Our Goodly Heritage.

Waiapu Church Gazette, Volume XV, Issue 2, 1 August 1924, Page 425

Our Goodly Heritage.

r< Iff the wbrld ye shall: have tribulation?' - 7. ' 7 . 7 Just bef oi'e' the' Lbrd; Jesus' \veiit iip) into _Helave ! i!iy ; He gSve this cbihiiiiiirid to' His 'disfeii>|les,;:'-' jdk»-'' : ' : ye into all thk world)' and ~ Ju'each the Gospel 1 to every" creature,'' a command still strongly: laid; oh His 1 ChuVch) for ala^! thbugh mbre than 1900" years have rolled by since'Heiitte^ed these words, there are yet quite': half of the inhabitants of this' earth' who have never even heard df the mighty Saviour 1 Who has : redeemed thenii If we cannot 1 go' but personally as missionaries weniust do our utmost m Other ways to help ; the Church to carry the message of lPve to the'heatheii that they may be turned froni 1 darkness to light, or else we are neglectiiig ! to obey this our Lord 's last coniriiand. * Nowadays it is ho easy task to convert the heathen, but m the Apostles' tinie it was far mbre difficult." Thb Romans were then masters of the whole known world) and you must remember that their punishment for' the lowest sort of criminals was crucifixibii, as degrading as hanging is with us. Yet the Creed of Christians is to believe m a Crucified Saviour and to glory m the. Cross; and^this was 'what the! had to tell' these proud cohquerbrs. I|ow they would mbck! . I^meiriber) too)' how suiik ihw^ ednMs' th"6 'natibns wei;e : theii; ' No one' \tfa ? s ashamed Pf TlPaidihg ;ah; iinpujre or s&lfisti life'; sin was'-bpeniy • coriimiited! by; rich |aiid' pbpr. Np ! hb^iUl^ 1 wfere "to .be seen aiiywhjse): for tiije " sidfk' 'and old; It . ; was Christianity 1 that 1 biifltf them later. Human life" was; cburited .;yery cheSjfi" ..'^MM** wpnie_a) r arid,, children wei r c bplighl* '^nd' sold; arid )Hecariie the pro£Mjr of ;;thfeir owfteifs, : who ' might ill-trfeat ,"f henS)" br putf %e_oi to death ■fts. thejy lifee^d." Jt^ilf £iyij jpu: ; ari idea of hb^jthfey .wiftj irfe^tetd whenVlteli yoiHhkt three^ .^,,prbpe^ty^ were recb^wi6d-^th¥ ; , ( ' $$oing);0 ing) ; the Half 7 spe£ks& : aiid t_h6^ l iuiribV , ' You will' hardly guess what these three meant.

WfrV%ssasßa%** w#e- j th^ !; slafeSi"' th^'hal^^&kiftg'' \fere ? iK^laiiim^ n aiid • the :; ' ' ' dMifr'* Htßla ikftlW -sM chMi-S ani sticMike f&nituse!>' . It ; waS-Christ; Who '^^ed-thartlir slaye waWeqiiiM 1 with : M|-mUfifeif ; 'iii!-' ; iSe^,' interested' by God, ; ' alfld mtfd^'ih : His : likfen-eSsvi ■;■■■_'' ..,'7;, ', ..■ . 77, Y^^erhSF wWe p2offr#;; thehv ' uPt ' oftly witS their Slpei^^ Waty7 To* see' ;hurnan' ' stiff ejf'ihg waFah excitement antF pleasure ;; aiffi the 1 chief am^|eme?itt of' Rbmey-tKe l gteafc-' est ! city ; ' "iii : the \wbfldr^a&- -tpV wafciiih ; gladiatWs' Or profession kill each other m the ' Co'lbSsetim', aS' their gig&htic' tMltre wia"S' ? ciallielill;. or wrestfe with the'^avage lionS 'pflebpai'ds until" they''were ,: "t6i^;td v 'piwes-;--' '..;■. Tofsticfi' 1 _ni'en aSthe^ ttfe Gbppet. of pieape,- ; 'and r goodwill; and' forgvf'i--Hos ! cotild; 1 :thfe A^d^tleg— ho\v d£r^:thej^pre'a§lr it ; f TUef etruld;- and" tittf -did; with' mai^elldu's-successj'' tbPV : bii't only by the help; of that Holy' Spirit Whb is ever with r th'e r Church. A' few' yeai : s7afterMrds| wheft the' awftt! pei v secutidhs^ verts' proved by th'eif steadfastness how thoroughly : -they; had a'&ce'jSted. the' Crucified* Orie" as indeed' ; th 6 true ' Son of God, their Saviouri! "For this . Faith they were ready to give up all that the world holds pleasant and lovely, and 1 even to lay down life 'it- ' self 7 .., The first persecution was; Of course; thaf which followed the stohin^ of St. Stephen,- but" it did h'bt : go beybrid the land- of Syria; , Rbuglily speaking) there' were ten general persecutions 7 before Chris-" tiahity beca& : e the established : religibh of the Rbmkh; Empire 'under the Em L pevdr Constant} ne. God's "hobie army of , martyrs "■• did. wonders for Hihi at; these times. Bishops; slaves)' : gFey-h^aded men, men and wbineri.; strong lads , and quite little children; l died : painful deaths ' for l.bye : of; JeSus. St. Syihebh!, the 1 -second Bishop of Jerusalem, was 120' years bid when he : was /crucified) -while St. Cymc'iis ' had barely reached his third stimmbr when th'^" criier prefect of ; Tarsus ended'the short life' by ; dashihghim on to the-stohe pavement of the° jhdgnient hall; . . "•.-.; • ;■■;';, 7 In those da^sChnstians were made the scapegioats on whom the bl&me'for every calamity 1 waig laid} whether earthquake.) famine, I 'plague,- or iwaif, they' wei'V said to Mve causM it;' aiid were 1 a'ton^ev hunted put ; so that ; the discontent 'bf v the '.'hiob niigKtbe visited oil thehi. 1 7 7 T^e Emfjeror ' Nerb . deflated that his. great ; pe_ree;cutibh was v to puuisli the C^Hsti%ris ! ; for t^iiYiiigt : s'et ; ; fire to\ : Ronift" ' Of , coui'se the^liad nevk* ; don'e sueh 1 a" thiiig'j ihd&#d) ! it vWfeomm'bn- ! ly whispered that the Emperor had

