Haifa; or, Life in modern PalestineOliphant, Laurence
History
Haifa; or, Life in modern Palestine
Oliphant, Laurence
Palestine -- Description and travel
Descending a few rock-cut steps close to this image, we find ourselves
in the cave of Elijah, a small grotto about ten feet by fifteen, at one
end of which is an altar, which the devotees firmly believe is the
actual rock that he used as his bed. Here a priest was performing mass.
The body of the church was full of devotees, for the most part women in
white burnooses, who squatted on the ground, and seemed principally
engaged in suckling their babies.
The monastery derives a considerable revenue from these celebrations, as
in good seasons votive offerings to a large value are brought; but the
chief source of its wealth is derived from the sale of indulgences, or
at least what virtually amounts to this. By these means it exercises a
very powerful moral as well as financial influence all through the
country, and as the Christian population, which is subject to it, is
very large in proportion to the Moslem in the neighbourhood, and as it
is under the exclusive protectorate of France, this influence partakes
also of a very distinct political character. In fact, the Christians of
the whole of this district enjoy a far more efficient protection against
the oppression of the Turkish government than do the Moslems themselves.
The monastery is a modern building, and if it only had a tall chimney
instead of a cupola it would look more like a manufactory than a
religious edifice. The top of the cupola is five hundred and fifty feet
above the level of the sea, which is immediately beneath, and commands a
magnificent view. When Napoleon besieged Acre in 1799, and was compelled
to raise the siege and retreat, the Turks fell upon the wounded French
soldiers who were left in hospital here and massacred them to a man. The
convent was, of course, deserted, and soon after fell into ruin. For
twenty-seven years this much venerated spot was abandoned, but the order
to which it had given its name never ceased to agitate for the
restoration of its sanctuary, and the work of reconstruction was finally
undertaken in 1826, by Jean Baptiste, and completed in 1853. So the
present building is only thirty years old. In front of the main terrace
is a flower-garden and some trellised vines, in the centre of which is a
pyramid surmounted by a cross, with an inscription to the effect that it
commemorates the resting-place of the bones of the French soldiers. It
was not till five years after their massacre that Father Jules du St.
Sauveur ventured back to the mountain, where he found these melancholy
traces of the tragedy scattered among the ruins, and, collecting them,
hid them in a cave until, under more auspicious circumstances, they
could receive a Christian burial. There can be no doubt that the order
is now increasing in wealth and influence, and expectation runs high
that the day is not far distant when northern Palestine will become a
French province, and when its prosperity will be still further secured.
A SUMMER CAMP ON CARMEL.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account