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An era is a fixed point of time from which a series of years is reckoned. Among the nations of the Earth there are no less than twenty-five different eras; but the most of them are not of enough importance to be mentioned here. Attention is particularly called to the Roman era which commenced with the building of the city of Rome 753 years before Christ.
Also the Mahometan era, or the era of the Hegira, employed in Turkey, Persia and Arabia, which is dated from the flight of Mahomet from Mecca to Medina, which was Thursday night, the 15th of July, A. D., 622, and it commenced on Friday, the day following.
But there is a point from which all computation originally commenced, namely, the creation of man. Such an era is called the Mundane era. Now there are different Mundane eras—the common Mundane era 4,004 B. C., the Grecian Mundane era 5,598 B. C., and the Jewish Mundane era 3,761 B. C. All these commence computation from the same point, but differ in regard to the time which has elapsed since their computation commenced. God’s people used the Mundane era, until the Great Creator appeared among us, as one of us, in the person of our Lord Jesus Christ, to accomplish the great work of redemption; then His name was introduced as the turning point of the ages, the starting point of computation.
This was done by Dionysius Exiguus in the year of our Lord about 540, known at that time as the Dionysian, as well as the Christian era, and was first used in historical works by the venerable Bede early in the eighth century. “It was a great thought of the little monk (whether so called from his humility or littleness of stature is unknown), to view Christ as the turning point of the ages, and to introduce this view into chronology.”
All honor to him who introduced it, and to the nations which have approved, for thus honoring the Great Redeemer. Dionysius probably did not know, neither is it now known for a certainty the year of Christ’s birth, but it is evident, however, from the best authorities, that the era commenced at least five years too late, and probably more.