99,,the ,,eliminator99 99or1 ,,skeleton ,,keys to ,,sacerdotal ,,secrets99 ,by 99,richard ,b4 ,westbrook1 ,d4,d41 ,l4,l4,d499 #ahid ,,contents ,,preface ,,to ,,the ,,second ,,edition ,,preface ,,skeleton ,,keys ,,to ,,sacerdotal ,,secrets ,,chapter ,i4 ,,the ,,whole ,,truth ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,,sacerdotalism ,,impeached ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,,the ,,fabulous ,,claims ,,of ,,judaism ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,,moses ,,and ,,the ,,pentateuch ,,chapter ,v4 ,,ancient ,,symbolism ,,and ,,modern ,,literalism ,,chapter ,,vi4 ,,astral ,,keys ,,to ,,bible ,,stories ,,chapter ,,vii4 ,,the ,,fable ,,of ,,the ,,fall ,,chapter ,,viii4 ,,search ,,for ,,the 8,,last ,,adam0 ,,chapter ,,ix4 ,,what ,,is ,,known ,,of ,,the ,,new ,,testament ,,chapter ,x4 ,,the ,,drama ,,of ,,the ,,gospels ,,chapter ,,xi4 ,,the ,,ideal ,,christ ,,chapter ,,xii4 ,,jesus ,,and ,,other ,,christs ,,chapter ,,xiii4 ,a ,,reverent ,,critique ,,on ,,jesus ,,chapter ,,xiv4 ,a ,,few ,,fragments ,,chapter ,,xv4 ,,blood-,,salvation ,,chapter ,,xvi4 ,,things ,,that ,,remain ,,index ,,preface ,,to ,,the ,,second ,,edition ,,the ,eliminator has now been before the public nearly two years4 ,i have seen nothing worthy of the name of criticism respecting it4 ,a few ,unitarian ministers have said that ,christ must have been a person instead of a personification1 for the reason that men could not have conceived of such a perfect character without a living example1 and that the great influence exercised by him for so long a time1 over so many people1 proves him to have been an historic character4 ,these arguments are anticipated and fully answered4 7,see pp4 #bhc1 #bhd1 #cjf47 ,our ,unitarian friends are the greatest idealists upon the globe6 ,they only accept the ,gospel biography of ,jesus 7and we have no other7 just so far as the story accords with what they think it ought to be4 ,they deny the immaculate conception and miraculous birth of the ,christ1 and have very great doubts about his crucifixion and resurrection4 ,their ,christ is purely ideal4 ,the fact is that ,christendom has worshipped the literal ,jesus for the ideal ,christ for nearly twenty centuries1 though their conceptions of him have been manifold and contradictory4 ,no wonder that so many intelligent ,christian sects in the early ages of the church utterly denied the existence of ,jesus as an historic person4 7,see pp4 #bff1 #bfg1 #ceg47 ,but there is indubitable evidence that this ,christ character 7called by many ,unitarians the 8,universal ,christ07 was mainly mythical1 drawn from the astrological riddles of the older ,pagan mythologies4 ,in fact1 almost everything in ,christianity seems to have been an afterthought4 ,it is the least original of any of the ten great religions of the world1 and the great mistake has been in making almost everything literal which the wise men of ancient times regarded as allegorical4 ,this comes from the priestly attempt to identify the ,jewish ,jesus with the ,oriental ,christ ,tradition is1 in fact1 the main foundation of the ,christian scheme1 and cunning sacerdotalists have done by artifice what history1 in fact1 has failed to do4 ,but for its moral precepts and its 8enthusiasm of humanity10 ,christianity would not survive for a single century4 ,the so-called 8,apostles' ,creed0 7which was not formulated until centuries after the last ,apostle slept in the grave71 and which is repeated in so many churches every ,sunday1 has a greater number of historical and theological misstatements than any other writing of the same length now extant6 ,there is in our day a general disposition to magnify the virtues of the ,christ of the ,new ,testament1 connected with a proposition to unite all ,christians in his leadership4 ,this device will not succeed1 because it is as impossible to found a perfect religion upon an imperfect man as it is upon a fallible ,book4 ,lovers of the truth will show that the traditional ,christ is not a perfect model4 7,see ,chapter xiii47 ,there is a most significant sense in which it may be truthfully said3 8,never man spake like this man10 as no great moral teacher ever uttered so many things that needed to be revised and explained6 ,may it not be the fact that both ,catholic and ,protestant ,christians are under a great delusion as to the facts of religion8 ,i think so4 ,i believe so4 ,i well know how difficult it is to explode a delusion that is nearly twenty centuries old1 and that is supported by a sacerdotalism of vast wealth and learning1 and whose votaries by 8this craft have their wealth40 ,i nail these ,thses to the church doors of all the ,catholics and ,protestants in ,christendom1 and with ,martin ,luther1 at the ,diet of ,worms1 ,i exclaim1 8,here ,i stand4 ,i cannot move6 ,god help me60 ,if ,i am mistaken1 then my reason is at fault and all history is a lie6 ,it is said that when ,renan died1 the ,pope inquired whether he had confessed before his de-cease1 and upon being told that he had not1 replied1 8,well1 then ,god will have to save him for his sincerity60 ,i am ready to be judged on this ground4 ,i sum up my latest conclusions thus3 ,the ,jesus of the ,gospels is traditional1 the ,christ of the ,new ,testament is mythical4 ,r4 ,b4 ,,westbrook4 #agjg ,oxford ,street1 ,philadelphia4 ,october #a1 #ahid4 ,,preface ,many things in this book will greatly shock1 and even give heartfelt pain to1 numerous persons whom ,i greatly respect4 ,i have a large share of the love of approbation1 and naturally desire the good opinion of those with whom ,i have been associated in a long life4 ,there is no pleasure in the fact that ,i have to stand quite alone in the eyes of nearly all ,christendom4 ,there is no satisfaction in being deemed a disturber of the peace of the great majority of those 8professing and calling themselves ,christians40 ,but1 at the same time1 ,i must not be indifferent in matters where ,i believe truth is concerned4 ,before ,i withdrew from the orthodox ministry ,i used to wonder why ,god in his gracious providence had not seen fit to so order events as to give us a credible and undoubted history of the incarnation and birth of his ,son ,jesus ,christ1 and why that ,saviour1 who had come to repair the great evils inflicted upon our race by ,adam1 had never once mentioned that unfortunate fall4 ,i do not deny that there was a person named ,jesus nearly nineteen hundred years ago4 ,i think there were several persons bearing this name and who were contemporaneous1 and that several of them were very good men2 but that any one of them was such a person as is described in the ,gospels ,i cannot believe4 ,i lay special emphasis on the word such4 ,admitting for the sake of the argument the real1 historical personality of ,jesus of ,nazareth1 he has by the process of idealization become an impersonation1 and ,i have so attempted to make it appear2 and ,i cannot but think that this view is not inconsistent with the most enlightened piety and religious devotion1 while this explanation relieves us of many things which are absurd and contradictory4 ,i desire to explain more fully than appears in the ,table of ,contents the plan of this book4 ,i first combat the policy of suppression and deception1 and insist that the whole truth shall be published1 and have shown that sacerdotalism is responsible for the fact that it has not been done4 ,as so-called ,christianity is based upon ,judaism1 ,i undertake to show the fabulous character of many of the claims of the ,jews1 disclaiming all intention to asperse the character of ,israelites of the present generation4 ,i thought it proper in this connection to give the substance of an open letter to the ,chief-,justice of the ,supreme ,court of ,pennsylvania on ,moses and the ,pentateuch--to which ,his ,honor never responded--showing that the 8law of ,sinai was not the first of which we have any knowledge10 and that ,moses was not 8the greatest statesman and lawgiver the world had ever produced10 as the ,chief-,justice had affirmed in a lecture before the ,law ,school of the ,university of ,pennsylvania4 ,presenting brief views of the symbolic character of the ,old ,testament1 and showing how 8,astral ,keys0 unlock many ,bible stories1 ,i undertake to show that the so-called fall of ,adam is a fable1 nothing more2 and then1 as the first ,adam is shown to be a myth1 ,i go in search for the 8last ,adam40 ,finding no knowledge of such a person except in the ,new ,testament1 ,i deem it necessary to briefly show the character of this book1 that it may be determined how far it should be received as evidence in a matter of so much importance4 ,then in five chapters1 more or less connected1 ,i combat the idea of the historical1 or rather traditional1 ,jesus1 and follow with an examination of the evangelical dogma of ,blood-,salvation1 and close with a very brief summary of the ,things that ,remain as the foundation of faith4 ,i do not expect caste clergymen to read this book any farther than is necessary to denounce it4 ,it is their way of meeting questions like those herein discussed4 ,i am prepared to have certain dilettanti sneer-ingly say1 8,this book is of no critical value40 ,they are so accustomed to 8scholarly essays0 which 8are poetically sentimental and floridly vague0 that they have little respect for anything else4 ,the book is intended for the common people1 and not for the professional critics4 ,i do not expect everybody to agree with me1 especially at first4 ,truth can afford to wait1 and in years to come many points that ,i have made1 which are now so startling1 will be calmly and intelligently accepted4 ,there are probably mistakes in the book--mistakes in names1 in dates1 and perhaps in facts2 but these will not affect the main argument4 ,no man knows everything4 ,until recently it was never suspected by the learned world that ,the ,contemplative ,life was not written by ,philo nearly nineteen centuries ago1 instead of being written by a monk in the third century of the ,christian era4 ,even ,macaulay and ,bancroft have made mistakes1 and so have many other authors of good repute4 ,i have always tried to preserve a reverent spirit--a genuine respect for true religion and morality4 ,i have always been profoundly religious1 and cannot remember the time when ,i was not devout4 ,but ,i do not believe that it is ever proper 8to do evil that good may come40 ,in this work ,i have sought only the truth1 in the firm conviction that superstition and falsehood cannot promote a course of right living1 which is the object and aim of all true religion4 ,i have a supreme disregard for literary fame4 ,i do not shrink from being called a compiler or even a plagiarist4 ,there is absolutely very little of real originality in the world4 ,i could have followed the course of many writers and absorbed or assimilated1 and thus seemingly made my own what they had written2 but ,i have chosen to quote freely1 and so have substantially given the words of many authors of repute1 and at the same time saved myself the labor of a re-coining1 which does not1 after all1 deceive the intelligent reader4 ,the books from which ,i largely quote are mainly voluminous and very expensive1 and some of them are out of print4 ,i am indebted to the learned foot-notes of ,evan ,powell ,meredith in his prize essay on ,the ,prophet of ,nazareth for several things1 and must not fail to acknowledge my obligations to certain living authors for valuable assistance1 and especially to my friend ,dr4 ,alexander ,wilder1 who prepared at my request the substance of ,chapter ,x41 ,the ,drama of the ,gospels1 and who1 in my judgment1 has few superiors in classical and ,oriental literature4 ,i sympathize with those persons who will complain-ingly exclaim1 8,you have taken away my ,saviour1 and ,i know not where you have laid him40 ,but suppose that we do not need a ,saviour in the evangelical sense8 ,suppose that man has not fallen1 but that the race has been rising these many centuries2 and that while we have mainly to save ourselves1 all the good and great men of all ages have aided us in the work of salvation by what they have said and done and suffered1 so that instead of one savior we really have had many saviors4 ,i think that this view is more reasonable and consoling than the commercial device of what is called the 8scheme of redemption10 besides having scientific facts to sustain it4 ,i have preserved on the title-page some of my college degrees1 to indicate my professional studies of theology and law1 and not from motives of pedantry4 ,r4 ,b4 ,,westbrook4 #agjg ,oxford ,street1 ,philadelphia4 ,,skeleton ,,keys ,,to ,,sacerdotal ,,secrets ,,chapter ,i4 ,,the ,,whole ,,truth 8,for there is nothing covered that shall not be revealed1 neither hid that shall not be known4 ,therefore1 whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness1 shall be heard in the light1 and that which ye have spoken in the ear1 in closets1 shall be proclaimed upon the housetops40--,luke #ab3 #b1 #c4 ,,the assumption is general that if the faith of the common people should be unsettled as to some things which they have heretofore been taught regarding religion1 they would immediately reject all truth1 and fall into a most deplorable state of skepticism and infidelity1 and that the existing institutions of religion would be destroyed1 and public virtue so undermined as to endanger the very foundations of morality and civil government4 ,this is not only the fear of conservative and timid clergymen1 but many of our prominent statesmen seem anxious lest the enlightenment of the people in matters in which they have been cruelly deceived should so weaken the restraints of police and governmental authority as to result in universal anarchy and a general disregard of the rights of property1 and even of the sacredness of human life4 ,these foolish fears show a great want of confidence in human nature1 and falsely assume that moral character depends mainly upon an unquestioning faith in certain dogmas which1 in point of fact1 have no necessary connection with it4 ,the statistics of crime show that a very large majority of those who have been seized by the strong arm of the law as dangerous members of society are those who most heartily believe in those very dogmas of theology which we are warned not to criticise1 though we may know them to be accretions of ignorance and superstition1 and that some of them have a natural tendency to fetter the essential principles of true religion and that higher code of morality which alone can stand strong under all circumstances4 ,it is safe to affirm that ninety-nine hundredths of the criminal class believe1 or profess to believe1 in the dogmas of the dominant theology1 ,romish and ,protestant2 which are essentially the same4 ,it is too often forgotten that the very first condition of good government is faith in human nature1 confidence in the people4 ,you always excite dishonor and dishonesty by treating men as if you think them all rogues1 and as if you expect nothing good from them1 but every conceivable evil1 only as they may be restrained by the fear of pains and penalties in this life and after death4 ,one great fundamental mistake of theologians and dogmatic pietists is the baseless assumption that religion is something supernatural1 not to say anti-natural2 something external to human nature and of foreign origin2 something to be received by transfusion as the result or consequence of faith in certain dogmas or the observance of external rites2 something bottled up by the ,church1 like rare and precious medicines in an apothecary-shop1 to be dealt out to those who are willing to follow priestly prescriptions and pay the required price4 ,the fact is1 churches and scriptures and dogmas are the outcome of that religious element which is inherent in human nature4 ,it cannot be too often or too strongly urged that the religious principle is innate and ineradicable in mankind1 and that you might as well try to destroy man's love of the beautiful1 his desire for knowledge1 his love of home and kindred1 or even his appetite for food1 as to try to destroy it4 ,it is as natural to feel the want of religion as it is to be hungry4 ,you cannot destroy the foundations of religion4 ,they rest in nature and antedate all creeds and churches1 and will survive them4 ,even ,professor ,tyndall says3 8,the facts of religious feeling are to me as certain as the facts of physics40 444 8,the world will have religion of some kind40444 8,you who have escaped from these religions into the high and dry light of intellect may deride them1 but in doing so you deride accidents of form merely1 and fail to touch the immovable basis of the religious sentiment in the nature of man4 ,to yield this sentiment reasonable satisfaction is the problem of problems at this hour40 ,renan also writes thus3 8,all the symbols which serve to give shape to the religious sentiment are imperfect1 and their fate is to be one after another rejected4 ,but nothing is more remote from the truth than the dream of those who seek to imagine a perfected humanity without religion40444 8,devotion is as natural as egoism to a true-born man4 ,the organization of devotion is religion4 ,let no one hope1 therefore1 to dispense with religion or religious associations4 ,each progression of modern society will render this want more imperious40 ,we use the word religion as it was used by ,cicero1 in the sense of scruple1 implying the consciousness of a natural obligation wholly irrespective of what one may believe concerning the gods4 ,religion in its true meaning is the great fact of duty1 of oughtness1 consisting in an honest and persistent effort to realize ideal excellence and to transform it into actual character and practical life4 ,religion as a spirit and a life is objected to by none1 but is admired and commended by all4 ,it is superstition1 bigotry1 credulity1 and dogma that are detestable4 ,the religious instinct has been perverted1 turned into wrong channels1 made subservient to priestcraft and kingcraft1 but its basic principle remains for ever firm4 ,if it could have been destroyed1 the machinations of priests would have annihilated it long ago4 ,give yourselves no anxiety about the corner-stone of religion1 but look well to the rotten superstructures that have been reared upon it4 ,its professed friends are often its real enemies4 ,it is the false prophet who is afraid to have his oracles subjected to tests of reason and history4 ,it is the evil-doer who is afraid of the light1 the conscious thief who objects to being searched4 ,an honest man would say1 8,let the truth be published1 though the heavens fell40 ,the whole truth should be published1 as a matter of common honesty1 if nothing more4 ,we have no moral right to conceal the truth1 any more than we have to proclaim falsehood4 ,he who deliberately does the one will not hesitate long about doing the other4 ,and this is one of the most serious aspects of this subject4 ,he who can bring himself to practise deceit regarding religion will soon be a villain at heart1 even if worldly prudence is strong enough to keep him out of the penitentiary4 ,as a rule1 the unfaithful teacher inflicts a greater evil upon his own soul than upon his unsuspecting dupe4 ,the deceiver is sure to be overtaken by his own deceit4 ,mean men become more mean1 and liars come to believe their own oft-repeated falsehoods4 ,this principle may in part account for the fact that in all ages dishonest1 mercenary1 designing priests have been most corrupt citizens and ready tools in the hands of tyrants to oppress and enslave the people4 ,every deceptive act blunts the moral sense1 defiles and sears the conscience1 until at last the hypocrite degenerates into a slimy1 subtle human serpent that always crawls upon its belly and eats dust4 ,secretiveness and deceitfulness become a second nature1 and show themselves continually even in the ordinary affairs of life4 ,the reflex influence of deception upon the deceiver himself is its most bitter condemnation4 ,but modern preachers have a way of justifying their evasions and prevarications by saying that even ,jesus himself withheld from his own disciples some things1 for the reason that they were 8not able to bear them10 quite overlooking the fact that he is also reported to have said1 8,when the ,spirit of truth has come1 he will teach you all things10 and that other passage 7,luke #ab3 #b71 where ,jesus is represented as saying1 8,for there is nothing covered that shall not be revealed1 neither hid that shall not be known4 ,therefore1 whatsoever ye have spoken in darkness1 shall be heard in the light1 and that which ye have spoken in the ear1 in closets1 shall be proclaimed upon the housetops40 ,if after eighteen hundred years of ,christian teaching the time has not yet come to proclaim the whole truth1 it is not likely to come for many ages in the future4 ,if religion is a mystery too great to be comprehended1 too sacred for reverent but untrammelled investigation1 something that can only exist with a blind1 unreasoning credulity and the utter stultification of the natural faculties of a true manhood1 then religion is not worth what it costs and should be exposed as a delusion and a snare4 ,the time for the religious ,kabala has passed1 and ambiguities1 concealments1 and evasions are no longer to be tolerated4 ,martin ,luther builded better than he knew when he proclaimed the right of private judgment in matters of religion4 ,it has taken two hundred years for this fundamental principle to become thoroughly accepted by the people2 but so firmly is it now established that bigoted ecclesiastics might as well attempt to resist the trend of an earthquake1 stop the rising of the sun1 and turn the light of noonday into the darkness of midnight as to attempt to arrest the progress of a true religious rationalism4 ,the mad ravings of fanatics will have no more influence than the pope's bull had on the comet4 ,learning is no longer monopolized by a few monks and ministers4 ,for every five clergymen who are abreast with the times1 the progress of modern thought1 and the conclusions of science1 there are fifty laymen who are familiar with the writings of ,humboldt1 ,darwin1 ,huxley1 ,spencer1 ,tyndall1 and scores of other scientists1 to whom the world is more indebted for true progress than to all the lazy monks and muttering priests who have lived since the world began4 ,the fact is1 the old delusion that men must look to the sacerdotal class exclusively1 or even mainly1 for religious truth1 has been for ever banished from the minds of intelligent men4 ,the literature of the day is full of free thought and downright rationalism1 and even the secular newspaper is a missionary of religious progress and reform1 and brings stirring messages of intellectual progress every day to our breakfast-tables4 ,the world moves1 and those who attempt to stop it are sure to be crushed4 ,the pretence that anything is too sacred for investigation and publication will not stand the light of this wide-awake nineteenth century4 ,it is often said that the common people are not ready for the whole truth4 ,in #ahgc1 ,dr4 ,j4 ,g4 ,holland1 then editor of ,scribner's ,monthly1 wrote to ,dr4 ,augustus ,blauvelt declining to publish an article on 8,the ,divine and ,infallible ,inspiration of the ,bible10 and added1 8,i believe you are right4 ,i should like to speak your words to the world2 but if ,i do speak them it will pretty certainly cost me my connection with the magazine4 ,this sacrifice ,i am willing to make if duty requires it4 ,i am afraid of nothing but doing injury to the cause ,i love4444 ,in short1 you see that ,i sincerely doubt whether the ,christian world is ready for this article4444 ,instead of the theologians the people would howl4444 ,i cannot yet carry my audience in such a revolution4 ,perhaps ,i shall be able to do so by and by1 but as ,i look at it to-day it seems impossible4444 ,my dear friend1 ,i believe in you4 ,you are in advance of your time4 ,you have great benefits in your hands for your time4 ,you are free and true4 ,and ,i mourn sadly and in genuine distress that ,i cannot speak your words with a tongue which all my fellow-,christians can hear4 ,they will not hear them yet4 ,they will some time44440 ,dr4 ,holland has passed away and cannot reply to criticism4 ,let us be kind and charitable4 ,he intended to be right1 but he was mistaken4 ,the people do not howl when the truth is published1 even though their prejudices may be aroused2 and no tedious preparation is now necessary to be able to hear the whole truth4 ,the masses of the people are hungry for knowledge1 and it is high time that they be honestly fed4 ,they now more than half suspect that they have been deceived by those some of whom they have educated by their charities and liberally paid to teach them the truth4 ,when1 in #ahge1 ,scribner's ,monthly did publish ,dr4 ,blauvelt's articles on 8,modern ,skepticism10 it was not the people that 8howled40 ,it was the clergy4 ,some of them demanded a new editor2 others warned the people from the pulpit not to patronize ,scribner2 and one distinguished man declared that the magazine must be 8stamped out10 and at once organized a most powerful ecclesiastical combination against the freedom of the press2 and yet the ,north ,american ,review and other similar magazines are today doing more to settle long-mooted religious questions than all the pulpits in ,christendom2 and the people do not howl4 ,no respectable enterprising publisher now hesitates to publish a book of real merit1 however much its doctrines may differ from the dominant faiths4 ,the masses of the people are determined to know all that can be known of the history1 philosophy1 and principles of religion2 and the greater the effort to conceal and suppress the truth the stronger will be the demand for its full and undisguised proclamation4 ,that there is a general drifting away from the old formulas of religious doctrine everybody knows1 and yet there is more practical religion in the world to-day than in any previous age4 ,it does not consist in fastings and attendance upon ecclesiastical rites and ordinances2 but it takes the form of universal education1 of providing homes for friendless infancy and old age1 of the prevention of cruelty to children and even to brute animals1 of the more rational and humane treatment of lunatics1 paupers1 and criminals1 ameliorating the miseries of prisons and hospitals1--in short1 of elevating and improving the condition of universal humanity4 ,these truly religious works do not depend upon any particular statement of religious belief1 for all sects and persons of no sect are equally engaged in them4 ,charities would not cease if all creeds should be abandoned or should be so revised as not to be recognized by the disciples of ,calvin and ,wesley1 and if every priest in the land should henceforth give up the mummeries and puerilities of the ,dark ,ages4 ,religion1 as the 8enthusiasm of humanity10 the cultivation of all the virtues1 and the practice of the highest morality growing out of the inalienable rights of man in all the relations of life1 is a fixed fact4 ,it is a natural endowment1 coeval with humanity in its development and progress1 and is as absolutely indestructible as manhood itself4 ,so far from being true is the assumption that religion would be imperilled by the exposure of the false dogmas of theology and the heathenish rites and superstitious ceremonies of ecclesiasticism1 it is clear to many minds that the myths of dogmatic theology and the absurdities of primitive ages are the chief obstacles in the way of the free course of true religion2 and it may safely be affirmed that the distinguishing dogmas of the dominant theology1 ,catholic and ,protestant1 as will hereafter be shown1 are essentially demoralizing and logically tend to undermine and corrupt public virtue4 ,it is not intended to affirm that churches and theologians do no good and that their entire influence is bad4 ,they teach much that is humane in principle and moral in practice1 and so do good for society4 ,nevertheless1 it is true that much of the rotten morality of the times can be philosophically traced to the influence of a false theology4 ,the main dogmas of ,romish and orthodox ,protestant creeds are false1 and it is absurd to suppose that a pure system of public virtue can be founded upon ignorance1 superstition1 and falsehood4 ,but1 after all1 we are asked1 ,does it make any odds what one believes if he is only sincere in his faith8 ,the obvious answer is1 that the more sincerely you believe a lie the more dangerous is your faith4 ,the more trustfully you build upon a sandy foundation the sooner and greater will be the fall and ruin of the superstructure4 ,the more implicitly you confide in a dishonest partner or agent the more successful will be his robbery4 ,there is no safety in error and falsehood4 ,the ,westminster divines well said1 8,truth is in order to righteousness40 ,there can be no true righteousness inherent in a system of superstition and falsehood4 ,the failure of the ,church to reach the masses and to establish a condition of public honesty superior to the ancient heathen morality shows that there must be some serious defect in its methods4 ,but the crushing objection to theological agitation and free discussion is the common one that 8it is unwise to unsettle and destroy the faith of the people in the dominant theology unless there is something better to offer them as a substitute40 ,there is something better4 ,truth is always better and safer than falsehood4 ,in the discussions which are to follow an attempt will be made to show that there is a natural religion which accords with enlightened reason1 and which cannot fail to furnish a firm scientific foundation for the highest morality4 ,the common saying1 that 8it is better to have a false religion than no religion10 contains two groundless assumptions--viz4 that it is possible for a man to have no religion1 and that that which is false may be dignified with the name religion4 ,it is about time that things should be called by their right names1 and that superstition and falsehood should not be deemed necessary to public morality4 ,for a religion 7so called7 of superstition and falsehood there must be a religion of natural science that cannot be overthrown1 and which cannot fail to make its way among men as knowledge shall increase and the principles of true religious philosophy shall be better understood4 ,we should not be frightened at the cowardly cry of 8destructive criticism40 ,we must pull down before we can reconstruct4 ,,conclusions4 7#a7 ,to imitate the example of the early ,christian ,fathers in fraud1 falsehood1 and forgery for the promotion of religion is a policy that is too shocking to the moral sense of civilized men everywhere to be tolerated4 ,to withhold or suppress the truth is a crime against humanity and contrary to the spirit of this age2 and those who do it are the enemies of progress and unworthy to be recognized as the authoritative teachers of the world4 7#b7 ,those who publish that which is false or suppress what is true not only do a great wrong to the people1 but1 if possible1 do a greater wrong to their own souls1 and must suffer the consequences4 ,they must have an awful reckoning with eternal1 retributive justice4 7#c7 ,it is a most egregious mistake to suppose that the people cannot be trusted with the whole truth--that their sense of right is so dull and flimsy that on the slightest discovery of the errors in which they have been instructed from infancy they would lose confidence in all truth and rightfulness and rush riotously to ruin4 ,if the people must be hoodwinked for ever1 then the distinguishing principle of the ,protestant ,reformation and the basic principles of our ,american ,declaration of ,independence and republican government are false and delusive1 and we should return to medival times and to feudal and autocratic government in ,church and ,state4 7#d7 ,it is high time that men should see that dogma is not religion2 that blind faith is more to be feared than rational skepticism and scientific investigation2 that whatever is opposed to reason and science in theology can be spared1 not only without any loss1 but greatly to the advantage of true religion and sound morality4 ,all the religion that is worth having is natural and rational1 and corresponds with the facts of the universe as they are demonstrated by the crucibles of science and the inductions of a sound philosophy4 ,the principal moral obligations of men grow out of their relations to each other in life1 and nothing can be more complete than the ,golden ,rule1 emphasized in the ,sermon on the ,mount1 but as clearly taught in the ,jewish ,babylonian ,talmud1 and in the twenty-fourth ,maxim of the ,chinese philosopher ,confucius1 and many others centuries before the ,christian era4 7#e7 ,instead of loading down religion with ,oriental myths and fables1 instead of a gorgeous ritualism and surpliced priests1 borrowed literally from the ancient paganism1 instead of dogmas and creeds and unquestioning faith and blind submission to ecclesiastical dictation and rule1 we want sound moral instruction in the great fundamental truths of nature and of science1 which will always be found to strengthen and confirm the principles of true religion4 ,these are the sources from which to gain light4 ,we want less creed and more ethical culture1 less profession and paraphernalia in religious worship and more practical philosophy and common sense4 7#f7 ,the man who in scientific matters would make false representations and conceal the real truth would be deemed an impostor1 and the time has come when hypocrites and cowards in theology should be made to feel their degradation and be forced into an open abandonment of 8ways that are dark and tricks that are vain40 ,if we would scorn delusions in natural philosophy1 if we would correct errors in oceanic charts1 astronomical diagrams1 and geographical maps1 why should we hesitate to correct the most egregious blunders regarding those things which are infinitely more important8 ,can we with any proper sense of propriety and right connive at falsehood and uphold and strengthen it by our silence and cowardly negligence in failing to expose it8 ,are not all delusions debasing and opposed to the progress of truth and the elevation of mankind8 ,in all the departments of human knowledge religion and morality are most imperative in their demands for pure and unadulterated truth2 and he who does not recognize this fact sins grievously against his own soul1 against the human family1 and against the truth and its eternal ,author1 the ,god of all truth4 7#g7 ,finally1 let it not be overlooked that it will not1 for many reasons1 be possible much longer to keep the people in ignorance1 and to palm off upon them myths for veritable history and a system of theology plainly at variance with the conclusions of science1 the facts of history1 and the spiritual and moral consciousness of every true and well-developed man4 ,the schoolmaster is abroad1 and the spirit of fearless investigation is in the air1 and men will1 sooner or later1 find out what is true2 and when they come to understand how they have been imposed upon by their cowardly teachers1 a fearful reaction will be the result2 and woe to the hypocrite and time-server when that time comes6 ,it is therefore not only good principle1 but good policy1 to tell the whole truth now4 ,the following copy of a book-notice well describes the prevalent policy regarding matters of faith3 8,a theory of religious philosophy which is much commoner among us than most of us think1 but which has never been expressed so fully or so attractively as in the story of ,marius4 8#8,submit1' it seems to say1 #8to the religious order about you1 accept the common beliefs1 or at least behave as if you accepted them1 and live habitually in the atmosphere of feeling and sensation which they have engendered and still engender2 surrender your feeling while still maintaining the intellectual citadel intact2 pray1 weep1 dream with the majority while you think with the elect2 only so will you obtain from life all it has to give1 its most delicate flavor1 its subtlest aroma4'0 ,against such a sham the writer heartily protests1 as against the villainous maxim1 quoted from memory1 accredited to ,aristotle3 8,think with the sages and philosophers1 but talk like the common people40 ,come what may1 let us cease to profess what we have ceased to believe4 8,the two learned people of the village10 says ,dr4 ,oliver ,wendell ,holmes1 telling of his fanciful ,arrowhead ,village1 8were the rector and the doctor4 ,these two worthies kept up the old controversy between the professions which grows out of the fact that one studies nature from below upward1 and the other from above downward4 ,the rector maintained that physicians contracted a squint which turns their eyes inwardly1 while the muscles which roll their eyes upward become palsied4 ,the doctor retorted that theological students developed a third eyelid--the nictitating membrane1 which is so well known in birds1 and which serves to shut out1 not all light1 but all the light they do not want40 ,the ,presbyterians have provided for a revision of their creed1 though they have stultified themselves by certain restrictions1 shutting out the light they do not want6 ,let us hope that the time will soon come when men will be honest enough and brave enough to follow the truth wherever it may lead4 ,let there be perfect veracity above all things1 more especially in matters of religion4 ,it is not a question of courtesies which deceive no one4 ,to profess what is not believed is immoral4 ,immorality and untruth can never lead to morality and virtue2 all language which conveys untruth1 either in substance or appearance1 should be amended so that words can be understood in their recognized meanings1 without equivocal explanations or affirmations4 ,let historic facts have their true explanation4 ,,chapter ,,ii4 ,,sacerdotalism ,,impeached 8,the heads thereof judge for reward1 and the priests thereof teach for hire1 and the prophets thereof divine for money40--,micah #c3 #aa4 8,put me1 ,i pray thee1 into one of the priests' offices1 that ,i may eat a piece of bread40--#a ,sam4 #b3 #cf4 ,,the cognomens priest1 prophet1 presbyter1 preacher1 parson1 and pastor have certain things in common1 and these titles may therefore be used interchangeably4 ,as far back as history extends1 the office or order now represented by the clerical profession existed4 ,it was as common among pagan tribes in the remotest periods as among ,jews and ,christians in more modern times4 ,service done to the gods by the few in behalf of the many is the primary idea of the priestly function4 ,it has always and everywhere been the profession and prerogative of the priests to pretend to approach nearest to the gods and to propitiate them2 on account of which they have always been supposed to have special influence with the reigning deity and to be the authorized expounders and interpreters of the divine oracles4 ,the priesthood has always been a caste1 a 8holy order20 and it was no less so among ancient ,jews than among modern ,christians4 ,in all churches clergymen ex-officio exercise certain sacred prerogatives4 ,they occupy select seats in every sanctuary4 ,they lead in every act of worship4 ,they preside over every sacred ceremony4 ,they exclusively administer the ordinances of religion4 ,they baptize the children and give or withhold the 8,holy ,communion40 ,they celebrate our marriages1 visit our sick1 and conduct our funerals4 ,in ,romish churches and in some of our ,protestant churches they pretend to pronounce 8absolution0 and to seal the postulant for the heavenly rest4 ,it is not necessary1 now and here1 to speak of the evil influence that these pretensions exert upon the common people1 nor of the light in which intelligent1 thinking women and men commonly regard them2 but it is appropriate to note the reflex influence which such assumptions have upon the clergy themselves1 disqualifying them for such rational presentation of doctrinal truth as their hearers have a right to expect4 ,the pride of his order makes it humiliating for the priest to admit that what he does not know is worth knowing4 ,claiming to be the authorized expounder of ,god's will1 how can he admit that he can possibly be in error in any matter relating to religion8 ,in view of the high pretensions of his order1 founded1 as he claims1 upon a plenarily-inspired and infallible book-revelation1 and he professing to be specially called and sanctified by ,god himself as his representative1 it would be ecclesiastical treason to admit1 even by implication1 that he is not in possession of all truth4 ,regarding his creed as a finality1 his mind becomes narrow1 circumscribed1 and unprogressive4 ,he was taught from childhood that 8to doubt is to be damned10 and through all his novitiate he was warned against being unsettled by the delusions of reason and the wiles of infidelity4 ,his professional education has been narrow1 one-sided1 sectarian4 ,he has seldom1 if ever1 read anything outside of his own denominational literature1 and has heard little from anybody but his own theological professors and associates4 ,he suspects that ,humboldt1 ,spencer1 ,huxley1 and ,tyndall are all infidels1 and that the sum and substance of ,evolution1 as taught by ,darwin1 is that man is the lineal descendant of the monkey4 ,some persons think that ministers are often selected from among weaklings in the family fold4 ,however1 this may be1 the absorption of the 8holy-orders0 idea1 and the natural self-assurance and self-satisfaction that belong to a caste profession1 render delusive the hope that anything original can ever come from such a source4 ,whether weak at first or not1 the habits of thought and the peculiar training of young ecclesiastics are almost sure to dwarf them intellectually for life4 ,the theological student has become the butt in wide-awake society everywhere1 and his appearance in public is the occasion for jests and ridicule over his sanctimonious vanity and silly pride4 ,the extreme clerical costume which he is sure to assume excites the disgust of sensible people1 though he may march through the street and up the aisle with the regulation step of the 8order10 and suppose himself to be the object of reverent admiration on the part of all beholders4 ,no wonder that the churches complain that few young men of ability enter the ministry in these modern times4 ,the priestly office has always been deemed one of great influence1 so that ancient kings were accustomed to assume it4 ,this was true of the kings of ancient ,egypt1 and the practice was kept up among the ,greeks and ,romans4 ,even ,constantine1 the first ,christian emperor 7so called71 continued to exercise the function of a pagan priest after his professed conversion to ,christianity1 and he was not initiated into the ,christian ,church by baptism until just before his death4 ,one excommunicated king lay for three days and nights in the snow in the courtyard before the ,pope would grant him an audience6 ,the 8,pontifex-,maximus0 idea of the ,roman emperors was the real foundation of the 8temporal power0 claimed by the bishops of ,rome4 ,kingcraft and priestcraft have always been in close alliance4 ,when the king was not a priest he always used the priest2 and the priest has generally been willing to be used on the side of the king as against the people when liberally subsidized by the reigning potentate4 ,moreover1 priestcraft has always been ambitious for power1 and sometimes has been so influential as to make the monarch subservient to the monk4 ,more than one proud crown has been humbly removed in token of submission to priestly authority1 and powerful sovereigns have been obliged to submit to the most menial exactions and humiliations at ecclesiastical mandates4 ,the priestly rle has always been to utilize the religious sentiment for the subjection of the credulous to the arbitrary influence of the caste or order4 ,priestcraft never could afford to have a conscience1 so admitted1 and therefore it has not shrunk from the commission of any crime that could augment its dominion4 ,its greatest success has been in the work of demoralization4 ,it has always been the corrupter of religion4 ,the ignorance and superstition of the people and the perversions of the religious sentiment1 innate in man1 have been the stock in trade of the craft in all ages1 and are to-day4 ,it will be shown later how the whole system of dogmatic theology1 ,romish and ,protestant 7for the system is the same71 has been formed so as to aggrandize the priest1 perpetuate his power1 and hold the masses in strict subjection4 ,this is a simple matter of fact4 ,history is philosophy teaching by example1 and often repeats itself1 and it seldom gives an example of a priestly caste or 8holy0 order of men leading in a great practical reform4 ,the dominant priestly idea is to protect the interests of the order1 not to promote the welfare of the people4 ,in view of these principles and facts1 and others which might be presented1 it is reasonable to conclude that we cannot expect the whole living1 unadulterated truth1 even if they had it1 from the professional clergy4 ,the caste idea renders it essentially unnatural and philosophically impossible4 ,but there are other potent reasons why such expectation is vain4 ,all ,christendom is covered with numerous sects in the form of ecclesiastical judicatories1 each claiming to be the true exponent of all religious truth4 ,the ,romish ,church is pre-eminently priestly and autocratic4 ,the priesthood is the ,church1 and the people only belong to the ,church2 that is1 belong to the priesthood1 and that1 too1 in a stronger sense than at first seems to attach to the word belong4 ,then the priesthood itself is subdivided into castes43 8,great fleas have little fleas upon their backs to bite 'em1 ,and little fleas have lesser fleas2 and so--ad infinitum0 ,when ,patrick ,j4 ,ryan was installed ,archbishop in ,philadelphia1 an office conferred by a foreign potentate1 our own city newspapers in flaming headlines called it 8,the ,enthronement of a ,priest60 ,and so it was4 ,he sat upon a throne and received the honors of a prince4 ,he is called 8,his ,grace10 and wears the royal purple in the public streets4 ,bishops are higher than the 8inferior clergy10 and the priest1 presbyter1 or elder is of a higher caste than the deacon1 and all are higher and more holy than the people4 ,all ministers exercise functions which would be deemed sacrilege in a layman4 ,the same odious spirit of caste prevails in fact1 if not so prominently in form1 in all orthodox denominations1 especially as to the distinction between the clergy and the laity4 ,even ,quakers have higher seats for 8recommended ministers40 ,moreover1 priests have laid down creeds containing certain affirmations and denials which are called 8,articles of ,religion10 to which all students of divinity and candidates for holy orders must subscribe before they can be initiated into the sacred arcana4 ,the professor in the theological seminary1 who perhaps was selected for the chair quite as much for his conservatism as for his learning1 has taken a pledge1 if not an oath1 that he will teach the young aspirant for ecclesiastical honors nothing at variance with the standards of his denomination2 which covenant he is very sure to keep 7having other professors and aspirants for professorships to watch him7 in full view of the penalty of dismission from his chair and consequent ecclesiastical degradation4 ,the very last place on this earth where one might expect original research1 thorough investigation1 and fearless proclamation of the whole truth is in a theological school4 ,a horse in a bark-mill becomes blind in consequence of going round and round in the same circular path2 and the theological professor in his treadmill cannot fail to become purblind as regards all new truth4 ,what can be expected from the graduates of such seminaries8 ,the theological novitiate sits with trembling reverence at the feet of the venerable theological ,gamaliel4 ,from his sanctified lips he is to learn all wisdom4 ,without his approbation he cannot receive the coveted diploma4 ,without his recommendation he will not be likely to receive an early call to a desirable parish4 ,the student is obliged to find in the ,bible just what his ,church requires1 and nothing more and nothing less4 ,in order to be admitted into the clerical caste and have holy hands laid upon his youthful head he must believe or profess to believe1 ipsissima verba1 just what the 8,confession0 and 8,catechism0 contain4 ,the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,samuel ,miller once said in a sort of confidential undertone1 8,what is the use of examining candidates for the ministry at all as to what they believe8 ,the fact that they apply for admission shows that they intend to answer all questions as we expect them to answer2 else1 they very well know1 we would not admit them40 ,the ecclesiastical system is emphatically an iron-bedstead system4 ,if a candidate is too long1 it cuts him shorter2 and if too short1 it stretches him4 ,he must be made to fit4 ,then1 after 8ordination0 or 8consecration10 the new-fledged theologian enters upon his public work so pressed by the cares of his charge and the social and professional demands upon his time that he finds it impossible to prepare a lecture and two original sermons a week2 so he falls back upon the 8notes0 he took from the lips of his 8old professor0 in the divinity school1 or upon some of those numerous 8skeletons0 and 8sketches0 of sermons expressly published for the 8aid0 of busy young ministers2 and he gives to 8his people0 a dish of theological hash1 if not of re-hash1 instead of pouring out his own living words that should breathe and thoughts that should burn4 ,hence it is easy to see why one scarcely ever gets a fresh1 living