A collection of curious travels & voyages in two tomes ... / by John Ray ...

CHAP. X.

A Common Account of several sorts of Christi∣ans, but chiefly of them that are always to be found in the Temple of Mount Calva∣ria: And also how these, and many other Strangers, are treated by the Turkish Em∣peror (as by their chief Head, to whom they generally are subjected) and his Officers.

IN the Temple of Mount Calvaria live Christians of several Nations; as Latins, or Italians, Abyssins, Graecians, Armenians, Georgians, Nestorians, Syrians, Jacobites, &c. which for the most part are Priests and Friers, which are of so different Opinions in many Articles of Faith, that many of them might sooner be reckon'd amongst the Superstitious and Hereticks than Christians; wherefore each of them have their pecu∣liar Habitation and Chapel, that they may perform their Devotion undisturbed by one another. The Tur∣kish Emperor also lets them alone, and doth not at all trouble them for their Religion, nor endeavour to bring them over to the Mahumetan Religion and Al∣coran; and is very well contented to receive his Yearly Tribute, which is exactly demanded as it cometh to be due. I have seen many of them in the Temple, to go up and down in their peculiar Habit, and once I did attend at their Devotion, so that I easily passed away the time, that the Turks kept us Locked up in it.

Their Pilgrims resort thither Yearly, chiefly against the great Feasts or Holy Days, in great Numbers, to see the holy Places, not only from the Eastern, but also from the Western Countries: These that are under the subjection of the Sultan, which they are almost all of them (except the Latins and Abyssins) must pay him Yearly the fourth part of all their Revenues: He that

hath four Olive, Almond, or Quince-Trees, must yield one of them to be the Emperors. So in their Harvest, every fourth Sheaf is also his; their Harvest beginneth in the beginning of April, and endeth in May, as you may see, Deut. chap. 16. vers. 9. Seven weeks (that is from Easter to Whitsonday) shalt thou number unto thee: begin to number the seven weeks from such time as thou beginnest to put the sickle to the corn. Besides this Imposition, they have another; that is, They must pay Yearly for every Head that is Male, the Poor as well as the Rich, one Ducat, and some∣times two, chiefly when the Sultan intendeth to go to War with the Christians; then he beginneth to lay these Taxes upon them a Year before-hand, and hath it Gathered in. He that hath not wherewithal to pay it, is forced either to sell one or the other of his Chil∣dren to perpetual Slavery, or else to give one of them to the Grand Turk, according to his liking to be his own for ever: And what is more, he sendeth every 4th or 5th Year through all his Dominions his Emissa∣ries, viz. Wallachia, Servia, Bosnia, Albania, Colchid, &c. to fetch away every third Son of his Christian Subjects, and they always chuse that which they like best; and so they bring together a great Number, and call them Azanoglans, and give them to the Janizaries to be their Servants. These have in some chief places their Exer∣cises from their Infancy, that in time they may be fit to be made Officers and Commanders in time of War. In this the Turks exercise great Cruelty and Pride, they spare no Body, for if a Christian doth possess some small matter of Riches, he must either keep it very privately, or else with a great deal of discretion say, That it is all belonging to his Emperor and him. So if the Grand Signior hath occasion for any thing of theirs whatsoever, it must be granted him without any refu∣sal: But what a trouble and heart-breaking this must be to the poor Parents, not only to have their Children that are free by Nature, forced to such a Brutal way of Life and Education, but, what is more, taken away from Baptism to Circumcision, from the Christian Congregation and Faith, into a severe Slavery and Su∣perstition,

wherein they are brought from their Duty to their Parents, into a mortal enmity against them and their other Relations, every Christian may with himself consider.

The Turks, where there is choice, take them that are single and young, because, they being still infirm, and but slightly grounded in their Faith, they are the sooner seduced, chiefly if they are Instructed in their Mahumetan Laws, and Educated therein for a while, for then they soon forget their own Faith, and grow in theirs, and so as they grow up in Years, they also grow in their Malice, and become to be worse than they themselves, as daily Experience doth sufficiently testifie.

