Imágenes de páginas
PDF
EPUB
[blocks in formation]

Clear and hot, with west wind in the afternoon. Rice, early figs and apples, plums, cherries, mulberries, and melons ripe. Grass begins to fail.

THAMMUZ.

Fourth sacred, tenth civil month; 29 days, beginning with the fourth new moon after the vernal equinox; nearly corresponds in general to JULY.

1. New moon.

14. Feast for suppression of certain heretical books.

17. Fast for breaking the tables of the Law.

Heat intense; no rain; occasional west winds. Dates, apples, pears, and peaches ripen; grapes nearly mature. Grass scarce.

AB.

Fifth sacred, eleventh civil month; 30 days, from the ллtn new moon after the vernal equinox; corresponds mostly to August.

1. New moon.

5. Commemoration of the children of one Jethuel.

9. Fast for sentence of wandering in the desert.

18. Fast for extinction of lamp in the time of Ahaz. 21. Xylophoria, or feast of storing wood for Temple. 24. Feast for abolition of certain offensive laws.

30. Alternate of new moon.

Heat still extreme; clear till near end of the month. Figs, olives, and pomegranates begin to ripen; winter fig blossoms; first clusters of the vine gathered. No grass.

ELUL.

Sixth sacred, twelfth civil month; 29 days, from the sixth new moon after the vernal equinox; corresponds mostly to SEPTEMBER.

1. New moon.

7. Dedication of walls by Nehemiah.

17. Fast for death of spies.

22. Feast for condemnation of certain Jews.

Days hot, nights cold; cloudy, with west wind; rain at the close of the month, when ploughing begins. Dates, pomegranates, pears, plums, citrons, oranges, cotton, and second clusters of the vine gathered. Pasture still very scarce.

TISRI.

Seventh sacred, first civil month; 30 days, from the seventh new moon after the vernal equinox; corresponds in the main to OCTOBER.

1. New moon. Feast of Trumpets for new year.

3. Fast for death of Gedaliah.

5. Death of twenty Israelites.

7. Fast for sin of the golden calf.

10. Fast of expiation.

15. Feast of Tabernacles.

21. Ceremony of branches at the feast.

22. Octave of Feast of Tabernacles.

23. Commemoration of giving of the law.

30. Alternate of new moon.

Heat abated, especially during the night, when white frost is frequent; rainy season begins; winds variable. Sowing of grain and vegetables begins: pistachio, late olives, pomegranates, and third clusters of the vine ripe; also, garden salads and roots. Grass but little revived.

MARCHESVAN.

Eighth sacred, second civil month; 29 days, from the eighth new moon after the vernal equinox; corresponds in the main to NOVEMBER.

[blocks in formation]

19. Fast of three days for faults in Feast of Tabernacles. 23. Commemoration of certain profaned altar-stones.

26. Feast for recovery of certain places from the Cuthites.

Intervals of hot sunshine during the day, nights cold; rain falls copiously; wind from the north. Trees begin to lose their leaves; general sowing of grain; last dates gathered. Grass begins to sprout.

KISLEU.

Ninth sacred, third civil month; 30 days, from the ninth new moon after the vernal equinox; usually corresponds, for the larger part, to DECEMBER.

1. New moon.

3. Feast for expulsion of idolatry from temple.

6. Fast for burning Jeremiah's roll.

7. Feast for Herod's death.

21. Feast for triumph over Samaritans.

24. Prayers for rain.

25. Feast of dedication of temple by Maccabees.

30. Alternate of new moon.

Cold quite sharp, even in the daytime; rain, occasionally snow; east or north winds. Pulse and late grain sown. Pasture begins to be abundant.

TEBETH.

Tenth sacred, fourth civil month; 29 days, from the tenth new moon after the vernal equinox; usually corresponds, for the larger part, to JANUary.

1. New moon.

8. Fast for making the Septuagint.

9. Fast for unknown cause.

10. Fast for siege of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar. 28. Feast for exclusion of Sadducees from Sanhedrim.

Cold severe, especially in elevated regions; west winds bring heavy rains, particularly during the night, which swell the streams; occasionally hot sunshine in the latter part of the month. Spring grain and early vegetables sown; trees in leaf; almond and early flowers blossom; winter fig often found on the naked trees. Grass abundant, but short.

SHEBET.

Eleventh sacred, fifth civil month; 30 days, from the eleventh new moon after the vernal equinox; corresponds about to FEBRUARY, in intercalary years a fortnight later.

1. New moon.

2. Feast for death of Alexander Jannæus.

4, or 5. Fast for death of elders who survived Joshua.