truth from the pulpit4 ,it is almost always the same old1 old story of commonplace fossils that the wide-awake world has outgrown long ago1 and that modern science has fearlessly consigned to the 8bats and the moles0 of the ,dark ,ages4 ,no wonder the pulpit platitudes fail to attract the masses of earnest men1 especially in our great cities4 ,then if a clergyman should discover1 after years of thought and study1 that he has been in error in some matters1 and that a pure rational interpretation of the ,bible is possible1 and he really feels that the creeds1 as well as the ,scriptures1 need revising1 what can he do8 ,if he lets his new light shine1 he will share the fate of ,colenso1 ,robertson ,smith1 ,augustus ,blauvelt1 ,professor ,woodrow1 and scores of others4 ,he knows that heresy-hunters are on the scent of his track4 ,the mad-dog cry of ,heretic would be as fatal as a sharp shot from the ecclesiastical rifle4 ,proscription1 degradation1 ostracism1 stare him in the face4 ,few men who have the esprit de corps of ecclesiasticism and a reasonable regard for personal comfort and preferment are heroic enough to face the social exclusion1 financial ruin1 and beggary for themselves and families which are almost sure to follow a trial and condemnation for heresy4 ,if the newly-enlightened minister escapes the inquisition of a heresy trial by declaring himself independent1 he has a gauntlet to run in which many poisoned arrows will be sure to pierce his quivering spirit4 ,it is true that some sects have no written creed and no trials for heresy2 but even among them there is an implied standard of what is 8regular10 and more than one grand soul knows by a sorrowful experience1 what it is to belong to the 8left wing0 of the ,liberal army1 and to follow the 8spirit of truth0 outside of the implied creed4 ,another reason why the whole truth cannot be expected from the regular clergy is1 the influence of their pecuniary dependence upon those to whom they minister4 ,the ,jews have always been great borrowers and imitators4 ,it was quite natural that they should adopt the 8price-current list0 of the ancient ,phnicians1 whose priests not only exacted the tribute of 8first-fruits10 but a fee in kind of each sacrifice4 ,then the judicial functions exercised by ,jewish priests became a fruitful source of revenue1 as the fines for certain offences were paid to the priests 7#b ,kings #ab3 #af2 ,hosea #d3 #h2 ,amos #b3 #h74 ,according to #b ,sam4 #h3 #ah and #b ,bangs #aj3 #aa1 also #ab3 #b1 the priests of the royal sanctuaries became the grandees of the realm1 while the petty priests were generally poor enough--just as is well known to be the case among the ,christian clergy of to-day1 some receiving a salary of twenty-five thousand dollars and more per annum1 while many of the 8inferior clergy0 hardly average two hundred and fifty dollars a year4 ,that the ,christian clerical profession was borrowed from the ,jews1 just as the latter copied it from the heathen1 is evident from the fact that ,paul1 while refusing for himself pecuniary support1 preferring to 8work with his own hands0 7weaving tent-cloth71 8living in his own hired house10 nevertheless defended the principle of ministerial support1 mainly on the ground of the ,mosaic law 7,deut4 #be3 #d71 8,thou shalt not muzzle the ox when he treadeth out the corn0 7#a ,cor4 #i3 #i2 #a ,tim4 #e3 #ah74 ,it is a striking illustration of the inconsistency of the modern clergy that they quote1 in reference to a salaried ministry1 the words ascribed to ,jesus 7,matt4 #aj3 #aj71 8,the workman is worthy of his meat10 or1 as it is rendered in ,luke #aj3 #g1 8,the laborer is worthy of his hire10 very conveniently forgetting to quote the connecting words requiring them to 8provide neither gold nor silver nor brass in their purse1 nor scrip for their journey1 neither two coats1 neither shoes1 nor yet staves10 but to enter unceremoniously into any house1 accepting any proffered hospitality1 8eating such things as might be set before them40 ,the fact is1 the first disciples of ,jesus1 according to our ,gospels1 were mendicant monks1 leading lives of asceticism and poverty4 ,there is no evidence that one of them ever received a salary2 they made themselves entirely dependent on public charity and hospitality4 ,the idea of a 8church living0 or 8beneficed clergy0 or a salaried ministry never entered into the mind of ,him of whom it is said he 8had not where to lay his head40 ,it is enough for the present argument to emphasize the point that1 in the very nature of things1 it is not reasonable to expect the whole truth from a salaried ministry4 ,those who have a large salary naturally desire to retain it2 those who have small and insufficient salaries naturally desire to have them increased4 ,this can only be done by carefully preserving a good orthodox standing according to the sectarian shibboleth1 and in pleasing the people who rent the pews or who dole out their penurious subscriptions for 8the support of the gospel40 ,high-salaried ministers are most likely to be proud1 arrogant1 bigoted1 sectarian4 ,starveling ministers become broken in spirit1 fawning1 and crouching1 and they generally have an unconscious expression of appeal for help1 of importunity and expectancy1 stamped upon their faces4 ,the millstone of pecuniary dependence hangs so heavily about their necks that they seldom hold up their heads like men1 and they can never utter a new truth or a startling sentiment without pausing to consider what effect it may have on the bread and butter of a dependent and generally numerous family4 ,ministers with high salaries are almost sure to be spoiled1 and those with low ones are sure to be stultified and dwarfed intellectually and morally2 so that we cannot depend upon either class for the highest and latest truths4 ,those who have a 8living10 provided in a ,state ,church1 and those who depend upon voluntary contributions from the people1 are alike manacled and handicapped4 ,we must look elsewhere than to the modern pulpit for that truth which alone can give freedom and true manliness4 ,perfect indifference as to ecclesiastical standing1 backed by pecuniary independence1 is an essential condition for untrammelled investigation and the fearless proclamation of the whole truth4 ,it was noticed in the recent convention of scientists in this city 7the ,american ,association7 that it was the salaried professors in ,church colleges who professed to find no conflict between ,geology and ,genesis4 ,it will always be so until the ecclesiastical tyranny is greatly weakened or destroyed1 and men can utter their boldest thoughts without fear or favor1 and when teachers can afford to have a conscience by making themselves free from ,church control and menial dependence upon those to whom they minister for the necessaries of a mere livelihood4 ,science itself has made progress only as it has been fearless of priestly maledictions2 and when it shall throw off the incubus of ,church patronage it will astonish the world in showing the eternal antagonisms between the dogmas of the dominant theology and the essential truths of natural religion and morality4 ,,conclusions4 ,the following conclusions follow from what has been said3 7#a7 ,the clerical fraternity claims to be more than a mere profession4 ,it is essentially a caste1 a 8holy order10 borrowed from the ancient paganism1 but somewhat modified by ,judaism and a perverted ,christianity4 7#b7 ,from such a caste or order the whole truth is not to be expected1 especially when the truth would show the order to be an imposture4 ,the assumptions of peculiar sanctity1 official pre-eminence1 functional prerogatives1 and special spiritual authority make such a hope unnatural and quite impossible4 7#c7 ,the church system1 with its tests of orthodoxy1 its ecclesiastical handcuffs1 and its worse than physical thumb-screws1 puts an end to all independent thinking1 and results in an enforced conformity inconsistent with intellectual progress and the discovery and full publication of the whole truth4 7#d7 ,the pecuniary stipend upon which professional preachers are dependent has a demoralizing and degrading influence1 so that the doctrinal teaching of the pulpit should not be received without hesitation and distrust4 ,the common law excludes the testimony of interested witnesses1 and1 though modern statutes admit such testimony1 the courts take it for what it is worth1 but always with many grains of allowance4 8,a gift perverteth judgment10 and self-interest may sway the convictions of a man who intends and desires to be fairly honest4 7#e7 ,the existing systems of ministerial education and support deter many superior men from entering the profession1 and have placed preaching upon a commercial or mercantile basis1 which has manacled and crippled the pulpit1 and must sooner or later result in the consideration of the question whether the services of the clergy are worth what they cost1 and whether the truth must not be sought for in some other direction4 ,more than two hundred and fifty thousand priests and ministers 7of whom about one hundred thousand are in the ,united ,states7 are maintained at an annual expense of more than five hundred millions of dollars2 and1 as a rule1 where priests are most numerous1 people are poorest and public morality lowest4 ,a member of the ,canadian ,parliament 7,hon4 ,james ,beatty7 has recently published a book in which he opposes the whole system of a salaried clergy on scriptural and other grounds2 and many other thoughtful men are beginning to inquire how it is that the ,society of ,friends get along so well without a 8hireling ministry40 7#f7 ,it is a great mistake to suppose that we must look mainly to professional clergymen for instruction in divine things4 ,it is a significant fact that the most able and important books that have been published within the last decade have been written by laymen or by persons1 like ,emerson1 who have outgrown the narrow garments of a caste profession and have laid them off4 ,how to get along without professional ministers has been well answered by ,capt4 ,robert ,c4 ,adams 7quoted in the writer's book1 ,man--,whence and ,whither8 pp4 #bah1 #bai74 ,if ministers would give up the holy-orders idea1 cast into the sea the millstone incumbrance of pecuniary dependence1 engage earnestly in some legitimate work to support themselves1 they would then for the first time begin to realize what soul-freedom is1 and they could then preach with an intelligence and power and with a satisfaction to themselves of which they now know nothing4 ,let them try it for themselves and learn a lesson4 ,whether the clerical order is so divine an institution that we have no right to call it into question or to abolish it altogether1 is a question that must be practically considered soon4 7#g7 ,there is a deep impression widely prevailing among thoughtful and sincerely religious persons that the infidelity of the pulpit is largely responsible for the prevailing skepticism of the age4 ,the word 8infidelity0 is here specially used in a strict philological sense--infidele1 not faithful1 unfaithfulness to a trust--but it is also used in its more general sense of disbelief in certain religious dogmas4 ,we impeach and arraign the clergy 7admitting a few honorable exceptions7 on the general charge of infidelity in the strictest and broadest sense of the word-- #ast4 ,in that they fail to qualify themselves to be the leaders of thought in the great1 living questions affecting religion and morality4 ,we have elsewhere said3 8,not one minister in a thousand #8discerns the signs of the times' or is prepared for the crisis4 ,few pastors ever read anything beyond their own denominational literature4 ,their education is partial1 one-sided1 professional4 ,they cling to mediaeval superstitions with the desperate grasp of drowning men4 ,the great majority of the clergy are not men of broad minds and wide and deep research1 and have not the ability to meet the vexed questions of to-day40 ,it is an admitted policy1 especially among the orthodox clergy 7so called71 not to read or to listen to anything that might unsettle their faith in what they have accepted as a finality2 whereas no man can intelligently believe anything until he has candidly considered the reasons assigned by other men for not believing what he does4 8,he that is first in his own cause seemeth just2 but his neighbor cometh and searcheth him40 ,professor ,fisher1 the champion of ,yale-,college orthodoxy1 has recently admitted in the ,north ,american ,review that at least one of the causes of the decline of clerical authority and influence is the increased intelligence of the laity4 ,if the people cannot get what they desire from the pulpit1 they will seek it from the platform and the press4 ,truth is no longer to be concealed in cloisters and smothered in theological seminaries1 but it is to be proclaimed from housetops and in language understood in every-day life4 ,it was once said that 8the lips of the priest give knowledge10 but it may now be truly said that modern scientists and philosophers among the laity are the principal teachers of mankind1 and that publications like the ,north ,american ,review and ,the ,forum1 and last1 but not least1 the secular daily newspapers1 are doing more to instruct the people in living truths than the whole brood of ecclesiastical parrots4 #b;d4 ,we charge that many professional clergymen suppress things which they do believe to be true1 and not unfrequently suggest things1 at least by implication1 which they do know to be false4 ,dr4 ,edward ,everett ,hale recently published an article in the ,north ,american ,review entitled 8,insincerity in the ,pulpit20 and the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,phillips ,brooks of ,boston1 who recently received episcopal honors in ,massachussetts1 has confirmed in the ,princeton ,review what ,dr4 ,hale charged in the ,north ,american ,review regarding clerical disingenuousness4 ,dr4 ,brooks wrote thus3 8,a large acquaintance with clerical life has led me to think that almost any company of clergymen1 talking freely to each other1 will express opinions which would greatly surprise1 and at the same time greatly relieve1 the congregations who ordinarily listen to these ministers4444 ,how many men in the ministry to-day believe in the doctrine of verbal inspiration which our fathers held8 and how many of us have frankly told the people that we do not believe it8444 ,how many of us hold that the everlasting punishment of the wicked is a clear and certain truth of revelation8 ,but how many of us who do not have ever said a word80 ,the same principle of prevarication and deceit was practised by the early ,fathers of the ,christian ,church1 who not only concealed the truth from the masses of the people1 but did not hesitate to deceive and mislead them4 ,mosheim1 an ecclesiastical historian of high authority1 testifies that 8in the fourth century it was an almost universally adopted maxim that it was an act of virtue to deceive and lie when by such means the interests of the ,church might be promoted40 ,he further says of the fifth century1 8,fraud and impudent imposture were artfully proportioned to the credulity of the vulgar40 ,milman1 in his ,history of ,christianity1 says3 8,it was admitted and avowed that to deceive into ,christianity was so valuable a service as to hallow deceit itself40 ,he further says in the same historical work1 8,that some of the ,christian legends were deliberate forgeries can scarcely be questioned40 ,there is not a ,bible manuscript or version that has not been manipulated by ecclesiastics for century after century4 ,many of these priests were both ignorant and vicious4 ,from the fifth to the fifteenth century crimes not fit to be mentioned prevailed among the clergy4 ,dr4 ,lardner says that ,christians of all sorts were guilty of fraud1 and quotes ,cassaubon as saying1 8,in the earliest times of the ,church it was considered a capital exploit to lend to heavenly truth the help of their own inventions40 ,dr4 ,thomas ,burnet1 in a ,latin treatise intended for the clergy only1 said1 8,too much light is hurtful to weak eyes20 and he recommended the practice of deceiving the common people for their own good4 ,i know that this same policy is in vogue in our day4 ,this same nefarious doctrine of the exoteric and esoteric1 one thing for the priest and another for the people1 is far from being dead in this nineteenth century4 ,it has always been1 and now is1 the real priestly policy to keep the common people in ignorance of many things2 and if all do not accept the maxim of ,gregory1 that 8,ignorance is the mother of ,devotion10 many ministers privately hold in our day that 8where ignorance is bliss ',tis folly to be wise40 #c;d4 ,the third article of impeachment1 under the general charge of infidelity is1 that sacerdotalists teach dogmas which they do not believe themselves4 ,they do not all believe1 ex animo1 the distinctive dogmas of the orthodox creeds--that ,god is angry with the great body of mankind1 that his wrath is a burning flame1 and that there is1 as to a majority of men1 but a moment's time and a point of space between them and eternal torture more terrible than imagination can conceive or language describe4 ,it is well said that 8,actions speak louder than words20 and we need only ask the question1 8,do ministers who profess to believe these horrible dogmas preach as if they really believed them80 ,notice the general deportment of the clergy at the summer resort1 at the seaside1 or on the mountain-top1 and say whether they can possibly believe what for eight or nine months they have been preaching in their now closed churches4 ,listen to the private conversation of our evangelists at the camp-meeting or at the meetings of ecclesiastical bodies1 and then conclude1 if you can1 that they believe what they teach4 ,take1 if you please1 the case of one of our best-known evangelical ministers1 a member of the strictest of our orthodox sects1 who spends a large proportion of his time in studying the ways of insects1 and who would chase a pismire across the continent to find out its habits4 ,can a pastor believe in his heart the dogmas of the ,westminster ,confession1 and yet devote so much time to ants8 ,it is impossible4 ,he may deceive himself2 he cannot deceive others4 #dth4 ,our fourth article of impeachment under the general charge is1 that the pulpit is the great promoter of skepticism called infidelity1 in that it insists upon the belief of dogmas which are absurd upon their face1 such as the miraculous conception of ,jesus1 the dogma of the ,trinity1 the origin and fall of man1 vicarious atonement1 predestination1 election and reprobation1 eternal torture for the majority1 and many other absurdities which no rational mind can now consistently accept4 ,true1 these dogmas may be found in the ,bible2 and when men ate told with weekly reiterations that the ,bible is purely divine1 supernatural1 and infallible1 and they find that it is purely human1 natural1 and very fallible1 they cannot believe the ,bible1 though they find many inspiring and helpful things in it4 ,when ministers tell thinking men that they must believe all or reject all1 they accept the foolish alternative and reject all4 ,and so it might be further shown how1 in very many ways1 the pulpit is the great promoter of skepticism and infidelity1 and that the professed teachers of religion are its greatest enemies1 its most effective clogs and successful antagonists4 ,no wonder that the most thoughtful and intelligent men and women in every community have drifted away from the popular faith1 and are anxiously inquiring1 ,what next8 ,president ,thomas ,jefferson1 in writing to ,timothy ,pickering1 well said3 8,the religion-builders have so distorted and deformed the doctrines of ,jesus1 so muffled them in mysticisms1 fancies and falsehoods1 have caricatured them into forms so monstrous and inconceivable1 as to shock reasonable thinkers to revolt them against the whole1 and drive them rashly to pronounce its founder an impostor40 ,writing to ,dr4 ,cooper1 he said3 8,my opinion is that there would never have been an infidel if there had never been a priest40 ,we would not abolish the office1 or1 if you please1 the profession1 of public moral teacher1 but we would banish from the world the caste idea1 the holy-order pretence4 ,when simple-minded young men and grave and surpliced bishops talk about taking 8holy orders10 sensible and thoughtful men know that they are talking holy nonsense4 ,no man has a right to assume that he is more holy than other men1 or that he has authority to exercise religious functions that other men have not4 ,nor have we any objection that moral teachers should be paid for their services as other teachers are paid2 but when educated men can afford to teach without pecuniary compensation1 we think it would be well for them to do so2 and when the teacher of morals adopts the example of ,st4 ,paul1 8working with his own hands0 and 8living in his own hired house10 we think the world will be the better for it4 ,let us hope that the day will soon dawn when clergymen will consider themselves moral teachers only1 and for ever repudiate the false pretence of special authority and priestly sanctimoniousness1 and clearly understand that mediocrity and stupidity will not much longer be tolerated because of the so-called sacredness of a profession4 ,that the estimate here made of sacerdotalists may not seem extreme and unjustifiable1 ,i add the testimony of one of the most honored ecclesiastics of the ,established ,church of ,england1 ,canon ,farrar1 who in a recent sermon on priestcraft said3 8,in all ages the exclusive predominance of priests has meant the indifference of the majority and the subjection of the few4 ,it has meant the slavery of men who will not act1 and the indolence of men who will not think1 and the timidity of men who will not resist1 and the indifference of men who do not care40 ,alas that 8holy hands0 should so often be laid 8upon skulls that cannot teach and will not learn06 ,let me here quote from ,professor ,huxley an admirable statement of the facts in the case3 8,everywhere have they 7sacerdotalists7 broken the spirit of wisdom and tried to stop human progress by quotations from their ,bibles or books of their saints4 ,in this nineteenth century1 as at the dawn of modern physical science1 the cosmogony of the semi-barbarous ,hebrew is the incubus of the philosopher and the opprobrium of the orthodox4 ,who shall number the patient and earnest seekers after truth1 from the days of ,galileo until now1 whose lives have been embittered and their good name blasted by the mistaken zeal of bibliolaters8 ,who shall count the host of weaker men whose sense of truth has been destroyed in the effort to harmonize impossibilities2 whose life has been wasted in the attempt to force the generous new wine of science into the old bottles of ,judaism1 compelled by the outcry of the same strong party8 ,it is true that if philosophers have suffered1 their cause has been amply avenged4 ,extinguished theologies lie about the cradle of every science as the strangled snakes beside that of ,hercules2 and history records that whenever science and orthodoxy have been fairly opposed1 the latter has been forced to retire from the lists1 bleeding and crushed if not annihilated1 scotched if not slain4 ,but orthodoxy learns not1 neither can it forget2 and though at present bewildered and afraid to move1 it is as willing as ever to insist that the first chapter of ,genesis contains the beginning and the end of sound science1 and to visit with such petty thunderbolts as its half-paralyzed hands can hurl those who refuse to degrade nature to the level of primitive ,judaism40 8,religion10 he also elsewhere writes1 8arising like all other knowledge out of the action and interaction of man's mind1 has taken the intellectual coverings of ,fetishism1 ,polytheism1 of ,theism or ,atheism1 of ,superstition or ,rationalism2 and if the religion of the present differs from that of the past1 it is because the theology of the present has become more scientific than that of the past2 not because it has renounced idols of wood and idols of stone1 but it begins to see the necessity of breaking in pieces the idols built up of books and traditions and fine-spun ecclesiastical cobwebs1 and of cherishing the noblest and most human of man's emotions by worship1 #8for the most part of the silent sort1' at the altar of the unknown and unknowable0444 8,if a man asks me what the politics of the inhabitants of the moon are1 and ,i reply that ,i know not1 that neither ,i nor any one else have any means of knowing1 and that under these circumstances ,i decline to trouble myself about the subject at all1 ,i do not think he has any right to call me a skeptic40 ,again3 8,what are among the moral convictions most fondly held by barbarous and semi-barbarous people8 ,they are the convictions that authority is the soundest basis of belief2 that merit attaches to a readiness to believe2 that the doubting disposition is a bad one1 and skepticism a sin2 and there are many excellent persons who still hold by these principles40444 8,yet we have no reason to believe that it is the improvement of our faith nor that of our morals which keeps the plague from our city2 but it is the improvement of our natural knowledge4 ,we have learned that pestilences will only take up their abode among those who have prepared unswept and ungarnished residences for them4 ,their cities must have narrow1 un watered streets full of accumulated garbage2 their houses must be ill-drained1 ill-ventilated2 their subjects must be ill-lighted1 ill-washed1 ill-fed1 ill-clothed2 the ,london of #affe was such a city2 the cities of the ,east1 where plague has an enduring dwelling1 are such cities2 we in later times have learned somewhat of ,nature1 and partly obey her4 ,because of this partial improvement of our natural knowledge1 and that of fractional obedience1 we have no plague2 but because that knowledge is very imperfect and that obedience yet incomplete1 typhus is our companion and cholera our visitor40 ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,,the ,,fabulous ,,claims ,,of ,,judaism 8,not giving heed to ,jewish fables40--,tit4 #a3 #ad4 8,neither give heed to fables40--#a ,tim4 #a3 #d4 8,but refuse profane and old wives' fables40--#a ,tim4 #d3 #g4 ,,it is impossible to understand modern ,christian ecclesiasticism without a careful study of ancient ,judaism4 ,it is reported that ,jesus himself said1 8,salvation is of the ,jews40 ,the gospel was to be preached 8to the ,jews first40 ,the common belief to-day is1 that the ,christian ,church represents the substance of what ,judaism was the promise1 and that the ,new ,testament contains the fulfilment and realization of what was foreshadowed in the ,old ,testament4 ,all well-informed theologians understand that the ,christian ,church is held to have had its origin in what is denominated the 8call of ,abraham10 and that what is known in orthodox parlance as the 8,abrahamic covenant0 lies at the foundation of the orthodox theory of grace and of all other systems of doctrine falsely designated as evangelical4 ,it is a suggestive fact that while ,christians hold that their religion is the very quintessence and outcome of ,judaism1 they most cordially hate the ,jews1 and the ,jews in return1 have a supreme contempt for ,christians and stoutly deny the relationship of parent and child4 ,now that the descent of the ,jews from the ,chaldean ,abram1 whom they affect to call their father1 is discredited by all scholars who reject the inspirational and infallible theory of the ,old ,testament1 it is very difficult to find out the real origin of this strange people4 ,all modern writers on ,jews and ,judaism admit that outside of the ,old ,testament there is little or no history of the ,jews down to the time of ,alexander1 and that there is very little reliable history even in the collection of books known as the ,hebrew ,scriptures4 ,it cannot be doubted now that the ,pentateuch1 improperly called the five books of ,moses1 was mostly written after the return of the ,jews from their captivity in ,babylon1 about #ech b4 c41 and what is found in these books mainly corresponds with the religion and literature of the ,assyrians1 and was learned during their sojourn in that country1 and not1 as has ignorantly been supposed1 from the mythical ,abram1 the reputed immigrant from ,ur of the ,chaldees4 ,what is recorded in the ,pentateuch1 not being mentioned in other ,old-,testament writings1 shows that such records had no existence when those books were written1 and therefore could have no recognition4 ,it will be shown hereafter that there is little or nothing in the ,pentateuch that is strictly original1 much less strictly historical4 ,indeed1 the tales of the ,old ,testament generally were written for a religious or patriotic purpose1 with little regard for time1 place1 or historical accuracy4 ,persons1 real or mythical1 are often used to represent different tribes1 while allegory is the rule rather than the exception in what is ignorantly accepted as history4 ,this is admitted by many eminent ,christian writers4 ,the word 8,jew0 first occurs in #b ,kings #af3 #f to denote the inhabitants of ,judea1 but they should properly have been called 8,judeans40 ,the very name ,jew is probably mythological1 derived from ,jeoud1 the name of the only son of ,saturn1 though1 like ,abraham1 he had several other sons4 ,it cannot be doubted that the stories of ,saturn and ,abraham are slightly varied versions of the same fable4 ,the ,jews never deserved to be called a nation1 at least not until in comparatively modern times4 ,they were inclined from the first to mingle with and intermarry with other peoples1 and so became mongrels at an early period4 ,there was no race distinction1 we are told1 between the ,canaanites1 ,idumeans1 and ,israelites4 ,ishmael married an ,egyptian woman1 and so did ,joseph1 the son of ,jacob4 ,esau married a daughter of ,ishmael1 also two other women1 called daughters of ,canaan1 one a ,hittite and the other a ,hivite4 ,judah and ,simeon each married ,canaanites4 ,we read in ,judges #c3 #e1 #f1 8,the children of ,israel dwelt among the ,canaanites1 ,hittites1 and ,amorites1 and ,perizzites1 and ,hivites1 and ,jebusites2 and they took their daughters to be their wives1 and gave their own daughters to their sons1 and served their gods40 ,in ,ezekiel #afth it is written3 8,thus saith the ,lord ,god unto ,jerusalem1 ,thy birth and thy nativity was in the land of ,canaan2 thy father was an ,amorite and thy mother an ,hittite4 ,your mother was an ,hittite and your father an ,amorite--thine elder sister1 ,samaria1 and thy youngest sister1 ,sodom40 ,in ,deut4 #g3 #g the ,jews are told1 8,the ,lord did not set his love upon you because ye were more in number than any other people1 for ye were fewest of all people40 ,in ,josh4 #ab3 #bd they are reminded that it was necessary to 8send them hornets which drove them 7the ,canaanites7 out before you1 even the two kings of the ,amorites20 and in ,ex4 #bc3 #bh1 #bi it is said1 8,i will send hornets before thee which shall drive out the ,hivite1 the ,canaanite1 and the ,hittite from before thee4 ,i will not drive them out from before thee in one year1 lest the land become desolate and the beasts of the field multiply against thee40 ,this does not look as if the ,jews were very numerous or valorous in the little territory not much larger than the ,state of ,connecticut4 ,josephus makes certain notes to show that the ,lacedemonians claimed original kinship with the ,jews1 and some writers make the same claim for the ,afghans and several other peoples4 ,nothing is more certain1 in my judgment1 than that the ,jews are the most thoroughly mongrel race upon the face of the earth4 ,that they have certain idiosyncrasies in common1 and even certain distinguishing facial and other physical marks1 can easily be accounted for on other grounds than the assumption of unity of race4 ,the common story of the origin of the ,jews is certainly fabulous4 ,major-,general ,forlong1 of the ,british ,army1 says3 8,they were probably in the beginning a wandering tribe of ,bedouin ,arabs who got possession of the rocky parts of ,palestine1 which were never made better by their presence4 ,they are a comparatively modern people4 ,the first notice of ,jews is possibly that of certain ,shemitic rulers in the ,aram paying tribute about #hej b4 c4 to ,vul-,nirari1 the successor of ,shalmaneser of ,syria2 regarding which1 however1 much more is made by biblicists than the simple record warrants4 ,this is the case also where ,champollion affirms that mention is made on the ,theban temples of the capture of certain towns of the land we call ,juda1 this being thought to prove the existence of ,jews4 ,similar assumption takes place in regard to the hieratic papyri of the ,leyden ,museum1 held to belong to the time of ,rameses ,,ii41 an inscription read on the rocks of ,el-,hamamat1 and the discovery of some names like ,chedorlaomer in the records of ,babylonia2 but this is all the 7so-called7 evidence as to the existence of ancient ,jews which has been advanced2 and the most is made of it in ,dr4 ,birch's opening address on the ,progress of ,biblical ,archaeology at the inauguration of the ,archaeological ,society4 ,of ,jews we hear nothing during all the ,thothmik wars1 unless they be included among the phallic-worshipping ,hermonites who were mentioned as inhabiting the highlands of ,syria4 ,we have no real historical evidence of the persons or kingdoms of ,david or ,solomon1 though we may grant the ,jewish stories cum grano salis1 seeing how outrageously they have always exaggerated in everything pertaining to their own glorification4 8,the only logical conclusion justifiable when we give up the inspiration theory is1 that ,arabs and ,syro-,phnicians were known to ,assyrians and ,egyptians1 and this none would deny4 ,indeed1 we readily grant1 with ,dr4 ,birch1 that under the nineteenth and twentieth ,egyptian dynasties the influence of the ,araman nations is distinctly marked2 that not only by blood and alliances had the ,pharaohs been closely united with the princes of ,palestine and ,syria1 but that the language of the period abounds in ,semitic words quite different from the ,egyptian1 with which they were embroidered and intermingled4 ,could it possibly be otherwise8 ,is it not so to this day8 ,is a vast and rapidly-spawning ,shemitic continent like ,arabia not to influence the narrow delta of a river adjoining it or the wild highlands of ,syria to the north8 ,of course ,arabs or ,shemites were everywhere spread over ,egypt1 ,syria1 and ,phnicia1 as well as in their ancient seats of empire in ,arabia1 ,irak 7,kaldia71 and on the imperial mounds of ,kalneh and ,koyunjik2 but not necessarily as ,jews4 ,i cannot find that these last were anything more than a peculiar religious sect of ,arabs who settled down from their pristine nomadic habits and obtained a quasi government under petty princes or sheiks1 such as we have seen take place in the case of numerous ,arabian and ,indian sects4 8,only about two hundred years or so after their return from ,babylon did the ,jews seem to consolidate into a nation1 and the collection and translation of their old mythic records--deciphered with much difficulty by the diligent librarians of ,ptolemy ,philadelphus from 8old shreds and scraps of leather0--no doubt materially aided in consolidating the people and in welding them into what they became--clans proud of a sort of a mythic history built up by ,ezra and other men acquainted with ,babylonian records and popular cosmogonies40 ,no efforts1 say the leaders of the ,biblical ,archaeological ,society1 have been able to find either amidst the numerous engravings on the rocks of ,arabia ,petrea or ,palestine1 any save ,phnician inscriptions2 not even a record of the ,syro-,hebrew character1 which was once thought to be the peculiar property of ,hebrews4 ,most of those inscriptions hitherto discovered do not date anterior to the ,roman empire4 ,few1 if any monuments 7of ,jews7 have been found in ,palestine or the neighboring countries of any useful antiquity save the ,moabite ,stone1 and the value of this last is all in favor of my previous arguments on these points4 ,at the pool of ,siloam we have an 8inscription in the ,phnician character as old as the time of the ,kings2444 it is incised upon the walls of a rock-chamber apparently dedicated to ,baal1 who is mentioned on it4 ,so that here1 in a most holy place of this peculiar people1 we find only ,phnicians1 and these worshipping the ,sun-god of ,fertility1 as was customary on every coast of ,europe from unknown times down to the rise of ,christianity40 ,the ,biblical ,archaeological ,society and ,british ,museum authorities tell us frankly and clearly that no ,hebrew square character can be proved to exist till after the ,babylonian captivity1 and that1 at all events1 this inscription of ,siloam shows 8that the curved or ,phnician character was in use in ,jerusalem itself under the ,hebrew monarchy1 as well as the conterminous ,phnicia1 ,moabitis1 and the more distant ,assyria4 ,no monument1 indeed10 continues ,dr4 ,birch1 8of greater antiquity inscribed in the square character 7,hebrew7 has been found as yet older than the fifth century ,a4 ,d4 the small capitals are mine1 and the coins of the ,maccabean princes1 as well as those of the revolter ,barcochab1 are impressed with ,samaritan characters4 ,so that here we have the most complete confirmation of all that ,i assert as to the mythical history of a ,judean people prior to a century or so b4 c41 and even then only under such a government as ,babylonian administrators had taught them to form and the lax rule of the ,seleukid1 followed by intermittent ,roman government1 permitted of40 ,another modern writer says3 8,soon after the death of ,alexander the ,jews first came into notice under ,ptolemy ,i4 of ,egypt1 and some of their books were collected at the new-built city of ,alexandria40 ,such was the insignificance of the ,jews as a people that the historical monuments preceding the time of ,alexander the ,great1 who died #cbc years b4 c41 make not the slightest mention of any ,jewish transaction4 ,the writings of ,thales1 ,solon1 ,pythagoras1 ,democritus1 ,plato1 ,herodotus1 and ,xenophon1 all of whom visited remote countries1 contain no mention of the ,jews whatever4 ,neither ,homer nor ,aristotle1 the preceptor of ,alexander1 makes any mention of them4 ,the story of ,josephus1 that ,alexander visited ,jerusalem1 has been proved to be a fabrication4 ,alexander's historians say nothing about it4 ,he did pass through the coast of ,palestine1 and the only resistance he encountered was at ,gaza1 which was garrisoned by ,persians 7,wyttenbach's ,opuscula1 vol4 ii4 pp4 #daf1 #dba74 ,for half a century after its destruction1 says ,dr4 ,robinson1 there is no mention of ,jerusalem in history2 and even until the time of ,constantine its history presents little more than a blank 7vol4 i4 pp4 #cfg1 #cga74 ,general ,forlong says3 8,the area of ,judea and ,samaria is1 according to the above authority1 #adj ,x #dj #efjj square miles1 which ,i think is certainly one-fourth too much1 my own triangulation of it giving only #dejj1 or a figure of about #acj ,x #ce4 ,i will1 however1 concede the allotment of #efjj1 but we must remember that1 as a rule1 the whole is a dismal1 rocky1 arid region1 with only intersecting valleys1 watered by springs and heavy rain from ,november to ,february inclusive1 and having scorching heats from ,april to ,september4 ,even the inhabitable portions of the country could only support the very sparsest population1 and ,i speak after having marched over it and also a considerable portion of the rest of the world4 ,in ,india we should look upon it as a very poor province2 in some respects very like the hilly tracts of ,mewar or ,odeypoor in ,kajpootana1 but in extent1 population1 and wealth it is less than that small principality4 8,the chief importance of ,palestine in ancient history was due to its lying on the high-road between the great kingdoms of ,egypt1 ,babylon1 and ,assyria1 and as giving the ,arabs a hiding- and abiding-place which they--,jews included--could not obtain if they ventured out on the plains south and east4 ,the holes and fastnesses of the hills were their safeguards1 and1 as they assure us1 very much used indeed4 ,the ,jewish strip is divided into ,samaria as a centre1 with ,galilee north and ,judea south1 giving to the two former eight-tenths1 and the latter two-tenths2 that is1 two tribes2 #efjj ,x #b_/aj so that the ,judean area would be about #efjj ,x #h_/aj #bj square miles1 against the #ddhj of the latter2 and the population would be somewhat in this proportion1 for the extreme barrenness of all the country south and east of ,jerusalem would be in some degree made up for by this town being perhaps a little larger than those in the north4 8,we are thus prepared to state the population of the entire land in terms of its area1 as was done for the ,judean capital1 and with equally startling results4 ,the whole ,turkish empire yields at present less than twenty-four persons to the square mile1 and in the wild and warring ages we are here concerned with we may safely say that there were less than twenty per square mile1 of which half were females and one-third of the other half children and feeble persons1 unable to take the field whether for war or agriculture4 ,the result is disastrous to much biblical matter1 and far-reaching2 upsetting the mighty armies of ,joshua and the ,judges1 no less than those of ,david and ,solomon1 who are thought for a few short years to have united the tribes3 nay1 the stern facts of figures destroy all the subsequently divided kings or petty chiefs who lasted down to the sixth century or so b4 c41 and show us that ,jews have ever been insignificant in the extreme1 especially when compared with the great peoples who generally ruled them1 and far and wide around them4 8,so that this paltry thirty thousand to forty thousand is the very most which the twelve tribes could1 and only for these few years1 bring to the front4 ,in general1 the tribes warred with one another and with their neighbors1 so that1 for the purposes of foreign war1 the ,jewish race represented only two or three tribes at a time1 or1 say1 ten thousand able men4 ,thus one tribe--as1 for example1 ,judah--would have only from three thousand to four thousand men in all1 supposing every man left his fields and home to fight1 while ,assyrian armies not unusually numbered one hundred thousand to two hundred thousand men40 ,in the above statistics also we have taken a greater area than ,i think the tribes occupied4 ,there is not a sign of a ,jewish people till about what is called their 8,eastern ,captivity10 and the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,rodwell writes in the ,trans4 of the ,biblical ,archaeological ,society that 8the ,hebrew of the ,bible is no other than a dialectic variety of the ,canaanitish or ,phnician tongue expressed in the ,chaldean character1 not brought1 as has been taught1 by ,abram himself from ,ur of the ,chaldees1 but adopted by the ,israelites during their long captivities40 8,could it possibly be otherwise when we look at the facts8 ,the ,jews were a poor1 ignorant1 weak ,arab tribe1 living on the outskirts of a land occupied for long ages previously by the most famous race of all antiquity--a people from whom ,greece1 ,rome1 and ,carthage alike borrowed the ideas of their earliest art and architecture4 ,homer called this race ,phens ,poludaidaloi--#8artists of varied skill1' and later ,romans prized them above all others for their constructive talent4 ,pliny1 ,seneca1 and ,varro praise them in words which will never die2 ,jews said that ,david solicited their skilled labor1 and that ,solomon's temple1 small and simple though it was1 could not be raised without their help2 nay1 though ,ezra says he had these ensamples before him1 and had seen all the fine buildings of ,babylon1 yet he too had to solicit their aid1 else the walls of the city of ,jehovah and ,zerub-babel's second shrine could never have been constructed4 ,in all arts1 trades1 and manufactures this extraordinary people excelled every ancient race1 and from the very earliest times down and into the ,roman period4 ,is it surprising1 then1 that their language and customs prevailed wherever their skilled aid was required8 that ,africa in its writing was no less ,punic--that is1 ,phnician--than ,libyan1 guided by these wondrous ,pheni or 8,tyrii bilingues08 ,the history of ,britain during some past generations as the first great manufacturing country of modern times shows how civilization1 power1 and progress must ever follow industry and usefulness1 and ,phnicians to a great extent in early days controlled #8the sinews of war' where this was their interest2 but it too often proved more profitable to deal in swords and helmets than in #8,tyrian purple' and costly brocade stuffs4 ,manufacturers are not much given to writing1 and these ,pheni have been so parsimonious in their vowels and lavish and indifferent in the use of b's1 dfs1 r's1 and s's that few philological students have attempted the translation of ,phnician writings1 though ,phnician1 and not ,hebrew1 is what alone we find traces of in ,syria and ,palestine40 ,it has been substantially said by ,william ,henry ,burr1 in a work not now in the market1 that 8very erroneous ideas prevail in regard to the magnitude of the nation and country of the ,jews and their importance in history4 ,most maps of ancient ,palestine assign far too much territory to that nation4 ,they make the greatest length of the country from #afj to #age miles1 and its greatest breadth from #gj to #ij1 inclosing an area of from #aj1jjj to #ab1jjj square miles--a little larger than the ,state of ,vermont4 ,they not only include the entire ,mediterranean coast for #afj miles1 but a considerable mountain-tract on the north1 above ,dan1 and a portion of the desert on the south1 below ,beer-sheba1 besides running the eastern boundary out too far4 ,moreover1 they lengthen the distances in every direction4 ,from ,dan to ,beersheba1 the extreme northern and southern towns1 the distance on ,mitchell's map is #afe miles1 and on ,colton's1 #aej2 but on a map accompanying ,biblical ,researches in ,palestine1 by ,edward ,robinson1 ,d4 ,d41 which is one of the most recent and elaborate1 and will doubtless be accepted as the best authority1 the distance is only #abh miles4 8,now1 the ,israelites were never able to drive out the ,canaanites from the choicest portion of the country--the ,mediterranean coast--nor even from most parts of the interior 7,judges #a3 #af-ca2 #a ,kings #i3 #bj1 #ba74 ,the ,phnicians1 a powerful maritime people1 occupied the northern portion of the coast1 and the ,philistines the southern2 between these the ,jebusites or some other people held control1 so that the ,israelites were excluded from any part of the ,mediterranean shore4 ,the map of their country must therefore undergo a reduction of a strip on the west at least #aj miles wide by #afj long1 or #afjj square miles4 ,a further reduction must be made of about #djj square miles for the ,dead ,sea and ,lake of ,tiberias4 ,this leaves at most #ijjj square miles by ,colton's map4 ,but on this map the extreme length of the country is #age miles1 which is #dg miles too great3 for the whole dominion of the ,jews extended only from ,dan to ,beersheba1 which ,dr4 ,robinson places only #abh miles apart4 ,we must therefore make a further reduction of an area about #dg by #fj miles1 or #bhjj square miles4 ,then we must take off a slice on the east1 at least #aj miles broad by #fj long1 or #fjj square miles4 ,thus we reduce the area of ,colton's map from #aa1jjj square miles to #efjj--;a little less than the ,state of ,connecticut4 8,but now1 if we subtract from this what was wilderness and desert1 and also what was at no time inhabited and controlled by the ,israelites1 we further reduce their habitable territory about one-half4 ,the land of ,canaan being nearly all mountainous and bounded on the south and east by a vast desert which encroached upon the borders of the country1 a great part of it was barren wilderness4 ,nor did but one-fifth of the ,israelites 7two and a half tribes7 occupy the country east of the ,jordan1 which was almost equal in extent to that on the west1 the proper ,land of ,promise4 ,the eastern half1 therefore1 must have been but thinly populated by the two and a half tribes1 who were only able to maintain a precarious foothold against the bordering enemies4 ,so1 then1 it is not probable that the ,israelites actually inhabited and governed at any time territory of more than #cjjj square miles1 or not much if any larger than the little ,state of ,delaware4 ,at all events1 it can hardly be doubted that ,delaware contains more good land than the whole country of the ,jews ever did4 8,the promise to ,abraham in ,gen4 #ae3 #ah is #8from the river of ,egypt to the river ,euphrates4' ,but the ,jewish possessions never reached the ,nile by #bjj miles4 ,in ,ex4 #cc3 #ca the promise is renewed1 but the river of ,egypt is not named4 ,the boundaries are #8from the ,red ,sea to the ,sea of the ,philistines 7the ,mediterranean71 and from the desert to the river4' ,by #8the river' was doubtless meant the ,euphrates2 and assuming that by #8the desert' was meant the eastern boundary 7though ,canaan was bounded on the south also by the same great desert which reached to the ,red ,sea71 we have in this promise a territory #fjj miles long by an average of about #ahj broad1 making an area of about #ajj1jjj square miles1 or ten times as much as the ,jews ever could claim1 and nearly one-half of it uninhabitable4 ,so1 then1 the promise was never fulfilled1 for the ,israelites were confined to a very small central portion of their land of promise1 and whether