History

The Press Weighs In

Condensed editorials from the summer of 1925 show a nation at odds.

It is exceedingly significant, that evolutionists generally, theistic, atheistic and otherwise, allied themselves with the infidel crew engaged in the defense of the Christless Scopes. It should also be remembered that not one of the several witnesses who testified, by affidavits, or otherwise, in behalf of Scopes, believed in the inspiration of the Scriptures or the Deity of Christ. The Civil Liberties Society, a diminutive aggregation of atheistic asses, not only endorsed the Christless Scopes, but assisted in financing this crusade of atheism.

—The Baptist Monthly Magazine

At bottom, the issue is whether the separation of church and state shall be maintained. To be sure, there is no mention of this at Dayton. The fundamentalists are not saying, even among themselves, “There should be a Protestant state church in America.” No such monstrous ambitions are consciously entertained by fundamentalists, but the significance of fundamentalism lies not in what it is consciously but in what it is unconsciously. Unconsciously it puts the church above the state.

—The Nation

The appearance of Mr. Darrow on the side of the defense was an embarrassment and a misfortune. At the best, Mr. Darrow’s agnostic views completely disqualify him to represent any but the most extreme antagonists of the Bible and the Christian faith. If he had possessed any adequate knowledge of the Bible and the processes by which it is interpreted today, he could have set Mr. Bryan some real questions, rather than the stale inquiries that were the stock in trade of skeptical argument a generation ago. It was inevitable that the impression made by the conduct of the defense would be that of hostility to the Bible and the church.

—The Christian Century

Mr. Bryan and the people who support him and give him power intend that their opinions shall get into the law of the country. What he wants is that his ideas, his interpretations and beliefs, shall be made mandatory. When Mr. Darrow talks of bigotry he talks of that. Bigotry seeks to make opinion and belief mandatory. Mr. Bryan would have his habits, customs, ideas, and opinions the law of the land, and to a considerable extend he is succeeding.

—The Chicago Daily Tribune

The fact that geology can produce not one true fossil that shows one species changing into another, makes evolution a mere rope of sand, or a chain whose every other link is missing. The natural atheism of the unregenerate heart is grasping quickly at the false claims of the pseudo-scientist who propagates this bunk.

God has said, “He is Antichrist who denieth both the Father and the Son.” What the Romans [Catholics] have never done, apostate Protestants are now doing, under the leadership of Jews and Unitarians, deceived by the false claims of science.

—Moody Bible Institute Monthly

Thousands of columns of newspaper debate have been published under Dayton date lines in the past two weeks, and from it all, the cause of the religion of Jesus Christ has not been helped, but the world has been broadcast with the reeks of doubt and skepticism, and only the future can tell what the harvest will be.

—The Atlantic Constitution

Copyright © 1997 by the author or Christianity Today/Christian History magazine. Click here for reprint information on Christian History.

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