Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1870-01-16
A RELIGIOUS REVOLUTION
burning of the Royal Idols in Mad
agascar-EdOIatry Gives Place to
Christianity.

A remarkable religious revolution has
| taken place in Madagascar. We learn from
q letter from Rev. w. Pool, dated from
the capital on the 23d of September, and
published in a weekly contemporary, that
the Queen has had the royal idols publicly
| burned, that she and her aristOcracy have
| embraced Christianity. and that the whole
| province OF Imerina, in which the capital
is situated, has followed the example of
| the Government. The Queen embraced
Christianity early in the year, and has all
the summer been building a chapel royal.
| Meantime the wooden fence around the
Temple of the great national idol had
| been pulled down, and the priests assumed
a threatening aspect, even limiting that
| their god had medicine which would
| ayenge him on the hereto sovereign.
On the Sth of September they came in
force to the capital to claim their rights
| as mobiles. A council was called, and it
was decided to send the Chief Secretary
Of State and other high officials to the
sacred village, seven miles from the CAPT
tai, and burn the idol before its keepers
returned. They set off the same after
noon, and by an authority from the Prime
Minister seized the idols house. The
wood of the fallen fence was collected,
and fire was made, and the contents of
the temple were brought out to be burned.
First, the long cane carried before the
idol in professions was thrown in; then
twelve bullOcks' horns, from which in
cense or holy water had been sprinkled;
then three scarlet umbrellas and the silk
robe worn over the idol by the keeper
who carried it. Then came the IDOLS
I case-the trunk of a small tree followed
and fitted with cover; and last of all the
idol itself. Hardly any of the present
generation had seen the god, and great
was the surprise when he was produced
Two pieces of scarlet silk about three
feet hong and three inches wide, with a
small piece of wood about as big as a
mans thum inserted in the middle be
tween them, so that the silk formed as il
!, were two wings, was the great god OF
Madagascar, whose touch was sanCtifying
r and whose nearness was preservative.
/ "Gou cannot burn him, he is god, SAID
2 the people. eff he be a god he viii not
i burn, . said the officers; eve are going
r to try, and held it on a stick in in the
fire, that the people might see il as it wa
4 consumed. The victory was complete
r Next day four other idols shared the samt
r fate, and the rest followed. One was
c little bag of sand; another consisted o
three round pieces of wood united by
e silver chain.
i The people looked on in wonder, an,
/, when the process was over, seeing tina
= they had now no gods to worship, the,
Il sent TO the Queen TO ask what they wer,
o to worship for the future. The Govern
, ment, says the English Independent
IS adding to the information contained il
1t Mr.. POOLS letter, thereupOn appealed t
o the native Christians TO send Christia
n teachers, and they at once responded.
/ was found that of $50 towns and village
" in Imerina, 100 already had Christia
Is churches, and teachers were at once fOun
s. for all the rest This movement which
T. remarkable for its purely native origin,
" another proof that in certain stages @
Ie civilization nations may be converted b.
Ia authority. The conversion of Madagascar
" has been accomplished in the Rineteent
lr century much as that of the SaXons ws
n accomplished in the sixth. The iCOnC
m Clast is the refomcrs forerunner. T
Of | overthrow fetish worship the fetish i
re self must be first destroyed.