they occupied #cjjj or #ab1jjj square miles in the period of their greatest power1 the fact is not to be disputed that their country was a very small one4 8,lamartine describes the journey from ,bethany to ,jericho as singularly toilsome and melancholy--neither houses nor cultivation1 mountains without a shrub1 immense rocks split by time1 pinnacles tinged with colors like those of an extinct volcano4 #8,from the summit of these hills1 as far as the eye can reach1 we see only black chains1 conical or broken peaks1 a boundless labyrinth of passes rent through the mountains1 and those ravines lying in perfect and perpetual stillness1 without a stream1 without a wild animal1 without even a flower1 the relics of a convulsed land1 with waves of stone' 7vol4 ii41 p4 #adf740 ,but lest it may be thought that these dismal features are due to modern degeneracy1 let us take the testimony of an early ,christian ,father1 ,st4 ,jerome1 who lived a long time in ,bethlehem1 four miles south of ,jerusalem4 ,in the year #dad he wrote to ,dardanus thus3 8,i beg of those who assert that the ,jewish people after coming out of ,egypt took possession of this country 7which to us1 by the passion and resurrection of our ,saviour1 has become truly the land of promise71 to show us what this people possessed4 ,their whole dominions extended only from ,dan to ,beersheba1 hardly #afj ,roman miles in length 7#adg geographical miles74 ,the ,scriptures give no more to ,david and ,solomon1 except what they acquired by alliance after conquest4444 ,i am ashamed to say what is the breadth of the land of promise1 lest ,i should thereby give the pagans occasion to blaspheme4 ,it is but #dg miles 7#db geographical miles7 from ,joppa to our little town of ,bethlehem1 beyond which all is a frightful desert0 7vol4 ii41 p4 #fje74 ,elsewhere he describes the country as the 8refuse and rubbish of nature40 ,he says that 8from ,jerusalem to ,bethlehem there is nothing but stones1 and in the summer the inhabitants can scarcely get water to drink40 8,in the year #ahdg1 ,lieut4 ,lynch of the ,u4 ,s4 ,navy was sent to explore the river ,jordan and the ,dead ,sea4 ,he and his party with great difficulty crossed the country from ,acre to the ,lake of ,tiberias1 with trucks drawn by camels4 ,the only roads from time immemorial were mule-paths4 ,frequent dtours had to be made1 and they were compelled actually to make some portions of their road4 ,even then the last declivity could not be overcome until all hands turned out and hauled the boats and baggage down the steep places2 and many times it seemed as if1 like the ancient herd of swine1 they would all rush precipitately into the sea4 ,over three days were required to make the journey1 which in a straight line would be only twenty-seven miles4 ,for the first few miles they passed over a pretty fertile plain1 but this was the ancient ,phnician country1 which the ,jews never conquered4 ,the rest of the route was mountainous and rocky1 with not a tree visible nor a house outside the little walled villages 7pp4 #ace to #aeb74 8,the ancient ,sea of ,galilee has a prominent place in ,jewish geography and commerce1 yet on this insignificant body of water1 twelve miles long by seven wide1 all the commerce of the ,jews was carried on1 except when they had the use of a port on the ,red ,sea4 8,in a book entitled ,the ,holy ,land1 ,syria1 etc41 by ,david ,roberts1 ,r4 ,a4 7,london1 #ahee71 the valley of the ,jordan is thus described3 8#8,a large portion of the valley of the ,jordan has been from the earliest time almost a desert4 ,but in the northern part the great number of rivulets which descend from the mountains on both sides produce in many places a luxuriant growth of wild herbage4 ,so too in the southern part1 where similar rivulets exist1 as around ,jericho1 there is even an exuberant fertility2 but those rivulets seldom reach the ,jordan and have no effect on the middle of the ,ghor4 ,the mountains on each side are rugged and desolate1 the western cliffs overhanging the valley at an elevation of #ajjj or #abjj feet1 while the eastern mountains fall back in ranges of from #bjjj to #bejj feet4'0 ,what was the size of ancient ,jerusalem8 ,we know pretty nearly what it is now and how many inhabitants it contains4 ,it is three-quarters of a mile long by half a mile wide1 and its population is not more than 1#ejj 7,biblical ,researches1 vol i41 p4 #dba71 a large proportion of whom are drawn thither by the renowned sanctity of the place4 ,dr4 ,robinson measured the wall of the city1 and found it to be only #ab1igh feet in circumference1 or nearly two and a half miles 7vol4 i41 p4 #bfh74 8,in a book entitled ,an ,essay on the ,ancient ,topography of ,jerusalem1 by ,james ,fergusson 7,london1 #ahdg71 a diagram is given of the walls of ancient and modern ,jerusalem1 from which it appears that the greatest length of the city was at no time more than #fjjj feet1 or a little more than a mile1 and its greatest width about three-quarters of a mile2 while the real ,jerusalem of old was but a little more than a quarter that size4 8,with these measurements ,mr4 ,fergusson undertakes to estimate the probable population of the ancient city1 as follows3 8#8,if we allow the inhabitants of the first-named cities fifty yards to each individual1 and that one-half of the new city was inhabited at the rate of one person to each one hundred yards1 this will give a permanent population of #bc1jjj souls4 ,if1 on the other hand1 we allow only thirty-three yards to each of the old cities1 and admit that the whole of the new was as densely populated as ,london1 or allowing one hundred yards to each inhabitant1 we obtain #cg1jjj souls for the whole2 which ,i do not think it at all probable that ,jerusalem ever could have contained as a permanent population4' 8#8,in another part of the book 7p4 #dg7 he says3 8,if we were to trust ,josephus1 he would have us believe that ,jerusalem contained at one time1 or could contain1 two and a half or three millions of souls1 and that at the siege of ,titus #a1ajj1jjj perished by famine and the sword1 #ig1jjj were taken captive1 and #dj1jjj allowed by ,titus to go free4 8,in order to show the gross exaggeration of these numbers1 he cites the fact that the army of ,titus did not exceed1 altogether1 #cj1jjj1 and that ,josephus himself enumerates the fighting-men of the city at #bc1djj1 which would give a population something under #ajj1jjj4 ,but even this he believes to be an exaggeration4 ,for1 says he1 8#8,in all the sallies it cannot be discovered that at any time the ,jews could bring into the field #aj1jjj men1 if so many4444 ,titus enclosed the city with a line four and a half miles in extent1 which1 with his small army1 was so weak a disposition that a small body of the ,jews could easily have broken through it2 but they never seem to have had numbers sufficient to be able to attempt it4' 8,the author guesses that the ,jews might have mustered at the beginning of the siege about #aj1jjj men1 and that the city might have contained altogether about #dj1jjj inhabitants1 permanent and transient1 in a space which in no other city in the world could accommodate #cj1jjj souls4 ,but the wall of ,agrippa was built1 as the same author states1 twelve or thirteen years after the ,crucifixion2 hence prior to that time the area of ,jerusalem was only #gef1jjj yards1 and it was capable of containing only #bc1jjj inhabitants at most1 but probably never did contain more than #ae1jjj4 8,allowing to ,jerusalem1 in the period of the greatest prosperity of the ,jews1 a population of even #bj1jjj1 is it at all probable that the whole country could have contained anything like even the lowest estimate to be gathered from the ,scripture record8 ,in #a ,chron4 #ba3 #e1 #f we read that the number of #8men that drew the sword of ,israel and ,judah amounted to #a1egj1jjj1 not counting the tribes of ,levi and ,benjamin4 ,in #b ,sam4 #bd3 #i1 the number given at the same census is #a1cjj1jjj1 and no omission is mentioned4 ,assuming the larger number to be correct1 and adding only one-eighth for the two tribes of ,levi and ,benjamin1 which may have been the smallest1 we have #a1gff1jjj fighting-men4 ,this would give1 at the rate of one fighting-man to four inhabitants1 a total population of over #g1jjj1jjj souls4 ,but if we adopt a more reasonable ratio1 of one to six1 we have a population of over #aj1ejj1jjj souls4 ,and then we omit the aliens4 ,these numbered #aec1fjj working-men only two years later 7#b ,chron4 #b3 #ag71 and the total alien population1 therefore1 must have been about #ejj1jjj1 which1 added to the census1 would make the total population from #g1ejj1jjj to #aa1jjj1jjj1 or more4 ,can any intelligent man believe that a mountainous1 barren country1 no larger than ,connecticut1 without commerce1 without manufactures1 without the mechanical arts1 without civilization1 ever did or could subsist even two millions of people8 ,much less can it be believed that it subsisted #8seven nations greater and mightier than the ,israelitish nation itself' 7,deut4 #g3 #a7--;i e4 not less than #ad1jjj1jjj4 8,that the ,jews were a very barbarous people is undeniable4 ,slavery necessarily makes a people barbarous4 ,not only were the ,israelites a nation of slaves1 according to their own record1 but after their entry into ,canaan they were six times reduced to bondage in their own land of promise4 ,during a period of #bha years they were in slavery #aaa years4 8,that the ,jews were far behind their surrounding neighbors in civilization is shown by the fact that in the first battle they fought under their first king1 ,saul1 they had in the whole army #8neither sword nor spear in the hand of any of the people1' except ,saul and ,jonathan 7#a ,sam4 #ac3bb74 ,nor was any #8smith found throughout all the land of ,israel' 7ver4 #ai71 but #8all the ,israelites went down to the ,philistines to sharpen every man his share1 and his coulter1 and his axe1 and his mattock' 7ver4 #bj47 ,this was #djd years after the ,exodus and only #ge years prior to the building of ,solomon's temple4 ,their weapons of war were those of the rudest savage4 8,as another evidence of the barbarism of the ,jews1 when ,david resolved to build a house for himself he had no native artisans1 but had to send to ,hiram1 king of ,tyre1 for masons and carpenters 7#b ,sam4 #e3 #aa74 ,even the wood itself had to be brought from ,tyre1 it would seem that even in those days1 as now1 the mountains of ,canaan were destitute of trees--a sure sign of a sterile country4 ,the wood of course had to be carried overland4 ,wheel-carriages were unknown to the ,israelites1 except in the form of chariots of iron used by their enemies1 which prevented ,judah1 even with the help of the ,lord1 from driving out the inhabitants of the valleys 7,judg4 #a3 #ai74 ,david captured #ajjj chariots in about the sixteenth year of his reign1 of which he preserved only #ajj1 disabling all the horses 7#a ,ghron4 #ah3 #c47 ,prior to this event neither chariots nor horses had been used by the ,israelites1 nor was much use made of them by the subsequent kings4 ,oxen and asses were their beasts of burden2 camels were rare even long after ,solomon's reign4 ,how1 then1 was the wood brought from ,tyre over the mountains1 unless it was carried on the backs of oxen or asses or dragged along the ground80 ,that a considerable number of ,jews at one time sojourned in ,egypt is highly probable4 ,how they got there1 and how they came to leave1 is not so certain4 ,an eminent ,egyptologist writes in a leading ,london journal3 8,the presence of large numbers of ,semites in ancient ,egypt has always been a puzzle to historians1 and what first led to their migrating from ,mesopotamia to the land of the ,pharaohs has never hitherto been made clear4 ,quite recently1 however1 the ,british ,museum has become possessed of a number of cuneiform tablets which throw considerable light on the subject4 ,early in the present year a number of these tablets were offered for sale in ,cairo4 ,they had been dug up from the grave of a royal scribe of ,amenophis ,,iii4 and ,,iv4 of the eighteenth dynasty1 which had given up its records1 and not only records1 but seals and papyri of great historical and artistic value4 ,some went to the ,boulak ,museum1 some to ,berlin1 others to private persons1 and eighty-one have found their way to the ,british ,museum4 ,these last have now been arranged and catalogued by ,mr4 ,budge1 the well-known ,egyptologist1 whose investigations have brought to light a most interesting chapter in the history of ancient ,egypt4 ,not only do the tablets explain the historical crux mentioned above1 but they introduce us to the family life of the early kings4 ,they picture to us the splendors of the royal palaces2 they enable us to assist at the betrothal of the kings' daughters and to follow the kings to their hunting-grounds4 ,most of the tablets are letters addressed to ,amenophis ,,iii41 and some are from ,tushratta1 king of ,mesopotamia4 8,amenophis ,,iii4 was a mighty hunter1 and once on a shooting-trip into ,mesopotamia after big game he1 like a king in a fairy-tale1 met and loved ,ti1 the daughter of ,tushratta4 ,they were married in due time1 and ,ti went down into ,egypt with three hundred and seventeen of her principal ladies4 ,this brought a host of their ,semitic countrymen along1 who found in ,egypt a good field for their business capacities1 and gradually1 like the modern ,jews in ,russia1 got possession of the lands and goods of their hosts4 ,the influence of the ,semitic queen is attested by the very fact that this library of cuneiform tablets was preserved4 ,and under the feeble sovereigns who followed1 her countrymen doubtless held their own4 ,but at last came the nineteenth dynasty and the ,pharaoh #8who knew not ,joseph4' ,then they were set to brick-making and pyramid-building1 till the outbreak which led to the ,red ,sea triumph4 8,mr4 ,budge1 of the ,british ,museum1 has translated three of the letters4 ,one is from ,tushratta to ,ameno-phis4 ,after many complimentary salutations1 he proposes to his son-in-law that they should continue the arrangement made by their fathers for pasturing doublehumped camels1 and in this way he leads up to the main purport of his epistle4 ,he says that ,manie1 his great-nephew1 is ambitious to marry the daughter of the king of ,egypt1 and he pleads that ,manie might be allowed to go down to ,egypt to woo in person4 ,the alliance would1 he considers1 be a bond of union between the two countries1 and he adds1 as though by an after-thought1 that the gold which ,amenophis appears to have asked for should be sent for at once1 together with #8large gold jars1 large gold plates1 and other articles made of gold4' ,after this meaning interpolation he returns to the marriage question1 and proposes to act in the matter of the dowry in the same way in which his grandfather acted1 presumably on a like occasion4 ,he then enlarges on the wealth of his kingdom1 where #8gold is like dust which cannot be counted1' and he adds an inventory of presents which he is sending1 articles of gold1 inlay1 and harness1 and thirty eunuchs40 ,in speaking of the sojourn of the ,israelites in ,egypt1 ,dr4 ,knappert says3 8,according to the tradition preserved in ,genesis1 it was the promotion of ,jacob's son1 ,joseph1 to be viceroy of ,egypt that brought about the migration of the sons of ,israel from ,canaan to ,goshen4 ,the story goes that this ,joseph was sold as a slave by his brothers1 and after many changes of fortune received the viceregal office at ,pharaoh's hands through his skill in interpreting dreams4 ,famine drives his brothers1 and afterward his father1 to him1 and the ,egyptian prince gives them the land of ,goshen to live in4 ,it is by imagining all this that the legend tries to account for the fact that ,israel passed some time in ,egypt4 ,but we must look for the real explanation in a migration of certain tribes which could not establish or maintain themselves in ,canaan1 and were forced to move farther on40 ,the author of the ,religion of ,israel says3 8,the history of the religion of ,israel must start from the sojourn of the ,israelites in ,egypt4 ,formerly it was usual to take a much earlier starting-point1 and to begin with a discussion of the religious ideas of the patriarchs4 ,and this was perfectly right so long as the accounts of ,abraham1 ,isaac1 and ,jacob were considered historical4 ,but now that a strict investigation has shown us that these stories are entirely unhistorical1 of course we have to begin the history later on40 ,the author of ,the ,spirit ,history of ,man says3 8,the ,hebrews came out of ,egypt and settled among the ,canaanites4 ,they need not be traced beyond the ,exodus2 that is their historical beginning4 ,it was very easy to cover up this remote event by the recital of mythical traditions1 and to prefix to it an account of their origin in which the gods 7patriarchs7 should figure as their ancestors40 ,but how about the ,jewish exodus from ,egypt8 ,what was the real cause8 ,whom shall we credit1 the writer of the book called ,exodus or other writers8 ,what follows differs very much from the ,hebrew story4 ,lysimachus relates that 8a filthy disease broke out in ,egypt1 and the oracle of ,ammon1 being consulted on the occasion1 commanded the king to purify the land by driving out the ,jews 7who were infected with leprosy1 etc471 who were hateful to the gods4 ,the whole multitude of the people were accordingly collected and driven out into the wilderness40 ,diodorus ,siculus says3 8,in ancient times ,egypt was afflicted with a great plague1 which was attributed to the anger of ,god on account of the multitude of foreigners in ,egypt1 by whom the rites of the native religion were neglected4 ,the ,egyptians accordingly drove them out4 ,the most notable of them went under ,cadmus and ,danaus to ,greece1 but the greater number followed ,moses1 a wise and valiant leader1 to ,palestine40 ,tacitus1 the ,roman historian1 says3 8,in this clash of opinions one point seems to be universally admitted--a pestilential disease1 disfiguring the race of man and making the body an object of loathsome deformity1 spreading all over ,egypt4 ,bocchoris1 at that time the reigning monarch1 consulted the oracle of ,jupiter ,hammon1 and received for answer that the kingdom must be purified by exterminating the infected multitude1 as a race of men detested by the gods4 ,after diligent search the wretched sufferers were collected together1 and in a wild and barren desert abandoned to their misery4 ,in that distress1 while the vulgar herd was sunk in deep despair1 ,moses1 one of their number1 reminded them that by the wisdom of his counsels they had been already rescued out of impending danger4 ,deserted as they were by men and gods1 he told them that if they did not repose their confidence in him as their chief by divine commission they had no resource left4 ,his offer was accepted4 ,their march began1 they knew not whither4 ,want of water was their chief distress4 ,worn out with fatigue1 they lay stretched on the bare earth1 heartbroken1 ready to expire1 when a troop of wild asses1 returning from pasture1 went up the steep ascent of a rock covered with a grove of trees4 ,the verdure of the herbage round the place suggested the idea of springs near at hand4 ,moses traced the steps of the animals1 and discovered a plentiful vein of water4 ,by this relief the fainting multitude was raised from despair40 ,in a learned work on ,egypt by ,mr4 ,william ,oxley of ,england1 published in #ahhd1 the author writes3 8,taking the records as we find them1 if they are real history1 and as ,palestine is contiguous to ,egypt1 we should naturally expect to find some reference to the ,israelites in the ,egyptian annals1 but what does appear in regard to ,palestine is certainly not favorable to the assumption that it was the home of the ,israelites as a nation4 ,i cull the following from such materials as are at present within reach1 partly taken from the ,records of the ,past3 8,it has been generally acknowledged by ,egyptian biblicists that #8the cruel bondage of the ,israelites1 culminated under the reign of ,rameses ,,ii41 nineteenth dynasty1 and that the ,exodus took place under his successor1 ,menephtah ,i41 #acbf b4 c41 who was drowned in the ,red ,sea with all his host in his attempt to bring the wanderers back again4 ,but1 as ,i have already said1 the tomb of this very king at ,thebes contains an inscription to the effect that he had lived to a good old age1 and was a child of good-fortune from his cradle to the grave4 ,in the annals of ,rameses ,,iii41 who reigned some fifty or sixty years after the ,israelites ought to have been settled in their own land1 many references are made to the country in which they were located 7according to biblical accounts74 ,the king goes to what is known to us as ,palestine1 ,phnicia1 and ,syria to receive the annual tribute from the chiefs_/ whom he calls ,khetas4 ,in the enumeration of his conquests1 extending from ,egypt east and northward1 he enumerates thirty-eight tribes and peoples1 and says3 #8,i have smitten every land1 and have taken every land in its extent4' ,in his reminder to the ,god ,ptah of the benefits he had conferred on the god1 the king says3 #8,i gave to thy temple from the store-houses of ,egypt1 ,tar-neter1 and ,kharu 7i1 e4 ,palestine and ,syria7 more numerous offerings than the sand of the sea1 as well as cattle and slaves' 7,syrians74 ,he also built a temple to ,ammon in the same country1 to which #8the nations of the ,rutenna came and brought their tribute4' ,making full allowance for the usual ,egyptian flattery1 the fact is clear that in the time of this king the ,israelites could not have been a settled and distinct people2 and the incident of their ,exodus would have been too fresh and recent to be passed over without some comment by this vainglorious monarch4 8,from a papyrus translated in the ,records of the ,past 7ii4 #ajg71 entitled ,travels of an ,egyptian1 who gives a full account of ,palestine1 etc41 it appears there was a fortress there which had been built by ,rameses ,,ii41 and which was still belonging to ,egypt4 ,this would be about #acej ,b4 ,c42 but not the slightest hint of any such people as ,israelites1 although he tells us #8he visited the country to get information respecting the country1 with the manners and customs of its inhabitants4' 8,the next is ,rameses ,,xii41 some two hundred years after the ,exodus1 who is the hero of the story of the possessed princess4 ,he was in ,mesopotamia at the time when the chief of the ,bakhten brought his daughter1 who afterward became queen of ,egypt4 #8,his ,majesty was there registering the annual tributes of all the princes of the countries1' among whom he enumerates ,tar-neter 7,palestine71 but no mention of ,israelites4 8,i find no further trace until the time of ,herodotus 7about #dbj ,b4 c472 and here we come on historical ground4 ,this great historian travelled through ,egypt and ,palestine in the reign of one of the kings of the ,persian dynasty1 about forty or fifty years after the alleged return of the ,jews from their captivity in ,babylon1 and when the temple had been built and the city fortified4 ,he repeatedly alludes to the ,phnicians and ,syrians1 whose country extended from the coast of the ,levant down to the ,egyptian frontier1 including the isthmus and ,sinaitic ,peninsula4 ,he says that ,necho 7about #fgj b4 c47 fought with the ,syrians1 and took a large city1 ,cadytis2 but he makes no mention of ,jews nor yet of ,jerusalem4 ,if they had been there1 it is incredible that such a careful and grasping historian should have explored the land without noticing them in some way or other4 8,the next is from a tablet erected to ,alexander ,,ii4 by ,ptolemy1 at that time viceroy under the ,persian king1 but who soon after himself became king of ,egypt1 #cje b4 c4 ,the inscription states that #8,alexander marched with an army of ,ionians to the ,syrians' land1 who were at war with him4 ,he penetrated its interior and took it at one stroke1 and led their princes1 cavalry1 ships1 and works of art to ,egypt4' 8,next follows the third ,ptolemy1 #bch b4 c4 7see the ,decree of ,canopus1 ,records of the ,past1 viii41 #ha71 who invaded the two lands of ,asia1 and brought back to ,egypt all the treasures which had been carried away by ,cambyses and his successors4 ,he #8imported corn from ,east ,rutenna and ,kafatha'--i4 e4 from ,syria and ,phnicia4 ,it was the father of this king who is credited with sending to ,judea for the seventy-two men who translated the ,hebrew ,bible into ,greek2 and yet neither of these ,ptolemaic kings makes mention of ,judea1 ,jerusalem1 or the ,jews6 ,the inference is obvious3 they were not there4 8,many historiographers1 when writing of ,jewish annals1 use the ,ptolemaic and other monumental and papyrian accounts as applying to the ,jews1 and consequently use the term #8,jews1' but this is unwarrantable1 inasmuch as the accounts themselves speak of #8,syrians1 ,phnicians1' etc41 but not of #8,jews4' ,according to the best cyclopdists1 #8there is little or nothing known of the ,jews or ,jerusalem until the time of ,christ2' and even then it is taken chiefly from ,josephus1 who1 to my view1 is scarcely admissible as a chronographer of actual history4 ,no mention is made by the ,ptolemies--say #bej or even less years b4 c4--of the ,jews of ,jerusalem1 and as the ,roman emperor ,hadrian 7from #aag to #ach ,a4 ,d47 is credited with changing the name of the city to lia ,capitolina1 it could only have been known as ,jerusalem for a few centuries at most4 ,the ,arch of ,titus in ,rome is taken as conclusive proof that it was erected to commemorate his victories over the rebellious ,jews and the successful siege of ,jerusalem4 ,but even this1 ,i apprehend1 is taken chiefly from ,josephus4 ,when in ,rome last year ,i closely inspected this arch1 expecting to find an inscription to this effect1 but ,i was disappointed at seeing only a ,latin one over the arch1 which reads 7in ,english73 #8,the ,senate and ,roman ,people to the ,divine ,titus1 7,son7 of the divine ,vespasian1' and another1 by ,pius ,,vii41 recording its restoration4 ,it is true1 ,i saw the alto-reliefs on the inside of the arch1 showing a table1 trumpets1 and a seven-branched lamp2 but these were used in many temples1 and would as well refer to the ,syrian or ,phnician temples1 which undoubtedly existed at that time1 and in the absence of direct ,roman testimony to the name of the city and people 7of which ,i am unaware71 it cannot be accepted as indubitable evidence of its reference to a city called and known to them as ,jerusalem1 and to a people known to them as ,jews4 ,unless this can be established1 it only amounts to an inference resting on ,josephus4 8,as the result of my researches1 ,i place ,jewish historians1 so called1 upon the same footing as the ,christian ecclesiastical ones1 whose works1 while containing a base of more or less historical reference and truth1 are yet too much overweighted with unhistorical myths to be regarded as genuine1 sober history4 ,to my view1 the ,jews were1 at the period ,i am referring to1 in a not dissimilar position to the ,druses of ,lebanon of the present day4 ,as is well known to a certain class of writers who have come in contact with them1 they form a community held together not so much by national ties as by semi-religious ones1 which are based upon ,cabalistic and theurgic rites and ceremonies4 ,like what ,i conceive the ,jews to have been in the centuries preceding the ,christian era1 they are an order rather than a nation1 the remains of systems which have continued and survived from ancient times4 ,in this light the ,jewish records are intelligible as writings veiled in allegory1 treating of their mystic lore1 albeit expressed in verbiage that bears a literal meaning upon its surface4 ,i give this as the only solution that presents itself of the mysterious problem under review40 ,i now propose to state a few points from the ,jewish writings themselves 7collated from ,bishop ,colenso7 to show the fabulous character of the history of this pretentious people4 ,the number of fighting-men who marched out of ,egypt is nowhere estimated at less than #fjj1jjj1 and if this represented only one-fourth of the population1 the latter must have reached #c1jjj1jjj4 ,if we cut this down one-third1 so as to be sure of our figures1 we make it #b1jjj1jjj souls4 ,the number of the children of ,israel who went into ,egypt was #gj 7,ex4 #a3 #e74 ,they sojourned in ,egypt #bae years4 ,it could not have been #dcj years1 as would appear from ,ex4 #aa3dj4 ,the marginal chronology makes the period #bae years1 and there were only four generations to the ,exodus--namely1 ,levi1 ,kohath1 ,amram1 and ,moses 7,ex4 #f3 #af1 #ah1 #bj74 ,how could these people have increased in #bae years from #gj souls so as to number #fjj1jjj warriors8 ,it would have required an average number of #df children to each father4 ,the #ab sons of ,jacob had between them only #ec sons4 ,at this rate of increase1 in the fourth generation there would have been only #fcaa males 7provided they were all living at the time of the ,exodus71 instead of #a1jjj1jjj4 ,if we add the fifth generation1 who would be mostly children1 the total number of males would not have exceeded #bh1dfe4 ,all the first-born males from a month old and upward1 of those that were numbered1 were #bb1bgc 7,num4 #c3 #dc74 ,the lowest computation of the whole number of the people at that time is #b1jjj1jjj4 ,the number of males would be #a1jjj1jjj4 ,dividing the latter number by the number of first-born1 gives #dd1 which would be the average number of boys in each family1 or about #hh children by each mother4 ,or1 if where the first-born were females1 the males were not counted1 the number of children by each mother would be reduced to #dd4 ,dan in the first generation had but one son 7,gen4 #df3 #bc71 and yet in the fourth generation his descendants had increased to #fb1gjj warriors 7,num4 #b3 #bf71 or #fd1djj 7,num4 #bf3 #dc74 ,each of his sons and grandsons must have had about #hj children of both sexes4 ,on the other hand1 the ,levites increased the number of 8males from a month old and upward0 during the #ch years in the wilderness only from #bb1jjj to #bc1jjj 7,num4 #c3 #ci2 #bf3 #fb71 and the tribe of ,manasseh during the same time increased from #cb1bjj 7,num4 #a3 #ce7 to #eb1gjj 7#bf3 #cd74 ,the whole population of ,israel were instructed in one single day to keep the passover1 and actually did keep it 7,ex4 #ab74 ,at the first notice of any such feast ,jehovah said1 8,i will pass through the land of ,egypt this night40 ,the passover was to be killed 8at even0 on the same day that ,moses received the command4 ,the women were at the same time ordered to borrow jewels of their neighbors1 the ,egyptians4 ,after midnight of the same day the ,israelites received notice to start for the wilderness4 ,no one was to go out of his house till morning1 when they were to take their hurried flight with their cattle and herds4 ,how could #b1jjj1jjj people1 scattered about over a wide district1 as they must have been with their cattle and herds1 have gotten ready and taken a simultaneous hurried flight at twelve hours' notice8 ,the ,israelites1 with their flocks and herds1 reached the ,red ,sea1 a distance of from fifty to sixty miles over a sandy desert1 in three days6 ,marching fifty abreast1 the able-bodied warriors alone would have filled up the road for seven miles1 and the whole multitude would have made a column twenty-two miles long1 so that the last of the body could not have been started until the front had advanced that distance--more than two days' journey for such a mixed company4 ,then the sheep and cattle must have formed another vast column1 covering a much greater tract of ground in proportion to their number4 ,upon what did these two millions of sheep and oxen feed in the journey to the ,red ,sea over a desert region1 sandy1 gravelly1 and stony alternately8 ,how did the people manage with the sick and infirm1 and especially with the seven hundred and fifty births that must have taken place in the three days' march8 ,judah was forty-two years old when he went down with ,jacob into ,egypt1 being three years older than his brother ,joseph1 who was then thirty-nine4 ,for 8,joseph was thirty years old when he stood before ,pharaoh0 7,gen4 #da3 #df72 and from that time nine years elapsed 7seven of plenty and two of famine7 before ,jacob came down into ,egypt4 ,judah was born in the fourth year of ,jacob's double marriage 7,gen4 #bi3 #ce71 being the fourth of the seven children of ,leah born in seven years2 and ,joseph was born of ,rachel in the seventh year 7,gen4 #cj3 #bd1 #bf2 #ba3 #da74 ,in these forty-two years of ,judah's life the following events are recorded in ,gen4 #ch3 ,he grows up1 marries1 and has three sons4 ,his eldest son grows up1 marries1 and dies4 ,the second son marries his brother's widow and dies4 ,the third son1 after waiting to grow to maturity1 declines to marry the widow4 ,the widow then deceives ,judah himself1 and bears him twins--,pharez and ,zarah4 ,one of these twins grows up and has two sons--,hez-ron and ,hamul--bom to him before ,jacob goes down into ,egypt4 ,in ,ex4 #cj3aa-ac1 ,jehovah commanded ,moses to take a census of the children of ,israel1 and in doing it to collect half a shekel of the sanctuary as atonement-money4 ,this expression 8shekel of the sanctuary0 is put into the mouth of ,jehovah six or seven months before the tabernacle was made4 ,in ,ex4 #ch3 #bf we read of such a tribute being paid1 but nothing is there said of any census being taken1 only that the number of those who paid1 from twenty years old and upward1 was #fjc1eej men4 ,in ,num4 #a3 #a-df1 more than six months after this occasion1 an account of an actual census is given1 but no atonment-money is mentioned4 ,if in the first instance a census was taken1 but accidentally omitted to be mentioned1 and in the second instance the tribute was paid1 but accidentally omitted likewise1 it was nevertheless surprising that the number of adult males should have been identically the same 7#fjc1eej7 on both occasions1 six months apart4 ,aaron and his two sons were the only priests during ,aaron's lifetime4 ,they had to make all the burnt-offerings on a single altar nine feet square 7,ex4 #cg3 #a71 besides attending to other priestly duties for #b1jjj1jjj people4 ,at the birth of every child both a burnt-offering and a sin-offering had to be made4 ,the number of births must be reckoned as at least two hundred and fifty a day1 for which consequently five hundred sacrifices would have to be offered daily--an impossible duty to be performed by three priests4 ,for poor women pigeons were accepted instead of lambs4 ,if half of them offered pigeons1 and only one instead of two1 it would have required #ij1jjj pigeons annually for this purpose alone4 ,where did they get the pigeons8 ,how could they have had them at all under ,sinai8 ,there were thirteen cities where the presence of these three priests was required 7,josh4 #ba3 #ai74 ,the three priests had to eat a large portion of the bumt-offerings 7,num4 #ah3 #aj7 and all the sin-offerings--two hundred and fifty pigeons a day--more than eighty for each priest4 ,in keeping the second passover under ,sinai1 #aej1jjj lambs must have been killed--i4 e4 one for each family 7,ex4 #ab3 #c1 #d74 ,the ,levites slew them1 and the three priests had to sprinkle the blood from their hands 7#a ,chron4 #cj3 #af2 #ce3 #aa74 ,the killing had to be done 8between two evenings0 7,ex4 #ab3 #f71 and the sprinkling had to be done in about two hours4 ,the killing must have been done in the court of the tabernacle 7,lev4 #a3 #c1 #e2 #ag3 #b-f74 ,the area of the court could have held but #ejjj people at most4 ,here the lambs had to be sacrificed at the rate of #abej a minute1 and each of the three priests had to sprinkle the blood of more than #djj lambs every minute for two hours4 ,the number of warriors of the ,israelites1 as recorded at the ,exodus1 was #fjj1jjj 7,ex4 #g3 #cg72 subsequently it was #fjc1eej 7,ex4 #ch3 #be-bh71 and at the end of their wanderings it was #fja1gcj 7,num4 #bf3 #ea74 ,but in #b ,chron4 #ac3c1 ,abijah1 king of ,judah1 brings #j1jjj men against ,jeroboam1 king of ,israel1 with #j1jjj1 and 8there fell down slain of ,israel #ejj1jjj chosen men0 7ver4 #ag74 ,on another occasion1 ,pekah1 king of ,israel1 slew of ,judah in one day1 #abj1jjj valiant men 7#b ,chron4 #bh3 #f47 ,the ,israelites at their ,exodus were provided with tents 7,ex4 #af3 #af71 in which they undoubtedly encamped and dwelt4 ,they did not dwell in tents in ,egypt1 but in 8houses0 with 8doors10 8sideposts10 and 8lintels40 ,these tents must have been made either of hair or of skin 7,ex4 #bf3 #g1 #ad2 #cf3 #ad1 #ai7--most probably of the latter--and were therefore much heavier than the modern canvas tents4 ,at least #bjj1jjj were required to accommodate #b1jjj1jjj people4 ,supposing they took these tents from ,egypt1 how did they carry them in their hurried march to the ,red ,sea8 ,the people had burdens enough without them4 ,they had to carry their kneading-troughs with the dough unleavened1 their clothes1 their cooking utensils1 couches1 infants1 aged and infirm persons1 and food enough for at least a month's use1 or until manna was provided for them in the wilderness1 which was 8on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departure out of the land of ,egypt0 7,ex4 #af3a74 ,one of these tents1 with its poles1 pegs1 etc41 would be a load for a single ox1 so that they would have needed #j4jjj oxen to carry the tents4 ,but oxen are not usually trained to carry goods on their backs1 and will not do so without training4 ,then it is written3 8,these be the words which ,moses spake unto all ,israel0 7,deut4 #a3 #a74 8,and ,moses called all ,israel and said unto them0 7,deut4 #e3a74 8,there was not a word of all that ,moses commanded1 which ,joshua read not before all the congregation of ,israel1 with the women1 and the little ones1 and the strangers that were conversant among them0 7,josh4 #h3 #ce74 ,how was it possible to do this before at least #b1jjj1jjj people8 ,could ,moses or ,joshua1 as actual eye-witnesses1 have expressed themselves in such extravagant language8 ,surely not4 ,the camp of the ,israelites must have been at least a mile and a half in diameter4 ,this would be allowing to each person on the average a space three times the size of a coffin for a full-grown man4 ,the ashes1 offal1 and refuse of the sacrifices would therefore have to be carried by the priest in person a distance of three-quarters of a mile 8without the camp1 unto a clean place0 7,lev4 #d3aa1 #ab47 ,there were only three priests--namely1 ,aaron1 ,eleazar1 and ,ithamar--to do all this work for #b1jjj1jjj people4 ,all the wood and water would have to be brought into this immense camp from the outside4 ,where could the supplies have been got while the camp was under ,sinai1 in a desert1 for nearly twelve months together8 ,how could so great a camp have been kept clean8 ,but how huge does the difficulty become if we take the more reasonable dimensions of twelve miles square for this camp2 that is1 about the size of ,london6 ,imagine at least half a million of men having to go out daily a distance of six miles and back to the suburbs for the common necessities of nature1 as the law directed4 ,the ,israelites undoubtedly had flocks and herds of cattle 7,ex4 #cd3 #c74 ,they sojourned nearly a year before ,sinai1 where there was no food for cattle2 and the wilderness in which they sojourned nearly forty years is now and was then a desert 7,deut4 #cb3 #aj2 #h3 #ae74 ,the cattle surely did not subsist on manna6 ,among other prodigies of valor1 #ab1jjj ,israelites are recorded in ,num4 #ca as slaying all the male ,midianites1 taking captive all the females and children1 siezing all their cattle and flocks1 numbering #hjh1jjj head1 taking all their goods and burning all their cities1 without the loss of a single man4 ,then they killed all the women and children except #cb1jjj virgins1 whom they kept for themselves4 ,there would seem to have been at least #hj1jjj females in the aggregate1 of whom #dh1jjj were killed1 besides 7say7 #bj1jjj boys4 ,the number of men slaughtered must have been about #dh1jjj4 ,each ,israelite therefore must have killed #d men in battle1 carried off #h captive women and children1 and driven home #fg head of cattle4 ,and then after reaching home1 as a pastime1 by command of ,moses1 he had to murder #f of his captive women and children in cold blood4 ,now1 ,i respectfully submit that1 judging from the account of the ,exodus of the ,jews1 which they have written themselves1 we cannot credit it4 ,the narrative is full of contradictions1 and is so absurd and incredible1 and even impossible1 that we must regard it as a huge myth4 ,there may have been an ,exodus from ,egypt1 of which this account is an exaggeration1 but it bears so many evidences of the fabulous that we cast it aside and are led to doubt whether the ,jews were ever in ,egypt except as tramps and vagabonds1 and to suspect that the whole story is an adapted history of some great exodus of some ancient tribes written for a purpose4 ,i think it has been shown that the ,jews were not the people that they have been supposed to be4 ,they are a modern people in the world's history1 antedated by many highly-civilized and powerful nations4 ,they are not descendants of ,abram1 as will be shown more fully hereafter1 and their population never reached the fabulous numbers that are given in what is called their sacred history4 ,indeed1 there is so much of the fabulous about them1 so much of false pretence that upon the very face is impossible and incredible1 that the wonder is that ,christians should ever have seriously thought of regarding them and their institutions as the source and substance of what ,christianity is4 ,we have no prejudice against the ,jews4 ,we cast no reflection upon the so-called ,hebrews of the present day4 ,they are not responsible for their ancestors1 any more than ,gladstone1 ,huxley1 ,tyndall1 ,spencer1 and other brainy ,englishmen are responsible for the savagery and barbarism of their forefathers4 ,it has been our object in this chapter to show the ,munchausenish character of ,jewish history1 upon which the whole superstructure of modern theology rests4 ,if anybody is proud of his descent from such a people1 he is welcome to the glory4 ,,chapter ,,iv4 ,,moses ,,and ,,the ,,pentateuch 8,but even unto this day1 when ,moses is read1 the veil is upon their heart40--#b ,cor4 #c3ae4 ,,the first five books of the ,old ,testament1 supposed by many to have been written by ,moses1 are called the ,pentateuch4 ,in the early chapters of ,genesis1 in the 8,authorized ,version10 there is placed at the head of the page in the margin1 8a4 m4 #a10 which mean ,anno ,mundi--the year of the world--one1 and immediately below it are the letters 8b4 c40--which mean ,before ,christ--8#djjd40 ,this is the system of chronology established by ,archbishop ,ussher1 and means that #djjd years before ,christ the world was one year old4 ,it is claimed that ,moses promulgated the law about #adea b4 c41 and this must have been about two thousand five hundred and fifty-three years after the ,creation1 which added to #ahij1 the present date1 would make the world just five thousand eight hundred and ninety-four years old4 ,lyell1 a most judicious geologist estimated the delta of the ,mississippi at one hundred thousand years1 and some persons think these figures should have been doubled4 ,professor ,john ,fiske thinks the glacial period began two hundred and forty thousand years ago1 and that human beings inhabited ,europe at least one hundred and sixty thousand years earlier1 thus giving an antiquity to our race of not less than four hundred thousand years4 ,other scientists talk of hundreds of thousands1 and even millions1 of years1 but we attach no importance to specific figures4 ,we simply insist upon an antiquity which very far exceeds six thousand years4 ,learned ,egyptologists place ,rameses ,,ii41 the ,pharaoh of the ,jewish captivity1 whose mummy is now to be seen in the museum at ,cairo1 at #acij years b4 c4 ,it seems strange that his mummy should be on exhibition in a museum when 8he and all his hosts were swallowed up in the ,red ,sea40 ,if we are told that ,rameses ,,ii4 was succeeded by ,sethi ,,ii41 we find from ,egyptian records that both of these kings lived to a good old age1 and the mummy of each has been preserved1 and not even a hint is given that either of them was drowned4 ,but we have1 according to the tables of ,abydos and ,bunsen1 which are generally accepted1 three thousand six hundred and twenty years before ,christ as the time in which ,menes1 the first monarch of ,egypt1 reigned1 making two thousand two hundred and thirty years as the period of the ,egyptian monarchy before the reign of ,rameses ,,ii4 ,but ,i contend that ,egyptian civilization extends back at least seven thousand years1 and ,miss ,amelia ,b4 ,edwards1 the ,egyptologist1 who has recently lectured in our ,pennsylvania ,university course1 thinks ten thousand years not too high an estimate4 ,in support of ibis hypothesis1 the great antiquity of man1 which no scholar now disputes1 carries us back many thousands of years beyond ,menes1 and there are many facts which favor the assumption that the valley of the ,nile was one of the places inhabited for an indefinite period4 ,the works of art--monuments1 architecture1 paintings1 etc4--show an antiquity that cannot be estimated4 ,manetho1 an ,egyptian priest1 who wrote a history of ,egypt1 by request of ,ptolemy ,,ii41 two hundred and eighty-six years before ,christ1 carries us back more than seven thousand years4 ,the ,pentateuch is a compilation by several authors1 and hence its patchwork character4 ,professors ,ewald and ,kuenen and others have proved this1 and ,dean ,stanley1 of the ,english ,establishment1 has admitted it4 ,some portions may have been compiled eight hundred or nine hundred years before ,christ1 but not the two contradictory accounts of the creation and fall of man4 ,the ,assyrian cuneiform tablets1 which were discovered in #ahgc and #ahgd a4 d41 and which are now in the ,british ,museum1 show that this ancient people had this story about two thousand years before the time of ,moses4 ,the ,jews learned it in ,babylon1 and none of the other ,old-,testament writings contain any notice of it1 because it was not known until after the return of the ,jews from their captivity in ,babylon1 five hundred and eighteen years before ,christ4 ,is it not reasonable to suppose that the various ,old-,testament writers would have made some reference to the ,pentateuch had they known of its existence8 ,professor ,franois ,lenormant of the ,national ,library of ,france1 a most learned archaeologist and palaeontologist1 and a most devout ,christian1 in his ,beginnings of ,history admits that the ,jews borrowed substantially the story of the creation and the fall from more ancient nations1 and furnishes the original copies4 ,the legends recorded in ,genesis are found among many ancient peoples who lived many centuries before ,moses2 and ,berosus1 a priest of the temple of ,belus1 who wrote two hundred and seventy-six years before ,christ1 affirms that fragments of ,chaldean history can be traced back #ae ,sadi or #aej1jjj years4 ,i have mentioned these things because they are germane to what is to follow4 ,there is good reason for thinking that the book of ,deuteronomy was written about six hundred and twenty-one years before ,christ1 and the remaining books of the ,pentateuch were of later date1 coming down to four hundred and fifty years before ,christ4 ,this ,professor ,kuenen has demonstrated beyond controversy in his ,religion of ,israel1 to which ,i must refer for his arguments in detail4 ,the best scholarship of the world does not believe that what is called the ,law of ,moses was written prior to the fifth or sixth century before ,christ1 and learned men in ,holland1 ,germany1 and ,england1 as well as the most advanced thinkers in ,america1 now accept this opinion4 ,professor ,robertson ,smith1 in the ,encyclopdia ,britannica1 adopts this view1 and ,dean ,stanley1 in his ,jewish ,church1 does not leave us in doubt as to his opinion4 ,take the following as an example of what ,i mean 7,gen4 #ab3f73 8,and the ,canaanite was then in the land20 whereas the expulsion of the ,canaanites did not occur until several centuries after the death of ,moses1 when this must have been written4 ,in ,gen4 7#cf3 #ca7 we read1 8,before there reigned any king over ,israel40 ,this must have been two hundred years after the death of ,moses4 8,the nations that were before you0 7,lev4 #ac3 #h7 of course presupposes that the ,canaanites had already been subdued4 8,now the man ,moses was very meek1 above all the men that were upon the face of the earth0 7,num4 #ab3ac71 could hardly have been written by ,moses himself4 ,the expression 8unto this day0 frequently occurs1 and shows that the time was long after the events took place4 ,it is also implied in various places that the writer resided in ,palestine1 and so it could not have been ,moses4 ,in ,deuteronomy 7#ai3 #ad7 we read1 8,thou shalt not remove thy neighbor's landmark which they of old time have set in thine inheritance40 ,they had no landmark to remove1 unless this was written concerning the land of ,canaan long after the death of ,moses4 ,they are reproached for not keeping the ,sabbath in the past for a long time1 and this is given as a reason for the ,captivity2 and hence ,leviticus #bf3cd1 #ce1 #dc was written after the ,captivity1 which began in #eig b4 c4 ,in ,gen4 #ad3ad1 ,lot is taken prisoner and rescued from his captors1 whom they 8pursued unto ,dan40 ,now1 there was no such place as ,dan until after the entrance into ,canaan4 ,we read in ,judg4 #ah3bg1 #bi that this city was called ,laish1 which was burned by the ,israelites1 and then they built a city1 and they