The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1904-01-21

Jesus Rejected at Nazareth
That synagogue in Nazareth was a
plain, small, rectangular structure,
its only effort at Establishment being
in the form of Greek portico, with
the conventional Hebrew-twisted foil
age for ornament. Here stand the
two almsboXes-that on the right for
poor of the congregation, that on the
left for pilgrim Jew. The interior
vies with exterior lin plainness
plain as a pipe stem certainly APP
plies here. Common wooden benches
seat the congregation. In recess in
the rear wall is a chest exactly proper
toned after the ark of the covenant,
only not Overlaid with gold, and des
titute Of cherubim. 1t faces towards
Jerusalem, and contains tine scrolls
of the law and prophets. In front is
the readers desk, and in front of it
the elevated stalls, the "chief seats,
for which there was often an unseemly
scramble. The congregation gathers.
The angel, or president of the syna-
gogue, is in his place, with yelled
face. The rulers mount to the chief
seat. They are on dress-parade, with
Cheir blue ribbons and white phylac-
teries. Strange sight this, IAN audience
of men, Where are the women? talk
about separate sittings. The women
not only sit apart, but entirely out of
view. III gallery behind the lattice
sit the matrons and maids of Israel.
Service begins. The minister steps
into the pulpit. The audience rises.
They burst out in the recitation of
the Shema. (Deut. vi, 8, etc. The
minister. with yelled face and hands
spread toward heaven chants a prayer
He opens the ark, takes out the roll
of the law, finds the passage appoint
ed to be read, calls layman fom the
congregation, and has him read it.
The scroll of the law is then returned.
and that of the prophet brought out
1t was just at this juncture, in Naza-
reth, that the minister, glancing over
the audience, and noticing the benig-
nant countenance of a stranger, calls
him to the pulpit and puts the roll of
the prophet Isaiah in his hands. Jesus
found the place where it was written:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me. d"
That audience could not have been
ignorant who was occupying their pull
pit that morning. The fame of Jesus
had reached the city where he had
been brought up. His baptism by
John Baptist, his cleansing of the
temple,-news of these matters must
have been brought by returning pill
grims. They had certainly heard of
the miracles in Capernaum, if not at
Cana. too.
Jesus did his best to propitiate his
auditors. He might have selected a
paragraph setting forth his regal
character. But, instead, he chooses
one which pictured him as a lowly
messenger of helpfulness, and he care
fully stopped short of the sentence
which declared his judicial office. He
had purposely delayed his coming in
order that the fame of what he did
and said in other places might reach
Nazareth, and overcome, if possible,
the contempt which was bred by ia
miliarity. He almost succeeded,
There was sweet responsiveness in
voice and manner There was a VERT
able impersonation of humility-a
elf-obliviousness that was captiva-
ting to the last degree. The fate of
Nazareth trembled in the balance.
In audible terms, as well as by look
and gesture, according to the free
manner of the synagogue as we'll as
to the demonstrative custom of Orien-
tails generally, they indicated their
admiration of both speaker and word
spoken. But as the sermon proceeded.
the reaction set in. Jesus was per-
fectly aware that it was coming He
knew what was in man. He knew he
was to be rejected before he set foot
in Nazareth; but love and sympathy
for his townsmen constrained him not
to pass them by. Those who mo-
ment before We're wondering at the
graciousness of his words, were now
vociferating about his low birth and
humble profession, and resenting his
mild claim to the Messiahship. They
were saying to him: eff you are really
the promised one, why don't you
work miracle on yourself to begin
with? Convert your poverty into
wealth, your weakness into stren.t tn
and we will believe YOU Then theil
local pride, village jealousy, began tc
assert itself as they cried: "Why die