The Andrew County Republican. [volume] (Savannah, Mo.) 1871-1876, 1875-06-11
For the Republican.
a Day at Church-Continued.
If Christ be nat risen, then is Your tditk
IN rain, DC"

. system Oh tneolopN lotlnu Ill me fpiDle,
the Old and New Testament, rs gener-
ally understood by that portion of COM
munity calling themselves Christians.
That this system might not be con-
founded with previously existing pre-
tences to divine revelation, its best and
ablest advocates challenge for it histor-
zeal t!tt0, and affect to trace it up to its
oricination, in time. place and circum-
stances. rs all other historical facts may
be traced. Upon this ground, the doc
trines becomes facts. and people are no
longer called on 10 believe merely, but
to investigate, examine, and fearlesSly
apply criticism and the rules of evidence
by which the credihility of other hiStori-
cal facts are measured The time as
Si~ned for the originatiOn of this special
system, is some eighteen hundred years
ago, reckoning from the reign of the
Roman Emperor Augustus, to its ulti-
mate and complete establishment under
Constantine the Great. Any continu-
ance ofitS history after this time, is un-
necessary to an investigation of its evil
denceS. and any proof of its existence
jctorc this time, would eISainly be ia
tai to the origin alton claimed for it,
The pbtcc assigned for its origination
is the obscure and remote province of
,Judca, which Is in territory about 100
miles in length, from Dan to BcerSheba.
and 4G miles in breadth, from Joppa to
Bethlehem, coastin@ upon the eastern
extremity OF the Mediterranean Sea, and
in the neighborhood of Egypt, Arabia,
Phpnicia, and SYRIA. As you will see
by looking upon L map, the geOgraph,
OF Palestine lies in narrow compass
it comprises a tract Of country of nearly
POO miles in length, in its full extent.
from the river of Egypt south of GAIA
to the furtherest bounds toward Damas-
Gus, and perhaps Of more than 100 in
breadth, including Perea, from the
Mediterranean eastward to the desert
Arabia.-ELsLEY.
The circumstances assigned as the his
tOrical basis of this religion. are, that in
the reigns of the Roman Emperors Au-
0IlStuS and EiberiuS, and IN the Province
of ,Judea, Il Jew, (said to have been of
the lower order of the lowest and most
ignorant and barbarOus of all the sub
jccts of the Roman Empire,} arose into
nOtOriety among his countrymen, by
leaving his ordinary avocation rs labor
ing mechanic, and travelling on foot
from village to village IN tfat little
Province, affecting to- cure diseases. and
preaching the doctrines ;sSeribcd to him
in the New Testament. giving himself
out Is some extraordinary parsonage,
and who was convicted rs a ngalefactor
and executed under the authority OF Pom
thus Plate. the Roman prOcuratOr. Tie
name OF this extraordinary person was
called JESU or JOSHUA, a very common
name among the Jewish people. 'yhe
regal title CHRIST, or the Amounted,
was not only held by all the kings of
Israel, but was commonly assumed by
all sorts OF imposters, conjurorS, and
pretendcrs to supernatural communica-
tions. There is nothing extraordinary
or unusual in the name given to the
said to be founder of the Christian sys-
tenn OF religion.
In view of the many CHRISTs already
known and still anticipated, the gospel
itself distinctly warns the people, thus:
"lf any man shall say to You, 10, here
is Christ, OF 10, he is there, believe him
not; - that ''many false ChristS should
arise" Even the heathen Prince Cyrus,
is called, by Isaiah, the Christ OF God.
Isaiah, XIV, !. How natural 1t is for
every sect or denomination to denounce
others rs false, and warn the people
against accepting them. Now, rs we
are expressly warned that many false
Christs should arise, and cautioned
against believing tlsem, does it not be-
hOove Us to look back to that distant age,
O9O0years age, Through thatvastre period
OF darkness and superstition, which for
eleven hundred years, called the dark
ages, hung as IN eclipse upon religious
thought, and buried the Christian and
other religions ont OF sight, in midnight
darkness, with great care and circum-
spection. lest we nay be deluded and
deceived by choosing tbs false instead of
the true, if any be true. If there have
been many Christsy and we have not
use for all of them, bus must have one,
before choosing, ought we not to look
well to the selection we make2 The
true Christ is said to. be the only one
that will benefit us. Let therefore the
claims of all be first examined, in the
light OF history, reason and common
sense, and that one selected, if any,
which is most acceptable to the judg-
ment and understanding. But to under