Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1913-03-21
asliseellausons Reading
IGNORANCE OF THE BIBLE
A Jewish Complaint Against Present
n.., N>.l>~k of R.oL oS pooks

A Jewish Complaint Against Present
Day Neglect Of Book Of Books.
How many Jewish households are
there today where the Bible is to be
found except as a table ornament or
for the use of brides when they are
waited angelically to the marriage al
tar? In how many Jewish families is
the Bible ever read? Thousands OF
our young men and women. grow UP
unacquainted with its majesty, its re-
ligious fervor, its poetry, Its wisdom
its simple grandeur, its musical caden-
ces, its impassioned eloquence, the no.
bility Of its teachings, the comfort and
solace that 1t brings to the sorrowful
and the Joy that 1t has In store for him
whose thoughts range among the mys-
teries of the universe.
Those who have never tried are In
capable of appreciating what q fine in
fiuence II Is in q child's life to become
accustomed to the daily reading OF
even q chapter Of the Bible in the
family circle. It develops feeling OF
reverence; 1t introduces q spiritual
antidote to the materialism which sur
rounds us on every side; 1t acquaints
them with the lives Of noble men and
women; 1t warns them against the pit
falls which lie before them; 1t instills
into them noble traditions and turns
their hearts to God. Though theoret-
ically am opposed to the reading OF
the Bible In the public school. because
Of the way in which 1t Is done, can
bear witness to the fact that many
American Jews have in the past. been
religiously so neglected at home that
hofr
that acquired in that much decried
manner, which after all Is to be pre-
ferred to total ignorance. The sooner
it becomes part Of the curriculum OF
every Sunday school to require Of Its
pupils that they read Biblical passages
at frequent intervals the better 1t will
be for US all. Nor would 1t harm US
children Of larger growth II we read
fewer Of the best sellers and acquaint-
ed ourselves with the verities Of life
as recorded in the worlds greatest
book. The masters of literature, the
most profound statesmen, especially
those Of New England ancestry. were
stepped and thoroughly saturated in
the Bible and their most inspired
flights reflect its exalting influence.
To our shame be 1t said that though
by far our most important contribu-
ton to the world has been the Bible,
that although because Of 1t we are re-
spected even by our enemies, many Of
US today take greater pride In point
ing to our champion athletes, our Sec
ond class musicians and third rate
novelists and to an occasional office
holder, than we do in Moses and
Joshua. in David and Solomon, In the
inspired prophets and in those whose
eager yearning was for Righteousness.
What have we thus far done for the
dissemination Of the Bible? Where
are our Bible societies, our schools 4"
the training Of Bible readers, our
Thus far we behold nothing but an
aching void! -
But hearken to these impressive flg-
ures. The British and Foreign Bible
society, organized in 1904, In practi-
cally the first century Of its existence
published versions Of the Bible In $50
distinct languages and dialects, In 400
Of which the work Of translation and
distribution was promoted by the So
ciety. Up to 1905 the society had ex-
pended altogether f14,686,072. and
had issued 19S,515.19s copies Of the
Scriptures-of which more than 49,
000,000 were in English. The Ameri-
can Bible society has issued versions
in over a hundred different languages.
With Its federated societies its total
distribution had in 1909 exceeded S4,-
100000 volumes. In the year ended
345, and its issue 2,153,028 copies Of
the Holy Book. These societies have
their agencies in every corner Of the
globe. Their colporteurs penetrate
forest and jungle, arctic and torrid
zones, wherever 1t Is believed that the
Word Of God may be hearkened unto.
Those who have read George Borrow's
entertaining narrative, "The Bible in
SPAIN" appreciate the struggles, dam
gers and self-sacrifice that this extra
ordinary zeal involves.
But what have we done, not for the
Bible, not for savage tribes, but for
our own children, in making 1t acces-
sible to them? What have we done
to stimulate among English-speaking
Jews even a passing interest In their
priceless heritage? Absolutely moth
ing! There are, alas! those who smile
thought that they have outgrown
the Bible, that as literature it is
not up to date. and as a system
Of ethics 1t has been supplant-
ed by social justice, economics and
such misguided beings who imagine
that they discovered a panacea for
every Ill In half baked theories which
are destined to prove unworkable or
in cropping for truths which the Bible
has taught for more than two thou
sand years and by which our ancestors
shaped their conduct and learned how
to live and how to die nobly. without
so much as surmising that there ever
was or ever could be such thing as
sociology. And as for the Bible as lit
erature, let us try to conceive the i'm
measurable gap that would mystify
the worlds thought II 1t were to be
eliminated! One might as we'll de-
stroy the art Of printing or the alpha
bet!-Address by Louis Marshall to
Jewish Bible Translators.