15. Date from which the first four years of trees' uncleanness are reckoned.

22. Feast for death of a certain profane Niskalenus.

23. Fast for civil war with Benjamin.

29. Feast for death of Antiochus Epiphanes.

30. Alternate of new moon.

Weather similar to last month, but more variable. Grain still occasionally sown, but generally in full green; a few early vegetables fit for eating; apples, peaches, and many flowers in blossom. Grass yet not very luxuriant.

ADAR.

Twelfth sacred, sixth civil month; 29 days, from the twelfth new moon after the vernal equinox; corresponds about to MARCH, in intercalary years a fortnight later.

[blocks in formation]

17. Commemoration of deliverance of certain Jewish sages.

20. Feast for a rain under Jannæus.

25. Collection of arrears of taxes in temple.

23. Dedication of temple by Zerubbabel.

28. Feast for abolition of certain intolerant edicts.

Weather in general moderate, but fickle; rain, heat, and wind, alternately; streams overflow. Vegetables sown, others gathered; tender trees in leaf; fruit-trees generally in blossom; vines pruned. Pasture rich.

VE-ADAR.

In order to conform the lunar to the true year, the month ADAR is occasionally repeated, with all its fasts and feasts, when another new moon intervenes before the vernal equinox; in such cases, this thirteenth month corresponds to about the latter part of March, and the former part of April, and the weather and productions are intermediate between those of the adjacent months.

ART. VIII.-SHORT REVIEWS AND NOTICES OF BOOKS.

Ir is of greatest concernment in the Church and Commonwealth to have a vigilant eye how books demean themselves as well as men, and thereafter to confine, imprison, and do sharpest justice on them as malefactors; for books are not absolutely dead things, but do contain a potency of life in them to be as active as that soul was whose progeny they are.-MILTON.

(1.) "History of the American Bible Society, revised and brought down to the present time, by W. P. STRICKLAND, D. D., with an Introduction by Rev. N. L. RICE, D. D." (Harper & Brothers, 1856; 8vo., pp. 696.) A noble book, written upon the book of books. Its author, Dr. Strickland, the present Assistant Editor of the Christian Advocate and Journal, was for several years an agent of the American Bible Society, and is well qualified by a thorough knowledge of the subject, to be the standard historiographer of that great and beneficent organization. The present is a new edition with improvements and additions. It goes forth under the imprimatur of the secretaries of the society, Doctors Brigham and Holdich. It embodies an immense amount of information in regard to the formation of the Bible Society, and its vast agencies and successes in distributing the word of God in prisons, on shipboard, in the army and navy, in Sunday schools, and families, among our Indians, and on our Pacific coasts. Next he enumerates the translations, and traces the distribution of the Bible over the continents and the islands, through the empires and populations of the earth. How cheering a world of thought does this magnificent book spread out before us!

(2.) "Religion in America, by ROBERT BAIRD." (Harper & Brothers, 1856; 8vo., pp. 696.) This is a fresh edition of Dr. Baird's work, brought down to the present time. It was first written in Switzerland, in 1842, at the request of European friends, who were puzzled to understand the peculiarities of our American Christianity. It was extensively circulated in various languages over the different countries of Europe, and it was an after-thought which produced the American republication.

It was a delightful work for Dr. Baird, to trace for a new edition the vast growth and extension of our religious systems and organizations during the period

intervening between the first publication in 1844, and this present 1856. What annexations and expansions of our country, what growth and development of our religious operations!

The transparent simplicity of his style and the catholic spirit of his mind render these pages very delightful reading. Our past religious history, our present religious status, and the cheering prospects for the future, are traced in a generous spirit and with a master hand. The work is a desirable addition to every Christian's library.

(3.) "The Imitation of Christ, by THOMAS A KEMPIS. Rendered into English from the original Latin, by JOHN PAYNE. With an Introductory Essay, by THOMAS CHALMERS, D. D., edited by HOWARD MALCOM, D. D., President of Lewisbury University, Pa. A new improved edition, with a life of the author, by C. ULLMANN, D. D." (Gould & Lincoln, Boston, 1856; 12mo., pp. 283.) This little volume was written by a Romanist, translated by a Church of England man, furnished with a biography by a Lutheran, prefaced with an introduction by a Scotch Presbyterian, edited by an American Baptist, and is now being noticed by a Methodist. Truly there is a unity of the Church of Christ, and that unity consists not in an organism or a locality. It is the unity founded upon the Rock, consisting in a oneness of spirit, and evidenced by an effort after a practical "Imitation of Christ."

