Shall we end by having a theocracy? No, indeed. Faith unites us,
knowledge gives us freedom. We shall therefore prevent any theocratic
tendencies from coming to the fore on the part of our priesthood. We
shall keep our priests within the confines of their temples in the
same way as we shall keep our professional army within the confines of
their barracks. Army and priesthood shall receive honors high as their
valuable functions deserve. But they must not interfere in the
administration of the State which confers distinction upon them, else
they will conjure up difficulties without and within.
Every man will be as free and undisturbed in his faith or his
disbelief as he is in his nationality. And if it should occur that men
of other creeds and different nationalities come to live amongst us,
we should accord them honorable protection and equality before the
law. We have learnt toleration in Europe. This is not sarcastically
said; for the Anti-Semitism of today could only in a very few places
be taken for old religious intolerance. It is for the most part a
movement among civilized nations by which they try to chase away the
spectres of their own past.