The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1908-08-03

6
this generation to cling to their faith"
said Prof. Willett. 1--WE must interpret
according to strict letter and lose the
value of the writings, or we must in
terpret according to the personalities
of the men written about to arrive at
the basis of truth of the narratives.
Any primitive people-the ancient He
brews as we'll as others-love marvels.
Our own children, undeveloped intel
lectually, have their fairy tales. All
ancient literature is full OF ancient
stories. Are We to believe all bad ex-
cept the Hebrew literature; that all
are good, or that there is falsehood
and eXaggeration in all, the Old
Testament included.
"The laws of God are Gods ways of
working. He does not work by break
ing those laws. A real miracle is not
an interference with or a breaking of a
law of Gods, but working out of a
higher use or application of such a
law. 1 believe that there were great
men in the Old Testament days as
there have been in all times and that
they did great things.
Thinks Men Appeared Superhuman.
For instance, believe that there
were men who appeared to the people
of their marvel-loving time to control
nature or natural forces-men who
could heal as men of our own time
have done by commanding sick man
to be we'll and convincing him that he
is well-call it hypnotism or what you
will. believe in the inspiration OF the
Old Testament, but the inspiration of
man and not the mere words of the
text.
Il have divided the miracles of the
Old Testament into four groups. My
first group includes narratives APP
parently based on fact, but exaggerat-
ed. The ton plaques Of Egypt come un-
der this head. l believe that the te,
plaques formed a series of unusua
natural disasters which visited Egypt
Children of Israel seize Chance.
The children of Israel took al!
vantage OF these" continues! the
speaker" to point out how God be-
friended them and to free themselves
of bondage. There is the miracle of
the restoring to life of the Shalumite's
son. do not question that the great
prophets did heal sick, as we know of
men today who have a magnetic or
other power to heal; but the son prob
ably was not yet dead except by rea-
son of the narrator's exaggeration.
'Of the crossing Of the Red Sea by
the children of Israel during their es-
cape from Egypt we have two ac-
counts. In the prose account we are
told in a matter of fact way that they
crossed at a time when the wind had
driven back the waters. OF the poetic
account 1 shall speak under another
heading. The narratives of the mir
acles of creation, to my mind, are
fanciful accounts of the successice
steps of evolution as we understand it
today.
Denial Made of Some in Toto.
"The second set of tales of miracu-
lous happenings contains those based
on figures Of speech which have no
basis of fact, including the command
of Joshua to the sun and moon to
stand still as told in the poetical book
OF Joshua; also the battle of Beth
Horon, in which God was said to have
hurled down stone on the Canaanites.
This probably was some kind Of a
storm. In the fifteenth chapter of
Exodus we have the poetical account
of the crossing of the Red Sea. Here
we are told that the waters piled
themselves up on each side and con-
gealed into walls, leaving dry path.
The psalmist also in this group tells
about mountains bowling down and
little hills skipping like lambs. This
doesn't lead anyone into believing that
this occurred. Then why should the
other?
Some Classed as Legends.
"The third group is of miracle stor-
les with legendary basis" declared
Prof. Willet, "such as that of the man
raised. to life after being killed in
battle, his body being dropped into
tomb and touching the proph-
cts bones-mere legend, given its
Old Testament form to glorify Elisha.
AS to the three children of Israel in
fiery furnace, this story should be
used not to emphasize a legendary
but to illustrate the faithful
ness and courage of the three.
my fourth group of Old Testament
miracles includes those which violate
not only probability but morals, and
therefore cannot be taken as an au-
thoritative demonstration from God of
the ethics of his religion. The des-
truction of the children by bears at
Bethel at Elisha's command is one
of these. The death of Uzza as punish
ment for his efforts to sustain the
tottering ark is another, as is the des-
truction of the band of soldiers sent
by the king of Israel to arrest Elijah.
Real Miracles Grewth of Ideas.
"The great miracles of the Old Tes-
lament are not these marvel stories,
some of which are the work of imagin-
alton, but the growth of ethical ideas;
the lives of great men who made his
tory-prophets, heroes, sages and mar
tyrs of the faith; the use of law, in
stitutions, history and biography for
the development of characterize pro-
duction Of the greatest literature of
antiquity-the Old Testament-and the
creation and fostering of the Measianic