The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1920-05-10

sent to one of the little isles that
was forbidden to return. Wondrous
tales of his charmed life was whis-
! pered. 1t was said that he had been
! dragged to the Lateran Gate at Rome
and plunged into a cauldron of boil
! ing oil, but that it had been unable
| to hurt him, and another story was
| afioat that a cup of poison was given
him without doing him injury. 1t may
| have been the will of God to save the
| holy apostle by wonders resembling
| those that marked the life of Daniel
tho Prophet. to whom he bares most
analogy; and there marvels stilled the
! prosecutions for a time
| Ere long the Asiatic churches had
! intelligence of their holy apostle from
MS own pen in the most awful and
! wonderful letter that ever was framed
by mortal man. He wrote from the
Isle OF Patmos, a small rugged rocky
islet, fitted only for wild goats. Here
the apostle might stand and gaze far
and wide over the blue waters, at the
| outline OF the coast of Asia. and the
rising hills that shut in the cities that
were his own special charge
Seven above all were dear to him
founded some by himself, some by St
Paul, with angels as bishops, chiefly
or his own training; and their num-
Der. seven, Ginning in with many of
the notes of the OLD Law, which he
had learnt to regard as the bud OF
the blossom in which he was rejoic-
ing. Seven, the mystic numberi
There were seven days in the ciivinely
appointed week, seven of each clean
animal entered the ark of Noah. there
were seven branches to the golden
candlesticks in the Tabernacle, and
the seventh day. the seventh week,
the seventh month, the seventh year
ana the seventh times seven years had
all been consecrated, and thus il has
come to be believed that the mum Der
seven expressed the completeness OF
what was good and holy. and That in
accepting and consecrating seven. all
the rest were by that number offered
ana accepted. Thus as the hallowed
seventh day consecrated all the days
IN the week, and the seventh week
all the weeks in the year. so the
Seven Churches, Immediately under
ST. Johns eye, served as ii were. as
an emblem to him OF all the other
churches on the earth-that of Pellau
where the fugitives of Jerusalerb
were gathered. that OF Parthia the
first Gentle church at Antioch gov
erned by his pupil Ignatius. that OF
Greece, where dwelt so many dear to
him; that OF Rome. which he had Wis
tied in such anxious times: that of
Gaul. where ruled the faithful Theop-
lmus; that of Britain, where the
Druid superstitions were being fought
bH Arlstobulus~-nay, every church OF
every place, and at all times, through
out the world-are addressed in the
wonderful letter written from Pat
mos to the Seven Churches of Asia
and their angels" 1t was not of his
own accord that St John wrote these
messages. They Were the words OF
greater man than he. The Patmos|
islanders say he was in a cave when
he heard n great voice as of a trumpet
talking with him. All we know is
that he was in the spirit on the
Lords Day when he turned and saw
saw his Lord and Master-Him on
whose bosom he had lain, whose feet
and hands bore the wounds, whom
he had watched rising into heaven
standing even as he had seen Him
stand in morning dawn on the shore
OF the blue lake, still perfectly to be
recognized by loving eyes, but in the
majesty of His glory. robed from
head TO feet in the long garment OF
King or priest, white and dazzling, as
at the Holy Mount of TRANSPORTATION