Covenanter Witness Vol. 54 - Rparchives.org

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Glimpses of the Religious World
Frank E. Allen, D. D.
The Dead Sea Scrolls
Four of the seven "Dead Sea Scrolls," said to be the
oldest known Bible manuscripts, have been purchased by
Israel for a sum announced to be $250,000. from the Syrian
Orthodox Monastery of St. Mark, Jerusalem. Of these four
manuscripts, one is the Book of Isaiah, another a commen
tary on the Book of Habbakuk, and the other two are nonbiblical.
Would Limit Liquor Advertising
The Senate of South Dakota passed a resolution asking
Congress to outlaw liquor advertising in interstate com
merce. Specific mention is made of radio, television, and pub
lications having
a national circulation.
Missions in Formosa
Some missionaries in Formosa report that their work
is going on as usual regardless of the disturbances in the outer
islands. They affirm that opportunities were never better
for mission work on Formosa than at the present time.
Arab Evangelical Conference
The first Evangelical Conference of the Arab World will
be held in Beirut, Lebanon, April 28-30. The language used
will be Arabic. The theme of the Conference will be "Christ
calls the churches of the Near East to mission and
Those who have spoken of the Conference say that it will
be "a historic expression of the progress of the indigenous
Christian Churches in the Near East."
A New Type of S. S. Cards
The American Tract Society is distributing
4 cards which are designed to interest children in the Sab
a series of
bath School and serve as rewards for attendance. They
present photos of Roy Rogers and Dale Evans and Roy's
horse Trigger on one side with religious messages on the
other side.
The Right of Dissent
When Judge Learned Hand, retired chief judge of the
United States Court of Appeals, celebrated his eighty-third
birthday, he said that in these times of enforcement of con
formity to some people's idea of "Americanism," it is well
to be reminded of the right of dissent. He said in part : "All
discussion, all debate, all dissidence tends to question, and in
consequence to upset existing convictions : that is precisely
its purpose and its justification. He is, indeed, a 'subversive'
who disputes those precepts that I most treasure and seeks
to persuade me to substitute his
own."
He further stated
that a free society and free religion go hand in hand.
Successor to Buchmanism
The Moral Rearmament Movement is the successor to
Buchmanism. Some leaders of the Church of England re
gret its existence and say it is "Psychologically dangerous,
gravely defective in its social thinking, and possibly a
Christian heresy." Owes All to Bible Reading
Mr. Renzo Sawada, quoted in the Bible Society Record,
says: "I want to say that the fact I am here as the repre
sentative of Japan to the United Nations is all on account
of Bible-reading." He has had a distinguished career in the
226
diplomatic service of his country as Japanese Consul in New
York, London and Paris, and later as his country's representa
tive to the United Nations. Mr. Sawada and his wife, because
of their Christian convictions have transformed their spacious
residence in the suburbs of Tokyo into a home for 140 aban
doned Eurasian babies. When R. Sawada was 13 years old
his father sent him to an American missionary to learn to
read English. The missionary began to teach him English
from the Gospel by Matthew and from reading the Bible he
became a Christian.
Civilization's Crucial Hour
The Premier of Alberta, the Hon. Ernest C. Manning,
has written an article on the above subject which has been
published by the American Tract Society. It begins as fol
lows :
"We have reached an hour in the history
of civiliza
tion which I believe is one of the most crucial mankind has
ever been called upon to face. We are living in an age in
which we see the accumulative consequences of the defects
inherent in human nature coming to their climax. Today
when you talk to men in the business world, the scientific
world, the field of economics, politics, or whatever it may be,
you find that most thinking, serious-minded people agree
that present circumstances are such that they cannot con
tinue very much longer without precipitating a crisis on the
greatest scale humanity has ever known. I am convinced that
the solution is to be found in the application of true Chris
tianity to the lives of individuals and nations."
Two Camps
Mr. Manning continues: "The world today is divided
into two great opposing camps. In one are the individuals
and nations whose philosophy of life is wholly materialistic
who not only reject spiritual and moral values but who have
become openly aggressive in their repudiation of all things
that in any way recognize the sovereignty of God, the Deity
of Jesus Christ, and the true Christian way of life.
"In the other camp are those who still retain at least a
nominal recognition of spiritual and moral values. These are
the remaining peoples and nations which today comprise our
so-called Christian civilization. I use the word "so-called"
purposely, for one of the great tragedies of this generation is
the fact that so much of our so-called Christian civilization
is entirely undeserving of the name.
"What are we going to do about it It is clear that the
solution lies in a return to the place where we make our pro
fessed Christianity real . . . Let
us get the Bible down from
the shelf and give the counsel of God its rightful place of
priority in our lives and homes, and in the councils of our
land."
Parental Supervision
Some Illinois legislators have introduced a bill in the
House that would punish "improper parental
Improper parental supervision would include allowing chil
dren under 18 to associate with known thieves, visit houses
of ill fame, breach of the peace, commit lewd or lascivious
acts, or violate curfew laws
where such exist. The proposed
law would assess a fine of $25 to $200 against a parent or
guardian for the first offense, up to $200 and 6 months in
jail for the second, and up to $500 and a year in jail for the
third.
COVENANTER WITNESS