Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1892-09-01

should know what God and man is"
--Tennyson
1.-THE Evolution of Christianity" by
DIR. Lyman Abbott, is the latest express
ion OF the advocate OF the new theology.
The opening sentences of the preface give
a clue to the spirit in which the book is
conceived and written: 'We are living
in time of religious ferment. What
shall we do? Attempt to keep the new
wine in old bottles? That can only end
in destroying the BOTTLES and spilling the
wine. Attempt to stop fermentation
Impossible! And if possible, the only
result would be to spoil the wine. No!
Put the new wine into new bottles, that
both may be preserved. Spiritual ex-
perience is always new. 1t must there
fore find new expression in each age.
This book is an attempt to restate the
eternal yet ever new truths of the religious
life in terms of modern philosophic
thought. My aim has been,
not to destroy, but to reconstruct"
DR.. Abbott holds that the Bible is a
fallible book in which the myths OF
paganism have been breathed upon by
the spirit of God. The story OF creation,
which has been shown by critics, adverse
to Christianity, to be common to many
ancient peoples and scientifically i'm
possible, is still myth; but with diff
ference from other myths, since in it God
is recognized as a just creator. This
dawning of the idea Of God in the pagan
mind and the slow evolution OF the idea
from the crude conception Of the wrath
full and avenging God OF the earlier books
of the Bible to the God Of David and
Isaiah, and later the loving-kindness Of
Jesus Christ, is traced with luminous and
convincing logic. The whole history Of
the Jews becomes ineligible, read by
this light. The mind, revolted by the
cruelties OF such passages Of the old Tes-
lament as the execration OF Babylon:
30 daughter of Babylon, who art to be
destroyed; happy shall he be that re-
wardeth thee as thou hast served us
happy shall be he that taketh and dash
eth thy little ones against the stones" is
capable of understanding it as the EXPIRE S.
ion Of bitter exile in whom the thought
OF God is still but faint imperfect con-
ception, and who Gin the frankness Of
his soul should have breathed out to
God the bitterness OF wholly unchris-
tian hate" DIR. Abbott says, in conclud-
ing this mastery chapter on the evou-
ton Of the Bible:
''Thus the Christian evolutionist sees
in the Bible not a complete and perfect
revelation Of science, history, law. ethics
or even theology; he sees man gradually
receiving Gods revelation OF himself.
The Bible is not an infallible standard OF
truth or life. 1t is the history of the
growth OF mans consciousness of God. n
Its history is composed. as other
histories have been composed, out OF
such materials as were at hand or could
be secured but the historian saw, what
other contemporaneous historians did not
see, God In his world, and wrote the his
tory with God manifested in it, X
Each successive age sees God more
clearly and interprets him more clearly
than does its predecessor, until tie full
ness OF time has come, and the Word no
longer speaks through the broken utter
ances of men, but becomes incarnate. +"
Quotation from such book, being
partial, must unintentionally be unfair,
since each reviewer will quote what
seems to him most forcible, or in other
words, what is the best expression of his
own formulated or unfosmulated views,
and will omit those points that to another
will be essential and which were, to the
author, an essential part Of his argument.
The time has not yet come, if it ever
comes, when book on this subject can
be read free from the bias of previous
conceptions; but this book must win for
itself wide hearing from men of all
opinions. 1t is written in spirit Of
brave and holy candor, the key note Of
the whole lying in this sentence: ''Let
us be true with ourselves, come what
may to our theology"
In being true with himself, DR.. Abbott
still holds to Christ as the incarnate son
OF God, the worker of miracles who was
resurrected from the dead and is working
now in the hearts of men. Many read
ers who followed the earlier chapters Of
his book with eager assent will not bs
able 10 accept the logic of his conclusions
but none can doubt the sincerely OF these
conclusions, nor withhold admiration for
the spirit Of manly vigor that animates
every page of book which appeals for a
hearing to every one who holds himself
responsible for his own beliefs. [Hough-
ton Miffiin & Co, Boston, Mass.
NJ IN