Skepticism Assailed. New York: S.S. Wood, 1895. 400 pp., [50] leaves of plates: ill.; 26 cm. Also here.
S.S. Wood, publisher: "SKEPTICISM ASSAILED" is simple in language,
colloquial in style, and earnest in purpose. It deals exclusively with arguments maintaining an inspired and progressive revelation of the supernatural in our Bible; and it shows that Christ was the perfect realization of Messianic prophecy. It ignores all theological doctrines and dogmas upon which the numerous creeds are founded, and appeals to reason for a verdict.
Judging from my own experience, this is a book that no intelligent and conscientious person can critically read without unloading his skeptical
burdens, without appreciating the Bible as never before, and without a wonderful inspiration to labor for the cause of Christ. It seems to me
that any skepticism which this book will not vanquish must be such as can exist not only without a defensible excuse in reason, but such
as exists in defiance of indisputable evidence that disproves every assumable excuse for such existence.
Taggart, Samuel
(1754-1825)
Federalist congressman. Learn more about Taggart here.
An Oration spoken at Colrain, July 4, 1803, being the anniversary of American independence. 1803. 38 pp.
"LET us cultivate the public and private virtues, those especially which have religion for their basis. Let us venerate religious institutions, but in a special manner, let us practice the duties which Christianity enjoins, and cultivate the temper it is calculated to inspire, i.e. piety towards GOD, and benevolence to men. We are called a christian nation, let us be
christians. We cannot be too much upon our guard against the influence of irreligious and demoralizing principles. They will destroy our social and political happiness in this world, and cast an awful gloom over the prospect of an hereafter. They will sap the foundations of mutual confidence, loosen the bonds of society, and fit people to be ruled only with a rod of
iron. In vain shall we look for either political integrity in rulers, or a due sense of the importance of good order and regular subordination among a people without religion and morals."
An Oration delivered at Conway, July 4, 1804: being the anniversary of the Independence of the United States of America. Northampton, 1804. 29 pp.
"The greatest part of our revolutionary heroes and patriots have already gone to the land of silence. In paying a tribute to their memory tho' we cannot, at present, be particular, no one in this assembly will, I trust, forget
the name of WASHINGTON who shone in his orbit as a star of the first magnitude. But, whoever was the instrument, the hand that raifed it up was the Lord's; and his hand is not shortened that it cannot save. He can now as easily raise up Washington, or future deliverers, by whatever name they may be distinguished, as he did him whose name will be held in grateful remembrance as long as we shall exist a free and independent nation. But when, as a people, we shall forget that our liberties are the gift of God,
and lightly esteem the rock of our political salvation, we shall be in danger of losing them.
"LET us cultivate the principles of piety and virtue, not that unnatural alliance between church and state, so much talked of and professedly so much dreaded at the present day, but which, in our country, is probably rather an imagination than a reality; but the genuine principles of piety towards God and benevolence to men, which tend to the promotion of every civil and social virtue. A people habitually irreligious cannot be long free. Those who are
endeavouring to eradicate the principles of religion and virtue, by discarding christianity, and tapping the foundation of natural religion, however extensive the benevolence may be which they profess, are our worst enemies. Tho' their song may be bewitching as a Syren, to listen to it is equally fatal. The poison of asps is under their tongues. The notion of cultivating morality without religion is nothing but the raving of a distempered fancy, if not rather the fruit of a depraved heart. This is abundantly verified by the bitter experience of all ages. Reduced to general practice it will banish benevolence out of the world, set aside the obligations of an oath, and rend asunder every other tie which, either binds man to man, or connects men in society. Such an event would be sufficient to people a continent with thieves, pick-pockets, robbers, adulterers, and midnight assassins. It would render every man every man's foe.
"--Such are the conseqences to be expected in this life, from the banishment of religion out of society, but futurity opens a prospect infinitely more awful. The notion that death is an eternal sleep, can last no longer than until the soul's separation from the body. No sooner does the unembodied spirit launch into the invisible world, than it awakes, either to the prospect of inconceivable happiness; or of unutterable and never ending woe. When we reflect upon the height to which depravity of manners, and irreligious principles are arrived in our country, we have reason to tremble for the consequences. But we would fondly hope that the disease is not yet altogether without a remedy. For faith the Lord by the prophet Jeremiah, 'At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, and to pull down, and to destroy it. If that nation against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them.'"
