RELIGIOUS ACTIVITY.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 592, 21 August 1909, Page 9

RELIGIOUS ACTIVITY.

"NEBUCHADNEZZAR'S PALACE, - RESULT OF RECENT DISCOVERIES. A description of sonic of .tho most striking discoveries so.far achieved upon'the site of the txilace-fortress of ancient Babylon by the .German excavators', under tho direction of Dr. Koldewcy was recently, published by "Tlio Times," "and romantic the story' is. "Tho work achieved by thorn upon this site since 1899 has produced results not inferior to any which have been • carried on within tho limits of ancient Babylonia for the • magnitudo and interest of tho relics which have- been laid bare. ' Beneath ■ tho great. inoimd, pre-eminently, known to tho modern Arab population as El-Kasr, or 'tho castle,' which rises above the now desolate plain of tho Euphrates, has been discovered tho palace of Nebuchadnezzar, and the other great works'Vitli which lie adorned his capital. Their magnitudo seems .to provide no inadequate ground for tho words of pride in 'great Babylon, that- I .have built,' ■atr tributed to the King in tho Book of Daniel. . . ,-.;■• . ■. ; ' ; V •'■■ '■,"■" : ; The KasslvQ Wall.'. , ■ s ;.'.' - "Years of labour will still bo required to trace tho ground plan of'all tho palace buildings, adjacent to and protecting the royal'■dwelling,, built by. Nebuchadnezzar above the.less splendid edifice of his father, Nabopolassar. But tho. great, irregular enclosure which has already .been laid bare contains specimens of architecture which amply illustrate the magnitudo of the King'swork. One of the outer walls, for example, is more'-than twerity-four yards thick..Besides the palace buildings, with tho great oblong .hall, with its alcove at-oiie. end to contain a throne, which is supposed to:havo been tho.'scene , of BelsSiazzar's.feast, 'a conspicuous feature of \ the' excavations is the. so-called 'sacred way' which, leads along tho cast side of; thepalaoe to the tempi© of-'tlio , goddess Ishtar,' crossed by a great - ; gate which was heightened by. Nebuchadnezzar four or. five times over, as''Hβ- repeatedly raised.tho. level of the road.in his successive undertakings. _.. - ■ /' < ■ ■■ / :,: Empires: Beneath the Soil. ' '. ■',:. ':}■ V "This great city of brick, has peculiar fea-, tures of • interest, and also of difficulty .for the. explorer,' as compared ■ with m'onpments of siono. The desiccated: soil of Moso-. potamia has wrought little damage to'the buried structures, although-, the gradual rising of the bed of the Euphrates - by alluvial deposits lias submerged, and perhaps, seriously injuted, tho-lower layers of "debris, some of, which date from a period more than a thousand years earlier than that of■ the. brief hut. splendid Second, Babylonian pire .which reached its highest point under. Nebuchadnezzar. " /■'■.' ; ■;■•.• ~ "Alagnificent as arc tbe relics already discovered of the Second Babylonian Empire; they represent' but some.of tho later stages in-the long story of human civilisation iipon • this site. ; Though NebuchadiiezzaT's Baoylon lies buried many feet deep beneath tho ruins of.'subseqiiejit dominions, it rests upon a succession of earlier, strata, which go back not improbably to a date yet -moro' remote from Nebuchadnezzar's than his is from our own'. .Tlio difficulty of exploring 'tbcso' earlier, layers is naturally much-'greater,in ■proportion to tho deptli at: which they li 6. But in ono of the most ancient parts of tho city Dr. Koldewey and his .colleagues are noiv engaged in investigating the relics of tlio First. Babylonian. Empire, . which was long antecedent both to t Nebuchadnezzar ■ and to -his Assyrian predecessor. ' ■' . ': The Horizon? of Alstory.: \ . \ . . "Tlio' widening of the horizons of history is ouo,,p£ the most powerfuLinstrunicnts for' expanding and educating tho human mind, and tho .effect of such discoveries as. those in Babylonia or in Crete is likely to be moro and: more widespread : and'. profound. The rah'cs of, ancient civilisations •seom .likely ; to, produce an' 'educational'Je^Fdct , upon many types of mind which are impervious to the 'humanism of literature;",■". ■■:>■ '■■ ■-. ■ ■ . • V 1 ; : Vyk CALVIN MONUMENT, v ; "■.. Brilliant weather favoured the opening of the Calvin Commemoration, at Geneva, when (states, tho ■'■Christian , '-World' , );, the ,'fjrst portion" of the , monument to Calvin, ;in:the university..grounds, was unveiled.'The first stone' of tlio international: monument,;whichwill 'include , ngu/os of Fare!,' Calvin, rßez.a, Knox, Cromwell, and Roger was embedded in the wall of tho old'rampant which faces the university. Many emiueh* representatives of Protestantism from all parts of'the '.world were' present, and : Professor Gautior, president of',tho Monument Comniittoe, gave an eloquent address on Calvin and his-work. . Dr. Voighs, President of the, Supreme .'Evangelical Council of Germany, .read a telegram from.y tho. Emperor William, .in which his Majesty characteristically expressed pleasure at learning that threo of jiis. noble William of "Orango, and Frederick William , of. Brandenburg—would- bo represented among the statues of the movement. Lord. Kiunaird,Lord High Commissioner of the Church -of Scotland,-.'dcliVcred a speech, and was followed by , tho delegates of the Grand 1 Duchy of-Baden, Hungary, and Moravia. ~ - :•'■-■'"'.;'■ ■. —~—■ , '.