called it 8,dan1 after the name of their father3 howbeit the name of the city was ,laish at first40 ,this 8trout in the milk0 is as striking as if some one should write of ,chicago when the ,declaration of ,independence was signed4 ,in ,gen4 #cf3ca we read1 8,and these are the kings that reigned in the land of ,edom before there reigned any king over the children of ,israel40 ,this passage shows that it was written after there had been kings in ,israel1 and could not have been written by ,moses4 ,i could show similar incongruities concerning the manna in ,gen4 #af3 #ce1 compared with ,josh4 #e3 #ab4 ,so ,deut4 #bd3 #ad must have been written after the entrance into ,canaan1 as until then they had no lands1 and there were no gates and no 8strangers within their gates40 ,the same might be said of the fourth commandment of the ,decalogue3 the ,israelites had no gates until after they entered ,canaan4 ,it could not have been written by ,moses in the wilderness of ,arabia4 ,these illustrations might be produced indefinitely1 but enough have been given to show that the ,pentateuch was written several hundred years after the death of ,moses1 and that we are justifiable in fixing the date for most of it in the fourth1 fifth1 or sixth century before the ,christian era4 ,the ,pentateuch abounds in duplicate traditions of the same transactions1 and also in diversity and contradictions4 ,these numerous repetitions are fatal to the supposition that it was written by ,moses4 ,if ,moses was the author of the ,pentateuch1 we should expect to find a good many hints of this in other parts of the ,bible2 whereas we have no reference to ,sinai and its awful thunders1 and1 although ,moses is mentioned in the ,new ,testament1 it only shows the existence of traditions to that effect at that time4 ,not until the time that ,christianity arose1 about thirteen hundred years after the death of ,moses1 did the tradition obtain currency that he was the author of the ,pentateuch4 ,the fact is1 the ,jews are a comparatively modern people1 and were not known as a nation until the time of ,alexander the ,great 7#cef-cbe b4 c471 and ,herodotus1 by never mentioning them1 so indicates4 ,while the ,hindoos1 ,egyptians1 ,grecians1 ,romans1 ,chaldeans1 and ,babylonians had their men of science1 literature1 and law1 whose fame only brightens with the flight of time1 the ,jews have no history except what was written by themselves1 and that is so absurd1 impossible1 and contradictory that nobody can believe it4 ,everybody knows that the ancient ,jews were the constitutional imitators of other peoples4 ,they have always been the second-hand clothes-dealers of the world4 ,as a race they never have been noted for originality1 but have always been ready to borrow what belonged to other people1 and then1 with characteristic self-complacency1 have claimed to be the 8original ,jacobs0 of everything good and great4 ,we intend this as no reflection upon the ,jews of the present day4 ,c4 ,staniland ,wake1 an ,english writer1 in his great work on the ,evolution of ,morality1 vol4 ii41 page #ei1 thus expresses his views3 8,judging from this fact1 many persons imagine--or at least1 from the superstitious reverence that they have for the ,decalogue1 appear to do so--that until the time of the ,hebrew lawgiver the most ordinary rules of morality were unknown4 ,the mere fact of ,egypt being the starting-point of the ,exodus ought to be sufficient to disabuse the mind of this idea1 without reference to the contents of the code itself4 ,but the moral laws given in the ,decalogue are of so primitive a character that it is absurd to suppose1 except on the assumption that the ,hebrews were at that period in a condition of pure savagery1 that ,god would personally appear to give his immediate sanction to them4 ,the commands1 ,honor thy father and thy mother1 ,thou shalt not kill1 ,thou shalt not commit adultery1 ,thou shalt not steal1 ,thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor1 ,thou shalt not covet1 were simply reiterations of laws to which the ,hebrews had been subject during their whole sojourn in ,egypt1 and which must1 in fact1 have been familiar to them before their ancestors left their traditional ,chaldean home40 ,then we must bear in mind that ,moses himself was an ,egyptian by birth1 and that he was brought up at the court of ,pharaoh until he was forty years of age1 and in ,acts #g3 #bb we are told that 8,moses was learned in all the wisdom of the ,egyptians1 and was mighty in words and in deeds40 ,the whole matter relating to the ,pentateuch is thus summed up by the late ,prof4 ,john ,wm4 ,draper1 ,m4 ,d41 ,,ll4,d41 late of the ,university of ,new ,york1 in his ,conflict between ,religion and ,science3 8,no man may dare to impute them 7the books of the ,pentateuch7 to the inspiration of ,almighty ,god1 their inconsistencies1 incongruities1 and impossibilities1 as exposed by many learned and pious modern scholars1 both ,german and ,english1 are so great4 ,it is the decision of these critics that ,genesis is a narrative based upon legends2 that ,exodus is not historically true2 that the whole ,pentateuch is unhistoric and un-,mosaic3 it contains the most extraordinary contradictions and impossibilities1 sufficient to involve the credibility of the whole--imperfections so conspicuous that they would destroy the authenticity of any modern historical work40444 8,to the critical eye they all present peculiarities which demonstrate that they were written on the banks of the ,euphrates1 and not in the desert of ,arabia4 ,they contain many ,chaldaisms40444 8,from such ,assyrian sources the legends of the creation of the earth and heavens1 the ,garden of ,eden1 the making of man from clay and the woman from one of his ribs1 the temptation of the serpent1 etc41444 were obtained by ,ezra40 8,i agree in the opinion of ,hupfeld1 that the discovery that the ,pentateuch is put together out of the various sources of original documents is beyond all doubt1 is not only one of the most important and most pregnant with consequences for the interpretation of the historical books of the ,old ,testament--or rather for the whole of theology and history--but it is also one of the most certain discoveries which have been made in the domain of criticism and the history of literature40 ,but not only do the laws of ,egypt antedate the laws accredited to ,moses1 but the ,hindoos had laws which were yet more ancient4 ,the writings of ,buddha1 who died in #dgg b4 c41 refer to older books and quote from them1 and these again refer to still older books1 until we reach laws which existed many thousands of years before the ,law of ,moses1 as the laws of ,manu were drawn from the 8immemorial customs0 of the nation and constitute a kind of common law4 8,the most accurate scholars point to ,india as the origin of ,egyptian civilization10 says ,le ,renouf1 the learned ,egyptologist4 ,if ,egyptian literature was derived in a remote period from ,india1 what must be the date of old ,india's laws as compared with the laws of the ,hebrews8 ,it is no wonder that ,max ,mller1 professor in the orthodox ,university of ,oxford1 says 7in ,chips1 vol4 i41 p4 #aa73 8,after carefully examining every possible objection that can be made against the date of the ,vedic hymns1 their claim to that high antiquity which is ascribed to them has not1 as far as ,i can judge1 been shaken40 ,the same learned ,sanskrit scholar says1 8,the opinion that the pagan religions were mere corruptions of the religion of the ,old ,testament1 once supported by men of high authority and great learning1 is now as completely surrendered as the attempt at explaining ,greek and ,latin as corruptions of ,hebrew0 7,science of ,religion1 p4 #bd74 ,this great ,sanskrit scholar admits in many places in his voluminous writings the greater antiquity of the pagan scriptures1 and gives many weighty reasons to show how impossible and absurd it is to suppose that they have been changed and interpolated to adapt them to more modern times4 ,the ,vedas1 the sacred writings of the ,hindoos1 according to ,sir ,william ,jones the ,orientalist1 8cannot be denied to have an antiquity the most distant40 ,according to the ,brahmans1 they are coeval with the creation1 and the ,sama-,veda says1 8,they were formed of the soul of ,him who exists by1 or of1 himself40 ,the ,hindoo laws were codified by ,manu and copied by all antiquity1 notably by ,rome in the compilation or digest of the laws of all nations called the ,code of ,justinian1 which has been adopted as the foundation of all modern legislation4 ,i could1 did time permit1 furnish the laws of ,manu1 the ,justinian ,code1 and the ,civil ,code of ,napoleon in parallel columns1 in a way to show their common origin beyond a doubt4 ,laws of betrothal and marriage1 paternal authority1 tutelage1 and adoption2 property1 contract1 deposit1 loan1 sale1 partnership1 donation1 and testamentary bequest1--all were elaborately promulgated by the ,code of ,manu in #bfhj slocas4 ,laws were arranged under eighteen principal heads1 concerning as many different causes for which laws are enacted3 ,debts1 deposits and loans for use1 sale without ownership1 gifts1 non-payment of wages1 agreements1 sale and purchase1 disputes1 boundaries1 assaults1 slander1 robbery and violence1 adultery1 altercation between man and wife1 inheritance1 and gaming4 8,the court of ,brahma with four faces0 is where four learned ,brahmans sat in judgment1 one of whom was the king's chief counsellor4 ,one of their trite sayings was1 8,when justice1 having been wounded by iniquity1 approaches the court1 and the judges extract not the arrow or dart1 they also shall be wounded by it40 ,the mode of conducting lawsuits was1 in a great degree1 similar to that used in all civilized countries of the present day4 ,the oath taken by witnesses was as follows3 8,what ye know to have been transacted in the matter before us1 between the parties reciprocally1 declare at large and with truth1 for your evidence in the cause is required40 8,the witness who speaks falsely shall be fast bound under water in the snaky cords of ,varuna1 and be wholly deprived of power to escape torment during a hundred transmigrations40 ,brahmans were banished for giving false evidence1 but all others were punished by blows on the abdomen1 the tongue1 feet1 eyes1 nose1 and ears1 and in capital cases blows were inflicted upon the whole body4 ,some of the moral sayings of the ,hindoos run thus3 8,he who bestows gifts for worldly fame1 while he suffers his family to live in distress1 touches his lips with honey1 but swallows poison4 ,such virtue is counterfeit4 ,even what he does for his spiritual body1 to the injury of those he is bound to maintain1 shall bring him ultimate misery1 both in this world and the next4 8,content1 returning good for evil1 resistance to sensual appetite1 abstinence from illicit gains1 knowledge of the ,vedas1 knowledge of the ,supreme ,spirit1 veracity1 and freedom from wrath1 form the tenfold system of duties4 8,honor thy father and thy mother4 ,forget not the favors thou hast received4 ,learn whilst thou art young4 ,seek the society of the good4 ,live in harmony with others4 ,remain in thine own place4 8,speak ill of none4 ,ridicule not bodily infirmities4 ,pursue not a vanquished foe4 ,deceive even not thy enemies4 ,forgiveness is sweeter than revenge4 ,the sweetest bread is that earned by labor4 ,knowledge is riches4 8,what one learns in his youth is as lasting as graven on stone4 ,the wise is he who knows himself4 ,speak kindly to the poor4 ,discord and gaming lead to misery4 ,he misconceives his interest who violates his promise4 8,there is no tranquil sleep without a good conscience1 nor any virtue without religion4 ,to honor thy mother is the most acceptable worship4 ,of women the fairest ornament is modesty40 ,the following1 from the laws of ,manu 7lib4 iii4 ,sloca #ee71 will contrast strangely with the law of ,moses regarding the treatment of women and the esteem in which they should be held3 8,women should be nurtured with every tenderness and attention by their fathers1 their brothers1 their husbands1 and their brothers-in-law1 if they desire great prosperity40 8,where women live in affliction the family soon becomes extinct2 but when they are loved and respected1 and cherished with tenderness1 the family grows and prospers in all circumstances40 8,when women are honored the divinities are content2 but when we honor them not all acts of piety are sterile40 8,the households cursed by the women to whom they have not rendered due homage find ruin weigh them down and destroy them as if smitten by some secret power40 8,in the family where the husband is content with his wife1 and the wife with her husband1 happiness is assured for ever40 ,that there were many trivial things in the ancient pagan laws1 and many practices prevailed among a portion of the people which seem idolatrous1 we freely admit2 but the same is true of many of the ,hebrew laws1 which are too obscene for quotation here4 ,we also find among the ,hebrews all forms of nature-worship1 such as sun-worship1 tree-worship1 fire-worship1 ser-pent-worship1 and phallic-worship4 ,of this more later on4 ,besides the ,hindoos and the ,egyptians1 there were many nations more ancient than the ,hebrews4 ,the ,grecian ,argos was founded #ahjg b4 c4 ,athens and ,sparta existed #aeej b4 c4 ,then there were the ,phnicians1 a maritime people who flourished more than five thousand years ago1 whose monuments and inscriptions are found in ,palestine to-day1 while the ,hebrews have left us neither monument nor inscription4 ,the ,chaldeans established a monarchy four thousand or five thousand years ago1 and three thousand five hundred or four thousand years back the ,assyrians became masters of the valley of the ,euphrates and the ,tigris1 and from these people the ,jews got all they ever knew about things subsequently recorded in the ,pentateuch4 ,the ,jewish and ,christian religions 7for they are claimed to be one7 are next to being the youngest1 or most modern1 of any of the great religions of the world1 the ,mohammedan being the last4 ,each claimed divine authority2 all had their lawgivers1 priests1 and prophets1 who wrote1 as they claimed1 their bibles by divine inspiration4 ,the error of ,judaism is in claiming the greatest antiquity1 as well as claiming to be the only religion having the divine sanction4 ,i cannot refrain from mentioning some things which cannot be regarded as wholly irrelevant4 ,moses had a very remarkable experience in his infancy4 ,at his birth he was placed in an ark and set afloat on the ,nile1 and was rescued by ,pharaoh's daughter1 who called a nurse for him who proved to be his mother4 ,we have many counterparts of this in ,grecian and ,egyptian mythology4 ,perseus was shut up in a chest and cast into the sea by the king of ,argos1 and was found by ,dictys1 who educated him4 ,bacchus was confined in a chest by order of the king of ,thebes1 and was cast upon the ,nile4 ,he had two mothers--natural and adopted4 ,osiris1 the ,egyptian divinity1 was confined in a coffer and thrown into the river4 ,he floated to ,phnicia4 ,his mother wandered in silence and grief to ,byblos1 and was selected by the king's servants and taken to the palace1 and was made the nurse of the young prince4 ,we could give several other parallel cases1 but we pause and wonder whether the reported experience of ,moses was not another version of the same myth4 ,we next find this 8greatest of statesmen and lawgivers0 a fugitive from justice 7,ex4 #b3 #aa-ae74 ,he had killed a man and buried him in the sand1 and when he learned that the murder was known by the ,hebrews1 and ,pharaoh sought to slay him1 he fled to the land of ,midian and tended the flocks of ,jethro1 a priest1 until he was eighty years old4 ,he knew then that it was wrong to kill just as well as he did after receiving the ,ten ,commandments2 for he 8looked this way and that0 to find out whether any one saw him1 and 8he feared1 and said1 ,surely this is known40 ,he showed a sense of guilt4 ,he always seemed afraid of ,pharaoh on account of this murder4 ,he was next commissioned to deliver his brethren from their bondage in ,egypt1 and was instructed to say that 8,i ,am that ,i ,am0 had sent him 7,ex4 #c3 #ad74 ,now1 it seems to me very strange that ,nuk-,pa-,nuk was the ,egyptian name for ,god1 and means1 8,i ,am that ,i ,am60 7,bonwick1 ,egyptian ,belief1 p4 #cie74 ,this name was found upon an ,egyptian temple1 according to ,higgins 7,anacalypsis1 vol4 ii4 p4 #ag71 who says1 8,i ,am was a divine name understood by all the initiated among the ,egyptians20 and ,bunsen affirms1 in his ,keys of ,st4 ,peter1 that the 8,i ,am of the ,hebrews was the same as the ,i ,am of the ,egyptians40 ,there is another peculiarity about ,moses that seems strange to me4 ,in his statue in ,fairmount ,park he is represented as having horns1 and he is so portrayed in the statue by ,michael ,angelo4 ,now the sun-god ,bacchus had horns1 and so had ,zeus1 the ,grecian supreme deity4 ,bacchus was called 8the ,lawgiver10 and it is said that his laws were written upon two tables of stone4 ,it is also said that he and his army enjoyed the light of the sun 7pillar of fire7 during the night-time1 and he1 like ,moses1 had a rod with which divers miracles were wrought4 ,the ,persian legend relates that ,zoroaster received from ,ormuzd the ,book of the ,law upon a high mountain4 ,minos received on ,mount ,dicta1 from ,zeus1 the supreme god1 the law4 ,there are many such cases4 ,even ,mohammed1 it is said1 so received the ,koran4 ,then the crossing of the ,red ,sea by ,moses and his three millions of absconding slaves 8dry-shod10 and the 8rock in the wilderness giving forth water when struck by the rod of ,moses10 both have several parallels4 ,orpheus1 the earliest poet of ,greece1 relates how ,bacchus had crossed the ,red ,sea dry-shod at the head of his army1 and how he 8divided the waters0 of the rivers ,orontes and ,hydaspis and passed through them 8dry-shod10 and how he drew water from the rock with his wonderful rod4 ,professor ,steinthal notes the fact 8that almost all the acts of ,moses correspond to those of the sun-gods40 ,it may seem strange that the ,hebrews were acquainted with ,grecian mythology1 yet we know this was the fact4 ,rev4 ,dr4 ,isaac ,m4 ,wise says1 8,the ,hebrews adopted forms1 terms1 ideas1 and myths of all nations with whom they came in contact1 and1 like the ,greeks1 in their way cast them all in a peculiar ,jewish religious mould40 ,moreover1 there are strange inconsistencies and contradictions connected with the alleged giving of the ,law to ,moses4 ,in both ,exodus and ,deuteronomy ,god is represented as speaking the words1 and in ,deut4 #e3bb it is said ,god 8wrote them on two tables of stone0 after speaking them1 and in ,ex4 #bd3 #bh ,moses is represented as doing the writing3 8,and he wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant1 the ten commandments40 ,we here find a hundred commandments1 more or less1 of a ceremonial character1 and only one of the original ten1 the one relating to the ,sabbath1 and we here find 8earing-time and harvest0 made a season of rest just as much as the ,sabbath4 ,then there are different reasons given for the observance of the ,sabbath in ,ex4 #bj and ,deut4 #e--the one that ,god 8rested on the seventh day0 after creating all things in six days 7of course this was in six days of twenty-four hours each1 else there was no pertinency in the reason72 and the other1 that it was in commemoration of the deliverance of the ,hebrews from the bondage in ,egypt4 ,it has been claimed that at least the ,sabbath is an institution first established in the ,decalogue of ,exodus1 and yet even this must be denied4 ,evidences of the observance of the seventh day as sacred are found in the calendars of the ancient ,egyptians and ,assyrians1 and the ,records of the ,past assert that ,sabbath observance was in existence at least eleven hundred years before ,moses or ,exodus among the ,accadians1 ,chaldeans1 and ,assyrians4 ,there are also great variances in the language of the two accounts in ,exodus and ,deuteronomy1 which could not have existed if copied from what ,god had written in stone4 ,the second table of stone was an exact copy of the first 7,deut4 #aj3b74 ,when ,moses got excited at ,aaron's golden calf and broke the two tables of stone containing the ,law1 and ,god was going to destroy the people1 ,moses dissuaded him from doing so by telling him what the ,egyptians would then say about him6 7,num4 #ad2 #ac-af47 ,it is worthy of note that the first commandment is of doubtful monotheism3 ,thou shalt have no 8other gods before me10 implying that there were other gods4 ,then there is something not pleasant in the idea of a 8jealous ,god10 as used in this commandment and frequently in other places4 ,contrast this with the ,hindoo ,geeta1 where ,god is represented as saying1 8,they who serve even other gods1 with a firm belief in doing so1 involuntarily worship ,me4 ,i am ,he who partaketh of all worship1 and ,i am their reward40 ,god is defined in the ,hindoo ,vedas as1 8,he who exists by himself1 and who is in all because all is in him2 whom the spirit can alone perceive2 who is imperceptible to the organs of sense2 who is without visible parts1 ,eternal1 the ,soul of all being1 and whom none can comprehend40 8,god is one1 immutable1 without form or parts1 infinite1 omnipresent1 and omnipotent40 ,no need to prohibit the making of a 8graven image0 to represent such a god4 ,now take ,moses' description of ,god4 ,he only saw his 8back parts0 7,ex4 #cc3 #bb1 #bc71 and ,god held his hand over him when in the cleft of the rocks while he passed by1 that he might not see his glory4 ,and1 while it is said1 8,thou canst not see my face2 for there shall no man see me and live0 7,ex4 #cc3 #bj71 yet 8the ,lord spake unto ,moses face to face1 as a man speaketh unto his friend0 7,ex4 #cc3aa74 ,he was with him in the mountain forty days and nights1 and saw him and talked to him1 and so did at least seventy-three other persons 7,ex4 #bd3 #i74 ,yet we are told in ,john #a3ah1 8,no man hath seen ,god at any time40 ,then there are many other 8commandments0 in the ,bible which cannot be reconciled with the 8,ten ,commandments10 and very many acts regarded as criminal in this nineteenth century which are not forbidden1 but indirectly or tacitly sanctioned4 ,one of the 8,ten ,commandments0 is1 8,thou shalt not kill10 but husbands are directed to kill their wives if they propose to them a change of religion1 and killing is commanded in numerous instances and for trivial offences1 such as picking up sticks to make a fire on the ,sabbath4 ,take the following as specimens of the cruelty of ,moses3 8,but of the cities of these people1 which the ,lord thy ,god doth give thee for an inheritance1 thou shalt save nothing alive that breatheth0 7,deut4 #bj3af74 ,here is another of his injunctions3 8,thus saith the ,lord ,god of ,israel1 ,put every man his sword by his side1 and go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp1 and slay every man his brother1 and every man his companion1 and every man his neighbor0 7,ex4 #cb3bg74 ,here is another3 8,thus saith the ,lord of hosts1 ,i remember that which ,amalek did to ,israel some four hundred years before1 how he laid wait for him10 etc4 8,now go and smite ,amalek1 and utterly destroy all that they have2 slay both man and woman1 infant and suckling1 ox and sheep1 camel and ass0 7#a ,sam4 #ae3 #b1 #c74 ,this was sweeping1 merciless revenge on the innocent4 ,he commands the ,jews to swindle the ,egyptians by false pretence1 8spoiling0 them of their jewelry 7,ex4 #c3ai-bb74 ,he authorized them to take usury of strangers1 but not of one another2 and to sell the 8flesh of animals that had died of themselves0 to strangers and aliens1 but not to run the risk of poisoning themselves 7,deut4 #ad3ba74 ,in the affair with the ,midianites ,moses was more cruel than the officers and common soldiery4 ,he was 8wroth with them0 because they had saved all the women alive1 and required that they should go back and finish the brutal butchery4 ,i cannot do this subject justice without transcribing a large portion of ,num4 #ca3 8,and they warred against the ,midianites1 as the ,lord commanded ,moses2 and they slew all the males4 8,and they slew the kings of ,midian1 beside the rest of them that were slain2 namely1 ,evi1 and ,rekem1 and ,zur1 and ,hur1 and ,reba1 five kings of ,midian2 ,balaam also the son of ,beor they slew with the sword4 8,and the children of ,israel took all the women of ,midian captives1 and their little ones1 and took the spoil of all their cattle1 and all their flocks1 and all their goods4 8,and they burnt all their cities wherein they dwelt1 and all their goodly castles1 with fire4 8,and they took all the spoil1 and all the prey1 both of men and of beasts4 8,and they brought the captives1 and the prey1 and the spoil1 unto ,moses and ,eleazar the priest1 and unto the congregation of the children of ,israel1 unto the camp at the plains of ,moab1 which are by ,jordan near ,jericho4 8,and ,moses1 and ,eleazar the priest1 and all the princes of the congregation1 went forth to meet them without the camp4 8,and ,moses was wroth with the officers of the host1 with the captains over thousands1 and captains over hundreds1 which came from the battle4 8,and ,moses said unto them1 ,have ye saved all the women alive8 8,behold1 these caused the children of ,israel1 through the counsel of ,balaam1 to commit trespass against the ,lord in the matter of ,peor1 and there was a plague among the congregation of the ,lord4 8,now therefore kill every male among the little ones1 and kill every woman that hath known man by lying with him4 8,but all the women children1 that have not known a man by lying with him1 keep alive for yourselves40 ,what shall we say when we remember that ,moses found a refuge with the ,midianites for forty years when he was a fugitive from justice for the murder of the ,egyptian1 and the ,midianites were the first to show the ,jews hospitality when they escaped from the bondage of ,egypt8 ,moreover1 ,moses had married a woman of ,midian1 and might have been supposed to have some regard for her kinswomen4 ,it cannot be claimed that ,moses was compelled by the low condition of the people to treat the ,midianites thus1 for he was the sole author of this extreme butchery of women and children1 and was 8wroth0 with his officers for not committing the atrocity in the first place4 ,true1 he charges the women with having 8caused the children of ,israel1 through the counsel of ,balaam1 to commit trespass against the ,lord in the matter of ,peor but this could not justify the butchery of some forty-eight thousand women and twenty thousand boys1 besides the old men4 ,and then the thirty-two thousand virgins had a fate worse than death1 though called the ',lord's tribute'10 and the priests got their full share of the spoil4 ,for those who would justify such cruelty and wholesale butchery1 as they would justify famine and pestilence the effect of natural laws1 ,i can have no very great respect4 ,it has been said1 8,cruel as many of the ,mosaic punishments undoubtedly were1 it is well to remember that two hundred years ago the criminal code of ,england was almost1 if not equally1 bloody4 ,if ,moses stoned adulteresses to death1 it is not very long since we put witches and ,quakers to death1 while in many other countries the stake and the fagot were the chief arguments in aid of orthodoxy4 ,it would not be just to judge of the punishments inflicted over three thousand years ago from the standpoint of the present century1 when the ,mosaic dispensation has passed away and that of the law of love substituted4 ,there was no mercy in the smoking rocks of ,sinai4 ,there was nothing but the law in all its sternness40 ,this is all very well1 but we should remember that the cruel criminal codes of modern times got their cruelty from the ,mosaic code4 8,thou shalt not suffer a witch to live0 7,ex4 #bb3 #ah7 was one of the laws of ,moses1 and from first to last thirty thousand witches were' executed in ,great ,britain and two hundred thousand in ,germany4 ,sir ,matthew ,hale pronounced the death-sentence on a 8witch10 and ,blackstone1 the great commentator1 thought that witchcraft must be real because the ,bible said there were witches6 ,scotland continued to burn witches until #agbb1 and ,germany until #aghj1 while in #aeae there were five thousand witches burned at ,geneva4 ,i am ashamed to speak of our own hanging of witches in ,massachusetts1 but it is very well known that it was done by authority of the law of ,moses3 8,a man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit1 or that is a wizard1 shall surely be put to death3 they shall stone them with stones3 their blood shall be upon them0 7,lev4 #bj3 #bg747a7 ,rev4 ,rabbi ,hirsch sums up his conclusions as the result of his study of the ,pentateuch3 8,the non-authenticity of the ,pentateuch is shown by the work itself4 ,it is indicated by--7#a7 ,the impossible occurrences in the desert2 7#b7 ,the various contradictions and repetitions1 as in the descriptions of the festivals2 the provision of the officiators for the sacrifices2 the appropriations of the tithes2 the rules for sacrificing the first-born children to ,deity--the law regulating these matters varying in ,deuteronomy and ,numbers2 7#c7 ,certain phrases used1 as 8up to the present day10 which lose all significance if applied to ,moses4 ,thus the book itself shows not one author1 but many4 8,the non-authenticity of the ,pentateuch is shown also by lack of reference to it in the prophetical and historical books4 ,jeremiah1 when denouncing in unmeasured terms the very sins prohibited by the ,decalogue1 never uses the language of those cardinal rules of morality2 the prophecies show no trace of the priestly ordinances2 and1 though most of the laws refer to ,sinai1 the name occurs in none of the prophetical books4 7#a7 ,in #ahfe the witch-laws were yet in force in ,south ,carolina6 8,it contains old songs2 embodies the written law or judicial decisions of the ,israelites in the ,book of the ,covenant2 springs from two currents of history1 the ,elohist and ,jehovist1 the former composed of the younger ,elohist of the ,south and the older ,elohist of the ,north2 shows ,deuteronomy very much altered from its original form by emendations and additions1 being formerly without the first four and the closing chapters1 and the ,levitical ,law or ,priestly ,codex having been later incorporated with ,joshua and the books of ,moses2 and lastly it is marred by changes made in accordance with the new religious spirit40 ,we know very little about ,moses4 ,if there ever was such a man--which is very doubtful1 taking the writings accredited to him for authority--he is not shown to have been 8the greatest statesman and lawgiver the world has ever produced40 ,neither have the ,jews ever developed1 in ancient or modern times1 such a moral character as a people as to justify the supposition that they had a great and inspired leader among them1 and that he taught them anything not well known for many centuries before to more ancient and more intelligent nations4 ,the assumption that ,moses was the author1 under divine guidance1 of what is commonly called the ,ten ,commandments1 about one thousand four hundred and fifty-one years before the ,christian era1 is assumption only1 without a particle of proof to sustain it4 ,what are commonly called the laws of ,moses were written by some person or persons unknown in the fifth or sixth centuries before the beginning of ,christianity4 ,most of the matter of what is called the ,pentateuch was borrowed from older and wiser nations--the ,egyptians1 the ,hindoos1 the ,greeks1 etc4 ,but for the unbounded credulity on this subject it would seem like an insult seriously to discuss the question1 ,which are the older writings8 and1 ,which the substantial copies8 ,unless a man is ready to take assumptions for demonstrated facts1 to ignore the museums and libraries1 to question the conclusions of the profound-est antiquarians1 and to make the stream of history flow backward1 he must admit that the ,hebrews were the borrowers47#a7 7#a7 ,the substance of this chapter was published in ,march1 #ahij1 in ,an ,open ,letter to ,hon4 ,edward ,m4 ,paxson1 ,chief-,justice of ,pennsylvania1 who had affirmed in a lecture before the ,law ,school of the ,university of ,pennsylvania that the 8law of ,sinai was the first of which we have any knowledge10 and that 8,moses was the greatest statesman and lawgiver the world has ever produced40 ,,chapter ,v4 ,,ancient ,,symbolism ,,and ,,modern ,,literalism 8,which things are an allegory40--,gal4 #d3bd4 ,,worship is natural to man1 and all systems of religion1 many think1 received their cult from ,nature-worship4 ,typology1 mythology1 theology followed each other as the links of a well-forged chain4 ,cicero well suggested3 8,do you not see how1 from the beginning1 from the productions of nature and the useful inventions of men have arisen fictitious and imaginary deities1 which have been the foundations of false opinions1 pernicious errors1 and miserable superstitions80 ,he asserts that 8if the sacred mysteries celebrated by the most ancient peoples were properly understood1 they would rather explicate the nature of things than portray the knowledge of the gods40 ,plato said he 8would exclude from his ideal republic the poems of ,homer1 because the young would not be able to distinguish between what was allegorical and what was actual40 ,proclus alleges that even ,plato himself drew many of his peculiar dogmas from the symbolisms of the ancients4 ,it is also said that he was curious to find out what was the secret meaning of the allegories of the more ancient sages and philosophers1 while at the same time he affirmed that what he should successfully find out he would keep to himself4 ,it is well known that the real offence of ,socrates was in publishing to the common people the wisdom secreted by other teachers4 ,heyne has truly said that 8from myths all the history and all the philosophy of the ancients proceed40 ,gerald ,massey1 in his great work ,the ,natural ,genesis1 claims that it is only in the symbolic stage of expression that we can expect to recover the lost meanings of priestly dogmas4 ,these are preserved in the gesture-signs1 ideographic types1 images1 and myths scattered over the world4 ,the symbolic extends beyond the written or spoken language of any people now extant4 ,he well says that 8ancient symbolism was a mode of expression which has bequeathed a mould of thought that imprisons the minds of myriads as effectually as the toad shut up in the rock in which it dwells is confined40 ,myths and allegories1 anciently unfolded to initiates in the mysteries1 have been ignorantly adopted by modern priests and published to the world as the literal truth4 ,the main dogmas of modern theology are based on distorted myths1 8under the shadow of which we have been cowering as timorously as birds in a stubble when an artificial kite in the shape of a hawk is hovering overhead40 ,modern dogmatic theology is largely what ,mr4 ,massey has tersely called 8fossilized symbolism40 ,it was the habit of the ,oriental mind to personify almost everything4 ,ancient mystics veiled all their thoughts in allegory and draped their sacred lessons in symbols4 ,they invented many poetic riddles and fantastic stories1 which the initiated knew to be fanciful1 but which in time came to be regarded by the masses as substantial historic facts4 ,it is well known that this method was not confined to the ancients1 but played a conspicuous part in the ,middle ,ages1 and that its baneful influence is not yet exhausted4 ,it will hereafter be shown that in no writings extant can be found so many illustrations of the symbolic method of teaching as in the ,jewish and ,christian ,scriptures4 ,even in our day the common people have not outgrown this habit of personification1 and are wont to tell their children of ,santa ,claus and ,kriss ,kringle who bring them presents at ,christmastime1 and of ,jack ,frost who will bite them if they go out in the cold4 ,modern folk-lore is full of symbolisms and personifications1 as real to multitudes as are the mythical stories found in writings supposed to contain an infallible divine revelation4 ,a large number of learned authors favor the theory that all systems of dogmatic theology are mythic suggestions of the phenomena of physical nature1 postulated by philosophers and poets in the most ancient periods of the world4 ,they maintain this hypothesis1 in part from the well-known fact that many of the most widely-separated peoples1 who never could have had any intercourse1 directly or indirectly1 have used the same imagery and substantially adopted the same systems of religion4 ,this suggestion regarding ,nature-worship is worthy of careful and reverent examination4 ,primitive peoples1 living mostly in the open air1 were brought in close contact with external natural objects and phenomena4 ,one of the most prevalent forms of religion in ancient times was tree-worship1 and it entered largely into the religious thought of the ancient ,jews4 ,the tree furnished the food1 mainly1 upon which our race in its infancy depended for subsistence4 ,the grove was called 8the retreat beloved by gods and men40 ,it furnished shelter from storm1 and shade from the tropical sun4 ,it was a place of rest and a thing of beauty4 ,mr4 ,barlow1 in his excellent book on ,symbolism1 says the most generally-received symbol of life was a tree4 ,it was inseparable from the ancient conception of a garden4 ,it was the 8tree of life0 in the mythic paradise4 ,it was suggestive of passion and offspring in connection with the serpent1 which was an emblem of male virility4 ,the tree has many suggestions1 not only in it leaves1 but in its fruit and mode of propagation4 ,the sap of certain trees has an exhilarating1 and even an intoxicating1 quality4 ,the sacred soma was taken before reading the ,vedic hymns 8to quicken the memory40 ,it was supposed to promote spirituality and inspiration4 ,various trees and plants are suggestive of fertility and fecundity in man4 ,the lotus is the flower of ,venus4 ,there is a 8language of trees0 as well as 8language of flowers40 ,there are poetic and symbolic reasons in the form of the stems and shape of the leaves for the display of orange-blossoms as bridal decorations1 as thoughtful botanists can readily see4 ,much of the symbolism of the ,old ,testament is identical with the ,eastern tree-worship2 and without some knowledge of this form of imagery much of the ,hebrew ,scriptures must remain a dead letter4 ,the frequent references to palms1 cedars1 oaks1 vines1 mandrakes1 etc4 etc41 are vastly significant to the adept in symbolism4 ,the ,jewish ,bible is full of ,nature-worship to all whose eyes are not veiled by sacerdotalism4 ,the fact that ,god is said to have appeared to ,moses in the burning bush is suggestive of both tree- and fire-worship 7,ex4 #c3 #b74 ,josephus says1 8,the bush was holy before the flame appeared in it and because it was holy it became the vehicle of the burning1 fiery1 jealous ,god of the ,jews4 ,even our ,christmas evergreens contain a recognition of the gods of the trees4 ,the feet is1 many of the religious rites of both ,jews and ,christians are but slight modifications of the ancient ,nature-worship1 as all well-read men know1 but to which truth our modern theologians are as blind as bats4 ,abraham1 the alleged progenitor of the ,jewish nation 7so called71 is represented as a dissenter from the religion of his native country2 yet he1 and his descendants and followers after him for hundreds of years1 employed the same religious symbols and forms of worship used by the people of ,chaldea and other so-called idolatrous nations4 ,read the solemn arraignment of the 8chosen people0 by the prophet1 recorded in ,ezek4 #af3ae to the end of that chapter1 if you would have proof of this charge4 ,the fact is1 if we treat the story of ,abraham and other so-called ,old-,testament patriarchs as we do the traditions of other nations1 we shall be forced to give it an esoteric interpretation rather than a literal or an historic one4 ,but more of this farther on4 ,serpent-worship is another form of sacred symbolism1 and has an intimate connection with phallic rites4 ,the serpent was not at first a personification of evil1 but of wisdom1 and is so used in our ,new ,testament1 8444 wise 7shrewd7 as serpents1 harmless as doves40 ,it also denotes the art or gift of healing1 and was not only so used by ,esculapius1 but also by ,moses1 and is recognized as a type by ,jesus himself3 8444 ,and as ,moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness1 even so must the ,son of man be lifted up1 that whosoever believeth on him should not perish1 but have1 eternal life0 7,num4 #ba3i2 ,john #c3ad1 #ae74 ,indeed1 the serpent has almost universally been regarded as a symbol of immortal life1 and especially1 as frequently presented in ancient sculptures1 with its tail in its mouth1 thus forming an endless circle4 ,this idea may have been suggested at first by its tenacity of life1 and its being so thoroughly alive in all its parts1 its body and tail moving and living after its head has been crushed2 and1 further1 from the periodic renewal of its skin1 suggesting a new and continuous life4 ,then there are other significant qualities in the serpent--viz4 its power of voluntary enlargement and self-erection1 combined with its intense gaze and wonderful secret of fascination and its noiseless and mysterious movement--all suggestive of the spirituel4 ,it is also a symbol of power and divinity1 and as such was embroidered upon ancient robes and flags of royalty4 ,upon a decorative banner recently displayed upon the walls of an edifice in ,philadelphia wherein recently met the ,general ,assembly of the ,presbyterian ,church of the ,united ,states1 the symbolic serpent was prominent2 and those who criticised it were silenced by a member's pointing to the fact that the serpent is engraved upon the seal of the ,general ,assembly itself4 ,think of ,presbyterians perpetuating serpent-symbolism6 ,it was doubtless the emblematic snakes which had been used in ,ireland in the ,druidic worship1 before the introduction of ,christianity1 that the somewhat mythical ,st4 ,patrick drove out of the 8,emerald ,isle0--all the snakes according to ,romish tradition1 now believed by millions of devout worshippers to be strictly historical1 though known by priests to be mythical4 ,he destroyed the emblematic serpents4 ,it was not until after the invention of the talking subtle serpent that tempted ,eve in ,eden that the serpent became a symbol of evil4 ,the ,jews never heard of that 8old serpent the devil0 until after their captivity in ,babylon4 ,we must not fail1 however1 according to the ,old ,testament1 to give ,king ,hezekiah credit for having been a sort of ,hebrew ,st4 ,patrick1 in attempting to drive serpent-worship from among the ,israelites after it had prevailed among them for about seven hundred years4 ,in a line or two we sum up the symbolism of the serpent1 as has been suggested1 in that it is thoroughly alive1 has a fiery nature1 is swift in motion1 and moves without bands or feet4 ,it assumes a variety of forms1 is long-lived1 and renews its youth by shedding its external covering1 and at pleasure stands erect1 enlarges its size1 is strong1 and is said to have the marvellous secret of fascination4 ,initiates worshipped only the qualities or principles symbolized by outward forms1 while the ignorant may have really worshipped the external or literal object4 ,every quality in the objects of the ancient ,nature-worship has suggested a religious dogma1 which was first incorporated into ancient systems of sacerdotalism1 and can now be traced in an occult and esoteric sense in all bodies of modern dogmatic theology4 ,ninety-nine out of every one hundred of professional ecclesiastics are as ignorant of these things as unborn babes1 while the select few know1 but conceal1 the truth4 ,the larger class are honest dupes and dunces1 while the others are hypocrites and impostors4 ,phallieism1 the worship of the genital organs1 was another form of natural symbolism4 ,men saw that in some mysterious way the race was propagated by the congress of the generative organs1 male and female1 and soon naturally worshipped them as at least the symbols of the unknown fecundating power of the universe4 ,this form of symbolism prevailed in the most distant ages1 and has continued in many countries unto the present time4 ,richard ,payne ,knight1 an honorable ,english gentleman1 in #ahfe wrote a quarto book1 of which only two hundred copies were printed1 entitled ,a ,discourse on the ,worship of ,priapus1 and its ,connection with the ,theology of the ,ancients1 in which this whole subject is boldly discussed1 and phallicism illustrated by one hundred and thirty-eight engravings1 many of them copied from actual emblems now preserved in the ,british ,museum and in the ,secret ,museum in ,naples4 ,major-,general ,forlong1 of the ,british army1 has also fully presented this subject in his recent quarto in two volumes1 entitled ,rivers of ,life2 or1 ,sources and ,streams of the ,faiths of ,man in all ,lands4 ,it would doubtless astound many modern theologians to be told that even the ,jews did not escape the influence of this form of ,nature-worship1 and that our ,bible1 especially the ,old ,testament1 contains many evidences of it2 and yet it is a fact4 ,circumcision was no doubt an offshoot of phallicism4 ,it did not originate with ,abraham4 ,it was known by the ,egyptians1 ,abyssinians1 and ,african tribes long before the time he is said to have lived4 ,it was practised1 according to ,herodotus1 at least twenty-four hundred years before our era1 and was even then an ancient custom4 ,when ,jacob entered into a covenant with ,laban1 a pillar was set up1 surrounded by a heap of stones 7,gen4 #ca3de-ec71 which was a phallic emblem1 and frequently used in the ,old ,testament4 ,hebrew patriarchs desired numerous descendants1 and hence the symbolic pillar was well suited to their religious cult4 ,the name of the reputed father of ,abraham1 ,terah1 signifies 8a maker of images40 ,in ,amos #e3 #bf it is said that the ,hebrews in the wilderness worshipped a deity known by a name signifying 8,god of the ,pillar10 as is shown by the name ,baal ,tamar1 which means the 8fructifying god40 ,the ,semitic custom of giving sanction to an oath or sacred pledge by what the ,hebrews called the 8putting of the hand under the thigh0 is explained by the ,talmudists to be the touching of that part of the body which is sealed and made holy by circumcision4 ,the translations of the ,jewish ,scriptures through motives of delicacy are full of these euphemisms4 ,professor ,joseph ,p4 ,lesley1 in his ,man's ,origin and ,destiny1 suggests that phallicism converted all the older ,arkite symbols into illustrations of its own philosophical conceptions of the mystery of generation1 and thus gave to the various parts of the human body those names which constitute the special vocabulary of obscenity of the present day4 ,every scholar knows it to be a fact that certain words and names now never spoken except by the vulgar abound in the original ,jewish writings1 and are partly concealed by the convenient methods of euphemism4 ,when ,abraham called his servant to take a solemn oath1 he required him to lay his hands upon his parts of generation as the most sacred and revered parts of his body 7,gen4 #bd3b71 and ,jacob1 when dying1 made his son ,joseph take the same form of oath 7,gen4 #dg3 #bi74 ,this was but little more than the equivalent of the modern custom of laying the hand upon the heart as a token of sincerity4 ,the proper translation of what the servant of ,abraham was required to do is given in the margin of ,bagster's ,comprehensive ,bible thus3 8,in sectione circumcisionis me40 ,we have in this form of phallic oath an important suggestion as to the origin1 or at least the use1 of the words testimony1 testament1 testify1 and their cognates 7testis1 a witness71 which cannot fail to occur to the learned reader1 but which cannot here be fully explained4 8,caute lege0 7read carefully7 was a warning of a secret or concealed meaning which esoteric writers anciently put in the margin of their books when they would call the special attention of the initiated to what is now called 8reading between the lines40 ,until our readers comprehend this hint they will not be able to understand what is really meant by the 8testimony0 mentioned in connection with the 8ark of the covenant10 as it occurs in ,ex4 #af3 #cd1 before any laws1 or even altars1 were known in ,sinai or its thunders heard of4 ,in this hint may also be found the true explanation of ,david's nude dance before the ark1 and of the attending circumstances4 ,scores and scores of proofs could here be furnished from the ,old-,testament ,scriptures1 showing that the use of phallic emblems was the rule rather than the exception for centuries among the ,jews2 and the idols stolen by ,rachel 7teraphim7 need no longer be misunderstood1 nor the meaning of the wedges upon which she sat and refused to rise when the 8custom of women was upon her0 7,gen4 #ca3ce74 ,she was engaged in an act of devotion4 ,general ,forlong asserts that at this present day ,queen ,victoria of ,christian ,england rules over more than one hundred millions of phallic worshippers6 ,indeed1 more than half of the population of our globe still worship1 as symbols of fertility and fecundity1 the genital organs4 ,a correspondent of the ,london ,times1 of ,april #h1 #ahge1 says3 8,the ,roman ,catholic ,church still keeps up certain suggestions of phallicism4 ,as the ancient temple or dagoba was the womb or feminine principle of the god ,siva or ,bod and others1 so the new cardinal1 ,archbishop ,manning1 was after his elevation conducted to his church1 which is here entitled1 in