The Resurrection: A Symposium. New York: Revell, 1896. 127 pp.; 18 cm. "The General Resurrection." Also, related essays by Alexander MacLaren, D. L. Moody, C. H. Spurgeon, and Canon Liddon.
A Discourse delivered in the chapel of Harvard College, September 16, 1794. Designed chiefly for the younger members of the university; to whom it is affectionately inscribed, by David Tappan, D.D. Hollis Professor of Divinity in said college. Printed at Boston: by Weld and Greenough, at the Magazine office, no. 42, Cornhill, 1794. 15,[1] pp.
Christian thankfulness explained and enforced: A Sermon, delivered at Charlestown, in the afternoon of February 19, 1795. The day of general thanksgiving through the United States. By David Tappan, D.D. Hollisian Professor of Divinity in Harvard College. Published at the request of the hearers. [Boston]: Printed by Samuel Hall, no. 53, Cornhill, Boston, 1795. 40 pp.
The Beauty and Benefits of the Christian church, illustrated in two sermons, delivered to the First Religious Society in Plymouth, on January 5, 1800, being the Lord's-Day immediately following the ordination of the Reverend Mr. Kendall to the work of the Gospel ministry in that society. [Boston]: Printed by Samuel Hall, no. 53, Cornhill, Boston.,
1800. 46, [2] pp. ; 23 cm. (8vo)
Taylder, T.W.P.
(c. 1857)
British minister.
WORKS
The Mormon's own book: or, Mormonism tried by its own standards - reason and scripture with an account of its present condition. / By T.W.P. Taylder. Also a life of Joseph Smith. A new edition. London: Partridge and Co., 1857. lii, 228 pp.; 19 cm.
Taylor, Abraham
(fl. 1727-1740)
Independent minister and tutor.
WORKS
The Insuffience of natural religion: A Discourse / preached by Mr. Abraham Taylor, at the lecture in Lyme-Street, London: re-printed on the occasion of Dr. Mayhew?s late sermons. With a preface by Andrew Croswell. V.D.M . Boston: Printed and sold by J. Draper, in Cornhill, 1755. 37 pp.; 19 cm. (8vo)
Church of England clergyman. Rector of Crawley, and Vicar of Portsmouth in Hants.
WORKS
The Apology of Benjamin Ben Mordecai to his friends: for embracing Christianity; in seven letters; Together with an eighth letter, on the generation of Jesus Christ. With notes and illustrations. The second edition, with alterations and additions, and a copious index. By Henry Taylor. London: printed for C. Dilly; and R. Robson, 1784. Vol. 1 of 2, 618 pp. Vol. 2. 630 pp.
Very few facts of importance, such as form the proper subjects of history, rest entirely upon the testimony of a single historian, or are incapable of being directly, or remotely confirmed, by some kind of coincident evidence. Whenever therefore a question arises relative to the truth of a particular statement, recourse must be had, either to the testimony of contemporary writers, or to the evidence of existing monuments. But even if all such means of corroboration should fail, and if we meet with a perplexing silence where we might expect to find confirmation, we are by no means justified in rejecting the unsupported testimony, merely on the ground of this want of correlative support. Many instances may be adduced of the most extraordinary silence of historians relative to facts with which they must have been acquainted, and which seemed to lie directly in the course of their narrative. Important facts are mentioned by no ancient writer, though they are unquestionably established by the evidence of existing inscriptions, coins, statutes, or buildings. There are also facts mentioned only by some one historian, which happen to be attested by an incidental coincidence with some relic of antiquity lately brought to light; if this relic had remained in its long obscurity, such facts might (we see with how little reason) have been disputed.
Nothing can be more fallacious than an inference drawn from the silence of historians relative to particular facts. For a full, comprehensive, and, if the phrase may be used, a business-like method of writing history, in which nothing unimportant--nothing which a well-informed reader will look for, must be omitted, is the produce of modern improvements in thinking and writing. The general diffusion of knowledge, and the activity of criticism, occasion a much higher demand in matters of information to be made upon writers than was thought of in ancient times. A full and exact communication of facts has come to be valued more highly than any mere beauties of style; at least, no beauties of style are allowed to atone for palpable deficiencies in matters of fact. The moderns must be taught--and pleased; but the ancients would be pleased, and taught. Ancient writers, and historians not less than others, seem to have formed their notions of prose composition very much upon the model of poetry, which, in most languages, was the earliest kind of literature. As their epics were histories, so, in some sense, their histories were epics. Such particulars, therefore, were taken up in the course of the narrative, as seemed best to accord with the abstract idea of the work--not always those which a rigid adherence ot a comprehensive plan would have made it necessary to bring forward.
