The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1891-12-27
THE MARVELLOUS STORY.

ant; ana for a time no human genius was en-
listed In Its service with the single exception c
ST. Gladstone.
when the humble beginnings of Christ
lanlty are taken into account, the progress
OF IL must be acknowledged to be surpris
Ing. Throughout the foremost nations O
the earth on Friday last, festivities i,
honor OF its Founders birth were com
menced and will continue according to Gus
tom until the coming in of the new year
rms progress will be still NOR,
astonishing when to the humilir,
OF It's beginning and the OBJ
scurlty OF the men into whose hands il
was at the first committed, shall be
added the difficulties against which it had
10 contend. 1t was a wonderful story that
the fishermen Of Galilee had to tell-al-
most too wonderful for belief. The Son of
GoD-very GoD himself, born of a morta.
woman-a virgin! Born in an obscure vii
rage OF Judea, in a stable, too, among low
Ing Kline, %neighing steeds and camels, with
their piaintive bleat-a manger for a cradle
Yes, worshiped with alteration and rich gifts
IN THIS strange birth place by wise men of
the east, who followed his star until j,
rested DER the stable in Bethlehem! Saved
from the murderous wrath of Jealous King
HERoD. by a dream-directed flight into old
Egypt! Thence d~ream-directed back again
to Judea, and by cautious guardians taken
into detested Nazareth of Galilee,
where childhood and youth ana man
mood up to thirty years of age
pass in utter obscurity Then, when
nature had perfected natures work
IN the construction of perfected manhood.
IRON his obscure home in Nazareth he
goes to the baptizing prophet, and in
Jordan's water is immersed. Rising from
the watery grave the Holy Ghost in form
visible and beautiful rests upon him
Whlle from the heavens the voice of the
father GOD proclaims him son of his in
whom he is well pleased! Then by strange
spirit driven into the wilderness there TO
meet temptations and the cunning of the
King OF tempters. Then follow three
years of painful labor; three years of
SUFFERING: three years filled with gentle
ueeos and precepts glorious; three wears
OF miracles, wherein the sick were healed
oy gracious touch, the Iepers cleansed.
the anne made whole, the blind restored
10 slghta and to crown it all the dead raised
to lie, the ~''hingeless door, of death swing
pach at ais command, aud he whom low
Ing sisters said was SO far gone in death
to stink, walked from the tomb.
linen men through jealousy and the fear
OF losing place and nation if the simple folk
"hom CHRIST blessed should hail him king
albeit of a heavenly kingdom, not of this
earth-plotted against his life, logged his
footsteps, watched his every word, by de-
vices cunning sought to bring him into
conflict with the governments and rulers
oil this world, but all in vain. Desuairing
to catch him in words or plots reasonable.
falsehood and distortion, with keen inven-
ton, at last placed in his mouth words
which he did not utter, and credited him
with intentions which were not his; bribed
treason to betray him with a kiss. even
Whlle the blood-sweat agony was on his
brow as part of his suffering for sinful
man Dragged to the ~sanhedrim, smltten
before the high priest, Knocked and reyiled.
W with thorns, spit upon, cursed
thence driven through the streets TO Pr.
LATE's Judgment seat: thence sent to HERoD.
Ietrach OF Galilee, and son of him who
slew the infants of Bethlehem, that this.
the future King of Israel, might not es-
cape; here Knocked again, and that. too. by
the common soldiers and King HERoD. who.
IN mockery OF CHRIsT's claim to kingship,
clothed him In purple and sent him back to
the troubled PLATE. That functionary of
great Rome would gladly have let him 90
but had not courage to withstand the cries
OF the freDzied rabble who clamored for
his blood.
a tlast,% condemned to death, bending be-
meath the weight of his cross, he is driven
through the streets of the city over which
In holy sorrow for its wickeduess He had
wept. Stripped of his raiment
on Golgoth's summit, He was
nailed to the cross, there to
die between two thieves. There. sus-
pended between heaven and earth. he wit
messed the sorrow of a little group of
friends, among whom was she VINO gave
him birth, He heard but needed not the
revllings OF hi enemies, further than tn
pray to the Father COP to forgive them. for
they knew not what they did. At last in
oSOhJ WV SACoG SNSHl LOT a NJOD IN
bear, in silence, he cried aloud, MY Con.
why hast thou forsaken mel" Then the
heavens gathered blackness, the earth was
shaken py an earthquake, the temples veil
was rent from top to bottom, and nature
all combined gave one grand testimony that
a GOD had died. Three Gays he Law in
JosEPH's tomb, wherein man was never
laid before, then rose from death: an
peared to his disciples, confirmed the
resurrection a great truth by
evidence ~undeniable, and promised
his followers that they, as he had done.
should rise up from the grave and live
eternally. This message and the wav of
he sent them forth to teach all ma
lions, and there IN the light of dav he
bodily assembled into heaven, from wbence
he promised to return in glory to reward
every man according to his works.
This was the story that the fishermen of
Galilee had to tell the nations-to Jew and
Gentle, to the refined Greeks, to the
Egyptians, to the proud Romans.
is 1t at all strange that they were slow to
hear and slower TO believed Ana when
you think, as GLADSTONE remarks. of its
OF despised Judaism, its odious exclu-
slveness, its claims to being the only true
is It not a marvel that il was
not laughed out of existence bv
both people and philosophers. But
there was something in it which provoked
The indignation both of the people and
even the rulers of states
were stirred against it, and by scourgings
Imprisonment, by giving Christians to
lions to be torn to pieces at the public
games, by prescriptions and nhuman edic,o