Monroe City Democrat. (Monroe City, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1913-05-01


II0ASI00 PjISSFIDl The Pastor de-
w. SsS4S= $500 clared that his
text. like many other Bible statements,
is so grievously misunderstood as to
prevent Christian progress. Many no
BILE hearts. he claimed, are furnishing
for lack of refreshment of Gods Truth.
The channels Of thought are blocked
by fossilized errors of the Dark Ages.
The ports of our hearts should be deep
ened and widened by the blowing up
of the false and devilish hell doctrines,
which hinder us from receiving spirit
ual nourishment. There exists "a fam
inc for hearing the Word of God"
If this text were the only one mis-
translated and misunderstood. he said.
the ordinary reader would doubtless
pass 1t by as figure of speech. But
1t Is merely one of a combination of
mistranslations, all of which are con-
nected with an eternal torment sys-
tenn Of doctrines invented during the
Dark Ages. This power of error is
turning intelligent minds away from
the Bible. Hence 1t is our duty to
break down these false doctrines. and
to clear away whatever binders the
flow Of Truth to Gods people.
The Psalmist is merely telling of his
severe illness, from which by the grace
Of God he recovered. He would have
Il understood that it was not merely a
slight ailment. Hence he described 1t
as 1.-THE sorrows of death'-that is. the
sadness associated with the thought
that he was about to die, about to
leave his friends. In poetic Hebrew,
he repeats the Thought in the next
statement-.the pains Of hell gat hold
upon me-" They were the pains of ap-
preaching dissolution. There is not
the slightest reference to the future.
Why Not the Whole Truth.
In their revised translation of the
Bible, our Baptist friends use the ex-
preston. 1.-THE underworld" instead of
hell. Yet even here is danger that the
average reader may not catch the true
thought. Far simpler and wiser it
would be had the translator said, 1.-The
pains of the tomb"
Every learned minister knows that
the Hebrew word Sheol really means
the grave, the pit. the state of death
Why do they hesitate to tell the people?
Why do they translate it sometimes
the grave, and other times the under
t0orldP Why do they use the transla-
ton, the Craze, in one place, the pit in
another, and then refuse to translate it
in third place, giving instead the
original word Sheol? Was it their in
tention to confuse the people? What
is the motive? We wish that some of
these great men would explain.
The Reason For All This.
We would like to have our minis
terial brethren state their reasons for
hiding the truth on the subject of hell
Only because they decline to do so, do
we feel at liberty to make suggestions.
These ministers seem to be Of two
classes, with slightly different reasons
for silence on this subject. They seem
to agree that 1t is dangerous to tell the
people that God is really God Of love,
and that the doctrine of eternal tor
ment is unscriptural, promulgated dur
ing the Dark Ages by men who burn
ed one another at the stake.
The Pastor declared that one class
of ministers seem to fear that If peo-
pie saw the errors of the creeds they
would discredt the ministers who had
taught these doctrines. But why fear
to tell the truth? Perhaps~they fear
that people will lose confidence in their
teachings, and that the party walls of
Christendom, which have so long di-
vided Gods people, will fall. Since they
will not tell us, we can only surmise.
Other ministers, he said, have become
- higher critics. and do not believe the
Bible. They prefer to pose as believ'
ers. and hope for the time when all the
wealthy and intelligent will have he
come believers also Then they will say
eve have been nnbelievers for many
years. but have kept it secret, fearing
be misunderstood as opponents OF