An important discussion on the meaning of the inspiration of
the Bible was held by a meeting of Wesleyan ministers in the Wesleyan Chapel in the City Road on Monday, to hear a paper by Professor Davison on "Inspiration and Biblical Criticism." Professor Davison's paper remarked on the view taken of the Bible in the article " Bible " in the last edition of the " Encyclopasdia Britannica," and in Mr. Gore's article on the subject of "The Holy Spirit and Inspiration" in "Lux Mundi," and on the general acceptance which these larger views of the inspiration of the Bible had obtained. Mr. Davison himself took up very similar ground, and con- gratulated the Wesleyan Church on the fact that Wes- leyans had not been embarrassed by any narrow definition of inspiration as part of the Wesleyan creed. Mr. Davison him- self held that the composite character of the Pentateuch had been practically established ; that the later part of Isaiah was not written by the prophet of the reign• of Ahaz and Hezekiah ; and that the date and authorship of Daniel are still open to discussion, though the attack on the Johannine authorship of the Fourth Gospel had been satisfactorily repelled. He held that their faith in Christ must not be made dependent on their faith in the Bible, but, on the contrary, that their faith in the Bible must be dependent on their faith in Christ. He advocated a " Christo-oentric " theory of the inspiration of the Bible.
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