- . ■' \..,',. _, -■'■'■ -DOMINUS ILLUMINATIO MEA. ' The following poem, whose originship has liithbrto been doubtful, has recently been truceuVbcyond doubt, to the authorship of the late Richard I).' Blackmore, author of "Lorna Doono": — ' •■ ■ \ ■'. '?:. ■ ■. .'. In tho hour of death, after this life's'whim Wheii tho heart beats low, and:,tho, eyes:grow. .. dim,: :■■■■■• ' ' ■■-.. Arid pain has exhausted every limb— . ■ : : • ilover ui" tho lord shall trust in Him. . When; the' will has'forgotten tj.olife-long aim; And tho' mind can only disgrace its fame, And α-ninn is uncertain of his own name ■'''The power of tho Lord shall fill his frame. . When tlio last-.sigh is heaved arid the Inst tear shed, ' '■ ■ ■■.. , ,: ~. ' • '■■ And the.coffin is waiting beside tho bed, . ■ . And tho'widow and child 'forsake tho dead . . The augel of tho Lord shall-lift this head. For even lie purest delight may pall; x The poiveif must fail, and tlio pride must fall. And the lovo of tho dearest friends grow smallBat tho glory of the Lord is all in all. -."' • JOTTINCS. . ■ ',-■'■' .The Rev. W. B;.. Lark,-, recently elected to the presidency of "the United •: Methodist Church, is a • record-breaker in tho , inattor of presidential dignities'. Ho was three 'timesl-'.President of the Biblo Christian Conference, nnd on the formation of the United Methodist; Church.'he served as temporary "president, at the''.first conference ,in .Wesey's Chapel. As a local preacher'of sixteen ho delivered"liis first sermon to an audience of seven';."persons.' "His second- drew a, :larger congregation, hut Mr., Lark still .tells now the imposing' , array of white neckties (then the symbpl of. a-.local ,preacher) so overcame hiin -that lie. was ill with fright for. several days after. ■'■Mr, Lark will be a suavo/j arid •■ dignified, hea'd; of the youngest of the churches. ■... •;.•■■■ ', ' < ■ ■' ■ Dr. W.-' J. Dawson, speaking at Blafkpool oii the iinportanco of prayer, said they\had had enough sermons, and lie would like-some yjreat church to make the .experiment of dis.oontiiiuiiig for a whole month"the usual'services, ■ and- haVing instead : ono great continuous meeting of the.church for prayer. Then things would ■ happen'. The great re-vival'-would, begin. : What , is .described as the- second milestonb oil till) road to church; union ' was' passed at tlic General Assembly of Presbyterian Church of Canada..: After , ah ani-. niated discussion, tlio proposal that the: assenibly-shuiild tiiketho lead in the matter was relegated to the individual churches for approval or rejection, the majority "being 160 to 42. Strong opposition was predicted by some of the speakers. ■ ■■■ > '■-~ ; . 'Preaching to a crowded congregation ai Ciiiet.ClHirohi BigbJbiua' firove, on a.-r©.

cent Sunday morning, tho Bishop of London' , 1 said, in 'his frank wiy, "I havo come, my people, -to pay 'a pastoral visit. For eight years, practically- day and night,. I havo • gono from church to in this great • diocese, and now • I como to you as a shep- .; herd, with his staff, in his band,', to bia sheep., I como-to back up the parish priest who is my l representative iiero." During ' his sermon; Dr. Ingram said ho had to f speak sometimes nine or ten times a week, f and ho could not do it if the Holy Ghost 1 did not givo.him in each hour what to say. » Ho mentioned that that afternoon ho would spend in sick visiting from ono end of London to tho other. Many Nonconformists 5 who attended this sorvico wero glad to hear - tho bishop say that though ho did not be-' 1 lievo in short'cuts to unity churchmen and r Nouconfofmists must seize upon their many points of agreement and try to understand each- other better. ... ■ ' • ■■. 3 A largo number of Australian and a fow a . New Zealand delegates are expected to attend tlie centennial convention ito be held , j.; in Pittaburg, U.S.A., in October. It was at r Pittsburg that. Thomas Campbell's tiok "was Bigncd proclaiming the renuncia». ": tion of human- formulae, and a return to tho j 3 Scriptures as solo guide.' "When tho Scrip.-' 1 tures speak wo,speak, when the Scripturesj a.ro silent, wo are silent," was tho phraso l k which' the religious 'fplatfonn" of the Churches of Christ was crystallised. A gath-. 1 ering of 50,000 delegate's, from all parts of j tho world is expected, for the Pittsburg Con-! ference. Tho Churches of Christ claim al-' ready to have held tho largest communion; service ever known.