The faith of our fathers - Carmel Apologetics

S.jOTHE FAITH OF OUR FATHERS.Law, before the coming of Christ, when the Hebrew people wished to offer sacrifice to God, theytook a lamb, or some other animal, which theyslew, and burned its flesh, acknowledging by thisact that the Lord was the supreme Master of lifeand death. The ancients offered to God two kindsof sacrifices, viz., living creatures, such as bulls,lambs, and birds ;and inanimate objects, such aswheat and barley, and, in general, the first fruitsof the earth.All nations, whether Jews, idolaters, or Christians,except Mahometans and modern Protestants, havemade sacrifice their principal act of worship. Ifyou go back to the very dawn of creation, you willfind the children of Adam offering sacrifices to God.Abel offered to the Lord the firstlings of his flock,and Cain offered of the fruits of the earth. 1When Noe and his family are rescued from thedeluge which had spread over the face of the earth,his first act on issuing from the ark, when the watersdisappear, is to offer holocausts to the Lord, in thanksgiving for his preservation. 2 Abraham, the greatfather of the Jewish race, offered victims to the Almighty at His express command. 3 And we readthat Job was accustomed to offer holocausts to theLord, to propitiate His favor in behalf of his children, and to obtain forgiveness for the sins they4might have committed.When Jehovah delivered to Moses the written1Gen. iv.2 lbid. vih.8 Ibid. xv.*Job i.