The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1884-12-10

Mr. Rlanchnrd.a a.ratura Lnst Kxanf,


his lectures on the great religions of the world
last evening in the vestry of the Congress
Square church. The subject was ''The Reli-
gion of Egypt"
The speaker began by referring to the great
drama now being acted in Egypt, whose chief
Characters are Gen. Gordon, the troops ad-
Fanciug TO his assistance, the False Prophet.
the Sultan and Mr.. Gladstone. He hoped to
see an English protectorate over Egypt. Such
au issue OF events would be for the good of the
world.
Mr. blanchard then gave description of
The wonderful country whose strange religion
was to be considered. Practically, Egypt con-
sists only Of the valley of the Nile-the river
running about 100 miles from Nubia to the
Mediterranean aud the intervening land be-
tween the eastern and western hills being, on
an average, only about seven miles wide, q
small territory, indeed, for so great an empire
of influence, for from Egypt have come nearly
all The arts and sciences and its people. there
fore, have always had the great spectacles TO
Influence their thoughts-the river giving food
by LIS inupdations; the ueserts east and west,
declaring desolation and inspiring fear; the
s'aIs, in raiDless climate, ever nightly shin
lDg IN silence and in majesty, calling mems
thoughts to regions above. Tue religion OF
ancient Egyptis no longer held by men, bat
It's Influence lives on in Judaism and Chris
tiaDitp 1t lie difficult, indeed, TO tell what the
religion was. Its records run far back into the
past A statue OF Crepben, an Egyptian king,
exhibited few years ago at an international
exhibition at Paris, was hewn 1900 years be-
fore Christ was born. Pyramids, tombs,
to that. But the key note Of the
religion of Egypt is reverence for the
divine mysteryiof organic life; it worshipped
God in creation; it saw the unity in the varie-
~ OF created things. 1t is held by scholars
that there was a doctrine for the priests and
another for the people. The first was a sub
lime monotheism. the second was polytheism
accommodated TO the ignorant multitude. The
priests and those whom they initiated into
their knowledge, believed there was one God
whose manifestations in man and in the world
they called lesser gods. Ammon is the su-
preme one, the secret force which brings all
things to light. Osiris, Isis, Horus, Rs, and all
the reFt OF the many gods of Egypt are sepa-
raie ceities. When Ammon acts through iu-
telligence, he is Emet; when he accom- plishes
anything with art he is Phtaab; when he is
beneficent he is Asins; when he acts in the
sun, making light to shine, he is Rs. 1t is
like some OF the theories of the Trinity today,
one God in three manifestations 1t is this
sublime monotheism of Egypt which attracts
the attention OF thinkers. Here was this peo-
ple seeing the vanity of things and forces in
nature, and yet holding to unity. The Nile
Wac good, the desert was evil. The sun the
moon, the stars, were blessings; the overflow,
or the underfow of the Nile brought ram aud
famine. TIE cow was helpful, the crocodile
hartiul. Still they held to the One above all.
That, indeed, was great achievement.
We find among these gods, the manifesto
lions of the One, series of trials. We have
male, and female, and child. Osiris, and Is,s
aud Horus. The triad of rhebes was Nomen
Ra, Atborand Chorso-faih.r, mother and
SOD. La the time of Augustus, the worship of
Isis, the mother, and Horns, the son, becains,
as popular, as 10 after time, did the worship
of the virgia and the child, AS Mary and
jesus were beloved rs saving FROM the wrath
OF God, SO Isis aud Horus were loved as saving
from tbs wrath of Osiri-. But the doctrine OF
many gods were for Gne people a veritable poly
theism. The lower classes worshipsd, finally,
Cats, bulls, crocodiles. The great PROFESSIONS
celebrating great festivals In streets of rhebes
aud Memphis, and entering the gigantic tenn
pies, ended with the exhibition of god. in
the inner shrine, who was an animal, the bull
Apis receiving the highest homage. Ia. Egypt,
however, this Polytheis did not lead TO i'm
moraity. The scholars account for this wor-
ship oil animals on the 2rouud of the power OF
ssm bolism. Thus the bull was the symbol of
power aud SO was the symbol OF o iris; the
brght and piercing eSe OF the hawk made 1t
fit 81 nboi of Horas, who was the euh-the
crocodile, destroying so many, was the symbol
OF Typhon, the principle Of evil. This is prob-
ably true account OF the growth of the wor-
ship OF auimals. But, however, much the
learned looked beyond tie symbol. the people
stopped At lt--theY worshipped the creature in
stead of the Creator.
Mr.. Blanchard next dwelt on the belief In
immortality OF the Egyptians The custom OF
OIL banning the dead at last mad8 the tombs
more pop0lous than the cities. Hence the peo-
pie came TO mediate on death. They belisv-
ed 10 future life centuries before tho PhaFi-
sees Taught il, or the Chri.t assumed it in HIS
teachings. The Egyptian priests taught that
nothing anOni hJfAted. fo die nf,.r1
is only TO assume another form. So says DR..
Drapen IN his Intellectual Development oisEu-
rope. Herodots, he also says, declares that
the Egy ptlsns were the first to discover that
the,soul is immortal their coDcep ion beiagithat
iGis an emanation from the universal soaI,
which animates, in a less degree, all animals
and plante. ard even inorganic things. What
else indeed, can we today believer 1t ia the
over soul aud immortality OF Ralph Waldo
Emerson. We notice also in the religion of
Egypt its great doctrine of Re riDutiou.
The lecturer then described the Trial of every
soul az death before Osiris in the shadowy re-
giUn of Amenti--tbe under ~orld-in the pre-
senee of four genii OF that realm and for ty-t@o
assessors To this judgment the soul waa cons
ducled by Horus who carried him past Cerberns
the guardian of the ga Q. Anubis weighed his
heart in the scales of justice. If his good deeds
outReighed the bad, he was dismissed to the
fields of Aahula--the Elysian Fields. If the
bad out@eighed the good, he was condemned
10 tfAbbuiSIdtlODs 10 impress EDlS uOcGflu6 On
the minds of the people, there as established
q ceremony of inquistion before death Mon
arcbs and people had TO undergo this ordeal,
the ceremonies of which Mr.. Blanchard fully
described,
The lecture concluded with an exposition of
the influence of the religion of Egypt on Juda-
ism and Christianity. The figure of the Cher
ubm among the Jews was taken from Egypt
and Moses borrowed much in his ritual from
Egyptian worship.
In Christianity, the doctrines OF the Trinity
and Atonement and the RESURRECTION of the
body" came largely from the Christian theol
ogians of Egypt. Prayers for the dead and
"Purgatory" also comes from Egypt. These
theologes were Influenced by the triads and
the atonement and material resurrection of
the ancient religion OF their country. The
scholars of all denominations are uniting in
opinion that the vanished religion of Egypt is
really living, in part, In doctrines formulated
by AFRICAN teachers-Auger, Atbanasius
Clemeps-snd not by Christ. Wonderful is
the land of the Nile, strange is the religion
that rose among the people shut in q narrow
valley by the desolste deserts, profitable is the
study of its career.
The next lecture, on the Religion OF
Greece" sill be given Tuesday evening, De-
cember Both.