Newspaper Page Text
Land of Promise
(TO AND FROM.)
[iy Rev. C. O’N. Maktindale.
ARTICLE XXIX.
TURKEY [Continued
•victory' or ‘triumph.’ No oue here
disputes thin etymology. Nassra, which
menus ‘victory’ (victoria) is a girl’s
name: then Nasir, Nusire, Nassr and
Nansoor are hoy names, employed all
over the '-ountry, and mean respectively
‘victory-giving,’ ‘a little victor,’ ‘victor,’
‘victor-enjoying,’ and suuposing we
read our Lord’s word’s, ‘I have over
come the world’ (Jno. 16:33) in the
.light of Psa. 3:7, 8, and the hundred
| other passages in the ('kl Testament
()4 . PALESTINE: I II Nasirah w ],j c |, declare or presuppose His ulfi-
(Nazareth), in view of the jebel | »>“<” victory,and remember that Julian, j
| the great apostate enemy in the fourth
Mar Elyas (Mount Carmel) and century, died with the words upon his
Haifa and the Ray and Plain cf
’Akka (Acre) and nigh to Jebet
Tur (Mount Tabor).
As our horses climbed the steep
■nountain-side liefore getting to Nnzar-
oth, wo came in view of the castle or
larrarks of Nazareth, formerly belong
ing to au English gentleman fa physi-
oian) until seized by the Turkish gov
ernment, which suspioioued Ins strong-
h old at so strategic an elevation as cal-
unlatml to farther British designs on the
land. From the well Nebi Ka in (or
Him ’an) on the Jebel es-Hikh oue gets a
wonderfully ilne and extensive view of
Monnt (Jarme.l (the Jebel Mur Klyas),
Haifa, the Hay and Plain of Akka
(Acre), and the Mediterranean to the
northwest; the finely plain of El-Hnttof
(with the rains of Haffurieh on its
southern corner) and Hafed, to the
north- snowy-crested Hernion afai 1 to
tiio northeast; Blue Galilee and the dis
tant hills of Jolnii beyond the oasin
nearly east: Mount Tabor to the south-
oMsl;*and Nain, Endor, Shunem. Little
Hermou. the Plain of Esdraelon (or
Valley of Megiddojand the Valley of
Jezreel, to the south; while atourfeet
around a kind of slanting uud broken
(ou its lower rim) basin in the mountain
ties En Nasirah, or Nazareth, a city of
nhont II,000 resident population, of
whom it is said four-fifths are adherents
of the Christian laith, and not a single
Jew a resident. About its white t'our-
spunn walled houses of rock and mor
tar you see many cactus hedges, olive
uud fig trees, some pomegranates, and
Hying uboul in the air numerous birds.
“The town is the seat of Kuimmakain
and the chief town of a district (Kudu)
in the Mutesairiflik of Acre. Most of
the inhabitants are engaged m farming
mid gardening, and some ol' them in
handicrafts, and in the cotton mid grain
trade. The inhabitants are noted for
then turbulent disposition. Many pret
ty female figures are to be seen. The
district is comparatively rich ami the
Christian farmers have retained many
peculiarities of costume, which are best
observed at weddings. On festivals the
women wear gay. embroidered jackets, t
uud have their foreheads and breasts
laden with coins, while the riding •mnel
which forms an indispensable feature
in such a procession is smartly capari
soned with shawls and strings of coins.
The various confessions have tl eir own
quarters, on tie- south tie Latin, on the
north tie Greeks, in the centre the
Muhauimudans the ether quarters con
tain a mixed population. The Chris
tians are under the government of
NIHicial le-ads ' (if Protestant Chris
tians the lust statement does not hold,
uud there are many of such here The
Russian ami British churches have
large establishments.
“Like Bethlehem, Nazareth has never
been wholly destroyed or depopulated
since Matthew wrote Ins Gospel. There
fore its identity hits never been in dis
pute. It lies among the extreme south
ern ridges of Mt. Lebanon, in a oup-like
volley, half-way between the Mediter
ranean and the southern end of the Sea
of Galilee. * * Although Nazareth is
secluded, yet it was within reach of the
highway of the aucieut world, lor irn-
tuediately south of it passed the route
which connected the Mediterranean
with the Jordan and the East, through
the Plain of Jezreel or Esdraelon, aud
the railway now being built from 'Car
mel by the Sea’ to Damascus,is surveyed
not, far to the south of Nazareth, and
from the hills above the town. Carmel,
Tabor. Gilboa. aud a hundred to her
pluces.fatuous in Old Testament history,
are visible. Thus seclusion and inter
course. isolation from and association
with the world, were alike possible to a
native of Nazareth, when our Lord lived
ia it It is about 80 miles north of
Jerusalem, or four days’ journey, aud
inuny ot its inhabitants still attend
feasts at Jerusalem, a< was the case in
aucieut times." It is to be noted that
‘•the uoun ‘Nazareth’aud the adjective
“Nazarene' < lie shall be cBiled a Nazar-
one’) have nothing to do with the simi
lar-looking word which means - one un
der avow' (the Nazarite vow, Num.
