Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-12-01
That Famous Sea Of Palestine Fur
nisheS the Subject for
THE SERMON OF REV. DIR. TALMAGF,
Why Jesus Himself Devoted So Much Time
TO This NeigbbOrhOod.
LESSONS TO BE DRAWN FROM MIRACLES

once Stlled at the command of Christ The
sermon, which was delivered in the Brook
lyn Academy of Music in the morning and
as usual repeated before an enormous audi
ence at service in New York in the evening,
WAS from the text: "He entered into ship,
and sat in the sea; and the whole multitude
was by the sea on the land" Mark. 4: i.
1t is Tuesday morning in our Palestine expe-
riences. and the sky is blue Galilee above, as
in the boat we sail the blue Galilee beneath. 1t
is Is miles long and six miles wide. but the at
mospherc is so clear it seems as if could cast
a stone from beach to beach. The lake looks as
though 1t had been let down on silver pulleys
from the heavens and were section of the sea
of glass that St John describes as part of the
celestial landscape. Lake Galilee is
the River Jordan wdens and tarries
little, for the River Jordan comes in at its
north side and departs from Its southside. SO
this lake has Its cradle and its grave. Its white
satin cradle is among the SHOWS of Mt Her
mon, where the Jordan starts. and its sepulchre
i the Dead Sea. into which the Jordan empties.
Lake Como of Italy Lake Geneva or Swiizcr-
land, Lake Bomond OF Scotland, Lake Winni-
pesaukee OF America are larger but Lake Cali
lee is the greatest diamond that ever dropped
from the finger Of the clouds. and. whether en-
camped on its banks as we we're yesterday and
worshiping al Its crystal affairs or *ading into
its waves. which make an ordinary bath solemn
as baptism, or now putting out upon its spark
ling surface in boat, it is something TO talk
about and pray about and sing about until the
lips with which we now describe it can neither
talk nor pray nor sing
NOT AN ANCIENT GALLEY.
OF the go war ships Josephus Unanswered
on these waters-for Josepheus was warrior as
well a Listorian-tbere remains not one niece
of hulk, or one patch of a canvas or one
splinter of an oar. But return to America we
never will until we have bad a sail upon this
inland sea. Not from! a wharf but from
beach covered with black and white pebbles
we 20 on board boat of about 10 or y tons to
he propelled nartly by sail and partly by water
The mast leans far forward that it seems
about To fall, hut we find il was purposely so
built. and the rope through pulley manages
TO hoist and let down the sail. 1t is rough
boat and as lar as possible removed from a
Venetian gonGola or a sportSman's Yacht With
a common saw and hammer and AK many of
you could make a better one. -Four bare-fOoted
Arabs, instead of setting down to their oars
stand as they always do in rowing, and pull
away from shore. insist on helping for there
IS hing more eXhilarating to one than row.
lnG, but soon had enough of the clumsy oars
and the awkward attempt at welding them
while in standing posture.
We put our overcoats and shawls on small
deck IN the stern of the boat. the very kind of a
deck where Christ lay on f>herman's coat
when OF old tempest pounced upon the fish
ing smack of the affrighted disciples Osprevs
and Wild duck ana kingtshers fly overhead or
mp their wings into the lake. mistaking it for
fragment OF fallen Sky. Can il be that those |
Bible stories about sudden storms on this lake |
are true? Is il possible THAI a sea of such
seeming placldlty of temper could ever risa |
and rage at the heavens? II does not seem as |
II this happy family cf elements could have |
ever had falling out and the water strike at |
the clouds and the clouds strike at the water
Pull away. oarSmenl On our right bank are |
the hot sulphur baths. so hot they are scald- |
lng and The waters must cool off long while |
before hand or foot can endure their iemner
ature. Volcanoes have been boiling these |
waters for centuries. -Four springs rol! their 1
resources into Two great swimming reservoirs |
KING Herod there tried to battle off the results
OF ms excesSes. and Plinv and Josephus de-
scrh he the Spurtings out of these voIca mic heats
anu Joshua and Moses knew about the;a and
'Hi> holnens long lines of pilgrims from all
parts oil the earth are waiting for their turn to
step INTO the steaming restoratvcS.
SUCH ANTIPoDES.
