Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1906-04-14


The fourth century of the Christian
era was a stormy period. Its history
| throughout Is marked by the rise and
fall ct empires, the marvellous and
sudden shifting of creeds, and the
bloody scenes of religious persecu-
tons. The Emperor Diocletian intro
duces the century by a sweeping ex-
termination of the Christians. In it's
first decade Diocletian and Maximian
abdicate their thrones, Galerius and
Constantdlls became August, Maximin
and Severus are made Caesars, and
Emperor Constantine (successor to
his father, Constantius) is converted
to Christianity. Saint Martin Of
Torus is born, the great Arian con
| troversy is opened, the first General
Council of the Church is held at Nice,
the capital OF the Empire is moved
from Rome to Constantinople, Con
stantine dies, and the Roman Empire
is partitioned. The tragic civil waa.
between the sons of Constantine opens
its bloody history. The Romans suf-
fer defeat at the hands of the Per-
slams, and Constantine becomes sole
emperor. The Synod of Aries con-
venes and the century, only half gone,
witnesses the birth of Saint Augustine.
Julian is made a Caesar and defends
his beloved Gaul. On the death of
Constantine, Julian ascends the throne
and paganism is once more in the
saddle. Julian makes an expedition
into Persia, he retreats, and dies.
Before the century was threefourths
passed, Julian had died, Jovian was
emperor of all Rome, and Christianity
was again in full sway. s5, Fl .359 4
i What. wonderful century, that:
Wondrous In its rise and fall of
! creeds, crowns, and thrones. And yet,
what Is still more wonderful. this
century saw the first regal acknowl-
Judgement of the Engines Of the
& worlds Christ. Under Julian, the
sempire lapsed into heathenism. They
built again the ancient groves and
tshrines where once their fathers
gathered After the Persian defeat,
when Julian lay a dying, he exclaimed:
40 GalliIean, thou hast conquered"
i And now, in serenest peace and in
the splendor of her power, the
Christian world comes again to her
s. Easter-tide-t day that commemor-
lates the resurrection of her Priest and
!, King. Out of the varied interpreta:
!. tions of creeds and formulas multi.
Iplied scores of organizations have
come. However different these may
J be, they all the great Christian
world, stands by its sleeping dust and
shouts the triunphs OF the dead.
Al great majority of the ancient
world looked upon death as an eternal
81 sleep. One of the old Greek muses.
! declared: aThe best thing is not To
i have been born, and the next besi
i thing is to pass away as soon as
! possible, Another one of the Greek
q lpoets said: eThe best gift of The
!. gods to man is the power to take his
own life" In this utter blindness
Z land apparent ncthingness of tht
+ future, the old Grecian drank the fata
: hemlnck with stoical IMMUNITY. While
|. tmany held this view, others Wers
B Iterrorized by the tomb and thu
!. thought of death was to them d thint
! Iunbearable, Easter - this universal
Z Festival belongs to the Christian
I world. Some one has said that in th,
iage Of chivalry, when a king wished
3 10 raise a brave man to knighthood
he struck him lightly with the sword
i land then pronounced him noble. 81 s.
!, death Is but the soft sword touch b!
q which the Eternal King elevates hi.
faithful subjects to the knight-erfan
j, try Of the skies.
VI - Wli3lG CTESuSS nave u0L always SSa
pressed the doctrine of the resurrec
Ition vet the universal world.hear
throhs with the hope Of a life beyons
the valley and the shadow, The on,
uncomfortable thing in the spirit
world Is life independent Of body
Life seeks It's laabitation. Just al
ii IeasiIy could we conceive Of the life
germ apart from the grain Of wheat
as to think Of the conscious spirf
aside from us bodily tenement. III
who denies the resurrection renderi
both Impossible and irnprac ttioaple an.
other spiritual conception Christian
ity stands or fails with the resurrec
ton the great central fact Of TIL
4