41:2) • * Nazareth in the form iu which
lips, ‘Thou hast the victory.O Galilean,
would this difficulty of Mutt. 2:33 not
vanish? May wo not understand then
Nazarene to mean ‘Victorious’ or ‘Vic
tor?' This name is alike easily deriv
able from the name of the town 'Naz-ar-
nth.’aud from the Old Testament
Scriptures which predicted that He
should be victorious.” (Dr. Ghosu El
Howie of Bchweir, Mt. Lebanon, Syria).
Nazareth is rapidly increasing in
opuleuoe and population,and undoubted
ly owes its natural growth chiefly to the
fuct that resideuoe iu Beisau aud upou
the Plain of Esdraelon is rendered un
safe by reason of the inroads of the
Arabs from the region beyond Jordan.
Hence the observation of Dr. W. M.
Thomson, that “Many planes have been
deserted, and the inhabitants have re
tired from the plaius to Jeuiu, Nazar
eth, aud farther west towards the sea
board. Should a stroag government
drive the Bedawiu over the Jordan, and
keep them there, the popnlatiou aud
importance of Nazareth would decline.”
From the Jebel es-Sikh we descended
bv foot to a point, high up ou the hill
side. overlooking the principal buildings
of Nazarth, where stands the English
Orphanage for Girls (including School
and Hospital), kept by the Society for
the Promotion of Female Education in
the East Here oue sees some happy
clianges a Protestant Christian influence
can work among a degraded people in
the way of spiritual life and growth,
mental enlargement, physical cleanli
ness and thrift. One's visit to Nazareth
is incomplete without seeing it.
Thence we still further went down
the steep to a pathway iu the upper
southwest rim of the town, just, about
back of the Maronite Church, where is
u precipice of about, fifty leet height
suddenly cutting short tire hill-side
whereon the city is built, very likely
•-the Hill of Precipitation,” from which
elose iu upon the .city the enemies ot
the Lord Jesus sought to thrust Him
down headlong but Ho passed through
them unharmed A reputed traditional
situ of this event uboul a mile from the
eity is unworthy of credence; besides
being unreasonably far oil lor such au
act, there whs i>6 necessity to go that
far.
We were shown the site of the ancient
synagogue on which is a very old church
building now used by the Greek Cntho-
lies: and, while this may not be the
actual synagogue which Jesus frequent
ed, it is not unlikely that the present
building stands upon the sm ot that
one. (Beside it lias been built lately a
new church of handsome pattern.) The
history of this old building is traeeuble
as far back aw the fifth century, and its
t wo side-walls some say were a part of
the original building in which our Lord
went as it wit- His custom on the Lord’s
Day, and preached to the people, and
made that great claim o1 lienig the Mes
siah spoken of by the prophet Isaiah
(Isa. 01:1-2, of. Lk 4:10-30; Matt. i3:-
54-68. Mk 0:1-6): “The Spirit of the
Lord is upon Me, because He anointed
Me to preach good tidings to tlie poor;
He hath sent Me to proclaim release to
the captives aud recovering of sight to
the bliud, to set at liberty them that are
bruised, to proclaim tbu acceptable year
of the Lord. * * To day hath this
Scripture been fulfilled in your ears.
