Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1917-04-27


School Lesson, for it is written three
weeks ahead of the date of publica-
tion, and within that time 1T is alto
gether likely that the British troops
will have captured Jerusalem, ana
the most obvious of comments upon
this story of the Triumphal Entry
will have been rendered unneces-
sary. At the present moment the
British troops are approaching, ap-
parently in two columns, one from
GAIA and one from Hebron-to men
ton the two Bible towns at Wnlcn
they were last reported-the ahcleit
city of Jerusalem. Until now the
Turks have been in command, as Tor
centuries past. The holy city lS 4"
garrison town.
Now we may imagine the panic
that prevails. AS always In war the
country folk have thronged to the
city. Jerusalem almost resembles
the old Passover throngs. RuIhors
are rife in every baZar ana at the
sheep markets by the Jana IA any 9,,
is the cry on every lip, as men CLIMB
on to the walls and other high places
TO look for the advancing Chr1stlan
army. Dead bodies of the starved
litter the streets of Jerusalem TO
day. but nobody has time to pay at
tention to them The wailing of the
homes. The faces of the people are
emaciated with hunger. FurtlVely
thev tell one another tales OF the op-
preston of the Turkish troops. Most
of the present dwellers in the ahciehI
City of David long for the arrlNal
of the British forces. That Is the
burden of their prayer, day by day'
Surely the spectacle is one to SUR
the imagination-th young men OF
Canada and Australia and New Iea-
land and South Africa ana GfedI
Britain marching over the stored
soil of the Land of PROMISE TO make
a triumphal entry into the city OF
the great King. DramaticMallS, An W. tnst
new is penetrating the old; the west
Is winning the East. And beneath
the banner of the Cross of st. George
(who himself, it may be recalled
was a Palestinian figure), there Is
carried the spirit and Gospel OF the
Cross of the Son of Man. whose en-
try into this same old city, nineteen
centuries ago, is the theme of study
to-day by millions of Sunday School
members. To consider the present
lesson without regard to the current
news would be ineXcusable on the
part of any alert teacher.
Some Other Triumphai Entries
Many and great triumphal entrles
has this old city seen. 1t was put
a few years ago, in 1898, that En-
peror William IL, of Germany, maze
his spectacular entrance into the
worlds spiritual capital. For that
occasion new roads were built, ana
part of the Tower OF DaNld TORN
down. and other extraordinary prep
arations made, so that it is a com
mon remark in the Holy Land that
the visit of the Kaiser was the most
momentous event in the history of
the HOLY Land since the Crusades.
It was at this time that the am
bilious young Emperor MADE MS
compact with Turkey. which is now
bearing such frightful fruit as the
death of a million Armenian Chrls-
.ians.
We recall, too, the entrance of the
Crusaders, with all that lies behind
that romantic enterprise. Omars
capture of the city is its high date in
the minds of the Moslems. We can
not forget the destruction of Jerusa-
lem by Titus, only forty years after
our Lord trod the city's streets. Pass
ing over the return of the Hebrew
sxiles from captivity to the city they
loved, we have in mind the terrible
tale of it's fall to Babylon. Before
that, and the greatest date of all,
next to the one we are studying to-
dav. was the capture of the city by
King David from the Jebusites,-he
having gone northward from his old
capital at Hebron, where the British
now are.
Authentic non Biblical records of
Jerusalem were unearthed in the
Tell el-Amarna tablets, of the date
of 1850, b. c. Always the city has
been a high place of strategy. And
throughout its various epochs-Am-
prite, Jebusite, Hebrew, Jewish, Ro-
man, Byzantine. Arab, Moslem, CRU
sader and Turkish,-it has been first
Of all religious center.
When the Golden Gate Is Opened
One of the most interesting of the
superstitions of the Jerusalem Mos
ems is the belief that when the So
called Golden Gate" of the city,
sealed for centuries, is opened, the
Christians will retake Jerusalem.
rhis is the gate in the center of the
eastern wall, right at the Temple
Area, and it corresponds to the gate
Of the triumphal entry of Jesus. 1t
looks squarely out on the Mount of
olives and while the present wall is
not the one that surrounded the city
n our Lords time, this bricked-up
portal is still called the gate of the
lriumphal entry. We need not be
surprised to hear that the British,
who have a full sense of the impor-
lance of religious impressions, have
opened the Golden Gate, in symbol
hat the long sway of the false
prophet over the city of our Lord is
ended.
For as surely as the Spirit of the
Almighty rules the world to-day,
overturning the counsels of men to
The praise of the Lord, the new tri-
lmph of Jesus is being accomplish
ed. He is entering anew into the
minds of men and into the affairs of
nations Whatever else it will have
lone, this war will have accomplish
ed the rule of freedom and justice
'or oppressed people; and will have
brought to the benighted places light
and knowledge and health. Consider
what the new, conquest of Jerusalem
means in the way of sanitation and
aw and order and freedom from
petty tyrrany and oppression. Safety
will come to even the poorest and
weakest of Jewish refugees. No more
will Jew or Christian have to skulk
Or hide in the old city. Wherever
righteousness wins a victory, there
s a triumphal entry for Christ. Let
rs get firm hold of the truth that
he victories of our Lord are not all
the past tense and in remote
ands.
Moonlight Memories ON Olivet
One unforgettable night, in the
sull effulgence of the Passover moon,
Z stood on the slope of Olivet, look
ng over toward the city. I had
crossed the Brook Kedron, and
passed up beyond Gethsemane. Just
,elow the rival German and Russian
churches which crown the crest of
his mount of memories I ta rried IN