World-view synonyms

Both, however, used this influence freely; and, whereas Lotze used the Leibnitzian argument from indivisibility to deduce indivisible elements and souls, Fechner used the Leibnitzian hypotheses of universal perception and parallelism of motions and perceptions, in the light of the .Schellingian identification of physical and psychical, to evolve a world-view (Weltansicht) containing something which was neither Leibnitz nor Schelling.

Fechner's third point carried him beyond all his predecessors, containing as it does the true originality of his " world-view."

Lastly, the whole of this " world-view " was developed by Fechner in early life, under the influence of his religious training, and out of a pious desire to understand those main truths of Christianity which teach us that we are children of God, that this natural body will become a spiritual body, and that, though we are different individual members, we live and move and are in God: " in Deo vivimus, movemus, et sumus."

It is important to notice that Fechner maintained this " world-view " in a little book, Das Biichlein vom Leben nach dem Tode, which he originally published in 1836 under the pseudonym of Dr Mises, but which he afterwards republished in his own name in 1866, and again in 1887, as a sketch of his Weltansicht.

More properly perhaps we might consider the Greek and Roman civilization as the permanent element - so that the relationship to it was not different from the relationship to Judaism - in part it was denied, in part it was of purpose accepted, in still larger part unconsciously the Greek-Roman converts took over with them the presuppositions of their older world view - and thus formed the moulds into which the Christian truth was run.