The Portland daily press., 1885-03-25
THE RELIGION OF MEXICO.
Rev. Mar. BIanchard's Lecture East Even
ing


There we're very few unoccupied seats in the
vestry of Congress square church last evening,
when Mr.. Blanchard delivered his lecture on
the religion of Mexico. The next lecture in
the course will be delivered next Sunday eve
ming, in the church, on the "Strength of Ju-
daism, and the last leetcre will be given on
the last Sunday evening in April.
Mr.. Blanchard said that with this lecture
the course was practically closed; the lectures
yet to be delivered being on familiar religions,
and not strictly in the line of the course. In
the lecture on Mexico we treat Of land near
at home. We do not know enough of this
country, as, naturally, our eyes turn to those
eou atries Of the old world from which came
our ancestors, and which all persona have a
be of use il it attracts any attention to the
country OF Mexico. Iu the land of today We
should see new Mexico, but buried in it are
the ruins of an ancient civilization. When
Cortez visited Mexico he was SURPRISED to
find the evidences of such a great civilization.
La all history there is no parallel TO the con-
quest by two or three hundred SDaniards un-
der the leadership of a dauntless general, of
the great empire OF ancient Mexico Cortez
lUs
more than that, he and his men believed them
selves to be defenders of the cross. In spite of
their sins there was feroeious bigotry in the
works of these Spaniards.
The horses and firearms of his forces rem
dersd CorteZ's first victories easy by their hold
on the snperstitions of the natives. Making
allies of his captives, Cortez started into the
interior. With his forces swelled to the num-
bar of 5000, he reached the City Of Mexico and
was well received. In his enforced absence,
however, ms troops were nassacred and the
friendly Montezuma killed. Cortez immed-
ately returned and finally captured the city
whose defenders strength was worn out By
famine.
The victory Of Cortsz is one of the strange
facts OF history. The AZtecs, the lsading Mex
lean race, had become strong and powerful
but they ruled their subjects with great cru
city SO that thousands stood ready TO aid the
Spanish eonquerer
In trying to understand the belief of this
people we find many legends similar to those
of the Jews. They believed that their ances-
tors had came from afar over land and sea and
many students regard them as having come
originally from Asia. Men, in considering
life's problems, form their own religion. In
Mexico the sun was regarded as the veritabie
ruler OF the universe and it is said that many
Spanish Mexicans salute the sun before enter
ing church. But behind all was the belief
in the one God, who was beautifully called the
Heart of Heaven. They degenerate into
polytheism but the recognition of the One,
above all, and through all, and in all, is ever
present. The characteristic of their religion
is its revolving attendant human sacrifice.
Human sacrifice seems to be the the corner
stone Of theS belief and war was carried on to
provide captives to be offered as a sacrifice to
the god. The selected captive was Kept for a
year in the most sumptuous manner. At the
end OF that time be was burnt on the altar and
his heart taken out as a sacrifice.
In the Offering to the goddess of the harvest
woman was the victim, and on the last day
OF her life she went to the market place and
scattered the kernels of the maize around
about her before being pus to an awful death.
Another occasion demanded the death of
children, and the AZtecs, who could watch the
last hours of the beautiful young man and
maiden, were touched at the sight of the
children and bowed their heads in silence
when they passed.
The idea above all this sacrifice is a noble
one 1t is, that which Is dearest to man should
be made sacrifice to the gods. II is the sama
principle that actnated Abrah am in preparing
to kill Isaac, his son.
Beautiful women were sacrificed to become
the wives OF the gods, and story is told of
one about to be sacrificed who by threatening
the wrath of her future husband escaped
death.
Concerning their origin, the Mexicans said
that man came from God, and that the Head
Of Heaven had certain other gods to assist
Him. These gods had once made an image of
lnAu, pnt coulo not give life to 1t. Then God
Himself came down and made four men in-
stead OF one, who went to sleep and swoke to
tind four women created during their slum-
bers.
How did tue earth exist for this people?
They had four ages, the frat ending with
flood, the last ending with confagration.
They believed in an hereafter, and in the COR
tiDued existence of the soul, though theg be-
lievec in the indissoluble ties of soul aud body
and physical resurrection. Their belief in
river, on one side of which are the good, on
the other the bad, is singalaTly like the belief
OF the ancient Greeks
The religion of the Aztees, not containing
the ides of the fatherhood of God aud the
Brotherhood of man, was poweress to make
the rulers kind and the people sympathetic and
good, but singular fact is that next the
temples for human sacrifice were hospitals for
the sick aud the young.
During the course of his remarks. Mr..
Blanchard pointed out many things ia she re-
ligion of the Aztecs which are sirikiDgly like
the legends and practices of the people OF the
Old World.
At the conclusion of the lecture proper, the
main POINTS of the course were reviewed in an
instructive manner, and the lecture closed
with reference to the nature and power of
religion,