The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-04-08
THE AUTH ORIrY OF THE BIBLE
Whence 10 It Derived

To THE EpIroR OF THH SuN-Si. Mr.. W. B.
9. Ta ylor. In his letter to you Of to-day, says
that he ia q Presbyterian. although he rejects
the Westminster Confession doctrine OF
election as absurd" and "monstrous.'
not reading the Bible that way. At the
same time. however. he "disaRrees with DR..
Hills az to anal salvation for all"
Now. how does Mr.. Taylor know that there Is
salvation" for anybody-any salvation" at
all2 He knows Of It only BY faith In the Bible.
but Why has he that faithi Why does he be-
lieye In the particular scriptures included In
his Bible and not In the many writings Of the
early days OF Christianity not included In III
Who picked out for him the Books to which he
attributes inspiration and from which he
quotes as final authority from heaven He
certainly did not pick them out for himself
somebody must have done II for him and to
that somebody. accordingly. he attributes the
power to discern between Divine and human
authorship. or an ability which. II It existed.
must have been . supsrnatura gift that Mr..
Taylor. OF course. would not claim to possess
OF himself. That IL. he relies on some au-
thority to tell him what is properly inspira-
ton. the Word OF God" and distinguishes one
Book from every other book. From this Book
mus dCcT6ullHu W " VI t1dt uutioltJ duu
only from that Book he gets his belief that
there Is salvation"
That men live after death and are either
punished or rewarded In that future state OF
existence II something as to which human
knowledge u impossible, Men can only know
OF It by Information furnished from God and.
a. I have said. the only source from which Mr..
Taylor obtains to such information 10 his Bible
but how does he know and how can he prove
that his Bible Is peculiarly the Word OF God1
A majority OF mankind deny that It has any
such distinction. Christian Churches them
selves do not agree as to the writings properly
inclusive In the inspired Scriptures.
Accordingly, before Mr.. Taylor ventures To
cite his Bible So confidently as complete and
final authority. proving salvation" or any.
thing else Of which the supernaturally unaided
human intelligence can know nothing. he
ought to study UP laboriously land great labor
II will oel the controverted and complicated
history OF the Canon OF Scripture and thus
| fnd out how and by whom was asserted the
supernatural ability to determine that It is en-
titled to such a distinction and what are the
evidences 10 support the assertion. II the
Bible is the authority he describes. which
Bib!e IA Il. and which Of the competing claim
ants OF authority to segregate II from the rest
| Of literature was really possessed OF this
ability. for. OF course. mere human beings are
incapable OF peering into the mysteries OF a
spiritual government Of the universe with the
eyes Of sense7 II his Bible ia such final and
infallible authority. come man or BODY Of men
at some time must have had special au-
thority from Heaven to pick out for him tina,
exact collection of Scriptures from the mass Of
writings from which II was separated. In
order to believe in his Bible. then. Mr.. Taylor
must first believe In the supernatural power
OF those men or that body. AGNosTIc.
NEW YoRK. March 80.