Of the same stamp are also these Christians, that af∣ter they have been taken Prisoners in the War, turn Ma∣malucks (which they call in their Language Haracs) and are Circumcised. These are free from all Imposition as well as the Turks, save only the Tenth, but dare not go away without their Masters leave, upon pain of Death; if they are taken, they are according to their Law, without any Tryal, Sentenced and Condemned to be burnt. And these also are confirm'd and obdu∣rated in their impious and base Life, that they forget God and themselves, never think of coming home again to hear the Gospel Preached, or to see their Friends and Relations again. Yet the Prisoners are not so ve∣ry much pressed by the Turks to deny their Faith and turn, except there should be found one or more great Persons among them, for such they always use to press more, and endeavour to turn them one way or other, and promise them great Preferment if they will declare for their Religion; for they are in hopes, that if they could perswade them, a great many more of the lit∣tle ones would also come over with them. If such are perswaded by them and turn, they are entertained by the Turks very Honorably, and called Tscheleby, that is, Gentlemen, and endued with great Revenues, but yet they do not easily confide in them, or put any Trust into their hands, and do not esteem such incon∣stant and faltering Men in their Heart, although they

carry themselves very friendly before their faces, for they make account, That he that will easily deny his Religion, will also betray his Prince and Country if occasion should serve. I have known in these Coun∣tries some Slaves, whom their Masters that bought them as their Servants, did very much press to be Cir∣cumcised, but when they did mightily resist, and ex∣cuse themselves, and say, That they could not admit thereof with a safe Conscience, and if by force they should take away their Prepuce and Circumcise them, that notwithstanding all that, they could not Circumcise their Hearts, and therefore they desired them not to trouble themselves any further with them, they were for all that ready and willing to serve them honestly and faithfully to the utmost of their power: So their Masters have been satisfied with this Answer, and have pressed them no more. But if it should happen that a Christian should be taken in one of their Mosques (for they as unclean Men are forbid to come there) or should dispute with them, or speak ill of their Pro∣phet Mahomet and his Laws, or should pronounce these words, which are almost written every where in their Churches, and underneath their Gates, in their Arabian Language: Leila hillalla Mahammet rasur alla; that is to say, O God only God, and Mahomet a Prophet of God, he must (because they are an Epitome of their Religion, Confession, Belief and Laws) suffer himself to be Circumcised, or else lose his Life. For being that Mahomet did defend his false Doctrine described in the Alcoran, rather with the Sword than with Rea∣son and true Grounds, that it might not be discovered, and so his Adherents leave him. Mahomet to prevent this, by the Devils Inspiration, hath strengthen'd it with strong Points and Articles, viz. That no body shall discourse or dispute with any Sectaries whatsoever, much less believe them, or read their Books, as such wherein is no ground to be found, because all that is good and true in the Old Testament, testified by the Jews, and in the New one, by the Christians, is by him taken out and Transcribed into his Alcoran, and there∣fore it must be believed and kept as the Word of God,

without any scruple or search; and he that speaketh or writeth against it, must fall by the Sword, and besides be Damned for ever.

Who doth not see that this subtile Mahomet did this, that any Body that he gets once into his Snares, or that falls into his Net, might be so intangled, that he must be forced to keep there, to perish and to be dam∣ned for ever; notwithstanding all his sweet Promises of great Priviledges, Salaries, and Permission of Sodomitish Sins, Robbing, Burning, Perjury, &c. which Trans∣gressions they regard but very little, seeing that ac∣cording to their Prophets promise, if they Pray but of∣ten, and Wash themselves often, they do not only not hurt them, but by continual usage of the before-men∣tioned means, they become to be cleaner than we Christians from our Sins, in the Bath of Regeneration. To these Traditions of Mahomet, the Turks and Moors stick so close, and believe them implicitly, according to the Commands of Mahomet; so that one, although he be of another Opinion, because they will hear no Contradiction nor Objection, is forced to hold his Tongue and say nothing. And in case you should ask them, why they are forbid to Eat Pork, or Drink Wine? they answer and say, That their Parents did so before them, partly because they are unclean, and partly be∣cause they are forbid it in their Alcoran; or else that if they should over-fill themselves with it, so that they should bring it up again, it might contaminate their Cloaths, and so they should commit a great Rusticity; so that they know not how to give any reason concern∣ing their Religion. Wherefore their Law ought to be called or reputed Cruel, and a Tyrannical one, that is rather upheld by the Sword than by Reason and Justice; which also appeareth from thence, that they carry a Naked Scymiter before the Noble-mens Sons, when they carry them about the Streets in order to be Cir∣cumcised; and also their Priests, chiefly those that are called Antippi, after Prayers and Sermon, shew unto the People from a high place, a burning Torch in one Hand, and a Naked Scymiter in the other, to encou∣rage their own Adherents, and to frighten those that

are of a contrary Opinion; and so Mahomet pretends to his Adherents, that God hath bidden him to Conquer all other Nations by the Sword, until they confess that there is no other God besides God, and Mahomet his Prophet; or else agree to pay him Yearly Tribute, and to be his obedient Subjects; if they follow his di∣rections, his Laws will endure so long as they defend them by the Sword. Now how strictly they have hi∣therto prosecuted these his Commandments, the Inhabi∣tants of the Eastern Countries have formerly, to their grief, sufficiently Experienced, viz. Asia, Syria, the Land of Promise, Aegypt, Thracia, Greece, &c. which they have not only Conquered, and to their own great Improvement subdued, but have also infected them with their Poisonous Doctrine to such a degree, that in these our times there are but very few to be found in these parts, that do adhere unto the true Religion.

