According to James (and finding confirmation in Nietzsche), there are no absolute ideal types of saintliness; virtues are relative to the beholder.“There is, in short, no absoluteness in the excellence of sainthood.”46 But more important, empiricism shows that while the saintly type might appeal in theory, in the real world we make ourselves “saintly” saints at our peril. James thus encouraged religious moderns to bring their religion a bit closer to earth.
