Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1906-07-03
Rev. Frank Fay Eddy On
Revelation and Religion

humanity. But the tales and laws and
prophecies " the Jews arc no more ea-
cred than are the records ON Egyptian
tcmbs or Assyrian bricks. on the rCn-
nsnts of the art aud literature Of mighty
Greece We read e all IN the perspeo-
tive OF history. The New Testament IA
o. be read IN the same way. ] believe
Jesus Himself made mistakes, was a
child Of his age and shared the pre-
yaiiiug ideas in some degree. Probably
He aid not know the earth was round.
on understand the law Of grayitati0u,
or have any wide knowledge OF history.
I think the gospels are more or less in
accurate and quite unreliable as Tar
as happenings are concerned. The rithy
sayings and parallels Of this man Jesus
are 10 my mind very nearly genuine in
substance and style for they would
naturally be preserved better than The
stories OF events.
EPISTLES OF PAUL.
As ior the epistles Of Paul and The
other, they are worth just So much 90
me os they assay Paul was o. remark
able MANI and one OF heroic cast of
character and dauntless energy !
think him a very much mistaken man.
and / cannot but regard % as a misf0r-
tune to humanity that be succeeded Boo
imposing his thought So nightly on
the plastic early churches The thsol-
ogy which was quanied out Of the mine
Of Paul's thought Is 10 my mind a mise
fortune. ] certainly do not believe
Paul 10 have been in any peculiar sense
inspired. As Tor bis conversion prob
ably he had been long thinking about
the new sect OF Christians and on fls
way % Damascus suffered a sunstroNe
and superstition did the rest Yes, sou
say. a deIuded fanatic All RICH
call him a fanatic and consequently Do
some measure a deluded man. He Us
none the less interesting All men who
DO things seem % be fanatics in tho
sense that they gaze so hXedly ON one
thing that they lose the sense Of pm.
portion IN relation to the rest Of the
world But Paul had good ideas
and a forCeful way OF putting them.
And pray. why should ! not quote him
and find texts in his writings upon
which 10 base sermons? ] grant you,
] could In the same quote Euskn. Ten
nyson or Carlyle All literature T.
90 my mind the more or less imperfect
work Of falllble men, Including all the
Bibles OF all the nations ] sometimes
base a sermon on verse oi poetry or
on some noble passage OF literature ]
conceive these 20 be as much scripture
as II duly certified and canouized /
sometimes preach without a text as
your own Mormon elders do. ] DO not
suppose u matters. The theme makes
the sermon.
EXPRESSIONS or TRUTH
As for expressions OF absolute truth
] frankly confess ! do not ind them
anywhere As for men who were not
more or less mistaken and befogged in
the mists Of their own time or mislead
by the will-o.wlsps Of their own illu-
sions. they are as scarce as the perfect
ly honest man for whom pcssimistic
Diogenes looked with HIS lantern But
shall / say truth and error are the
same and that right and wrong are
identical because We find no absolute
truth and because righteousness and
sin are found IN every lite2 Shall We
not rather look for the law hy which
truth hests error and right dom
mates wrong?
To return 10 your query, ] quote me
Bible and base sermons On he state
ments not because IL is peculiarly the
word Of God or because ! find there
the perfect lives Of perfect men, / so
use Il because It Is the best collection
~ religious literature ] can find and
because the Christian world is familiar
with Us personages and their utter
snces and actions II has a practical
value FOR the purpose Of religious
quotation not possessed by other books.
Grant MS liberal Christians a point
~ view such as ! have attempted 20
Indicate. and I think you win find Ms
as consistent and logical a people IN
general average
FRANK FAY EDDY.