himself caused the ...conflagration on purpose; that he ..might rebuild the city ; jbn! Off 3 tiM r i^a^f r clothes, were soaked" m!; pitch'or 0i1, .. tMi th^ ;^^^l]ttM'p& ! piieM^ ;; t^l^i^l PMs; 'WW&os^a signal; were s^ib-'bn fire r .-' sO as tiofi'ilSnu%aW? th^' w^ *%m mmim^m. In a far deeper sense th'an'Nefo'weV dreamt ;of; „ti&jr''did_ 1&. WeW %Ht ! shijtie'' before : fn r eh!' , / ■ .Diher'tOT^ devii^7 '- sueh 1 ' as : . wr4p^ihg y ChffistiatiS ; in7 tie skihs'b'f^ild beasts, afid'lheh'-tjirlo'iilf lin|' thiem J tp : s&va^fe db^s to W wofried!tP'de¥thV; St. Peter and St 7 Pa# 1^ v Si& fered inai ? tyrdpiri:>under^the-[ Nero,. a monster , of iniquity, who had,, dar^ip^ux^e^ i|^hi& owtfppt^ .1. must explain „h6Xfi......j|iiat,.._tJle7 Romans, as a rule, tolerated the religions of 1 the: c.puntrie^ , they, cph^tiered, and even built temples for them. Why then did they "so fiercely ; pef^eeute' Christ's foHp^eyS:?-. „ .. .;,;7 Well, one reason, was that they could not understand the largeness of Christianity! '.- It was:; ; nbt the-^pieE-ticular'religioir of * one State :or people. <( I?believe in 'the Holy; :; jGathblitf-. Church" was, and ispthfe Cree ! d:7of every true disciple of Jesus, in >wHafc ever part of the' world/ be iSa^7be : livi%. : -■: 7 : :--.._ .7: : v No w^ Catholic; raearas " ITniversjfl-^ : for everybody, for king.and slave) for bl&ek men as wellr.as I 'white. . This'p^r- ' pleixed -f her heathferi^ and: their rulersthought that Christ's Churclf was <a' secret : political; club T^icfei^ come: dangerous. to: then Govermheht and'itherefore : must be'^u^pressedl" Bu£ the chief reason': why Christian--ity had tobear the r full furyvbf the oppi-essor) was Vbecatise ; the Church's ; voice gave : uoruhcertainv spund on^the subject of idols;; she declared bbldly that "they be no gods which were made 1 with hands;' rani that all" who joihe'd hermust utterly renounce ''.idol!; and -worship* the 1 One" • True Living God;'--... ; . .• .'. . ;i ■ .. -\- ;••■:/,.- So overand r bv'ei? again;: .the 'igi^&nfcic might of Rome^'thei'FmightteSt;? nation): safaf our bVn)' that' the 1 - world- has eve£ seen) : was 1 .hurled" against -I Ch^istigaity; -.. but^to no ; : effeet7 Th&Cliu'rclr eafiiiP.t • ■• fail^br it is ' tHe^uitdiii^^bf ;thetsfc# Spimt^anflr Christ ■ is the' 1 Hea^ :&>& ner'Sllp&e..: „ Instead : of : being : stamped ' bu:t Church spread mibre arid nto*o. ' "