Akron daily Democrat. [volume] (Akron, Ohio) 1892-1902, 1900-01-24
HUMAN SACRIFICES.
MODERN RELIGIOUS FANATICS WHO
BELIEVE IN THEM.


World, Particularly In Russia,
Whose Members XIII md Cruelty
That Salvation May he Attained.
That human sacrifices have been
made even In the nineteenth century,
and by protesting Christians, too. is
brought out by The American Journal
Of Sociology In striking article:
The ConvulsioDists, a sect existing in
Paris about 17G0, were wont to cruelty
members Of their order, In emulation
Of the crucl6xion Of the Saviour. in the
belief that the souls Of the surviving
members would be saved by the sacri-
fees Of their fellows. In 1917 the
"Paschelians." an Austrian sect, mur-
dered man. his wife and daughter
under the delusion that the trio. who
refused to go with the fanatics, were
possessed Of the devil. On the follow
ing day they crucified one of their own
number, n girl of 10 years, who had
suffered herself for the death, In imi-
tation Of the death Of the Saviour, In
order to save the souls of her fellow
believers.
In 1923 the leader of Pietistic cir
Gle In Switzerland. after having dis
patched her sister, who gave her life
us means Of saving the souls of her
relatives, was crucified by her follow
ers at her own command In order that
she might die. rise again after three
days and restore to life the sister she
had slain. In 1866 two mothers, ad-
af lao laI 81. Al IL.
sick children, believing them to be VIC
tins Of demoniacal possession. In
1876 a Hungarian miller belonging to
the "Nazarenes," killed his son as an
offering for his own sins after the
fashion Of Abraham. In 1870, In Ir-
kutsk, Russia, one of the "Schismat-
les" convinced himself by prayer and
fasting and much Scripture reading
that to save his soul he must be cruci-
fed. Accordingly he attempted seis
cruclfixion and succeeded SO far as
the circumstances Of the case would
permit.
In 1880, In the government of Perm,
Russia, a peasant killed his child as
an offering for sin and buried the body
in an ant hill. Likewise. in the gov
ernment of Vladimir, another peasant
killed both his children In due Abra-
hamic form. and while the babies bled
under the fathers knife the devout
mother celebrated the service by read
ing aloud selected portions of the twen-
ty-second chapter of Genesis. In 1854,
in the government of Tambov, Russia,
q peasant, convinced that to save his
soul man must have n sin to repent
Of, killed neighbor with an ak in Or
der to satisfy this highly imperative
condition.
1t is part of the creed of the EVAN
derers." Russian sect, that anti
Christ rules in high places there and
that accordingly good men must have
naught to do with governmental af-
fairs of any sort. In conformity with
this belief a man murdered in various
ingenious ways % men, women and
children. including his own wife and
babies. in order TO free them from the
danger Of losing their souls by suffer.
ing the contaminat,ng contact of the
government census taker. This occur
red in 1897.
The "Deniers." another quite inter-
esting Russian sect, believe that evil
taints all earthly good and that the
only escape is death. In 1925 go Of
these men, strong in the faith, after
having murdered their wives and chill
dren. permitted themselves to be put
to death, one by one, by their leaders.
The "Scourgers," who also form d
widespread and influential sect in Rus
sia, in obedience to the behests of their
''saviors," are In the habit Of indulg-
ing In human sacrifices, canniballstic
feasts, erotic dances and other lewd
procedures as an extremely efficacious
method Of keeping the hand of evil
from Off their immortal souls So the
"Muckers" of Konigsberg and the cell
ebrants Of the black mass In Paris af-
ford further examples of the use of
ritual Of erotism. coupled with a prac-
tice Of the most abandoned and OBJ
scene behavior, to promote the eternal
welfare of the soul.