Emerson's attitude toward Orthodox Christianity: the religious sources of his esthetic

Emerson has been accused of being an oriental mystic and a pantheist# His religious philosophy has been rejected by Orthodox Christianity as non-Christian. Emerson, on the other hand, insisted that his philosophy was the essence of true Christianity* In this paper an attempt will be made to show; 1. That his Puritan-Unitarian background influenced to a great extent the shaping of his philosophy. 2, That Emerson, although accused of being an Oriental mystic, is not only occidental, but basically Protestant in his mystical approach. 3, That his religious philosophy, although drawing its nurture from Protestant soil, is in direct opposition to the basic doctrines of Orthodox Christianity. 4. That Emerson's concept of the true essence of Christianity is unacceptable to Orthodox Christianity.