New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-11-16
SERMONS WORTH KEEPING
/.
THE BIBLE AND MODERN PROGRESS.
DIR. J. H. MILyAINE BEGINS SERIES OF
LE0rUREs-DR. BRIGGS TO SPEAK


series OF sunday evening lectures In the Church OF
covenant. While this is Presbyt erian church.
there two Congregatlonallsts and the pastor OF
Reformed Dutc church included In the list In when
appear the names of three professors Of the Union
Theological Seminary. Dr. J. III. McllvaiBe, the
pastor OF the church, who is also director Of the
seminary gave the first lecture, his topic being - The
Bible and Modern Progress, Next Sunday evening
Professor c. \. Briggs will discuss The Bible and the
Reason In his last night DR.. Mclvaine said
| In substance:
1t is historical fact that the nations which made
the greatest in civilization those that possess
the Bible Doubtless blood climate, language, social
traditions political Institutions and geographical pecu
arties have exertsd influence In shaping the
destiny and determining the of people but the
possession Of Bible have welded greater
power over their development than any OF these Influences
separately or all OF them taken together However favor
able It's political physical Intellectual conditions no
community has enjoyed abiding prosperity made
continued advancement apart from the Bible our Teuton
foreishers made little progress in civilization until they
received the Bible. They had the same blood geogrsph
cal position, political institutions yet long the Bible
was hidden in the obscury OF unknown tongue made
by the cost Of production there little
But when the Bible was translated In language the people
could read and published at price they could pay from
that time Chrstendo has hesitated gone back
ward In its career of progress. But while the Bible Itself
has been great perhaps the greatest force ILL., human
the friends of the Bible In their miscOncep'On of
It's purpose and mistaken Interpretation Of its meaning,
have often proved great obstacle In the OF this prog
ress. The greatest difficulty which science in all its
branches has encountered has been the effort the friends
Of the Bible array against It's discoveries the supposed
teachings OF the Bible. Invariably, without single
exception, each science has entered the Held has had
first of all to struggle for life with the mistaken
tons OF the meaning and purpose Of the Scripture
1st The science OF geography in It's efforts to de-
termlne the shape and surface OF the earth. Until the
Christian there varying ideas Of the earths
rotundy. which the Church inherited. These specua-
have ltd I'm OF
the truth long before Columbuss time had the friends
of the Bible taken fright them opposed to the
teachings Of Scripture The Bible supposed
tain the and substance OF all knowledge useful and
possible 10 In the sixth century, q theoogian.
Cosma built elaborate and complete theory OF the
universe the literal Interpretation OF certa passages
Of the Scripture, taking the expression that saint Paul
uses more than once-''the worlds tibernacl-' He
argued that the tabernacle representation OF the
earth. For hundred years this theory OF the uni
built the Scripture braced by Scrptural texts
stood hostile fortress in the OF scientific progress.
Eight hundred years later two Questioned tone,
Peter of Alamo escaped marydom by opportuney dying
natural death The other. CeccO DAscoli, was burned
his seventeen year and in OF ocagna's great
paintings represented writhng in the flames OF hell
COLUMBUS AND MAGELLAN.
At length Columbus and brought before the
Salamanca Here" says Washington Irving,
threshold OF the discussion, instead OF geographical
objections, Columbus was assaled by citations from
Scripture. mathematical propoition allowed no
weight appeared clash with the texts OF Scripture
Even when he returned from his triumphant voyage the
truth which it established was not received. few years
later Magellan his famous voyage, sailing through
the straits his entering the calm seas
which he called the Pacific ocean, and after
greater hsdships than Columbus suffered reached the
philippine Islands, where he was murdered His lieu
tenant sebastian del Cuno, with one ship returned to
spin receive proudest arnorial bearings ever
granted for daring deed-a globe embeished with the
words 'Primus circumyent dedlsti me- lie proved the
round by demonstrating it. lie proved the
existence Of the sntpodes by the trophies which he
brough: from them. Then came the measurement OF de-
grees equatorial and polar regions and TO other proofs
OF the heightened pendulum was added and at last
twelve centuries Of conflict, the truth was established
nober is the conception OF the earth aud OF
God who made IL given BY science than that OF Cosmos
How much sooner the d. oyery might have been made
and the New World thrown olen to commerce and en-
ghtenment for those objections who can say! (Ihe
speaker reviewed in similar manner the struggles OF
astronomy, geology, medicine and political economy
THE IMPORTANCE OF BIBLICAL SCIENCE.
In our own day science has come into the field
which WILL perhaps prove the most important Of all
Biblical science effort to apply to the study OF the
Bible principles that have been applied TO natural
science substitute the nducve for the deductive method
old method assumes what the Bible says tne WON Oh
cod mus, be- how appear how 1t must be made.
what must be characteristics, and attempts 10 prove
the conception by appealing to proof texts. The new
method goes to Bible first, to ind cut what are It's
claims CHARACTERISTICS its facts, It's history and aims
and then TO build theory accordance with them 1t
is divided Lower Criticism and the Higher Crt-
cism The deals with the text gathers all manu-
scripts versions readings and quotations OF the Bible
and attempts to derive the best possible teAI III Ihe
N.S Testament 1t has the Revised Version. In
the Old Testament the work still remains to be done Inc
Higher Criticism deals with the literary form and contents
Of the Bble-he style, structure date, authorship of It's
several books represents amount OF scholarship OF
faithful untlrng labor, beyond all estimate. It's
results are not yet COMMENSURATE with It's labors'
but it has an important and much-nceded work
to DO What receptions IL to meet from the friends oil
the Bible in nineteenth century, fair, courteous
generous hearing such reception as'eyery science has
met In the past some quarters OF the Church there Is
tendency repeat far a. possible the mistakes OF the
past. There is that same effort to array the supposed
teachings Scripture against it, methods and results
The cry raised Word OF tod is being mpugnet
its Inspiration denied. that the facts claimed 10y THIS
science established the Bblc is destroyed Epaes
OF .heretics "scepucs," railroads.&c. are applied 10
its students The effort Is made 10 drag them from their
rostons to silence them by dsproyng their results
but by dsquaityng them for their work For the mis-
taxes OF past there is some excuse For u.s. with he
,ht o; the nineteenth streaming tack on the path
by which have come there Is no paiiaton LOT repe
ing the grelest Of all mistakes tlso history records
The lessons are first, caution We are TO be CAUTIOUS
how we oppose teachings Of The Bble to The ae ~
ablshed or may be established, by scientific m'es
cation Nothing does much harm, casts 80 much us
,,i, on the Blbe contributes much 10 the growth u
seeptlcism Again and again the friends OF the Biole
have themselves to say that these las 're
proved the Bible destroyed IL the antpodes eAist' IL
the sun doe, not rise and the Garth Is but one oil
hot Of panets IL existed for than six thousand
var. II death did the animal world through hs
sin OF Adan-the Bible mistaken the plan OF sa'atoh
q overthrown Even so great and good a man as
John Wesley said The giving up OF witrherat Is In enec'
the giving IN of Bible" Men making the same
mistake to-day III Moses did not write the Penateueh
Christ mistaken, the Bible Is gone II single MS
orica error be proved doctrine OF Inspiration II over
thrown Bible is destroyed" Surely u Is RECKLESS 20
tho To
they actually are not established by science We are 70
be cautious how we for thu Bible more than it claims
for itself and may be own theory about the Boie
with the Bible itself. The Bible never Claims 10 D. IN
authority on o; science or the details OF history
hu 70 he revelation OF character aud VIII OF God
This mistake OF claiming Bible more than II claims