The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1882-08-23
AS to Battologism.

The materials for full biography Of
the late Battos are very scanty. Hero
dotus makes him king of Cyrene in Libya.
Peter Mintert says he was poet. One
authority accuses him of having been so
bad sufferer as to have habitually half
repeated remark an immense number
of times before fairly uttering it. An
other says he deliberately gabbled sense
less talk in the most offensive manner in
the common ear-which art we regret to
believe did not die with him. Ali agree
that for the one reason or the other-as
fly has been know to get embalmed and
and imprisoned in amber, and so achieve
sort OF eternity therein and thereby
Battos got his name into a Greek word
which to this day holds his memory dear,
though he himself is so lost to sight.
That word is the verb BattoLo0e5, which
primarily meant to "talk like Battos, -
and which subsequently took on the sec
ondary sense of suffering, or saving the
same thing over and over again without
intending 1T, or intending anything in
particular by it. That word, thus i'm
pregnate with sense, had its place in the
Attic tongue when our Lord was in
Jud@a, and was laid hold of by the Holy
Spirit IN recording one caution and pro-
hibltion which He addressed to His dis
ciples, as we find it in the sixth ". y of
Matthew, thus: In praying do not
Bottolog'ze, as the heather do-in the
idea that much talk will secure Gods
hearkening."
This explanatory statement as to
heather usage, together with the ety.
mology of the verb, makes its sense toll
erably clear. The reference may be pre-
sumed to be to superstition which has
had wide currency in pagan lands, to the
effect that certain amount of religious
rite and ceremony can be weighed out
so to speak-against certain amount of
salvation. 1t may be prayer-mill. 1t
may be a pilgrimage 1t may be GER
tain mum Der Of walkings with bare feet
over bright Goals. 1t may be to lie down
and be crushed under the car of Jugger-
naut-or according to the most advanced
spelling, Jagau-nath. Or it may be the
parrotlng OF certain number of Pater
noSterS and Ave MorlaS, or the reading
OF five chapters in the Bible and asking
one person daily whether he be in a
state of salvation. But whatever it be.
II the inner sense Of it consist in doin0
something rather than in BEING some
thing; and if its praying be performance
and MT petition; it is clearly a case of
Battologism-of "vain repetition and
comes, as clearly, under the prohibition
of the Lord
Our fathers labored under the impress
sion that our Saviour when utterinG this
saying had rather especially in mind the
voluminous and repetitious utterances
which, In due course of time, were to
have their place in the Liturgy of the
Church of England. But some of their
sons have suspected that He NAV have
had quite as decided a forethought Of the
Portentous Journalism which has been
known to exhibit itself even in their own
" long prayer" and other service which
supplanted the Prayer Book.
So far as what we call the "Lord's
Prayer may be taken in the way of sug-
costing the general duty OF worship. we
seem to be clearly taught, concisely and
comprehensively, to begin with homage. /.
to ask for the extension Of the reign of
God and the practice of Righteousness
every where; to supplicate such temporal .
things in daily life as are needful for us.
to beg the forgiveness Of our sins, &C.
oompanying it with the exercise toward
all who may have offended us OF for
giveness such as we desire for ourselves
and to ask deliverance from temptation
and all snares Of the devil. To implore
,hus-and to do it intelligently, peni-
,ently, humbly, trustfully, and su6mis-