The Hickman courier., 1877-06-29

retiring to cave OF Mt Hare, and there
amid spasmodic convulsiOas he had, ac-
,ordinT to the MOhammelan story, his |
first vision. The angel Gabriel appeared |
and commanded him to recite what he
the angeD said. He was much troubled |
about this, and on consultation with an
DID Arab, who knew the scriptures of the
Jews and Christians, he was informed
that Good had chosen him to be the
prophet of his people" The revelations
continued from that time to the end of
his life, were committed to memory by
his adherents, and after his death col
lected and written down.
His first convert was bis wife. At the
end of three years his adherents num-
bered only forty. When he declared his
mission as the prophet of God his own
tribe outlawed him, and for some years
he was prosecuted. He fled from Mecca
in six hundred and sixty-two (the date
of the Hegira, the beginning of the
Moslem era, J to Medina, and established
his religion.
In the succeeding years he returned to
Mecca, overcame the koreishites, and
was acknowledged as sovereign and
prophet, and in a few years subjected
Arabia to his rule. In the ninth year of
The Hegirate e proclaimed his first htly
war against the Byzantine or Greek en-
pire This was a complete failure. The
next year he made his celebrated pill
grimage to Mecca, at the head of forty
thousand pilgrims. Three months after
his return to Medina he was taken seri-
ously ILL., He announced his own death
in the mosque, and prayed that God
might support him in the agony OF death,
He left only one child, Fatima, who be-
came the wife of Ali
Students Of N[oslem literature concede
that Mohammed was man of great
power He was acquainted with the
doctrines of both Jews and Christians,
but in his lectures TO his followers misre~
presented both. His visions were re-
ceived in a state similar to that made so
familiar by clairvoyants and spiritualists
The spasmodic commissions which at
tended every manifestation of revelation,
as described in the records were very
similar to the phenomena connected with
clairvoyant speaking, etc. He an
nOunced himself as the re>torer Of the
pure religion revealed by God to Abra-
ham. He required Pagans to leave their
idols and worship the one true God /;
required Jews to exchange the law Of
Moses for what he claimed was the new
and final revelation given to him, and
required Christians to cease worshipDing
Christ as God, claiming that this was
inconsistent with the Doctrine taught by
Christ himself. Manytrace the religion
of Mohammed TO the forms of Judaism
aud Christianity existing liz Arabia at
the time, which he intermingled with the
traditions and allegories of his race.
The fundamental doctrine OF the
Koran. or of Mohammedanism, is this
% There Is but one God, and Mohammed
is his Prophet" This idea of God does
not differ in matter Of points from that
held by Christians, except that they
reject entirely the doctrine of the Trinity.
The Mohammedans believe that Adam,
Noah. Abraham, Moses Jesus and Mo-
manned were divinely commissioned to
proclaim new laws and dispensations;
that to the prophets were revealed certain
scriptures inspired by God, that all those
have perished except the Pentateuch,
the Psalms, the Gospel and the Koran;
that the first three have been falsihed
and mutilated, and thatS the Koran
supersedes them all. Ihey..regard Christ
as next to Mehammed, but deny that he
was the son of God, and THAT he was
crucified, believing that some other per-
son suffered in his place, W hile he was
taken up to God. They believe in the
second coming of Christ, as heralding the
approach of the last Judgment. As to
future life, they belieye that God viii
Judge men by their acts In life; thatthe
time of resurrection is known only~ to
God; that after judgment all men must
pass over a bridge " liner than hair and
sharper than a sword" the good passing
over easily, the wicked falling headlong
to hell; that all who believe in theunity
of God will finally be released from
punishment and enter paradise, while
idolaters and hypocrites suffer eternally.
The Mohammedans observe strictly
the outward forms of their religion, re-
garding the Koran as the rule of their
religious, civil and social life. The Koran
forbids gambling, intemperance and
usury; urges charity, and provides for
the punishment of crimes; condemns
pride, avarice, debauchery, and insists on
submission to the will of God on for
bearance, love of peace sincerity, truth
fulness and benevolence. 1t restricts,
but does not prohibit polygamy, and pre-
sents q sensual idea of heaven.
After the death OF Mohammed the
promulgation of his doctrines spread
with amazing rapidity. The Moslems
conquered Syria (maki1g Jerusalem one
of their holy cities), Persia, Assyria and
all of northern Africa before the begin
ming of the eighth century. Then they
crossed into Spain, conquered province
after province then into Gaul, where
they met their first great defeat near
Tours, in 1872. They advanced into
China, swept over Judea, establishing
great empires, and mastering a portion
of the Greek empire. Then they were
in turn everr@n by the Tarter tribes,
led by the Turks, but these adopted
the religion of the people they
conquered and become its cham
pions, and in 1913 they captured
Constantinople. This was the golden age
OF Mohammedanism, and the Ottoman
empire was at the zenith ef its power.
Forty years afterward the Mohamme-
dams were forced out of western Europe,
and there has been gradual decline ever
since. There comes dissensions in their
own ranks, and they divided into two
great sects, the Sunnites and Shiahs.
Instead of the wonderful unity and en-
thusiasm that had prevailed, a hostility y
on the partof one sect for the other was
developed. The Mohammedans of the
Ottoman empire. of Arabia, Turkestan
and Africa, are Sunnites, and the Per
slams and the Mohammedans of India,
Shiahs. 1t is estimated that of both
sects there are now one hundred and fifty
millions in Europe, Asia and Africa, fully
one hundred millions being in Asia.
Mohammedanism was well calculated
to influence idolatrous and superstitious
nations. Its PRONUNCIATION and rapid rise
in power were at time when the Chris
tian religion was beset by enemies on all
sides. 1t is noticeable that in no case
did a Christian nation conquered by a
Mohammedan nation espouse the Mo-
hammedan religion. Mohammedanism
succeeded against lower type of civil
za ion, but never against higher. II
overrun the Roman empire OF the east
but the Christians remain Christians tc
this day.
As the Koran, written twelve hundred
years ago, with Arabic life in mind, fur
nishes the political system for Meham
medan nations, they have made httl'