The weekly register. [volume] (Point Pleasant, Va. [W. Va.]) 1862-1909, 1880-03-03


PLANTATION Of the name Of Christians
that Christ had been executed
through the procufator Pontius Pr
late, under the reign of Tiberius.-
This will be sufficient to show that
all outside historical evidence for the
life Of Jesus is wanting. All later
writers draw exclusively from Chris
tian sources, which again are based
upon the Gospels alone. We are
thus reduced to the necessity of tax.
ing every particular from such as
were deeply engaged, or whose inter-
ests must naturally have led them to
relate things which, perhaps, never
happened, and many others in which
they might be deceived. Yet none
of these writer's lay any claim to in
spiration, nor indeed could such a
prerogatiye be consistently ever al
lowed TO them; for if every one Of
them, at the time Of writing, had
been. under the immediate guidance
of God, they would. all have given US
the vety same account of things,
without the least difference Of varia-
ton; for it is impossible, if God die
tated to them all the same history,
that any variation or difference
should be found. But that there are
frequent contradictions is evident
From this circumstance, and many
others, I conclude that the writers Of
the New Testament could not be I'M
der the infallible guidance of God;
neither do I find that they published
their writings as such. And if they
did not declare themselves inspired,
what authority or foundation could
any one else have to declare them sol
On the contrary, it very evidently
appears, that there were no writings
deemed canonical in what is called
the first ages Of Christianity, but the
Old Testament. "The Gospels" says
a we'll known author, Dodwell, Dis.
sert in rev. continued SO concealed
in those corners of the world where
they were written, that the latter
Evangelists knew nothing of what
the preceding wrote, otherwise there
could not have been SO many appar.
ent contradictions, which, almost
since the first constitution of the
canon, have exercised the wits of
learned men. Surely, if st. Luke
had seen that genealogy of our Lord
which is in st. Matthew, he would
not himself have produced one wholly
different from the other, without Civ
ing the least reason for the diversity;
and when in the preface to his Cos
pei he tells the occasion of his writ.
ing, which is that he undertook it
from being furnished with the rela-
ton of such as we're eye witnesses Of
what he writes, he plainly intimates
that the authors of those Gospels
which he had seen were destitute of
that help; so that neither having
seen themselves what they relate,
nor consulted with diligence and
care such as had seen them, their
credit was therefore dubious and sus-
pected. To the foregoing observa-
tions, lshall only add, that there are
the same doubts as to his person and
character, professions and writings,
as the others; for it is not known
whether he was a Jew or a Heather,
a physician or a painter; and as to
his Gospel, some think it probably
ST. Paul's, while others say that Lake
only digested what Paul preached to
the GenLiles; and others, again, that
he wrote with the help of St. Paul.
(For particulars see Calmet on the
word Luke) The last is st. John,
and it is plain that he wrote only
for the purpose of establishing the
divinity of Jesus, which particular
is not contained in the Gospels then
extant; he, for this reason goes on a
very different plan from the other
Evangelists. ellis principle care in
this undertaking." says Calmet, Il
prefer quoting eminent Christian au-
thors, as their opinion must give ad-
ditional strength to what l assert,)
"was to relate such things as might
be of use in confirming the divinity
of the son; and to this purpose says
many things which the others are
silent on, and omits such matters in
which the Others are very particular,