The Discovery of Genesis by C. H. Kang, Ethel R. Nelson Page B
Authors: C. H. Kang, Ethel R. Nelson
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and Abraham, Noah and Adam. They had lost sight of the significance of the sacrifices and even the ultimate promise of a Messiah. These rites were reinstituted for the Hebrews at Mount Sinai following the great exodus from Egypt, about 1445 B.C. Meanwhile, by this time in China, the original ceremonies were still being faithfully practiced but with little comprehension of the true intent of the offerings, and with considerable adulteration by a growing ancestral worship.
The Chinese actually continued these sacrificial rituals into modern times! The Manchu dynasty extended from A.D. 1644 to A.D. 1911; and with the creation of the Republic of China in 1912, China’s monarchal rule ended for all time. The emperors of this last dynasty still annually engaged in the interesting “border” ceremony of antiquity. At the time of the winter solstice, two hours before midday (refer to the character, sacrifice which denotes the time, 9–11 a.m.), the Chinese monarch left the royal palace in a ritual chariot that carried him to the T’ien Tan. This great, square, elevated “Temple to Heaven” in Peking is thus described:
Within the gates of the southern division of the capital, and surrounded by a sacred grove so extensive that the silence of its deep shades is never broken by the noises of the busy world, stands the Temple of Heaven. It consists of a single tower, whose tiling of resplendent azure is intended to represent the form and color of the aerial vault. It contains no image, and the solemn rites are not performed within the tower; but, on a marble altar which stands before it, a bullock is offered once a year as a burnt-sacrifice, while the master of the Empire prostrates himself in adoration of the Spirit of the Universe. 8
The public offering of this sacrifice was the chief evidence of the right to rule. Consequently, the practice was strictly observed by the ruling sovereign down through the ages.
The significance of the sacrifice had long since been completely lost. It was merely thought to be an “old custom.” Even Confucius nearly 2,500 years before had been ignorant of its origin, although he researched with keenest interest into the meaning of this sacrifice. He attached so much importance to it as to declare that “the man who could explain the sacrifice to God would be able to rule the Empire as easily as he could look on the palm of his own hand.” 9
Although the origin and meaning of this ancient ceremony have been lost sight of by the Chinese, the mere fact of its existence and practice for nearly 4,500 years, together with the miracle of its survival into the 20th century from ancient times as a sacrifice to the Supreme God, ShangTi , is indeed incredible!
The marvelous fact is that from the Chinese culture, geographically and ethnically widely separated from the Hebrew nation, similar details of worship were preserved. These may be added as an additional link in the lengthening chain which binds the two peoples and further substantiates and verifies the early chapters of Genesis as revealed truth!
Chapter 9: A Bleak World
That there ever was a universal flood has been all but discounted by modern man. How is it then that nearly every ancient civilization on earth has a flood epic recording a catastrophic deluge? These flood stories, however, have been interpreted as either localized events involving only a small segment of the earth, or as mythological tales. Yet, if all of these widely scattered cultures cite a deluge, the likelihood that the entire world suffered together from the same event is compounded. As the descendants of the survivors again dispersed over the face of the earth, they must have carried the memory of this universal cataclysm with them as a part of their historical past.
Aside from these ancient records, apparent physical evidences, worldwide in scope, can be found, mute witnesses of this destructive upheaval. Petrified forests, coal and oil deposits, fossil
The Chinese actually continued these sacrificial rituals into modern times! The Manchu dynasty extended from A.D. 1644 to A.D. 1911; and with the creation of the Republic of China in 1912, China’s monarchal rule ended for all time. The emperors of this last dynasty still annually engaged in the interesting “border” ceremony of antiquity. At the time of the winter solstice, two hours before midday (refer to the character, sacrifice which denotes the time, 9–11 a.m.), the Chinese monarch left the royal palace in a ritual chariot that carried him to the T’ien Tan. This great, square, elevated “Temple to Heaven” in Peking is thus described:
Within the gates of the southern division of the capital, and surrounded by a sacred grove so extensive that the silence of its deep shades is never broken by the noises of the busy world, stands the Temple of Heaven. It consists of a single tower, whose tiling of resplendent azure is intended to represent the form and color of the aerial vault. It contains no image, and the solemn rites are not performed within the tower; but, on a marble altar which stands before it, a bullock is offered once a year as a burnt-sacrifice, while the master of the Empire prostrates himself in adoration of the Spirit of the Universe. 8
The public offering of this sacrifice was the chief evidence of the right to rule. Consequently, the practice was strictly observed by the ruling sovereign down through the ages.
The significance of the sacrifice had long since been completely lost. It was merely thought to be an “old custom.” Even Confucius nearly 2,500 years before had been ignorant of its origin, although he researched with keenest interest into the meaning of this sacrifice. He attached so much importance to it as to declare that “the man who could explain the sacrifice to God would be able to rule the Empire as easily as he could look on the palm of his own hand.” 9
Although the origin and meaning of this ancient ceremony have been lost sight of by the Chinese, the mere fact of its existence and practice for nearly 4,500 years, together with the miracle of its survival into the 20th century from ancient times as a sacrifice to the Supreme God, ShangTi , is indeed incredible!
The marvelous fact is that from the Chinese culture, geographically and ethnically widely separated from the Hebrew nation, similar details of worship were preserved. These may be added as an additional link in the lengthening chain which binds the two peoples and further substantiates and verifies the early chapters of Genesis as revealed truth!
Chapter 9: A Bleak World
That there ever was a universal flood has been all but discounted by modern man. How is it then that nearly every ancient civilization on earth has a flood epic recording a catastrophic deluge? These flood stories, however, have been interpreted as either localized events involving only a small segment of the earth, or as mythological tales. Yet, if all of these widely scattered cultures cite a deluge, the likelihood that the entire world suffered together from the same event is compounded. As the descendants of the survivors again dispersed over the face of the earth, they must have carried the memory of this universal cataclysm with them as a part of their historical past.
Aside from these ancient records, apparent physical evidences, worldwide in scope, can be found, mute witnesses of this destructive upheaval. Petrified forests, coal and oil deposits, fossil
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