It being so then, that God Almighty hath visited them with these great punishments, by reason of their manifold Sins and Ingratitude, for his Holy and Sacred Word, and that we also are guilty of these and the like Sins and Vices, we cannot wonder that the Al∣mighty and Just God, should, according to our Deme∣rits, send also such a horrid Tyrant against us, to terri∣fie us very much, and come so near to us, that we must expect every moment (except we amend) the like Punishments and Execution. And so we hear dai∣ly, to our grief, that this potent Tyrant is continually at Work, and taketh one strong Town after another; and what is more, they take often in their Excursions a great number of our Brethren and Sisters, part whereof they Murder Barbarously, others they carry away into perpetual Slavery. When they have ob∣tained a Victory, and have got Booty, there is ready, and at hand, several Sutlers, that drive a great Trade with Buying and Selling poor Prisoners; these buy them of the Soldiers, Chain them (after they have given the Grand Turk the Tenths thereof, according to his Choice and Pleasure) together with long Chains, and so drive them away miserably, as if they were Beasts, to the chief Trading Towns, to sell them with profit

again to other•• that come thither from Foreign Coun∣tries. There you find Weekly, in their Betzars or Ex∣changes, many Prisoners of several Nations, viz. Chri∣stians, Moors, Arabians, Indians, Abyssins, and amongst them Young and Old, Men and Women, some where∣of are White, and others Black; thither come the Chapmen and cheapen them; they have liberty to look upon their Naked Bodies, as if they were Beasts, and to feel them, whether they are sound in their Limbs, or whether they have any defect, which they always fear. If they like their Bargain, the Buyers take them home with them into their small Habitations or Tents, and put them (chiefly those that were given to Idleness, and have Learned no Trade) to any sort of hard La∣bour, and all that they get so belongeth to their Ma∣ster, who disposeth of it as he pleaseth. Wherefore those that keep many Men and Maids, esteem them∣selves richer for it; and sometimes they Marry them together, and when they beget Children, they are Slaves as well as themselves, and he hath power to Educate them, and to dispose of them as he pleaseth. Wherefore the Christians (that to their Temporal Pun∣ishment, they may not also acquire Eternal ones, for their Childrens sake) in these Countries do seldom Marry, but rather study how to make their escape (if they are not hindered for want of that Language, and by Unskilfulness of the Roads); or else they go with their Master before a Justice, in their Language called Cadi, and there buy their Liberty for a Sum of Money, or else agree with him for a certain time, and so make a Contract with him concerning their Liberty, which commonly these do that intend to persevere in their Christian Religion, or undertake to get something by their Handy-work, that when the time is past, or the Money paid, the Justice may, according to the In∣strument before made by him at their Request, declare him Free, and give him a Pass, to shew upon the Road, that he may not be molested. Other ways to get their Liberty there are but very few, except their Master should happen to Dye, which commonly in their last Will, declare that their bought Servants, after the open∣ing

of it, shall have their Liberty. Sometimes it hap∣pens, that from others they buy false Letters (which are soon found out in these Countries) and so by the help of them get away Clandestinely.

But yet that but a few Slaves come from thence to us again, the chief reason is not, as many think, Be∣cause the Turks press them to change their Religion; for although they sometimes threaten them, as they use to do or treat them somewhat more hardly than is usual in their Servitude, as Christians also do very often, but rather their Secure and Impenitent Life which they lead, forgetting God and his holy Word to that degree, that they know not how to give an Account of their Christian Faith and Religion; nay (what is more) they know not the difference between these two Religions, which are so vastly differing, although they would, if they did know it, rather suffer Death than be seduced from the true Religion, and precipitate the Soul, toge∣ther with the Body, into Damnation. When then the knowledge of the Truth is gone, and Faith almost, if not quite Extinguished, so that there is but little hope left of their Salvation, they daily forsake their Reli∣gion as fast as Worm-eaten Fruit falls from the Tree; begin to think how to compensate their bodily suffer∣ing, they may lay up and get Money by Robbing and Burning, and so get Privileges, to live according to their own Will and Pleasure, like Beasts in daily Un∣cleanness; and when they are harden'd in it, they come at last to such a degree of Sottishness and Brutality, that (as St. Peter saith) they believe the chief good of this World to consist in Voluptuousness, wherein they perish at length, and must expect the Wages of Un∣righteousness with the rest.

