The Norfolk post. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 1865-1866, 1866-02-01
LECTURE BY ARCHBISHOP
SPALDING.

| From the Washington National Intellgencerl
The first lecture in the course before
Wafs delivered last evening at Odd Eel
| lows Hall by the Most Rev. DR.. Spald-
| ing, Archbishop of Baltimore, on the
subject of 'The Crescent and the Cross. y
The hall was crowded to excess, and
the lecture was listened to with profound
attention. The lecture was interesting
and instructive, as we'll as eloquent, and
we regret that our space will not allow
us to give only bare outline.
| The lecturer appeared on the stand,
| accompanied by the various Catholic
ministers of the city, at 8 o'clock, and OH
being introduced to the audience by
Mr.. Fullerton, said: In glancing over
the records of the past our attention is
forcibly arrested by those great struggles
which involved the highest interest OF
humanity, and among these the most
protracted, and perhaps the most impor-
tant, was the great struggle for the mas
terry of the world between the two sys-
TENS represented by the Crescent and
the Cross-the Crescent, the banner of
Mahometanism, and the Cross, the BAN
ner of Christianity.
This struggle was the most important,
because it involved all the interests OF
civilization. Under the Crescent march
ed despotism, darkness and poligamy,
under the Cross liberty, light, and the
sacred character of woman.
1t was perhaps the most protracted of
| all struggles witnessed upon this earth !,
for it may be said to have begun In the
| rise of Mahometanism in the year 622,
and to terminate, so far as it was q strug-
gle for the mastery of the world, in the
siege of Vienna in 1928 struggle last
fnu ~, N than a fhnnoapA xvx.a sc,
This period Is naturally divided into
three epochs; the first embracing the Pc
riod from the 10th of July 500, the date
of the Mahometan era, the hegira or
| flight of Mahomet, down to the first cru
| SADIE in the year 1896, period of four
hundred and seventy-four years. The
second from 1906 to 1872, during which
the various crusades were carried on for
the recovery of the Holy Land, and the
third from the termination of the cru
sades down to the siege and relief OF
Vienna, period embracing more than
| four hundred years. The crusa les form
the central portion Of the whole period
and upon which the events turned
Those which went before were the
causes, and those which followed the
consequences of the crusades.
The eminent lecturer said he would
| otSiu Win tAiC iiSt CIuSduc, anu IOsDk
up the character of Mahomet (pronoun.
ced with the deepest gutteraf of the
Oriental dialects who arose in the first
quarter OF the seventh century.~ He was
man of no learning, probably could
not write his own name, but person o1
great natural resources. He had reached
his fortieth year before he gave himsel
out as an apostle of God. He was an OBJ
scure man, but by wealthy marriage
raised himself to high position in one
of the leading tribes of Arabia. He wa.
afflicted with the epilepsy, which BIZ
turned to account by stating after eacll
fall that he had had an interview with
the angel Gabriel. from whom he re.
ceived wonderful revelations. Through
his fundamentally the Alchoran or
Bible of Mahometaiiism was founded.
TO give an insight into the character
OF this remarkable man one of his Wis
ions was described in which he mounted
up into the heavens in the twinklipg of
an eye, where, among other things, he
saw an angel with 10000 heads, each
head had 70, 900 faces, each face 70, 600
mouths, each mouth 10000 tongues.
each tongue spoke 20, 900 different Ian
Ruages. He, however, made few diaci-
piles, and with his small number of fol-
/ lowers went into Medina, where he en-
ldeavored TO establish his religion.
This is called the flight or he0irs
which took place in 1892, aud is the h.,
] ginning of the Mahometan era. Find.