And all bare Him witness, and wondered
at the words of gruoe which proceeded
out of His mouth. * « And they were
all filled with wrath in the synagogue,
as they heard these things: and they
rose up, and uist Him forth out of the
oity, and led Him nuto the brow of the
hill whereon their city was built, that
they might throw Him down headlong
(the punishment lor blasphemy). But
He passing through the midst of them
went His way
We visited the Romish (or Latin)
Church of the Annunciation connected
with the Franciscan Monastery, and
were then shown tho so-called Chapel
and Altar ol the Annunciation (with
inscription at back, “Hie Verbum caro
factum est"—“Here the Word was
made fiesh"). aud to the left of 'lie en
trance “the Column of Gabriel” (round
and upright land “the Column of Mary”
(a dependent-columnar tragmeut, claim
ed to be miraculously supported, just
above the spot where the Virgin is said
with marble, according to tradition
(how elastic the term! > “the House of
the Virgin” stood. We give this as a
fair sample ol Roman aud Greek Cath
olic work upon human credulity: “On
the 10th of May, 12111, according to the
tradition, the sacred dwelling was car
ried off by angels, in order to prevent
its desecration by the Muslims. The
heavenly messengers first curried it to
Tersato near Flume in Dalmatia, aud
thence to Loreto iu Italy, where it still
attracts numerous pilgrims; but it was
not till nearly two centuries alter < 1471)
during the pontificate of Paul II, that
this miracle (?) was confirmed by the
(Roman Catholic) church. The truth
is, that the whole story is not older than
the 16th century, a period so prolific ot
marvellous traditions.” We could not
but wish that the angels had taken away
other relics and sites as absurd. Here
in this same Church we saw what pur
ported to be the Chapel of Joseph and
an altar inscribed “Hie erat subditus
lllis”—“Here He became subject to
them”; ami even an old cistern ou our
way out is made to do service as “the
Kitchen ot the Virgin!” Ilia small
enclosed court to the northeast ot thiB
monastery is the “House or Workshop
of Joseph,” and over the altar m it, if
we mistake not, huugs that lovely aud
lifelike puintiug of our Lord us a well-
grown hoy with His mother aud Joseph
the carpenter in the shop, all attired in
the dress ol tlie'time, and with a sweet
grace uud uplifting naturalness about it,
done by the ui list riuucois.
On the west side ol tne town in a
chapel belonging to tire Latins (or
Romanists) we were given a view of
“the Table of Christ,” a hard block of
chalk, eleven and a half feet long by
nine and a half broad, tipou which both
before and alter the resurrection the
Lord Jesus Christ is said to have dined
with Hie disciples, according to a tradi
tion going back only to the 17th cen
tury. Ou that we sat down to rest.
We ulso took in the Church of Gab
riel or of tIre Annunciation of the Or
thodox Greeks, half way underground
wtlh rather pleasing effect, aud having
its pavement near the ultar pierced by
an epeuiug into the conduit leading
from the spring to the north of the
Church by the left Bide of the altar on
to St. Mary's Well in the town.
Through that hole Greek pilgrims got
water os sacred to apply to their eyes
and heads, while less superstitious
travellers drink simply to say they had
a bit of the water from the spring at
Nazareth! Since this is the only spring
the city bus. it is well-nigh certain that
Mary and the Holy Child Jesus drank
and that often from this very fountain.
The spring is variously called “Jesus’
temptible in the eyes of the Jerusalem
and Judaean Jews, not lor any irreli-
gion or immorality for which it was
noted, but solely on account of its ob
scurity. It was unrenowned, almost
unknown, and therefore, when Jesus
appeared, coming from Nazareth, one
would ask, ‘Can any good thing come
out of Nazareth?' It is true that ‘Nu-
zarene’ was a contemptuous name given
to Jesus, but originally, it only indi
cated the obscurity ol th<- almost un
heard-of village from which lie hailed.
His enemies would say: 'Jesus of Nnza-
reth our Messiah? How preposterous
the pretension! How absurd! Why,
Nazareth is not even mentioned iu our
Holy Scriptures, which teach us that
the Messiah shall come of tries family of
David, and must be born at Bethlehem,
the city of David!’ * This was the argu
ment by which the rejectors of Christ
set aside all the infallible proof furnish
ed by His wonderful life and mighty
works, tlint He was the Messiah. * They
would say, ‘He is a Nazarene,’ i. e,, he
is a pretender: 'He is a Galilean,’ i. e.,
he is a false Christ. His disciples were
called‘Galileans,’that is, followers of
the false Christ, that pretender of
Nazareth (Juo. 7:41,62). This is the
opprobrium that was attached to the
name ol Nazareth of Gulilee; and it
came iu, not before, but with, the pub
lic ministry of Christ. It was first
mentioned by the Galileans themselves
who, ot' course, would not cast an odious
reflection upou their own section. The
expression, 'Can any good come out of
Nazareth?’ originated with Nathanael,
who was himself of Cana of Galilee;
and, as Dean Alford truly says, 'it car
ries with it no evidence that Nazareth
was previously held in contempt.' After
ward it became a proverbial expression,
not to signify that the inhabitants of
Nazareth were held in disrepute for ir-
religion or immorality prevalent uwoug
them, but to indicate the scorn with
which the learued doctors of Jewish
theology rejeoted Jesus os a pretender
and false Messiah because he came from
Nazareth, aud not from Bethlehem,
where their prophets taught that the
Christ should be born.” (Dr. J. M. P.