When the Turks have Conquered one or more (which they discern at first by their Fore-finger, which these that have a mind to turn use to shew to them first, as a Token by lifting of it up over their Heads, chiefly in their Mosques) they rejoyce in them mightily, and are clearly of Opinion, That this their Work is precious and good before God, and that their Religion is confirmed and upheld by the assenting of many; wherefore they

soon meet together, to confirm these Turn-coats with their usual Ceremonies, and so to make them true Turks. First they lay before them a Cross, whereon they must trample three times, spit upon it, and repeat every time some words after them taken out of the Al∣coran; so the Christians that will be made Turks pro∣nounce them after them. When this is done, three of them are ready with their Bows, and shoot together up, and give them before the Arrows fall down again Tur∣kish Names: Then (if they be Men) they set them up upon high Horses, put them on their best Clothes, and Dress them neatly, and so lead them for two days together through all the Streets, that every body may see them, and know them to be such as do adhere to their Religion, and so to be free to walk and deal among them without any hinderance. If they are of an higher degree, and of great Authority, sometimes Ride along with them some Turkish Gentlemen of Qua∣lity, in their best Dress, accompanied by many Janiza∣ries, who fire here and there in the Streets for Joy, but chiefly in those places where they spy Christians. They have with them all sorts of Musical Instruments, viz. The Drums, great Drums, and little Drums, (which they beat at that same time both above and below) Hautboys, and others: They also carry in this their Procession long Streamers upon long Poles, almost like unto them that we see in the Cross-walks in our Frie∣ries; and besides, the Rabble that run before and behind make such a noise, that one cannot hear the other. When all this is over, they Circumcise them at last on the third Day, and then they reckon such an one to be a true Musulman, that is, A Circumcised one, who hath leave to go to their Mosques without being hin∣dered, to buy their Books and Writings, and to Read them, which must not be sold to others that are not of their Religion, upon pain of great punishment, that they may not come into unclean hands, or to be trod upon as Writings of no Worth.

Their Jewes, whereof there are a great many among them, and are called by them Choifut or Chifoutler, ex∣cel ours in Cheating and Cozening by far, and there

is no doubt but they would oftentimes renounce their Religion to make profit: But the Turks envy them more than we Christians, they do not Trust them, they reckon them not worthy to Eat with them as they do with us Christians, nor Marry with them; much less will they receive them as any thing related to their Religion, except it be, that before for some days they have frequented the Christian Churches, and there are Baptized, and have often Eaten Pork, that unclean Meat that is also forbidden unto them. When they have done thus, they proceed with them after the same manner as is before said.

Concerning the Christians that live among the Turks, as the Surians, Armenians, &c. they have here and there in great Trading Cities, their pecu∣liar Streets which they Inhabit, and they are com∣monly without in the Suburbs; and thereabout also small and low Churches, where they perform their Devotions. When they begin to be decayed of Age, or are burnt by Fire, or destroyed in War time, if they will have them built up again, they must have leave first of the Turkish Magistrate, and lay down a good Sum of Money, which grants nothing except you grease them well.

The Turks (to save Charges) suffer no Bells nor Clocks, neither in their own nor other Temples, nor will they give leave to the Christians to Ring to Church with them, so that all day long you neither hear a Bell Toll, nor a Clock Strike. Instead thereof, the Turks have, according to their Alcoran, their Five Hours set, which their Priests call out from the high Steeples, and in the Ex∣changes, with a loud Voice, and with stopped Ears, and cry, Alla Haickbar, that is, God is true; and then, Leila hillalla, Mahammet rasur alla; each of them he repeats twice, to call the people to their Devotions. But the Christians have a Servant, that at the Hours of Prayers and Sermon goeth about with a strong Cudgel, and striketh, in every Street, on one or more Doors made strong for that purpose, as if it were upon an Anvil, several times, which resounds through all the Street.

