The Norfolk Virginian. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 186?-189?, 1895-12-22

known'-with tho Instrumentation of the
Septuagint lin the midst Of Two ami
mails shalt thou be recoGni:.ed'-wc are
furnished with the tale reproduced i'm
so many thousand pictures, and even
in the Catacombs, that, as Jesus lay in
the manager. the OK and the ass wor-
SHIPPED Him.
=. Another large class OF the apocry-
phal stories of the infancy consists in
multiplication of c%;raSagaut and
meaningless miracles. There is not
single miracle CT the gospels whIci
does not teach MS deep lessons: thcr,
is not a single miracle invented in these
lotions which does: In the gospels. the
cNanSrliSts every miracle is II reveal
zion; dunn narrant facta produnt myS-
;"rih: but the apGcrypEal miracles OF
the infancy are mere startling thauma-
turGy. The boy Jesus drops al kinds Of
robes iato.a single dycr'S v:A.Gnl whcu
the dyer is vcNed. lie pulls them all
out dyed with the different colors re-
quircd: he "profancs" the sabbath by
making sparruws of clay, and wncn he
is rcprovcd by The scrihcs he clGps his
hands and ma o. them fly. Breaking
pitcher he brlngs back water To his
mother in his robe. While working in
the carpenters shop lie sees Joseph
yoXcd because the two beams for n
couch are of unequal length. and Jesus
pulls the shorter one to the requisite
size. lie Is acGscd of having pushed
Il boy from house top and killed him.
He therefore leaps down from the roof.
raises the boy Ia life, and makes him
acknowledge that ii was another lad
who had given him the push lie
changes into kids some boys who had
hidden themselves from him when he
wanted them to play with him; ana
then mt the entreaty cf their mothers
r1tranSforms them into hoyE. II Is
needless to touch further on this prodi-
Eality OF supertluouS and Tnmcanng
portGntS.
THEY PRESENT "a FALSE PICTURE
3. liut, worse than this, the Apocry.
phnl Gospels. from the ignorance, and
probably. in most Instances. from the
hrretical opinions of their writers make
the boy Jesus positively rcpulSivc in
character, He Is implacaliy revengcful
and cruelty rcmorelcss lie becomes
the terror of the ucighhnrh"ol in which
he lives. so that. because of him. his;
Parents live in perpetual 'Iisquctudc
and alarm. He is pert. pc,ulnnt and in
tolcrablr to his teachers. and instead OF
listening to their instructions. lectures
them on physics and metaphysics, hy
pcrhysics and hypnrhysirs" Let one
or two instances suffice
l. when the Lord .'rsus was re
turning; Eomr with Joseph in the even
ing he met n hny who ran to thrust
him so violently that he fen down. The
Lord Jesus said unto him AS ihou hast
thrown me down, so shalt thou fall and
not rise" Ana the sam" hour the boy
fell down, and brcaihcd his last"
II. Again Jesus had been making
some pools and channels OF water. and
the son OF Ann;lS. the scribe. WAS
standing, there with Joseph. aud took
= branch of willow and spilled the water
which Jssus had collected. And when
Jesus saw what was done. he was angry
AMI said To him, Wicked. impOus and
foolish one. wherein have the pools
wronscd three? Hchold now, thou shalt
also withrr as a tree And suddenly
the boy withcred altogether" When
the parents complained. his mother
came and entr"aiad him to be less
wrathfnl. "i:ui h said, lie was worthy
Of death hecaHSc h" destroyed the works
which | had wrought Therefore his
mother bes"ight him saying. do not .
my Lord. because they an rise against
us And he, mol willing that his moth
cr should be ariCvcd. spurnrd the body
of the dead with his right foot, ana
for thou ant not worthy 10 enter into
the rest OF thy father. Then he who
was dead arose and departed"
Ill. Again. when he is sent to n
teacher 10 learn his letters. the master
begins impc:iously to teach him, say
ing. First tell me what Beth is." The
master. being angry, struck him with q
rod of sturax-woud; and soon after he
smotc him dead. And Jesus returned
home TO his mother. But Joseph being
alfalu Called Mary 10 MN ana said.
KNOW truly that my soul Is sad unto
death on account OF that boy
THE AUTHENTIC ACCOUNTS
ENOUGH.
Ii is, then, abundantly clear that the
spurious James. and Matthew. and the
others. have no; only nothing genuine
To teach us about Christ. hut that the
picture of him which they represent is
utterly dchascd. The genuine gospels
were written for our Learning, not for
our amusement: to promote our saliva
very silence is eloquent with truth.
ton. not To i;ratify our curiosity. Their
What do they tell us az the infant and
| the youthful Christ? They give us the
narrative of his incarnation: they pre-
| sent us with the picture of the sweet
submissive years spent in the shoD OF
| the carpenter at Nazareth; but from
his carly return from Egypt to Gaiilcc.
| UP to the commencement OF his minis
| try, when he began To be about 20
| years Old" they preserve but one ancc-
| dotc and one word. The one anecdotc
| ia the story of that visit to Jerusalem
which was probably connected with
| what we should call his confrma ton
and this to show us how. in his earliest
l,. Ii ..