Sometimes, because of his strong words regarding the conflict between science and theology, the venerable American diplomat and educator, Dr.Andrew D.White, is thought of as a foe to religion.No one who reads his biography can have that impression half an hour.Near the close of it is a paragraph of singular insight and authority which fits just this connection: "It will, in my opinion, be a sad day for this or for anypeople when there shall have come in them an atrophy of the religious nature; when they shall have suppressed the need of communication, no matter how vague, with a supreme power in the universe; when the ties which bind men of similar modes of thought in the various religious organizations shall be dissolved; when men, instead of meeting their fellow-men in assemblages for public worship which give them a sense of brotherhood, shall lounge at home or in clubs; when men and women, instead of bringing themselves at stated periods into an atmosphere of prayer, praise, and aspiration, to hear the discussion of higher spiritual themes, to be stirred by appeals to their nobler nature in behalf of faith, hope, and charity, and to be moved by a closer realization of the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man, shall stay at home and give their thoughts to the Sunday papers, or to the conduct of their business, or to the languid search for some refuge from boredom."[1] Those are wise, strong words, and they sustain to the full what has been urged, that these times still need the religious influence of the Bible.
[1] Autobiography, vol.ii, p.570.
The influence of the Bible on the literary, moral, and religious life of the times is already apparent.But that influence needs to be constantly strengthened.There remains, therefore, to suggest some methods of giving the Bible increasing power.It should be recognized first and last that only thoughtful people will do it.No help will come from careless people.Moreover, only people who believe in the common folk will do it.Those who are aristocrats in the sense that they do not believe that common people can be trusted will not concern themselves to increase the power of the Bible.But for those who are thoughtful and essentially democratic the duty is a very plain one.There are four great agencies which may well magnify the Bible and whose influence will bring the Bible into increasing power in national life.
First among these, of course, must be the Church.The accent which it will place on the Bible will naturally be on its religious value, though its moral value will take a close second place.It is essential for the Church to hold itself true to its religious foundations.Only men who have some position of leadership can realize the immense pressure that is on to-day todraw the Church into forms of activity and methods of service which are much to be commended, but which have to be constantly guarded lest they deprive it of power and concern in the things which are peculiar to its own life and which it and it alone can contribute to the public good.The Church needs to develop for itself far better methods of instruction in the Bible, so that it may as far as possible drill those who come under its influence in the knowledge of the Bible for its distinctive religious value.This is neither the time nor the place for a full statement of that responsibility.It is enough to see how the very logic of the life of the Church requires that it return with renewed energy to its magnifying and teaching of the Bible.
The second agency which may be called upon is the press.The accent of the press will be on the moral value of the Bible, the service which its teaching renders to the national and personal life.There seems to be a hopeful returning tendency to allusions to the Scripture in newspaper and magazine publications.It is rare to find among the higher-level newspapers an editorial page, where the most thoughtful writing appears, in which on any day there do not appear Scripture allusions or references.When that is seriously done, when Scripture is used for some other purpose than to point a jest, it helps to restore the Bible to its place in public thought.In recent years there has been a noticeable return of the greater magazines to consideration of the moral phases of the Scripture.That has been inevitably connected with the development of a social sense which condemns men for their evil courses because of their damage to society.The Old Testament prophets are living their lives again in these days, and the more thoughtful men are being driven back to them for the great principles on which they may live safely.
The third agency which needs to magnify the Bible is the school.The accent which it will choose will naturally be the literary value of the Bible, though it will not overlook its moral value as well.Incidental references heretofore have suggested the importance of religion in a democracy.But there are none of the great branches of the teaching of the schools, public or private, which do not involve the Bible.It is impossible to teach history fairly and fully without a frank recognition of the influence of the Bible.
Study the Reformation, the Puritan movement, the Pilgrim journeys, the whole of early American history! We can leave the Bible out only by trifling with the facts.Certainly literature cannot be taught without it.And if it is the purpose of the schools to develop character and moral life, then there is high authority for saying that the Bible ought to have place.