When the Christians pray, they observe almost the same Ceremonies with the Turks, Persians and Arabians, &c. they turn themselves towards the South, they speak low in the beginning, lift up their Hands, bend their Heads and whole Bodies downwards; then they fall down upon their Knees, kiss the Earth several times, and pray with great Devotion, which Custom the Jews keep also, and that without doubt, because the Patriarchs used the same in their Prayers, as we read in the Seventeenth Chapter of Genesis, Verse 3. and 17. And Abraham fell on his face: Exod. xvii. 11. When Moses held up his hands Israel prevailed: and in 1 Kings xviii. 42. is said▪ And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel, and he cast himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees: and also Nehemiah viii. 6. And all the people answered, Amen, Amen, with lifting up their hands: and they bowed their heads, and worshipped the Lord with their faces to the ground. So did Christ himself, lying on his Face, vehemently pray the Third Time. If we Christians did but mind the Fervency and Zeal of the Heathens and Superstitious in their Prayers, we should see what reason we have to awake from our Laziness and Coldness in our Prayers, and to pray with earnestness. There live in Turkey so many Christians, that they inhabit the greatest part of that Country; wherefore considering their great number (to speak according to all human probability) it would be an easie matter to subdue the Turks without the as∣sistance of any outlandish Power, and to drive them out of their own Countries, did not God Almighty, who visiteth us for our manifold Sins, set them over us as a Punishment: For although the Turkish Emperor sets his B••glerby's and Bashaws, as great and mighty Lords here and there over great Provinces and Coun∣tries, to rule them with great Zeal and Severity, and and to order all Business according to his pleasure, so that among so great a number of People, and consider∣ing their severe Reign and Government (where small Transgressions are vigorously punished) there is not easily to be feared an Insurrection: yet he could not be half so strong, without the help of the Christians

that live amongst his People, nor be able to bring to∣gether such mighty and numerous Armies of good and experienced Soldiers.

The Christians, for the most part, wear as well as the Turks long Cloaths, and gird their Loins with fine and soft Rollers, some of Silk, and others made of Cotton; in them they keep still to this day their Money, chiefly the poor, as some with us, that have no Pockets, do in their Handkerchiefs, tied up in a strong knot; the same without doubt did the Ancients wear, as the Words of Christ our Saviour, Matth. x. 9. give us to understand; where he speaketh to his Disciples, and sends them into the whole world, saying, Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses. (In the German Bible we read Girdles.) With such a one, without doubt, the Prophet Agabus, did tie the Hands and of the Apostle Paul in Cesarea in the House of Philip, when he would make him to understand, that the Jews at Jerusalem would take and tie him, and at length de∣liver him up into the hands of the Heathens, as you may read in the 21st. of the Acts. Now altho the Christians go as well as the Turks in long Cloaths, so that that way they are hardly to be distinguished from one another; yet they are distinguished by the peculiar Colours of their Turbants, which they wear; for the Turks wear white ones, as also do the Arabians, and Persians, only these put behind to it a red coloured Cloth, and the others make it up in another form, and let one of the ends hang down behind, to defend their naked Necks from the excessive heat of the Sun. But the uncircumci∣sed that have a differing Religion are not allowed to wear a white one, unless another Colour be mixed with it, much less a green one; which Colour being their Ma∣homets, and esteemed to be holy, is not allowed to be worn by any Body, neither Turks nor Christians, (except to their Priests and some Pilgrims that have been on Pil∣grimage to Mecha) neither in Turbants nor other Cloaths. So the Armenians have blue; the Nestorians flesh colored: the Grecians, Maronites, Surians, and others have white ones with blue Lists wrought into them. But the Jews have yellow ones, as they have in our Country

yellow Bonnets: yet when they have a mind to travel afar off, as into Mesopotamia, Assyria, Persia, or into the Indies, &c. (seeing that the Turks hate them, that so they may travel the securer, and with little Charges) they put on white ones by the way, and pretend to be Tschelebys, or Noble Men, nay sometimes Messengers of the Cambre, which they may easily do, because they understand the Languages, yet not without great dan∣ger. But they stay not long in a place, that they may not come to be known.

There are also some Jewish Physicians, which instead of the yellow Turbants, wear red high Hats, of Scar∣let, they exceed in number the Turkish ones, that go cloathed like the common people. They are common∣ly more Able and Learned, because they can read the Physical Books of Galen and Avicen, &c. in their ori∣ginal Languages Greek and Arabick; which they gene∣rally understand. But for the Latin Tongue, very few of them understand that, neither have they any good Books in it, but what they have received in the ta∣king the Island Cyprus.

So much of the Christians in general. But because I have made mention of Christians of several Nations, that inhabit the Temple of Mount Calvaria, what pla∣ces in and without the Town of Jerusalem, each of them are possessed of, and with what Errors in Religion they are contaminated, I cannot but relate in particular of each of them, as much as I could understand and learn in that little time.