The Process of Historical Proof. London, Printed for B. J. Holdsworth, 1828. viii, 338 pp. 22 cm.
Thomas Chalmers, Evidence and Authority of the Christian Revelation: "Taylor in his Transmission of Ancient Books to Modern Times," p. 7, says, "Satisfactory evidence in support of the first proposition (the genuineness of the books) will prove that the works in question are not forgeries; and of the second (their authenticity) will show that they are not fictions."
"Both the book now quoted, and another by the same author on The Process of Historical Proof, are most important accessions to the literature of the argumentative evidence for Christianity. Few writers have exhibited in such bold relief the strength and solidity of the cause."
Taylor, Jeremy
(1613-1667)
English divine and author. Read more about Taylor here.
WORKS
[Great exemplar of sanctity and holy life. Selections]. The Life of our Blessed Saviour Jesus Christ, with considerations and discourses upon the conception, nativity, circumcision, baptism, temptation, preaching, miracles, passion, resurrection, and his ascension int [sic] heaven: including several unanswerable arguments, obvious to the meanest capacity, in defence of the divinity of our Holy Redeemer, and the truth of the Christian religion.-- Likewise, The lives, acts, and deaths of the holy evangelists and apostles, as recorded by the primitive fathers, and ancient writers of unquestionable veracity. By J. Taylor, B.D. Printed at Newburyport [Mass.], by Blunt and March for Samuel Larkin, bookseller and stationer, Portsmouth., MDCCXCVI. [1796]. iv, [1], 6-248, [4] pp. 15 cm. (18mo). Notes: An abridgment of Jeremy Taylor's The great exemplar of sanctity (also published under title: Antiquitates Christianae), together with an abridgement of William Cave's Antiquitates apostolicae, here entitled The lives, acts, and deaths of the holy evangelists and apostles. Bookseller's advertisement, p. [251-152].
SECTION III. The impotency of the heathen religions to effect any deep and fundamental improvement either of the whole human race, of particular classes of men, or of the powers of the soul in any individual; together with the consequences thence accruing to morality.
THE ROOT OF ALL HUMAN IMPROVEMENT IS RELIGION. The most ancient traces of national cultivation, are connected with temples, the priesthood, and the worship of God. For this reason, we must also consider, and endeavour accurately to apprehend, the development of the mental energies of men, from the principles of their religion. And here we shall at once perceive, that heathenism is by no means adequate to produce a complete expansion and harmony of the human mind.
Extract here:
Christianity, on the other hand, if it take deep root in the heart, has power to awaken, in the most ordinary man, a lively interest both in heavenly and earthly things ; because it becomes to him a matter of chief concern, by all the means within his reach, to elucidate, to confirm, and to establish on solid grounds, that which he has experienced in his own soul; and while, in this way, he finds in spiritual things a point of contact with more cultivated minds, he is able to approach nearer to them, and thus share more largely in their improvement. Among real Christians in the lower walks of life, one will easily perceive this influence of conversion in favour of intellectual cultivation; as is seen even in our day, among the lower classes of the United Brethren.
The more sober-minded man will never be able to conceal from himself, that whatever is truth, must be the same not only for the whole man, but also for all men. So that whatever satisfies fully the heart of the common people, must also be sufficient for the claims of the intellectual powers among the more cultivated; and again, whatever manifests itself to the fewer cultivated minds as the highest truth, must be perfectly adequate to the wants of the mass of the people. Now Christianity has broken down this wall of partition. It does not ask, Are you well educated, or not? but, Are you a sinner ? And as every man must answer the question in the affirmative, so it has for all this one reply: "REPENT AND BELIEVE ON THE LORD JESUS CHRIST, AND THOU SHALT BE SAVED."
The cultivated heathen were offended at Christianity precisely for this reason, that the higher classes could no longer have glorious promises for the future; as if they were exalted above all other wise, good, and learned men.
It was most truly an exhibition of the infinite grace of God, that Christ should grant to poor fishermen, country-people, and tent-makers, the privilege of becoming citizens of a heavenly kingdom of joy and bliss, fellow heirs and brethren to the Son of God. But happy is it for the world, that our God is indeed so gracious, that his compassion often appears almost incredible to ourselves!
In like manner, also, it was Christianity, which, by its spirit, abolished slavery in the ancient world. That there should be various modes of civil life, that there should be one class to serve and another to command, is indispensably necessary to every civil community; but liberty ought also to prevail among those who serve. The servant ought to be attached to the master by love and fidelity, and not by compulsion for life.
