The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1893-04-11
An ESSAY.
HIGHER CRITICISM OF THE
BIBLE.
(From the Male Wreath.)

The progress of events has removed
the question of freedom of enquiry
from the domain of State to that OF
ecclesiastic authority. There are
no longer any limitations of force up
on the freedom of the individual in
matters of investigation, religious or
secular; but there are yet powerful
influences which oppose private free
dom ofjudgment. The mother Church,
forgetting the woe pronounced against
those who take away the key of
knowledge, not entering in them
selves and hindering those DESTROYS
of entering in, retains its somewhat
broken-down anathemas for the here
tic; and various Protestant Churches
follow in its wake in trying to make
the exercise of this freedom too I'M
comfortable to bs much INDUCED in
by those of their followers who are
not very much in earnest.
The result of this is that large pro-
portion of religious people look with
alarm upon the proposition to freely
discuss the religious questions or sub
jects which they have been taught to
| regard as settled, and the term free
| thinker still is synonymous in their
| minds with the words infidel and
| skeptic.
The study of the Bible is naturally
largely affected by the attitude, main
| ly from the dOgmas of infallibility
| and divine revelation which prevail
| in regard to it. This influence has
been so strong that only within recent
wears have learned men devoted their
| attention to that analysis of the books
! of the Bible which is known as the
| higher criticism, and the pioneers in
| this enterprise, have been mainly
| those whose attitude toward the Bible
was philosophical rather than relig-
| ious. The work of these scholars, and
particularly some of their conclusions,
which have opposed positions very
generally regarded as impregnable,
has been of great use in enlisting the
interest of other scholars in the sub
ject, including those whose attitude
| toward the Bible was religious one.
Many of this latter class having been,
as it were, forced into the discussion
to defend doctrines that they felt were
assailed by the results reached by.
others. Thus it has happened that
| the Bible has become in sense field
one side treating it as national liter
allure to be freely and eXhaustively
| anaIyzed, and those on the other side
resenting this free tr. atment and
entering the lists rather to sup
port certain views than to find
out what the Bible really is
and means, = to maintain rather
than to ascertain. fetween these
two defined parties, are investi-
gators in all variations of attitude
toward the subject.
Both wings of the body of higher
critics of the Bible have undoubtedly
carried into their studies assumptions
which are obstacles to criticism. On
one side all reports of miracles are
taken to be historically erroneous
on their face; on the other they are
taken to be reliable. We do not
know what are the accepted canons
of higher criticism in the analysis of
the sacred literature of other ancient
nations,-of the Ved@s, and the Qend
Avesta for instance; but there cannot
philOsophically be one rule for the
study of one literature and another
for others. Whatever the field Of in
vestigation, it would seem that any
preliminary assumption either of the
truth Or the untruth of any class oil
statements, would be equally fatal to
criticism The question of the truth
or falsity of the biblical statements o.
miracles as of similar statements in
other sacred books is one of investiga
ton, of weighing of evidence, intrin
sic and eXtrinsic, in other words it is
a question for the higher criticism tC
solve and for that only. The same i:
true of the various other questions O
historical accuracy arising III the
biblical record.
1t seems unfortunate that so few o
the critical students of the Bible are
able to take up their work withou
prejudice one way or the other. One
who has made up his mind upon any
point cannot as a rule fairly consider
it afterwards. The juryman who ha
! an opinion upon the question at issue
or even who is related to one of tn,
parties in interest, is not allowed tt
assist at the trial. The difficulty
which prejudices among the highe
critics of the Bible put in the way O
success in their investigations is par
TALLY overcome by reason of the fac
that these prejudices are both for AM
against the accepted estimate of it
origin and position; for when an in
vestigator decides against his predi
lections his conclusions are NOR
than usually reliable; and so from
from the unwilling champions of on
side, and the other by the irresistabl
: logical force of the evidences bearin
J upon the question at issue, step afte
step is gained, and one disputed poin
after another is transferred from til
field of discussion to the treasury {
conclusions, fairly fortified by COZ
sensus of opinion from both sides.
There are many, as we have mer
toned above, who disapprove of thes
investigations into the origin, author
ship, authenticity and so forth of til
biblical books. They a1a afraid of i
/. Although due allowance should b
made for this natural human veal
ness, this dread of calling unwelcom
truths from their sleeping places, an
the influences of education and el
vironment should be accorded the
share of responsibility for it, yet it
sentiment to be opposed as hosti
E to Christian progress. One who i'm
AGNES he has symptoms of some ser
Gus disease breads to go to physical
Z. and take the risk of learning pair
full truth about himself and V,
:. how important it is that he sha
z. decide upon such a course without d
: lay and put himself III the way
3 healing treatment, or perchance
70 relieved of his fears by learning tn:
nothing is the matter. So, in regal
to the Bible, the influence of whic
upon thought and action and ii
SnrituaI life is so NINA ra oiled in Tito