Sunbury American and Shamokin journal. [volume] (Sunbury, Northumberland Co., Pa.) 1840-1848, 1845-02-22

pressive OF the Providence of God, shadowng
over and protecting Egypt and, as such, is just
as pure and sublime as are the phonetic signs
or letters by which we convey the same idea.
Mr. &. also pointed on, the striking resemblance
between the symbol and the winged head of a
chcrub.
The next subject touched upon was the E.
gyptian Cross, crur anSsid, or the handled
cross. This has also been called "the sacred
ia,o," from its tancied resemblance to the Greek
II. By some it has been called "the key of the
Nile" for no other reason than that it bears
some resemblance to modern hydrant key. 1t
is found in the hands Of numerous persons, both
divine and human, Oh the sculptures. 1t was
selected by the Egyptians during the second
age Of writing, to symbolic eternal life. That
they attached spiritual significance to it, ap-
pears from the ftct that the early Christian an
chorites who sought refuge, during the era of
the martyrs, in the reign OF Dioclesan, in the
tombs and quarries Of Egypt frequently adopted
it instead of the Christian cross. The original
symbol resembles an ordinary cross, with loop
whereby to hang it up. Mr.. G. mentioned that
! he had seen in a remote quarry in Middle f.
| gypt, figure, designed to represent the Sa-
vour, drawn as if appended, not TO a cross, but
to this symbol of Immortality. The cross had,
| therefore, the same meaning with them as with
.us--it was the type OF the life everlasting be.
! yond the tomb.
! Next was the Ark Of the Tajernacle The
! Egyptians appear in the earliest times to have
made use Of arks or shrines, figures of which a.
bound on the monuments. These arks were
yelled, or sometimes the veil was raised, and in
the Holy of Holes was placed some symbol,
guarded and overshadowed by two kneeling f.
cures, with outstretched wings, resembling md
corresponding to the Cherubm OF the Hebrew
ark OF the covenant Generally the symbol is
the sacred beetle, or scarG6oeus, (Which was
the emblem OF the generative vital principle, )
supporting the disc of the sun.
The scarabee in the mythology of Egypt
symbolized regeneration, i. e., being born a
gain, and to show how uudevatingly the so
called heather emblems were adopted by tn,
early Christians, the lecturer stated that the ia
theirs Of the Church, and st. Ambrose in par
,cular, termed Our Saviour the good scarabee
| n other arks different emblems, such as "pu
rity," "life," and stability" occupy the Holy
of Holes. Having pointed out an ark, Mr.. 6
showed that in their distant campaigns the f
gyptians carried with them shrnes, for whici
tabe rnacles were provided. One was showI
~ Il -r,l. . d. I
in his campaign in Asia, in which is a banl
carIouche Zone without any writing inside,) de
: dlcaed TO the worship of the inetiable name, 81
miiar in accepiaton to the unpronounced JehO
' rah, which the Hebrews always sounded Ado
= mai and which Josephus has called 1.-THE shud
u dering name of God" Before this are five /
gyptaus kneeling, with uplifted hands.
o Mr.. G. then remarked that he would not di.
d cuss the question whether the Immortality
J. the soul were Taught in the Pentateuch or nc
l. but he would undertake to show that the EgyE
: tans were acquainted with it. This can b
l. proved from the Ritual Tor the Dead, now trans
't lated. 1t is called "the book of the manifest,
tions of light" and is inscribed on the papy
9 found in the wrnppings Of the mummies.
). cont lins prayers, and also confession of fail
s and of practice, showing curious analogies wi,
the Decalogue. The form ofthis confession
i negative, the deceased saying, III have defrau
e ed no man. &c. AT n,e end of The roll of p
i pyrus, sometimes forty feet long, is general
= drawing, representing Anubis standing by
q emoaimed hJdy, from which the soul is just Il
Is ing IN the shape of a hawk, with a human hea
g and holding in It's claws the emblem OF immo
: tality, and "the sail of uansmigration." TT
n text says: "Thy iiring soul abandons ii
nt corpse, thy mummy remains in the earthly s
T. pulchre." In connection with this subject NJ
n, q. remarked that the custom of burying pray
g books or rituals has only ceased in Italy wit
is in three hundred years, This symbol was il
T. veCted While as vet the Egyptians had no a
T. phabctc signs by which to express the idt
IL we nov convey nv the letters 5, o,u, l.,
H. tie Judgment scene, the soul was representt
IT, as rrinc-rnaled IN lis earthly form, 0he san
d. as our cotton at presently A painting W,
J" shown, representing Manephlha lst, presentC
81 after death 10 Osiris who was the jadiCial a
= tribute Of the Most High. The hieroglyphi,
N over the king cali HIM the Osirtan, i. e. take
re to Osiris Another Instance of the same vi
shown in painting Of Ramses ~, also take
o. from his tomb.
N The Judgment scene Of Amenthi was expa
s. ed AT large from a beautiful pain,iog represeu
lc ing the trial of the soul ola woman, whose IN