Evening journal., 1893-08-18
CRITICS AND THE BIBLE
Only Ignorance and Bigotry TO
Be Feared.
EVANGELIST MOODY CRITICISED.
A Fair and Full Discussion of the Con-
tents OF the Bible Helpful and Not
Harmful-HIgher Critics and Scholars,
Not Evangelists. the Ones to DO IL.

reporter called upon Rev. A. N. Keig- |
win, the learned and popular pastor Of /
West Presbyterian Church. During the
Briggs controversy and trial Mr.. keig- |
win became quite prominent as sup
porter of the prosecuted man.
"Mr. Keigwin, what do you think Of
the Bible inference conducted at North
field Mass, and Asbury Park, N. J.T
asked the reporter, handing him the |
editorial comment Of New York paper |
upon Mr.. Moody's work.
A Hard Question TO Answer.
"The question you ask me concerning |
Mr.. Moody's Bible conference at North. |
field, Mass, from which it is said all |
those who do not agree with him are eX-
cluded is hard to answer, he replied. |
I'm one sense all of Mr.. Moodys work
is to be commended. He is earnest
evangelical and catholic His North
field conventions, conferences and schools
have tone and flavor which are de-
cidedly beneficial.
'Tf he, and those with him, could have
the grace to say nothing about that
which is intellectually beyond their
reach there would be no room for crih
cism. AS it is. / would not allow myself
to sit in Judgment on his work, for the
I tAOlh " n0hAA0 Nho HAN~N teN"NArAe N-N
are agitating the religious world by a
conference of evangelists will not have
the least effect one way or another
The Bible in No. Danger.
'Mr. Moody and a great many others
are of the opinion that the Bible is in
danger from the so-called higher critics.
There never was greater mistake The
Bible is never in danger Of losing its
place in this world, and the unlearned
eyangelicals only make an exhibition Of
their lack Of faith in God and in the
Scriptures when they are ranting over
the perils, etc.
Cut Out Everything Human.
"And certainly it isin no danger from
the higher critics in England and
America, for the only true friend Of the
Bible in this age Of thought is he who
would thoroughly search its pages and
cut out Of it everything human-all the
interpretations and errors-so that one
may have in it only that which it pro-
fesses to contain-a revelation from God.
Higher Critics Are Firm Believers. n
This the scholars that are being as
sailed are trying to do. 1t requires
much patient work and very high de
gree Of scholarship, but it is being done
reverently by men who believe a.
sincerely as the ranters that
b It contains the infallible word
of God. That it is fully Gin
p spired, and that no skeptic, in6del,
critic or evangelical zealot can destroy
its influence in the world
!, Secular Journals Fairer Than Religious
Ones.
81 am glad that the EVENING JOURNAL
is trying to- keep its readers informed
, concerning this important matter, and
e that IL is so fair and discriminating. IL
It is an omen of good when secular jour
nails see the Importance of this subject
and confess that the secular journals
are discussing the question with greater
fairness than the church papers
m Free Discussion Not Dangerous.
'The objection often urged that thu
r errors Of the Bible should not be dis
r cussed lest the people will lose conf
n dence In the Book, is not well taken. i
there are serious errors they ought Il
~ be known. No man wants to either livl
or die believing a lie. But IL is grea
ly source of congratulation to report thai
re no error has been found, so far in tn
n. discussion, that in any material way
- changes the character of the text, or II
contrary to any fundamental doctrine o
Christianity.
'Dr. Briggs was convicted mainly be
7 cause he asserted that Moses did no
4 write the first FIVE books of the Bibl
that bear bis name and were considers
ut as one book in the days of Christ and tn
ID apostles. But it does not matter VIII
was author or editor Of the book if tn
contents are reliable, and divinely In
y spired.
rs "Christ and his apostles quoted fro
y them, and that settles their genuinenes
80 and authenticity.
D. Question of Authorship and EditorshiI
I'd But it is said that Christ and tn
l. Apostles attribute to Moses the sayin
40 quoted, which makes him the author an
OF TO deny this is to deny that Jesus Chrii
a. knew as much as modern scholars.
ne our age of book making it is often IL
as case that some one edits the work
ny another and calls it by the name Of I'll
ne author, when it is really the work
&c the editor. The author may ha'
ny been dead generation whe
cir the book appears. He ms
on never have written word of it. 1t ms
u. be his sayings and doings that have bes
as remembered and recorded and il wou
,sh be proper to quote from such boo
lee not in the name of the editor, but Il
MA person of whom the editor wrote.
This is the gist of the controvers
un about the first five books of the Bibl
far The critics say they were written Eve
the six hundred years later than Moses
er. day in the language Of later lperio3s
st, Jewish history and that it is as easy (
MIA a scholar to distinguish between Z
the language of Moses's day and Ezra da
at ss II is for us to discriminate betwe
ds, Chaucer and Tennyson.
be
q a welcomes Work of Reverent Critics.
81 propose to keep from excitement
on this question, but l welcome the work
ime all reverent critics, and greatly deplC
Is l the wild and coarse abuse of them by tho
who know nothing about the subject.
"a Ignorance and Bigotry 20 BE Feared
ids ''The Church of Christ need be afrI
rim of nothing but ignorance and bigot
As long as men think and rearlessly c
press their opinions there can be no
Jury to the cause of truth / hope
avs report YOU have shown me is not tr
n 4. l.1 Il "a