Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1916-01-27

In his opening remarks the speaker
said that no matter what Christian
church might be entered. or whatever
type Of service might be IN progress,
the most permanent, persistent and prom
inent object in the church would be a
book. and that book would of course
be the Bible. All ages have asked many
questions concerning this book and II ia
probable that future ages will do like
wise. and although at times the spirjt
of the questions may seem irreverent
and little deserving of sympathy, vet
their asking should be the occasion Of
satisfaction. Bishop Mcdowell said that
the first question which would be asked
alike by the spirit of the ages, an intel
igent foreigner who beheld the Bible
for the first time, or a boy at the are
when he most closely resembles a ram
pant Interrogation mark. would be
How did the Bible happen to beg"
In answering this question, the speaker
said that the Bible resulted. as had all
great literature, from life. and then
gave two quotations from Phillips
Brooks. the first, literature springs out
of life" and the second, Literature which
springs ont of life returns upon it, TO
enrich. bless and enoblc it." In con-
tinuing his discussion of the origin of
the Bible. the speaker entered into "A
brief discussion of English and Ameri-
can literature as an illustration OF his
point.
English literature. he said, was the
result of English life; it embodied the
tremendous history of England. it's
ctr pplo vi mol tin.s
tice. fair play. courage, confidence and
compacency. if there had been no hero
ism in English life there could have
been none in English verse. said Bishop
Mcdowell. citing Tennyson's charge of
the light Brigade and the lives of
Oliver Cromwell and William T.. Glad
stone could not have been lived without
there springing up the noble literature
which followed them. AS first there is
the fact and then its Interpretation, 50
first there is the experience and then the
expression. In his discussion of Ameri-
can literature, the speaker said that
our own life and our own qualities had
gone into the making of n distinct liter
allure of our own. He named Thomas
Buchanan Reeds "Sheridan's Ride" as
resulting from the same inspiration as
the Charge of the Light Brigade" and
named George Washington and Abraham
Lincoln as two Americans whose lives
could not have been lived without pro-
ducing II wealth of noble literature.
The basis of the Bible is life. said
Bishop Mcdowell, and it is the resultant
of Gods working with man and .man
with God. When the Red sea opened be-
fore the 1sraelites and then engufed
their pursuers. any singing man in the
host could not contain himself and God
was in all of it, not only in the inspir-
alton. which came to the singer, but
in the resulting song. The speaker also
dwelt upon the beauty of the 23rd Psalm
and discussed certain of the epistles in
the New Testament
Continuing. the speaker said that but
one perfect life had been lived on earth
the life Of Jesus. and that no books such
as the four gospels could have been writ
ten without His life. The gospels ar,
recollections and not creations, they
have their foundation in life and not
in magic. and they will last until a bet
I ter life than that of Jesus has beer
| lived. The Bible was founded on life
| and life will come out of it, while it viii
ever continue to enrich and nourisl
life.