The revolting practises of idolatry are traceable to perverted conceptions of human excellence, and these are reflected in the hideous creations of man-made, devil-inspired deities. On the other hand, the man whose enlightened soul has received the impress of love, pure and undefiled, will ascribe to his God the attributes of gentleness and affection, and will say in his heart "God is love." (The Articles of Faith, 397)In context, the first sentence reflects a Victorian imperialist vision of "savage religion" (primitive, no doubt dark-skinned warriors offering blood sacrifice to idols). But the contrast Talmage draws between that sentence and the next opens up the possibility of a different reading. That is, when he speaks of "man-made, devil-inspired deities" arising from "perverted conceptions of human excellence," we could apply those words to monotheistic visions that represent God as something other than gentle and affectionate: punitive, imperious, angry, warlike, etc.
That little exegesis doesn't capture the feeling this quotation conveyed to me when I read it, so here's the last part of the quote again. I'm hoping the spirit of what Talmage is saying will touch readers the way it touched me when I read it.
[T]he man whose enlightened soul has received the impress of love, pure and undefiled, will ascribe to his God the attributes of gentleness and affection, and will say in his heart "God is love."
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