BRITISH CABINET MINISTER ON THE BIBLE.

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 29, 3 August 1926, Page 4

BRITISH CABINET MINISTER ON THE BIBLE.

. t —— A HANDMAID OF THE STATE. At the annual meeting of the British and Foreign Bible Society; in London in May, the Homo Secretary, Sir "William Joynson-Hicks, expressed the opinion that there never was greater need than to-day for the translation, the circulation, and the use of the Bible. The days in which they lived were crowded with problems —social, political, economic, religious. If statesmen, churchmen, and leaders of •economic thought would approach them in the light of the teaching and the warning of the Bible, what difference there would be in the settlement of these problems, in the history of the world to-day, and in their life as a nation! A distinguished predecessor of his in the office of Home Secretary, then Mr. Asquith, once said: "The common possession of the English Bible is a symbol and a safeguard of unity among English people." That was doubly -true to-day. If they wanted a united people for-/!he common good, they must work together on the 'foundation of. ,the truths and principles laid down in the Bible. But it was iio.t much urso having the Bible unless it was-read, and not only studied but lived. OBSCURED BY COMMENTAEIES. As Home Secretary, he acknowledged the kindness of the society in sending thousands, of Bibles to prisons and Borstal institutions. He wished there were a Bible in every cell in the land; Tjut above all he would have these Bibles read. 'It was in the homes of the people that the-Bible had its greatest effect. It was hindered, perhaps, by books, .newspapers, and magazines, and some of these books, alas, were not fit to be read; some of the papers gave prominence to unsavoury matter which would best bo blotted out; some of the magazines were filled with trivialities. Was the Bible to bo* crowded out by such literature? For 400 years next spring they would have had the English Bible, though not all that time, as they had it to-day. They did well to commemorate 'William Tindale. Tindale stood beside those two great martyrs of our Church, Latimer and Bidley; but the candle which he lit was an even stronger light than that lit by them. The best way to commemorate these men was personally to read the Bible. There were to-day so many commentaries on the Bible that they tended to obscure the Word itself. As Home Secretary he had to deal with matters of crime and prisons. He found men and women who had been in prison time after time. Many organisations existed to help these people, but there was only cmc way in which they could be reformed,, and that was by salvation. It was no good putting young people in prison, Sir William remarked, unless they were going to do] them good by it. The main object was reformation, not punishment. There was only one means by which they could get rid of their prisons and re-. formatories and their criminal administration, and that was by bringing the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the hearts of the people. The foundation of the work of the State in these matters must be salvation, and the foundation of salvation was the Word of Qod. (Hear, hear.) . Nothing could hinder the spread of the Bible and the' progress of the Bible Society.- "Think of what the Empire would be to-morrow," he added, "if in every homo there was a copy of the Bible that was read, studied, aud loved by every member of the family. It would be a different Empire. It would be a different world." (Cheers.) Bible Class leaders get reprints of the above for your classes.—(Published by arrange-1 ment.) ' '