Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1883-01-12
THE BIBLE.

How to Read It-Each Book Must Be
Read by Itself and for Its Own
Meaning.
The Scriptures OF Organic Growth-Its
Right Intellectual Use Considered
by Heber Newton.
NEW YORK, January 1.-The Herald re-
porte that the Anthem Memorial church, in
West Forty-eighth street, was filled on Sun
day morning with people who had come TO
listen to the Rev. E. Heber Newton's fifth
sermon of the interesting series he has been
preaching on ''The Bible" The two preced-
ing sermons were entitled "The Wrong Uses
of the Bible" and yesterday he turned HIS
theme to "The Right Uses of the Bible"
After reading batch of notices Mr.. Newton
made few remarks concerning the general
subject Of these sermons. He regretted that
the publicity given to one of them had pre-
septed mis- WORK In its merely negative aspect.
Tue course as a whole would bring out the
constructive aim be mad in mind. he also
regretted that a minor feature OF one OF his
sermons had been exaggerated into uude-
served prominence. His remarks concern
ing The omissions in the use OF the Bible had
reference TO a practical difficulty of parents.
The publicity given TO these sermons was
wholly unexpected and undesigped. He was
drawn into them az a ministration 10 the
al ,,ar1la~f.sa. - -. nartchi0nara
Mr.. Newton selected his text from Ro-
mans, iv, 3-"What saith the Scriptures"
He said: The right use of the Bible cannot
be better stated than in st. PauPs words:
From a child thou hast known the holy
Scriptures, which are able to make thee
wise unto salvation through faith which is
in Christ Jesus" The Bible does not make
one wise in life. The Jewish tradition about
Soomon's choice expressed deep truth.
Wisdom il the supreme benediction to be
sought in life. Invaluable ss knowledge is
il is as means for an end. knowledge pro-
vides for man the material out of which WIS
dom, using the best means to attain the best
ends, builds noble life. To have the mind
clear, the judgment just, the conscience true,
the will strong, so that we may sight the
good of life, learn the laws by which to
| reach it and seek it steadfast among all Be-
| ductious-this is wisdom. The best hook
the world possesses for the culture
OF wisdom is the Bible. 1t reveals
to our vision the best ends in life
and points US to the best means OF winning
them. 1t clears the atmosphere OF the
mists, discoses TO us our bearings and fills
our souls with the sfilatus which waits US
toward The haven where we would be. The
Power in whom we live and move and have
| our being is revealed as the Power who
makes for righteousness. The moral law Is
seen here to be the very throne of the Most
High. Here, as Emerson says, "Virtue is
| the adopting OF this dictate of the universal
mind by the individual will"
GROWTH OF ETHICAL RELIGION.
The right use of the Bible is suggested by
| the true view of il. Israel was the people
| charged with the mission OF growing religion
| into its beautiful bloom, as the worship Of
the Infinite and Eternal Goodness, endowed
| for this end with unique genius for ethical
| religion. The Bible is the extant literature
of this people of religion, the record and
embodiment OF the evolution of ethical re-
| ligion through its varied moods and lenses
into its perfect flower in Jesus, the Christ.
The Bible forms, therefore, the manual in
which we are 10 study the growth and phases
of religion, and from which we are to draw
! into our lives the Inspirations of goodness.
| Ii presents itself accordingly for right use
| by the intellect and the devotional nature of
man. / propose TO speak to-day Of the right
intellectual use of the Bible.
| Every aid OF outward form should be
used to make these books appear a living
| literature The traditional form of the
Bible has done everything possible TO rob
| its books OF every natural charm and to re-
duce them to one dead level OF disiuterest-
inguess. They are bound up together with
out any classification of character or age. A
| making machine has been driven
| through them, choppiug them up into short,
arbitrary, dsconnectiDg sentences. The
larger divisions into chapters have been
made in the same mech anical manner. Their
poetry has been printed as prose. Upon the
whole mass an artificial system OF interpre-
tation has been forced in chapter headings.
The great obstacle to the enjoyable use of
the Bible is the form in which it is issued.
We need TO have the biblical books bound
separately or in groups, arranged chronology
ically, their poetic structure preserved, lucid
notes appended as in other classics and as
in Matthew Arnold's Prophecy of the
Great Restoration" and the whole put up in
one case. The pu blisher who has this done
will meet a real need.
CRITICAL KNOWLEDGE NECESSARY.
Each wiring having one intrinsic unity
should be studied a whole. The lover OF
Shakespeare places underneath any frag-
mentsry reading a good critical knowledge
OF each play. How many Christians know
| their Bibles thus? What churches, / may
add, have made any such provision for Bible
culture? The oldest book in the Bible is the
song of songs. Attributed by later ages to
Solomon it was in reality written BY a now
unknown poet anywhere from the tenth GEN.
tury (Ewald( 10 the eighth century (Kuenen)
| r., =. -
| try maiden is wooed away from her shep-
herd lad by the allurements of royal ad-
mirer, who employs all the resources of fat
terry aud passionate persuasion to win her az
a new attraction in his harem, but who is
foiled by her simple, steadfast loyalty to her
absent lover, 10 whom she at length returns
triumphant in her virtue. The poem is
dramatic in form, though imperfectly con-
structed according to our canons. With the
aid OF a corrected version its grossness and
sensuousness disappear into the ordinary
richness Of Eastern imagery, and following
the proper clew we should End in it a pure
| poem of loyal love, showing the healthy,
| moral tene of Jewish society in that early
sge. Read in like way Job becomes semi.
dramatic poem in which the problem oil
the disconnection OF goodness and good for.
tune-that is, the lack OF any just ordering
of life-is discussed in the persons of the
three friends who love TO counsel with the
righteous and sffiicted job. I his poem is,
in my judgment, the noblest in the Bible
one Of the very noblest in all ancient litera.
ture. The dramatic fea', so to speak, voices
the thought and feeling of this far off age, in
which men again thresh the old stock argu
ments of the theologian vsinly in trying &c
solve the goddess look of EARTH" Scientific
agnosticism has here its voice in the Bible
And, curiously enough, as showing the
power of conventionalism, the author winds
up with prose epilogue, in which, after the
genuine fairy tale fashion, all things are sci
right by Jobs restoration to his lost wealth
in multiplied riches. Pathetic persus sion Of
the poor human heart that all things must
come right in the end!
PUT IN ITS PROPER PERIOD.
Each great book should, as a whole, by
such aids be read into its proper period il
history. The historical method is the true
clew to the Interpretation of any book. Tni;
is the method by which go much light is shed
on other literature. Who that has read
Taine's graphic pertraiture OF the Eliza
bethan age can fail ever thereafter to SET
Shakespeare stand forth more wildly? What
new life is given TO Millions Samson after We
have seen the blind old poet In his dreary
honaei How can we estimate Rosseau':
writings unless we know the conditions Of
the artificial and tyrannous age to which
they came as the call back to nature7 liz
the same way we need 10 find the historical
sense of biblical writing and read it in the
light of its relations 10 that age. The true
history OF the religion of Israel, and, az key.
stored in il, the true history of religion 10
hum anity, rests on the book of Deuter-
onomy. No book has suffered more from
being misplaced than the book of Daniel
Although avenging itself upon after ages
this strange book has largely fed the IRA