Thompson, Joseph Parrish
(1819-1879)
Pastor of The Broadway Tabernacle in New York City.
WORKS
Man in Genesis and in geology: or, The Biblical account of man's creation, tested by scientific theories of his origin and antiquity. New York, S.R. Wells, 1870. viii, [9]-149 pp. 19 cm.
Teachings of the New Testament on slavery. New-York: J.H. Ladd, 1856. 52 pp.
"...I shall show, 1. That in the Apostolic age, Slavery existed purely as a creature of the Roman law. 2. That in defining the duties of the respective parties in that relation, the Apostles nowhere acknowledge the rightfulness of Slavery under the law of God. 3. That by placing the parties in that relation under the higher law of Christian love and equality, the Apostles decreed the virtual abolition of Slavery, and did in time abolish it wherever Christianity gained the ascendency in society or in the state. These theses embody the code of the New Testament, and the practice of the Apostles with respect to Slavery in the Roman empire."
The United States as a Nation: Lectures on the Centennial of American Independence. Boston: James Osgood & Co., 1877. Also here. Republished as Let the Cannon Blaze Away by Solid Ground Christian Books, 2005. xxvii, 323 pp.; 23 cm. Contents: Grounds and motives of the American Revolution -- Doctrines of the Declaration of Independence -- Adoption of the Constitution -- The nation tested in the vicissitudes of a century -- The nation judged by its self-development and its benefits to mankind -- The perils, duties, and hopes of the opening century. Buy this book here.
(TM)
A defense of the resurrection that rests on the Gospels will be challenged by those who maintain that the Gospel records are hopelessly contradictory. This view was raised to prominence by the work of Strauss in the early 19th century, but it was cemented as the mainstream position in New Testament criticism by the work of people like Paul Wilhelm Schmiedel, whose article on the "Resurrection and Ascension Narratives" in Cheyne and Black, eds., Encyclopaedia Biblica, vol. 4 (Toronto: George N. Morang & Co., 1903), columns 4039-87, is one long catalogue of accusations against the narratives.
Thorburn's sober and careful volume goes through every one of Schmiedel's criticisms. Thorburn has no objection to critical study as such, but as he says, there is criticism, and then there is criticism. Thorburn conclusively demonstrates that Schmiedel?s criticisms do not stand up to fair-minded scholarly investigation and that many of them arise only because of his demonstrable misreading of the text. There are difficulties, he admits, in the resurrection narratives as they stand. But these difficulties are chiefly due to the brevity and fragmentary nature of the accounts. Judged as a whole and taken on the main issues, there is no doubt as to the general conclusion to which the evidence points.
Evangelist and educator. Read about Torrey at CCEL and here.
WORKS
The Divine Origin of the Bible, its authority and power demonstrated and difficulties solved. London : J. Nisbet, 1904. 93 pp.; 19 cm. Also here. Text-searchable here.
The New Topical Textbook: A scripture textbook for the use of ministers, teachers, and all Christian workers. Grand Rapids, Mich.: Christian Classics Ethereal Library, 2000.
What the Bible teaches, a thorough and comprehensive study of what the Bible has to say concerning the great doctrines of which it treats. New York, Chicago [etc.] Fleming H. Revell Co., 1898. 1 p. l., 539 pp. 23 cm.
Also here.
Difficulties in the Bible. Whitaker House; Updated edition, October 2003. 219 pages. Buy this book here. Download here.
R.A. Torrey and A.C. Dixon, editors. The Fundamentals: A Testimony to the Truth Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book
House Co., Baker Books, 1917. Also 1910 edition. From 1910 to 1916 they were distributed free of charge, primarily to churches in the United States, due to a grant from Milton and Lyman Stewart of Union Oil Company. In 1917 the Bible Institute of Los Angeles reprinted the set in four volumes under the editorship of evangelist R. A. Torrey. (excerpted from Dictionary of Christianity in America)
G. M. Marsden: The Fundamentals, usually regarded as a signal of the beginning of the organized fundamentalist movement, was one of the sources for the movement's name...The authors of the essays were mostly respected Bible teachers. A few were widely recognized conservative Protestant scholars, such as Benjamin B. Warfield and James Orr of Scotland. Not all the authors were dispensationalist. Rather, they were chosen to present a united conservative 'testimony to the truth' (as the subtitle to the volumes put it).
