some of their material in his "Parsifal."

Wagner ignored the religious, or, let us say, the ecclesiastical,
point of view entirely in "Jesus of Nazareth." His hero was to have
been, as I have described him elsewhere, [Footnote: "A Book of
Operas," p. 288.] "a human philosopher who preached the saving
grace of Love and sought to redeem his time and people from the
domination of conventional law--the offspring of selfishness. His
philosophy was socialism imbued by love." Rubinstein proceeded
along the lines of history, or orthodox belief, as unreservedly in
his "Christus" as he had done in his "Moses." The work may be said
to have brought his creative activities to a close, although two
compositions (a set of six pianoforte pieces and an orchestral
suite) appear in his list of numbered works after the sacred opera.
He died on November 20, 1894, without having seen a stage
representation of it. Nor did he live to see a public theatrical
performance of his "Moses," though he was privileged to witness a
private performance arranged at the German National Theatre in
Prague so that he might form an opinion of its effectiveness. The
public has never been permitted to learn anything about the
impression which the work made.

On May 25, 1895, a series of representations of "Christus" was
begun in Bremen, largely through the instrumentality of Professor
Bulthaupt, a potent and pervasive personage in the old Hanseatic
town. He was not only a poet and the author of the book of this
opera and of some of Bruch's works, but also a painter, and his
mural decorations in the Bremen Chamber of Commerce are proudly
displayed by the citizens of the town. It was under the supervision
of the painter-poet that the Bremen representations were given and,