its relation to him1 bride or spouse1 he calling it sponsa mea4 ,the cardinal was called the bridegroom1 and the actual building 7the shrine of ,st4 ,gregory7 his spouse1 and not the spiritual ,church1 which is called ,chrises40 ,the ,times' correspondent further writes of this 8sacerdos magnus10 as he is termed1 going to meet his spouse1 the ,church3 8,he stood reverently at the door1 when holy water was presented to him and clouds of incense spread around him1 to symbolize that1 inasmuch as before the bridegroom enters the bride-chamber he washes and is perfumed1 so the cardinal1 having been espoused to the ,church with the putting on of a ring1 of his title1 holy water and incense were offered to him1 when the choir burst forth with the antiphon1 #8,ecce sacerdos magnus'--#8,behold the great sacerdotal6'0 ,we are thus assured1 as far as this is possible1 that the phallic idea and a phallic faith lie at the base of this creed2 and we are reminded of ,apis of the ,nile entering his palace for his works of sacrifice and mercy--terms applied to the ,great ,generator or ,great ,creator4 ,the ancients all taught that their ,great ,one1 ,manu1 ,man1 or ,noh1 was in the great ark which floats in the midst of the waters1 and that the whole was a mystery incomprehensible to the uninitiated4 ,he who is lord of the ,christian ark is the lord of all nations1 which the great sacerdos or pope claims to be4 ,he was till very lately a temporal as well as a spiritual head of kings and nations4 ,so no wonder that the holder of the rod1 baton1 or banner1 who occupies the place also of ,moses to lead his flocks through this wilderness1 is always examined as to his phallic completeness before being confirmed in the pontificate4 ,this1 we read in the life of ,leo ,x4 by ,roscoe1 is required in the case of popes1 just as the laws of ,moses required that all who came to worship their very phallic ,,jhvh should first prove their completeness as men4 ,from this we may conclude that eunuchs or incompetent men were children of the devil1 or at least1 not of this phallic god--a fact which the writer of ,matt4 #ai3ab1 and the ,fathers ,origen and ,valentine1 and a host of other saints who acted on this text1 must have overlooked4 ,wm4 ,roscoe1 the historian1 thus writes3 8,on the #aath of ,august1 #adib1 after old ,roderigo 7,borgia7 had assumed the name of ,alexander ,,vi41 and made his entrance as supreme pontiff into the church of ,st4 ,peter1 after the procession and pageants had all been gone through1 ,alexander was taken aside to undergo the final test of his qualifications1 which in his particular case might have been dispensed with40 ,the historian of course alludes to his numerous progeny4 ,the author expects to be criticised1 and perhaps charged with obscenity1 for introducing this subject4 ,but it has been well said3 8,prudery and pruriency are frequently companions1 equally impure and cowardly2 and in all scientific investigations they should be disregarded rather than conciliated40 ,the ancients saw no impurity in the symbolism of parentage to indicate the work of creation4 ,what is divine and natural to be and to do cannot be immodest and obscene4 ,no person can with decency and propriety impugn the operation of ,nature's laws to which he owes his existence2 and he is degraded and corrupt above all others who regards that law as essentially sensual4 ,phallicism meant no wrong until sensuality and impurity of life suggested that to mention it was indecorous4 ,no clean and chaste mind can be shocked by the most obvious laws of nature4 ,lydia ,maria ,child and other grand women have written brave words on this subject which silly prudes would do well to study1 if1 indeed1 they ever read anything beyond a lascivious ,french novel4 ,women only expose their ignorance when they are reddened with blushes at the mention of phallic worship1 and at the same time wear the mystic horse-shoe or the crescent upon their immaculate bosoms1 eat hot cross-buns1 dance around the ,maypole1 and worship beneath the church steeple4 ,even the vestments of priests are ornamented with phallic emblems2 and one can hardly go abroad without beholding things which show how innocently and unconsciously 8the records of the past0 are preserved in church architecture1 ecclesiastical rites1 and many other things daily before our eyes--well understood by really learned men1 but to the true origin and significance of which the masses are totally blind4 ,there are churches in ,philadelphia1 and elsewhere1 even among those who call themselves liberal1 which are ornamented with all the emblems of the ancient ,nature-worship1 especially sun-worship and phallus-worship4 ,the ,women's ,christian ,temperance ,union held a great meeting recently at ,ocean ,grove1 ,n4 ,j41 and innocently used a programme decorated with the horseshoe and many other phallic emblems4 ,they had the cat seated on the crescent1 which1 according to ,egyptian mythology1 said1 8,we are virgins1 but nevertheless desire that commerce which eventuates in offspring40 ,they had the emblematic hare also1 which always denotes fecundity1 and many other emblems not to be mentioned in polite society4 ,even our ordinary playing-cards1 over which so much precious time is wasted1 are distinguished by phallic symbols6 ,passing by the symbolism of fire-worship prevalent in nearly all ancient lands1 and omitting to notice ancestor-worship1 the worship of the sun1 which embraces nearly all the forms of ,nature-worship1 now claims our attention4 ,it should be kept in mind what has already been intimated1 that the use of natural objects in worship is not necessarily idolatrous4 ,the priests of ,chaldea1 ,babylonia1 ,hindostan1 and ,egypt disclaimed the actual worship of the material objects prominent in their rituals1 and held that these visible signs were necessary for the vulgar to contemplate1 while intelligent worshippers fixed their spiritual eyes upon the thing or principle signified by the sign4 ,the ,roman ,catholic ,church well understands this principle1 and by its appeal to the ear and eye of uneducated people attracts them to its gorgeous temples and holds them in loyal subjection to the priests4 ,take the following as an illustration of the ancient customs referred to3 8,mr4 ,f4 ,buckland tells us1 in ,land and ,water1 that on the first of ,may all the choristers of ,magdalen ,college1 ,oxford1 still meet on the summit of their tower1 one hundred and fifty feet high1 and sing a ,latin hymn as the sun rises1 whilst the final peal of ten bells simultaneously welcomes the gracious ,apollo4 ,in former days high mass was held here1 and the rector of ,slymbridge1 in ,gloucestershire1 it appears1 still has to pay ten pounds yearly for the one performance of sundry pieces of choir-music at #e ,a4 ,m4 on the top of this tower4 ,this ,may music1 ,christian priests explain1 is for the repose of the souls of kings and others1 which1 of course1 is quite an after-thought4 ,early mass for ,sol used also to be held in the college chapel1 but it is now explained that1 owing to this having been forbidden at the ,reformation1 it has since been performed at the top of the tower4 ,after the present hymn is sung by the choristers--boys dressed in womanly raiment--the lads throw down eggs upon the crowd beneath1 and blow long loud blasts to ,sol through bright new tin horns--showing us that the ,bacchic and ,jewish trumpet ftes are not yet forgotten by ,christians4 ,long before daybreak the youths of both sexes used to rise and go to a great distance to gather boughs and flowers1 and reach home at sunrise to deck all doors1 windows1 and loved spots4444 ,long before man was able to appreciate ploughing and harvesting1 he keenly felt the force of the winter and of the vernal equinox1 and was ready to appreciate the joyous warmth of the sun and its energizing power on himself1 as well as on fruits and flowers40 ,while the ,jewish and ,christian ,bibles contain traces of all forms of the ancient ,nature-worship1 there is one form that is specially conspicuous from the first chapter of ,genesis to the last of ,revelation--to wit1 the worship of the sun4 ,this form of worship was more general among pagan nations than any other4 ,it was natural for those primitive people1 leading pastoral lives in the open air1 to fix their attention upon the sun and to notice his relations to other celestial orbs4 ,it was natural for the contemplative and devout to come to regard the sun as the best emblem of the creating1 animating1 fecundating spirit of the universe1 while the ignorant multitude may never have looked beyond the material object4 ,those who have read the history of the sun-worshippers of ,mexico and ,peru1 detailed in the great works of ,prescott1 must have been impressed by the fact that these nations enjoyed a higher prosperity and a purer public morality when they were worshippers of the sun than they have ever enjoyed since under the ,roman ,catholic religion called ,christian4 ,to fully understand how the astronomical element came to be extensively incorporated into the ,jewish and ,christian religions1 it is absolutely necessary to familiarize ourselves with that ancient pictorial device known as the solar zodiac4 ,zodiac-#a ,zodiac-#b ,this is nothing more than an imaginary belt covering that region of the starry heavens within the bounds of which the apparent motions of the sun1 moon1 and many other large planets are observed4 ,it is divided into twelve equal parts of thirty degrees each1 called 8signs10 known as 8constellations0 and designated as follows3 ,aries1 the ,ram or ,lamb2 ,taurus1 the ,bull2 ,gemini1 the ,twins2 ,cancer1 the ,crab2 ,leo1 the ,lion2 ,virgo1 the ,virgin2 ,libra1 the ,balance2 ,scorpio1 the ,scorpion2 ,sagittarius1 the ,archer2 ,capricornus1 the ,goat2 ,aquarius1 the ,water-carrier2 ,pisces1 the ,fishes4 ,these constellations are filled up with imaginary forms of men1 women1 animals1 monsters1 and many fantastic figures1 each including a group of stars4 ,in the ancient astronomy these groups numbered thirty-six1 to which many modern additions have been made4 ,through these constellations passes a wavy line called the ,ecliptic1 apparently marking the path of the sun1 but really indicating the path of our own earth around the sun4 ,the sun seems to move thirty degrees a month1 and at the end of the year appears at the point from which he started4 ,we thus have a natural belt or way about sixteen degrees wide extending around the entire heavens1 one half the year north1 and the other half south1 of the equator4 ,but the sun does not cross the equator at the same point each year1 so that in crossing he is not always in the same sign4 ,the sun seems to recede1 and as the apparent recession of the sun is caused by the real movement of the earth1 the phenomenal result is the precession of the equinoxes2 and as the equinoctial point recedes in a fixed ratio1 this point will go back through the whole circle of the constellations in about twenty-five thousand years1 requiring about twenty-one hundred and sixty years to pass through each sign4 ,according to the ancient astrology1 the sun assumed at different times the character of the particular sign through which it passed1 and as such was symbolically worshipped4 ,four thousand years ago the sign ,taurus gave rise to the worship of the ,bull 7the ,egyptian ,apis72 and when the sun passed into the sign of ,aries the ,lamb1 this emblem dominated the worship of ,persians and other sun-worshippers1 and so became the paschal or passover lamb of the ancient ,hebrews4 ,you will now begin to see what this zodiacal device has to do with our interpretations of the ,bible4 ,the ,jewish ,scriptures also contain it1 and1 as will soon be made to appear1 it is impossible to make sense of large portions of the ,bible without it4 ,many superficial persons imagine this peculiar mapping of the celestial heavens to be a modern fancy1 because it is found in modern almanacs and in the maps and charts of modern school-books2 but the fact is that it is so old and so universal that it is impossible to ascertain with historical accuracy when and where and how it did originate4 ,there are two ancient zodiacs--one at ,esne on the ,nile1 and one in ,india--besides two more modern ones at ,denderah in ,egypt4 ,sir ,william ,drummond1 who wrote in #ahaa1 estimated the age of the one at ,esne at about #fejj years2 ,dupuis made it #ajjj years older2 while other calculations date the ,indian zodiac back #bb1hge years1 and the ,egyptian one #cj1ajj years4 ,these calculations are based upon the assumption that the signs were in a certain position at certain known times1 so that the computation is one of simple mathematical astronomy4 ,the credibility of these calculations is strengthened by the following fact3 ,upon the coffin of an ,egyptian mummy1 now in the ,british ,museum1 is found a zodiac with the precise indication of the position of the constellations in the year #agbb ,b4 c4 ,our own ,professor ,mitchell calculated the exact position of the celestial bodies belonging to our solar system at the time indicated1 and found that on ,october #g1 #agbb ,b4 c41 the planets had actually occupied the position in the heavens marked upon the mummy coffin6 ,but further proofs are superfluous1 as the zodiacal designs must be much older than the ,bible or they could not have been so frequently used in it4 ,the ,chaldean drama called the book of ,job is supposed by some persons to be very ancient1 and its author showed his familiarity with the zodiacal constellations when he so sublimely challenged his opponent3 8,canst thou bind the sweet influences of the ,pleiades1 or loose the bands of ,orion80 8,canst thou bring forth ,mazzaroth80 etc4 etc4 ,but can there be any doubt as to the antiquity of the zodiac when there is an honored ,protestant doctor of divinity1 now living1 who holds to the opinion that ,enoch1 or even ,adam himself1 invented the zodiac to foreshadow the redemption of fallen man through the birth1 death1 resurrection1 and ascension of a veritable ,god8 ,martin ,luther is said to have thrown his inkstand at the head of the devil4 ,if the lusty old ,reformer could now visit this world1 he would denounce in unmeasured terms of righteous wrath a man who under the garb of a ,lutheran minister could utter such consummate nonsense4 ,and yet we must not forget that ,dr4 ,martin ,luther himself denounced ,copernicus as an atheist and a fool4 ,it is the misfortune of the prevalent dogmatic theology that it was formed by people who held the geocentric theory--that is1 that this little globe is the centre of the universe4 ,even now our professional priests seldom extend their thoughts beyond the narrow limits of the planet upon which we dwell4 ,they do not realize that1 while the earth travels at the rate of #fh1jjj miles an hour1 ,mercury makes #aaj1jjj miles an hour1 and that the sun has #a1chj1jjj times our earth's bulk1 and has a diameter of #hbb1jjj miles to our earth's #hjjj2 and that astronomers have some knowledge of a fixed star in the constellation of the ,swan which is #fb1dha1ejj1jjj1jjj 7#fb trillions #dha billions #ejj millions7 of miles from this planet1 and that light1 which travels from the sun to the earth in eight minutes1 would require ten years to reach us from that star4 ,yet the author of the ,gospel in the ,stars thinks the whole celestial universe was so constructed as to shadow forth the dogmas of petty preachers of modern times6 ,one can only laugh at such fanciful follies4 ,,chapter ,,vi4 ,,astral ,,keys ,,to ,,bible ,,stories 8,therefore they took a key and opened them40--,judg4 #c3 #be4 ,,it is the carefully-formed conclusion of many independent thinkers that there is very little real history or biography in the ,old-,testament ,scriptures4 ,it is a monstrous mistake in modern ministers to take as literal what is1 in fact1 strictly allegorical4 ,the figurative character of most of the ,bible narratives was well known and freely admitted by many ancient writers1 ,jewish and ,christian1 as will be shown hereafter4 ,it would be natural to commence our studies of ,hebrew symbolism with the account of the creation and alleged fall of man2 but as this dogma is so directly connected with the dogmas of modern sacerdotalism1 we reserve the examination of the so-called ,mosaic account of ,eden and the fall until we are ready to enter upon what is called1 in theological parlance1 8the redemptive scheme0 of ,christianity4 ,we say so-called ,mosaic account1 for there are many reasons for doubting1 as ,i have shown1 that he wrote the ,pentateuch1 should his existence be admitted for the sake of argument4 ,archbishop ,burnet1 in speaking of the story of creation1 says3 8,we receive this history without examination1 because it was written by ,moses2 but if we had found it in the work of a ,greek philosopher1 a rabbi1 or ,mohammedan1 our minds would be arrested at every step by doubts and objections4 ,this difference in our judgment does not come from the nature of the facts2 it comes from the opinion we have of ,moses1 whom we believe to be inspired40 ,here are three assumptions not supported by a particle of evidence1 to wit3 that such a man as ,moses existed1 that he was supernaturally inspired1 and that he wrote ,genesis and other books of the ,pentateuch under divine inspiration4 ,now1 we have no account of the real existence of ,moses1 and no account of what he did and said except from writings accredited to him and the incidental mention of him in the ,new ,testament4 ,his alleged wonderful exploits in ,egypt are not mentioned in ,egyptian annals nor in any other contemporaneous writings1 while many things-said of him in the ,old ,testament are substantially recorded of many other persons1 as already shown4 ,there are many reasons for believing that ,moses was a personification of the sun and his whole history a myth4 ,observing persons cannot fail to notice that all ancient paintings and statues of ,moses represent him with horns1 probably originally denoting the rays of the sun when in the constellation ,taurus the ,bull4 ,the fact is well known that what is called the history of the ,jews is mainly fiction1 and that1 too1 borrowed from other peoples and modified to suit circumstances2 and very bungling work have they made of it4 ,the sacerdotalists of the world may be safely challenged to produce anything strictly original from the ,old ,testament1 especially relating to morals4 ,the historian ,josephus admits that the ,jews 8never invented anything useful40 ,even the writings of ,josephus should be received with many grains of allowance4 ,he was himself superstitious and credulous1 as shown in his story of a heifer giving birth to a lamb when being led from the temple stable to the altar4 ,moreover1 we have no ancient certified copies of what he did actually write1 and there is abundant evidence of alterations and interpolations in his alleged writings by sacerdotalists in modern times4 ,there is no greater imposition palmed off upon the ignorant than the commonly-believed falsehoods that the ,jews were a very ancient people and that their ,scriptures are the oldest book extant4 ,we now take up a few ,bible stories1 and give to them a symbolic instead of an historic interpretation2 and for obvious reasons we begin with the alleged progenitor of the ,jewish nation1 ,abraham4 ,it may or may not be a mere coincidence that by transposing the letters of the name ,abraham we have the name ,brahma--just as in the old legend of the sacrifice of the daughter of ,agamemnon1 ,iphthi-genia1 if we divide the syllables into words1 ,iphthi-geni1 we have literally ,jephthah's daughter2 so1 after all1 it may be greatly to the credit of ,jephthah that the story is fabulous4 ,these curious coincidences are not here offered as evidence4 ,it is acknowledged1 at least by implication1 in the ,bible itself that the story of ,abraham is of ,chaldean origin1 as his father ,terah was a native of ,ur of the ,chaldees and the alleged patriarch was a ,chaldean4 ,now1 these people were great astronomers in very ancient times1 and were accustomed to veil their occult science under just such allegorical personifications and fabulous tales as this of ,abraham4 ,paul1 or whoever wrote the ,epistle credited to him1 lets out the whole secret 7,gal4 #d3 #bb-bf73 8,for it is written ,abraham had two sons1 one by a bondmaid1 the other by a free woman4 ,but he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh1 but he of the free woman was by promise2 which things are an allegory10 etc4 ,now1 if you carefully read the apostolic explanation in these verses1 you will notice that the two sons of ,abraham are two covenants1 and the bondmaid ,hagar represents an ,arabian mountain1 which by a magical change becomes the same as the city of ,jerusalem4 ,the name ,abram signifies the 8,father of ,elevation10 which is the astronomical distinction of the planet ,saturn1 the exaltation of which1 with its devious ways1 well represents the alleged history of its prototype4 ,the word ,chasdim1 translated ,chaldees1 literally means light1 and is a professional not a geographical name1 and probably refers to the art of magic and the work of astrologers2 so that it is more than probable that ,abram was not a person1 any more than ,chasdim was a place4 ,there are many references in the ,scriptures which favor this interpretation1 but which cannot here be mentioned4 ,even in the ,lord's ,prayer1 found in ,jewish rituals long before the ,christian era1 there are evidences that it was first addressed to ,saturn4 ,there never was any form of religious worship which did not contain an expression equivalent to ,our ,father who art in heaven4 ,even ,jupiter means ,our ,father in the sky4 ,the name of ,abram has many variations1 and there is an important sense in which he may be called 8the father of many nations40 ,he was the ,esrael of the ,chaldeans1 the ,israel of the ,phnicians1 as the historian ,sanchoniathon distinctly alleges that their name for ,saturn was ,israel3 the names ,abraham and ,israel are used interchangeably in both the ,old and ,new ,testaments1 and among the ,hindoos1 the ,greeks1 the ,persians1 and other nations he was the god ,saturnus of the whole pagan world4 ,even upon the dials of our 8grandfathers' clocks10 cherished in many families as heirlooms in our day1 his memory is kept green by the figure of the god of ,time4 ,scores of other similitudes between ,saturn and ,abraham could here be introduced did space permit4 ,suffice it to say1 ,saturn in fable married his own sister1 who was a star2 and so did ,abraham1 and the name of his wife signifies a star4 ,both had many sons1 but each had a favorite son1 and ,saturn called his ,jeoud1 which implies an only son1 as ,abraham so regarded ,isaac4 ,a learned ,english scholar has suggested that the name 8,jeoud0 is the real origin of the name 8,jew10 and he assigns several philological and historical reasons for his theory4 ,it is certain in the minds of many profound and independent investigators that the ,jewish tribes originated in ,arabia1 and were originally a mere religious order1 and that their so-called history is largely fabulous1 and that their exodus is a comparatively modern novel with an ancient date1 as has been shown4 ,let us now take the best-remembered incident in the life of ,abraham1 the attempted murder and the rescue of his son ,isaac1 and see what will come of applying the symbolic instead of the literal interpretation to it4 ,let it be noted that this is not an original story4 ,the ancient ,hindoos have one like it4 ,king ,haris-candra had no son4 ,he prayed for one1 and promised that if one should be born to him he would sacrifice him to the gods4 ,one was born1 and he named him ,rohita4 ,one day his father told him of his promise to ,varuna to offer him in sacrifice4 ,the son bought a substitute1 and when he was about to be immolated he was marvellously rescued4 ,then there is the well-known similar story written by the ,phnician ,sanchoniathon thirteen hundred years before our era4 ,then there is the ,grecian story of ,agamemnon1 to whom1 when about to sacrifice his daughter1 a stag was furnished by a goddess as a substitute4 ,there is another ,grecian fable in which a maiden was about to be sacrificed1 and as the priest uplifted his knife to shed her blood the victim suddenly disappeared1 and a goat of uncommon beauty stood in her place as a substitute4 ,another story runs thus3 ,in ,sparta the maiden ,helena was about to be immolated on the altar of the gods1 when an eagle carried off the knife of the priest and laid it upon the neck of a heifer1 which was sacrificed in her stead4 ,similar stories might be produced from among many nations in the most ancient times1 long before the ,jews picked this up in ,babylon and rewrote it1 with modifications1 so as to apply it to their mythical progenitor2 for this fable of ,abraham's offering was not written until after their return from their ,babylonish captivity--much nearer our own time than is generally suspected4 ,regarded as an historic account of a real transaction1 this story of the attempted sacrifice of a beloved son by a venerable father is shocking in the extreme1 dishonoring alike to ,god and to ,abraham4 ,a good ,god could not have done such an unnatural and cruel thing4 ,he had no occasion to try ,abraham to find out how much faith he had4 ,he knew that already4 ,regarded as an astrological allegory1 it is ingenious and contains a moral lesson1 to wit3 obedience to the voice of ,god and the hope of deliverance in the hour of extreme emergency4 ,the defect in the story is1 that ,god could trifle with a loving child1 and pretend to require him to break one of his own commandments1 8,thou shalt not kill10 and subject him to its own penalty1 8,whoso sheddeth man's blood1 by man shall his blood be shed40 ,it would not have availed ,abraham to plead that ,god told him to murder his son1 any more than it availed the ,pocasset crank when he pleaded that ,god had directed him to murder his little daughter4 ,the ,state of ,massachusetts sent the semi-lunatic to a safe place of confinement4 ,this story of ,abraham and ,isaac has led to scores and scores of murders of children by their fathers1 just as the passage in the ,old ,testament1 8,thou shalt not suffer a witch to live10 has been pleaded in justification of the cool1 deliberate murder of multitudes of men1 women1 and children on the charge of witchcraft4 ,the literal interpretation of what is called infallible ,scripture has been the most bitter curse to deluded1 priest-ridden humanity4 ,it is the 8stock in trade0 of ignorant and selfish ecclesiastics to-day4 ,let us look a little more closely at this ,abraham-and-,isaac myth4 ,abraham was the personification of ,saturn1 the god of ,time1 while ,isaac was the personification of the ,sun4 ,abraham took ,isaac up to ,hebron--which means union or alliance1 and clearly indicates a union of the ecliptic and equinoctial line--the very point at which the ,ram of the vernal equinox passed by1 or1 as might be poetically said1 was caught in a cloud or bush2 so that the whole story was written long ages before in the celestial heavens1 and emblazoned in the skies at the return of each vernal equinox4 ,writers on astro-theology point out details at great length to support the symbolic interpretation1 but it is enough for pur purpose to merely give the keynote4 ,let the fact be specially noted that the names of the patriarchs have an astrological meaning1 and that the twelve sons of ,jacob1 the grandson of ,abraham1 who became the heads of the twelve tribes of ,israel1 have distinctly astrological characters1 fully indicated in ,jacob's dying blessing on his sons 7,gen4 #di7 and in the corresponding 8,song of ,moses0 7,deut4 #cc71 on the banner carried by the different tribes in their mythical march from ,egypt to ,canaan2 and that on the breastplate of the officiating high priest the jewels correspond to the celestial signs of the solar zodiac2 and although ,jacob had children by several different women and was a first-class ,mormon1 his twelve sons are made to correspond with the twelve months of the year and the twelve signs of the zodiac4 ,this fact is admitted by the orthodox author of ,the ,gospel in the ,stars4 ,his daughters are not considered worthy of notice1 as that would have spoiled the riddle4 ,the philology and etymology of the name ,jacob has suggestions of the serpent2 and from his history he must have been a snaky fellow from the first to the last4 ,he was born with his hand upon his brother's 8heel10 and he managed to cheat him out of his share of his mother's affections1 and lied to his father1 and conspired with his mother to rob ,esau1 his brother1 of his 8blessing40 ,the stories of ,laban and ,leah and ,rachel all conform to the symbolic rather than the literal hypothesis1 as well as ,jacob's vision of the ladder1 and his wrestling-match with the angel1 when he openly obtained the astrological name of the children of ,saturn--,israel4 ,it must be admitted that the allegorical hypothesis relieves the patriarchs of the charge of many mean things1 such as the heartless manner in which ,abram treated ,hagar when ,sarah got jealous1 and the manner in which he treated ,sarah herself when he lied to the king through a selfish cowardice and gave his wife over to the lusts of the monarch ,abimelech1 who was 7or one bearing his name7 deceived by ,isaac in regard to ,rebekah by a similar trick 7,gen4 #bf3a74 ,lot1 the nephew of ,abraham1 was guilty of a meaner and more unmanly act when he himself proposed to give over his two virgin daughters to the worse than beastly lusts of a howling mob1 to protect two angels who were guests at his tent 7,gen4 #ai3a-aa74 ,but theologians will never willingly admit that the ,abraham of ,genesis was a myth4 ,they well know the logical conclusion4 ,they would have to give up the 8,abrahamic covenant10 which is the basis of sacerdotalism4 ,when ,professor ,driver1 of the orthodox ,university of ,oxford1 recently admitted only by implication that ,abraham may have had no real personal existence1 and claimed that such hypothesis would not be injurious to religion1 his article was rejected and suppressed by the editor of an orthodox paper in ,philadelphia as dangerous4 ,but to assume that all the principal actors of ,genesis and some other books were impersonations1 not persons1 would not destroy the good things they are alleged to have said and done4 ,it is no more necessary to insist upon the real personality of ,abraham than to insist upon the literal existence of ,faithful and ,great-,heart and other impersonations in ,pilgrim's ,progress4 ,nobody insists that the characters in the parables accredited to ,jesus must be taken in a literal sense4 ,and yet it may be admitted that the fictions of ,scripture may have been suggested by some persons and facts1 just as in modern novels there generally is some person who stands for the original of the story4 ,this is eminently so in the novels of ,dickens and ,d',israeli4 ,nevertheless1 it is difficult to doubt that the principal characters of the ,old ,testament are mythical1 pure and simple1 as we find the originals in the older scriptures of different nations1 confessedly founded upon the solar and other forms of ,nature-worship4 ,the feet is1 that the only rational way to explain the marvellous stories of the ,hebrew ,scriptures is by the well-known methods of ancient symbolism4 ,let us now merely glance at some other ,old-,testament fables4 ,noah and his ,deluge are mainly mythical1 as this story is almost a literal copy of the ,chaldean1 though found substantially in the writings of many other nations4 ,it readily fits the allegorical method of interpretation in almost every particular4 ,the ,chaldean account as written by ,berosus1 and found recently by the late ,george ,smith of the ,british ,museum on the clay tablets1 is so much like the story in ,genesis that the latter must have been copied from the former2 and the slight variations in the two narratives are no greater than might have been expected as between ,chaldea and ,palestine4 ,the ,jews obtained it from ,babylon1 as there is no mention made of this miracle in any book of the ,bible written before the ,captivity4 ,the books of ,psalms1 ,proverbs1 ,chronicles1 ,judges1 ,kings1 etc4 are silent on this subject4 ,josephus defended the ,noachian ,deluge on the sole ground that an account of it was held by the ,chaldeans1 never pretending that the ,chaldean account was taken from the ,jewish record4 ,but it is useless to dwell on the story of a universal deluge of water4 ,it is in the light of modern science physically impossible and absurd2 and such men as ,buckland1 ,pye ,smith1 ,hugh ,miller1 and ,hitchcock1 with many other distinguished ,christian scientists1 give up the doctrine of a universal deluge while claiming a partial one4 ,and here1 again1 the ancient astronomy comes in with an explanation of partial floods of waters by the natural results of the 8precession of the equinoxes10 in which1 at certain periods during the change of the polar axis of the earth1 great physical convulsions must follow1 with wide eruptions of water1 making a partial overflow and suggesting the idea of a universal deluge4 ,four such cataclysms must have occurred while the sun was making one journey through the twelve zodiacal constellations4 ,prof4 ,huxley has recently well said3 8,but the voice of archology and historical criticism still has to be heard1 and it gives forth no uncertain sound4 ,the marvellous recovery of the records of an antiquity far superior to any that can be ascribed to the ,pentateuch1 which has been effected by the decipherers of cuneiform characters1 has put us in possession of a series once more1 not of speculations1 but of facts1 which has a most remarkable bearing upon the question of the trustworthiness of the narrative of the ,flood4 ,it is established that for centuries before the asserted migration of ,terah from ,ur of the ,chaldees 7which1 according to the orthodox interpreters of the ,pentateuch1 took place after the year #bjjj b4 c47 ,lower ,mesopotamia was the seat of a civilization in which art and science and literature had attained a development formerly unsuspected1 or1 if there were faint reports of it1 treated as fabulous4 ,and it is also no matter of speculation1 but a fact1 that the libraries of this people contain versions of a long epic poem1 one of the twelve books of which tells the story of a deluge which in a number of its leading features corresponds to the story attributed to ,berosus1 no less than with the story given in ,genesis1 with curious exactnesss4 8,looking at the convergence of all these lines of evidence leads to the one conclusion--that the story of the ,flood in ,genesis is merely a version of one of the oldest pieces of purely fictitious literature extant2 that whether this is or is not its origin1 the events asserted in it to have taken place assuredly never did take place2 further1 that in point of fact the story in the plain and logically necessary sense of its words has long since been given up by orthodox and conservative commentators of the ,established ,church40 ,the only rational interpretation of the extraordinary stories of the ,pentateuch and other scriptures is to regard them as mythical and allegorical1 borrowed from the astrological systems of more ancient peoples4 ,it is very difficult to present within the limits here allowed what has grown into ponderous volumes in elucidating the matter in hand4 ,the story of ,jonah and the ,fish1 taken as a literal story1 is incredible1 though the notorious ,brooklyn preacher thinks that it must be literally true1 as that ,god might have so diluted the gastric juice in the stomach of the fish as to make ,jonah quite indigestible6 ,this whole story is found in earlier pagan writings1 and is fully explained by the astronomical phenomena4 ,the earth is a huge fish in the ancient mythology1 and on ,december the #bast the sun 7,jonah1 the type7 sinks into its dark belly1 and after three days--to wit1 ,december #beth--it comes forth4 ,the ,sun-god is on dry land again4 ,there is a ,hindoo fable much like this4 ,in ,grecian fable ,hercules was swallowed by a whale at ,joppa1 and is said to have lain three days in his entrails4 ,the ,sun was called ,jona1 as can be shown from many authorities4 ,the nursery-tale of 8,little ,red ,riding-,hood0 was also a sun-myth1 mutilated in the ,english story1 showing how the ,sun was devoured by the ,black ,wolf 7,night71 and came out unhurt4 ,scores of similar sun-myths could be narrated4 ,but there are geographical inaccuracies which show its mythical character4 ,instead of ,nineveh being 8three days' journey0 from the coast where ,jonah was vomited out1 it is distant some four hundred miles of hill and plain1 and the size of the city was not twenty by twelve miles1 but more nearly eight by three miles4 ,moreover1 the city showed no signs of decay till about two hundred and fifty years after the alleged warning of ,jonah4 ,it is truly astounding that intelligent men can be so blind4 ,it was recently admitted by high ,christian authority that there is not a particle of proof for this story except that ,jesus had referred to ,jonah as being 8three days and nights in the whale's belly40 ,if ,jesus did say this1 he used it as an illustration4 ,he probably stated a current tradition1 if he said it at all4 ,let us now try our key in the closet-door of the ,samson story4 ,according to the ,bible account1 ,samson performed twelve principal exploits2 and if you will turn to any good dictionary of mythology you will find a wonderful likeness to the twelve labors of ,hercules in the ,greek myth of the ,sun4 ,time can be taken to examine only one--the cutting off of ,samson's hair while reposing in the lap of ,delilah1 and the consequent loss of his strength4 ,professor ,goldhizer says3 8,long locks of hair and a long beard are mythological attributes of the sun40444 8,when the powerful summer's sun is succeeded by the weak rays of the winter's sun1 its strength departs40 ,but as the sun becomes ascendant again he renews his strength1 just as ,samson's strength returned when his hair grew out again4 ,the seven locks represent the seven planetary worlds4 ,the constellation ,virgo represents ,samson's wife2 and ,delilah1 in whose lap he dallied and lost his strength1 represents the months of autumn1 before the winter came to hand him over to the ,philistines1 the dreary time of the winter months4 ,the story of ,samson is found in the sun-myths of all the ,sun-worship-ping nations1 and the story of ,hercules was known in an island colony of the ,phnicians five hundred years before it was known in ,greece2 and the story is almost as old as humanity itself4 ,the very name ,samson 7or ,samp-shon7 in some languages means the sun2 and there is not an exploit recorded of him that does not yield to the solar interpretation2 and when modern ministers undertake to explain how ,samson caught three hundred foxes and set fire to their tails1 they never think to mention 7if they happen to know it7 that in the ancient festival of ,ceres a fox-hunt was enacted in the theatres of ,rome in which burning torches were bound to the foxes' tails4 ,we have an explanation of this from ,prof4 ,steinthal3 8,this was a symbolical reminder of the damage done to the fields by mildew1 called the 'red fox' in the last of ,april4 ,it was at the time of the ,dog ,star at which the mildew was most to be feared2 and if at that time great solar heat followed too close upon the hoar-frost or dew of the cold nights1 the mischief raged like a burning fox through the corn-fields4 ,like the lion1 the fox is an animal that indicates the solar heat1 being well suited both by its color and long-haired tail40 ,bou-chart gives a similar explanation and application1 and so do many other writers4 ,it remains for ministers of this nineteenth century to dole out the ancient fables of the past as literal history to the grown-up children of to-day4 ,the story of ,samson in all its details yields to the key of ancient symbolism4 ,why not admit the fact that this is a solar myth1 and thus get clear of all the blasphemy and absurdities of a literal interpretation8 ,the incredibly absurd story of ,joshua's commanding the sun to stand still for several hours has a rational explanation1 regarded as a myth1 well known to initiates to set forth the correction of the calendar1 so as to make different periods correspondras one stops a clock to make it agree with the ringing of the standard time by the town bell4 ,there are scores of parallels in ancient history4 ,regard ,solomon as a sun-myth1 and you have no difficulty about the size of his family4 ,the seven hundred wives and the three hundred concubines represented so many stars4 ,even the narratives of ,david's exploits with the five kings1 his 8unpleasantness0 with ,saul1 and his dalliance and intrigue with ,bathsheba yield to the astro-mythological key4 ,the same is true of the story of the two she-bears that ate up the forty-two children who called shorn ,elisha 8bald-head40 ,the prophet was the ,sun1 denuded of his curls at a certain astronomical period2 the two bears were the constellations ,ursa ,major and ,ursa ,minor1 the great bear and the little bear2 and the forty-two children were a group of stars covered by the two bears1 so that1 figuratively1 it might be said they were 8eaten up40 ,and yet the late ,dr4 ,nehemiah ,adams of ,boston once exclaimed3 8,i believe that the forty-two children who made fun of the bald head of the prophet of ,god are now in hell40 ,he once wrote an admirable book entitled ,agnes2 or1 ,the ,little ,key1 but he failed to find the skeleton key to unlock the solar fable of the prophet1 the saucy little children1 and the voracious bears4 ,within the last few months ,philadelphia has been the scene of a most imposing ecclesiastical ceremony--the investiture of the ,roman ,catholic archbishop with the pallium1 a narrow band or sash made from wool grown upon white lambs that had been blessed by the ,pope on ,st4 ,agnes' ,day4 ,we heard the eloquent sermon of the archbishop of ,new ,york1 and he commenced his plausible discourse by tracing the pallium to the mantle that fell from ,elijah upon ,elisha1 the summer and winter sun1 and was worn by him after the translation of ,elijah4 ,but we try our skeleton key1 and find that ,elijah represented the ascending summer sun1 and ,elisha the sun of autumn2 and when ,elijah gained the greatest height1 of course his lessened rays1 well called a 8mantle10 fell upon the bald-headed man representing the autumn4 ,this is the whole story in plain language1 and this is the kind of stuff that ecclesiastical man-millinery is made of4 ,the crowd stared with admiration and wonder1 just as children are amused with their doll-babies1 who are 8sick0 or 8well10 8naughty0 or 8good10 according to the whims of the 8little women0 who dress and nurse them4 ,there is a doll-baby period in every child's history1 and it may be necessary to have a doll-baby period in religion2 but it does seem to some of us that it is about time for full-grown women and men to doff their bibs and aprons1 lay aside their doll-babies and other ecclesiastical toys1 and act as becomes men and women of full growth4 ,even ,paul said1 8,when ,i was a child1 ,i spake as a child1 ,i understood as a child2 but when ,i became a man1 ,i put away childish things40 ,it has been well said by a judicious writer3 8,intelligent readers1 except revelationists1 well know that the ,hebrew fables are myths which teem with history of a kind1 if we can only separate the wheat from the chaff4 ,so also is the story of the ,creation in ,genesis4 ,we have a very valuable myth1 though a purely phallic tale1 such as ,east ,indians--and perhaps they only--can thoroughly comprehend4 8,we would not seek to detract from the great value of myths1 for1 besides their own intrinsic worth1 these stories also exhibit to us many phases of ancient life and thought4 ,myths may be regarded as history which we have not yet been able to read4 ,we should not discard as untrue or unhistorical any tale1 biblical or other1 as implying that it is false and unworthy of consideration4 ,on the contrary1 we cannot too earnestly and patiently ponder over every ancient tale1 legend1 or myth1 as they all have some foundation and instructive lesson4 ,whenever an important myth has existed an important fact has doubtless been its basis40 ,,chapter ,,vii4 ,,the ,,fable ,,of ,,the ,,fall 8,and calleth those things which be not as though they were40--,rom4 #d3ag4 ,,the prevailing belief of ,christendom to-day is1 that about six thousand years ago1 somewhere in ,asia1 the ,supreme ,creator took common clay and moulded it into the form of a man1 somewhat as a sculptor forms the model from which the marble statue is to be constructed1 and when shaped to his liking he breathed into the clay model the breath of life1 and it became a living soul4 ,this miraculous work is believed to have been begun and completed on a particular day2 so that in the morning the earth contained not a man1 but in the afternoon the full-grown1 bearded man stood up in his majesty and assumed supremacy over all living things4 ,this godlike man finding himself lonely1 the ,creator put him to sleep1 and opened his side and took therefrom a rib1 out of which he formed a woman1 who was to be a companion1 a wife1 to the man2 and from this particular couple have come1 by ordinary generation1 all the people dwelling upon the face of the earth4 ,they are said to have been perfect1 but1 unfortunately for their progeny1 this perfection did not long continue4 ,before they were blest with offspring they lost their ,creator's favor by eating fruit from a forbidden tree1 and became fearfully demoralized1 and1 instead of begetting children endowed with their own angelic qualities1 they became the unhappy parents of a race of moral monsters1 of which we are all degraded and degenerate descendants4 ,the sacerdotal story of the fall of ,adam and ,eve is based upon the assumption that it is to be received as literal history1 revealed by the ,creator and written down in a book by a man specially chosen and plenarily inspired2 so that there can be no error or mistake in the record4 ,to question this narrative in its literal sense is most impious1 and subjects the doubter to the charge of favoring infidelity4 ,while persons 8professing and calling themselves ,christians0 cannot agree regarding many things deemed by them matters of vital importance1 the fall of man is a matter in which they are fully agreed4 ,the great basic dogma which underlies all modern systems of theology1 ,romish and ,protestant1 is the utter depravity of the human race through the fall of ,adam1 dooming a large majority of the human family to eternal punishment4 ,how evil came into the world has been the most perplexing problem of the ages4 ,before it the most gigantic minds have been covered with confusion and paralyzed with doubt4 ,why sin and suffering should have been permitted1 not to say created1 has never been made clear to the human reason by any system of theology1 ,romish or ,protestant4 ,a few years ago ,dr4 ,edward ,beecher published a book entitled ,the ,conflict of ,ages4 ,when reviewed by ,dr4 ,charles ,hodge in the ,princeton ,review he entitled his paper 8,beecher's ,conflict20 but it was rightly called ,the ,conflict of ,ages2 it was not 8,beecher's ,conflict10 and the explanation given by theology only involves the question in greater doubt and difficulty4 ,from the first dawning of human reason1 even in the mind of inquisitive childhood1 questions like these have been revolved1 if not formulated3 ,did not ,god know1 when he made ,adam and ,eve1 that they would fall8 ,why1 then1 did he create them8 ,why did he create a subtle serpent to tempt them8 ,why did he create a tree the fruit of which was forbidden8 ,why did he make the possible everlasting ruin of innumerable unborn mortals depend on such a trivial act as the eating of a certain apple8 ,why did he not destroy ,adam and ,eve after their first act of disobedience1 and thus prevent them from propagating a faithless progeny1 which should increase in geometrical progression until the number should be so great as to exhaust calculation with weariness1 stagger reason itself1 and transcend even the powers of the loftiest imagination to conceive8 ,why are the teeming millions of the children of ,adam held virtually responsible for this single trivial act of disobedience by an unknown remote ancestor myriads of ages ago8 ,how could all men sin in him and fall with him in the first transgression8 ,how could the guilt of ,adam's sin be imputed to his children8 ,the circumstances connected with the degradation of man are so extraordinary that it is not unreasonable to inquire whether the narrative of the fall is a matter of supernatural revelation based upon an historic occurrence1 or whether it is purely mythical1 portraying the conceptions of the human mind as to the origin of evil at some remote period of the world's childhood4 ,for the support of the dogma of total depravity through the fall of ,adam theologians rely primarily upon the account in the book of ,genesis4 ,it is a notable fact that ,adam and ,eve are not historically recognized in any other portion of the ,old ,testament1 and their very existence was totally ignored by the ,teacher of ,nazareth1 if the ,gospels said to contain the only report of his teachings are to be credited4 ,nobody pretends that ,moses1 the doubtful author of the ,pentateuch1 wrote from personal knowledge2 but it is claimed that he wrote under inspiration of ,god1 though there is not a single intimation in ,genesis or any other book that he was so inspired1 or that ,god had anything more to do with his writings than he had with the writings of ,homer1 ,herodotus1 or ,john ,milton4 ,but the assumption that the dogma of the fall through the sin of ,adam was first revealed to ,moses--at most