Of the ninety articles bound in twelve volumes (bearing no systematic organization), about one-third defend the Bible, usually against higher criticism. Another third are either presentations of basic doctrines or general apologetic works. The rest include personal testimonies, practical applications of Christian teaching, appeals for missions and evangelism, as well as attacks on various '-isms.' Some of the articles had been published previously.
The essays were generally moderate in tone and a mix of both scholarly and popular interests and styles...The central themes of the volumes...were that conservative evangelical Protestantism could be defended on two major counts. First, its affirmations of miraculous divine interventions--as expressed in fundamental doctrines such as the inspiration of Scripture, the incarnation, the miracles and the resurrection--were fully compatible with modern science and rationality. Second, the testimony of personal experience was also important in confirming Christian belief.
The Fundamentals represented an early stage in emerging fundamentalism, an alliance of a variety of conservatives alarmed particularly over the spread of false doctrines. After the 1920s fundamentalism generally became more militant. Eventually, when in the 1940s and 1950s the main part of interdenominational fundamentalism broke between 'neo-evangelicals' and stricter separatist dispensationalists, that split reflected a tension that had been present in the alliance that The Fundamentals helped forge.
Table of Contents
Preface and Dedication
The History of the Higher Criticism, Dyson Hague
The Mosaic Authorship of the Pentateuch, George
Frederick Wright
The Fallacies of the Higher Criticism, Franklin
Johnson
The Bible and Modern Criticism, F. Bettex
Holy Scripture and Modern Negations, James Orr
Christ and Criticism, Robert Anderson
Old Testament Criticism and New Testament
Christianity, W. H. Griffith Thomas
The Tabernacle in the Wilderness: Did it Exist?,
David Heagle
The Internal Evidence of the Fourth Gospel, G.
Osborne Troop
The Testimony of Christ to the Old Testament,
William Caven
The Early Narratives of Genesis, James Orr
One Isaiah, George L. Robinson
The Book of Daniel, Joseph D. Wilson
The Doctrinal Value of the First Chapters of
Genesis, Dyson Hague
Three Peculiarities of the Pentateuch, Which Are
Incompatible with the Graf Wellhausen Theories of Its
Composition, Andrew Craig Robinson
The Testimony of the Monuments to the Truth of the
Scriptures, George Frederick Wright
The Recent Testimony of Archaeology to the
Scriptures, M. G. Kyle
Science and Christian Faith, James Orr
My Personal Experience with the Higher Criticism,
J. J. Reeve
The Inspiration of the Bible--Definition, Extent
and Proof, James M. Gray
With Joseph Barber Lightfoot, (1828-1889). The Old Testament, arranged in Historical and chronological order, (on the basis of Lightfoot's Chronicle,) in such a manner, that the books, chapters, psalms, prophecies, &c. &c. may be read as one connected History, in the words of the authorized translation: With copious indexes. 2nd edition. London: Printed for C. and J. Rivington, 1826. 2 vol.; 22 cm. 1821 edition, 2 vol. 22 cm., Volume 1. Volume 2.
Townsend, Sampson
(c. 1646)
WORKS
The Scriptures Proved to be the Word of God, and the only foundation of faith, and rule for our obedience. Or, A clear conviction of the errours of those that are called Quakers.
Who blasphemously affirm that the Scriptures are not the word of God, nor the foundation of faith, nor the only rule for our obedience. London: Printed by S.G. for R. Tomlins at the Sun and Bible in Pye-Corner, 1654. [8], 15 pp.
With Churton, Ralph; 1754-1831. The Works of the Reverend Thomas Townson ... :
to which is prefixed an account of the author with an introduction to the discourses on the Gospels, and a sermon on the quotations in the Old Testament. Third Edition. London: Printed for F.C. and J. Rivington, 1810. 2 vol.: ill., port., plans; 23 cm.
The Greek New Testament: edited from ancient authorities, with their various readings in full, and the Latin version of Jerome. [London : S. Bagster, 1857-79.]
7 v. ; 26cm.
He also wrote a post about the history of the Apocrypha's reception in Judaism and Christianity. And here he wrote about the alleged canon of ancient Alexandrian Judaism and the notion of arriving at a Septuagint canon from the extant Christian copies of the Septuagint. Here and here are two posts I wrote about acceptance of the Protestant Old Testament canon within Eastern Orthodoxy.
He addresses alleged New Testament and patristic support for the canonicity of the Apocryphal books here.
Some of the relevant evidence from Josephus is discussed here.
