Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1914-05-20

gave origin to these charges?
1.-THE covenant of blood is almost
as old as mankind Far back as we
| can trace it was an ancient Semitic
rite. Two persons who wished TO en-
ter into the closest, most enduring and
most sacred compact intercommingled
their blood by mutual tasting or by
intertransfusion. A very general way
was for one to open with sharp lam
Get vein in the others arm, insert
q quill in the opening and through IT
suck the blood. The compact thus
made was called Mahadat ed-Dam
covenant of Blood.
The rite is still observed in the un-
changing East The Syrians frequent
ly practice it and this tie of blood
covenanting is reckoned even a closer
one than natural descent a bro
Their" made by the blood covenant is
regarded as nearer and dearer than
a brother by birth.
From the worlds earliest morning
the blood has been regarded as the
life. To shed blood was TO take life
TIE first Biblical mention refers to
the shedding of Abels blood by his
brother Cain and the crying out, of
the spilled life of Abel unto its Di-
vine Author Genesis w., 10-lD: THE
voice of thy brothers blood cryeth
/ unto me from the ground said the
Lord to the guilty spiller of blood.
And now cursed art thou from the
ground, which hath opened her mouth
to receive thy brothers blood from
thy hand" Here, as elsewhere, the
blood is the life and even poured on
| the earth does not lose its vitality
Noahs first act on coming forth
from the ark after the deluge was to
prefer himself and all living flesh in
[ a fresh blood covenant with the Lord
He offered burnt offerings. but hrst
took the blood of the animals and
sprinkled it on the altar.
Again the Lord made beginning
for the race in his start with Abra-
ham as the father of chosen people.
The covenant of the blood or strong
friendship. as il was called IN the
East was the prominent feature. This
is nv covenant which we shall keep
between me and you, and thy seed
after thee: every male among YOU
shall be circumsised. Inc
blood covenant of friendship shall be
consummated by your giving to me OF
your personal blood at the very
source of paternity, under your CIR
die" That self-same day Abraham
was circumcised and bore in his flesh
evidence of the blood covenant with
] the Lord.
The two covenant tokens of blood
friendship with the Lord-circumeision
and the phylacterics-are by rabbis
/ closely linked in the relative import
i ance. Not every Israeite is Jew,
they say, except he has two witness
es-the sign of circumcision and ply
Iacterics; the sign given by Abraham
I and the sign given to Moses.
We have the blood-covenant in the
Passover. When the Egyptians would
not let the Israelites depart the Lord
turned the waters into blood so that
the Egyptians could not drink of that
which was representative of life and
sacred TO their gods. Again when
leaving the Israeiites were commanded
to take the blood of the lamb Gas SYM
bolicaD and with it sprinkle their
doorposts.
At Sinai Moses took the blood of
the burnt offerings and sprinkled it on
the altar and on the people.
The final act of the Lords blood
covenant with Abraham was to be
consummated when He gave His only
| begotten Son as a sacrifice for the
redemption of the world. In Abra-
hams seed were all the nations of the
earth to be blessed Abraham had
given to God of his own blood, by
right of circumcision, in token of his
desire for inter-union with God. God
was now to give of His blood, in the
blood of His son, for the revivifying
of the sons of Abraham in 1.-The blood
of the eternal covenant" CHeb. xiii,
% In the fulness of time Christ came
into the world and shed His blood
for many unto the> remission of sin.
At the Last Supper He took bread
and blessed 1t and gave to His disci-
pies and said. Take, eat. this is my
body Then he offered the cup, say
ing: Drink we all of it, for this is
my blood of the covenant. (Matt.
XVI, 27-2S) The promise of the COW
enanting cup was made good on Cal
vary. The pierced hands and feet OF
the dying Savior yielded their life
giving streams. The blood. the life
of the Son of God, was poured out
unto death in order that all who would
might become sharers in its revivify-
ing and saving power. Thus 1T was
in the old-blood is the atonement, the
link between God and man.
But outside of the Scriptures we
have many exemplifications of the
blood rite, not alone in primitive ma
tons, but in modern times and among
the civilized as we'll as the barbarous.
Travellers in the heart of Africa re-
port the covenant of "blood-brother-
hood" as in vogue among various
tribes. In some cases 1t is observed
by the contracting parties tasting each
others blood Livingstone has given
us a description of the blood cere-
mony in Africa.
Commander Cameron. of the Living
stone search expedition, who was tn
!, first European to cross the entire
breadth of the African continent, als'
describes the ceremony, much after thu
manner of Livingstone, except that tn
incisions were made in the wrist veins