El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-01-14
lcopvright. 191O. by Frank c. carpenter.l


- TAZARETH, Jan. 5.-This is, the
~ home of Christ's boyhood- Here
he came as a baby after that long
trip to Egypt where he went to escape
the blood thirsty Herod, and here ne
spent all but about four years OF his
life. l want to tell you how Nazareth
locks in this year of our Lord 1911.
The town is situated high up in the
mountains of Galilee, within 60 miles OF
Jerusalem as the crow flies and 81 miles
from Bethlehem. where Jesus was born.
1t is within days ride on horseback
of Mount Carmel, where Elijah slew
the false prophets, and within four hours
of Capernaum on the Sea- of Gaiileei
from where our Savior took his apostles
and where he first preached.
Nazareth lies in a nest in the noun
tains. 1t is in little arnphitheater OF
hills with a rough and ragged arena
The houses run ZIP the sides OF the hills
and there Is hardly a level spot IN the
whole municipality. 1t Is not a large
town. 1t. has altogether less, than 12,O0o
people, of whom about half are Moham-
medans who look upon Christ as a
prophet. The remainder is made up OF
Greek Catholics, Latins and about ZOo
Syrians, of the Protestant faith. Inc
town is one of churches and converts.
1t has some great monasteTies and nos
pices where pilgrims are kept over nlghe-
The residences of the people are rect
angular structures. which look more like
great stone boxes than houses. They are
usually Of one story, with a door and
two windows, and the most OF them
have flat roofs, which in the summer
form the resting and sleeping places at
night Many of the buildings are IN
gardens. Some have cactus hedges about
them and others are shaded by cypress
trees. There are many olive orchards.
and figs grow here as luxuriantly as
they did in the time of our Savior.
Nazareth By Moonlight.
The buildings of Nazareth are ugly
but as whole the city is beautiful.
The sky is so blue, the air is so clear
and all the surroundings are so pietur-
esque / shall not soon forget a birds
eve view 7 had of the city last night.
The moon was at its full and its great
round silver disk changed the night into
day. It's ray meIlowed the yellow lime
stone OF which the buildings are made.
and transformed them to ivory. They
softened the glare of the white, rocky
roads, and made the mountains and val
leys look like those of fairyland. From
the top of the hills I could see the plain
of Esdraelon. (which in its fertility Ties
with the Nile valley; and away off at
the west lay the mighty Mediterranean,
which stretches on for 1000 miles to
Gibraltar and the Atlantic.
Nazareth by moonlight is wonderfully
peaceful. At sunset all business stops
and within an hour or so afteTward
every one IS in bed. There are few
places which are so far from the strife
of the world and business seems swal-
lowed in the beauties of nature. The
scenery is that OF old Greece. and the
stars shine gloriously out of skies which
are perfectly clear.
The sunsets are surprisingly beauti-
full. I saw one the other night in which
the silveTy beams of the sun seemed to
form a halo over this the home of eur
Savior. There were MANY white clouds
in the skv, which changed first to rose
and then became golden. the color grow
ing stranger and stronger, until the
whole west was one blaze of molten cop
per and fire.
Among the Nazarenes.
Coming down into the town, after
watching one of these sunsets, saw
many Nazarene children and stopped to
make notes The little ones gathered
around me-. and it was not hard to
imagine similar crowds which played in
these streets 1900 years since and of
whom the boy Jesus was one. The little
Nazarenes wore gowns of brown, red or
yellow The most of them were in their
bare feet; the boys had caps of red felt,
while the girls wore handkerchiefs or
shawls tied around their heads. All
were running and dancing and laughing
and playing. Some were beautiful and
especially the girls. l remember a rosy
checked baby which was carried by a
roughish bright eyed maid of Is. | ad-
mired the baby, and chueked it under
the chin, telling the girl I would like to
take it home with me to America. She
promptly said / could have it, and thrust
it out toward me. My face fell and /
ran.
In the Footsteps of Jesus.
There is no doubt but that this is the
Nazareth of Jesus, and that the hills and
valleys about here were hallowed by his
footsteps. 1t was here that the angel
Gabriel appeared unto Mary and told
her that she would be the mother of
Jesus, and it was here that she came
with Joseph after the flight into Egypt.
She waited only until king Herod was
dead. and then came to Nazareth the
child Jesus being still an infant in arms.
1t was from Nazareth that Jesus went
to the Jordan to be bantized by John,
and it was here that after he had begun
his work our Lord came and preached in
the synagog, whereupon the Nazarenes
cried out:
as not this Joseph's son? And
they were filled with wrath, and rose up
and thrust him out of the city and led
him unto the brow of the hill whereon
their city was built that they might
cast him down headlong But he pass
ing through the midst of them went his
way"
was shown the hill to which the
Nazarenes led the Savior, intending to
cast Him. down. It is about mile and
a half from the town. Fhe exact 10
eality of this place, however, is ques-
toned.
There is another spot in Nazareth
now owned by the Roman Catholics
which claims to be the original site of
the shop. where Joseph worke as a
carpenter. The place is in the Mo-
hammedan quarter. not far from a ba-
zaar where the Turkish merchants sit
cross legged and sell to the Christians
When I visited it I met Father Kerst-