- Tlio service was at- . tended by 10,000 persons at tho St. Louis Exposition. In a letter in "Public Opinion" on tho future of Glastonbury- Abbey," "E.J.A." suggests that tho venerable. remains should bo incorporated in a perfectly restored Abbey 4 —restored, tbat-.is, to tho glory of God,-not If of man; that-it should ho constituted and ondowod as a seminary for, sound and thorough Anglican learning and that' it should rank, as tho Empire's Anglican training centre, to which specially*'l selected candidates for Holy Orders shouliL ■' be sent'from every 'colony, dependency, or'•-. dominion in tho Empire, open even to from tho United States, thorn to inspire tho , truo missionary spirit and zeal of tho aucient 4 fathers who worshipped within its sacredu, walls \ ami. then, ''after ; preparation sniijiS qualification, for the ordained to go forth asapostles'of lovo and serVico into tlio .slums. at Homo and to tho Church's outposts in' •■ tho four corners of the world. Would not such an Imperial .'Anglican Clergy Collego • bomoTO in keeping;'■ wth tlio memories of Glastoiibury? And would not tie Chureli. ,of England bo stronger, -more Catholic, and.. its priests more true if influenced by a,teaching derived from , the Church's 'greatest; '•<,, theologians, and,.tbo' association with snch ' an historical and dearly- loved homo of tjo> early' English- Church as , Glastonbury? •. 1 Hay, who recently 6ent a If, message to the Salvation Army people in.., Australasia in tho following words, "Wo are 4 coming witti simple faith in God, and through, trust in the principles and teachings of tho . doar old Army," adds, "You will kno.w that ' t'ho appointment comes to mo in tlio , nature.'' ,of a, Rees , having i been announced, and on tho point of'sailing, j .Still, it could not bo less than a,great joy and honour to mo to be charged by 010. General with orders to take up the command , v of our operations: in Australasia.". Referring to tho canceljatipn of Commissioner Beps's, appointment, it transpires that after a strict examination,' the : doctors practically prdhibiterl'Mrs. Rees , taking tho long sea journey, declaring.that they had grave doubts-; as to whether sho would survive the voyage,. , and oven were sho to do so; whether jno' would be ableto livo Uirough an Australian .. summer.- ■ r .', . . . '.'■.■ .'■/'.. . Tlio Bishop of Oxford (Anglican) during his triennial visitation last month, dealt with : tho "Quicunquoi" Ho said ho had como to feel that Ji<3 could not defend tho uso. of ihat'creed in'■ public worshipi as it '■■■■■. stood at-present. The; wisest courso would ; bo to unburden tlio creed of tho'second and.. , , ; final minate'ry clauses, which perplexed and misled peoplo who did not understand tr'o qualifications to'them.'.i ■%■ . ':■ . ~ ,Tho, Salvation Army has introduced an ; innovation "which will seoin' curious to Eng- ■ lish readers K at Atlantic City; U.SX, ono of ' New. Jersey's famous scasido wsbrts. For years the Salvationists have held services on | the beach, .but this year they havo obtamed tho permission 'of the authorities for thosowho frcqueut their services to wear- bathing costumes indoors. By this means tiieyhcptt ■, to.obtain greater crowds of listeners among tho thousands who bathe on the. sands. They 'have' Tente- the 'Beach Theatre, just off tho 'three-mile Broad, Walk, and hold services "there practically'all day. Sections, havo boon arranged in the .theatre-, for bathers whoso costumes are dry and others ..whoso aro wet.' : ' .... , • . ■ . ■ ■Few movements-in modern Methodism in i England .havo mode such strides as "Tho j ■' Wepley Guild;" which seeks "to get into '■• touch with ..every young man or, woman, every boy or girl in-, Sunday school,. congregation; and neighboiirhood." At the all-' nual conference in Lincoln the total nmnber.of. guilds was reported at 2602_, with a • imitfcd" membership of 170,202. This means a net increase for tho year of 9188. ■The: success of tho Anglican Church, pageant in London has led to a resolve to repeat tho experiment nest year. Tho in-, itial. effort, was undoubtedly a triumph of management, and. thoro, is a well-founded ■ hopo that thoro will bo a balance on ike right side. ' This very fact; however, loads , onoof the'leading religious newspapers to ■ advise, that; there, should bo mo repetition. The circu'mslinco that tho pageant was a , ■ success was'rpgardcd by it as, suggesting that another might not bo equally fortun T ate. 'Meantime, while there 'seems to bo , a consensus of opinion that $0 enterprise- wae deserving of tiio highest conimondationf thcro aro those, who are offering criticism. • A Battersea "Vicar," for instance, who admits that hd enjoyed the pageant, asks the committee to say plainly what has been tho cost in health and lifo to thoso who took ■ part in it. owing to tho wet and cold. The dea of a Nonponformist pageant has now,, been put forward. Tho year 1912, is talkcpV ' about, as.it coincides with tho 2Goth anni- . • versary of the'passing of tlio Act of Uμ- ■ formity and tbo ejection of over 2000 clergy- ■ ■men from-their livings. That is claimed, would almost supply materials-for ; an intoiesting reproduction of what is, described as one of the - most "moving , . "■ ■ enjsodos of. linglish history.