not more then eight or nine hundred years before the ,christian era--is plainly exploded by the fact that this story existed among many nations centuries and centuries before ,moses is said to have been born or the writing called ,genesis existed4 ,it is not within the lines of our general purpose to here give in detail the numerous legends--substantially the same1 though differing in particulars--regarding the introduction of sin into this world1 found in the writings of ,hindoos1 ,persians1 ,etruscans1 ,phnicians1 ,babylonians1 ,chaldeans1 ,egyptians1 ,thibetans1 and others4 ,any man who would now dare to deny this statement regarding the prevalence of the story of the fall centuries before the writing of ,genesis existed would justly subject himself to the charge of ignorance or dishonesty4 ,dr4 ,inman states that ,adam is the ,phallus and ,eve the ,yoni--in other words1 that ,adam and ,eve signify the same idea as ,abraham and ,sara1 ,jacob and ,leah1 man and woman2 thus embodying in the ,hebrew the ,hindoo notion that all things sprang from ,mahadeva and his ,sacti1 my lady ,sara4 ,this deduction enables us at once to recognize1 as did the early ,christians1 the mythical character of the account of the fall2 and we must conclude that the story means that the male and female lived happily together so long as each was without passion for the other1 but that when a union took place between them the woman suffered all the miseries inseparable from pregnancy1 and the man had to toil for a family1 whereas he had previously only thought of himself4 ,the serpent is the emblem of 8desire10 indicated by the man and recognized by the woman4 8,there is a striking resemblance between the ,hindoo and ,hebrew myths4 ,the first tells us that ,mahadeva was the primary ,being1 and from him arose the #8,sacti4' ,the second makes ,adam the original1 and ,eve the product of his right side--an idea which is readily recognizable in the word ,benjamin4 ,after the creation1 the ,egyptian1 ,vedic1 and ,jewish stories all place the woman beside a citron or pomegranate tree1 or one bearing both fruits2 near this is a cobra or asp1 the emblem of male desire1 because these serpents can inflate or erect themselves at will40 ,general ,forlong thus discourses upon this subject3 8,most cosmogonies relate a phallic tale of two individuals ,adam and ,eve1 meeting in a garden of delight 7,gan-,eden71 and then being seduced by a serpent ,ar 7,ar-i-man71 ,hoa1 ,op1 or ,orus1 to perform the generative act1 which it is taught led to sin and trouble1 and this long before we hear of a spiritual god or of solar deities4 ,these cosmogonies narrate a contest between man and ,nature1 in which the former fell1 and must ever fall1 for the laws of ,sol and his seasons none can resist40444 8,the ,jews learned most of their faith and fables from the great peoples of the ,east2 especially did they get the two cosmogonies1 and that solar fable1 mixed with truth1 of a serpent tempting a woman with the fruit of a tree1 of course in the fading or autumnal equinox1 when only fruit exists and all creation tries to save itself by shielding all the stores of nature from the fierce onslaughts of angry ,typhon when entering on his dreary winter4 ,the ,gan-,eden fable was clearly an attempt by ,zoroastrians to explain to outsiders the difficult philosophical problem of the origin of man and of good and evil4 ,mithras1 they said--and the ,jews followed suit--is the good ,god1 the incarnation of ,god1 who dwells in the beauteous orb of day2 to which ,christian ,jews added that he was born of a virgin in a cave which he illuminated40 8,the tree of life mentioned in ,gen4 #c3 #bb certainly appears10 says ,mr4 ,smith 7,chal4 ,acct1 p4 #hh71 8to correspond to the sacred grove of ,anu1 which a later fragment of the creation-tablets states was guarded by a sword turning to all the four points of the compass2 and there too we have allusions to a thirst for knowledge1 having been the cause of man's fall2 the gods curse the dragon and ,adam for the transgression4 ,this ,adam was one of the ,zalmat-qaqadi1 or dark men1 created by ,hea or ,nin-,si-ku1 a name pointing to ,hea being a ,nin or ,creator1 while ,adam is called ,adami or ,admi1 the present ,eastern term for man and the lingam1 and no proper name40 ,the impression that ,i get from the legends of ,izdubar1 or the ,flood1 or even the creation-tablets1 is simply that these were religious revivals4 ,nearly every illustration of ,mr4 ,smith's last volume shows the serpent as an evil influence4 ,now1 if ,i am right--and all ,i have read elsewhere tends to the same conclusion--then all the tales as to a temptation by a serpent1 a fall1 are phallo-pythic transmutations of faith1 and have no more connection with the first creation of man upon earth than have the flood1 the ark1 or mountain-worship of ,jews in the desert1 or the destruction of ,pytho by ,apollo in the early days of ,delphi1 etc4 8,the tree and serpent10 says ,fergusson1 8are symbolized in every religious system which the world has known1 not excepting the ,hebrew and ,christian1 ,the two together are typical of the reproductive powers of vegetable and animal life4 ,it is uncertain whether the ,jewish tree of life was borrowed from the ,egyptians or ,chaldeans2 but the meaning was in both cases the same1 and we know that the ,assyrian tree was a life-giving divinity4 ,and ,moses1 or the writer of ,genesis1 has represented very much the same in his coiled serpent and love-apples1 or citrons1 of the tree of life4 8,the writer of ,genesis probably drew his idea of the two trees1 that of life and that of knowledge1 from ,egyptian and ,zoroastrian story2 for criticism now assigns a comparatively late date to the writing of the first ,pentateuchal book4 ,after ,genesis no further notice is taken in the ,bible of the tree of knowledge4 ,but that of life1 or the tree which gives life1 seems several times alluded to1 especially in ,rev4 #b3 #g4 ,the lingam or pillar is the ,eastern name for the tree which gives life4 ,but when this tree became covered with the inscriptions of all the past ages1 as in ,egypt1 then ,toth1 the ,pillar1 came to be called the tree of knowledge40 ,but it must not be supposed that all ,christian theologians of the present day hold the historical and literal truth of the legend of the fall of ,adam4 ,in several of the public libraries of ,philadelphia may be found a book entitled ,beginnings of ,history1 written by a learned professor of ,archaeology at the ,national ,library of ,france--,professor ,franois ,lenormant4 ,it was republished by ,scribner1 ,new ,york1 in #ahhf1 with an introduction by ,francis ,brown1 associate professor of ,biblical ,philology in the ,presbyterian ,union ,theological ,seminary of ,new ,york4 ,it is written from a ,christian standpoint1 and the writer is a firm defender of the infallibility of the ,hebrew ,scriptures1 and can never be suspected of having any sympathy with modern rationalism4 ,he not only admits that the ,edenic story of the introduction of sin1 found in ,genesis1 is a compilation made up from the ,shemitic traditions of ,babylonians1 ,phnicians1 and other pagan peoples1 but he has covered page after page with proofs of this fact by learned and accurate quotations from their numerous legends4 ,he puts in the common plea of lawyers1 known as confession and avoidance1 and takes the ground that 8the writer of the ,hebrew ,genesis took these fables from floating tradition as he found them1 and cleansed them of their impurities1 altered their polytheistic tendencies1 made them monotheistic1 and otherwise so transformed them as to make them fit vehicles of spiritual instruction by the ,divine ,spirit which inspired him40 ,this is an ingenious device1 but it will hardly satisfy sound thinkers4 ,the question is1 whether the story of ,adam is historical truth or pagan fiction4 ,the highest scholarship pronounces it fiction1 while certain orthodox writers admit the fact 8that ,god used prevailing but unreal fancies to teach important truths40 ,the document in which the story of the fall is found is a confused1 inconsistent1 and absurd compilation by at least two different writers1 representing each a different ,god1 ,jehovah and ,elohim1 the writers contradicting each other in many particulars2 and this feet is admitted by candid ,christian writers1 and by none more frankly than the late ,dean ,stanley of the ,english ,establishment4 ,the first account of creation ends at the third verse of ,gen4 #b1 and the second account begins with the fourth verse and closes with the end of that chapter4 ,in the first account the man and woman are created together on the sixth and last day of creation 7,gen4 #a3bh74 ,in the second account the beasts and birds are created after the creation of the man and before the creation of the woman2 and it was not until after ,adam had examined and named all the beasts of the fields1 and had failed to find among the apes1 chimpanzees1 and ourangs a suitable companion for himself1 that ,eve was made from one of ,adam's ribs1 taken from his primeval anatomy while under the influence of a divine anaesthetic 7,gen4 #b3g1 #h1 #ae1 #bb74 ,in the first account man was made on the last day1 and woman was made at the same time2 in the second account man was made after the plants and herbs1 but before fruit trees1 beasts1 and birds4 ,so it would seem that1 inasmuch as woman was made after all things1 she was an afterthought1 a sort of necessary evil for the solace and comfort of man4 ,these contradictions run through the whole of the first and second chapters of ,genesis1 and plainly show that these narratives were compiled by two different persons from vague traditions or from different written documents4 ,had the ,creator undertaken to write or dictate an account of his own work1 he certainly would not have contradicted himself six times within the limit of a few lines4 ,the credibility of the document in which is found the account of the fall is further impaired by the fact that it contains statements openly at variance with the demonstrations of science4 ,it teaches not only that the world was made in six days of twenty-four hours each1 but that the whole planetary system was made in a single day4 8,he made the stars also40 ,the discoveries of modern science have lately driven our sacerdotalists to a new and absurd interpretation of the story of creation by alleging that the six days spoken of were not periods of twenty-four hours each1 but six indefinite periods of very long duration4 ,but it would be easy to furnish numerous admissions of orthodox scholars that the six days of the creative week were intended by the writers to describe ordinary days1 of twenty-four hours each1 and not indefinite periods4 ,any other interpretation ,professor ,hitchcock has pronounced 8forced and unnatural1 and therefore not to be adopted without a very urgent necessity40 ,the venerable ,moses ,stuart1 long professor of ,biblical ,literature in the ,andover ,theological ,seminary1 says3 8,when the sacred writer in ,gen4 #a says the first day1 the second day1 etc41 there can be no possible doubt--none1 ,i mean1 for a philologist1 let a geologist think as he may--that a definite day of the week is meant4 ,what puts this beyond all question10 the learned theologian adds1 8is that the writer says specifically #8the evening and the morning were the first day1' #8the second day1' etc4 ,now1 is an evening and a morning a period of some thousands of years8444 ,if ,moses has given us an erroneous account of the creation1 so be it4 ,let it come out and let us have the whole truth40 ,the fact is1 that the indefinite-period hypothesis does not1 after all the quirks and special pleadings1 overcome the difficulty4 ,the question arises1 ,why six indefinite periods8 ,one indefinite period is as long as six or sixty4 ,there is nothing in geology to indicate six periods4 ,one need only consider the attempt to reconcile ,genesis and geology to plainly see that the ,mosaic record was intended to be taken in its obvious sense4 ,the forced interpretations put upon the ,hebrew story to make it appear to be historical and literal truth make it more absurd than it would otherwise appear4 ,think of ,adam created 7according to one account7 on the second day1 and ,eve on the sixth day1 and then accept the hypothesis that these creative days represent indefinite periods of thousands1 if not millions1 of years to each day1 so that four indefinite periods of thousands of years passed away before ,adam had his ,eve to be his helpmeet1 and what a long1 lonely time he must have had6 ,then how small the human census must have been for unnumbered ages1 and how strange the fact that the same writer says that ,adam 8lived nine hundred and thirty years1 and he died20 that is to say1 he died several hundred thousand years before the rib was taken from his side to make him a wife6 ,but the fact must be emphasized that it is quite useless to criticise the so-called ,mosaic narrative of the fall1 because it is acknowledged to be a huge myth or allegory by the best scholarship of modern times4 ,the ,christian author of the ,beginnings of ,history has with profound research actually produced and printed the stories of many ancient peoples in contrast with the narrative in ,genesis4 ,he says in the preface to his book3 8,this is the problem which ,i have been led to examine in comparing the narrations of the ,sacred ,book with those current long ages before the time of ,moses among nations whose civilization dated back into the remote past1 with whom ,israel was surrounded1 from among whom it came out4 ,as far as ,i myself am concerned1 the conclusion from this study is not doubtful4 ,that which we read in the first chapter of ,genesis is not an account dictated by ,god himself1 the possession of which was the exclusive privilege of the chosen people4 ,it is a tradition whose origin is lost in the night of the remotest ages1 and which all the great nations of ,western ,asia possessed in common1 with some variations4 ,the very form given it in the ,bible is so closely related to that which has been lately discovered in ,babylon and ,chaldea1 it follows so exactly the same course1 that it is quite impossible for me to doubt any longer4 ,the school of ,alexandria in general1 and ,origen in particular1 in the first centuries of the ,church interpreted the first chapters of ,genesis in the allegorical sense2 in the sixteenth century the great ,cardinal ,cajetan revived this system1 and1 bold as it may appear1 it has never been the object of any ecclesiastical censure40 ,it is well understood among men of learning that the whole story of ,eden1 the talking serpent1 and the sinning woman is a myth1 and that all nations of sun-worshippers have had substantially the same legend1 and their priests1 poets1 and philosophers have not hesitated to acknowledge among themselves its fabulous character4 ,that early ,jewish and ,christian writers freely admitted the allegorical character of the narrative ascribed to ,moses is well known4 ,maimonides1 a learned ,jewish rabbi1 said3 8,one ought not to understand nor take according to the letter that which is written in the ,book of the ,creation1 nor have the ideas concerning it that most men have1 otherwise our ancient sages would not have recommended us to carefully conceal the sense of it1 and on no account to raise the allegorical veil which conceals the truth it contains4 ,taken according to the letter1 this work gives the most absurd and extravagant idea of divinity4 ,whoever shall discover the true sense of it ought to be careful not to divulge it40 ,philo1 the great ,jewish authority1 took the same ground1 and wrote mainly to show the allegorical character of all the sacred books4 ,josephus held similar views1 and so did ,papias and many of the early ,christian ,fathers4 ,origen said3 8,what man of good sense will ever persuade himself that there was a first1 second1 and a third day1 and that these days had each their morning and evening without the not-yet-existing sun1 moon1 and stars8 ,what man sufficiently simple to believe that ,god1 acting the part of a gardener1 planted a garden in the ,east--that the #8tree of life' was a real tree1 evident to the senses1 whose fruit had the virtue of preserving life80 etc4 ,st4 ,augustine held the same views as to the allegorical character of the so-called ,mosaic account of the creation and fall1 and so did ,tertullian1 ,clement1 and ,ambrose4 ,some of the early ,christian authorities carried this idea of the allegorical character of the ,scriptures so far as to apply it to the ,gospels themselves4 8,there are things therein0 7said ,origen7 8which1 taken in their literal sense1 are mere falsities and lies20 and ,st4 ,gregory asserted of the letter of ,scripture that 8it is not only dead1 but deadly20 while ,athanasius admonished us that 8should we understand ,sacred ,writ according to the letter we should fall into the most enormous blasphemies40 ,it seems to have been fully realized in early times that there was no rational way to interpret ,moses and his writings but upon the allegorical hypothesis4 ,as the ,mosaic account of the creation and the fall of man is so evidently the same story that was suggested to the ,persians and other nations by the astronomical phenomena1 we are forced to the conclusion that this is the only key to unlock the mysteries of the first three chapters of ,genesis4 ,if the original story is known to have been founded upon the ancient astrological religion1 the substantial copy in our ,jewish ,scriptures must have the same basis4 ,all the ancient religions had their ,cabala--secret words and initiations--and the ,jewish and ,christian ,scriptures are no exceptions1 as is seen upon their very surface4 ,we may not have all their secrets--some of them may not be proper things to write about in our day--but no fair man of intelligence can successfully deny that many of those things which are absurd if taken for historical truth are at once explained by reference to the solar cults of the ancients4 ,many theologians have virtually admitted that there is nothing injurious to the interests of true religion in the hypothesis here presented1 but1 on the contrary1 there is much that is truly beautiful and calculated to elevate and inspire the devout mind4 ,even the distinguished ,albertus1 of the twelfth ,christian century1 surnamed the ,great for his attainments as a scholastic ecclesiastic1 did not hesitate to write3 8,all the mysteries of the incarnation of our ,saviour ,christ1 and all the circumstances of his marvellous life from his conception to his ascension1 are to be traced out in the constellations and are figured in the stars40 8,the ,gospel in the ,stars0 was the significant advertisement of a course of sermons recently delivered in a prominent ,lutheran church in ,philadelphia by a learned doctor of divinity1 and1 though many of his hearers thought that the title should have been 8,the ,stars in the ,gospel10 it was certainly an evidence of progress and increasing light to have a frank admission from such a source that all the truths of the gospel and the doctrines of the ,reformation were prefigured in the celestial heavens and illustrated in the constellations of the solar zodiac4 ,this author admits the identity between the tenets of the astro-theology of ancient sun-worshippers and the present dominant theology of ,christendom1 but assumes that the original construction of the celestial heavens and its fanciful division into constellations had reference to1 and in fact prefigured1 what was literally fulfilled in ,christianity4 ,he finds in the solar zodiac of ,esne in ,egypt as clear predictions of the coming of ,christ as he finds in ,isaiah or any other ,jewish prophet4 ,thus1 he 8gives away0 the whole argument1 and unwittingly admits the natural origin of all the distinctive tenets of modern dogmatic theology4 ,this last craze may well be regarded as a compound of scientific trifling and theological1 moonshine4 ,but it is said by theologians that man is depraved1 and that the present moral status of humanity confirms the dogma of total depravity by descent through fallen and depraved ancestors4 ,this involves the question1 ,what is depravity8 ,that man is not perfect in morality is as true as that he is not perfect in body nor in mentality4 ,but does not every one know by his own experience and observation that human shortcomings mainly arise from a want of perfect development and the influence of environment1 rather than from essential1 innate viciousness8 ,what is called 8sin0 should be known as 8undevelopment10 and1 as real as is the law of heredity1 it is no more real than the law of environment4 ,where there is evidence of hereditary evil tendencies it is not necessary to go back more than two or three generations to find the source4 ,but the fact must here be emphasized and continually kept in mind that the story of ,eden and the fall is substantially found in the annals of many nations anterior to the existence of the ,jewish tribes1 varied only in trivial matters4 ,the story of the serpent in ,eden is probably of ,aryan source1 to which the conception of the satanic origin of evil was attached after the ,jews came into close contact with ,persian dualistic ideas4 ,to doubt which was the original and which the copy1 shows1 regarding the well-established facts of history1 a want of information so great as to make argument on this matter quite useless4 ,the conclusion is inevitable that if the fall of ,adam is a fiction1 then the entire system of evangelical theology is based upon a fiction2 and the fruit must be natural to the tree--a fictitious tree can only bear fictitious fruit4 ,orthodox theologians1 especially of the logical ,presbyterian stamp1 realize that if they give up ,adam and ,eve as progenitors of the entire human race1 they give up the very foundation-stones of the 8redemptive scheme40 ,this accounts for ,presbyterian opposition to the doctrine of evolution4 ,they are logical enough to see that the second ,adam as a ,saviour in the evangelical sense must share the fate of the first ,adam2 and so ,professor ,woodrow of ,south ,carolina has recently been degraded on account of his theory of evolution4 ,the world moves1 and1 as ,professor ,marsh of ,yale ,college has well said1 8,the doctrine of evolution is as thoroughly demonstrated as the ,copernican system of astronomy40 ,in the ,popular ,science ,monthly for ,october1 #ahij1 we have a very able article from ,andrew ,d4 ,white1 ,,ll4,d41 ex-president of ,cornell ,university1 showing how completely science contradicts theology in regard to the ,edenic story4 ,he shows that the tendency of the race has always been upward from low beginnings4 ,he further shows that ,archbishop ,whately and the ,duke of ,argyll championed the ,bible story1 but were so conclusively answered by ,sir ,john ,lubbock and ,tylor that the views of the archbishop were seen to be untenable1 while the duke1 as an honest man and a sound thinker1 was obliged to give up his former views and adopt the scientific theory4 ,the light thrown upon this subject by ,herbert ,spencer1 ,buckle1 ,max ,mller1 and scores of other great scholars is among the glories of the century now ending4 ,the public declaration of the celebrated ,von ,martius1 of his conversion to the scientific view of the story of the ,fall1 ought to make smaller men less confident of their views on a subject they have never studied4 ,in #ahge1 ,commodore ,vanderbilt endowed a university in ,tennessee1 and it was put in charge of the ,methodists4 ,dr4 ,alexander ,winchell was called to the chair of ,geology4 ,he was distinguished in his specialty by his successful labors in another university4 ,he openly taught 8that man existed before the period assigned to ,adam1 and that all the human race could not have descended from ,adam40 ,the ,methodist bishop told him 8that such views were contrary to the plan of redemption40 ,the ,methodist ,conference resolved 8that they would have no more of this10 and ,professor ,winchell was summarily dismissed from the chair1 and the position1 with its salary1 assigned to another4 ,the ,state ,university of ,michigan recalled him to his former chair in that institution1 where he could teach science regardless of the impotent thunders of theology4 ,the fall of ,adam is really the pivotal principle in dogmatic theology of the orthodox variety4 ,if the entire human race are not descendants of a real1 genuine1 historical pair miraculously created 7a pair almost divine in perfections71 and who by disobedience fell from their high estate1 and by their federal or representative character involved all their countless descendants by natural generation and descent in the same ruin1--if these things are not true1 then what is called the evangelical scheme is based upon a fiction1 and is to be so treated1 regardless of the effect upon other theological doctrines4 ,the dogma of a sudden1 special creation of a perfect man is not sustained by the facts of history nor the science of palaeontology4 ,scientific investigators find man1 so far as the evidence of his remote existence can be traced1 very nearly allied to apes2 and there is abundant evidence to show that man has been improving in every respect as years and cycles of years have rolled away4 ,it is thus absolutely demonstrated that the history of our race shows the rise or ascent of man from a very low estate1 instead of his 8fall0 from a condition of high perfection4 ,but it does not follow1 because man as we first find him was very much like the anthropoid ape1 that he is a lineal descendant of the ape4 ,the more rational hypothesis is1 that both apes and man were evolved from still lower animal forms by divergent lines1 so that there is a relation of a very distant cousinship existing between them4 ,there is many a fool-born jest about man and the monkey1 oft repeated by adcaptandum theologians who have never read ,darwin's ,origin of ,species nor his ,descent of ,man1 and who therefore do not know that there is nothing in these writings to justify such caricatures4 ,the fact is1 the evolution of man by slow and long-continued processes1 instead of his sudden miraculous creation on a certain day1 is now as well established as the law of gravitation1 in the judgment of scientists who are not hampered and blinded by preconceived theological dogmas4 ,it cannot be denied that the weight of scientific testimony is very largely in favor of the development of man1 instead of a miraculous and complete creation at a particular period of time4 ,the true ground will be found to be creation by evolution2 and if our purblind sacerdotalists had accepted this doctrine1 as the brightest of them have privately done1 they would have saved themselves the disgrace of becoming the laughing-stock of the scientific world4 ,if man was brought to his present high estate by a system of evolution1 it is no less the work of the ,supreme ,creator of the universe than if he had been made from clay in an instant of time2 and if the character of man1 mentally and morally1 is admitted to be based on the degree of his development1 it would solve many a knotty question in theology and morals4 ,at any rate1 the evolution hypothesis has many advantages over the ,church dogma1 manifestly founded on a pagan fable4 ,the fact is1 sacerdotalists have always been their own worst enemies1 and have always been defeated in their battles with science and a true philosophy4 ,it is not intended to ignore the fact that legends of a paradisiacal period1 a real 8golden age10 are found among all ancient peoples1 also of periods of general demoralization2 but these legends can easily be accounted for4 ,it is a natural instinct in man to praise the past1 and to think that 8the former times were better than the present40 ,we see this among aged men and women to-day4 ,then it is well known that the stream of human history has never run in an unbroken channel4 ,our race has ever had its 8ups and downs10 and1 comparatively speaking1 mankind has had many falls and ascents1 while the general or ultimate tendency and result have been ascending higher and higher4 ,moreover1 the golden age of ,adam in ,eden must have been very short1 according to the fable of ,genesis1 as the fall occurred before he had any children4 ,what a pity that ,adam and ,eve could not have maintained their innocence by blind obedience until at least a son and daughter could have been born to them6 ,this may be considered irreverent1 but everybody knows that1 outside of the pulpit and the ,sun-day-school1 the story of ,adam and ,eve is hardly ever mentioned except as a huge joke1 and that witty preachers often take part in laughing at it4 ,it is difficult to write about a fiction otherwise than facetiously4 ,i cannot refrain from again quoting ,professor ,huxley in summing up my own conclusions in regard to this matter3 8,i am fairly at a loss to comprehend how any one for a moment can doubt that ,christian theology must stand or fall with the historical trustworthiness of the ,jewish ,scriptures4 ,the very conception of the ,messiah1 or ,christ1 is inextricably interwoven with ,jewish history4 ,the identification of ,jesus of ,nazareth with that ,messiah rests upon the interpretation of passages of the ,hebrew ,scriptures which have no evidential value unless they possess the historical character assigned to them4 ,if the covenant with ,abraham was not made2 if circumcision and sacrifices were not ordained by ,jehovah2 if the #8ten words' were not written by ,god's hand on the stone tables2 if ,abraham is more or less a mythical hero1 such as ,theseus2 the story of the deluge a fiction2 that of the fall a legend2 that of the creation the dream of a seer1--if all these definite and detailed narratives of apparently real events have no more value as history than the stories of the regal period of ,rome1 what is to be said of the ,messianic doctrine which is so much less clearly enunciated8 ,and what about the authority of the writers of the books of the ,new ,testament1 who on this theory have not merely accepted flimsy fictions for solid truths1 but have built the very foundations of ,christian dogma upon legends and quicksands8 8,the antagonism between natural knowledge and the ,pentateuch would be as great if the speculations of our time had never been heard of4 ,it arises out of contradictions upon matters of fact4 ,the books of ecclesiastical authority declare that certain events happened in a certain fashion2 the books of scientific authority say they did not40 8,what we are pleased to call religion now-a-days is for the most part ,hellenized ,judaism2 and1 not un-frequently1 the ,hellenic element carries with it a mighty remnant of old-world paganism and a great infusion of the worst and weakest products of ,greek scientific speculation2 while fragments of ,persian and ,babylonian--or rather ,accadian--mythology burden the ,judaic contribution to the common stock4 ,the antagonism of ,science is not to ,religion1 but to the heathen survivals and the bad philosophy under which ,religion herself is wellnigh crushed4 ,now1 for my part1 ,i trust this antagonism will never cease1 but that to the end of time true ,science will continue to fulfil one of her most beneficent functions1 that of relieving men from the burden of false ,science which is imposed upon them in the name of ,religion40 ,the fact that well-dressed congregations do not laugh sacerdotalists to scorn shows how safe it is to rely upon the credulity and indifference of those who have been taught mere myths as real history from early childhood4 ,the day will come when even children will laugh in the faces of priests when they seriously speak of the fall of ,adam and ,eve as a matter of actual occurrence4 ,the great curse of true religion to-day is literalism1 enforced by priestcraft1 in regard to what relates to our most sacred concerns4 ,it is no part of our design to here explain the development theory as to how man did originate from the lower forms of animal existence1 but must refer those who are willing to learn to such works as ,darwin's ,origin of ,species and ,descent of ,man1 ,huxley's ,man's ,place in ,nature1 and to scores of other books accessible to all4 ,perhaps ninety-nine-hundredths of living working scientists repudiate the ,adam-and-,eve story1 and regard it as a fable intended to illustrate what man's attainments at the time would not enable him to account for on natural principles4 ,,chapter ,,viii4 ,,search ,,for ,,the 8,,last ,,adam0 8,for as in ,adam all die1 even so in ,christ shall all be made alive40444 8,and so it is written1 the first ,adam was made a living soul1 the last ,adam was made a quickening spirit40--#a ,cob4 #ae3 #bb-de4 ,,the claim of sacerdotalism is substantially as follows3 ,adam was the first man and the sole progenitor of the entire human race4 ,when he fell1 all his progeny 8sinned in him and fell with him in the first transgression40 ,death was first introduced in the world by ,adam's sin1 and life is restored by ,christ4 ,adam and ,christ are the two great representatives of death and life1 of the fell and the restoration4 ,the ,creator permitted this great calamity to happen1 having purposed from all eternity to redeem this degenerate race1 or at least a portion of it1 from the terrible curse caused by ,adam's sin4 ,in due time he did incarnate himself1 became man1 human flesh and blood1 by impregnating1 or 8overshadowing10 a ,jewish virgin1 and so was born1 by ordinary generation1 a human babe in the person of ,jesus of ,nazareth1 who was called the ,christ4 ,after about thirty years this human-born ,god died to make it possible to restore our race to its original moral status4 ,this is called the 8redemptive scheme10 and is the sum and substance of ,christianity1 and is fully set forth in what is very improperly called the 8,apostles' ,creed10 which is publicly recited in thousands of churches every ,sunday as an epitome of their belief4 ,the story of this one first man1 who sinned by eating an apple from a certain forbidden tree1 has been proved to be a fable1 a myth1 an allegory4 ,the legend may shadow forth certain natural truths1 but it is nevertheless a myth4 ,the thing never occurred4 ,the alleged facts are not facts4 ,there was no first ,adam4 ,there may have been some one whom certain persons called the last ,adam1 but it is nevertheless true that what is said of him was founded upon an unreality--a thing which never happened4 ,according to biblical chronology1 the last ,adam did not make his advent until about four thousand years after the first ,adam fell1 ,even this seems to have been a long period to wait1 but if we accept the interpretation of certain modern writers1 that which is called 8the beginning0 in ,genesis may have been forty thousand or four hundred thousand years before the advent of ,jesus4 ,true1 this would show certain events to have been a very long way apart 7for instance1 the creation of ,eve after that of ,adam7 and would make the work of ,christ in the 8redemptive act0 occur ages and ages after the mischief was done4 ,it is contended that the promise of the sending of a ,saviour was made the very day that the first ,adam sinned1 and that the salvation of the sinner was conditioned upon man's faith in1 and acceptance of1 the promise that in due time1 not mentioned1 the last ,adam should come and repair all the mischief which the first ,adam had caused4 ,it is claimed by sacerdotalists that the saying in ,genesis #c3 #ae is the first promise of a ,redeemer3 8,and ,i will put enmity between thee the serpent and the woman1 and between thy seed and her seed2 it shall bruise thy head and thou shalt bruise his heel40 ,but these very words occur in the pagan fables that were written long before the time that ,i ,genesis was written1 and in some of these fables1 much more consistently with the passage above quoted1 the woman is represented as standing with her heel on the serpent's head4 ,then it is claimed that the ,creator accepted the sacrifice of ,abel because it was a bloody sacrifice1 prefiguring the shedding of the blood of ,christ1 and that he rejected the offering of ,cain because there was no blood in it4 ,we have looked in vain through the ,old-,testament ,scriptures for a promise of the last ,adam who was to come and redeem man1 but have failed to find it4 ,a system of 8redemption0 that is based on expressions so enigmatical must have a very flimsy foundation upon which to stand4 ,it is like the assumption that women generally have an aversion to reptiles because a serpent tempted ,eve and brought so many curses on the sex4 ,to such miserable subterfuges will sacerdotalists resort to maintain a theory4 ,one of the first points emphasized in connection with the advent of ,jesus is the claim that it was in exact fulfilment of ,hebrew prophecy4 ,certain orthodox ,christian writers claim that there are two hundred prophecies in the ,old ,testament relating to ,jesus1 while certain other eminent ,german and ,english ,christian scholars deny that there is even one prophecy which does not admit of another and a more rational explanation4 ,the quotations from ,old-,testament prophecies in the ,gospels are1 to say the least1 unfortunate1 and rather suggest the hypothesis that certain things1 if done at all1 were done to make the history fit the prediction4 ,learned ,bible critics contend that there is not to be found a single example of such redemptive prophecy1 even though the theory of the double sense of prophecy be admitted4 ,these predictions or hopes were intended to apply to eminent characters in ,hebrew history as deliverers1 and can only be applied to ,jesus by a forced and unnatural construction2 and1 though ,cyrus and others appeared1 the expectations of the ,jews have not yet been realized1 and some of them are still awaiting their ,messiah1 spurning the idea that the predictions of their prophets were fulfilled in the humble ,man of ,nazareth4 ,one or two examples of so-called ,messianic prophecies must suffice4 ,matthew 7#bg3 #i7 says the prophecy of 8,jeremy the prophet0 regarding the thirty pieces of silver was fulfilled in the betrayal of ,jesus2 whereas no such prophecy is found in ,jeremiah1 and1 though similar words occur in ,zechariah1 they have another obvious application4 ,then in ,matthew 7chap4 #b7 ,hosea is quoted to prove that ,jesus dwelt in ,egypt to fulfil a prophecy1 whereas it is evident 7,hos4 #aa3a7 that it was of ,israel1 not ,jesus1 that those words were spoken4 ,again1 in ,matt4 #bb3da the quotation from the ,psalms is obviously misapplied--8,the ,lord said unto my lord10 etc4--as it was not written by ,david1 but ,nathan addressed it to ,david4 ,it was the poet that called ,david lord1 which spoils the prophecy and ruins the argument of the evangelist4 ,many things recorded in the ,new ,testament are unwittingly admitted to have been done to fulfil a supposed prophecy--8that it might be fulfilled40 ,there is one very amusing example of an attempt to fulfil an alleged prophecy--that of ,jesus dwelling in ,nazareth1 because it had been prophesied that he should be called a ,naz-arene1 no such prophecy ever having been uttered4 ,the ,indian ,yedas are full of alleged prophecies relating to coming incarnations1 and so are the ,chinese sacred books4 ,even ,zoroaster1 who lived #egj years b4 c41 prophesied2 8,a virgin shall conceive and bear a son1 and a star shall appear blazing at midday to announce his appearance4 ,when you behold the star 7said he71 follow it whithersoever it leads you4 ,adore the mysterious child1 offering him gifts with profound humility4 ,he is indeed the ,almighty ,word which created the heavens4 ,he is indeed your ,lord and everlasting ,king0 7,history of ,idolatry1 ,faber1 vol4 ii4 p4 #ib74 ,it was believed that this prophecy was fulfilled by the advent of the ,persian god ,sosia4 ,it was common among the ancients to presage the birth of a god by the appearance of a mysterious star1 and for astronomers to hasten to adore the new-born deity and present him gifts4 ,greece1 ,rome1 ,arabia1 and even ,mexico1 were all familiar with ,messianic prophecies4 ,bishop ,hawes says that 8the idea that ,god should in some extraordinary manner visit and dwell with men is found in a thousand forms among ancient heathens40 ,the fact is1 there is no promise or prophecy of a 8last ,adam0 in the ,hebrew ,scriptures4 ,the ,jews give a very different interpretation to those utterances alleged to be ,messianic1 and the alleged types of ,jesus in the ,old ,testament are purely fanciful1 and many of them are exceedingly childish4 ,the idea that ,solomon and ,moses and the scapegoat were types of ,jesus is simply absurd1 and not creditable to the alleged antetype4 ,there is no ,jesus of ,nazareth in the ,hebrew oracles4 ,the bloody sacrifices of the ,old ,testament were antedated by heathen nations centuries before the ,jews4 ,the sacrificing of brute beasts was heathenism pure and simple1 to conciliate an imaginary anthropomorphic god4 ,twenty generations of innocent animals slaughtered by divine command in order to notify the world beforehand of the coming of the last ,adam1 yet never saying so1 seem to have failed to prepare the people for the alleged spiritual sacrifice of ,jesus4 ,it was a signal failure4 ,if these bloody offerings were types of ,jesus1 there must have been some resemblance4 ,wherein did it lie8 ,a bullock was forced to the altar2 he died like any beast at the shambles4 ,it made the sanctuary a slaughter-house4 ,the involuntary offering of an innocent lamb or pigeon cannot be a type of a willing offering of a human being4 ,the whole scheme of bloody animal sacrifices is a type of nothing but the cruelty of barbarism1 and meant a good dinner and fat priests6 ,it is generally condemned by the ,hebrew prophets as useless1 and was entirely rejected by those who 8professed and called themselves ,christians40 ,since we can learn absolutely nothing that is rationally reliable concerning the 8last ,adam0 from the ,old ,testament1 it becomes necessary for us to consult comparatively modern history4 ,the advent of ,jesus was made1 if made at all within the historic period1 scarcely nineteen hundred years ago4 ,if such a person appeared among men at that time1 there must be some written record of so wonderful an event by contemporary parties4 ,in the ,jewish ,talmud1 a perfect wilderness of religious and secular speculations1 we find many spiteful and distorted allusions to one ,jesus who went into ,egypt and learned sorcery and magic1 and by such influence raised a tumult among the people and led away a party of deluded followers4 ,whether this was ,jesus of ,nazareth it is impossible to say4 ,there were many persons bearing similar names4 ,there is at the present day much ignorance--or at least indifference--even among intelligent ,christians1 to the fact that the very name of ,jesus is not of ,hebrew1 but of ,greek origin1 as indeed is the whole history of his life as related in the four ,gospels2 and no one but those who have a previous theory to uphold can believe that the people of ,jerusalem during the time of ,christ spoke any other language than that spoken by their forefathers4 ,from this we will pass to other instances where the name of ,jesus is applied to others not named in the ,gospels2 and it will be a matter of surprise to many to know that no less than fifteen1 most of them living at the time of the ,christian era1 are named by the ,jewish historian ,josephus as bearing the name of ,jesus3 #a4 ,jesus1 son of ,josedek 7,ant41 xi4 iii4 #aj1 iv4 #a74 #b4 ,jesus1 sumamed ,jason1 son of ,simon 7,ant41 xi4 iii4 #aj1 iv4 #a74 #c4 ,jesus1 son of ,phabet 7,ant41 xv4 ix4 #c74 #d4 ,jesus1 son of ,sie 7,ant41 xvii4 xiii4 #a74 #e4 ,jesus1 son of ,damneus 7,ant41 xx4 ix4 #a74 #f4 ,jesus1 son of ,gamaliel 7,ant41 xx4 ix4 #d74 #g4 ,jesus1 son of ,sapphias 7 ,wars1 ii4 xx4 #d74 #h4 ,jesus1 son of ,shaphat 7 ,wars1 iii4 ix4 #g74 #i4 ,jesus1 son of ,ananus 7 ,wars1 iv4 iv4 #i74 #aj4 ,jesus1 son of ,ananus1 a plebeian 7 ,wars1 vi4 v4 #c74 #aa4 ,jesus1 son of ,gamala 7,life1 #ch1 #da74 #ab4 ,jesus1 a high priest 7 ,wars1 vi4 ii4 #b74 #ac4 ,jesus1 son of ,thebuthi 7 ,wars1 vi4 viii4 #c74 #ad4 ,jesus1 father of ,elymas4 #ae4 ,jesus1 surnamed ,barabbas4 ,josephus also refers to one ,judas1 a ,gaulonite1 who was a leader of the people1 and whose character and career answer in so many respects to qualities credited to ,jesus of ,nazareth that it is supposed by many that the name ,jesus had been changed to ,judas2 and he also refers to other ,jesuses who are too much like the traditional ,jesus of the ,gospels in many things to be mere coincidences4 ,then there was the meek ,jesus1 mentioned by ,josephus1 who lived during the reign of ,albinus1 who prophesied such evil things1 and who was scourged until his bones were laid bare1 and who uttered no reply1 and in so many ways was like the ,jesus of tradition 7 ,wars of the ,jews1 book vi41 chap4 #e74 ,then we have the mention of the ,jesus1 as is well known1 who was the friend of ,simon and ,john and the 8son of ,sapphias10 who was the leader of a seditious tumult1 who was betrayed by one of his followers1 and defeated by ,josephus himself when he was governor of ,galilee1 and put to shame and confusion 7,life of ,josephus1 sec4 #ab-ad74 ,this undoubtedly shows that nearly all that is claimed for ,jesus of ,nazareth might have been said as the substance of what was written by ,josephus concerning real historical persons called ,jesus4 ,this may account for the conglomerate character and the many inconsistencies ascribed to this ,jesus of tradition4 ,the failure of ,jewish writers of the first century to recognize ,jesus of ,nazareth1 even in the most casual way1 is a significant fact4 ,philo1 the celebrated writer of his day1 was born about twenty years before the ,christian era1 and spent his time in philosophical studies at that centre of learning1 ,alexandria in ,egypt4 ,he labored diligently and wrote voluminously to reconcile the teachings of ,plato with the writings of the ,old ,testament1 and1 though in the prime and vigor of manhood when ,jesus is said to have lived1 and dwelling in the immediate vicinity of ,judea1 and in the very city where ,christianity was early introduced1 yet this learned1 devout1 and honest ,jew makes no mention of ,jesus of ,nazareth4 ,even more strange is the silence of ,josephus1 the ,jewish historian1 who was born about ,a4 d4 #ce1 and lived and wrote extensively until after the destruction of ,jerusalem1 and yet he never mentioned the name of ,jesus4 ,the celebrated passage regarding ,christ is known to be a forgery1 and the one respecting 8,james the brother of ,jesus1 called the ,christ10 is by no means worthy of confidence4 ,it must be certain that in the first century of our era ,jesus of ,nazareth did not attract the attention of these fair and distinguished ,jewish writers1 if he in fact existed4 ,in early times the name ,jesus1 as has been shown1 was as common as the names ,john or ,james1 and when the name is mentioned it is impossible to say who is referred to4 ,the passage in ,josephus referring to ,jesus thus1 8,about this time appeared ,jesus1 a wise man1 if indeed it be right to call him a man10 etc41 is acknowledged by celebrated ,christian writers to be a fraud4 ,its authenticity was given up as long ago as the time of ,dr4 ,nathaniel ,lardner1 author of the ,credibility of the ,gospel ,history1 and one of the most highly regarded of ,christian writers4 ,gibbon1 too1 decided it to be a forgery4 ,bishop ,warburton1 the distinguished defender of ,pope's ,essay on ,man against the charge of atheism1 and one of the most distinguished of ,christian defenders1 agreed with ,lardner4 ,the ,rev4 ,robert ,taylor quotes many other ,christian writers as coinciding4 ,the biographer of ,josephus in the ,encyclopaedia ,britannica says the passage is unanimously regarded as spurious4 ,drs4 ,oort1 ,hookyaas1 and ,xuenen1 ,german ,christian writers of great repute1 in the ,bible for ,learners declare the passage to be 8certainly spurious0 and 8inserted by a later and a ,christian hand40 ,gibbon says it was forged between the time of ,origen 7a4 d4 #bcj7 and ,eusebius 7a4 d4 #cae74 ,the credit of the forgery1 however1 is generally given to ,eusebius1 who first quoted it4 ,the distinguished authors of the ,bible for ,learners distinctly state that ,josephus never mentioned ,jesus1 and cite ,josephus's close following of the atrocious career of ,herod up to the very last moments of his life1 without mentioning the slaughter of the innocents1 as indubitable proof that ,josephus knew nothing of ,jesus4 ,dr4 ,lardner gives these reasons why he regards the passage as a forgery3 8,i do not perceive that we at all want the suspected testimony to ,jesus1 which was never quoted by any of our ,christian ancestors before ,eusebius4 8,nor do ,i recollect that ,josephus has anywhere mentioned the name or word ,christ in any of his works1 except the testimony above mentioned and the passage concerning ,james1 the ,lord's brother4 8,it interrupts the narrative4 8,the language is quite ,christian4 8,it is not quoted by ,chrysostom1 though he often refers to ,josephus1 and could not have omitted quoting it had it been in the text4 8,it is not quoted by ,photius1 though he has three articles concerning ,josephus4 8,under the article #8,justus of ,tiberias1 this author 7,photius7 expressly states that the historian 7,josephus71 being a ,jew1 has not taken the least notice of ,christ4 8,neither ,justin in his dialogue with ,trypho the ,jew1 nor ,clemens ,alexandrinus1 who made so many extracts from ,christian authors1 nor ,origen against ,celsus1 have ever mentioned this testimony4 8,but1 on the contrary1 in chapter xxxv4 of the first book of that work1 ,origen openly affirms that ,josephus1 who had mentioned ,john the ,baptist1 did not acknowledge ,christ40 ,the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,giles1 author of the ,christian ,records1 adds to the reasons