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THE LIFE OF CHRIST

dence irresistibly in favour of the Messiahship of Jesus. Nature spoke by the mouth of the centurion when he said, "Truly this was the Son of God." In rejecting the facts, he removed a few obstructions out of his way, but paved the downfall of his system by identifying it with apocryphal pieces which, though they subserved particular purposes at the time, have now by consent of the learned, on fullest evidence, been consigned to almost total oblivion, as possessing no authority, and carrying no weight whatever in questions of this nature.

It is grievous to reflect on the ignorance of the countries under the Mohammedan dominion in matters of history and the Scriptures[1]. What Professor Lee observes of the Persians is applicable to all who profess Islam: the best means in their power consist in the fragments found in the Koran or the traditions.

  1. See Koran, chap. 17, note.