Bluefield evening leader. [volume] (Bluefield, W. Va.) 1906-1911, 1906-05-13
THE GREAT SPEECH OF JESUS
At NAZARETH.


Nazareth. the place where he had
been reared and was there "despised
and rejected " II seems that ne en-
tered the temple. according to his
custom. and stood up 10 read. Open
ing the scroll OF the prophet Isaiah
he found the place whore was writ
ten:
The spirit of the Lord is upon me-
Because he annointed mo TO deliver
JOYFUL message TO the destitute.
He sent me forth 10 proclaim TO cap
tives release.
And to the blind recovery OF sight.
To send away the crushed with re-
lease.
To proclaim the welcome year of the
Lord
And folding the scroll he returned
IT TO the attendant and sat down:
and the eyes OF all the synagogue
We're looking steadfastly at him"
And ne said unto them, We will
surely speak TO me this parable. PLY
stefan cure myself: as many things
as We ourselves heard of. coming TO
pass in Capernaum. do here also in
thine own country. And he said.
Verify I say unto YOU. no prophet is
welcome in his own country"
And all We're filled with wrath i'm
Z the synagog. hearing these things.
And rising mp they thrust him forth
outside the city and led him unto the
brow OF the mountain on which their
city was built. so as to throw him
down headlong He, however, passing
through their midst, was journeying
along"
The alpha and omega OF the char
acter of great teacher is daring
speech The Master talks as one hav-
ing authority
And so do others. YOU answer:
the vulgar clown on the street has
the gift of words"
True. but no enragcd Nazareth has
ever yet seized upon one OF them and
carried him up to the hilltop to cast
him thence and destroy him utterly.
His babble lights as dewdrops on the
outer garment of the crowd to van
ish the moment il falls. But he who
speaks with authority says but a
word, and humanity is transfxed.
And whence this authority" YOU
ask. Whence? from the Oracle itself:
whether out of the mouth of the Ia
panese Amdabutsu. or that of a
priestess of Delphi. whether the last
word Of science or the first of Solo
mon, the oracle is unerring. II
teaches principles il reveals facts
1t towers above argument and is be-
yond dispute. il is final and con-
vincing: il is Truth. He who speaks
with authority has truths truth
The people swallow lies and illusions
with relish. and nail the God to the
cross. Why is this. YOU wonder. Be
cause truth puts man TO shame: he
sees himself in the light of it ugly.
despicable: and forthwith smashes
the mirror that refiects his innate
wickedness. Like aged Elizabeth of
England, he demands a false glass
that he may delude himself into the
belief that he is the fairest among
the fair.
Much more does a special locality
resent prophet born of its very
IN hn
city is the acme OF contradiction
That the harlot Nazareth should
nourish purity in the form of man
is harder to conceive than that a
foul pool should bear white lilies on
IFS breast, or the jaws OF a degraded
cur be sown with pearls Nazareth
will not be taught by one of its own
people The Christ for America
could not be an American. Jesus
forestalled the men of his country
by stating this at the very beginning
OF his great work and they. i'm an
ger at the truth, for they perceived
1t to be such at once, attempted to
put him to death
TO run down the gamut of history
and seize upon a note here and there
under the guise of Savonarola. a
Calico, a Bruno. would be but reite-
ration and out of place That these
men used daring speech we are
aware. That Truth forced them to-
martyrdom is no news. Truth how
many dead and tortured bodies has
sh" stood upon waving the inextin-
guishable torch over the psIid
faces of her martyrs. revealing the
fagot the bomb: unassailable. vet
ever assailing. alive and alone mid
skeletons and tombs Even today
though The Nazarene was hung upon
the cross over nineteen hundred
years ago, even today the clear light
flashes over the suffering. the diving
and the dead 40 one among YOU
In This civilized age dares TO speak
th" truth the whole truth. and face