for rejecting the passage1 as follows3 8,those who are best acquainted with the character of ,josephus and the style of his writings have no hesitation in condemning this passage as a forgery interpolated in the text during the third century by some pious ,christian1 who was scandalized that so famous a writer as ,josephus should have taken no notice of the ,gospels or of ,christ their subject4 ,but the zeal of the interpolator has outrun his discretion1 for we might as well expect to gather grapes from thorns or figs from thistles as to find this notice of ,christ among the ,judaizing writings of ,josephus4 ,it is well known that this author was a zealous ,jew1 devoted to the laws of ,moses and the traditions of his countrymen4 ,how1 then1 could he have written that ,jesus was the ,christ8 ,such an admission would have proved him to be a ,christian himself1 in which case the passage under consideration1 too long for a ,jew1 would have been far too short for a believer in the new religion2 and thus the passage stands forth1 like an ill-set jewel1 contrasting most inharmoniously with everything around it4 ,if it had been genuine1 we might be sure that ,justin ,martyr1 ,tertullian1 and ,chrysostom would have quoted it in their controversies with the ,jews1 and that ,origen or ,photius would have mentioned it4 ,but ,eusebius1 the ecclesiastical historian 7i4 #aa71 is the first who quotes it1 and our reliance on the judgment1 or even honesty1 of this writer is not so great as to allow our considering everything found in his works as undoubtedly genuine40 ,oxley in his great work #jaa ,egypt says3 8,however1 ,i have found in some papers that this discourse was not written by ,josephus1 but by one ,caius1 a presbyter40 ,here1 according to their own showing1 what had passed for centuries as the work of ,josephus was a fraud perpetrated by a dignitary of the ,church4 ,this is in perfect keeping with ancient custom4 ,in addition to all this1 there is not an original manuscript of ,josephus in existence1 nor one 7that ,i have heard of7 that dates farther back than the tenth or eleventh century ,a4 ,d4 ,another forged reference to ,christ is found in the ,antiquities1 book xx4 chapter ix4 section #a1 where ,josephus is made to speak of ,james1 8the brother of ,jesus1 who was called ,christ40 ,some theologians who reject the longer reference to ,jesus accept this as genuine4 ,but they do it without reconciling the discrepancies between the stories regarding the end of this same ,james4 ,according to this passage1 ,james was put to death under the order of the high priest4 ,but according to ,hegesippus1 a converted ,jew who wrote a history of the ,christian ,church about ,a4 d4 #agj1 ,james was killed in a tumult1 not by sentence of a court4 ,clement of ,alexandria confirms this1 and is quoted by ,eusebius accordingly4 ,eusebius also quotes the line from ,josephus without noticing that the two do not agree4 ,the statement is quoted in various ways in the early writers1 and the conclusion is irresistible that the copies of ,josephus were tampered with by copyists4 ,even had ,jesus lived and taught as described in the ,gospels1 ,josephus1 an orthodox ,jew1 a priest1 and conservative government official1 would never have given him the title of ,christ1 or ,messiah1 a party leader for whom the ,jews were looking to free them from their ,roman bondage4 ,among the great pagan writers of the first century of our era we find absolutely nothing relating to ,jesus of ,nazareth4 ,there was ,seneca1 living not far from these times1 and then the ,elder and the ,younger ,pliny1 ,tacitus1 ,plutarch1 ,galen1 ,epictetus1 ,marcus ,antoninus--some of the noblest men of the world4 ,let us look at some few fragments of testimony that we have4 ,one historian writes that 8under a ringleader named ,chrestus the ,jews raised a tumult40 ,in another place he refers to the ,christians as a class of men devoted to a 8new and mischievous superstition40 ,and ,tacitus speaks of ,judea as 8the source of this evil40 ,another speaks of the ,christians as 8a sect hated for their crimes10 and ,suetonius gives ,nero special praise for having done the most that he could to wipe them off the face of the earth4 ,in a ,life of ,claudius1 another ,roman emperor1 ,christ is spoken of as 8a restless1 seditious ,jewish agitator40 ,pliny the ,younger1 writing to the emperor about ,a4 ,d4 #ajd1 when he was governor of ,bithynia1 says the ,christians do not worship the gods nor the emperors--as most of the people then did--nor could they be induced to curse ,christ4 ,he says they met mornings for virtuous vows1 and chanted a hymn to ,christ as to a god1 and in the evening they ate together a common meal4 ,and after he had put them to torture he said all he could find against them was 8a perverse and immoderate superstition40 ,lucian1 about the middle of the second century1 speaks of ,jesus as the crucified ,sophist4 ,we do not know certainly whether these references to ,christ allude to ,jesus of ,nazareth at all4 ,chrestians and ,chrestus were designations in common use all over the world1 and the writers merely mentioned them as a sect well known as creating some noise in the world4 ,certainly the language used in describing them is not very complimentary4 ,they may have referred to the ,essenes1 who had their ideal ,chrest4 ,a modern writer has shown that the story of the persecution of ,christians by the emperor ,nero 7a4 d4 #ed-fh7 is a modern fabrication4 ,robert ,taylor1 in his ,diegesis published in #ahbi1 proved that ,cornelius ,tacitus never could have written the passage describing such persecution4 ,it has been demonstrated that the whole of the so-called ,annals of ,tacitus1 containing the celebrated passage1 was forged by a ,papal secretary named ,poggio ,bracciolini4 ,in #adbb1 while in the receipt of a small salary under ,martin ,v41 he was tempted by an offer of five hundred sequins 7which would now be equal to fifty thousand dollars7 to engage in some mysterious literary work4 ,seven years later1 six books of what are now called the ,annals of ,tacitus were brought to him by a monk from ,saxony4 ,then all ,christendom rejoiced to learn that the heathen ,tacitus had mentioned ,christ crucified under ,pontius ,pilate4 ,poggio1 though a father both spiritually and carnally1 was not a husband till the age of fifty-four4 ,at seventy-two he accepted the office of secretary to the republic of ,florence1 and at seventy-nine he died1 leaving five sons of his old age4 ,up to the last he was a busy student and writer4 ,fifty-six years after his death his fourth son was secretary to ,pope ,leo ,x41 at which time the pope's steward1 stimulated by a munificent reward1 discovered the first six incomplete books of the ,annals1 being the unfinished work of ,poggio in his old age4 ,the finding of ancient ,,mss4 was a very lucrative business for scholars in those days4 ,it began with ,petrarch1 who died in #acgd1 and did not end with ,poggio1 who died in #adei4 ,poggio discovered several orations of ,cicero1 a history by ,ammianus ,marcollinus1 and several other classic works1 besides the unclassic writings of ,tertullian1 the first ,latin ,father4 ,the modern fabrication of many of the ancient ,latin and ,greek ,,mss4 is now becoming apparent4 ,jean ,hardouin1 a ,french ,jesuit1 died in #agbi1 aged eighty-three years4 ,he was deeply versed in history1 language1 and numismatology4 ,at the age of forty-four he began to suspect that certain writings of the ,christian ,fathers were spurious1 and soon became convinced that none of them were genuine4 ,then turning his attention to the ,greek and ,latin classics1 he found evidence sufficient to convince him that most of those also were forgeries1 being fabricated by the ,benedictine monks after the middle of the fourteenth century4 ,eusebius's ,ecclesiastical ,history1 first found in ,latin in the fifteenth century and then in ,greek in the six-teenth century1 we have no doubt is a probable forgery4 ,and if so we have really no history of the primitive ,church except what may be found in the ,new ,testament and a few uncertain fragments of apocryphal literature1 all much corrupted4 ,the use of the word ,christus and ,christianus by the ,latin writers is sufficient evidence of modern fabrication4 ,ainsworth's ,latin ,dictionary has not the word ,christus nor ,christianus in the ,latin part1 but in the part which gives the ,latin equivalents of ,english words we find this3 ,a ,christian ,christianus4 ,christianism or ,christianity ,christianismus4 ,christmas ,christianataliam festum4 ,now1 the words ,christus and ,christianus are used by ,tacitus1 ,suetonius1 ,pliny 7the younger71 ,tertullian1 and all the succeeding ,latin ,fathers4 ,christos in ,greek is a very proper word1 being a translation of the ,hebrew mashiach1 meaning 8anointed40 ,therefore1 the ,latins would have rendered it unctus4 ,but the ,benedictine monks who forged the literature of the pretended ,fathers1 instead of translating christos1 audaciously transferred the word1 and thus the new word ,christus1 with a capital ,c1 became an additional name for the man-god of the ,catholic ,church4 ,now1 we respectfully raise the query whether it is rational to suppose that such wonderful things occurred in the little province of ,palestine1 surrounded by learned sages and philosophers of the most enlightened nations of the world1 and not one direct and intelligent reference should have been made to them8 ,is it not strange that we have no account of the birth1 sayings1 and doings of this 8last ,adam10 who is said to have come into this world on the most important mission1 and yet we hear nothing of him except in four or five little anonymous and dateless pamphlets written a long while after the events are said to have transpired8 ,since the ,new ,testament contains all that has been written on this subject1 is it not our highest duty to subject this book to the most thorough examination8 ,this we shall now proceed to do in the most fearless manner1 however startling the conclusions which may be reached4 ,,chapter ,,ix4 ,,what ,,is ,,known ,,of ,,the ,,new ,,testament 8,search the scriptures2 for in them ye think ye have eternal life2 and they are they which testify of me40--,john #e3 #ci4 ,,we of course use the above passage as a motto1 as the writer must have referred to the ,old-,testament ,scriptures1 as the ,new ,testament was not yet in existence4 ,as this book is the sole dependence in finding evidence regarding ,jesus1 we naturally first inquire as to what is known of it4 ,we find this volume to be made up of twenty-seven small tracts or pamphlets1 fastened together for the sake of convenience4 7#a7 ,we have four sketches1 purporting to be brief biographies of ,jesus4 7#b7 ,next we have a condensed history1 called the ,acts of the ,apostles4 7#c7 ,then we have twenty-one writings or letters addressed to different churches or individuals in the epistolary form of communication4 7#d7 ,and finally we have a highly-wrought allegory1 partaking somewhat of the form of both history and prophecy4 ,we find that this volume of little pamphlets is called the 8,authorized ,version0 of the ,new ,testament4 ,we inquire who authorized this version1 and find that it was gotten up by certain men1 mainly ,englishmen1 in the year #afjc by the 8special command0 of ,james1 who is called 8king of ,great ,britain1 ,france1 and ,ireland10 and who was addressed by these gentlemen1 mostly clergymen1 as 8the ,most ,high and ,mighty ,prince1 ,defender of the ,faith10 etc4 ,it now becomes a matter of superlative importance to determine the basis upon which this version of the ,new ,testament was made4 ,it is well known that in #ahha a ,new ,version was published1 and ,rev4 ,alexander ,roberts1 ,d4 ,d41 a member of the committee of revisers1 issued a little book entitled ,companion to the ,revised ,version1 to be circulated with it4 ,this is the latest and highest authority by which to settle the question of the basis or standard of our 8,authorized ,version0 of the ,new ,testament4 ,it is stated on its title-page that it is 8,translated out of the ,original ,greek20 and it is safe and fair to let ,dr4 ,roberts1 the mouthpiece of the ,new ,version ,committee1 tell us upon what ,greek manuscripts this version of ,king ,james was based4 ,after giving a history of the different ,greek editions of the ,new ,testament 7the first of which was completed in #aead1 and its publication formally sanctioned by ,pope ,leo ,x4 in #aebj71 he inquires1 8,which of the foregoing ,greek texts formed the original from which our common ,english translation was derived80 8,to this question the answer is1 that ,beza's edition of #aehi was the one usually followed40 ,beza's edition was based on ,stevens' edition of #aeej1 and that was derived from the fourth edition of ,erasmus1 published in #aebg4 ,beza1 ,stevens1 ,erasmus6 ,in reference to the edition of ,erasmus he said himself1 8,it was rather tumbled headlong into the world than edited40 ,but the question now comes up1 ,what was the basis of the edition of ,erasmus8 ,dr4 ,roberts shall answer3 8,in the ,gospels he principally used a cursive ,,ms4 of the fifteenth or sixteenth century10444 8admitted by all to be of a very inferior character40444 8,he procured another ,,ms4 of the twelfth century or earlier1 but ,erasmus was ignorant of its value and made little use of it40444 8,in the ,acts and ,epistles he chiefly followed a cursive ,,ms4 of the thirteenth or fourteenth century1 with occasional reference to another of the fifteenth century40444 8,for the ,apocalypse he had only one mutilated ,,ms40 ,dr4 ,roberts adds3 8,he had no documentary materials for publishing a complete edition of the ,greek ,testament40 ,the point we here raise is1 that it is an admission made by the best orthodox authority that our 8,authorized ,new ,testament0 was formed out of ,,mss4 dating no farther back than the twelfth1 thirteenth1 fourteenth1 fifteenth1 and sixteenth centuries1 and that even these were hastily and unskilfully used or not used at all4 ,but the question naturally arises1 ,have not earlier ,,mss4 come to light1 substantially confirming what we have in ,king ,james' ,version8 ,the answer is1 that there are now in existence about two thousand ,,mss4 containing parts of the ,new ,testament1 with about one hundred and fifty thousand variations1 mostly trivial1 but some very important2 but no scholar1 orthodox or liberal1 will dare to pretend that any of these date any farther back than the fourth or fifth century2 and he would be a reckless man1 feeling bound to lie for what he might regard as the truth1 who would contradict the admission of ,dr4 ,roberts1 that there are only five copies of the ,new ,testament1 at all complete1 of a greater antiquity than the tenth century1 nor who would dare to question the statement of the ,rev4 ,george ,e4 ,merrell in his recent ,story of the ,manuscripts1 that 8there is a wide gap of almost three centuries between the original manuscripts of the evangelists and apostles and the earliest copies of their writings which have yet been discovered40 ,whether there ever were original manuscripts or accurate copies are questions which it would be prudent to hold for consideration until we have made further investigations4 ,when we reverently listen to our ministers as they expound the ,word1 and learnedly tell us how certain sentences should have been translated from the 8original ,greek10 let us not laugh in their faces1 but respectfully ask them whether they do not know that there is no original ,greek ,testament or any certified copy1 and that all we know upon these matters is highly conjectural and wholly unauthenticated4 ,the principal ,,mss4 of the ,new ,testament were unknown for a thousand years after the ,christian era--to wit1 those from which our 8,authorized0 ,new ,testament was compiled--and their real origin cannot be traced1 and even their accepted date is purely a matter of conjecture4 ,the ,alexandrian1 ,vatican1 and ,sinaitic ,,mss41 supposed to date from the fourth and fifth centuries1 are of uncertain and suspicious origin1 and their date is a matter of simple guess by parties whose prepossessions would incline them to make them as ancient as possible4 ,how easy it is for the best scholars to be imposed upon is shown from the fact that the experts of the ,british ,museum would probably have been swindled by the recent ,syrian forgery of the very ancient book of ,deuteronomy but for the discovery of the fact by a ,french scholar that the 8ancient document0 was in fact only a year or two old1 the product of a skilled copyist6 ,the fact is1 little or nothing is actually known by historical and documentary verification of the origin or dates of the ,,mss4 upon which our ,new ,testament is based4 ,the next question that arises in a rational mind in this connection is this3 ,have we in these twenty-seven little pamphlets all that has been written upon the subjects to which they relate8 ,the answer to this question is very embarrassing4 ,it is an undoubted fact that the ecclesiastical council that selected the books composing the ,new ,testament had at least fifty ,gospels1 from which they selected four1 and more than one hundred ,epistles1 from which they selected seventeen1 and that from nearly a score of books professing to be records of the 8,acts of the ,apostles0 they selected one1 which ,chrysostom in the fifth century says 8was not so much as known to many40 ,then there are forty-one ,new-,testament books now extant1 called apocryphal1 relating to the teachings of ,jesus and the apostles1 and besides the canonical and apocryphal books extant there are sixty-eight ,new-,testament books mentioned by the ,christian ,fathers of the first four centuries which are not now known to be in existence4 ,besides these1 more than fifty books1 written in the second century by more than twenty distinguished persons1 have mysteriously disappeared4 ,the fact should also be emphasized that the adoption of the ,new-,testament books in the early part of the fourth century1 as we now substantially have them1 was followed by the disappearance and probable destruction of all books that could throw light upon the books received1 and all the supposed copies of our ,gospels to that period have been lost or destroyed4 ,the fact to be kept in mind is this1 that the ,new-,testament books which we now have were selected from scores and hundreds of writings claiming equal authority by a few self-appoint-ed men1 who had very few qualifications and many disqualifications for the work they undertook for all coming generations4 ,we have but a trifling proportion in number of the ancient records regarding ,jesus4 ,but we now take up the little pamphlets as we have them1 and try to arrange them in order of time4 ,the oldest writings of the ,new ,testament are the ,epistles of ,paul4 ,and here we find ourselves embarrassed by the fact that biblical criticism shows that not more than five--some say four--of the ,epistles ascribed to ,paul were written by him--viz4 ,first ,thessalonians1 ,galatians1 ,first ,corinthians1 ,second ,corinthians1 and ,romans4 ,the other nine ascribed to ,paul were doubtless written by unknown second-century authors4 ,the same uncertainty prevails in regard to the authorship of several1 if not all1 of what are called the ,general or ,catholic ,epistles1 as well as of the ,acts of the ,apostles and the book of ,revelation4 ,it is impossible to fix the dates of the ,new-,testament books except approximately4 ,there is a great diversity of opinion4 ,the earliest were probably written in the last half of the first century1 and the latest certainly in the last quarter of the second century4 ,certain it is that no evidence can be found of the existence of our four ,gospels until the latter part of the second century1 about one hundred and fifty years after the alleged death of ,jesus4 ,it is therefore true what ,prof4 ,robertson ,smith1 ,d4 ,d41 the learned ,scotch ,presbyterian minister1 asserts1 that our four ,gospels are 8unapostolic digests of the second century40 ,from the ,apostolic ,epistles we learn nothing of the life and teachings of ,jesus4 ,with ,paul1 ,christ was an idea rather than a person4 ,not a syllable do we find in his writings of the miraculous birth of ,jesus1 no reference to the ,sermon on the ,mount1 much less to the miracles ascribed to him4 ,he rather boasted that he had learned nothing of him from his disciples1 but what he knew he had received at the time of his own miraculous conversion4 ,he dwells upon the death and spiritual resurrection of ,jesus1 not upon his life2 and the only words of ,jesus quoted by ,paul1 8it is more blessed to give than to receive10 are not found at all in the ,gospels4 ,all that ,paul ever claimed to know about ,jesus as a person he learned in a vision1 and it is to be taken for what it is worth4 ,we are absolutely driven to the ,gospels for information regarding the alleged founder of ,christianity1 his birth1 his life1 his teachings1 and his death4 ,and here the fact should be faced that ,jesus never wrote anything about himself1 his mission1 or his doctrines4 ,we should not even know that he had learned the art of writing but for the incident mentioned in one of the ,gospels 7,john #h3f7 that on a certain occasion he stooped down and wrote in the sand2 and now our learned ,new ,versionists come along and snatch this from us by declaring that the beautiful story about the kind treatment of the woman taken in adultery is an interpolation not found in the best early ,,mss41 so that we are not even sure that ,jesus wrote anything even with his finger in the sand1 or that he even knew how to write6 ,nobody pretends that ,jesus ever directed his disciples or any one else to write down what he said and did1 but1 on the other hand1 he often forbade his disciples to tell what he said and did2 and much of what he is reported to have said was so obscure that the disciples themselves continually misunderstood him4 ,two reasons have been assigned for this omission of ,jesus to write himself or to commission others to write down his sayings4 ,the first is1 that he said nothing which could not be found in then existing writings 7as can easily be shown71 and the second is1 that he was so sure that the world was about to be destroyed1 and that his own kingdom would so soon be set up and established upon the general ruin1 that it was useless to write down what was said and done in the short remaining period of mundane history4 ,we have four brief sketches claiming to be biographies of ,jesus1 which the ,church claims as authentic1 from which we must draw all our information regarding ,jesus4 ,it is not necessary here to assign the reasons of learned critics for their conclusion that the ,gospel 8according to0 ,mark is the older of the four4 ,but it is worthy of note that there is not in it one word of the miraculous conception story1 and not a hint of the bodily resurrection and ascension of ,jesus1 as the critics have a way of proving that the last chapter of ,mark was added by a later hand4 ,then we are embarrassed by the testimony of ,irenus1 ,origen1 ,jerome1 and other ,christian ,fathers that the ,gospel of ,matthew was written in ,hebrew1 while there are indubitable internal evidences that this ,gospel1 as we have it1 was written in ,greek and by a ,greek1 and not a ,jew1 and that it is really a theological treatise written by some partisan for ecclesiastical reasons1 and that if ,matthew ever wrote a ,gospel1 it has been unfortunately lost or purposely destroyed4 ,an early ,christian sect1 called in derision ,ebionites1 are supposed to have had the ,hebrew ,gospel of ,matthew1 and they were persecuted and stamped out for denying the miraculous conception and divinity of ,christ1 and with them1 some critics suppose1 perished the only genuine ,gospel of ,matthew4 ,there is little if any doubt that the first and second chapters of our ,matthew1 giving an account of the miraculous birth and genealogy of ,jesus1 were added when this fiction was incorporated into ,christianity as necessary to a divine ,church establishment which should almost deify a hierarchy and bring the common people into subjection4 ,in reading ,matthew's ,gospel we should undoubtedly begin at chapter #c1 and especially as the first two chapters are absurd1 contradictory1 and inconsistent4 ,if ,jesus was begotten by the ,holy ,ghost1 it was not consistent or necessary to notice the genealogy of ,joseph1 and there is nothing more bungling than the genealogies of ,mary and ,joseph as given in ,matthew and ,luke4 ,indeed1 the name ,matthew is not ,jewish1 and there are those who doubt if there ever was such a man4 ,it is a suggestive fact that the ,egyptians had a ,matthu1 and that he was the registrar1 or keeper of their records4 ,the ,gospel ascribed to ,luke he himself admits to be a rsum or compilation of what had been written by others and was the prevalent belief 7,luke1 chapter #a74 ,in making a close analysis of this little tract a learned ,german critic ,schleiermacher1 shows that it was probably compiled from thirty-three different manuscripts4 ,but since ,luke himself claims nothing more than the office of a collector1 his work is a mere digest of what others had written and a summary of what was then believed by some persons4 ,the ,gospel according to ,john deserves a more careful and extended notice1 from the fact that it differs in so many particulars from the other three ,gospels4 ,there is no evidence of the existence of this writing until ,a4 ,d4 #age1 when it was mentioned in the ,clementine ,homilies17#a7 and in #agf1 ,theophilus of ,antioch ascribed its authorship to ,john4 ,but nothing is more certain than that ,john the ,evangelist did not write this little book1 as it contains internal evidence of its ,grecian origin1 and that it could not have been written by one familiar with ,judaism and the geography of ,palestine4 ,many of the best biblical scholars1 orthodox and rationalistic1 admit this fact1 and our ,methodist friends may amuse themselves at their leisure in reading a learned note from the pen of their great commentator1 ,dr4 ,adam ,clarke1 at the close of his exposition of the first chapter of ,john1 in which he points out thirty-five parallels between the writings of ,philo the learned ,platonist and the ,gospel of ,john1 unwittingly showing that it must have been written by an ,alexandrian ,greek4 7#a7 ,these were spurious4 ,and right here it is proper to expose an ancient fraud perpetuated in the ,church to the present day--to wit1 that ,papius and ,polycarp1 early ,christian writers1 were personally acquainted with and instructed by ,john1 and that therefore a succession was established with the teachings of ,jesus himself1 whose personal disciple ,john was4 ,this story was originated by ,irenus1 and the fraud consists in confounding ,john the son of ,zebedee and ,salome with one ,john who was said to be a presbyter in ,asia ,minor4 ,this ingenious device is clearly exposed by ,reber in his work--,the ,enigmas of ,christianity4 ,irenus1 bishop of ,lyons1 may be called one of the founders of the papal hierarchy1 as he in the second century attempted1 but miserably failed1 to furnish a catalogue of bishops in orderly succession from the apostles2 and soon after he was followed in the same vain attempt by ,tertullian1 who first claimed supremacy for the bishop of ,rome1 calling him 8epis-copus episcoporum10 a bishop of bishops4 ,the fact is1 it is not known who wrote the fourth ,gospel1 but it is certain that it was not written by the humble1 amiable ,galilean fisherman1 but by a learned neo-,platonist1 who was familiar with the dialectics of the learned ,gnostic philosophers1 and who desired most earnestly their complete suppression as essential to the success of the fixed purpose of priests to establish a ,church1 under an alleged divine commission1 in which they were to be the kings and princes4 ,priests have always been the corrupters and perverters of truth for their own aggrandizement1 and the ,grecian treatise palmed upon the ,church as the ,gospel of ,st4 ,john is one of the most illustrious examples4 ,but for this so-called 8,gospel0 the existence of the papal hierarchy1 and the consequent priestly pretensions in ,protestant churches1 would have been impossible4 ,enough has been presented to show that we have no alternative but to depend upon the synoptical ,gospels1 credited to ,matthew1 ,mark1 and ,luke1 in our inquiry as to ,jesus4 ,now let us see just where we stand as to the sources of information to which we are to look in learning whom ,jesus was4 #a4 ,we are restricted to four1 if not three1 short biographies1 accredited to ,matthew1 ,mark1 ,luke1 and ,john1 only two of whom1 ,matthew and ,john1 were mentioned among the disciples of ,jesus4 #b4 ,that these sketches were written by those whose names they bear is not supported by a particle of proof1 but1 on the other hand1 there is strong evidence that they were not written by the persons to whom they are credited2 and this is especially true in regard to ,matthew and ,john4 ,strictly speaking1 our ,gospels are anonymous4 #c4 ,these documents are without date1 both as to the time in which they are written and the place of writing1 and there is no proof of their existence until more than one hundred and fifty years after the alleged occurrence of the things recorded4 #d4 ,that these four ,gospels were selected from many other writings most of which have been lost or destroyed4 #e4 ,that the men who made our four ,gospels canonical1 and rejected all the rest1 were for the most part narrow1 bigoted partisans1 and had good reasons of a selfish nature to reject whatever did not favor their ambitious designs4 #f4 ,we have no proof that the four ,gospels made canonical by the early ecclesiastical councils were the original writings of the evangelists1 even if we were sure that they wrote anything1 nor have we any proof that the copies adopted were genuine and authentic and the best then extant4 #g4 ,we have no proof that the copies we have are accurate copies of the ones adopted by the councils1 but we have proof positive1 admitted by the ,new ,version-ists of #ahha1 that they contain many interpolations and additions and many evidences of forgeries and alterations by the ignorant1 designing1 and selfish ecclesiastics of the mediaeval centuries known as the ,dark ,ages4 #h4 ,that the ,authorized ,version read in the churches and in our families is based upon ,,mss4 dating from the twelfth to the sixteenth century1 and that only fragmentary ,,mss4 and unauthenticated copies are now in existence1 dating from the fourth1 fifth1 and sixth centuries4 #i4 ,that the copies we have bound up in our ,new ,testament contradict themselves and one another in a great many particulars1 and contain many statements which are geographically1 historically1 and philosophically absurd and incredible4 #aj4 ,that1 therefore1 our ,gospels are of uncertain authority and of undoubted human origin1 and are to be so regarded without a doubt4 ,now1 it will be said that this is an infidel attack upon the ,new ,testament1 and that it tends to the overthrow of the only religion that can do the world any good4 ,and yet1 strange as it may appear1 these facts are presented in the best interests of true religion--presented because they are true1 and therefore best adapted1 nay absolutely essential1 to the successful defense and propagation of virtue and morality4 ,the real infidels of the day are the theological liars and pretenders who are wilfully ignorant1 or too dishonest and cowardly to publish what they know4 ,infidelity is breach of trust1 disloyalty to truth4 ,he who would do the most good must tell the whole truth4 ,if we regard the ,gospels as simple compilations from earlier documents and traditions1 with occasional additions and alterations to meet occasions and times1 we shall find in them very many things to admire and to adopt into our problems of life and systems of morals1 many things worthy of imitation1 many things to give courage and comfort in the struggle for existence1 many things which would be just as true and just as useful if they had only been written yesterday by some one whom we have known from our childhood4 ,regarding the ,gospels as human1 we can excuse their absurdities and errors1 and while we cast these errors aside we joyfully accept what is true and good and beautiful2 but by claiming for them what they are not we bring even what is true into disrepute4 ,it was a master-stroke of worldly wisdom and policy when ,irenus in the second century 7who first mentioned our four ,gospels7 sanctioned the monstrous assumption of all ecclesiastical authority by divine right by the bishops and priests1 which power soon became centralized at ,rome2 but it was the greatest misfortune of the ages for the cause of true religion and sound morality4 ,it not only made the ,church of ,rome with its immense machinery a necessary result1 but it made the not less false systems of ,protestant dogmatic theology possible4 ,there is no use in attempting to disguise the fact that the so-called scheme of redemption is in principle and substance the same in the ,catholic and orthodox ,protestant ,churches4 ,many intelligent persons feel that they would as soon belong to one as the other1 while they secretly regard the ,romanists as logically the more consistent4 ,the ,romanists are strong in that they place the ,church first 7jure divino7 and make the scriptures the product of the ,church1 and of course subject to its interpretation4 ,protestants are weak in that they make the ,church subject to written scriptures1 which were selected by the founders of ,catholicism1 and then for centuries altered1 forged1 interpolated1 and manipulated by popes and priests to strengthen their authority and secure the absolute submission of the people4 ,the one fatal blunder of the ,protestant ,reformers was to found their system of theology upon a written book of the origin of which so little is known1 and yet regarding which so much is known that it is impossible for persons of a rational1 judicial mind to accept it as an infallible supernatural revelation4 ,the conclusion is inevitable that in the absence of everything that1 by even a strain of language1 can be called evidence as to the genuineness and authenticity1 of our ,gospels we cannot safely accept them as an infallible authority in religious matters4 ,we have a right to examine them critically1 just as we would read and study any other ancient writings of uncertain authorship and date4 ,the ,reformation was in part the substitution of a book which was pronounced infallible1 but which has proved to be very fallible1 for a ,church which claimed infallibility1 but which had shown itself not only very fallible1 but exceedingly corrupt and dangerous4 ,infallibility belongs to neither men nor books4 ,infallibility in books is an absurdity4 ,a religion founded upon a printed book must submit to examination of both the origin and character of that book1 and must shoulder the imperfections and errors which the discoveries of modern research have fully exposed4 ,the principles of true religion inherent in human nature1 an ineradicable constituent of the constitution of man1 as has been shown1 are to-day obscured and shackled by the false position in which its professed friends have placed it4 ,it will be shown before these papers are concluded that a religion manacled by a printed book claiming infallibility1 and made to depend solely upon an historical character who1 if admitted to be historical1 wrote nothing himself and commissioned no one to write anything for him1 and of whose verbal teachings and actual mode of life we can never be sure1--a religion thus encumbered must suffer great loss1 if not total failure1 as men shall progress in knowledge and science shall uncover the past and demonstrate the absurdities of the superstitious dogmas of the ancient faiths4 ,it is impossible to compress the largest brains of the nineteenth century into the smallest skulls of the twelfth century4 ,the true friend of religion is the fearless man who dares attempt to rescue it from the accretions and perversions of the ,dark ,ages1 and to establish its eternal principles of truth and righteousness in the very nature of man1 in the elevation of moral character1 in strict agreement with the demonstrated facts of the present1 as opposed to the bigoted and degrading fancies of the past4 ,to defend religion from the follies of its mistaken champions1 and show that its foundations are secure and its ultimate triumph certain1 may now be denounced as treason to the ,church1 but in coming years it will be seen to have been the work of men of whom the ,church of to-day is not worthy4 ,the fact is1 very little is known of the ,new ,testament1 but too much is well known to receive it in evidence in a matter of so much importance4 ,the narratives it contains would be ruled out of court in any civilized country on the globe4 ,it is evidently a huge compilation of what was at best only traditions among the nations of the earth1 and even these traditions1 mixed and mangled as they are1 must have another and a more rational explanation than an historical or a literal one4 ,this book cannot be an infallible divine revelation4 ,let us see whether we cannot find out what was really intended to be taught by the different writers4 ,,chapter ,x4 ,,the ,,drama ,,of ,,the ,,gospels 8,great is the mystery of godliness40--#a ,tim4 #c3af4 8,we speak the wisdom of ,god in a mystery40--#a ,cor4 #b3g4 8,i speak as to wise men2 judge ye what ,i say40--#a ,cor4 #aj3ae4 ,,in early times every prominent religious teacher had his own gospel1 as ,paul asserts that he had his4 ,the books that were canonized did not by any means shape the belief of the early ,christians1 but1 on the contrary1 their beliefs shaped the character of the books4 8,the question of a #8,catholic canon1'0 says ,professor ,davidson1 8was realized about the same time as the idea of a ,catholic ,church40 ,the partisanship1 low trickery1 and mob violence by which votes of councils were obtained to establish ecclesiastical dogmas1 the canonicity of ,scriptures1 etc41 were such as now-a-days characterize a political meeting in the slums of an ,american city4 ,while1 therefore1 we quote the statements of the ,gospels to prepare the way for the presentation of our points of argument1 we do so only for convenience4 ,they cannot1 by any rule of sound criticism1 testimony of contemporary writers1 or even of spiritual discernment1 be accepted as historical4 ,the composition of the four ,gospels indicates in many ways that they were originally collections of religious stories1 each of which has a moral of its own1 like the fables of sop1 or1 more properly1 the narratives concerning ,buddha given in the ,dhammapada4 ,this was a common mode of writing in early times4 ,history and biography were hardly considered4 ,hence contradictions of verbal statement were not counted as of any importance4 ,this is probably the reason why the transcribers neglected to remove the conflicts of statement and other inaccuracies that abound in the ,gospels4 ,it is also more than probable that many parts of these works which have a narrative form were later interpolations4 ,the first two chapters of ,matthew and the first two in the ,gospel according to ,luke are unequivocally of this character4 ,the style and diction are conspicuously unlike the language of the other parts of those works1 as will appear on the slightest notice4 ,the oldest parts of the ,new ,testament are the ,epistles of ,paul to the ,galatians1 ,corinthians1 ,romans1 and ,thessalonians4 ,we will do well1 therefore1 to study them a little while by themselves1 without reference to the ,gospels and other documents1 which were of later date4 ,paul asserts that he possessed and promulgated a gospel distinct and different from others1 and he pronounced an anathema on the man or angel that should teach any different one4 ,the way that he became possessed of it he sets forth as follows3 ,he had no conference with any human being whatsoever about the matter1 nor had he anything to do with those who were apostles before him1 but he went into ,arabia and afterward to ,damascus4 ,a hint is furnished by ,josephus in his history of his own life which throws some light upon the purpose of this sojourn in ,arabia4 ,there were members of the ,essenean brotherhood living there who were resorted to by individuals desiring instruction and discipline4 ,josephus himself went thither for that purpose4 ,paul evidently had a similar errand4 ,he had been a ,pharisee1 but had embraced another faith4 ,why did he choose the ,esseneans in preference to the ,judean apostles8 ,the answer must be that he was more certain of learning their tenets without adulteration4 ,they were famous for their devotion to religious study1 their cultivation of sacred literature and the art of prophecy1 for their austerity1 industry1 and peculiar social organization4 ,we shall find upon comparison that this was very closely resembling what is represented of the first believers at ,jerusalem4 ,they had their episcopacy1 their deacons or stewards1 their ,holy ,scriptures1 and apostles or missionaries4 ,these were numerous in ,syria1 ,asia ,minor1 and ,egypt4 ,as the ,therapeut of the latter country resembled them1 even to the signification of their name 7healers1 ministers71 the probability is that the two were nearly identical4 ,eusebius1 quoting the account of the ,egyptian communes as given by ,philo the ,jew1 has remarked the close similarity of their doctrines and customs with those of the apostolic congregations1 and declared that they were ,christians and their writings the ,gospels4 ,this1 however1 is not tenable1 at least not tenable in the way that he suggests4 ,unfortunately for his statement1 the ,essenean brothers existed1 with all the peculiarities described1 long before the ,christian era4 ,josephus treats of them as flourishing as early as the time of ,jonathan1 the first of the ,maccabeans who held the office of high priest4 ,about that period the canon of the ,old ,testament was finally collected4 8,judas gathered together all those things that were lost by reason of the war we had 7with ,antiochos ,epiphanes and his successors71 and they remain with us0 7#b ,macc4 #b3 #ad74 ,the ,maccabees or ,asmoneans were partisans of the sect known as ,asideans 7,chaldeans71 and afterward as ,pharisees or ,parsees4 ,at this very period we first learn of the ,sadducees or ,zadokites1 who chiefly belonged to the hereditary lineage of ,aaron1 and likewise of the ,essenean fraternity4 ,these last had their own sacred books1 and took no part in the worship and sacrifices of the temple4 ,in short1 they were regarded as a people apart4 ,their books1 we have good reason to suppose1 were different in tenor from those of the ,old ,testament1 and it is by no means improbable that they included the scriptures written in ,greek by the ,alexandrians and now called the ,apocrypha4 ,the designation ,minim may mean 8observers of the heavens10 and the ,essenes appear to have been such4 8,before sunrising10 says ,josephus1 8they speak not a word about profane matters1 but put up certain prayers which they have received from their forefathers1 as if they made a supplication for its rising40 ,this illustrates the taunt to the ,pharisees1 that they could discern the face of the sky in regard to the weather1 but could not read there the signs or symbols of the times1 which were also written there4 ,the ,saddukim were doubtless the disciples and partisans of ,judas of ,galilee1 or ,gaulonitis beyond ,jordan4 ,this man and his colleague ,sadduk began their career at the time of the census or enrolment by ,cyre-nius1 which took place after the displacing of ,arche-laus1 the son of ,herod ,i41 from the throne of ,judea4 ,there are many plausible reasons for identifying them with the apostolic congregation4 ,they established a new religious or philosophical sect1 which ,josephus declares had a great many followers1 and laid the foundations of the subsequent miseries of the ,jews4 ,their tenets agreed with those of the ,pharisees2 but1 says the historian1 8they have an inviolable attachment to liberty1 and say that ,god is to be their only ,ruler and ,lord4 ,they do not value any kinds of death1 nor indeed do they heed the deaths of their relations and friends1 nor can any such fear make them call any man lord40 ,the ,jewish nation1 ,josephus declares1 was infected with this doctrine to an incredible degree4 ,it is plain that the books interdicted in the ,talmud pertained to the sect which followed these teachers1 and perhaps also to the ,essenes4 ,the ,gospels show evidence of having been compiled from previous works4 ,the one ascribed to ,mark is apparently the more original1 being shorter1 more concise1 and exhibiting fewer traces of having been tampered with4 ,the ,gospel according to ,matthew is from the same original1 having whole sentences in exactly the same words1 but it is amplified and more diffuse4 ,neither of these ,gospels was recognized by ,paul1 and indeed there is much reason to doubt whether he had ever seen them4 ,if he recognized any evangelic compilation as genuine1 it was the one ascribed to ,luke2 and even then the treatise must have been rewritten after his period4 ,there exists abundant reason for regarding the ,essenean worship as more or less identical with that of ,mithras1 the ,persian 8god of heaven40 ,this appears to be sustained by a comparison of the cults4 ,thus1 as has been remarked1 they permitted no discourse on secular concerns before sunrise1 but chanted prayers like the ,gathas1 as in supplication to the divinity presiding over the sky4 ,their personal habits exhibited a profound awe for the ,sun4 ,their name itself was not peculiar to the fraternity of ,palestine and ,arabia1 but was borne by the ascetic priests at ,ephesus1 whose manner of life was similar2 and ,plutarch informs us that certain osioi 7another form of the name7 performed mystic rites in the temple of ,apollo at ,delphi in commemoration of ,zagreus1 the sun-god of the ,orphic religion1 who was slain and resuscitated4 ,the ,persian theology is evidently the basis and source of ,judaism4 ,the symbolism of the universe afforded a model for their religion4 ,after the conquest of ,pontus and the pirate empire by ,pompey1 about #gj b4 c41 the worship was introduced into the ,roman empire4 ,the verdict of ,salamis was thus reversed4 ,the defeat of ,xerxes1 who was a zealous propagandist1 had assured the ascendency of ,apollo at ,delphi and ,demeter at ,eleusis over the religion of ,ahura ,mazda2 but the conquest of the ,mithras-worshippers by ,pompey resulted in the introduction of their rites into every part of the ,roman world4 ,from the river ,euphrates to the ,wall of ,antoninus in ,britain1 and into the forests of ,germany1 ,mithraism everywhere prevailed4 ,for four centuries it disputed the supremacy with ,christianity2 and even when it was proscribed and forbidden by imperial authority1 it still retained its hold upon the pagani or inhabitants of the rural districts4 ,the ,templars and other secret fraternities of the ,middle ,ages were more or less similar in character to those of the ,parsee sun-god1 and the rites which we have heard denounced as magic and witchcraft were ,mithraic ceremonies mingled with aboriginal customs4 ,although the divinity is essentially ,persian1 we cannot but regard the secret worship as an ,assyrian institution4 ,m4 ,lajard has given an account of this cultus1 which so generally supplanted the mystic worship of the ,west4 ,the story of the temptation of ,jesus1 if read intelligently 8between the lines10 will be seen to indicate the characteristics of the ,mithraic initiation4 8,jesus came from ,nazareth of ,galilee and was baptized by ,john4 ,and straightway coming up out of the water he saw the heavens opened1 and the ,spirit like a dove descending upon him2 and there came a voice from heaven saying1 ,this is my beloved ,son1 in whom ,i am well pleased4 ,and immediately the ,spirit driveth him into the wilderness1 and he was there in the wilderness forty days tempted of ,satan ,anra-mainyas1 and was with the wild beasts2 and the angels ministered to him40 ,these different clauses relate to different parts of the mystic ceremony4 ,the sojourn of the apostle ,paul in ,arabia1 it is apparent1 was for a purpose in close analogy with that of ,jesus in the wilderness1 as already described4 8,it had pleased ,god10 he says1 8to reveal or unveil his ,son in me20 so1 without conferring with anybody1 he set forth on his holy errand1 and upon his return began to preach a gospel which he declares was not according to man nor taught in lessons1 but was received by the revelation4 ,he was instructed at the fountain intuitively1 and so was 8not a whit behind the chiefest apostles40 ,hence in the utmost intensity of feeling he proclaimed1 8,if we1 or even an angel from heaven1 preach any other gospel to you1 let him be accursed40 ,he goes on to recite the history of his career to show his entire independence of ,judaism and the other apostles1 and dwells upon his absolute rupture with ,peter at ,antioch on the ground of the adherence of the latter to the discarded restrictions of that religion4 ,the question now becomes pertinent1 ,what is the purport of this 8faith08 ,in the fifteenth chapter of the ,first ,corinthian ,epistle he sets forth the chief points as follows3 8,i delivered unto you first of all that which ,i also received3 how that ,christ died for our sins1 according to the ,scriptures2 also that he was buried1 and that he rose again the third day1 according to the ,scriptures2 and that he was seen of ,cephas1 and after that of above five hundred brethren at once2 after that he was seen of ,james1 and then of all the apostles2 and1 last of all1 he was seen of me also1 as of one born out of due time40 ,it may appear strange to the common reader to be told that these