The Portland daily press., 1900-05-04
CORRESPONDENT OF JEsus AND
KING AB6AR OF EDESSA.

TO the Editor Of the Pres:
Many Of our newspapers have lately
published the sta tsment. said TO be Of
"intense interest" that long los. letters
are found; that Rome reports q remark
able discovery; that papers referred to by
Eusebius In the fourth century have now
come to light. The cable IN usage of
May Q announces that these letters have
been discovered, carved In stone. over the
gateway OF the old palace OF the kings
OF Ephesus, aud mentions other dstails
likely to interest al Chrlstiau people.
What the inscripii Ions ara that have now
come to the light will DOUBTLESS soon be
made known, II there are any such In
scriptions at all. Bat there are several
statements that sound strange to any one
who knows about this fictitious CORES
pondencs between Jesus and King Abgar
OF FdeFsd.
First-The Epbesus Inscription Is said
to bs in Dorio Greek. This Is natural
IL found at Ephssus. But King Abgar
lived Ia q city CT Syris. Eusebius In his
reference to the ocIrespor dsnos az DIS at
the erd: 81 have inserted them here
." translated from the Syria.
literally" (Churoh Hist. !, 49, Eussbius
ssys Ii at he took them from the archives
at Edessa. II the inscription now found
Is In Uorio Greek IL too must be only a
translation from the Syriao language, In
which the correspondence purports to
have been first written.
Second--Edsssa 10 identified with
Ephesua. AS o matter of fact while
Ephesus was an important oity OF Lydia
In Asia Minor, at the mouth of the
Caystrus river Edessa was the capital OF
Abgsrs' dominions, a city OF Northern
Mesopots mia. near ths river Euphratss,
far away In Asia.
But it may be interesting TO ask OUT
selves what this correspondence really
was, The weird has always baen sorry
that no authentic writing OF j Ssus and
no authentic port els Of him are in ex-
istsnos. 1t waS net many months ago
that the New York Journal trie d to
ing the only well authenticated portrait
of ] ssus. Now this story OF a letter Of
bis comes from the same source. Whether
this be mere 'newspaper enterprise" or
o deliberate attenrt Of certain persons to
keep alive tho ancient tradition that
Bucu FbllC5 VI Obsub hEo cAlsttuucs
1t 10 of couI S. impossible to say. The
natural desire OF people to have such
relics is of course strong enough to givs
IL terest to any new sensation regarding
such treasures. The tradition Of such
remains comparatively cid to be sure,
bot so far as recorda help us no oldsr
than the Church Hlstorian EusF bius. He
wrote his book that con taipsd the refer
encea beswsen the years .a-225 A. ID. He
says that what be gives Is a translation
of documents in tie archives OF Odessa.
He preserves Il tier OF Atesr Jesus
lettsr from jesus TO Abgar and certain
details Of the woIk OF Ibeddeus, the first
ChF.stian missionary ~ Edessa. Abgar
hearing Of the power Jesus had Of work
ing miracles and being himself inflicted
with an inourable disease writes Jesus
q letter which he ssnd by his courier,
AnapiAs Tor Hanan) to Jsrusaiem. Rs-
fsrring to the fact that the Jews are
treating him badly. he asks Jeans 20
come to EdsssA a. bis gusst. Jesus
who hast believed in me Without having
seen me. For It IL written concerning
me, that they who have seen me and
they who have not seen me will believe
and be saved. But in regard to what
thou hast written me, that I should
come to thee, 1t IL necessary for me to
ful1ll all things here for which have
thus TO be taken up again to him that
sent me. But after have been taken
up will send to thee one Of my disciples,
that he may heal thy disease and give life
to thee and thine.
After the letter follows the tre ton
shat the disciple Thomas sent ThAddeus.
an Rncstle. one of the seventy; that this
Tbs ddsus preached the gospel in Ed sssa,
hsaled the king and laid the foundation
of the Christian church In that city.
The tirst sentence Of the letter reminds
Que of st. John Xxx. ~. Whenever
jesus used the phrase sit Is written" he
always refers to the Old Testament.
Bot the second sentence OF the letter Is
nowhere found Ia the Old Testament.
l. EuRebius has the first record Of the
legend.
H. The letters ana legend in some
what mt re elaborate form appear in the
"Dootrina Addaii" or Teach
ings Of Thaddeus One Of the Ampliflos-
iions Is to the eject that Ananias or
Hanan, the courier OF Abgar IL more
than q courier. He IL an artist who
brings back to Abgar, not only the lstte-,
bot the portrait. This "Doctrina Addait
was written about nrty years after the