The Monkey Trial & the Rise of Fundamentalism Issue 55 | 1997 Purchase this issue

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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.

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 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.

Mr. Bryan and the people who support him and give him power intend that their ...