The position assumed by Dr. Colenso is simply this:--That the traditional reverence with which the Bible has hitherto been received, is no reason why it should not be submitted to the test of critical and scientifical investigation: that he has himself applied that test to the Pentateuch and the Book of Josue: that by that test he has proved the leading facts in both these books to be false: that the narrative, in general, cannot be regarded otherwise than as fabulous and legendary; nay, that, even as a fable, it is inconsistent, impossible, and self-contradictory. So much for those parts of the Bible to which the bishop's researches have hitherto extended. He means to proceed with his studies in the same spirit through the rest of the sacred books; and he is quite prepared for any consequences to which these studies may lead him. Such is the general scope and character of a work which we cannot but regard as one of the most remarkable productions of the age. It has gained for its author a wide-spread celebrity. His ingenious arguments are discussed in every literary circle; they find an honoured place in our own periodical press; they are not unknown on 'change; and even in our clubs they have been for a time the topic of the day. It is meet, therefore, that a Catholic should be furnished with the means of defence, and thus, in the language of St. Peter, be "ever ready to give a reason of the hope which is in him". But what an arduous task this would seem even to the most learned; how utterly beyond the reach of the simple and lowly! Here is an able and accomplished scholar, who presses into his service Hebrew, and Greek, and statistics, and history, and books of travels. These are formidable weapons, which few possess, and fewer still are skilled to use. Yet we need not, therefore, shrink from the encounter. The Catholic Church has provided a defence for all; for the unlettered mechanic, no less than the learned theologian. The one may take shelter beneath the protecting shield of an infallible authority; the other need not fear to venture into the open field, and meet the foe upon his own ground and with his own weapons. Every Catholic firmly believes that, in virtue of a divine promise, the Church is reserved free from all error in her teaching. Now, on the subject before us, the Church has pronounced her judgment in clear and simple words. In the Council of Trent it is defined that "God is the author of all the books of the Old and of the New Testament"--(sessio quarta). And, surely, it would be nothing short of blasphemy to ascribe to God such a book as the Bible would be in the theory of Dr. Colenso. Therefore, that theory cannot be true, and the arguments by which it is supported must be false and delusive.