﻿4 
  H. 
  A. 
  Newton 
  — 
  The 
  Worship 
  of 
  Meteorites. 
  

  

  this 
  time 
  Raphael 
  was 
  painting 
  for 
  an 
  altar-piece 
  his 
  magnifi- 
  

   cent 
  Madonna 
  di 
  Foligno 
  now 
  in 
  the 
  Vatican. 
  Beneath 
  the 
  

   rainbow 
  in 
  the 
  picture, 
  indicating 
  Divine 
  reconciliation, 
  Raphael 
  

   painted 
  also 
  this 
  Crema 
  fireball 
  apparently 
  to 
  set 
  forth 
  Divine 
  

   aid 
  and 
  deliverance. 
  

  

  I 
  have 
  thus 
  rapidly 
  gone 
  over 
  some 
  selected 
  facts 
  showing 
  

   how 
  the 
  mound-builders, 
  the 
  wild 
  Africans, 
  the 
  Hindoos, 
  the 
  

   Japanese, 
  the 
  Chinese, 
  the 
  modern 
  Europeans 
  have 
  been 
  ready 
  

   to 
  revere 
  these 
  myfterious 
  bodies 
  that 
  come 
  from 
  the 
  skies. 
  

   But 
  it 
  is 
  in 
  the 
  Greek 
  and 
  Latin 
  literature 
  that 
  we 
  have 
  reason 
  

   to 
  expect 
  the 
  more 
  numerous 
  and 
  full 
  accounts, 
  both 
  legendary 
  

   and 
  historic, 
  of 
  this 
  reverence 
  and 
  worship. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  now 
  I 
  believe 
  admitted 
  by 
  the 
  best 
  scholars 
  that 
  both 
  

   in 
  Greece 
  and 
  in 
  Italy, 
  there 
  was 
  a 
  period 
  earlier 
  than 
  the 
  age 
  

   of 
  images, 
  when 
  the 
  objects 
  worshiped 
  were 
  not 
  wrought 
  by 
  

   hand. 
  Men 
  worshiped 
  trees 
  and 
  caves, 
  groves 
  and 
  mountains 
  

   and 
  also 
  unwrought 
  stones. 
  Even 
  after 
  men 
  began 
  to 
  make 
  

   their 
  objects 
  of 
  worship, 
  these 
  were 
  in 
  many 
  cases 
  mere 
  hewn 
  

   stones, 
  not 
  images. 
  The 
  earlier 
  Greek 
  term 
  ayaX/ia, 
  an 
  object 
  

   of 
  worship, 
  stands. 
  apart 
  from 
  the 
  later 
  term 
  el/ccbv, 
  image. 
  

  

  What 
  would 
  be 
  more 
  natural 
  in 
  that 
  age 
  to 
  the 
  affrighted 
  

   witnesses 
  of 
  the 
  most 
  magnificent 
  of 
  spectacles, 
  the 
  fall 
  of 
  a 
  

   meteorite, 
  than 
  for 
  them 
  to 
  regard 
  the 
  object 
  which 
  had 
  come 
  

   out 
  of 
  a 
  clear 
  sky, 
  with 
  terrific 
  noise 
  and 
  fire 
  and 
  smoke, 
  as 
  

   something 
  sent 
  to 
  them 
  by 
  the 
  gods 
  to 
  be 
  revered 
  and 
  wor- 
  

   shiped 
  ? 
  It 
  was 
  nobler 
  to 
  worship 
  a 
  stone 
  fallen 
  from 
  the 
  sky 
  

   than 
  one 
  of 
  earthly 
  origin. 
  

  

  The 
  worship 
  of 
  an 
  unwrought 
  stone 
  once 
  established 
  has 
  

   wonderful 
  vitality. 
  For 
  example, 
  the 
  Greek 
  writers 
  speak 
  of 
  

   such 
  a 
  worship 
  in 
  their 
  day 
  among 
  the 
  Arabian 
  tribes. 
  When 
  

   Mohammed 
  with 
  his 
  intense 
  iconoclasm 
  came 
  down 
  upon 
  

   Mecca 
  and 
  took 
  the 
  sacred 
  city, 
  he 
  either 
  for 
  reasons 
  of 
  policy, 
  

   or 
  from 
  feeling, 
  spared 
  the 
  ancient 
  worship 
  of 
  this 
  black 
  stone. 
  

   Entering 
  into 
  the 
  sacred 
  inclosure 
  he 
  approached 
  and 
  saluted 
  it 
  

   with 
  his 
  staff 
  (where 
  it 
  was 
  built 
  into 
  the 
  corner 
  of 
  the 
  Kaaba), 
  

   made 
  the 
  sevenfold 
  circuit 
  of 
  the 
  temple 
  court, 
  returned 
  and 
  

   kissed 
  the 
  stone, 
  and 
  then 
  entered 
  the 
  building 
  and 
  destroyed 
  

   the 
  360 
  idols 
  within 
  it. 
  To-day 
  that 
  stone 
  is 
  the 
  most 
  sacred 
  

   jewel 
  of 
  Islam. 
  Toward 
  it 
  each 
  devout 
  Moslem 
  is 
  bidden 
  to 
  

   look 
  five 
  times 
  a 
  day 
  as 
  he 
  prays. 
  It 
  is 
  called 
  the 
  Right 
  Hand 
  

   of 
  God 
  on 
  Earth. 
  It 
  is 
  reputed 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  a 
  stone 
  of 
  Para- 
  

   dise, 
  to 
  have 
  dropped 
  from 
  heaven 
  together 
  with 
  Adam. 
  Or 
  ? 
  

   again, 
  it 
  was 
  given 
  by 
  Gabriel 
  to 
  Abraham 
  to 
  attest 
  his 
  divinity. 
  

   Or, 
  again, 
  when 
  Abraham 
  was 
  reconstructing 
  the 
  Kaaba 
  that 
  

   had 
  been 
  destroyed 
  by 
  the 
  deluge, 
  he 
  sent 
  his 
  son 
  Ishmael 
  for 
  

   a 
  stone 
  to 
  put 
  in 
  its 
  corner, 
  and 
  Gabriel 
  met 
  Ishmael 
  and 
  gave 
  

   him 
  this 
  stone. 
  It 
  was 
  originally 
  transparent 
  hyacinth, 
  but 
  

  

  