Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1893-04-06
of the CITY. The SupDIyI1tz

L
little trinkets of olive wood, which
every pilgrim must bring home as til,
certificate Of his pilgrimage, just q:
the crusaders brought back his palm
branch.
At last we reached the open place
before the Church Of the Nativity
Here all was one great jumbo. Booth,
with merchandise Of every description
vendors of vegetables hawking theil
far-from-inviting wares, tourists dis
mounting, beggars in tatters calling fOl
backsheeSh, and, strange contrast to III
this confusion, on one side family OF
Bedouin Arabs had pitched their dirty
black tent and were cooking their mea
over few burning sticks. The Orient
is surely the lace where everyone does
what and how he pleases.
| Opposite this modern representative
of the old Roman forum rose a blacl:
mass of buildings, more like q fort than
a church, with its doors walled up, until
| q little opening barely four feet high
alone remains. This a pleasing remind
er that the MOSlems have a disagree
able habit Of riding into Christian sane
tuaries when the opportunity offers
After our dinner at the Hotel Beth1e-
hem" we bowed low before the holy
place and found ourselves beside the
| Turkish soldiers within the dark vesti-
| bule which leads to the Church Of the
Nativity. Cropping along few steps
came into the light and found no diff
ficulty in believeing that we were in
the oldest church in Palestine The
severe simplicity of the old basilica,
which appears in the most ancient
churches at Rome, was here even more
marked. -Four rows of pillars-two on
either side of the nave-rOse to a peak.
The columns We're mOnoliths of soft,
redlSh marble, interSperSed with white
veins. They are especially interesting
because of the traces upon them of the
old almOrial bearings of the crusaders.
The basiiica is under the common
charge Of the three churches. the Greek
and Armenian, which have their chap
els on the south of the ancient sanctu-
airy, and the Latin on the north. "Ev-
cry ones duty proves no ones" 50
that this lone survivor of the days Of
Constantine shows many traces of its
fifteen centuries. Advancing through
one of the long aisles we passed by a
side door into the Greek chapel which
is separated from the baislica by a
high wall All about are hung the
quaint pictures and ornamentation of
the old Byzantine and Oriental Greek
art, which Stirs ones curiosity and riSi-
bility rather than reverence.
But one cannot linger long while the
goal of the pilgrimage is unattained,
and 50 we found ourselves ere long de-
sccnding by a steep stairway which
leads down under a half-sunken arch
way to the chapel of the Nativity. The
darkness was only partially dispelled
by the thirty-twO silver lamps, each
Of which seemed to contribute but Il
drop of light. In the ObscUrity the first
object that we clearly distinguished
was the Moslem sentry, stationed there.
gun in hand, TO keep the various Chris
tan factions from fighting at this very
cradle of the faith. This discovery did
not inspire very strong feeling of
awe OF reverence. Excepting the dark
ness and the descent to reach it, no one
would suspect that this space, about
81 feet long and 10 wide, was a grOtto
cut out Of the soft limestone rock
The walls are covered with marble
and hung with antique gold cloth and
pictures. Beneath an altar on the east
side is a silver star, 20 inches from tip
to tip, over which. according to tradi-
ton, the Star of the East once rested
The open center Of the star disclOses
the bedrock, while above it runs the
Latin inscription: ''IIic de Virgine
Maria Jesus Ch1istus Natus Est ('Here
Jesus Christ was born Of the Virgin
MaTy'). At the right, 4 few steps
away, also richly hung with lamps and
pictures, is the traditional manager, now
encaSed in marble, far different from
the simplicity Of that scene which nj
this gold and glitter is intended to conf
memOrate One longs to see all this
torn away, but, alas! Oriental taste IS
far different from that Of the West.
AS we sat on one of the three stair
ways which lead down from each Of
the three churches and thought of the
! dSSptaitlouS tl INC plittc IL utllcIcIL
mood came over us. The Identification
of this rOck-cut grotto alone, of tn"
thousands which tradition has handed
down, dates, beyond question, to a.
time preceding the reign of COnStan-
tine. Justin Martyr, writing at the be-
ginning of the second century, speaks
Of Il certain cave very close to the vii
lao of 10 nj n
the Christ child. On the other hand
the use of such 4 grotto is neither out
of accord with the gospel narrative
nor without many analOgies even in
Palestine today Modern thought in
discovery is experiencing Il tremendous
reaction against all traditional teStimo-
nv The danger now is that it will go
at all we have good ground for seeing
in the present cave, thus OOScurCd with
what is intended to ornament, that spot
where the Great Teacher was born.
Memories Of the grand oratorioS of
Christmas scenes of our childhood, OF
the influences that have gone forth
from this spot to encircle the globe
came over rs. and the unfeeling mum
merieS of a priest. rs he ratified Clf
some prayers over Il basket of sacred
relics which an enterprising salesman
brought in to have c0nSecrated. did
not affect us. AS the genuine. living
rock was beneath, though concealed
very effectually Ivy this outside trump
cry. SO Christianity has a true life and
o1tbnnC'b Tins concealed ny