Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1914-01-03

In Ytsw OF the fact that TOMORROW
morning Rev. Al A. Ebersole, asso-
ciate pastor Of Central Union Church,
resumes HIS Bible class I'm the rooms
OF the former RIlohana Club, to which
yoIing men as well as young women
are invited, the following editorial,
taken from a recent number Of The
Christian Work and Evangelist" Is
very timely for publication at this
time. 1t is entitled THE Value Of
Bible Study To the Educated Man" and
Is a very strong and fair statement.
The editorial follows:
no one would consider himself ed
llcated who did not have some knowi-
edge or the great Latin, Greek and
English literatures. They sum up so
much Of the culture OF the age that no
one can afford to be ignorant Of them.
But when one turns to the Bible here
is tae greatest literature, considered
only as literature, that any nation has
produced. Here is a collection of Sc
books, comprising every form that lit
erature takes, with the exception OF
the novel. There are histories, biog-
raphies. poems, dramas Gas In the
case OF the Book Of job epistles, eth
ics, wisdom literature. sermons and, as
in the case OF the Parallels of Jesus.
the most exquisite and perfect short
stories known TO art. On this great
literature the culture Of the world has
largely been based. II Is rich, varied.
universal, sounding all the depths
and heights Of human experience. In
the English version It Is beautiful and
pure In its literary form beyond ex-
preston. It is the heritage OF all
aKes. the food on which all the gener-
ati0ns have lived: the only library
millions have known No educated
man can afford to be ignorant of this
great literature AS Sir Herbert Tree
said the other day, All the drama Of
life IS in the Bible
An, educated man Is one who
knows history and something Of the
process of moral and social evolu-
ton. But it is impossible to under
stand history or the growth OF ciyifir
zafion without knowing this book. For
II underlies all this progress. After
II was carried by the missionaries to
Europe great evils, like the gladiator
iai combats. fendalism. human tor
tpre, slavery, abortion, the oppression
Of women, RIGHTEOUSNESS, began to
fade away before it. Wherever it
went brotherhood, charity, altruism,
democracy, justice took root. and to-
day are growing All our great instt-
utione church. schools, hospitals,
beneficent organizations have sprung
from the teachings Of Jesus and Of
others whose words are IN this book.
And IS the Bible goes to japan, In
ola and China one sees the same
thing happening again.
The knowledge OF English litera-
tire Is an indispensable part Of any
real education. Culture consists to a
certain degree in knowing the best
that has been thought and said. No
man can be called really educated
who does not know something Of
Shakespeare, Milton, Browning. Ten
nyson, Carlyle, RuslKin and our. own
poets. But il Is impossible to thor
oughiy grasp either the thought OF
poetic beauty Of the great poets, es.
sayists and even the novelists with
ont knowing the Bible. All our great
literature is based upon it, flows out
of 1T reflects It in every thought and
line. One cannot even understand the
lines Of the poets without knowing
the words Of Isaiah, Jesus, John and
paul. For on every page the poets
and essayists have dropped into the
Biblical language without quota
fioh have made innumerable Illus
trations, taking II for granted that the
readers would know. DR.. Henry Van
Dyke has shown in his book, The
Poetry Of Tennyson. how Tennyson
Is saturated with the Bible, Ruskin
tells us that he got his English style
out Of the Bible. and always thanked
his mother for making him commii
The Psalms to memory when boy.
We recently re-read CarIyle's 'Sartof
Resartus, and on every other page
we found him passing into the very