New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1894-04-01

to the name of my Cod" e. Bel Now this , r sS;
s sa tbs o. the sos IN and
BEL save the king But then snis s was the nn:
name, Belteshazzar has no more TO do with sei
than pneappies have to DO with pines
toto coelo different, and no Jew who had spent Z
twelvemonth in the country could have con,ounde o
them, have proposed such an Impossible etymoio-
But ut Der perhaps these examples may be deemed too
abstruse or too theological. In any case. such is
two additional instances which appeal to the least
philosophical intellect will not prove s1pernuous:
When enactng laws concerning the food mat wa, was
70 orSsds hs chosen peop Of
Of the hare. And he said IN very clear ana aoso-
cause he cheweth the cud, but divideth not the
hoof; he Is unclean unto you Now II rs not tru rue
the only way to prove that i was nor an e 1
h d chew the oe cuS but have since tie
rractice We hitherto explained this by saying
e cs and Deutercnomy and is Of no account from
n religious point OF view: otherwise IL would not 10
emf We are now TO say: These words have not q
man but God Himself for. author It Is not per-
no to maintain that it does. II II be God who
puts forward the thesis"
ANCIENT JEWISH CONCEPTIONS
The religion Of ancient Israel described in ths
earliest books OF the Old Testament neither coun-
tenanced conceived OF any Of the dogmas which
formed later on the groundwork OF the Jewish law
and of Christianity. The people believed the earth
to be parcelled out among number OF petty deties
more or less evenly balanced in power. one OF whom
they constantly worshpped as their own peculiar
patron and protector. Their attitude toward the
gods OF their neighbors assumed the forms OF un.
changing respect. occasional worship and freguene
dread and Jahveh himself contented WIN ms own r
share Of honor and glory; treated MS diy.ne col
leagues with tolerance and courtesy conserving 10
be invoked and concated with rites similar to
theirs as long their images were not substituted
for his. His power and majesty had their primeya1
"In dale or piny mountain
Or forest by slow stream %. or peeoiy spring.
High mountains" hills, holy stones, green trees.
pillars n and db m3sn Of ~,
Canaanites were consecrated to his service az ns
Abraham, Jacob Joshua. Gideon. Saul. etc When
} the Tribe Of Dan were IN neei OF a priest tnsy
and set up the craven image AN the time that tho
house Of Jahveh was in Sn;ioh Jaayen imasess
Hezekah, and later than the year .oi y: & III. -.
apStheoszed son of Israel He dwels time
in Paradise where he takes his walks in the cool
D an rhf nSsbtaSs He does not know exactly what
is going at the Tower Of Babel or what wicked
visited them in person and inquired INTO their DO
ngs on the spot he Is true iptehd 70 ms own
IS likewise materially advancing his own; for ne
and, Trey are mutually dependent on each other'
their disappearance from the scene inevitably en'
'lis ,r ms m The Papal Encycca tends to effect
neither more less than revolution In our att.
tude toward the Bible without any sufficient cause:
/ In the name OF reason it lands us in a maze Of
diffculties and contradictions. whence the wit Of
man is unable to find an issue. In the name OF re.
divine attributes by shifting the burden OF error
from the shoulders of fable men. and declaring
We must either deny its existence or else tax
God Himself with Ignorance and What What Is the our OUR
Church gain by the change? IL gains nothing ana
risks everything 10 Va the Bibe has yer oeen
authority The vast majority of our co-reigionists
never read ten pages OF it In their ives ana heeer
nothing II continued TO say as before: Inc nhe
and inconsistencies to be found In the Biole
They are Of no real. moment and leave the spirit
untouched And the spirit Is OF Cod our FOR she h
point OF view consists in the Light which u sfords
NJ ali light and truth We ourselves who already
possess a living infallible guide are no longer ~
it being that it should confer upon our preachers
the apostolic freedom Of plain speaking. ana I'M !.
part to their sermons "a nervous ana trlumphahs
But now we are called upon to believe that this this
minded as a Yorkshire tike, was written by Goa
level Of their shallow understanding. condescended
to make of their Incorrect language sueh was
such His desire to have it understood by The most
duliwitted Of mortals And was HIS intention ,gl
that the bulk Of mankind do not Understand ~;
But perhaps it is hsr aT 0~9 r aTs from psspns
ire true meaning. But surely God who Himselt
wrote His message adequately adjusted the means
70 the end He had in view. so that mankind could
,'1darstond II n they would? No man, replies our
Holy Father hope 10 grasp IT'S true mean =
and study it from the schoolroom to the Sraye, pns
il Is utterly impossible that they should eve, 90
more than gnaw at the rind; II - nopeIess ~
for them to endeayor to each the marrow ers for
whom the message was composed ny Coo nltns ~.
Who then. are the pryleged VINO eon ive o No o
mn the members of the true Church That IS 70
saw none but those who no longer need them, VINO
open or read them and VINO. IKE MI He'll H.
frankly confess that such matters ,incr, g.,
terest for them. And We are bddeh 10 ,seeu AZ, ~.
this method OF procedure sure sign o. tle u,pass
omniscience. and n signal marx OF Goo spo. ..
10 man Now of these two things one must De true;
either the Bible written only Tor an lnIaIIpls
Church. and therefore without suhceni rSason ;
IN this case God defeated His own purpose Inc
fact Il that these doctrines are 10 oe forced upon
our acceptance. shall not only nave 20 learn a
new Caliban language in when 70 express the.n,
h,t ue must first get orthodox Theodorus
economically purge our minds with antcHrlah mr.
lebore in order to drive away all ratohal cop"eos
from our over-burdened brains
Meanwhile our position is clear ana unequlVocai:
The overwhelming mass and cogent chardcter os
the evidence; the ease with whicn uss 20 -.
and tested by every who duly 1ts himself Tor
the task and wisely shrinks from making soner-
saults with the calm confidence OF nightwalker
in strange places where even virtue and hohhess
ora no guarantee against ugly ran; ana the re.
4 Iicous aversion feel 10 create new errors ara
Inconsistencies and TO saddle God Hmselt "lth tne
responsibility therefore-these are some OF Wy IL
tives which compel us ~ continue 10 MAINTAIN me
ATTITUDE which we deliberately took M n"tore the
publication of the Encyclical; our convictions are
deeply rooted; but we are quite reanv 40 repuu s
90 thev are shown be irreconcable WIN eltner.
An Fncvclcal however. which moro vigorously eN-
cudes argument than error cannon re- ,Ieatcu a..
rational refutatlon. nor as 81 intaIuhe oecres,
ond the utmost we presume TO hone of il Is that II
will leave matters no worse than II tound theif-