The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1889-06-26
AFiESE CHRIST.
Curious hction ana RsL.efo Of Hmm. eoo

| Tu "'' i.iESO4uc
TO be Chnst returned to earth.
lie has auburn hair and beard
AVID taking advantage OF a resem,
blance to the conventional pictures
OF Jesus he declares that though
his body is new and does not show
the wounds into which the doubt
ing Thomas thrust his fingers, his
countenance is the same. His lie,
outside Of his blaspbomous claimto
divinity, is said TO be blamelcss and
his calm suavity oi manner, conp>
led with more than ordinary intel
| hgehcc, gives him marvellous in
Huence over bis followers. His
claim was expressed to a cores
pondent Of the New York Exam
I liner as follows.
81 am the Chlist. I am the
perfect man. I am God. I pos
sess all o the divine attributes, and
am sinless. This is my scco: d adj
vent on earth, ard the time is not
far of when | shall make such man.
ltestationS Of my power as will STAR
tie the world, and bring believers
to me by the thousand and tens of
thousands. ] have unlimited pow
er. | 10 not this time often work
miracles, for | wish now to con-
vert the world to truth without in
PREVENTION OF the supernatural, but
| can work the n, and have done SO
for those who believe. (IIis tol-
lowers testify that he works mir
acIes } ! shall be here r,any years,
but am only incarnate; this body
is only material and must perish.
When it becomes corrupt in death
| shall enter another body AID still
live Oh earth. Here is the hook
for . successor to hang his claim
upon.J Many things in the Cos.
pei about my cruciixion and for,
mer life on earth are inaccurate,
and | am now writing a Few YER
sion Of the New Testament that
J will be correct
Tits all came about through the
holiness craze. Fifteen years ago
| Mrs. Dora Helen Fletcher Beck
man, the wife OF a Congre ~ationaI
minister in northern Illinois profts-
sed perfection and soon announced
that she hsd the spirit Of Christ as
no other mortal ever had it. She
had considerable following in
Illinois, Michigan, Minnesota and
Missouri. Among the converts
was George Jacob $chweinrurth,
! young unmarried Methodist min
lister who now claims divinity.
When Mrs. Beekrnan died in
1883 she promised hyr followers
that she would rise in three days.
They waited seven days with un>
wavering faith and then Mr.. Beck
man, who Lad never been humbng-
ged, took the responsibility OF bury
ing the corpse which had already
become otfausiye,
Then Scbwginfurth came for
ward. lie claimed to have had a
vision through the windows Of
Dora Beekman's scuI, and she had
revealed to him that he was Christ,
tie holy one. "hy spirit passes
into thee" she said to him as she
left the world, "and thus transforms
the whole being. Go forth pure
and sinlcss, the only son Of God
spiritually hegotten by ne. Thou
shalt bring all nations to worship
thee"
The Beck nantes accepted his
story ard their numbers increased.
He told them that through a grad,
ual transformation OF his body he
was to become Christ, spiritually
as well as physically. Not Icing
ago he assembled his followers 10
Chicago ard told them that the
trans ormation was complete and
that he was now the Christ.
Schwciniurth's following is re-
markab.e. Already the sect has
branches in Chicago, Minneapolis,
Kansas City, Leavenworth, Louis
V lie, Cincinnati and a number of
small towns His followers are so
overcome with this in atuation that
they hold their property sdbject to
their idol, and it is stated that not
less than $50, 900 worth of proper
ty around Rockford and $1,000 900
in Chicago has been decided to him.
J An old man named Spencer Well
| don has given Schweiniurth mag,
nifcent farm of 800 acres four miles
south of Rockford, and there the
pretender lives in princely style.
He has put 100000 worth of i'm
provements on the place and lives
in large elegantly furnished man
sion, surrounded with beautiful
lawns, drives. flowers and all the
appointments Of luxury. His
dress is modern and his clothing is
stylish and elegant, and his deport-
meAt Is that Of gentleman. His
language is careful imitation Of
Christ's, and he is said to be calm,
quiet and polite. With no evidence
OF insanity in his actiones.
His mansion they call heaven,
and here all new converts are ex-
pected to go and receive instruction
with the personal influence of the
man they worship. Some of the
pilgrims Schweinfurth sends into
feld Of labor, Others to their homes
and on others especially favored he
confers the degree of "ange" and
takes them into his household