On the canon of the gospels, see here and the other threads linked within that post.
Steve has written many posts about internal evidence for the canon, such as here and here.
Here's a post Steve wrote about Jude's use of material from 1 Enoch.
Steve has argued that the early Christians wouldn't have needed as much time to recognize the New Testament documents as scripture as is commonly suggested.
I wrote a four-part series of posts in response to the idea that the development of the canon of scripture is comparable to the development of Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox doctrines that are rejected by Evangelicals: one, two, three, and four.
Here's a thread about the concept of the canon as a fallible collection of infallible books. Steve addresses the subject here.
An important line of evidence for the canon is the authorship of the books. We've written a lot about Biblical authorship over the years. Steve wrote a three-part series: one, two, and three. Here's a post in which I summarize some of the evidence for the traditional New Testament authorship attributions.
Here are more examples of posts we've written on Biblical authorship, among many others that can be found by searching the archives: Daniel, Matthew, Mark, Luke and Acts (here and here), John, the letters of Paul (see the comments section of the thread here), Hebrews (here and here), 2 Peter, and Revelation.
On the witness of early non-Christian sources to Biblical authorship, see here and here.
One of the means by which critics often attempt to undermine the case for the traditional authorship attributions is by arguing against the reliability of the early external sources. If the external sources aren't ignored, as they often are, they're frequently dismissed as unreliable for some reason or another. Here's an article I wrote about the trustworthiness of the early Christians on canonical issues. On the supposed unreliability of human memory, see here. On the alleged gullibility of ancient people, see here. See here concerning whether the earliest Christians considered pseudonymity acceptable. And see here on the alleged anonymity of some of the New Testament documents.
Different arguments are used to undermine different sources. Papias' reliability on the origins of Mark's gospel will be rejected on the basis of his unreliability on other issues, like the death of Judas. Ignatius' letters are sometimes dismissed as forgeries. Doubts are raised about whether Polycarp was actually a disciple of any of the apostles. Etc. We've written a lot of material in response to such arguments. The following are several of many examples that could be cited. You can search the archives for more material of a similar nature. On the character of the early Christians in general, see this article. See here on Clement of Rome's relationship with the apostles and his authorship of First Clement. For a response to some of the objections to Ignatius' testimony, see here. Regarding Papias' relationship with the apostle John, see here, and see here concerning Papias' credibility. Here's an article that addresses Polycarp's relationship with the apostles and the credibility of Irenaeus. This one is about the alleged anti-intellectuality of Tertullian. See here on the supposed dishonesty of Eusebius.
On the unreasonable and inconsistent standards that critics often apply to the Bible, see here, here, and here.
Tristram, Henry Baker
(1822-1906)
English clergyman, Biblical scholar, traveller and ornithologist. Read about Tristram here.
WORKS
Bible Places: Or, The Topography of the Holy Land, a succinct account of all the places, rivers, and mountains of the land of Israel, mentioned in the Bible, so far as they have been identified : together with their modern names and historical references. London : Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge ; New York : E. & J.B. Young, 1884. xvi, 382 pp.: illustrations, map; 24cm. Published under the direction of the Committee of General Literature and Education appointed by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.
"The rim of hills round Nazareth is generally bare, rocky, and treeless, in this contrasting strongly with Northern Galilee. Nazareth has been filled by monastic inventions with holy places, such as the. Virgin's House, and others equally unhistorical. But there is one special incident of our Lord's life at Nazareth which points to a definite locality, and that is 'the brow of the hill whereon their city was built,' down which the infuriated men of Nazareth sought to cast headlong Him whose teaching had offended them. This has been transferred by the monks to the so-called 'Mount of Precipitation,' half an hour south-east of the town, a site contradicted by the history. There are several precipitous cliffs in Nazareth itself. So steep is the place generally, that in many parts there are only houses on one side of the street, the other being simply a wall of rocks, whence building material has been quarried. But while the extension of the modern town is towards the valley, the traces of the older village are rather higher up. There is almost a semicircle of steep cliffs, though now concealed, for the most part, by a luxuriant growth of prickly pear; and in excavating the upper platform, there have recently been found many traces of ancient buildings, situated above the amphitheatre which forms the modern town."
pp. 253-254.
Pulpit Commentary. Luke 4:29.
"The place now shown as the scene of the act of violence of the fanatics of Nazareth, known as the Mount of Precipitation, is some two miles from the town. It must be remembered that this happened on a sabbath day; this would therefore be beyond the limits of a sabbath day's journey. There is, however, close to Nazareth a cliff about forty feet high."
