ambitions, but he brought back the following oracle: “From ancient times the imperial line has been unbroken; the emperor must be emperor, and the retainer must be a retainer; upon the death of the emperor, one of the imperial line must suceed him; self-seekers and profligates must be killed at once.’’ Kiyomaro fled to the south to escape the angry priest who attempted to take his life. Soon afterward, however, the Empress died and was succeeded by the Emperor Konin. Kiyomaro was recalled by him to the court and from that time has been greatly honored by emperors and people alike. Dokyo, being a priest, was not put to death, but was banished by the Emperor and died in exile.

Notwithstanding the fate of “the Poncnereu the Fujiwara family came into control, and for nearly four centuries it shaped the destinies of the imperial family and governed Japan. Similarly, during the long period from the middle of the twelfth century through the govern-

_~ ments of the Taira, Minamoto, Hojo and Ashikaga families, which ended in 1573, Japan was governed and all her interests controlled by the “mailed fist” of her military rulers. Then there followed a period of internal struggle for power which culminated in the comparatively peaceful age of the Shogunate (1603-1868) of the Tokugawa family. During these ten centuries or more of steady military control of the people Buddhism degenerated. At times her priests, contrary to the teachings of Buddha, even put on armor and fought against rival sects and factions. /Some significant revivals of religion, however, took place during this long period, leading to the development of special sects of devotees, of which more will be said in a subsequent chapter.

/The outstanding characteristic of Buddhism in Japan has been the adaptation of its message to the national spirit and genius of the Japanese people. This has enabled Buddhism to make a unique contribution to the development of the religious life and the culture and ideals of the nation, a contribution which common gratitude demands shall be remembered. /The close relation which Buddhism has had to the imperial family, the fact that members of the imperial family have entered her priesthood, as well as its share in giving greatness to the nation, have all contributed toward entrenching Buddhism in the lives and hearts of the Japanese people. If Buddhism has sufficient power and spirit left to throw off the abuses, the superstitions and the immoral teachings which have become a part of its system, there will be hope still of its revival; but this will necessitate a genuine revolution in its moral and social ideals to-day. Dr. Masaharu Anesaki, a distinguished representative of modern Buddhism, wrote in an article for the Harvard Theological Review for October, 1922, the following words “Buddhism as a body or as an aggregate of church organization is hopelessly degenerate and its clergy are utterly at a loss as to how to meet the perplexing situation presented on all sides. Yet its spiritual fountain is not without signs of a new outburst of geyser-like revival.”