The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-11-28

PAUL'S LITERARY INFLUENCE.
1.-THE literary history of the world fur
nishes no parallel to the literary influence
of the writings of Paul, except such as Is
afforded by the literary history of the Bible
in which those writings are found. Consid-
er for one moment Here is the story of a
man whose life has neither beginning nor
ending, so far as we know the story. Only
about fourteen years, / think, of his life
are recorded in the only narrative given TO
u.s. That narrative does not tell US anything
of his early education or his youth. IL prac-
tically begins his story at his conversion,
when he was probably over thirty years OF
age. 1t tells us nothing of his death, or the
later years of his life. 1t ends with flm
prisoner in Rome. A mere fragment OF ms
life is all that is afforded US; ana M, ms
writings are mere fragments. he mas leIt
no treatise; ne has left no work on phlloso-
ply; he has left one letter that may, per-
haps, be regarded as summary OF nls gen sen
eral doctrine, but only one, ana tnat was
not written for the purpose OF FURNISHING
such summary. A translation OF Flato
new edition five volumes OF considefapIe
size. A part of these volumes is taken Up,
it is true, with introduction; but II all the
introduction were taken out and We haG
simply the dialogues of Plato we should
have not less than three octave volumes OF
considerable magnitude in the teachings OF
anyone has supposed Paul has written, we
have a little less than sixty pages or mod
crate sized octave. If we take those letters
which modern scholars think PAU mas
written, which, by the common consent OF
modern scholars. are attributed 10 Faui, We
have little over forty pages. Ihat is an.
''TheSe fragments of letterS-for they are
Representatives. letters are all we nave
and all we ever shall have. in human PROB
ability of the writings of Paul. They are
letters written to particular churches 10
M pxi
lar counsels. And yet no writer OUTSIDE the
Bible has ever been studied as Paul, ana
no writer within the Bible has ever Lei , oe9e
You can go into libraries In Europe ana
libraries in this country in which there IS
a measurably complete Shakspearean nnra.
ry, in which are brought together all that
has been written of grave importance con-
corning Shakespeare but it could almost be
said of the books written and OF me ser
mons preached concerning PAU as Jonn
said of the teachings of Christ II ali tne
books that have been written and all the
sermons that have been preached IN inter-
probation of Paul were gathered together,
the world itself would not contain them
For eighteen centuries men have peen
speaking in Interpretation OF this writer,
and they are likely to continue speaking IN
Interpretation of him for eighteen centuries
to come. And when it is announced nat a
minister who has made some study OF this
man of the Olden time only a little sectlon
of whose life we know, of whose writings
we have nothing but letters, written to
special churches, is going to talk about
them and try to explain what they mean,
this great church is filled with those VINO
are interested to know more about this man
Paul and what he taught. The literary us
tory Of the world furnishes no parallel.
SOURCE OF PAULS POWER.
GLOW happens it that this Jewish rabbi
of the olden time has been able to produce
such an impression? How happens it that
whereas the classical authors of that time
are studied only by the few, and the rab-
binical authors of that time are not
studied by anybody, how happens it that
this man. only a fragment of whose life
we possess, and only fragments of whose
teachings we possess, has been and still is
studied with such passionate enthusiasm;
or, if you please, with such controversial
interest? It. is partly, doubtless, because
he is enigmatical. We are all interested IN
solving riddles, partly because his writing
is hard to understand. But the real and
central reason is this Paul is the inter-
prefer of the ancient Hebrew life and the
Christian life into the intellectual forms OF
"Let me try and make this clear. The
Hebrew was never a philosopher. | might
acted. He concerned himself with truth
only as 1T was life, and for truth apart
from life he cared not. A farmer goes out
the clouds. Is it going to rain or be sun
shiny to-day? he says. Not because he
cares anything about the clouds, but the
question is whether he shall get his hay in
or not. But the scientist looks at the
clouds to learn what is the truth of
meteorology. The teacher goes to his
studies there the child nature, simply that
he may understand the nature of these
children before him, that he may see what
he can do to instruct their intellect, to in
spire their life, to broaden their horizon, to
make them wiser, better, larger men and
women. The psychologist goes that he may
study child nature, ply them with hard
questions even more thoroughly than the
teacher. but does it not for the pupils life,
but that he may out of the questions con-
struct system of child nature. Now, the
Hebrew character was like the farmers
character, and like the teachers charac-
ter. He cared for the truth only as it had
a bearing on life. The Hebrew was never
a philosopher. 1t will hardly be too much
to say he did not think, he, only acted. We
which we studied last winter, but in that
collection of Hebrew literature there is not
of philosophy. There are three volumes
which are called Wisdom Literature Il
leave out the Song of Songs That is
sometimes so-called but ought not to be-
Job, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes. But no one of
these is book of philosophy in the mod
ern sense OF the term. The book of Job
does indeed take up the problems of suffer-
ing. 1t discusses that problem in a great
epic poem but the man who writes it
at. Pe begins with life and suffering a
mystery; and he ends with life and suffer
ing a mystery. The only teaching of the
book of Job is this: Philosophy is a vain
and idle show. What philosophy there was
on this subject which the Hebrew nation
had borrowed from other nations is false
There is no answer to the question how a
righteous God could have made a suffering
world. Turn to the book of Proverbs and
you have there coined aphorisms: ethical
precepts-if you will, spiritual precepts: but
no generic philosophical system. Out of
them: perhaps, you may construct a phi
iosophy but they do not of themselves en-
BODY a philosophy Turn to Ecclesiastes
from three points of view: the point of
view of the pleasure seeker, the point Of
view or the cynic, and the point of view of
the phllosopher but ends with simply this:
Fear God and keep His commandments
That is the end. The whole result of the
philosophic discussion is no philosophy of
Hfe at all, only the practical concluson-do
right. ~
LACK OF DEFINITIONS
Accordingly, in the Bible, you never find
definition. You find some quasi-defint-
tons, such as that of the prophet: 'vvba+
doth the Lord require of me but to do Just
ly love mercy and walk humbly with thv
God; but of the kind OF discussion of what
religion IS and how it is to be defined
which you find in Max Muller, for instance
there is not a word from Genesis to Malachi
You find in the Old Testament no creeds
no formulated systems no attempt to
formulate system. The Hebrew was
content to live. He reverenced God. but
practical duty, but he never discussed the
basis OF practical duty. He had no theories
OF life. He lived; that was all.
ana when Jesus Christ came He also