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary. Luke 4:29.
"Nazareth, though not built on the ridge of a hill, is in part surrounded by one to the west, having several such precipices. (See 2Ch 25:12; 2Ki 9:33.)"
Address in Connection With Lighting of the National Community Christmas Tree on the White House Grounds, December 24th, 1949.
"Since returning home, I have been reading again in our family Bible some of the passages which foretold this night. It was that grand old seer Isaiah who prophesied in the Old Testament the sublime event which found fulfillment almost 2,000 years ago. Just as Isaiah foresaw the coming of Christ, so another battler for the Lord, St. Paul, summed up the law and the prophets in a glorification of love which he exalts even above both faith and hope."
Address Before the Attorney General's Conference on Law Enforcement Problems. February 15th, 1950.
"The most important business in this Nation--or any other nation, for that matter-is raising and training children. If those children have the proper environment at home, and educationally, very, very few of them ever turn out wrong. I don't think we put enough stress on the necessity of implanting in the child's mind the moral code under which we live.
"The fundamental basis of this Nation's law was given to Moses on the Mount. The fundamental basis of our Bill of Rights comes from the teachings which we get from Exodus and St. Matthew, from Isaiah and St. Paul. I don't think we emphasize that enough these days.
"If we don't have the proper fundamental moral background, we will finally wind up with a totalitarian government which does not believe in rights for anybody except the state."
Remarks at the 91st Annual National Convention of the Augustana Lutheran Church, June 7th, 1950.
"We are faced with tremendous responsibilities. We have become the leaders of the moral forces of the world, the leaders who believe that the Sermon on the Mount means what it says, the leaders of that part of the world which believes that the law is the Godgiven law under which we live, that all our traditions have come from Moses at Sinai, and Jesus on the Mount.
"We are endeavoring to live by that law. We are endeavoring to act by that law.
"We have forces in the world that do not believe in a moral code, that even go so far as to say that there is no Supreme Being, that material things are all that count.
"Material things are ashes, if there is no spiritual background for the support of those material things."
Address in Independence at the Dedication of the Liberty Bell, November 6th, 1950. "Written around the crown of this bell are the words, ?Proclaim liberty throughout the land and to all the inhabitants thereof.? Those words are 2,500 years old. I learned the first line over there in that Presbyterian Church. They come from the Bible. They reflect a deep belief in freedom under God and justice among men--a belief which is at the heart of what the Bible teaches us.
"Our concept of freedom has deep religious roots. We come under a divine command to be concerned about the welfare of our neighbors, and to help one another. For all men are the servants of God, and no one has the right to mistreat his fellow men.
"This concept of freedom is enshrined in our own Revolution and in our Government. We are trying to live up to it today, at home and in all our dealings with other nations.
We have given of our resources and of our aid, in this time of stress and peril, to other nations who believe in freedom as we do. This aid is given to help these nations grow strong in freedom and to advance our common ideals. Some of this aid has gone to France--and to the people of Annecy, who made this bell.
"And they, the people of Annecy, have given this Liberty Bell to us as a symbol of the great fellowship of freedom."
Remarks in Kansas City at a Luncheon for the Press, December 22nd, 1950.
"The only way that that situation can be worked out for the welfare of the world is for those people who believe in ethics, morals, and right to associate themselves together to meet the menace of those who do not believe in ethics, morals, and right, who have no idea of honor or truth.
"We should be very careful that the attitude of that lack of honor and truth does not become a part of our own political system. It is a very dangerous thing.
"Our growth and our laws are founded on those originating with Hammurabi in the Mesopotamian Valley, propounded by Moses, and elaborated on by Jesus Christ, whose Sermon on the Mount is the best ethical program by which to live."
"Through Jesus Christ the world will yet be a better and a fairer place. This faith sustains us today as it has sustained mankind for centuries past. This is why the Christmas story, with the bright stars shining and the angels singing, moves us to wonder and stirs our hearts to praise.
"Now, my fellow countrymen, I wish for all of you a Christmas filled with the joy of the Holy Spirit, and many years of future happiness with the peace of God reigning upon this earth."
