Article May 26, 1923 Issue

"The secret place of the most High"

HENRIETTA MARCUS

ARE there any tales in all literature that appeal as much to the reader as those of the Bible? And beyond the mere charm and poetry of the narratives themselves lies the possibility of discovering their fundamental spiritual meaning, of interpreting them in a manner that will afford us help to meet the conditions in which we find ourselves to-day. Truth remains the same for all time; outward circumstances alone change. It is these facts that make the Bible necessary as a book of reference and instruction to help us solve our daily problems worthily.

It has been said that adults are but grown-up children; and this is true in regard to their liking for the tale. The tale is an appeal to the reader for the purpose of holding the thought and commanding the attention, suggesting possibilities of beauty, truth, and goodness, sometimes more completely than does the statement of mere facts. The moral teaching conveyed in the simple Biblical tales is really extraordinary,—they are so picturesque, so simple, and so convincing; we are never tired of them, never weary of searching for more of their meaning.

In the tale of the Shunammite woman, for instance, we read how she perceived that Elisha was "an holy man of God," and that she prepared him a place where he could rest on his journeyings to and fro. How easily one can visualize the prophet turning from the heat and glare and dust of the road into the cool shelter so thoughtfully prepared for him on the wall of Shunem. It conjures up so many pictures, real or fancied, of Eastern life; but it does not stop there, for the question arises, What was it that enabled this particular woman to perceive the holiness of Elisha? She alone gave him bread and shelter, though he must have passed many homes in his wanderings. The little chamber built on the wall may typify the Shunammite's desire for goodness, for something beyond the material experiences of her daily life. She built this place to shelter the best she knew. It was a certain spirituality of thought that enabled her to perceive a truth that was a dead letter to those around her, and to appreciate the worthiness of the prophet.

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