a study of bible-第48部分

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　most　of　Shelley　with　entire　satisfaction　without　a　knowledge　of　Greek　mythology。　That　is　one　reason　why　Shelley　has　so　much　passed　out　of　popularity。　We　do　not　know　Greek　mythology；　and　we　have　very　largely　lost　Shelley　from　our　literary　possession。　The　chief　power　of　these　other　great　writers　will　go　from　us　when　our　knowledge　of　the　Scripture　goes。

The　danger　is　not　simply　with　reference　to　the　great　literature　of　the　past。　There　is　danger　of　losing　appreciation　of　the　more　delicate　touches　of　current　literature；　sometimes　of　a　complete　missing　of　the　meaning。　An　orator　describing　present　political　and　social　conditions　used　a　fine　phrase；　that　〃it　is　time　the　nation　camped　for　a　season　at　the　foot　of　the　mount。〃　Only　a　knowledge　of　Bible　history　will　bring　as　a　flash　before　one　the　nation　in　the　desert　at　Sinai　learning　the　meaning　and　power　of　law。　Yet　an　intelligent　man；　hearing　that　remark；　said　that　he　counted　it　a　fine　figure；　that　he　thought　there　did　come　in　the　life　of　every　nation　a　time　before　it　began　its　ascent　to　the　heights　when　it　ought　to　pause　and　camp　at　the　foot　of　the　mountain　to　get　its　breath！　After　Lincoln's　assassination　Garfield　stood　on　the　steps　in　New　York；　and　said：　〃Clouds　and　darkness　are　around　about　him！　God　reigns　and　the　government　at　Washington　still　lives！〃　Years　after；　some　one　referring　to　that；　said　that　it　was　a　beautiful　sentence；　that　the　reference　to　〃clouds　and　darkness〃　was　a　beautiful　symbolism；　but　that　Garfield　had　a　great　knack　in　the　building…up　of　fine　phrases！　He　lacked　utterly　the　background　of　the　great　Psalm　which　was　in　Garfield's　mind；　and　which　gives　that　phrase　double　meaning。　If　we　go　back　to　Tennyson　again；　some　one　has　proposed　the　inquiry　why　he　should　have　called　one　of　his　poems　〃Rizpah；〃　since　there　was　no　one　of　that　name　mentioned　in　the　whole　poem！　When；　some　years　ago；　a　book　was　published；　The　Children　of　Gideon；　one　of　the　reviewers　could　not　understand　why　that　title　was　used；　since　no　one　of　that　name　appeared　in　the　entire　volume。　And　when　Mrs。　Wharton's　book；　The　House　of　Mirth；　came　out　some　one　spoke　of　the　irony　of　the　title；　but　it　is　the　irony　of　the　Scriptures　and　the　book　calls　for　a　Scriptural　knowledge　for　its　entire　understanding。

Take　even　an　encyclopedia　article。　Who　can　understand　these　two　sentences　without　instant　knowledge　of　Scripture？　〃Marlowe　and　Shakespeare；　the　young　Davids　of　the　day；　tried　the　armor　of　Saul　before　they　went　out　to　battle；　then　wisely　laid　it　off。〃　〃Arnold；　like　Aaron　of　old；　stands　between　the　dead　and　the　living；　but；　unlike　Aaron；　he　holds　no　smoking　censor　of　propitiation　to　stay　the　plague　which　he　feels　to　be　devouring　his　generation。〃＇1＇　That　is　in　an　encyclopedia　to　which　young　people　are　often　referred。　What　will　they　make　out　of　it　without　the　Bible？　In　a　widely　distributed　school　paper；　in　the　question…and…answer　department；　occurs　the　inquiry：　〃Who　composed　the　inscription　on　the　Liberty　Bell？〃　The　inscription　is；　〃Proclaim　liberty　throughout　all　the　land　to　all　the　inhabitants　thereof。〃＇2＇　It　is　to　be　hoped　it　was　a　very　young　person　who　needed　to　ask　who　〃composed〃　that　expression！