Otts iu “The Fifth Gospel, the Land
Where Jesus Lived,” pp. 83-86.)
“While the uatural landmarks in aud
about Nazareth remain unchanged,there
is but little in the town itself which we
can confidently associate with our Lord,
or the times in which He lived. There
are no traces of gates or surrounding
walls, or of the ruins of public build
ings of any sort; and there is not a
house standing today which can be
identified with any building upou whion
His eyes rested when He was here
among men. Tho place, as it now up-
Spring” and “Gabriel’s Spring." Mary’s P ears is without doubt the successor of
Well or Fountain in the middle of the the l ,lllpe wl,ose uaui * sti11 bears - but
town is much frequented, and almost at « 1S a U10ller “ ^ in everything per
any time of day the women and girls
may be seen gathered about its low en
closing wall with their large and not
ungraceful pitchers in hand or on head, j
It is a centre of cleansing and refresh
ment as well as the point of departure
for the news and gossip of tho neigh
borhood.
When we came into the town we saw
it was a festival season, it being Mon
day of Easter-week with the inhabitants,
just a week later than Easter with us.
Here and there were young and mature
peopie. in many-colored attire, enjoying
sweetmeats, watching or engaging in
games of chance, firing torpedoes, or
laughing and shouting. Our greatest
surprise was a small but serviceable
“Ferris Wheel” hanging ou a square ,
* . ,, i place, which w'e have every reason to
frame, with four box-like carnages lull ] f ,, , ,_ , ,.
of children, an older person keeping the
For Pain
Take a Dr. Miles*
Anti-Pain Pill, and
the Pain will dis
appear Like
Magic.
Not by paralyzing the nerves and^f
glands, like opium, morphine, cocaine,
and other dangerous drugs, but by in
creasing the natural secretions.
This action is obtained as a result of
modern discoveries in medicine, making
it possible to relieve pain without bad
after-effects.
Tou can safely depend upon Dr. Miles’
Anti-Puln Fills to relieve and cure such,
pains as Neuralgia, Headache, Stomach
ache, Memtrual Fains, Rheumatism,
Backache, Toothache, etc.
They will also, by their calming act
ion on the nerves, almost instantly re
lieve Euoh distressing feelings as Diz
ziness, Car-Sickness, Indigestion, Irri
tability, Sleeplessness, Nervousness, etc.
Not merely do they relieve, but they
also absolutely cure, because by perse
vering in their use, you do away with
the cause.
Dr. Miles’ Anti-Fain Pills are guar
anteed that first package will benefit, or
your moDey back. Never sold In bulk.
"I am thankful for the good Dr.
Miles Anti-Pain Fills have and are
doing me. Ever since the war I have
hud spells of severe throbbing head-
uche, caused by catarrh, until six years
ago, I began taking Anti-Pain FiHs,
the only remedy that ever gave
no* relief. Since then I have not had
one hurd attack, because I take a Pill
and it overcomes the difficulty.”—GKO.
SAUNDERS, Oreensburg, ind.
PPri? Write to us for Free Trial
«T- of Dr. Miles’ Antl-
Pain Pills, the New Scientific Remedy
for Tain. Also Symptom Blank. Our
Specln.UEt will diagnose your case, tell,
you wliut Is wrong, and how to right it.
Free. DR. MILES MEDICAL CO.i
LABORATORIES, ELKHART, IND,
Imps, except, its stroets. which are truly
Oriental in their narrowness, their un
tidy appearance, their apparently aim
less windings, and in the unique fashion
ol their paving.—The so-called holy
places' which tradition has localized |
here are all apocryphal, and have no
claim to veneration or regard. The in
telligent visitor does not come to Naz-
areth to see holy places hut 'a holy
pluee.’ It a place forever uieinorable
and sacred not because of one or more
conspicuous events, but because it was
the home of Jesus for nearly thirty
years of His earthly life. Here’the Holy
One of God dwelt among men, and every
foot of this little mountain-rimmed
basiu has been hallowed by His steps.—
Among the uatural features of the
Word that was made flesh’ and dwelt
among men. Take away from Nazar
eth ‘the Name that is above every name,’
the name that was coupled with it on
the cross, and all the highways that
centre in it from every side would shrink
into narrow bridle-paths; the tide of
travel which sweeps back and forth
through its streets year by year would
cease: aud the great vessels which now
touch at its port (Haifa) would pnss
silently by. This can never be, how
ever, and more and more Nazareth will
be dear to the Christian heart as the
home of Mary, ‘highly favored and
blessed among women,' and the place of
the hidings of His power, Who for onr
sakes marie Himself of no reputation,
end took upon Him the form of a ser
vant, and was made in the likeness of
men.” (Dr. R. L. Stewart.)
