The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-08-23

z HEBER NEWTON
If weEeiect the whole Scriptures as mythi-
cal must we not reject every semblance of
the Christian religion?
In the hope OF beDefiting others,
assaiIed, like themselves. by dis
tressing religious doubts, my fair
young friends have kindly consented to
permit me TO publish the appended answers
10 their letter Of inquiry.
HEBER NEwToN's OPINION.
EAST HAMPTON. y. Y, July 81. 1891.
Dear HISS: In reply to the questions you
ask me would say that in the Bible is in
spired which inspires. i. e., that which is
moral and spiritual truth. The Bible is
the record of real revelations 10 men of
old which came by inspiration within from
the spirit of God. These truths revealed
by inspiration are truths for life-moral
and spiritual truths. These truths are re-
corded by men, imperfect beings, in books.
They are mingled with the ideas of the
writers and with some ancient history.
This latter is the ore. Smelt 1t and get out
the mineral. The spiritual sense can al
ways do this.
When you get out great truth you
know it at once by the spiritual sense
The whole Bible is full of these scattered
gems.
The Bible leads up TO Jesus and His
truth, j. e., follow His life. This is the
Christian religion. Ii is not complicated
by any questions of Biblical criticism No
matter who wrote any book; no matter
how many mistakes ii holds-this Is ours
the life of Christ is our pattern of life and
our revelation of the heavenly Father;
trust and follow that.
Christ's miracles stand or fall without
Himself. Such an one must have peculiar
power. He had. Never mind difficulties
about any special miracles. He Is the
miracle. His wonderful works were
natural to Him as they would be to US If
we could live az He lived. The reports of
His wonders may be twisted in reporting.
Never mind. Be sure that He is the real
under sinless man. Trust and follow
Him. You see it is all summed up in this
-Christ's life; everything else is second
airy. 1 commend 10 you Rev. James Free
man Clarke's Thomas Didymus." Yours
truly, X. HEBER NEWTON.
HERETO HOWARD M'QUEARY's OPINION.
CANTON, O., July %, 1881.
Dear Miss-The subject you breach is SO
important and far-reaching that il is diff
cult to answer il satisfactorily within any
reasonable bounds of time and space, but
viii willingly suggest to you certain lines
OF the right bearing upon the important
questions you have asked me.
First, let me ask you TO read Frederick
Robertson's words quoted in the preface
OF the first edition of my Evolution of
Man and Christianity" where he speaks
of holding fact 10 be the grand landmarks
of morality and practical religion amid all
doubts that attack the soul. There Is no
necessity for an abandonment of the
spiritual essence Of Christianity, even il
the Bible were compiled by unknown
authors and contains many errors. Thus,
whether Jesus uttered the Sermon on the
Mount CMatthew VIVID or not, its moral
and spiritual value 10 You and me Is just
the same Moody well says, Il know the
Bible is inspired because IL inspires me"
/ should say 1 know that much Of
the Bible is inspired because II inspires me
that is, those parts of Scripture which tell
of noble deeds. Of love, OF purity, of self
sacrifice of honor, inspire me to q
noble life, and therefore | care
not who wrote them But you
will say: "Other sacred and good
hooks teach the same truths ss well as the
Bible" Doubtless, but that does not IN
validate the truths, Of the Scripture
What If Buddha was Influenced by
the spirit Of truth that inspired the
Bible writers2 Does that fact
make their truths less strue? think not.
But what wish TO insist upon is that
morality and practical religion do not de-
pend on 8 book, but upon your own con-
science and reason. and whatever may be
your intellectual difficulties never think
of rejecting every semblance OF the Chris
Tlau religion" Never give up It's spirit
uality and morality even If you have 10
give up all its dogInas.
Secondly-You say 'If we reject any
part Of the Scripture as literal truth must
We not reject ALP Do you do this in any
other case2 When you ind discrepancies
and errors in certain histories-as Glib
bon's. for instance, or Herodotus, do YOU
reject the whole as worthless? When YOU
find chafT mingled with the grain, or dross
with the gold, do you reject both? No.
But you exercise your reason and separate
the truths from the errors, the grain from
the chat, the metal from the Gross. Unless
YOU are willing 70 do this in your study of
the Bible YOU never can understand that
book Il is not more difficult 10 under
stand than Shakespeare If people only give
il the thought and attention they give
Shakespeare.
have been over the ground on which
you now stand The first thing you must
do IS 10 grasp the fact that the Bible is
composed of many books, written by diff
ferent authors At different times. liz is
literature not a single book. Hence one
part may be false and another true. Then
YOU must ask v hich are true, which false3
Who wrote this book. who that2 In my
book on evolution / show that Paul wrote
ten Of the epistles attributed 10 him Here
Is solid ground, for from these writings
alone We can frame tolerahly perfect life
Of Jesus and can learn the important pre-
cepts OF Christianity.
In my Evolution / show also that
though not written ID their present torm