Modern Persia

The Muj-ta-hid is the highest order of the priesthood but this order is divided into four degrees. The members of the highest degree reside at Karbala, the sacred city. The chie...

The ancestors of M. G. Daniel, a true stock of the Nestorian sect and Syrian nationality came down from Kurdiston mountain in 1740 and settled in Persia at Oroomiah district. Th...

Islam's religion has many holy places and it is the duty of every Mohammedan to visit these shrines unless circumstances hinder him. Pilgrimages secure not only forgiveness of s...

The first need of the nation was a college. In 1836 Justin Perkins gathered a small number of deacons and priests to teach them for the work of spreading the gospel. The native...

Mohammed means "Praised One." One of the Mohammedan divines once spoke in the presence of the writer of the similarity in the Arabic language of "Ahamad" and the "Holy Spirit" a...

The Assyrian houses were one story, low flat roof, and built of mud. Mohammedan law was opposed to Christians building houses of more than one story. The houses were poorly kept...

The Persian cities generally are very old and most of them are surrounded by walls about six feet through and twenty feet high. The walls are made of clay, tramped solid by buff...

According to the poet, Firdusi, in his Shah Nomeh, the history of Persia begins some thousands of years before the Christian era. Professor Yooseph of Oroomiah College one of Pe...

The present dynasty is called the Kajar dynasty. It began with Agha Mohammed Khan who was taken captive by the enemy when he was a child and all of the prominent members of the...

The Mohammedan religion is to-day divided in about fifty different sects. This division greatly weakens it. The Bobe sect was started by Mirza Mohammed Ali of Shiraz, a city in...

This was the prevailing religion of Persia in ancient times. Zerdush was either the founder or a reformer of that religion. The general belief is that he was the founder, since...

inches in diameter, made of small iron strands, they beat their bare shoulders and back with the same as they march shouting, "Yahu, Yamalhu" which are names of their god. Follo...

The Kurds are the wildest tribe of nomads in all Asia. They have been known in Europe as raiders for a long time, and during the past two years they have attracted the attention...

The middle class live mostly in towns and cities. Their occupation is merchandise; to carry goods to Europe and import goods into Persia. Others are manufacturing carpets, rugs,...

The ancient languages of Persia are three (1) The Zend or East Iranian, or Bactorian language. But this became obsolete during the third century before Christ. This was called t...

Persia is divided into thirteen states. The King appoints a governor over each state; this governor appoints a mayor over each city within his territory. This office is not awar...

Marriage among Assyrians is considered as sacred as the ordination of priests, but is subordinate to or less sacred than the sacrament of the Lord's supper or baptism. Therefore...

The architecture of Persia is of considerable interest from the fact that the Persians added to their own the architecture of Assyria and Egypt, when they conquered those mighty...

This ancient church of the Assyrians which began with the apostles, has been praised in all the eastern and western churches for its zeal in spreading the gospel, but at no time...

Once, in ages long past, Persia was the home of heroes and was studded with palaces of splendor. Bards and poets of all nations have vied with each other in singing of the brave...

Prayer carries the Musselman half way to heaven. There is no salvation by grace or by atonement. Allah forgives his sins only on the condition of good works. Hence it is an obli...

The mosque is the Mohammedan holy temple or church. There is one in most every community which has been erected by lords or rich people. In the cities they have some magnificent...

Their faith as it is described in some ancient MSS about 500 years old was entirely evangelical. They believed in the trinity, God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, three persons...

When Mohammed was dying he announced, against his will, that Abbubaker his father-in-law was his rightful successor. It was his real desire to be succeeded by Ali his son-in-law...

Mr. Perkins gained the confidence and won the love of the people by making himself one of their number, by adopting their customs and speaking of Assyria as "our nation." In thi...

After several years work by Justin Perkins and Dr. Grant, his medical assistant, the mission had grown until more workers were needed. From time to time other workers came, such...

Mohammed declared in the Koran that there are seven heavens. Above all is the heaven for prophets, martyrs, those who die in battle for religion's sake, and for angels. Chief am...

Nestorius was a Greek, born in the latter part of the fourth century near Germanicia. He became a monk in the Roman Catholic church and was ordained an elder by the patriarch of...

The aim of the schools mentioned in the preceding chapter was to educate monks to become missionaries and spread the gospel. These schools were fountains from which flowed livin...

The counts and lords live in luxury. Their title was not obtained by great service to the nation or by high education. It descends from ancestors, and many ignorant and unworthy...

While the sky of Persia was covered with heavy clouds of ignorance and even the dim ray of light in Assyria was almost quenched, suddenly God, in His great wisdom and wise provi...

The Koran is the Mohammedan's holy bible, creed, and code of laws. The holy Koran was delivered to Mohammed neither in graven tablets of stone, nor by cloven tongues of fire, bu...

Mission work indirectly and slowly spreads among Moslem. The Koran forbids Christians to preach to Moslems, and no Christian dared discuss questions of religion with Moslems bef...

The colleges of the Assyrians were destroyed four hundred years before the American missionaries came. Not a single school was left, and the only effort at education was by monk...

St. Thomas and St. Bartholomew from the twelve apostles, and the St. Eddi and St. Maree from the seventy apostles have been called the apostles of Assyria. Their first patriarch...

The golden age of this church was the period from the fourth to the thirteenth century. They had twenty-five flourishing colleges. The most important schools were located at Odd...

The Assyrian church believe they have an apostolic succession from St. Thomas and St. Bartholomew. There are seven orders in the clergy. The patriarch, metropolitan, episcopas,...

Monotheism is the corner-stone of Islam. Their creed consists of six articles. God, predestination, the angels good and bad, the books and the traditions of the 124,000 prophets...