“To the simple Christian. Nazareth,
the home of the Saviour’s boyhood, the
scene of His early labours, His prayers,
His domestic relations, His private life,
possesses a far greater charm, a far more
intense interest, than the Annunciation
could have given it. In this repect it
iar surpasses Bethlehem.'" (Dr. M.
Brodrick, j
“The scene of His earthly life is alto
gether in harmony with His character.
It is ‘Holy Ground;’ and whatever “may
or must be said of its inhabitants, an
cient or modern, let us remember that
the greatest good God ever bestowed
upon our world did ‘come out of Nazar
eth.’” (Dr. W. M. Thomson.)
Here on this sacred ground at the
lower edge of the city we pitched our
camp for a night as we set our faces to
ward Jerusalem.
|To be continued.)
trick moving by drawing each box down
as it came within reach. You needn’t
be surprised, dear reader; the East is
rapidly learning from the West; and
the West has much to learn from the
East too. One’s experience in the Land
of the Bible is a oonstant surprise.
Here we visited the bazaars and a
genuine Nazareth carpenter-shop (not
so different from a carpenter-shop in
America, save in the size and shape of
tools, and mayhaps finer work than our
common shops). We supplied ourselves
with olive wood mementoes, also pretty
laoe-work for which the women of this
place are famed. We also noticed on
the side of many houses stairways lead
ing up to the rooves, on which some
live and sleep, and even have lambs and
chickens fed. On the eastern side of
town is the Moslem mosque with grace
ful dome aud minaret, and the new
Serai or residence of the Muhammadan
governor.
“The name of the town is not men
believe have come down through all the
Christian centuries without appreciable
cliungc, three are specially noteworthy.
One is the line of cliff’s which rise be
hind the Maronite church: another is
the public fountain, known as Mary’s
Well; and the third is the rounded
crest of the hill upou which the greater
part of the city is built.—The influences
which are now contributing to the
growth of this mountain city,and which
are drawing to it the best aud most de
vout of every land, in ever-increasing
numbers—are almost wholly traceable
to its connection with the Holy Child
who grew up here with winsome man
ners and irreproachable life from in
fancy to mature manhood. If it were
possible to disassociate this from_place
the silent years which He spent within
its confines: if it were possible to elimi
nate from the fair prospect, which the
traveller from far away lands now
iooks down upon from the rim of this
green basin,all the churches and schools
. and hospitals and orphanages and homes
Colds
It should be borne in mind that
every cold weakens the lungs, low
ers the vitality and prepares the
system for the more serious dis
eases, among which are the two
greatest destroyers of human life,
pneumonia and' consumption.
Chamberlain’s
Cough Remedy
has won its great popularity by its
prompt cures of this most common
ailment. It aids expectoration, re
lieves the lungs and opens the
secretions, effecting a speedy and
permanent cure. It counteracts
any tendency toward pneumonia.
Price 25c, Large Size 50c.
tiouediu the Old Testament, nor’by which have been erected here-in His
Josephus. There was no Roman gar- name —this prosperous town, which,
risen in the place; and, being hid away like Bethlehem, the birthplace of our
among the mountains and off from all Lord, ranks with the best and most at-
it appears in the language of this coun- to have received the angel s message);
tr\ comes!rum a ruoi which means and on tho rock litre overlaid nchlv
the great roads, it seems that it was
overlooked and almost unknown. It is
most probable that there was but little
I admixture of foreign element in its
I population, if any atail. It was con
tractive cities of Palestine, would speed
ily lose its prestige among the Galilean
towns and revert to the littleness and
obscurity which characterized it before
it became the abiding-place of -the
If you want an interesting farm
| paper, try The American Farmer,
a monthly farm journal costing
j 50c per year. A year’s subscrip
tion to this journal is given free
, with a year’s subscription to the
N < \vs. Both papers for $1.00. tf