New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1874-09-26
DAYS OF ATONEMEyT.

Our Jewish brethren began, about fort
night ago, their new year $685., as they have
for 1000 years dated their year from the au-
tumnal equinox. From that time until the day
of AtOnement (the 21st inst.) trumpet was
blown daily in the synagogues as warning to
prepare for the approaching great fast
1t seems to secular observers as If our
Christian teachers tomorrow night might hnd
hints for the help of their people In some OF
these ancient Observances dictated to the Jews
by God himself. Just now there is many an
amiable, weak kneed Christian who is stunned
and dismayed at the sudden apparent neces-
sity for defense of both his faith and practice.
He hears vague reports of war declared be-
tween science and religion; and how shall he
take part in it7 He is more familiar with
Tracts than with Tyndall. and understands
the markets better than molecules. The dan
ger is doubly appalling because he knows
nothing about it. On all sides, too, he hears
doubts and SCOTS at the practice of the
Church. This time last year it was Chris
tian fnancier who was on trial before the
public now it is an eminent preacher. He
feels very much as the Apostles did, doubtless,
when Judas betrayed his Master and Peter
turned his back upon him. The average
Christian does not know which foundation OF
his temple will first crumbe and fall, or at
which side the attack will be made. He has
been used to the old pious routine of church
going pastoral visits, missionary collections
a calm jog-trot progress by which he expected
some day the whole earth to be christianized.
Now, he is told on one side by scoffers that
missions are failure, and on the other by
Al, raxyftx Of IN
female members of the iocks is snare to
the feet of the clergyman. Whether he looks
at home or abroad, the ancient landmarks OF
faith, purity, and virtue are removed.
Suppose he should turn to more ancient
landmarks still, and note how his nelghbor
Moses or Rosenbaum was taught to fit him
self for the duties and devotion of new
year. Instead of lnquiring into or bemoaning
the opinions or shortcomings of this man or
that, he was summoned to rigorous SELF
examination. He was sent out OF the city to
live close to Nature, to thank God for the
harvest, the early rain, and the sunshine, and
to know as they shone or fell upon his own
head by deeper reasoning than that OF science
that it was God who sent them. When the
day Of AtOnement came, he repaired to the
synagogue in his shroud, that the days of
death as we'll as the days of his past life
might be before him to help him amend the
future. Our modern Jews have altered all
these manners with their skies; they have
given over the wholesome and beautiful GUS
tom of wOrshiping in the woods to the Metho-
dists, who borrowed it from them. They do
not go to the synagogues in their cerecloths,
nor turn loose the goat to wander in the will
al H., -. &C tho 40
But there was an immortal germ of COM
mon sense in these abandoned rites, to use no
higher meaning. What if every man of us
tomorrow should leave the belief or the sins
of Beecher and Tyndall and even the Kellogg
Government alone for one day and concern
ourselves with our ownf A vigorous self
examination" would have rare zest of novelty
as mental discipline to the shrewdest lawyer or
keenest bull or bear. If we even metaphor
cally put on our shrOuds for an hour or two as
we walk Broadway it will do Us no harm.
We have spent all our lives very likely so far
in preparing for the half dozen years at the
end when we can retire from business :"
what if we give a few minutes to
thinking how we Shall fare when the
street is busy and crowded as it is now,
and the men we know in Office and club go
up and down, bargaining and joking as now,
and nobody misses us, though we lie some
where out of sight with still cold feet that
will never tread the old way againf What
will the theory of Huxley or Beechers guilt
matter to us then7 How we have dealt to
our customers or clerks in shop or office;
whether we showed ourselves liars or honest
men to them; how we bore ourselves during
these commonplace days to wives, servants,
children,-these are the questions that will
face us then with all the distance between
death and life to make them terrible and IL
| exorable. 's0 -"t~ - =. =.
1t was the custom of the Jews after thus
looking their past lives and coming death in
the face to scourge each other. We might
amend the custom, having been too fond Of
scourging each other, and try little sharp
elf-discipline and reform.
Detectives yarns are often little more marvellous
Al, a. IS oo;ln vho lin