The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1889-01-02
PRIMITIVE RELIGION OF ISRAEL.
Polytheistic, and it is Impossible to
Trace Exactly the Origin of Mono
From the Neto York Tndependent.


Trace Exactly the Origin of Mono
theism.
From the Neto York Independent.
Prof. TIL. Noldeke of Strassburg, "the
little giant" as the Semitists of the CONT
nent are accustomed to call him, the best
philologian of the times, in a recent review
of a work by Baethgen, in the Journal of
the German Oriental Society," gives this
summary:
"a remnant of original fetichism was pre-
served for a long time in Israel l refer to
the reverence for sacred stones, as this has
been practised by a number of the Semitic
tribes. That the stone of Jacob was an ORR
ginally Canaanitic one we have no reason
TO suppose. The sacred character of Bethel
is, according TO all indications, original
with the Israelites, as the Old Testament is
still acquainted with the fact that the place
was in former times called Luz. The inter-
probation given to the divinely revered
stone in our present accounts must not de-
ceive us any more than the legends of the
Moslems concerning the stone fetiches in
Mecca, which have remained as a singular
relic in Islam.
THAT Jahveh, at a comparatively late
period too, was worshiped merely as the god
of his own people, and that other beings
were regarded by them as gods among the
JULIET pSODleS, DdebLSSu uiIuSSlI uCkuOWl-
edges. The absolute monotheism attained
supremacy only very slowly. Thus, e. g.,
while the Prophet Amos declares him to
have been the Creator, and hence certainly
as the only God, the narrator of Judges
XII, "a who certainly lived later than this
prophet, puts words into the mouth of
Jephtha which acknowledges Chemosh as
the god who cares for Ammon as Jehovah
cares for Israel Sentences like that in Exc
d1C w IN. Wv m iS lilo l1Tfn thae n ord
among the godsP presuppose the acceptance
of more than one God; only at a later date
were such expressions employed for rhetor-
ical purposes
"The polytheism of Israel was supported
materially by the use of images. The diff
ference in the kinds of images causes, in a
marked degree, a faith in different divine
beings. But the old religion of Israel was
by no means without images. Baethsn
tries to explain away the Teraphim, but l.
Sam, xix, -, 6, shows plainly that David
had a household god in the shape of hui
man being. II is further narrated as some
thing quite natural that Gideon made an
idol Judges viii. ,24-27d) the blame attached
to this further on, 27b, does not suit to
the connection. The picture CT Jahveh in
Dan is attributed to a grandson of Moses,
Judges xvii, f. In the light of these facts
the golden images of steers made by Jero-
boam received certain legitimacy. 1t is
even not certain that Solomon's temple was
entirely without images, for it was only
Hezekiah who destroyed the image of a SER
pent of brass which was attributed to
Moses, II. Kings, xviii, 4. 1t is vain to try
to explain away these plain facts by the
legend in Num-, xxi, SO.
but it is also a certain fact that at an
early date there was an opposition to the
use of images for worship. The second
commandant which is certainly very old,
forbids the use of any and all images; and
the story of the golden calf of Aaron,
which in itself is certainly unhistorical,
condemns even before the days of Hosea
in the strongest terms the official
religious cult of the northern kingdom.
"As was the case with the other Shemites
the Israelites, too, had human sacrifice.
especially the horrible sacrifice of children
The law which demands all the first born
for Jahveh, Ex., xiii, 2, was undoubtedly
meant literally at first. The very fact that
ransom money wa paid for the first born
shows that originally these were sacrificed
themselves. The story in Gen, xxi, would
be without meaning if it did not pre-
suppose the sacrifice of children as az
ancient rite. The prohibition in Lev.
xviii, 81; Xxx, 2, not to sacrifice children
to Moloch, is not given as against foreign
custom. AS was the case with the Greeks.
spiritual progress among the Hebrews also
at a very early date crowded out this bar
barity, while among the equally pious but
innerly wild Carthaginians it remained in
full sway. But in Israel, too, it from time
to time comes into tho forefront again
1--WE accordingly find throughout Israel
religious ideas and customs such as were il
vogue among their related polytheists: but
everywhere there is seen also, even in e
oldest times, striving for pure monOthe-
ism and higher religious service. and this
= = III II H. -.
ton in history. But just tho origin of this
feature is wrapped in darkness. The Old
Testament represents Moses, who grew up
as an Egyptian, and whose name is Egyp-
tian, as the lawgiver of the monotheis. ic re-
ligion. Unfortunately, we cannot secure an
historical picture of MS person and work
and still less of the legislation of Sinai:
but we can certainly trust tradition sufli-
GENTLY to believe that the new departure
was contemporaneous with the exodus out
Of Egypt. In Egypt the Israelites doubt
less received many germs which were de
veloped later. There, where crude fetch
worship and deep wisdom were both at
home, gifted nation could receive many
an impetus. AT any rate, 1t would be my
supposition that the service of Jahveh was
also taken from them. But, however this
may be- / would forego the explanation of
the mystery, that this originated 'in the
constant divine conduct and divine revela-
tion.' This. is certainly no scientific explana-
ton.
sit is more than doubtful that the origi-
nal Israelites already in Egypt, or their
ancestors before gong there, were to q
greater or less extent monothests OF
Abraham, the God-fearing man, something
may be saved as historical / cannot at all
understand how a man from whom not
only all Israel, but also number Of other
nations descended, could have been a real
person. How can a tradition concerning
such a one have been developed? Is his per-
sonality or that of his immediate descend
ants testified to any better historically than
that Of Deucalion, Xuthus, or Dorusl In
the account given by Genesis Of Abraham
we havS probably several ancient Hebrew
divinities, but the most Of this is uncertain,
to which must be added that much of it
may have come from Babylon"
MOL1KE'S GOLD METHOD.