Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-04-13
1.-THE ACTUAL PLACE"
QUESTION RAISED AS TO THE SCENE,
OF THE TRANSPORTATION,
Issue Between Mt. Tabor and Mt.
Hermon-Evidence i'm Favor
of the Latter.

| To the Editor Of The Evening Star:
L was much interested IN the article in
last Saturdays Star on the above subject,
and yet I have to dissent from some of
| the conclusions therein reached.
The subject of .Ie TRANSPORTATION of
| Christ has always been a most interesting
one to the Christian believer The event
was one of the most wonderful in His won
derful career, and its teachings as import
| ant and instructive as any in the life of
! the Savior on earth. 1t is most natural,
| therefore, that much attention should have
| been paid to it's every detail, and par
| ticularly to the location where the scene
| took place. The most magnificent paint
| ing that was ever committed to vanvas has
! this scene for its subject, and is as bright
! today as when il received its last touches
| from the brush of the dying artist
The author of the article referred to
says, THAT Jesus was transfigured upon
the mountain in Galilee is one of the events
upon which no less than three of the
gospels agree The fact is that not one of
them point to any mountain in Galee.
He says again. THAT this was Mt. Tabor
is agreed in the same unanimous fashion
| by all Christian authorities from the earli-
est times to the present day l venture to
say that not one in fifty of the Christian
authors who have written upon the sub
ject during the last forty years agrees
with this statement. DR.. Robinson. Can
non Farrer, Dean Stanley, Cunningham
Geikie-than whom there is no higher au-
thority known-are unanimous in placing
this event on Mt. Hermon, and for several
good reasons:
First-The event required seclusion and
quiet, while Mt. Tabor was densely popu-
lated in Christ's time, and not one hundred
feet from where Rev. Father Barnabe To-
Gates the three churches upon the spot that
marks the site of the three tabernacles
spoken of by Peter are the walls of the
old fort built by Antiochus nearly two hun
dred years before Christ, and this fort was
at that time occupied by Roman legion.
Second-In the events Immediately pre-
ceding the Savior was in the quiet retreat
at Caesarea Philippi, where He had gone
for rest and an opportunity to instruct
His disciples in the mystery of His death
and resurrection. There is no good reason
to believe that He would leave such a
place and so again into Galllee, where He
had been SO violently prosecuted and so
vigorously hated.
Third-In the seventeenth chapter of Mat
thew, where this narrative is found, after
giving the substance of the lessons He
had taught His disciples after the trans
fguration. the author says, In verse q
And while they (again) abode in Galilee."
showing that they had returned to Galilee.
And Mark says in reference to the same
event, that after these things Jesus Sc
cretly passed through Gaiilee on His way
to Jerusalem which would warrant a rea-
sonable conclusion that He did not leave
Fourth-Mt. Hermon exactly fills all the
conditions required for such an event
(a) 1t was near where He was I'm the
events Immediately preceding the transfig-
uration.
CD 1t was a "high mountain apart"
where they would have that quiet that was
absolutely necessary for such an event
(c) They were in friendly country, or,
at least in country that was not hostile
to Him or His disciples.
l spent some time in the delightful COM
pany of Father Barnabe on trip to Mt
Tabor last summer and we together visited
all the sacred places on that mountain He
is a scholar, but makes claim to being
an archaeoIogist. He is a recent arrival in
Palestine and has little knowledge of the
country and has made no archaeological
researches outside of Mt. Tabor but to
this wonderfully interesting spot he has
given very great attention and has written
a large book upon the subject in an effort
to prove that here was where the Lord was
TRANSPORTED. To do this he lays special
stress upon those traditions which are ia
vorable to this view, but places no conf
dence in others equally as worthy of at
tention which would point to another To-
cation. For instance, there is q perfectly
well-founded tradition, started by Athana-
sfus. that Melchezedek came forth from
Tabor to greet Abraham as he came into
the country from Messopotamia, and the
cave in which he lived for seven years at
the command Of his mother, Salon, Is
pointed out. Yet Father Barnabe does not
believe that Melchesedek ever lived on Mt.
Tabor. I mention this only to show how he
discriminates in the traditions. which, to