The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1911-12-23

y
Es3 st historical sense IS pouilu
ga ~ ~ recognize that there nave
~ ieen certain great tunes Cei :
tain great places ana Ger ID al ~
treat men Who have stoO l.I
-. nc 1s,drnarks of history MS
are the monuments along tHe -
- +i,,,o The places are Such d y.
- understand even these rev W"i -
~ 80 something Of the sweep oI Iile
centuries Carchemlsh' -Nllls . +1,7,s
q Won Arbrla. Memphis ie so' - +be
1-c,-rs waterloo. The times anu -
-, 40 indicated as the DAYS o. ~
-, r7e7zar cyrus. Alexander ran
- s-asears. Jesus. Augustine, Colulii-
ms Gutenberg. Luther, asiili- In
Napoleon. Lincoln 1,ss;darad
F,-erv person who has coSsluet -, -
+re tides of time viii agree that lle
most rnOnentous period. the lho7e M
--an-ous Mace. and the most HUN -
+ors nersou in the long annals OF -
human race was the peslli.iHe -
f---fsrian era. the little strip OF laNu
.,[-.~ rba NFedfterra mean. and the lilaii
C-l,-ist Jesus civilization has eisiiI ~
Cd rs estimate of these three idcto-
which are in reality one laeloL, -. -
Nrar-iu the calendars when II haAss
ra0r its walls
The Worlds Greatest Celebration
commemorative an era. a place ana
q .rson is Christmas. the most UNI
v.~-l of all The many holidays KEEP
L., humanity. Other great days tiele
a. i'm the world. The MohammeDaH !
IN at me close of Ramadan; the
C5,srese New Year. the various testal
das- of Hindus and Buddhists CHRIST
9-a- comes nearest to being absolutelS /
UNIVERSAL 1t is kept by some persons 1
in an lands and 1t Is OBSERVED oS "
e.. fter number of persons II repro
ssts the crossroads Of history
..-rae hopes and fears Of all the years
Are met in thee tonight
Trace the tides OF history, and it will
IT,. seen that here they turned me
little town of Bethlehem. at this season
tile capital of human hearts every
Where has a more imperial place in
~. worlds records than either Rome
= Babylon. From il flows the genus
Of modern civilization the impetus OF
our culture, the character OF our social
institutions the slogans of our age
81 The mind brood upon Christmas.
considering what the world of today
would be without il. and it looms into
a greatness perhaps unsuspected he
fore Throughout the past year the
sunday schools OF the world nave oeeH
studying tho history OF the jews
Christmas is the elimination Of il all
\ Visit to Modern Bethlehem.
There are several cures for undue
reverence Of mere geogra phieal loca-
tion which may be taken One is a
y iS1I to the IlQQGII tONlt u A1ctAA AA1i Ai-
Tt is but an hours drive from Jeru-
salem. over a fairly good carriage
road: and lucky is the visitor who does
not have a talkatiVe dragoman by ms
side The scenery. in its natural
phases. IS that which was familiar to
the Patriarchs, 10 David and TO David
Greater son The buildings are new.
hut the hills are the same
Bethlehem itself has been complete
II Transformed even as the event of
fra ms 9
the world No longer IS it hillside
with a crude khan for way
farers It has MANY modern buildings. t
all monuments TO The Babe The chief Z
Industry Of its busy little shops is the c
working i'm mother Of pearl Men, t
y omen and children toll at this dusty f
trade The shells are brought from a
he Red sea. and are worked into t
1eadstrings- such as every MOslem e
gentleman carries in lieu of cane. and 4
nto buttons and souvenirs for travel :
RS [
y strong European tinge is noticed d
ID the faces and bearing of these Beth
hem people. for most of them can T
lain the blood of the Crusaders in t
heir veins The head-dress of the [
s omen seems to have been borrowed T
rom Europe Of the Middle Ages. Their {
iodices. embroidered in dark stuffs- o
ire distinctive wherever seen The en- c
rprise Of the people is shown by the e
I
arge numbers to America. s
The site of the manger is covered
~ the present Church of the Nativity.
u unimposing aggIOmeration of build
ngs which testifes 10 sectarian strife.
nd not 10 the grandeur of the SUI
RENE event here enacted On every =
idle the visitor finds evidences of CON d.
roversy- The Greek Catholics the II
CONAN Catholics and the Armenians II
ontrol the property Jointly. and to :
.cep them from flying at one auother's "
hreats there is ever a Turkish military q
1Iard upon duty at the Manger=a p
fosiem to keep the Christians from =
airing at the cradle of the Prince of =
'eace- From the grotto containing i
he mangcr itself-pToha an au-
ientic site-r0 the affairs of the sep
rate sects. all is tawdrv and unim- It
osing One turns with relief to the
-csh air. saying as he energies. as was
aid at the empty tomb. He is not
ere: He is risen
lie Twentieth Century and the star
There are many more Christmas
laces upon earth than Bethlehem at is
he present time. There are thousands al
homes where Christmas is more fit W
ngIy kept than upon the site of the II
IN that was anciently overcrOwded. H.
hundreds of western communities are Ia
-uer to the Christmas type than is 90
ethIehe EN-. Having seen the grOttO in al
10 Bethlehem church that is marked "
y golden star. and the hills where e;
he shepherds slept and the village up q
i the Tigris from which the Magi ii
-e reputed to have come. and. what is Of
lore Illuminating, having spent last te
hristmas eve in syrian Khan far al
ker to the one that sheltered Mary III
nd the Babe than any that may be C
,urd in Bethlehem today, I feel that c
20 Christmas spirit is the possession
r no one place. and that there is to-
az deep need that it should return to m
,e Christmas site. to bring the peace in
Jesus to this strife-torn spot 81
Really. it is far more exhilarating C