p. 7 | Intellectual Dishonesty

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Mar 18, 1909

Intellectual Dishonesty

THESE ministers of the gospel who have attempted to harmonize the statements of the Bible and the conclusions of modern science now find themselves in an embarrassing position. Their method of apparently assenting to the teachings of the Bible, while at the same time giving to its plain statements new and unwarranted meanings, is now being designated by its right name—intellectual dishonesty. One editorial writer thus deals with the question:—

The clergyman who utters an ancient formula to which he attaches one meaning, while his less learned or more simple-minded auditors attach another, can never command respect as a great moral leader. The first requisite of such leadership is absolute sincerity and courage. . . . It is inconceivable that any church or any ecclesiastical order that indulges in sophistry or word-juggling can, in this era of universal education, long retain its hold on the minds and hearts of men.

The present teachings of science absolutely contradict the revelation made in the Scriptures when the plain and obvious meaning of that revelation is accepted, and any further attempt to harmonize them is useless.