A General History of the United States of America from the discovery in 1492, to 1792, or, Sketches of the divine agency, in their settlement, growth, and protection; and especially in the late memorable revolution. In three volumes. Vol. I. Exhibiting a general view of the principal events, from the discovery of North America, to the year 1765. / by Benjamin Trumbull. Boston: Farrand, Mallory, and co., 1810 ([Boston]: Samuel T. Armstrong) 467 pp.; 23 cm. Note: No more published./ "This first volume ... was published nine months since, during the absence of the frined, to whom the author entrusted his manuscripts. By an unfortunate mistake, it was published without the preface and the concluding chapter. In this imperfect state a number of copies have been sold ... The only method of correcting this regretted mistake is adopted, and the concluding chapter, with the preface are published, and will be added to all the copies, which remain unsold ..."--Note, p. xii. The manuscript collections from which this history is compiled are in the Yale library.
A Complete History of Connecticut, Civil and Ecclesiastical, from the Emigration of its first planters, from England, in the Year 1630, to the Year 1764; and to the close of the Indian Wars. Volume 1 of 2. New Haven: Maltby, Goldsmith and Co. and Samuel Wadsworth, 1818. 1898 edition in HTML.
A Complete History of Connecticut, Civil and Ecclesiastical, from the Emigration of its first planters, from England, in the Year 1630, to the Year 1764; and to the close of the Indian Wars. Volume 2 of 2. New Haven: Maltby, Goldsmith and Co. and Samuel Wadsworth, 1818.
Twelve Discourses, comprising a systematical demonstration of the divine origin of the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments: designed for the benefit of Christians of all denominations: and especially for the instruction and edification of young people; to establish them in a rational and full persuasion of the truth and importance of the Scriptures; to excite their early and earnest pursuit of divine knowledge, and awaken their highest solicitude to walk with the wise, and fly the way of evil men. / Hartford, Printed by Hudson and Goodwin, 1799. [2], x, 305, [3] pp.; 19 cm.
Trumbull, Jonathan
(1710-1785)
American political leader. Read about Trumbull here.
WITH these Impressions I have thought proper to appoint, and I do hereby appoint Friday the Twenty-Seventh Day of March next, to be observed as a Day of Fasting, Humiliation and Prayer throughout this State. And I do hereby call upon the People of all denominations of Religion, devoutly and solemnly to keep said Day and appropriate it as a Day of special religious service, devoted to God in solemn Duties of penitential acknowledgment of their Sins, private and social, against the Divine Will and government: and while lamenting their Sins, and forming sincere and humble resolutions of new Obedience, may they be solicitous to keep the Day in such manner as may be acceptable to God, and prove of lasting benefit in their future Lives and Conduct. At the same time it will become us humbly to reflect upon and seriously to consider the Judgments of the Lord, which in various ways, at this time, seem peculiarly abroad in the Earth; and endeavor to search out the procuring causes of God's singular Displeasure. "When the Lord ariseth to shake terribly the Earth," may the People return to their God. "It may be we shall be hid in the Day of the Lord's fierce anger."
And while performing the Duties of Repentance for past Offences, and forming devout resolutions for future Lives of Obedience, let us offer to our Almighty and all-gracious God, through our Great Mediator, our sincere and solemn Prayers for his Divine Assistance and the Influences of His Holy Spirit; that God may freely pardon all our Sins and strengthen our resolutions of future Obedience; that He will give us an Interest in the Covenant of Mercy through our Divine Redeemer; and that in addition to these unspeakable Blessings of His Grace, our God will mercifully grant us all those temporal Favors which he may see convenient and best for us. -And let us particularly and devoutly supplicate the Divine Favor and Influence on our public and private Interests: that God will be pleased to bless and guide the President of the United States in all his important duties; that our God will mercifully preside over all our national and state Councils at this critical and eventful period: that our public Rulers may be enlightened in and led to a just discernment and ardent pursuit of the public Interest, as relates to our internal concerns and external relations: that God will mercifully preserve our country from internal Confusion and civil Discord, and from external insult and aggression. -Also let us humbly entreat, That our God will bless us in the fruitfulness of the coming season: give us a continuance of Health in our Cities and in our Dwellings: succeed the Labors of the Husbandman: prosper our Commerce, Navigation and Fisheries: enlarge our Manufactures, and give success to our various lawful arts and industrious enterprise: smile on all our means of Learning and Science: bless and succeed a preached Gospel, and animate all its Ministers with the true spirit of their undertaking, and encourage their Hearts by a happy experience of their successful Labors: pray God to give Peace to contending Nations: cause that the peaceful Kingdom of Righteousness may be advanced in the World; and that the Gospel of our Lord and Savior may be extended throughout all the habitations of men.
