St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1885-01-31
i'm Favor of the Die
vinity of Christ.

Galilee, which is an expansion OF the
valley of the river Jordan, in which is
situated the sea OF Lake of Galilee OF
which Tiberias is the chief town. This
writer's description makes Galilee
kind of earthly hell. We quote:
During four-ffths of the year the
climate is well-nigh intolerable IN the
depression in which this stored lake is
located.
In the first place this deep hollow,
time like a furnace heated seven times,
The valley of the lake, which is merely
an expansion of the Jordan valley,
measuring perhaps fifteen miles in
length by five or six i'll breadth, is
hemmed in by sandy, treeless bluns'
measuring 1900 feet in height at the
point where pilgrims usually descend.
So nrecipitous are these bluffs, that a
view Of the sea is not afforded until you
stand on the very verge OF the decilvlty::
Thus nature has made a very oven OF
the locality, and although the cltlzens
NAV always look off and see the snowy
crest of majestic old Hermon, they must
pant and perspire and almost suttocate.
Christ and his heroic band OF follow
ers must have experienced great lncon-
venience in their work on this account.
But there are numerous animate pests
which combine with the weather to
make life burden here. l have seen
fleas and feas, but never anywhere
have encountered such superlatlveiy
pestiferOus feas as those OF Ilberlas::
An Arab proverb takes cognlzance OF
this by declaring that the king OF the
fieas has his throne at IIberlas. 1nere
is no doubt that these insects would
promptly worry to death man VINO
was bound and left by the Wayslde'
Dowerless to resist their Overtures.
Even the Bedouins who can endure any
amount of dirt and who are contented to
eat even wild lOcusts and other
insects, will mechanically pull up their
tent-Dins and move camp when the
feas become demonstratiVe.
Scarcely less baneful is the influence
of the gnats, mosquitoes, sandhles and
vermin in general which add their res
pectiye mites to the burden of our woe.
Lastly, there are actual centipedes and
scorpions, which have to be avoided.
| Clothing must not be laid down care
| Iessly. or the wearer is liable to atone
| for bis want of thoughfulness. Most OF
| the natives sleep upon the roofs OF their
houses, reposing upon beds that are ell
evated on legs and screened by bamboo
lattice-work.
want in this connection to proclaim
an emphasized version of common ar
gument in favor of the divinity OF
| Christ If the modern denizens of the
Holy Land are types of the people VINO
lived here 1900 years ago, as we have
reason to believe is the case, and che
gospel biographies of Christ are essen
TALLY correct, then every recorded acI
| and utterance stamps him as divine
Such gospel of love, fOrbearance, self.
sacrifice and purity could not have en-
| anated from a merely human source IL
| this longitude and latitude.
The question, "Can any good thine
come out of Nazareth 2" is one Whict
the modern tourist paraphrases int!
the broader inquiry, Can any good
thing come out of Palestine 7"
/ The natives are mercenary and cor
rupt to the hearts core. Let an earth
0uake or some great disaster Overtakt
i a portion of the community, and thu
4 eager question with the other portion
/ is, "HoW are we to profit by this calam
/ ity 2" This universal atmosphere O
i corroding selfishness and venality il
positively sitting. Everything has it,
price, and from morning to night tht
one word of the local vocabulary i
"piastres.n Every servant must exam
inc your jeWelry and crave bucksheesh
Shieks, pashas and village governor
are not above the same offensive pro
ceedures. A being of such qualities a
those ascribed to Christ, untalnted b.
the popular selfshness, infinitely ahea'
Of even the best of his disciples, wa
more than a man in such an age.
If this be SO, what commentary vi
have upon the condescensiOn of Go'
who would put on mortality to live ant
, labor among such q peOple-a peopl
uneducated, lazy, fOul-mouthed, Odlous
ly conceited-in short, almost virtue!es
We read that s'great multitudes" fol
: lowed Him in this vicinity, from "Ga
Iilee, and from DecapOlls, and from Je
rusalem and from Judea, and from be
yOnd Jordan just SO these mOderl
residents would follow any new relI
J gious leader that might rise up; but
alas, with only selfish purposes, am
with no capacity to comprehend truth
The loaVes and fishes would still be th
chief attractions, and when these man
J ifestatiOns and the miraculous cure
ceased. the religious Teacher W0ul
find Himself without following. Wha
Datience it must have taken for tn
God man to be thus misunderstood
Perhaps His patience would be NOR
severely tried by that mawkish rel
oious sentimentality of the present Ola
which seeks to romance over ties
worthless people.
, If I could write more severely
, would certainly do so.
Yet I cannot close this letter withot
speaking of the special emotions OF
, aEEann r,Ina sank oharanEar which al