＇1＇　New　International　Encyclopedia；　art。　on　English　Literature。

＇2＇　Current　Events；　January　12；　1912。


This　applies　to　all　the　great　classics。　There　has　come　about　a　〃decay　of　literary　allusions；〃　as　one　of　our　papers　editorially　says。　In　much　of　our　writing；　either　the　transient　or　the　permanent；　men　can　no　longer　risk　easy　reference　to　classical　literature。　〃Readers　of　American　biography　must　often　be　struck　with　the　important　part　which　literary　recollection　played　in　the　life　of　a　cultured　person　a　generation　or　two　ago。　These　men　had　read　Homer；　Xenophon　and　Virgil；　Shakespeare；　Byron　and　Wordsworth；　Lamb；　De　Quincey　and　Coleridge。　They　were　not　afraid　of　being　called　pedants　because　they　occasionally　used　a　Latin　phrase　or　referred　to　some　great　name　of　Greece　or　Rome。〃　That　is　not　so　commonly　true　to…day。　Especially　is　there　danger　of　losing　easy　acquaintance　with　the　great　Bible　references。

There　are　familiar　reasons　for　it。　For　one　thing；　there　has　been　a　great　increase　of　literature。　Once　there　was　little　to　read；　and　that　little　became　familiar。　One　would　have　been　ashamed　to　pretend　to　culture　and　not　to　know　such　literature　well。　Now　there　is　so　much　that　one　cannot　know　it　all；　and　most　men　follow　the　line　of　least　resistance。　That　line　is　not　where　great　literature　lies。　Once　the　problem　was　how　to　get　books　enough　for　a　family　library。　Now　the　problem　is　how　to　get　library　enough　for　the　books。　Magazines；　papers；　volumes　of　all　grades　overflow。　〃The　Bible　has　been　buried　beneath　a　landslide　of　books。〃　The　result　is　that　the　greatest　literary　landmark　of　the　English　tongue　threatens　to　become　unknown；　or　else　to　be　looked　upon　as　of　antiquarian　rather　than　present　worth。　There　our　Puritan　fathers　had　the　advantage。　As　President　Faunce　puts　it：　〃For　them　the　Bible　was　the　norm　and　goal　of　all　study。　They　had　achieved　the　concentration　of　studies；　and　the　Bible　was　the　center。　They　learned　to　read　that　they　might　read　the　literature　of　Israel；　their　writing　was　heavy　with　noble　Old　Testament　phrases；　the　names　of　Old　Testament　heroes　they　gave　to　their　children；　its　words　of　immortal　hope　they　inscribed　on　their　tombstones；　its　Mosaic　commonwealth　they　sought　to　realize　in　England　and　America；　its　decalogue　was　the　foundation　of　their　laws；　and　its　prophecies　were　a　light　shining　in　a　dark　place。　Such　a　unification　of　knowledge　produced　a　unified　character；　simple；　stalwart；　invincible。〃　It　is　very　different　in　our　own　day。　As　so…called　literature　increases　it　robs　great　literature　of　its　conspicuous　outstanding　character；　and　many　men　who　pride　themselves　on　the　amount　they　read　would　do　far　better　to　read　a　thousandth　part　as　much　and　let　that　smaller　part　be　good。

Another　reason　for　this　decay　of　the　influence　of　literary　knowledge　of　the　Bible　is　the　shallowness　of　much　of　our　thinking。　If　the　Bible　were　needed　for　nothing　else　in　present　literary　life；　it　would　be　needed　for　the　deepening　of　literary　currents。　The　vast　flood　of　flotsam　and　jetsam　which　pours　from　the　presses　seldom　floats　on　a　deep　current。　It　is　surface　matter　for　the　most　part。　It　does　not　take　itself　seriously；　and　it　is　quite　impossible　to　take　it　seriously。　It　does　not　deal　with　great　themes；　or　when　it　touches　upon　them　it　deals　with　them　in　a　trifling　way。　To　men　interested　chiefly　in　literature　of　this　kind　the　Bible　cannot　be　of　interest。

That　is　a　passing　condition；　and　out　of　it　is　certain　to　come　here　and　there　a　masterpiece　of　literature。　When　it　does　appear；　it　will　be　found　to　reveal　the　same　influences　that　have　made　great　literature　in　the　past；　issuing　more　largely　from　the　Bible　than　from　any　other　book。　That　is　the　main　point　of　a　bit　of　counsel　which　Professor　Bowen　used　to　give　his　Harvard　students。　To　form　a　good　English　style；　he　told　them；　a　student　ought　to　keep　near　at　hand　a　Bible；　a　volume　of　Shakespeare；　and　Bacon's　essays。　That　group　of　books　would　enlarge　the　vocabulary；　would　supply　a　store　of　words；　phrases；　and；　allusions；　and　save　the　necessity　of　ransacking　a　meager　and　hide