Oxford eagle. (Oxford, Lafayette Co., Miss.) 1876-current, 1888-04-26
What Her Influence Has Done, Il DoInl
and Can do.

~ bpihE
aud Can DO.
The Pagan view Of woman before
Christianity came is well known. One
Of the most distinguished of the Greek
historians said that yoman's highest
merit was. not to he spoken about at
all. either for good or evil. She was
expected TO live bahind vail Of si-
lencc. When Phidias painted the
heavenly Aphrodite he represented her
as standing on the back of n tortoise
slow and uneventful way 10 90
through the world. The Pagan ideals
of humanity were always of the mascu-
line type. The Greeks worshipcd
beauty. but it was Of the man-liAe
kind. They represented in sculpture
more than in painting, because the
cold. hard marble was more in har-
mony with their ideas than the soft.
rich colors of the canvas. If they cele-
brated the fame of heroine. she was
represented as an Amazon pauoplicd
for war. riding upon fiery steed. and
with 4 strong arm hurling the death
of the enemy In morals. the Stoics
claimed that their system was greatly
superior to all others because it was es-
sentially masculine. 1t must also be
admitted that in the Old Testament
there is a large amount of homage to
masculine qualities There is some
thing of kinship between David and
n Cesar. between Samson and Her
cules. and the people sang praise to
God rs "a man of war" But the rca-
son is apparent. The Old Testament
deals with the sterner features of the
law. with bloody rites and ceremonies.
with dark and troublous times. and
often with nations of gross. brutal
manners. Hence men of valor, mighty
men of war, were at the front.
But when the Gospel came. it began
| with 4 recognition of woman. Its
first salutation was to her-''Hail thou
that art highly favored" That this
salutation had an immediate reference
| TO the sacred motherhood is true. but
it had far wider significance in the
proclamation of new era for woman.
1t meant Hail to woman. She was
ne longer to be overlooked or under
estimated. The kingdom of Heaven
was at hand; not kingdom of spears
and javelins, bloody legions and brutal
Caesars. but 1.-THE kingdom and patience
| of Jesus Christ" A new estimate Of
| qualities and n new order of forces had
| come; mcekness. gentleness, patience.
purity and love were now to be great
| virtues and great forces in the world =
redemption. The world also had new
| type Of humanity. 1t is not sufficient
TO say that Jesus Christ was n man.
He was the perfect humanity. incarna-
| ting all that was most truthful. strong
est and greatest in man. and all that
was most gentle. pure and lovely in
woman. He had human mother. and
He reflected the glory of her humanity
as well as the divine glory.
| Therefore. in such kingdom and
with such type. and with the new
beatitudcs of the Sermon on the
Mount, woman had a place and was TO
| WELD a power. That the development
of this power has been 4 slow process.
is n painful fact. For no part Of Pa
| ganism has been so hard to rout from
human opinion as the prejudices unfa-
vorable to women. Cesarism is slow
to give up all its provinces. Many
| mistakes have also been made. So fine
| an observer rs Frederick W. Robertson
tells us that Mariolatry came from an
attempt to put the new ideal of human
ity introduced by Christianity into a
more realistic form. Christianity en-
throned womanly virtues Catholicism.
In endeavoring to realize the Gospel
conception. enthroned the Virgin
Mother. Mr. Lecky also takes the
same view of the origin of Mariolatry,
| and he believes, too, that the chivalry
of the Middle Ages came from the same
impulse. While il is seriously to be
doubted whether this is any thing
more than an ingenious explanation OF
what was only a repetition of the old
sin of ''worshiping and serving the
creature more than the Creator" yet
il is plain that the effort to give woman
her rightful place in the kingdom ha.
been a somewhat blind one.
But now there is reason to believe thai
she is at least passing into the gates oi
the kingdom As a missionary she is lay
inga firm hold upon the world redemp
tion. Once she stayed at home to pra,
or waited to be wife. now she pushe.
boldly TO the front As reformer sh.
is bringing to the delicate and Difficult
problems Of life the quick perception
and full power Of her womanly aature