Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 15.djvu/505

 VIRGINIA

451

VIRGINIA

Christi", 2nd ed., 2S-31, Freiburg, 1896) adds flie "poetic traditions surrounding the cradlr of Isaar, Samson, and Sauuirl" as anothrr soiu'cc of the belief in the virgin birth. Modern theology does not grant that Isa., vii, 14. contains a real prophecy fulfilled in the virgin birth of Christ; it must, maintain, therefore, that St. Matthew misunderstood the passage when he said: "Now all this was done that it might be ful- filled which the Lord spoke by the prophet, saying; Behold a virgin shall be with child, and bring forth a son," etc. (i, 22, 23). How do Harnack and Lobstein explain such a misunderstanding on the part of the Evangelist? There is no indication that the Jewish contemporaries of St. Matthew understood the proph- et's words in this sense. Hillmann ("Jahrb. f. protest. Theol.", 1891, XVII, 233 sqq., 1891) proves that belief in the virgin birth is not contained in the Old Testament, and therefore cannot have been taken from it. Dalman (Die Worte Jesu, I, Leipzig, 1898, 226) maintains that the Jewish people never expected a fatherless birth of the Messias, and that there exists no vestigeof such a Jewish interpretation of Isa., vii, 14.

Those who derive the virgin birth from Isa., vii, 14, must maintain that an accidental misinterpreta- tion of the Prophet by the Evangelist replaced historic truth among the early Christians in spite of the better knowledge and the testimony of the disciples and kindred of Jesus. Zahn ("Das Evangelium des Matthaus ausgelegt", 2nd ed., Leipzig, 1905, pp. S3 sq.) calls such a supposition "altogether fantastic" ; Usener ("Religionsgesch. Untersuch.", I, Bonn, 1889, 75) pronounce the attempt to make Isa., vii, 14, the origin of the virgin birth, instead of its seal, an inversion of the natural order. Though Catholic exegesis endeavours to find in the Old Testament prophetic indications of the virgin birth, still it grants that the Jewish Christians arrived at the full meaning of Lsa., vii, 14, only through its accomplishment (Bardenhewer, op. cit., 23; cf. Flunk, "Zeitschrift f. kathol. Theol.", XXVIII, 1904, 663).

There is a third theory which endea\ours to account for the prevalence of the doctrine of the virgin birth among the early Jewish Christians. Gunkel (op. cit., 65 sqq.) grants that the idea of virgin birth is a pagan idea, wholly foreign to the Jewish conception of God; but he also grants that this idea could not have found its way into early Jewish Christianity through pagan influence. Hence he believes that the idea had found its way among the Jews in pre-Christian times, so that the Judaism which flowed directly into early Christianity had undergone a certain amount of syn- cretism. Hilgenfeld ("Zeitschr. f.wissensch. Theol.", 1900, XLIII, 271; 1901, XLIV, 2.35) tries to derive the Christian teaching of the virgin birth neither from cla.ssical paganism nor from pure Judaism, but from the Essene depreciation of marriage. The theories of both Gunkel and Hilgenfeld are based on airy com- binations rather than historical evidence. Neither writer produces any historical proof for his assertions. Gunkel, indeed, incidentally draws attention to Parsee ideas, to the Buddha legend, and to Roman and Greek fables. But the Romans and Greeks did not exert such a notable influence on pre-Christian Juda- ism; and that the Buddha legend reached as far as Palestine cannot be seriously maintained by Gunkel (cf. Oldenberg, "Theol. Literaturzeit.", 1905,65 sq.). Even Harnack ("Dogmengesch.", 3rd ed., Freiburg, 1894, 96) regards the theory that the idea of virgin birth penetrated among the Jews through Parsee influence, as an unprovable as.sumption.

Besides the works cited in the cour.se of this ftrticle, we may draw attention to the dogmatic treati.ses on the supernatural origin of the Humanity of Christ throuuh the Holy Ghost from the Virgin Marv. especially: Wilhelm and .SrAVNEi.i,, Manual of Catholic Theoloou. II a.K5ndon and New York, 1898), 105 sqq.; 208 sqq.: Hdsteb. Outlinm of Doomatic Theology, II (New York, 1896), 567 sqq.; also to the principal commentaries on Matt., i, ii; Luke, i. ii. Among Protestant writings we may mention the tr. of Lobstein. The Virgin Birth of Chriat (London, 1903);

Birlh of Our Lord (I'.IUij).

Brioos, Critieism and the Dogma of the Virgin Birth in North

Ant. l/rr. I.hjnc'. I'.MIhl; Al.l.KN in lnhri,ril,r ( K.-l>r., 1905), 115

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A. J. Maas.

Virginia, surnamed "The Old Dominion", "The Mother of States an<l of Statesmen", one of the thir- teen original .-states, and the most southern of the Mid- dle Atlantic divi.sion, lies between 36° 31' and 39° 27' N. lat., and 75° 13' and 83° 37' W. long. Its area is 42,627 square miles, of which 40,262 square miles repre- sent land and 2365 square miles, water. Its greatest meas- urement from east to west is 476 miles, and from north to south, 192 miles. The boundaries are, north. West \'ir- ginia and Mary- land; east, Mary- x-, •■' land and the Atlantic Ocean; south. North Caro- lina and Tennessee; and west, Kentucky and West Virginia. The state contains one hundred counties.

Population. — The population of Virginia in 1910 was 2,061,612; whites, 1,389,809; negroes, 671,096; Indians, Chinese, and Japanese, 707. 'The general increase during the last decade was 11.2 per cent, that of the negroes only 1.6 per cent. In 1S90 the negroes formed 38.4 per cent of the total population; in 1900, 35.6 per cent; in 1910, 32.6 per cent; their relative de- crease being due to absence of negro immigration, neglect of hygiene, exposure, overcrowding, poverty, and, in many cases, lack of ambition and energy, or indulgence in alcoholic or other excesses. The density of population in 1910 was 51. 2 persons per square mile.

'The state contains 19 cities, all, except Hampton and Williamsburg, being independent of counties. They are, with their population of 1910: Richmond (127,628), the State capital and former capital of the Confederacy, noted for historic associations and mon- uments; Norfolk (67,452), Virginia's great .shipping port; Roanoke (34,874), called "The Magic City", because of its rapid growth; Portsmouth (33,190), a progressive city with one of the country's greatest navy yards; Lynchburg (29,494), known as "The Hill City", because of its many hills, one of the richest per capita cities in the United Slates; Peter.sburg (24,127), of Civil War fame; Newport News (20,205), at the mouth of the James River, famed for its ship-building and immense shipments to all quarters of the globe of coal and grain; Danville (19,020), one of the gi'eatest tobacco cities in the world; Alexandria (15,329), of historic interest and a Potomac port for Virginia's products; Staunton (10,604), with fine educational and corrective institutions; Charlottesville (6765), the seat of the University of Virginia; Bristol (6247); Fredericksburg (5874); Winchester (5864); Clifton Forge (5748); Hampton (5505); Radford (4202); Buena Vista (3245); and Williamsburg (2714).

The church membership (1906) was 793, .546, of which the Baptists numbered 415,987; Methodists, 200,771; Presbvterians, .39,628; Protestant Episcopal, 28,487; Disciples, 26,248; Lutherans, 15,010; the re- mainder consisting of Dnnkers. Christians, and other denominations. The Catholics were given as 28,700. The total value of Church property of all denomina- tions in 1906 was ?19.699,0I4, and the Church debt $996,-367. Owing to dearth of Catholic immigration, the Church depends for accessions principally on nat-