Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 5.djvu/702

CHRISTCHURCH, the capital of the province of Canterbury, New Zealand, is situated in 43 34 S. lat. and 172 35 E. long., on both banks of the small river Avon, about five miles from the sea. It is built upon the great Canterbury plain, which here is a dead level, though the monotony of the site has been much relieved by extensive plantations of English and Australian trees. The town 13 about a mile square, and the streets, which are wide and well paved, cross one another for the most part at right angles. Christchurch contains a number of handsome public and private buildings, is lighted with gas, and is amply supplied with water from numerous artesian wells. It is the centre of the rapidly extending railway system of the province, and is connected with its port, Lyttelton, by a line eight miles in length, which penetrates the hills enclosing Port Cooper, on which Lyttelton stands, by means of a tunnel a mile in length. The population of the munici pality of Christchurch in March 1876 was officially estimated at 10,750, and that of the electoral district at 13,000.

Environs of Christiania.

CHRISTIANIA, the capital of Norway and of a stift of the same name, is situated about 80 miles from the sea, at the head of the Cliristiania fiord, at the foot of the Egeberg, in a finely-wooded and picturesque neighbourhood, in 59 54 N". lat. and 10 45 E. long. It is the seat of the king and of the Storthing or Parliament, of the Hoieste-ret or final court of appeal, and of the bishop of the stift. The new town, or Cliristiania proper, was founded in 1G24 by Christian IV. ; the old town, Opslo, commenced in 1058 by King Harold Haardrada, formerly the capital, is now only one of the suburbs of Cliristiania. The fortress of Agershuus defends the fiord and the greater part of the town ; it contains the regalia and national records, and its ramparts afford an agreeable promenade. The streets of Christiania are at right angles to one another, and are lighted by gas ; the houses, except in the suburbs, are of brick or stone, and are mostly two-storied. Amongst the buildings may be mentioned the royal palace, containing some of Tidemand s best pictures ; the cathedral, a brick edifice in the shape of a Greek cross ; the university, founded in 1811, opened in 1813, with a library of about 150,000 volumes ; the legislative hall ; the free museums ; the observatory ; the naval, military, and art schools ; the lunatic and two orphan asylums ; the prison, near the Opslo Kirke ; the railway station, Freemasons Hall, Athenaeum, two theatres, and the large dining-hall or Damp-Kojkken. The botanical gardens, about a mile from the town, contain a large collection of plants from Spitzbergen and Iceland. The industrial establishments of Christiania and the circum jacent amt of Agershuus include weaving and cotton-spin ning factories, paper and saw-mills, soap and oil works, distilleries, breweries, and tobacco manufactories. As a place of commerce Christiania has surpassed Bergen, and is now the first port of Norway ; by the extension of its rail way communications it has also become the chief emporium for the inland produce of the country. Its exports are wood, pitch, hides, seal-skins, oil and linseed cake, fish- manure, herrings, anchovies, stock-fish, and iron ; and it imports wheat, salt, hardware, wines, preserved fruits, and fancy goods. In 1871 the total value of the imports was about 2,151,225 ; the vessels that entered the port in 1872 were 1787, of total tonnage 393,598, out of which 143 steamers and sailing-ships were British. The customs duties in 1873 amounted to 329, 175. Christiania is in steam communication with Gothenburg, Copenhagen, Liibeck, Hamburg, Amsterdam, London, and Hull, as well as with various places on the fiord, and all the ports of Norway. The town is healthy and has an excellent supply of good water. In winter its average temperature is 23 Fahr., in summer 59 9, giving an average for the year of 41 4. The harbour during three or four months of the year is ice-locked, and ships then lie at Drobak, about 18 miles south of the town. The population, which in 1812 did not exceed 10,000, had in 1835 reached 21,757 ; and at the end of 1873 it was 72,725 or, with that of the suburbs, about 83,000.

 

CHRISTIANITY

CHRISTIANITY is derived from the adjective Christian, ^J which is formed from the name X/HCTTOS, the Anointed, and means the religion introduced by Jesus Christ and communicated by Him to His circle of followers. The Christian religion is the result of two factors, neither of which can be omitted if a true description is to be given. On the one hand there is the objective element, which consists in the manifestation and revelation of God to His people for the purpose of salvation ; and on the other side there is the subjective element, which consists in the appropriation of this manifestation and what it implies by man through faith. Both elements enter into and form the constituent elements of a new life, which all Christians share in -common, and which is the essence of Christianity. This common life of Jesus and His people has many ways by which it can make itself seen and known. Christians have from the beginning exercised no small influence upon the ordinary political and moral life of the world. They have been able to effect changes in generally received moral ideas and maxims. They have altered the course and character of legislation. They have introduced new opinions and beliefs. They have formed fellowships for worship, built places of meeting, held councils and assemblies, and in many ways given evidence of their presence and power in the world. But it must alwaj s be remembered that Christianity is neither the church simply, nor theology, nor Christian ethics. It is more than all these put together. The common life of Jesus and His people, which is the core of Christianity, manifests itself in an outward visible organization for the purpose of worship, which is commonly called the church (see Church). But this worship is not Christianity; still less are the various institutions and ceremonies according to

which worship is carried on.