Side by side are the two great characters of |
this lake region: Jesus and Herod AntIpas |
And did any age produce any such antipodes. |
any such antitheses. any such opposites? Kind. |
ness and cruelty, holiness and filth, generosity |
and meanness. seif-sacrifCe and sefishness, |
the supernal and the internal, midnoon and |
midnight The father of this Herod Antipas
was genius at ASSASSINATION. He could manu-.
fac:ure more reasons for putting people out OF
this life than any man in all history. He sends |
for Hyrcanus to come from Babylon to Jeru-
salem to be made Eigh Priest and slays him.
He has his brotner-in-law while in bathing with
him drowned by the kings attendants He slays
ms wlle ana ms wlfe'S mother. and two of his
sons and his uncle and fiiieda volume Of arroc-
ities, the last chapter of which was the mas
saCre Of all the babes of bethlehem. With such |
4 tather as Herod the Great you are not sur
prlsed that tins Herod Anupas whose palace
stood on the banks of this lake we now sail |
was combination of wolf, reptile and hyena |
When the Christ who walked yonder banks
and sailed these waters was so good that almost
every rood of this scenery is associated with |
some wise word or some kindly deed, and all
literature, ana all art ana all earth, and all
heaven are put to the utmost effort in trying 10 |
express how grand and glorious and lovely he |
was. and Is. and Is to be- The Christly and |
Herodic characters as different as the two lakes
we Visit and not lar apart, Galllee and the Dead
Sea; the one flower-blnlled and the other bltu-
mlnous and blasted: the one hoveIed over by
the mercy OF Christ the other blasted by the
wrath OF God: the one full of tinny tribes
sporting in the clear depths. the other forever
lfeless: the waters of tue one sweet and pleas
ant TO the taste, the other bitter and sharp and
disgusting. Awful Dead Sea! Glorious Gen.
1csareti
We will not attempt to crosss to the eastern
SIDE of tins lake, / had thought to do for
nose regions are inhabited by a thieving and
race and one must go thoroughly
armed, and as never shot anyone and have no
ambition to be shot sau: Let US stay by the
western shore" But We lock over to the hills
o. G2dara, on the other side. down which 2 900
SWINE, after beng possessed by the devil ran
into the lake, and bringing down on Christ for
permitting 1t the wrath of all the stock raisers
OIL mat country, because OF this running of the
pork business.
CHANGE OF DIET NEEDED.
Inhdelity SCOTS at the idea that those swine
should have run into the lake. But it was quite |
natural that under the heat and burninr of
that demoniac possession they would start for
the water to get cooled off, Would that all the |
swine thus possessed had plunged to the same
browning tor to this day the descendants of ]
some OF those porcine creatures retain the de-
mons, and as the devils were cast ont of man |
INTO them. they now affiict the human race
Win The devils of scrotulA that comes from
On earth are the Israelites, because they foII1w
the OH OF fare which God in the book of Levitt
sus gave 10 Inc human race, and our splendid j
fehCh doctor, Pasleur, and our glorious Ger ,
man doctor. Koch, may go on with their good ;
Nork OF killing parasites III the human system: ,
JuL uhtll lne world coTrectS its diet and goes | 1
lach 10 Ine dlVlne reg uation at the beginning | !
ne human race VIII continue TO be possessed =
u the devils OF microbe and parasite Butt :
lid not mean TO cross over to the eastern side
u Lake Galllee even in discussion
Pull away, We Arab oarsmen! And we come
ioh@ lLfe snnre nearby which stand great preci-
'lces oil brown and red, and grey Iimestone | I
rowned by oasat III the sides of which arc ! 4
'ast caVerhS, sometlmes the hiding place of | q
bandits, and sometimes the home of honest | d
ana Sometimes the dweIIinr r1.ca ,F | .
,iSeons. and vultures and eaples D,rinS 80 | :
u herods wars his enemies hid in these | I
nountaln caverns and the sides were too steen | I
or heTous army To descend. and the ATTEMPT | d
o climb IN the lace of armed men would boya | =
allied down determination So Herod IA | :
reat cages OF wood, lron-bound made and Z
He'd them with soldiers and let them down | n
ignal that they were level with the caysTnS
nd then IRON these cages they stepped ont 10 | N
he mouth of the caverns and havino sat | :,
nnugh E;sss ana wood on fire to Ell the caverus y