Orleans independent standard. [volume] (Irasburgh, Vt.) 1856-1871, 1869-08-31

The Bedouins ofNew England.
Mr.. Palgrave, in his recent most instruc-
tive volumes of Travels in Central and
Eastern Arabia, gives a representation of
the religious condition of the rowing deni-
zens of the desert which shows a striking
affinity between them, and those among us
who are promulgating what they consider
q broader and more liberal christianity.
The Bedouin Is Mohammedan, but of
the liberal sort, with nothing ofthe bigotry
and fanaticism of the orthodox. I.lamism
sits so lightly upon him AZ scarcely to veil
the primitive nakedness of his rude nature
RELIGION. When free Of observation and
outside restraint, his worship amounts to
nothing but homage to the sun, the symbol
or cosmical force. "The sun rose" SAYS
Palgrave "and then for the first time
witnessed what afterwards became daily
spectacle the main act of BedOuin worship
in their own land Hardly had the first
clear rays struck level across the horizon,
than our nomade companions, facing the
rising disk. began to recite alternately, but
without any previous ablutiOn or even dis
mounting from their beasts, certain form
ulas of alteration and invocation, nor de-
sisted till the entire orb rode clear above
the desert edge. sun worshippers as they
were before the days of Mohammed, they
still remain such" Yet they style them
selves. in a broad sense they claim to be,
GOOD NIohammedans, and pass readily for
such. The Arabs of the towns and cities,
in thepopu!ou. uplands and mountain val
levs of the peninsula, are not so extremely
liberal in faith and practice. With the
exception of the Wahhabees, however, tho
willing to believe in the Koran, they are
very slow in shaping their conduct by it,
"The Arabs are, centrally speaking, rather
believing than a religious nation nor is
the phase of mind hereby indicated a mere
paradox, as one might, at first sight, hold
it to be, Men who readily grant an abb
stract belief to everything, are not likely
10 reconcile, in practical way, the many
contradictions thus admitted into their the
DRY by acting on nothing. Christian Jew
ish, Mohammcd, or Pagan creeds and forms
the Arab when left to himself, does not
see why they should not all be equally true,
equally estimable; while at the same time,
he doe, not see any very cOgent reason for
following one rather than the other; and
thus comes to the happy conclusion of
binding himself to none. Not that he en-
tertans the smallest doubt regarding the
divine mission Of any of the six hundred
prophets generally enumerated from Adam
down to Mohammed inclusively, but he is
unwilling to give any one of them in par.
ticular any adherence prejudicial to the
rights ofthe rest"
How precisely does this represent the
style of religion now coming into vogu,
with some of the rowing spirits of New
England and which may fifty be calleC
christian Bedouinism. Those broad andl lib
eral believers who are ready to includ,
Brahminism, Mohammedanism and wha
not, as forms Of christianity, and who ar,
eager to show how wide their sympathy i,
with the most diverse and contradictory
creeds, and how generous their tolerance
for Llamaism and Fetichism, may congrat
ulate themselves on receiving the RICH
hand offellowship from the tent dweller
and scavengers Of the East. Christianity
is as thin veil to the religion Of natur,
which they set forth rs Mohammedanisn
to the Bedouin sun worship. In their hos
pitable patronage Of all creeds-Arab hos
pitality, moreOyer-they join hands witt
the sons Of the desert; placing all on
level, and finding no reason why all ma,
not be equally true and equally estimablt
On the whole and for the time being
christianity is preferred and is protested
But this same elasticity of faith which &C
cepts all forms Of religion, and counts al
rs good, is in the way of earnest practica
attachment to any. The result is not S
apparent, as yet, in the speculative me
who are disseminating this Bedouinism, q
the masses who receive it acquiescentiy.-
The masses who listen to these teaching
seeno cogent reason for following one forr
of religion rather than another, and al
coming to the conclusion to bind then
selves to none. 1t will not be long befor
these christian Bcdouins will land wher
their co-religionists Of the desert.have lane
ed, in utter ungodliness. ut is true" ado
Palgraye, 'that among very large nun
Der, this immense latitudeOf belief has lie
to an equally or even a more logical cons,
quence, namely, entire scepticism, and
settled resolution to prefer the certain I
the uncertain, the present to the future.
Shall abandon the pleasures of the pure win
goblet
For all they tell me about milk and honey her
after?
Life and death, and resurrection to follow,
-Stuif and nonsense, my dear madame:
are the too celebrated lines of a very POI
ular poet, and have often heard the
quoted in moments ofunreserved cOnvers
ton with mequivocal approval on Il
part of all present. Not that, even thu
the Arab disbelieyes, but that he has mac
up his mind not to fash his thumb abor
the matter"
Religious indiferentism--nOt "fashir
the thumb" about the matter-which is
baleful as pronounced infdelity, Is Il
great danger Of our present time. And i
diiierentism is the progeny of BedouinisI
-Congregatioaalst.
The Way, the Truth, the Life.