New Britain herald. [microfilm reel] (New Britain, Conn.) 1890-1976, 1925-10-19
Bible REING READ
ONLY CHURCHES
Disappearing From Homes and
Schools, Pastor Greene Says

That the Bible is disappearing
from the homes and the schools and
ID read now only In church, was the
statement made yesterday morning
IN his sermon at the First Congrega-
tional church by the Rev. Theodore
A. Greene. Mr.. Greene preached on
the subject why Read the Bible?"
In opening his sermon he stated
that his remarks were addressed es-
pecially to the casual churchman."
He said: This man may be among
us now asking Why DO they read
that old book? Why not spend the
time and energy wasted In church at
home reading on some modern
treatise on religion. or giving this
same attention to moral problems Of
today'?"
The minister compared the man
who does not read the Bible to the
savage in the forest, surrounded by
. enemies which he cannot see and by
terrors he cannot understand, He
pictured the Bible as the light shin
ing In darkness and said:
IF all this be so! II II Is true
that the Bible has done so much to
put to flight fearsome shadows and
the gruesome darkness Of our world.
then surely the Bible deserves a CEN
trail place In our worship, In our
homes,and In our thoughts. And so
1t has the central place with us here.
In this old First church. with its
plain windows. its white pews and
its polished rosewood pulpit. the
architect has set the Bible In the
very center of the picture. 1t rests
here upon the reading desk in the
very front Of the apse. And down
upon it--as If shining by reflected
glory--streams the light of this
desk lantern.
First of all, we need to read the
Bible regularly In our churches to-
day because the church Is becoming
almost the only place where the
bible Is read at all. Don't be
shocked. It Is true. And we might
as we'll face the facts, APPALLING as
they are! There was time. and
not so long back either. when prac-
tically every, class In every school,
public or private, throughout the
length and breadth Of our land
opened the days program with a
reading from the Bible and the
repetition Of the Lords prayer. In
many private schools, and in most
endowed colleges and universities,
this Is still, the rule. But 1t Is no
longer so In the thousands Of public
schools today. Nor yet In certain
of our unsupported institutions of
higher learning.
Family prayers were the rule
rather than the exception In Chris
tian homes one or two generations
back. But how Is 1t today? How
Is It In your home, for example?
You know far better than I. But
this much I can tell you: The pres
ent-day ignorance of many children
Of the general contents OF our Bible,
Of Its stories and its poetry and its
parallels. Is an ever-growing con-
Germ to all friends Of religious ed
ucation.
"Only recently was asked to tell
the story OF Esther, the Jewess pa
triot, without the use Of names to
q church school not far from here.
And to the amazement CT the teach
efs snd myself not a single boy or
,irl IN that school had ever heard
the story before. nor read the book
from whence 1t came. Yet Tor
hundreds Of years the Bible has been
soaking and seeping its way into the
hearts of men. Our hymns are
filled with thoughts, phrases, whole
sentences from scripture. The Bi-
BILE shines forth from the pages Of
all our best literature. It's absolute
~ matchl SIS style, its revcrent, dig
nitied language has had its effect
In the past---upon all our writing
and our thinking,
"No man can fully understand the
best Of our rich inheritance in NIL
sic, art, prose or poetry who Is not
reasonably familiar with his Bible,
It's principal events and characters.
And so, I say, we need to read our
Bibles both here In church and at
home, not alone for our souls good,
but for the culture Of our minds and
the kindling Of our hearts es well.
What you and I need to take to
heart then. is all too evident In our
American life! This lack OF knowl-