CHURCH BUILDING. THE lovely form of God's own Church, On mountain sides, in wooded vales, There is it with its solemn aisles, And round its walls lie Christians' dead Though sects and factions rend the world, Peace is its heritage; Unchanged though empires by it pass- The hallowed form our fathers built, Scoff as thou passest if thou wilt, But we will build for all thou scoff And cry, "What waste is this?" Clear voices from above sound out Yea, when we climb the rising walls, Because the work is not of earth, But hath its end in Heaven. Rev. H. Alford. Scripture Geography. THE HOLY LAND. Towards the end of the year A. D. 69, Vespasian was in Galilee, on his way to besiege Jerusalem, but the death of Vitellius occurring at this time, he betook himself to Rome, to receive the dignity of Emperor, leaving his son Titus to prosecute the Jewish war; who, early in the spring, marched his forces to Jerusalem, and encamped in front of that doomed city. All was profound silence, and no soul appeared upon the walls. Titus emboldened by this circumstance, approached nearer with a body of cavalry, to reconnoitre, when suddenly the gates opened; the Jews sallied forth, and separated him from the main body of his troops. Titus, however, cut his way through the assailants, and escaped by the swiftness of his horse. The Jews were at this time preparing to celebrate their passover, which festival was on this occasion, remarkable for several reasons. It was the return of that feast at which, only 36 years before, they had murdered their Messiah; it was the last passover observed at Jerusalem; and it was at this time attended by multitudes of strangers; for the presence of the Roman armies in Galilee had brought great numbers from all parts, as re-inforcements, for the protection of the Holy City. Many warnings and omens are likewise recorded as having occurred at this period, as the approach of a comet with a tail like a scymitar, which hung over the City for a twelve month: a super-natural light, which shone about the altar and the temple at the feast of unleavened bread: the appearance in the Heavens, after sunset, of a multitude of chariots and horsemen, which made a circuit round the City in battle array: a voice heard by the Priests, who kept watch by night in the temple, at the feast of Pentecost, saying, "Let us depart hence," ant followed by a rushing noise, as of a multitude; and the sudden bursting open of the brazen gates of their own accord, which it required twenty men to move. Some of these occurrences are doubtless exaggerated in the accounts which have come down to us, but some of them are unquestionably true. One in particular is well authenticated; this was the conduct of a man who went about day and night in the streets and on the walls of the City, uttering with a loud voice woes against the Temple, the City, and the Nation. At length, pursuing his way on the walls, he suddenly stopped, and crying aloud, "Woe, woe to myself!" was immediately struck dead by a stone, from a Roman balista. Jerusalem was at this time split into three great factions, one following Simon, another Eleazar, and another John of Gischala. For a long time, these bitter foes to themselves hastened the destruction of the City by their own wicked feuds; but at length, seeing themselves really in great danger from the Romans, they agreed to cease for a while their mutual hostilities, and to band themselves together against the common foe. This treaty, however, did not last. John contrived to surprise Eleazar, and killed him. There were now, therefore, but two parties, John and Simon, who renewewed their jealousy and strife, so that each one was afraid of attacking the Romans, lest he should in turn be attacked by his rival. A new enemy next appeared in the shape of famine. On the 17th of July, the daily sacrifice was obliged to be given up, from the want of victims. John, having the stores of the Temple at his command, took care of his own men; the troops of Simon being unprovided for, obtained food by violence wherever they could seize it. The miserable inhabitants were left to live as they could. At length the suffering became beyond all endurance, whoever did not look as ill as his neighbour, was suspected of concealing provisions, and forthwith slain. A small quantity of chopped hay fetched a high price; the shoes and leather shields were boiled and eaten, even the dunghills were carefully searched for anything that might appease the madness of hunger. One dreadful circumstance is related. Mary, a noble lady of Perea, in the madness produced by hunger, killed and boiled her own infant, and having eaten part of it, set the remainder aside. Allured by the smell of food, a party of soldiers burst in and charged her with the crime of having food, on which she uncovered the remains of. her child, and told them to eat. To this extremity were they reduced when Titus determined to attack them. He held a council of six principal officers, to induce them to spare the Temple. but a greater than Titus had determined otherwise. The soldiers had orders the following night to clear away the rubbish of the outer court, which had been set fire to by the Jews; but whilst thus employed, the Jews rushed out upon them. The Romans attacked them in turn, and followed them with fighting into the inner court, when one of the soldiers threw a firebrand into one of the open windows. The dry cedar was instantly in a blaze. Shouts from the one party, and shrieks from the other, rent the air. Titus ran down, and would have had the fire extinguished, but the men were too excited to be controlled, and losing all discipline, they rushed from every quarter to the scene of action. No quarter was given or taken on either side. Simon and John were reduced to the last extremity: their soldiers began to quarrel about the plunder; at length, many in their hot rage, cut down their comrades, and then fell upon their own swords. The remainder, with their leaders, crept down like living spectres into the caverns and dungeons under ground, and there expired. The Romans finally took the upper City, which completed the conquest of Jerusalem, after a siege of four months' duration. It is remarkable, that not a single Christian is recorded to have perished in this dreadful war. Above a million of Jews perished in Jerusalem; ninety-seven thousand captives were sold into slavery; and a great number fled into other countries to avoid the sword. Titus had the remains of the temple razed to the ground and the whole dug up; thus leaving not one stone upon another, as our Saviour had predicted. Thus the Jewish dispensation ended, having existed about 2600 years. If thou hadst known, even thou At least in this thy day, The message of thy peace! but now Now foes shall trench thee round, And lay thee with the earth, And dash thy children to the ground, Thy glory and thy mirth. Christian Year. MASSACRE AT PARIS. On the 18th of August, 1572, a great festival was held in Paris to celebrate the marriage of Henry, king of Navarre, and Margaret of Valois. Henry was of the reformed religion, Margaret was a Roman Catholic. Some of the principal Protestants of France had been invited to Paris, under a solemn oath of safety, to join in the festivities. The rejoicings were continued over several days, during which the King of France, Charles IX, displayed the greatest kindness towards the protestants. But on the morning of the 16th of August, being St. Bartholomew's day, the scene changed. As the bell of the Church of St. Germain struck twelve, the Roman Catholics of Paris commenced one of the bloodiest and most brutal massacres ever recorded in History. The Admiral Coligny was baseley murdered in his own house, and then thrown out of the window. His head was afterwards ⚫ cut off and sent to the King and the Queen Mother; and his body after being dragged through the streets was hung by the heels on a gibbet. The murderers ravaged the whole city of Paris. The Roman Catholics were distinguished by a white cross, and all who had not this mark were put to death without scruple. The streets resounded with the groans of the dying and shrieks of the living. The bodies of the slain were thrown out of the windows, and the blood flowed down the channels in the streets in such torrents as to dye the whole surface of the neighbouring river. An immense multitude of men, women, and children were atrociously murdered by their cruel persecutors. More than ten thousand persons of all ranks are said to have perished in Paris alone. From Paris the massacre spread throughout the kingdom, and it is computed that in Meaux, Orleans, Angus, Lyons, Rouen, and other places upwards of twenty thousand persons were savagely murdered. This foul deed must for ever remain a blot upon the history of France, and is as disgraceful to religion as itis inconsistent with it. |