Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1890-04-11
EXCLUSION OF THE BIBLE.

suggests some ofthe arguments used
in the interest Of that sect, to bring
about the decision:
"The victory is nc blow TO the Bible
or to religion. It is, rather, conquest
Of the Golden Rule over unchristian
zeal and rancor. It drives the bigot
out Of the public school. 1t tolls the
downfall OF fifty years Of intermittent
persecution. The whip drops from
the hand Of the zealot and the pariah
child is einaneipated. Out goes cant;
out goes hypocrisy with fetch and
fraud-iis Bibliolatry and its "non-
seciarian'' proselytism "
The Philadelphia american a
| journal Of considerable influence ON
PUBLIC questions, and Republican in
| politics, expresses the following
views upon this subject:
'No one who reads the Bible with
out ecclesiastical prepossessions Will
fall Into any narrow estimate Of its
worth in education. Il is no more a
church book than it is slate book.
and IA I'd work enough the ecclesias-
tics have n their attempt 10 narrow ii
down into being merely the former. In
tho case ofthe Old Testament especi-
ally they have got I'D Of its plain
meaning by ali kinds Of allegorizing;
and by assigning entirely unhisiorical
sense, 10 lis own terms. It is very
serious loss TO the training Of good citi-
zens when such book Is not only
remanded 20 the Slnday-school,
but left 10 such Interpretation
as those surroundings naturally
sneges'. Apart from its direct uses
in telching the great lessons Of ma
tioRal and social ethio<, in the mos;
effective way, the Bible has an edu-
cational value that belongs TO no other
book, in lis effects in elevating the
whole tone Of thought by bringing it
into vital relations to thar background
OF the infinite aud the eternal, which
is implied in the existence and the
policy Of the state no less than the
church. That the American state is
an institution Of n purely secular
character. which disPenses with that
( background. is a very modern notion,
which has no sanction in the teachings
VI lis grealesI statesmen or il own
practice. Even jefferson confessed
50 much when he spoke Of trembling
FOR his county, when, contemplating
the institution OF slavery, he remem-
5ered that God is just. Modern sec
ularisis have undertaken to sci aside
the traditions Of the nation in this
respect, and they will have more
hearty support from no one than
from those eccleSiastics who desire 20
eleva,et the church by depressing the
stare. In this very case it is az the
instance Of the party among the Ro-
man Catholics who wish to see the
state deprived Of The management OF
the school system by provoking u
general revolt OF all religious people
against the secularized and 'atheis-
Jic' public schools, that this decis on
has been rendered. We say the party
among the Roman Catholics for
there are a great many American
Catholics who have no sympathy
with such aims and methods OF pro-
cedure."
The Detroit Tribune argues thus
against the idea that the Bible Is a
sectsTian book:
.'As a practical question, the matter
of thus reading the Bible is not spe-
cially important because. we appre-
bend, there Is comparatively little OF
Il done. But the assertions and rea-
sonings in the written opinions OF
these judges are somewhat exuaordi-
nary and are likely 10 he challenged in
many quarters as wholly insufficient
and unsatisfactory. Their foundation
position is that the Bible Is a seciarian
book i that a fact? VIII thai be
conceded or alleged among the vari-
Gus religious denominations7 Secia-
rian is defined by Webster to be pc
culiar to a sec'.' But the Bible is
peculiar TO no sect II is the one COM
mon book Of them all From its sacred
pages they teach. To ITS declarations
they refer as tho end Of all contro-
yersy- To Il they 90 FOR comfort and
consolation in time OF deepest sorrow
and derive great store Of relief. From
1t they gather courage and hope when
dishsaTtensl by theSlow oncoming Of
Ina; kingdom for which they pray and
wait. l. isthe solace and say Of the
dying hour among the muliitudes OF
every shade and form OF religions be-
lief Itis the ono common blessed
word Of God for them all. How can ii
then be peculiar to a sect?'"
The New York Times, the leading
''nhIEwamp'' orgaa of the country,
ami = journal of great ability and
Influence argues on the other side
as follows:
'sThe spirit Of the constitution Of
Wisconsin with regard to public in |
s-ructipn and 10 the absolute separa-
ton q church and S,ato il the spirit
OF all American constitutions and Of all
American legislation. The forcing
upon tha children Of unwilling parents
what those parents regard as seciarian
is distinctly hostile to that
spirit. II tho pubic schools inculcate
he sec'arian instruction favored by
The minority, the minority have a
right to demands share Of The school
'und for the incubation OF the sec
arian instruction favored by them
selves. Tho only means in which
ais demand can logically be resisted
IS by emitting all religious ms. ruution
in Communities ia which there is 4
division OF opinion as 10 what religious
is proper to be given. IL
most communities this would mean
hat public instruction must be alb
'oluteiy secular. The supreme court
y Wisconsin has laid down the doc
rine by which alone the common
ichool system can be maintained in
Is integrity, and It is a doctrine that
viii commend itself tn all Americans
who do not permit their sec,arian zeal
o interfere with the duties Of good
-
The New York Independent, a
'eligious journal, non-sectarian in
character, also upholis the decision,
hus: e. r7rT1 r1
The ground taken by the court is,
hat the reading Of King James YER
ion Of the Bible in the public schools