A friend of mine used to tell a story of an honest builder’s views of church differences, which was very amusing, and quaintly professional.  An English gentleman, who had arrived in a Scottish country town, was walking about to examine the various objects which presented themselves, and observed two rather handsome places of worship in course of erection nearly opposite to each other.  He addressed a person, who happened to be the contractor for the chapels, and asked, “What was the difference between these two places of worship which were springing up so close to each other?”—­meaning, of course, the difference of the theological tenets of the two congregations.  The contractor, who thought only of architectural differences, innocently replied, “There may be a difference of sax feet in length, but there’s no aboon a few inches in the breadth.”  Would that all our religious differences could be brought within so narrow a compass!

The variety of churches in a certain county of Scotland once called forth a sly remark upon our national tendencies to religious division and theological disputation.  An English gentleman sitting on the box, and observing the great number of places of worship in the aforesaid borough, remarked to the coachman that there must be a great deal of religious feeling in a town which produced so many houses of God.

“Na,” said the man quietly, “it’s no religion, it’s curstness,” i.e. crabbedness, insinuating that acerbity of temper, as well as zeal, was occasionally the cause of congregations being multiplied.

It might be a curious question to consider how far motives founded on mere taste or sentiment may have operated in creating an interest towards religion, and in making it a more prominent and popular question than it was in the early portion of the present century.  There are in this country two causes which have combined in producing these effects:—­1st.  The great disruption which took place in the Church of Scotland no doubt called forth an attention to the subject which stirred up the public, and made religion at any rate a topic of deep interest for discussion and partizanship.  Men’s minds were not allowed to remain in the torpid condition of a past generation. 2d.  The aesthetic movement in religion, which some years since was made in England, has, of course, had its influence in Scotland; and many who showed little concern about religion, whilst it was merely a question of doctrines, of precepts, and of worship, threw themselves keenly into the contest when it became associated with ceremonial, and music, and high art.  New ecclesiastical associations have been presented to Scottish tastes and feelings.  With some minds, attachment to the church is attachment to her Gregorian tones, jewelled chalices, lighted candles, embroidered altar-cloths, silver crosses, processions, copes, albs, and chasubles.  But, from whatever cause it proceeds, a great change has taken place in the general interest excited towards ecclesiastical questions.  Religion now has numerous associations with the ordinary current of human life.  In times past it was kept more as a thing apart.  There was a false delicacy which made people shrink from encountering appellations that were usually bestowed upon those who made a more prominent religious profession than the world at large.