He may believe himself to be in the Church catholic to whom Thomas of Kempen is delightful reading. Severe as is his piety, it is sweet and cheerful. Few authors so bring us directly to the place of spiritual repose, enabling us to understand how to enjoy a great calm even in the midst of a great storm. The work as it came from his hand had to be divested of some of the adscititious peculiarities of the Romish system, which encumbered without radically corrupting its substance; and so divested, it is suited to be for ages to come, as for ages past, one of the standard universal manuals of piety. The introduction of Chalmers, and the biography and critique by Ullmann, are invaluable accompaniments.

(4.) "Elements of Moral Philosophy, analytical, synthetical, and practical, by HUBBARD WINSLOW, author of Intellectual Philosophy." (Appleton & Co., New-York, 1856; 12mo., pp. 480.) This aims to be a complete and systematic summary of Moral Philosophy, suitable for collegiate classes; and for such purposes it seems to be adapted. It is clear in its style; analytical, but not ultra metaphysical; and seeks to bring its analysis into practical and useful results.

It is divided into five parts; of which the first three are analytical, the fourth synthetical, and the last practical. In the first two parts, he analyzes the Motive Powers, or active principles within us, dividing them into Natural and Rational. It is to be regretted that the perverted use of the word natural, as opposed to rational, or even to moral, should be perpetuated in philosophy. Are not our rational faculties natural? Our natural motive powers, according to Mr. Winslow, are appetites, affections, desires, emotions, and volitions. Volitions natural, we may add, he distinguishes from rational volitions. He distinguishes also between voluntary, semivoluntary, and involuntary movements.

Passing, in part second, to the Rational Motive Powers, he specifies Conscience, Taste, and Rational Will. Conscience, including the power of perception, is man's susceptibility of moral distinctions. It has three functions, the first prospective or the ought emotion, and two retrospective of approval or disapproval. Taste is an auxiliary to conscience; both taste and conscience should unite in human character, one leading us to the lovely, and the other to the right. In regard to the Will, Mr. Winslow is anti-necessitarian. He amply recognises what Necessitarianism is obliged to ignore-the irresponsibility of action under the law of uniform and absolute causation, and the necessity of an alternative power in the human will in order to moral desert. In the third part, our author analyzes the moral quality of all the previously enumerated motive powers. Our affections, desires, and emotions, are divided into right or wrong, and the tests of rightness and wrongness in each are assigned. Under the Will, the author decides that there is a moral certainty which is not necessity; and a volition which is morally certain, is responsible, just because that though certain it is unnecessitated. He decides that neither the will nor the other faculties are the man himself, the Ego, but attributes of the Ego. No degree of excitement exonerates from responsibility. He last, under part third, discusses the source of the morality of actions. They are, he says, mostly reduced to three that which places the source in the affections and desires; that which places it in the will; and that which makes man a machine. Under this last school, he includes "Spinoza, Swedenborg, and others of the Pantheistic and the Necessitarian school." With what fairness does Mr. Winslow class Swedenborg with Pantheists and Necessitarians? Whatever other errors Swedenborg maintained, he is no Fatalist. Mr. Winslow need not have traveled out of the bounds of New-England Calvinism to have found Fatalists, much worthier than Swedenborg to be ranked with Spinoza. We recommend him to substitute Edwards, Hopkins, and Emmons. Mr. Winslow decides that the source of morality of actions lies in all the mind—in the general disposition of all the motive powers. Hence, in regeneration, the whole man is renovated. In the fourth part, Mr. Winslow takes up the Law or foundation of Moral Obligation. He discusses four theories, which he calls the Arbitrary, the Greatest Happiness, the Highest Good, and the Subjective Theories. To all these he attributes partial truth, but condemns them all in general. His theory is, that there is no unit to which all right is reducible. His may be pronounced a Variety Theory, and is perhaps the least logical of either. This is by no means a well-managed or satisfactory chapter. In the fifth part, Mr. Winslow discusses the practical duties of life in the light of his previous moral theory. Perhaps it is too brief for symmetry, or for the best practical value of a manual of moral philosophy.

Mr. Winslow's work is entitled to take a high rank among our American manuals of Morals. It is particularly emphatic in developing the relations of moral responsibility to the free nature of the Agent. In this, there is a marked superiority to Wayland. There is also much less dryness of style, and a far richer, freer, and more lucid discussion of his topics. He has much of the style and spirit of the French metaphysical writers, to whom he attributes quite as much credit for precision as is their due. Occasionally he reminds us of the

« AnteriorContinuar »