Evening capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1888-1893, 1890-03-24
THE NAeLus sAMARITANs.
Something About the oIdest and Smallest
Gect In the VVorid.

Sect In the World.
There il to be found in the heart Of tn,
small city Of Nablus, In North Palestine,
/ little religious community-now numbering
| about one hundred and City souls, whicl
has defied The ravages of war and poverty
and oppression nearly three Thousand
| years. Unlike the Vaudois, these Samari
tans have had no friendly system Of mount
ain buttresses TO defend them through th,
centuries; and, still more unlike the long
lived Savoyard Protestants, they have beer
rightin the pathway along which the dev
astating armies have marched back anC
forth from the time Of Sargon to Napoleon
But, writes Rev. DIR. John F. Hurst in Har
per's MAGAZINE, they have lived on, anC
their unity has never been broken. They
have chung TO little Nablus and to theil
sacred Mount Gerizim, as the very cactus
roots to the granite sides Of the sombel
Ebal that confronts them across their little
enchanted valley.
As the population Of Nablus is Just abou
1900, the little Samaritan community Il
almost absorbed by the surrounding No
hammedan mass. Save to a careful OBJ
server the very existence and presence Of
the Samaritans as q distinct element oi
citizenship in Nablus would not be noticed
The Samaritans wear a turban much like
that Of their true Moslem neighbors, but
between the history and theology Of the
two classes there is not q single point ol
positive resemblance.
The Samaritan synagogue is a small
building IN the center of Nablus, half OBJ
scured by the surrounding dwellings.
passed through arched and Uttered streets
to little court, in the middle of which was
little plot Of grass, relieved by three
~ rx,hi 4
found little Samaritan school, and at the
sight of stranger the children sprane
from the floor where they were sitting
kissed my hand, and begged for back
sheesh. The teacher was a youth Of about
fourteen, the son of 4.nraIn, the high priest.
was greatly disappointed at failing to find
Amram himself, but in the end this circum-
stance aided me in my chief object, for the
young man was willing, for a good fee, to
show me the ancient Pentateuch. His
father might have been deaf to all en-
treaties.
The claim of the Samaritans to have a
copy of the Pentateuch older than the Jew
ish is supported by their own unbroken ira
dition, and by the opinion of some learned
men OF the present time in Christian coun-
tries. But the weight Of internal evidenceis is
against it-among which may be mentioned
grammatical emendations, late glosses
in the text, insertions of foreign passages.
alterations, Samaritanisms, and changes in
support OF Samaritan doctrine.
There are three codices kept in the little
synagogue in Nablus, two being generally
shown to strangers. 1t is very rarely that
the veritable one can be seen. My good
fortune in getting hasty look at it was
due to the venturous and avaricious spirit
of Amram's son, rather than to any man.
agement OF my own. Having first ex-
hibited the two limitations, the young man,
upon the offer Of an additional fee, then
brought out the original scroll from a chest
After the removal of the red satin cover
saw that the codex was inclosed IN a silver
cylindrical case, which had two doors open
ing on two sets of hinges. When these
doors were thrown back the whole column
was exposed to the vision This cylinder
is OF rich workmanship. 1t is about tw,
feet and half long and nearly foot in
diameter, and presents, in exquisitely raised
work, good plan of the Tabernacle,
with every part given with the ut
most minuteness and rarest skill. The
roll consists Of dingy skins-prepared be-
tore the invenJon OF parcnment-sewed to-
gether with neat stitches, and worn and
patched, and here and there entirely illegi-
BILE. The skins are of equal size, and
measure each twenty-five inches long and
fifteen WIDE
Before leaving Nablus had the opportu-
nifty of spending an evening with Amram
ut his own house. He lived in the greatest
simplicity, though in Palestine that is the
rule rather than the exception. Mrs. El
&arey, the wife of the missionary in Nablus
in the employment of the Church Mission
ary Society of London, was good enough to
me and serve as interpreter
The venerable high priest, who was bare
footed, and clad III great turban and loose
flowing robe, received US with calm and
dignihed cordiality in his room-at once his
parlor, dining room and bedroom. His very
aged mother was lying on the floor, covered
with bed clothing aud asleep. There were
several children, half asleep, lying about
the room. Amram's son-in law was slowly
copying Pentateuch-for the Samaritans
have no printing-press 1t requires q year
10 make copy, which is never sold, and is
only used by the community.
The peculiar views of Amram may be
said to represent very fairly the theology
Of his dying community. The world, he
is about seven thousand years old.
For fifty-ive years men will go on increas-
ing in wickedness, after which there will
come time of great peace and purity.
Then there will come on a new period OF
wickedness, which will last
three hundred years. This time will be con-
by the total destruction of the
world. After this the general Judgment
will take place, when the righteous will go
tolive with God and the wicked with Satan.
There are some people who have clean
hearts, or at least are accepted as clean,
though none are absolutely pure. just here
Amram looked Off as if in the distance, and
said: "God is onel" Here he intended
a slight thrust at all Christians, because OF
heir emph sis on Christ and His divine
character
He spoke with interest Of the ruins on
Mount Gerizim, and of the increase of his
within the last thirty years
He closed by expressing MS firm belief that
the time would come when the Samaritans
would be the most numerous body in the
world.
Amram has since died, and the sedate
being the eldest male relative,
mas succeeded him in the high priesthood.
----
Superintendent of Weddings.