Article June 13, 1903 Issue

Religious Items

with contributions from G. H. SIMMONS, HELEN KELLER, CHARLES E. JEFFERSON

The Bible is a great book and contains much that is wonderful and philosophical, but after all, the Bible is the book of the common people. A religion that is to appeal to the universal heart of humanity must be intelligible to the common people. If God wrote a book that was intelligible to only a few, He intended that only a few should be saved. Do you suppose that a father whose family was in a distant land would write a message of love that could be understood by only two or three members of the family? Such a thing is absurdity itself. Jesus was always talking about commonplace things in an easy, every-day manner. He illustrated great truths with every-day objects: "A sower went forth to sow," "The birds of the air," "The lilies of the field," and such other of the commonest objects from city, field, or farm. He is ever inviting us to take up the duties of Christian service that we might learn of him and come to know him. In place of trying to do the plain, simple duties of practical life, many go into the realm of speculation and burden themselves with abstruse theories and useless controversies. After all, I do not think it matters so much "what Jesus would do" if he were here, as what you and I are doing while we are here.

G. H. SIMMONS.

There is no more certain way of bringing up a race of unbelievers than for the teachers of religion to inculcate anything not in accordance with the facts, because they fear the use that may be made of the facts. And the moment any pupil or congregation gets the impression that the religious teacher is adjusting his teaching in the interest of what he considers "safety" rather than bravely uttering his convictions, that moment his influence for good has practically vanished.

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