The Rathdrum tribune. (Rathdrum, Idaho) 1903-1963, 1916-04-14
THE VALUE OF THE
STUDY OF THE BIBLE
CONTINUED FROM PAGE oNE)

evil. yet of indnite patience, and Of
gracious forgiveness. for the repentant
this conception marks the highest
achievement Of religious thoughts.
Nor do we anywhere gain so noble
an ideal Of human life as that which
Jesus gives US. He not only believed
In Gud, but he believed that God be-
lieved in man. 1t was his deep con-
viction, that for God. mau-the
individual mans Of lnestimable
value. Thru all His teachings there
runs this thought Of man as valuable
to God. Not a sparrow falls to the
ground without your Father; yet yon
are OF more value than many sparrows.
You shall not be self-centered and
self seeking, but, viewing men as
God views them, and yourself in the
light of Gods ideal for you, you shall
not make yourself the center OF the
world, and the world your servant,
but shall seek and find your own
highest good In serving that world Ct
men, valuable In Gods eyes, Of which
you are one unit, but only one.
From an educational point of view,
this study is justified. We live in a
land which Is Christian, at least in
the sense that we date our letters
and documents from the birth Of
Christ, that our institutions bear the
stamp Of Christian ideas, and that
Christianity is the religion of the
great majority of those who have Il
religion. AS members of this nation,
as bene6ciaries and trustees of the
civilization which we have inherited,
1t Is fitting that we should know
something of the life OF Him from
whom our religion and our civilization
take their name. No one is fitted to
live with large intelligence in the
present, who has not had some
knowledge of the past. A broad
knowledge of history, however de
sirable for every man, must remain
the possession Of the few. But there
are some facts Of the past which sus-
tain so vital relation to the present
that even an elementary education
ought to include ssme knowledge of
them. Every American ought to
know something OF the past of his
own country, and its great men; and
not less certainly ought every boy and
girl Ia every Christian land to know
the life of Jesus Christ, to whom
above all other sources, we owe the
ideals which make up the element of
modern civilization.
When did we ever have greater
need of the ethical ideals Of Jesus?
Our prosperity has been snare to US,
and threatens to overwhelm US. 1T
Is not indeed an hour for despa
Virtue Is not dead. Honesty has not
persisted from the earth That We
are tempted to think so is ties l.
monY. Yet not the most optimistic
can deny that there is appalling need
of higher ideals, alike of domestic
and social, of commercial and politi
cal life. All forces must Cooperate
and are cooperating to bring about
the needed uplifting of moral life.
But among them all none will be
more effective than the IT newed study
OF the moral teachings OF Jesus. Men
tell US that His ideals are Impractical.
bic. But 1t is these id ais that are
slowly lifting the world up from
selfish greed to humane cooperation
TO present these ideals to the youth
OF this land, and not tone them down
TO the level of present practice, nor
convert them from lofty principles
into legaliSm that denies their reai
spirit, this Is one of the most effective
means that can be employed ful
raising the standard of moral conducl |
In the world.