Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1852-01-31


tons aud Inconsistencies from the Bible.
Now il is impossible for people who have a
contradictory standard, either to fall below
II, or to rise above il, ir every thing. People
with contradictory standard, will both fall
below it and rise above il. The Jews, the
Roman Catholics, the Church of England
people, the Methodists believers and unbe-
levers Plgans, Mahome,aus, and Miller
ties, all rise above their standards, in some
things. Nations, too, urc continually rising
above their legal standards. BY their growth
IN knowledge aud virtue, they nuke their
foolish aud mischievuus laws dead letter,
and in time abolish them altogether. Peo-
pie are frequently better than their stand
ards without knowing it. They imagine
ther standards to he better than they are.
They give them II higher meaning than their
authors ever dreamed OF. People do this
with tue Bible. Passages which represent
God as a man, which speak OF him rs walk
ing. talking, eating, drinking, resting, aud
which attribute to him ignorance, partially,
injustice and cruelty they regard us Ggura-
tive, when the truth probably is, that the wri-
ter ottle passages meant exactly What he
said.
Uiison.-Are the ntrocious principles you
delincoted taught in the deculogucs
Bdrker-No; but there is nothing in the
decalogue against any of those crimes, ex-
ccpt adultery, and it is doubtful whether the
author oftle deculosuc used the word udul-
terry in the sense in which icc understand it.
Though David is bl:med for his seduction oil
Bdtlishcba while her husband was living. he
is never charged with adultery for having
more wives than one. Yet goo would con-
sider nIan us an adutercr, aud So would
the laws ofihc country, who should take II
number of wives at time.
Hason.--Thc fundamental principles of
the Bible are contained in the ten command
mouts?
Bnker.-So you have been taught, no
doubt; but it is not the truth. ! cannot stay
To report all your errors and nIs.siatements,
at full length; but give me an opportunity of
doing so in II public meeting, and will do il
with pleasure.
Uitson.-It is the principles of n Book by
which we are to judge of its character, and
not the lives OF its voturies?
Bmker.-Very true. Wiint is tic rule by
which judge the Bible? lit praise man
who holds slaves, &c., who has children by
his slaves; if itspeak of such man as n
friend and ihvoriic OF God, without giving
single hint that in holding slaves, and having
children by them, he was doing wrong, it
sanctions slavery in the most cflrctual man
ner possible. Aud this the Bible does.
Wiison.-That The Old Testament Patri-
arclls were not perfect we admit.
Barter but the Bible never admits any
such thing. Though it represents them as
adullcrers and liars, &c, it
never speaks of them as imperfect. 1t tells
us that God visited them, talked with them,
entered into covenants with them, in,erlered
with the course Of nature TO bless aud diStin-
guish them, but it never says that in telling
lies, committing adultery and holding slaves
they were doing anything wrong. You rise
above your moral standard, when you speak
of the Palriarcls of the Old Testament us
imperfect.
WaSop,-They were vastly superior TO
their heatlen neghbors al that period?
Barker.-Wherc IS your proof? The BIZ
bic gives none. II gives proof to the contra
ry. Read the story respecting Abraham and
Abimeeck in tho twentieth chapter of Gene
sis, aud then tell me whether the chosen
Patriarch or his heathcn neghbors, appears
TO the greatest advantage. Aud read the
story OF Lot, surnnmed the RIGHTEoUs, rs
given in the nineteenth chapter of Gcnsis,
where he is represented as offering his vir-
gin daughters as victims to the lusts of his
ncighbors, and tell me whether the worst of
his hcathen neighbors could be guilty of any
thing more horrible or mo.e unnatural
Uiison.--Where did you get your knowl-
edge of the moral attributes of God, but from
the Bible?
DWhtf'--l Culllot cAhbAl1 iCll loh1 but 'hS
Bible says that the Heavens declare the glo-
ry, or reveal the attributes of God,-that the
invisible things of God are clearly seen in
the things which are visible,-that God is
seen in his works. Aud food is not known
hy the deeds lie does, how can he be known !?
If men are known by their works, why not
God? How did men gain knowledge of
Gods moral attributes before the Bible was
written? How did Moses, Job aud AbrshaIn,
gain their knowledge of the moral attributes
of God? Ifthe Gentiles, who never heard
of the Bible, had no means of obtaining u
knowledge of Gods moral attributes from
other sources, how is it that the Bible tells
us that for their ignorance of God, they were
without excuse Rom. !. Nevertheless, l