The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1902-07-24
CHURCH OF THE NATIVITY.
True Location of the saviOr's Birth
Place for Memorial Temple.

Place for Memorial Temple.
1t would be a great thing if the
churches of Christendom would cele-
brate the twentieth century by hold
ing conference for the purpose of
providing ways and means for the
erection of suitable temple upon the
site of the Nativity. The present
structure is inadequate and unworthy.
being incomplete. insecure, neglected
and partially in ruins, while the in
terror is disgracefully tawdry and
cheap. 1t is one of the oldest exam
Piles of Christian architecture in the
world, but has been partially de-
StrOyed ON several occasions. and the
reservations that have been made
from time to time were intended to
be only temporary. Almost every old
church throughout Palestine is attrib-
uted to Empress Helena, most of them
falsely; some have been erected with
in the last two or three centuries and
more dating from the time of the
crusades. The energy, the enterprise
and the piety of that good woman
were so notable and she did so much
to honor and uplight Christianity that
she is credited with many works that
she never thought of; but there is no
doubt that the basilica at Bethlehem,
at least part of it, was erected by her
direction and under her supervision.
This fact is not disputed, and l believe
it is the only church in Palestine of
which this may be said. The remain
ing buildings attributed to her are
more or less in doubt, says a CORE
spondence of the Chicago Record-Her-
aid.
The Church of the Nativity. as it is
called. is an enormous. irregular and
ugly pile of buildings extending along
a ridge of the hill on which Bethlehem
is built, from east to west. and in
cludes three converts owned by the
Roman Catholic. Orthodox Greek and
Armenian churches. all of them con-
nected with it. There is absolutely
nothing to excite interest in the en-
tire structure except its size and
few Corinthian pillars. half OBJ
liberated mosaics. and roof beams
of cedar from Lebanon. In this church
Baldwin | was crowned king of
Jerusalem. and here hundreds of
kings, princes and potentates and
other great men from the east and the
west have knelt in prayer to the
Christ child.
The Church of the Holy Sepulcher at
Jerusalem. the Church of the Annun-
citation at Nazareth. the tomb of the
virgin, the garden of Gethsemane. and
all the other greater sanctuaries have
been the subject of dispute for CEN
turtles. Nothing definite can be said
for or against their authenticity, and
therefore they probably always will
be involved in doubt and controversy,
which is used as a reason, or rather as
an excuse, for not erecting appro-
pirate monuments over them. but no
such objection can be offered to the
Church of the Nativity. The traditions
which surround it can be traced back
to the very night of the Savior's birth,
and secular history confirms them.
We know that Jesus was born in a
stable because there was no room for
His parents at the inn: we know that
that stable was connected with
cave, and that it was situated in the
village: we know that the location of
the village has not been changed, and.
there being but one cave, the chain of
evidence is clear.
The Christian sects should also
agree that the temple sheltering the
birthplace of Christ should not be
turned into a bazaar as it is to-day by
the Greek priests. The Roman Cath
Ole priests are not guilty of this
sacrilege. but the Greeks not only ped
die all sorts of religious souvenirs be-
fore the very altar, and importune
pilgrims to buy them, but practice i'm
positions and frauds upon the devout
and trustful peasants which would
send them all to the penitentiary if
they could be tried in any common law
court. Some of these impositions are
extraordinary and even absurd. For
example:
According to tradition, the holy
mother went into a cave near the vii
lage of Bethlehem at some time or an
other to nurse the baby Jesus A few
drops of milk from her overlooking
breasts fell upon the floor and were
absorbed by the dry. porous, chalky
soil. The priests say that it permeated
the entire hill just as the altar of roses
will permeate semi-solid substances
with tie force of its virility. For CEN
turtles there has been superstition
among the woman of Bethlehem that
chalk from the floor of this cave dis
solved in milk or water if taken by a
mother will not only promote fertil-
ity. but abolish the profession of wet
nurses. Women who are not mothers
and young maids use it to develop
their busts. and for this it is claimed
to be very efficaciOus. Hence tablets
or cakes like little pats of butter made
of this chalk are much sought after
by pilgrims. and the demand is sup
piled by the Greek priests.
Malaria and Cancer AntagOnistic.
Experiments made in Berlin by DIR.
Loeff1er seem to show that the germs