The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-10-31
THE SCRIPTURES.

| GGNpl anu lSTsdl. AN inquiry INTO lnC 1
influence OF the More Ancient People |
| Upon Hebrew History and the Jewish |
| Religion and come Investigation into
| the Facts and Statements made as to
| Jesus Of Nazareth. By Willis Brewer.
| The Torch Press Cedar Rapids. Iowa.
This book is one of the most search
ing that we have seen on the questions
involved in the great subjects treated.
The author traces the effect of Egyp
tian, Chaldean, Phocnician and Syrian
religious thought and feeling upon the
JEWS people and upon the writings
that have come to us from them and
that are known as the Bible The au-
rhor insists that the Bible as we have
it fails in i very important regard of
giving us the proper names IN correct
form. For instance, he says the name
of Sampson should be Shimesh-On.
well-known name of the sun in AS
syria AS well .as in Palestine. He says
also that the name Solomon is fla
grant misnomcr for Shelom eh. He in
sists also that the name Jehovah should
be Iehoah, but he Immediately trans
mutes this into .Jehoah. He says that
America comes from the name Of the
Latin God Mercury, and that the fIe-
braic name Mizr3lm should be Mizera-
I'M. Other examples of his transmuta-
tiops are Hebrews for Aabcra i'm;
Moses for Msbeh; Joshua for Jehoshu
Iahu; Samu-El for Shamu-El; Ishma- FL
for I-Shem -aa- FL; Esau for Aes-Av;
Jacob for Ia-Aa- Kob; Noah for Noacb;
Eve for cITavab; Hannah for cHann-
ah; Huld-ah for cHuled-a Jesse for
lshai; Saul for Sha-aul; Absalom for
Abesha lom Jcpthah for Ic.Pthach;
Isaiah for Iesh-aa lahu; Samaria. for
| Sbnnprnp. r,-rn fnr I,r ryur,
for Anz-ah; Gomorrah for Aa.Morr- -ah;
Beth Lehem for Beth Lechem. etc.
| He considers that the name Sampson
and other names point to natural forces
or lead to the same alteration of the
sun and moon as arc found In the re.
ligious cults of Egypt, .Assyria.. and
| Phocnicia. Doubtless he has much au-
thority in scholarship for his varia
tions from scripture both In the names
and in the references as he translates;
and yet his translatIons are so diff
| fcrcnt from those given in the author
lied and revised versions as to make
the references absolutely hopeless.
considers tho translation of the Bible
utterly inadequate, misleading. and
wanting in the knowledge that a faith.
full rendering would give In placing
the Hebrew scriptures in their proper
relation with the religions of the poo
pies that surrounded the Jews in their
inception, their growth and the cul
| minatlon of their ethnic power.
Part two opens with a quotation from
Kant '1t ought not to be made a con-
| dition of Salvation to believe that there
was once Il Man who by his holiness
and merit gave satisfaction for him
self and all others. FOR of this the Rea-
SON tells MS nought; but it is the duty
| of men universally to elevate them
| GnlynS IN fho Ideal nf moral nprfaptIOO
deposited in the Reason. and 10 obtain
moral strength by the contempla tion of
this Ideal. Such moral faith alone is
man bound to exercise and not historic
faith -
Chapter l. in this part analyses, dis
cusscs, and crlticises from every stand
point, ''Thc Curious Narrative of. the
Cruci6xion, Chapter H. asks and
undertakes to answer ''What Was the
Offense of .lcsus?i' Chapter III treats
of "rbe Silence Of Paul as to the Life
Of Jcsus,'' in this considering the writ
lngs of Paul as anterior TO the synoptic
gospels, Chapter Nv. deals with "Thc
Silence of Jesus as TO His Birth the
most being made of this. and also as
to the impcnctrabe obscurity relating
to that whole subject, Chapter v, "The
Failure of Jesus TO Impress Himself. -,
is dealt with from contemporary ba'
sis, bringing into view the fact that
practically nothing is said about the
matters that arc made so much of in
the gospels, tho whole matter being
passed over with complete silence hy
the historians of that time. Chapter
| VI. deals with "Thc Silence of the
Scriptures as TO the I.ogiI,' the "lo-
gia' being, IN the estimation of the
author, Il subsequent Interpolation from
tho mysticism of Egypt Chapter VII.
l"Thc Resurrection and the Ascension. -
orr p,I nr1t
realistic view that the scholar would
treat any subject that comes before
him. Chapter VIII, 'The Earlier
Claims of Christianity are set forth
and considered frun the standpoint of
reason and scholarship. Chapter 1X,.
% Historic Environment of Jesus en-
dcavors TO place that personality, but
really without much success. and in the
chapters relating to this matter there
is a constant reference to Old Tcsta-
mcnt texts as though the author con
cIudcd them to have been written after
the era of Christ. Chapter X, "AD~
tcccdcnts of Chrstianity,' treats the
elimination as a pleromc. an accom-
plishmcnt or roundup of Influences that
had their inception far beyond the times
in which the origins arc placed, Chap.
ter Nj. 1.-The Claims Jesus made for
llimself,' presents those claims in
their narrow and local environment. aud
also in their mcagerncss as compared
with the broad and extensive claims
made for him after his death. Chap
ter NIL. "Traits and Opinions Of Je-
sus. - gives full and scholarly review
of that subject. Chapter MIL, "The
Holy Ghost is n critical consideration
of that added feature of Christianity,
rather derogatory TO its historic and
actual authenticity. and this is forti-
fed very strongly by pathological and
linguistic references and parallels,
The work as q whole is one of ap-
parcntly great scholarship and critical
acumcn II Will do the educated man
no harm. but probably much good to
read IT, while the unedGcatcd man it