1. Man and Religion in Relation to Nature.

...that he furthermore possesses a history in which he presents his essence as one that is developing; within the self-conscious spirit also lies the reason why man possesses religion. The consensus populorum consensus populorum: Latin for the "universal agreement of peoples," a philosophical argument suggesting that if all cultures share a belief (such as the existence of God), that belief must be true. has, with good reason, lost its force as a proof for the existence of God and has been dismissed by most theologians and philosophers; nevertheless, in a certain sense, it still contains a grain of truth: that there is no tribe of people, however primitive, in which traces of religious ideas cannot be found.

"To be sure, not all peoples believe in gods in the sense understood by civilized nations—higher beings who, gifted with superhuman power and insight, direct the things of this world according to their will; however, if one understands religious belief simply as the conviction of the existence of mostly invisible, mysterious powers whose will can intervene in the course of nature everywhere and in the most manifold ways, so that man and his destiny are extremely dependent on their favor, then we may claim that every people possesses a certain religion. It cannot be denied that among peoples at the lowest level of development, this religion is basically nothing more than a very extensive belief in ghosts original: Gespensterglaube. The author is likely referring to animism or the belief in ancestral spirits found in many indigenous cultures., but one must be careful not to misinterpret the religious element that is undoubtedly contained within it." ¹

"In natural, sensory objects, man consistently sees something more and something other than mere sensory properties and material forces; he sees in them supernatural powers and a supernatural connection—he spiritualizes nature." ²

This phenomenon finds its explanation in the fact that man, even at the lowest stage of culture, attains consciousness and self-awareness; that he forms mental representations, draws conclusions, and that as a spiritual being in general, he possesses an ideal side—a religious sense and impulse—which find expression in religious faith. One may define religion as a feeling of absolute dependence original: schlechthiniges Abhängigkeitsgefühl. This is a famous definition of religion proposed by the influential German theologian Friedrich Schleiermacher. on a highest being, as the relationship of the finite to the infinite, or address it as man's faith in God,

¹ Waitz, Anthropology, I, 324. Theodor Waitz (1821–1864) was a German psychologist and anthropologist known for his work on the unity of the human race.
² Ibid., original: Ders., a. a. O. (The same author, at the place cited). p. 328.