matters1 which the apostle sets forth with so much apparent confidence1 are mystic and arcane the transcript of older theologies and constituted throughout of astrologie symbolism4 ,the ancient faiths of the different peoples contain doctrines and dramatic narrative closely analogous with the evangelic story of ,jesus4 ,the later ,persians had the legend of ,saoshyas 7the savior71 the son of the virgin ,eredatferi1 who conceives him in a miraculous manner4 8,he will appear and restore all things1 after which he will himself become subordinate1 that the ,creator may be supreme and all in all40 ,in the ,orphic drama1 as it was performed by the ,osians at the temple of ,apollo at ,delphi1 the birth of ,zagreus of the holy maid ,persephoneia as the son of the ,supreme ,being1 ,zeus1 is duly represented2 then his proposed heirship of the universe1 his passion and death2 and finally his restoration again into life through a reincarnation as son of the virgin ,semel under the new name of ,dionysos4 ,the myth was ,assyrian1 ,semel being the same as ,mylitta1 the mystic mother1 and her child1 ,shamas ,dian-nisi1 or the personified ,sun1 the ,judge or ,lord of mankind4 ,the death1 resurrection1 and glorification of this ,son of ,god were celebrated in the mystic dramas of several countries4 ,the legends of ,atys in ,asia ,minor1 of ,adonis or ,tammuz in ,syria1 of ,osiris in ,egypt1 were derived from the same source4 ,they cover the same field and have the same occult meaning4 ,the apocalypse1 or unveiling of the mystic purport of the sacred dramas to those considered worthy and competent to understand them1 was the great object of initiation4 ,the ,gospels were regarded formerly as accounts of a tragedy of analogous character4 ,the higher functionaries of the ,roman ,catholic ,church1 we have reason to believe1 have this same view1 which is more than hinted in several places4 ,paul speaks unequivocally in this way of his gospel and the preaching or heralding of ,jesus ,christ1 8according to the revelation or unfolding of the mystery now made known to all nations for the obedience of faith40 ,when the disciples asked of ,jesus why he spoke to the common multitude in parables he makes this reply3 8,unto you it is given to know the mystery of the reign of ,god2 but unto them that are without all these things are done in parables3 that seeing they may see1 and not perceive1 and hearing they may hear1 and not understand40 ,in these religious stories there is a very similar general outline4 ,there is a divine parentage and a career given2 then the ,holy ,one is put to death1 the corpse is brought in for burial1 the tragic occurrence is mourned by women1 and the ceremonial is concluded by his resuscitation and ascension4 ,there were varied phases of the representation1 but they always had an intimate relation to the seasons of the year and the analogous occurrences in the world of nature4 ,thus the supposed death more frequently occurred at the beginning of spring1 and was mourned for a lenten period of forty days1 which the vernal equinox brought to a close4 ,then funeral rites were performed1 and after three days1 in the case of ,adonis1 it was fabled that the god arose and ascended into the higher sky4 ,in the ,dionysia or ,bacchic rite the god descended into hell1 the world of death1 and brought thence his virgin mother1 that they might be glorified together4 ,the ,neo-,platonists taught that these occult rites were a form of representing philosophic and religious dogmas as if in scenes of common life by living persons1 and of shadowing them by ceremonies and processions4 ,this is more than hinted by ,plato himself1 and is undoubtedly true4 ,the candidates were prepared for participation by long periods of fasting and various purifications1 moral and physical4 ,the ,eleusinia consisted of a drama of several days in duration1 in which the abduction1 or rather death1 of ,persephon and the wanderings of her mother ,demeter served as the veil or myesis to the doctrine of resurrection and life of eternity4 ,the author of ,the ,great ,dionysiak ,myth has ably presented the various forms of the ,bacchic rites with the same basis and dnouement4 ,even the ,hebrew ,scriptures allude to the matter4 ,the 8mourning for the only one0 is mentioned by ,jeremiah1 ,amos1 and ,zechariah4 ,that the story of ,jesus was in like manner a drama for religious ends1 consisting of a miraculous parentage1 a career of goodness1 a passion1 death1 resurrection1 and ascension1 is1 to say the least1 no improbable solution of the question4 ,it has also been noticed that the events of the seasons were denoted by the mystic symbolism4 ,the sun1 stars1 constellations1 and earth are commemorated in regard to their annual careers by these observances2 whether because they were essential to the physical well-being of man or were especially appropriate for symbology different writers have conjectured differently1 according to their own mental peculiarities4 ,probably both are right1 so far as their views extend4 ,it becomes us now to investigate the drama of the ,gospels more carefully4 ,the mythologic story of ,mithras was probably ,assyrian in detail1 though ,persian in first conception4 ,it embraced the same notions as were denoted by the mysteries of the ,western peoples1 and hence the ,mithraic worship in a very great degree superseded the arcane religions of ,asia ,minor and ,europe4 ,very naturally1 as may easily be perceived1 the framework of the ,gospel narrative is on the basis of these rites4 ,the influence of the other ancient faiths is also conspicuously manifest4 ,the physical1 and particularly the astronomic1 features are everywhere present in the external structure of ,christianity4 ,sir ,isaac ,newton was quick to perceive that the festivals of the ,church had been fixed and arranged upon the observed phenomena of the heavens1 and gave a detailed list of correspondences4 ,it was not prudent1 however1 even in his time1 for a man to say all he knew1 and he carefully avoided the drawing of any conclusions which might encourage further inquiry in that direction4 ,it has already been suggested that the gospel of ,paul was at the bottom ,essenean and ,mithraic2 and in accordance with that hypothesis the crucifixion1 death1 burial1 resurrection1 and ascension would be solar and astrologic events4 ,the ,essenes1 as well as the other ,mithras-worshippers1 adored the sun and greeted his rising with invocations and sacred chants4 ,the death and resurrection were 8according to the ,scriptures40 ,in other words1 they were duly set forth after the manner of literal occurrences in the sacred books of the ,essenes long before ,paul was born4 ,the adepts of that fraternity understood the matter1 and the hostility which they and the other disciples always exhibited toward the great apostle was because he divulged too much4 ,his writings contained many dysnoetic matters1 ,peter declared--many matters of higher knowledge improperly expressed1 which they that are unlearned and unstable might wrest to their own hurt4 ,according to the scriptures of the brotherhood1 the drama of the ,gospel had its dnouement in the passion and tragedy of ,jesus4 ,paul1 like a genuine adept1 has accepted this narrative as the basis of his gospel2 nevertheless1 as though aware that it is a figurative rather than a literal occurrence1 he nowhere speaks of the crucifixion as a crime4 ,we use the term drama in this connection from a deliberate purpose1 because we believe it correct4 ,it was the designation of the matters represented in the ,eleusinian1 ,dionysiac1 and other arcane rites4 ,the theatre of the ,greeks consisted of such tragic and other representations1 which were performed at the temples of ,bacchus and sculapius4 ,our modern theatre originated in like manner from the mysteries and mir-acle-plays of the ,middle ,ages1 in which monks and priests acted the parts of the different persons of the ,gospel drama4 ,the 8,passion ,play10 which excites so much interest in these modern times1 is very suggestive1 but little understood by sacerdotalists4 ,the ,christian worship in the earlier centuries was not so unlike or incongruous with the pagan customs as may have been supposed4 ,the emperor ,hadrian1 when in ,egypt1 was forcibly impressed with the apparent identity of the worshippers of ,serapis with those of ,christ4 8,those who worship ,serapis are ,christians10 he declared1 8and those who call themselves ,christian bishops are devotees of ,serapis4 ,the very patriarch himself when he came into ,egypt was said by some to worship ,serapis and by others to worship ,christ40 ,the same ambiguity prevailed in the case of ,christianity where it had been in contact with the arcane worship of ,mithras4 ,seel endeavors to explain the matter as one of policy4 ,he states that the early ,christians in ,germany for the most part ostensibly paid worship to the ,roman gods in order to escape persecution4 ,he makes a supposition as regards the adoption of the secret religion4 8,it is by no means improbable10 says he1 8that under the permitted symbols of ,mithras they worshipped the ,son of ,god and the mysteries of ,christianity4 ,in this point of view10 he adds1 8the ,mithraic monuments so frequent in ,germany are evidences of the secret faith of the early ,christian ,romans40 ,we are not ready to accept this notion that the ,christians paid homage to one ,god1 meaning another at the same time1 except on the hypothesis that they regarded ,mithras and ,jesus as virtually the same personification4 ,this conclusion seems to be countenanced by ,augustine1 the celebrated bishop of ,hippo4 8,i know10 says he1 8that the worshippers of the divinity in the cap the statues of ,mithras were decorated with the red ,phrygian or cardinal's cap used to say1 #8,our god in the cap is ,christian4'0 ,that the crucifixion of ,christ was not a literal historic occurrence seems to require no argument4 ,besides1 the first day of the ,passover was never a ,friday1 nor can it be according to the established principles of the ,jewish calendar4 ,the account in the three synoptic ,gospels is therefore manifestly not correct as a literal occurrence2 and the unknown writer of the ,gospel of ,john has lamely attempted to evade the difficulty by placing the crucifixion on the day before the ,passover4 ,there was a mystic reason1 however1 for this statement of the synoptic ,gospels4 ,the story of the crucifixion had the same occult meaning as that of the departure of the ,israelites from ,egypt4 ,the forty days in which ,jesus 8showed himself alive after his passion0 corresponded with the forty years of wandering in the wilderness4 ,hence1 as the ,israelites left ,egypt on the first day of the ,passover1 so ,jesus was also crucified on that day4 ,not being an historical event1 one actually occurring1 the statement was permitted in order to preserve the harmony and identity of the myths4 ,as1 however1 the story is astrological1 we need only explain that the sun crossing the equinoctial line at the #bast of ,march is thus crucified1 the ecliptic and the equator constituting the real cross in the form of the letter ,x4 ,on the third day he appears ascending in the northern hemisphere1 and so is 8raised again according to the ,scriptures40 ,paul1 while referring to these matters as apparently historical1 never departs from their symbolic import4 ,in fact1 he dwells upon this so emphatically that the events are only mentioned for the purpose of indicating his meaning more definitely4 8,i am crucified with ,christ10 says he2 8they that are of ,christ have crucified the flesh with its affections and lusts40 ,nobody will for a moment imagine that this crucifixion meant any physical violence1 but only a asting off of those dispositions which are essentially unspiritual4 8,our old man is crucified10 ,paul explains again1 8in order that the body of sin might be destroyed2444 likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin1 but alive unto ,god40 ,this is the real meaning of the death and resurrection as a spiritual matter4 ,the external history which is so much insisted upon by the partisans of the letter vanishes utterly away before the eyes of him who perceives as well as sees1 and understands through intelligence rather than by scientific and logical reasoning4 ,the early ,fathers of the ,church never scrupled to employ rites1 symbols1 and other agencies which had been previously used by the various priesthoods of the' pagan worships4 ,the entire biography of ,jesus1 as it is set forth in the ,gospels1 exhibits unequivocally astrological features1 and a resemblance to the narratives of the gods so close as to be equivalent almost to actual identity4 ,the miraculous conception was but a counterpart of many others3 ,atys1 ,adonis1 ,hercules1 ,bacchus1 and sculapius were fabled to have been sons of gods by human mothers4 ,the #beth of ,december was also the birthday of ,mithras2 and ,chrysostom1 with characteristic sophistry and equivocation1 explains the matter and justifies it as follows3 8,on this day also the birthday of ,christ was lately fixed at ,rome1 in order that while the heathen were busied with their profane ceremonies the ,christians might perform their holy rites undisturbed40 ,he adds3 8,they call this the birthday of the ,invincible ,one3 who so invincible as the ,lord that overthrew and conquered death8 ,they style it the birthday of the sun2 he is the ,sun of righteousness of whom ,malachi speaks3 #8,upon you who fear my name the ,sun of righteousness shall arise with healing in his wings4'0 ,at the very outset a serious difficulty is encountered4 ,when the ,roman emperor ,theodosius1 fifteen centuries ago1 decreed the universal authority of the ,christian ,church1 he commanded also that all books of the philosophers and others not according to the new faith should be destroyed4 ,this leaves only the collection known as the ,new ,testament and the writings of certain theologians1 together with certain ,gospels1 ,epistles1 and ,apocalypses denominated apocryphal which were extant during the earlier centuries of our era4 ,in addition to this1 there is internal evidence in the writings now regarded as canonical that they have been abridged1 added to1 and changed1 so that the sense is more or less obscured and doctrines are affirmed which were not in the original documents4 ,with the exception1 perhaps1 of some of the ,epistles of ,paul1 ,james1 and ,first ,peter there is no evidence1 or even probability1 that any other book of the ,new ,testament1 whether ,gospel1 ,epistle1 or ,apocalypse1 was written1 or even known1 by the individual whose name it bears4 ,indeed1 it is well known among students that the practice was formerly common to append the name of some distinguished personage to a letter or treatise and put it forth with this to commend it4 8,our ancestors10 says the philosopher ,jamblichus1 8used to inscribe their own writings with the name of ,herms1 he being as common property to all the priests40 ,very significant1 therefore1 is the clause 8according to0 which occurs in the title of every one of the four ,gospels4 ,each of them has been in existence some fifteen or sixteen centuries 8without father1 without mother10 or any other voucher or guarantee as evidence of the truth of the statements which it contains4 ,we have no obligation to hesitate in our avowal that not one of the four reputed evangelists had anything to do with the production to which his name is affixed4 ,the works must stand upon their intrinsic merits1 and receive consideration accordingly4 ,two centuries had passed away after the beginning of the present era before the designation of ,new ,testament was used in connection with any collection of writings1 and before any special authority was claimed for them4 ,the men who first suggested their canonicity were ,irenus of ,lyons1 ,clement of ,alexandria1 and ,tertullian of ,carthage4 ,neither of these men1 so far as is known1 made any attempt to demonstrate that any book of the collection was genuine or authentic4 ,professor ,davidson has declared in regard to the scribes who made the copies of the books of the ,old ,testament that they did not refrain from changing what had been written or inserting fresh matter4 ,the same course has been taken likewise with the text of the ,new ,testament4 ,heretics and orthodox alike added to its matter in order to establish their peculiar dogmas4 ,the text is nowhere pure4 ,the doctrines of the ,trinity1 the ,nativity of ,jesus1 his ,godhead and equality with the ,father1 the story of ,mary1 were all introduced from ,egypt and engrafted into the ,gospels4 ,jesus is represented as having been born in a cave or stable at the moment of midnight4 ,at that period the constellation ,virgo is cut exactly in half by the eastern horizon1 the sun itself being beneath in the zodiacal sign of ,capricorn1 which was also called 8the ,stable of ,augeas0 that ,hercules was set to cleanse4 ,justin ,martyr corroborates this by stating that ,christ was born when the sun 7,mithras7 takes his birth in the stable of ,augeas1 coming as a second ,hercules to cleanse a foul world4 ,hence the rosary of the ,roman ,catholic ,church has this service3 8,let us contemplate how the ,blessed ,virgin ,mary1 when the time of her delivery was come1 brought forth our ,redeemer at midnight and laid him in a manger40 ,by the cave1 or petra1 we may understand the cave of initiation1 which was always employed in ancient mystic rites4 ,there was such a cave at ,bethlehem1 and ,jerome affirms that the mysteries of ,adonis were celebrated there in his time4 ,justin has preserved the tradition that ,mithras was born in a cave or petra1 and ,porphyry asserts that his rites were observed in caves representing the vault of the heavens4 ,the famous declaration to ,peter owes all its significance to this fact3 8,thou art ,peter1 and upon this rock 7petra7 ,i will build my ,church2 and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it4 ,and ,i will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven2 and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven3 and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven40 ,undoubtedly1 this passage is an interpolation2 nevertheless1 it is susceptible of explanation4 ,jesus having asked the twelve apostles who he was said to be1 they reply3 the 8reincarnation0 of this or that prophet1 as it was believed that such rebirth was usual among men4 ,peter then avows that he is the ,son of ,god4 ,significantly1 ,peter is not a ,jewish proper name1 but relates to function4 ,it is a ,semitic word denoting an interpreter of oracles4 ,the priests of ,apollo among the ,gauls were denominated pater1 as having the gift of prophecy4 ,the residence of ,balaam the prophet was called ,petur1 and there were oracles of ,apollo at ,patrai in ,achaia and ,patara in ,asia ,minor4 ,when1 therefore1 it is announced that the ,church would be built 8upon this rock10 we may understand it to be the apostle's oracular utterance that ,jesus was the ,son of ,god4 ,the ,church that was thus established consisted solely of adepts and initiates1 the clergy only1 and the higher functionaries at that4 ,the laity only belong to the ,church3 the others are the ,church4 ,the ,roman ,catholic hierarchy have for centuries caused the fiction to be promulgated that the apostle ,peter founded the universal see of ,rome4 ,this is like the mystic utterances of ,jesus in speaking to the multitude in parables4 ,the pope1 cardinals1 and prelates know the real truth4 ,there never took place1 so far as any historical evidence exists1 any visit1 and much less the martyrdom1 of the apostle ,peter at ,rome4 ,the pope is not the successor of any ,christian apostle whatever1 but only of the pagan high priest4 ,under the republic and emperors the pontifex maximus was the supreme religious dignitary4 ,julius ,csar held that office4 ,he presided over the worship and interpreted the sacred oracles4 ,it was a direction in the secret religion never to change the foreign names4 ,the ,chaldaic designation of the supreme pontiff and hierophant was peter4 ,when the ancient worship was suppressed the ,roman bishop succeeded to the pontificate2 and by this exaltation became vicar of the ,lord and successor of the peter or pagan pontiff of ,rome4 ,the tradition of the ,magi or wise men coming from the east to worship the infant ,jesus1 which was prefixed to the ,gospel of ,matthew1 is pretty well set forth by the names given them3 ,kaspar1 the white one2 ,melchior1 the king of light2 and ,balthasar1 the lord of treasures4 ,the additional legend that they travelled to ,germany and were buried at ,cologne grew out of the fact that the ,mithraic worship was prevalent in that region4 ,it should be borne in mind1 while considering the astrologic character of the story of ,jesus1 that the divis-ion of the apparent path of the sun among the stars into the constellations which form the zodiac was made and known throughout the ,oriental world and employed in its religious myths at an antiquity so remote as not to be known when the plan was devised4 ,astrological correspondences are carefully maintained all through the gospel narrative4 ,the apostles represent the twelve months1 each of them being sent or commissioned to announce him 7the sun7 to the people4 ,the special events and their dates are commemorated by the ,church so as to be coincident with astrological data4 ,the designation 8,lamb of ,god0 comes directly from the fact that the crucifixion was placed at the time the sun crosses the equinoctial line in ,march1 and so entered the zodiacal sign of ,aries1 the ,lamb4 ,he was thus 8slain before the foundation of the world10 or year1 and takes away the sins or evils of winter4 ,having descended into hell1 or the winter period1 he rises from the dead4 ,he is now enthroned2 the four beasts1 denoting the four chief constellations in each quarter of the zodiacal circle--,taurus1 ,leo1 ,aquila1 and ,aquarius--adore him1 and the twenty-four elders 7or hours7 fall down and worship him4 ,the miracle of turning water into wine is done every year1 as ,addison has sung13 8,may the sun refine ,the grape's soft juice and mellow it to wine40 ,the curse of the fig tree is visited on every plant that is feeble and poorly rooted when the sun's heat comes upon it4 ,john the ,baptist says of ,jesus3 8,he must increase1 but ,i must decrease40 ,the #bdth of ,june1 ,st4 ,john's ,day1 is the last of the summer solstice1 from which period the days shorten1 as1 on the contrary1 from the #beth of ,december1 the natal day of ,jesus1 they lengthen4 8,this is the sixth month with her that was called barren10 said the angel ,gabriel to ,mary on the #beth of ,march1 the ,annunciation1 nine months before ,christmas4 ,on the #aeth of ,august the ,church celebrates the ,assumption of the ,blessed ,virgin into the heavenly chamber of the ,king of kings1 and accordingly the constellation ,virgo 7or ,astra7 also disappears1 being eclipsed by the light and glory of the sun4 ,this disappearance continues seven days4 ,miriam1 the virgin sister of ,moses and ,aaron1 doubtless also an astral character1 was secluded seven days while leprous4 ,three weeks later the sun has moved on in the sky1 permitting the constellation again to appear2 and accordingly the ,church celebrates the #hth of ,september as the anniversary of the nativity of the ,blessed ,virgin4 ,the prominent pagan symbols which are now adopted by the ,christian prelacy are generally astronomical4 ,astrology and religion always went hand in hand1 and have not been legally divorced4 ,at an earlier period the sun entered the zodiacal sign of ,taurus at the vernal equinox4 ,this fact led to the adoption of the bull or calf as a symbol of the ,deity4 ,we notice this fact all over the ancient world1 and in some modern peoples that have not had a learned caste of priests4 ,every #baeb years the zodiac shifts backward one sign--i4 e4 one-twelfth of its whole extent4 ,hence1 eventually1 ,aries1 the ,ram or ,lamb1 took the place of the ,bull to represent the god of spring4 ,the paschal lamb1 the ram-headed god ,amen of ,egypt1 and the lamb of ,christian symbolism thus came into existence4 ,since that the constellation ,pisces has become the equinoctial sign1 and the ,fish is the symbol of the ,church4 ,hence the bishop of ,rome employs the seal of the fisherman1 and the ,gospel narrative has made ,st4 ,peter a 8fisher40 ,in this way the entire passion of ,jesus from the crucifixion to the ascension is astronomic4 ,the ,roman ,catholic ,church1 having the superior understanding of the matter1 holds ,protestants in derision for making a fetish of the ,bible and worshipping the sun1 while not comprehending the matter intelligently4 ,indeed1 it is known by every intelligent priest that the sun and phallic symbols characterize every world-religion4 ,no matter what attempts are made to disguise the matter1 such is the fact4 ,that the sun is the light of the world needs but a mention2 and so is ,jesus as the avatr or personification4 ,the cross on which he is impaled was a symbol of the phallic worship thousands of years ago4 ,the form may be an ,x1 f1 or f1 but it means the same4 ,he is buried in winter and resuscitated in the spring4 ,thus1 to recapitulate3 ,the ,christian religion consists of the worship of a divine being incarnated in human form in order to redeem fallen man1 born of a virgin1 teaching immortality1 working wonders1 dying through the machinations of the evil one1 rising from death1 re-ascending into heaven1 and to be the judge of the living and dead4 ,the ,mithraic worship1 its great rival and counterpart1 was constituted with similar imagery4 ,the festivals appointed in honor of ,mithras were fixed in accordance with the seasons of the year1 his birth being at the end of the solstice in ,december1 his death directly after the equinox in ,march4 ,christ1 being like ,mithras1 the personification of the sun and lord of the cosmos1 enacts a career on earth corresponding in its principal parts to that of the sun in the heavens4 ,the ,holy ,spirit as a wind or atmosphere is the herald of his advent4 ,the ,virgin is the moon1 the mother of the sun and queen of heaven1 just as she was in the pagan world under different names4 ,often also at evening we witness the sun undergoing a bloody passion and dying amid the reddened sky1 leaving to the one whom he loves the moon as his mother4 ,so conscious is the ,church of its descent in direct line from the former paganism that it has adopted the symbols of its predecessor and placed many of the old gods in its catalogue of saints along with the ,assyrian archangels4 ,bacchus appears there as ,st4 ,bacchus1 ,st4 ,denis or ,dionysius1 ,st4 ,liber1 ,st4 ,eleutherius1 ,st4 ,lyacus4 ,priapus is there as ,st4 ,foutin1 ,st4 ,cosmo1 and ,st4 ,damian4 ,the nymph ,aura ,placida is ,st4 ,aura and ,st4 ,placida4 ,there is also ,st4 ,bibiana1 whose anniversary occurs on the day of the ,grecian festival of tapping the wine-casks4 ,the star ,margarita has become ,st4 ,margaret1 and ,hippolytus the son of ,theseus1 the hero-founder of the ,athenian polity1 has also been canonized4 ,the true image1 or veraicon1 has become ,st4 ,veronica1 as the supreme hierophant of ,roman paganism is ,st4 ,peter4 ,then1 too1 there are sainted dogmas personified1 as ,st4 ,perpetua1 ,st4 ,flicitas1 ,st4 ,rogatian1 ,st4 ,donatian1 etc4 ,there are also ,st4 ,abraham1 ,st4 ,michael1 ,st4 ,gabriel1 ,st4 ,david1 and ,st4 ,patrick1 whose anniversary falls on that of his well-known predecessor1 ,pater ,liber1 the ,roman ,bacchus4 ,the keys of the ,italian ,janus and the ,phrygian ,kybel are now held by the pope as the keys of the kingdom of heaven4 ,there is not a feature1 symbol1 ceremony1 or dogma in the ,church which did not have a pagan prototype4 ,another fact is equally curious4 ,while the worship of ,mithras is the evident origin of the ,christian cultus1 the ,lamas of ,thibet in the heart of ,asia also have ecclesiastical orders1 ceremonies1 and other institutions which are the almost literal counterpart of those of ,rome4 ,whether there ever was really such an individual living on the earth as ,jesus of ,nazareth becomes1 in view of these facts1 a minor question4 ,myth1 legend1 tradition1 and fancy have so transformed him that there is no nucleus of original humanity left in sight4 ,he is almost absolutely without an historical mention4 ,he has become a myth1 a personification1 whether he was really a man or not4 ,he is therefore an ideal1 and not real4 ,the passages in ,josephus are unquestionable forgeries4 ,tacitus speaks of him as having been crucified under ,pilate1 but in no way as an occurrence to be vouched for4 ,suetonius in his life of ,claudius ,csar states that the emperor banished the ,jews from ,rome because they raised sedition under the instigation of one ,chrstos4 ,if this is to be considered as meaning the reputed founder of the ,christian religion1 the orthography of the name is very suggestive4 ,godfrey ,higgins declares in his ,anacalypsis that it was the original term used1 and was changed to ,chreistos and ,christ for ecclesiastical reasons4 ,he was of opinion also that transcribers had made these alterations in the books of the ,new ,testament4 ,chrstos was a title of ,apollo and other divinities1 and was conferred upon the better class of citizens in certain ,grecian states4 ,once the term is applied to ,jesus in the first ,epistle of ,peter3 8,the ,lord is ,chrstos40 ,the probabilities favor the supposition1 the term ,messiah1 which is the ,hebrew equivalent for ,christ1 being nowhere used except in the fourth chapter of the ,gospel of ,john to designate ,jesus1 and that being a doubtful passage4 ,there are few data remaining that indicate the character of ,jesus4 ,so far as these are definitive they exhibit a close relationship to the ,essenean brotherhood4 ,during the reign of ,herod ,i41 ,hillel1 a ,babylonian1 became president of the ,sanhedrim4 ,he was thus the recognized head of the school1 his opponents being known as ,shammaites4 ,both parties professed to be the custodians of the ,kabala or traditions of the ancients4 ,these comprised the arcane literature of the ,jews1 which was to be kept carefully away from the laity4 ,the ,hillelites appear to have been more tenacious of principles1 but the ,shammaites were very captious in regard to the minutiae4 ,the ,logia1 or aphorisms1 imputed to ,jesus accord with the utterances of ,hillel1 and in a degree justify the opinion of the ,rabbis4 ,the relations of the birth of ,jesus at ,bethlehem and his early abode at ,nazareth are of the character of myth1 and serve to indicate his association with the ,essenes4 ,bethlehem was the reputed birthplace of ,king ,david1 and afterward the prophet ,micah1 depicting the rise of ,hezekiah as the messiah and liberator of ,judea from the ,assyrian yoke1 assigns his origin to the same place4 ,this latter prince could not have been the son of ,ahaz1 whom he is said to have succeeded1 having been born when that king was but ten or eleven years old4 ,that the dynasty of ,ahaz was overthrown is intimated in the declaration of ,isaiah 7#g3 #i71 and by his announcement of the accession of a new prince 7#i3 #f1 #g2 #aa3a1 etc474 ,the town of ,bethlehem and the places about are enumerated in the second chapter of ,first ,chronicles as containing 8the families of the scribes10 8the ,kenites10 from whom proceeded the ,rechabites of later times4 ,these ,kenites appear to have been a sacerdotal and literary tribe1 like the ,magians of ,media4 ,they are said to have lived near the city of palm trees 7,judges #a3af71 and to have removed into the southern part of the ,judean territory4 ,moses was described as having intermarried and been adopted among them1 and the kings ,saul and ,david were more or less familiar with them4 ,saul found them when be marched against the ,amalekites1 and ,david sent them presents1 as being accustomed in his career as an outlaw to 8haunt0 their region4 ,elijah the prophet is said to have gone into their country when he was driven out of the kingdom of ,samaria4 ,the birth of ,jesus at ,bethlehem would seem1 therefore1 to have some mystic reference to this people1 as well as to the notion of a lineal descent from ,david4 ,his abode in the earlier years of life at ,nazareth was evidently a myth of kindred nature4 ,curiously enough1 the writer of the first chapter of ,luke has represented ,mary as a resident of ,nazareth1 while the second chapter of ,matthew describes ,joseph as taking up his abode there incidentally1 fulfilling the word of the ,essenean prophets3 8,he will be called a ,nazarene10 or ,nazarite4 ,the ,esseneans were also denominated ,nazarim1 and we may perceive the idea suggested by the name that ,jesus belonged to their body4 ,it was a common mode of writing1 to describe an every-day occurrence in a form conveying a mystic or occult meaning beneath the apparent statement4 ,the character of ,jesus as a prophet and representative personage is thus actually signified4 ,his birth in the country of the ,kenites and adepts betokened his consecration and separation1 while the residence at ,nazareth typified his ,essenean relations4 ,the congregation of disciples at ,jerusalem and their sympathizers in ,palestine were designated as ,nazore-ans and ,ebionim4 ,it is no great stretch of imagination to presume them to have been an offshoot of the ,essenean brotherhood4 ,these were zealous propagandists1 and their modes of life and action coincide very closely with those of the early ,church4 ,the writers of the ,gospels and ,acts of the ,apostles describe the apostles and their converts as living after the manner of an ,essenean commune4 ,jesus 8ordained twelve that they should be with him2444 and they went into a house10 or became as one family4 ,this was precisely like the ,essenes and ,therapeut4 8,in the first place10 says ,philo1 8not one of them has a house of his own which does not belong to all of them40 ,for besides their living together in large societies1 each house is also open to every visiting brother of the order4 8,furthermore1 all of them have one store of provisions and equal expenses2 they have their garments in common1 as they do with their provisions4 ,they reside together1 eat together1 and have everything in common to an extent as it is carried out nowhere else40 ,hence we read without surprise that the multitude came about them1 so that they could not so much as eat bread4 ,the apostolic congregation is also described as imitating the same form of living3 8,all that believed were together and had all things common2 and sold their possessions and goods1 and parted them to all of them as every one had need4444 ,neither said any of them that aught of the things which he possessed was his own2 but they had all things common4 ,neither was there any among them that lacked2 for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them1 and brought the price of the things that were sold and laid them down at the apostles' feet2 and distribution was made unto every man as he had need40 ,for a time the apostles1 it is stated1 were stewards of the whole body1 teaching them and supplying them with food1 till finally seven ,hellenistic ,jews were selected and set apart for that purpose4 ,eusebius comments upon the account given by ,philo of the ,therapeut1 as follows3 8,these facts appear to have been stated by a man 7,philo71 who at least has paid attention to those that have expounded the sacred writings4 ,but it is highly probable that the ancient commentaries which he says they have are the very ,gospels and writings of the apostles1 and probably some expositions of the ancient prophets1 such as are contained in the ,epistle to the ,hebrews and many others of ,st4 ,paul's ,epistles4444 ,why need we add an account of their meetings1 and the separate abodes of men and women in these meetings1 and the exercises performed by them1 which are still in vogue among us at the present day2 and which1 especially at the festival of our ,saviour's passion1 we are accustomed to use in our fastings and watchings and in the study of the divine word6 ,all these the above-mentioned author has accurately described and stated in his writings2 and they are the same customs that are observed by us alone at the present day1 particularly the vigils of the great festivals1 and the exercises in them and the hymns that are commonly recited among us4 ,he states that whilst one sings gracefully with a certain measure1 the others1 listening in silence1 join in singing the final clauses of the hymns2 also that on the above-mentioned days they lie on straw spread on the ground1 and1 to use his own words1 they abstain altogether from wine and taste no flesh4 ,water is their only drink1 and the relish of their bread1 salt1 and hyssop4 ,besides this1 he describes the grades of dignity among those who administer the ecclesiastical services committed to them--those of the deacons and president of the episcopate as the highest4 ,but whosoever desires to have a more accurate knowledge of these things may learn them from the history already cited2 but that ,philo1 when he wrote those statements1 had in view the first heralds of the gospel and the original practices handed down from the apostles must be obvious to all0 ,as if to afford further foundation for this conjecture of identity of the early disciples with the ,ebionites1 the ,greek word for this designation1 8ptochos10 usually translated 8poor0 and 8beggar10 occurs in the ,new ,testament in a manner which often suggests that the ,ebionites are meant by the designation4 8,happy the poor in spirit10 says the ,sermon on the ,mount2 8for the kingdom of the heavens is theirs40 8,the gospel is preached to them0 was the message sent to ,john the ,baptist in his prison at ,macheras4 8,if thou wilt be perfect10 says ,jesus to the young man1 8go1 sell that thou hast1 and give to the poor40 ,in the ,gospel according to ,st ,luke 7#f3 #bj7 ,jesus actually addresses his disciples as 8ye poor10 or ,ebionim4 ,lazarus is called ,ptochos1 or ,ebioni1 in the sixteenth chapter4 ,paul sternly rebukes the ,galatian ,christians for their conversion to ,ebionism3 8,but then1 not having seen ,god1 you were servants to those that are not gods2 but now having known ,god1 or rather having been known by ,god1 why do you turn about again to the weak and beggarly elements80 ,nevertheless1 the conclusion of ,eusebius1 that the ,essenes or ,therapeut were only ,christians of the apostolic age1 is impossible4 ,they were of greater antiquity1 and flourished when ,christians--or ,chrestians1 whichever they may be--had never been heard of4 ,the converse is more probable by far--that the apostles and their ,ebionite followers were religionists after the form of the ,essenes4 ,we have indicated the evident similarity of these sectaries with the ,mithraic initiates1 and the fact has also been shown that many of the ,christians of the first centuries also observed the rites of that worship4 ,that the astrological features of each were identical and are manifest in the story of ,jesus has also been illustrated4 ,we may now treat the final question1 that of the person of ,jesus himself4 ,it is the easiest way just now to concede his physical existence1 and reject the marvels1 exaggerations1 and other incredibilities of the ,gospel narratives4 ,a ,roman ,catholic writer of great acuteness has marked out that very course4 ,he explains his position so aptly that we will reproduce the principal features1 which certainly seem in a great degree to sustain our proposition4 8,where intellect sees an idea1 an abstraction10 says he1 8religion sees a person4 ,this involves a superior development of the consciousness2 inasmuch while intellect of itself1 having neither motive nor force1 could not have created1 personality includes intellect and all else that is indispensable to action--namely1 feeling and energy40 ,he sets forth ,christianity as a religion in ,palestine 8which consisted in the worship of a ,divine ,being incarnated in human form in order to redeem fallen man1 born of a virgin1 teaching immortality1 working wonders of benevolence1 dying through the hostile machinations of the spirit of evil1 rising from death1 reascend-ing into heaven1 and becoming judge of the dead4 ,as representative of the sun the festivals appointed in his honor were fixed in accordance with the seasons1 his birth being at the end of the winter solstice2 his death at the spring equinox2 his rising soon afterward1 and then his ascension into heaven1 whence he showers down benefits on man40 ,the same author indicates the ,essenes as cherishing these beliefs3 8,deriving their tenets from the ,east1 they believed in the ,persian dualism1 regarded the sun as the impersonation of the ,supreme ,light1 and worshipped it in a modified way40 ,he adds3 8,to the sect of the ,essenes the originals of ,john the ,baptist and ,jesus must have belonged40 8,we may possess a trustworthy account of the spirit that was in ,jesus10 he says again1 8and yet be altogether in the dark respecting his precise sayings and doings4 ,the condition of the world at this period being such as ,i have described1 it was inevitable that any impressive personality whose career enabled such things1 with however small a modicum of truth1 to be predicated of it as were predicated of ,jesus1 should be seized upon and appropriated to the purposes of a new religion4444 8,for the masses the spectacle of an heroic crusade against the authority1 respectability1 and pharisaism of an established ecclesiasticism1 combined with complete self-devotion1 with teaching of the most absolute perfection in morals--a perfection readily recognizable by the intuitive perceptions of all--and with a confident mysticism that seemed to imply unbounded supernatural knowledge--all characteristics of the sect of ,essenes to which he and the ,baptist manifestly belonged1--these were amply sufficient to win belief in ,jesus as a divine personage4 ,and especially so when they found him persistently reported not only as having performed miracles in his life1 but as having shown that traditional superiority to all the limitation of humanity which was ascribed to their previous divinities by rising from the dead and ascending into heaven4 ,familiar as they were with the notion of incarnations in which the sun played a principal part1 and accustomed to associate such events with virgin mothers impregnated by deities1 births in stables or caves1 hazardous careers in the exercise of benevolence1 violent deaths1 and descents into the kingdom of darkness1 resurrections and ascensions into heaven1 to be followed by the descent of blessings upon mankind1--it required but the suggestion that ,jesus of ,nazareth was a new and nobler incarnation of the ,deity1 who had so often before been incarnate and put to death for man's salvation1 to transfer to him the whole paraphernalia of doctrine and rite deemed appropriate to the office40 ,there appears no reasonable doubt of the relationship of ,jesus to the ,essenean brothers4 ,not only does the name itself imply a personification of that peculiar people1 but he is represented as uttering their distinctive doctrines4 ,in the ,sermon on the ,mount he required from his disciples1 as did the ,essenean teachers1 a righteousness exceeding that of the ,scribes and ,pharisees2 and the ,beatitudes are distinctly of the same character4 ,he prohibits the oath1 as the ,esseneans also did1 enjoined non-resistance to violent assault and forgiveness of injuries1 and exhorted to take no thought for the morrow1 which he described as serving ,mammon4 ,he also charged against divulging the interior doctrines1 comparing it to giving the holy bread to dogs and casting pearls to the swine1 the latter treading the precious jewels under foot and the dogs turning to rend the giver4 ,indeed1 the whole discourse is one which a teacher of the fraternity would deliver to candidates4 8,these things10 he declares1 8are hid from the wise and prudent1 but are revealed to babes40 ,when his disciples demur at his rigid tenets in regard to marriage1 permitting divorce only for lewdness or false religion1 he sanctions their inference that it is not good to marry4 8,he that is able to receive this doctrine10 added he1 8let him receive it40 ,to the young man who desired to know the way to perfection he first gave a reproof for calling him good when there was no one so but the one ,god1 and then commanded him to sell all his possessions and give to the poor1 probably meaning the ,ebionim4 ,in the parable in ,luke the rich man after death is tormented1 while the other1 the ptochos or ,ebionite ,lazarus1 is compensated in the lap of ,abraham4 ,yet except the few cases when the terms 8brethren0 and 8disciple0 are used there are few direct references to the ,essenes4 ,but he is continually exhorting against the doctrine of the ,pharisees and ,sadducees1 and denouncing the former4 ,meanwhile1 he nowhere fills a page in history4 ,he has left no mark of his individual existence4 ,we have observed that ,judaism was chiefly the counterpart of ,persian ,mazdaism1 the ,supreme ,being1 the seven ,amesha-spentas1 ,yazatas1 ,evil ,spirit and devas1 being reproduced in ,jehovah with his angels and seven archangels1 ,satan and his wicked crew4 ,essenism1 in turn1 appears to have been a form of the ,persian religion1 including the worship of the sun1 astral and prophetic doctrines1 occult science1 a cultus and sacraments2 and as the ,persian doctrines were ascribed to the unknown ,zarathustra1 so those of the ,essenean brotherhood are personified in the character of a gifted teacher1 born on the natal day of ,mithras1 inculcating truth and right action1 and in every way representing and personifying the religious system4 ,this was1 as has been observed1 a common practice in former times4 ,as soon as we consider ,jesus as ,essenism personified we find the difficulties vanish which every other theory presents4 ,but ,essenism was much older than the ,christian era1 despite the pretense of ,eusebius of the absolute identity of ,essenes and the early ,christians4 ,we may also remark that there are fragments of books in existence which treat of a ,jew1 the son of a soldier and temple-woman1 who exhibits characteristics of the ,jesus of the ,gospels sufficient to intimate the identity of the two4 ,they place his career in the time of the earlier ,asmonean kings1 about the period when the ,essenes are first mentioned by that name4 ,we do not attach great importance to these works1 except for the fact that they would not have appeared1 unless there had existed a comprehensive account of some kind1 parabolic or historic1 to suggest their preparation4 ,the ,toldoth ,jeshu1 or ,generations of ,jesus1 to which we refer1 has several characteristics which are worth noting4 ,the father of ,jesus1 being a soldier1 probably denoted a 8soldier of ,mithras10 and the alma or ,blessed ,virgin1 a ,hebrew maiden set apart for a time1 as was the practice for young maids in ,athens1 to work and be initiated at the temple4 ,it is also asserted that ,jesus spent a season in ,egypt1 where he learned magic4 ,the ,therapeut had communes in that country as well as in ,arabia and ,palestine1 and were addicted to the study of medical knowledge1 astrology1 and other arts1 which1 being derived from the ,magi or priest-caste of the ,east1 were denominated magic4 ,this term originally carried with it no reproachful meaning1 but meant all learning of a liberal character1 and occult science was only such knowledge as was considered too sacred for profane individuals4 8,he who pours water into a muddy well10 says ,jamblichus1 8does but disturb the mud40 ,doubtless the primitive ,essenean gospel described ,jesus as a young man of rare qualities1 the son of a ,mithraic or ,essenean adept1 who was instructed at the school of ,alexandria or in the priest-colleges of ancient ,egypt1 and became expert in the technic of religious and scientific wisdom4 ,thus1 the great ,siddartha was taught by the ,jaina sage ,mahavira before he became himself a teacher and a sage4 ,as the sacraments of the ,church are like the observances of the ,essenes and those which are also celebrated at the ,mithraic initiations1 this is abundantly plausible4 ,the departure made by ,paul and others from the methods of the order afford the reason for the assigned origin of ,christianity at the period known as the 8year of our ,lord10 ,anno ,domini4 ,the original books from which the ,gospels were compiled have perished4 ,there was a ,gospel in the possession of the ,ebionites carefully guarded as a sacred or arcane book1 a copy of which ,jerome procured with great difficulty1 but which has since been lost and forgotten4 ,the sect disappeared1 melting away into the church or the synagogue1 and we now read of them loaded with the opprobrious slanders of ,irenus and ,epiphanius4 ,they were the original disciples in ,judea1 and were subjected1 in common with other ,jews1 to the hardships and persecutions which followed upon the destruction of the national polity4 ,this ,hebrew ,gospel and such writings as the ,catholic ,epistles of ,james and ,peter contained their peculiar doctrines4 ,they regarded ,jesus as a teacher or exemplar1 but not as a superhuman being in any sense of the term4 ,that notion came from the pagans4 ,indeed1 it was not their belief that such a man had literally existed4 ,the ,doket 7or ,illusionists7 held that he was a symbolic being1 an ideality4 ,the ,gnostics generally1 whom ,gibbon describes as 8the most polite1 the most learned1 and most wealthy of the ,christian name10 described him as an aion or spiritual principle2 and considered the crucifixion as metaphorical and not a literal event4 ,the real ,christ1 ,chrstos or divine principle1 they regarded as still in heaven1 intact4 ,the apostle ,paul was the great innovator upon the ,ebionite and ,essenean doctrines4 ,he was too broad and far-seeing to overlook the fact that the exclusiveness of ,judaism would arrest any universal dissemination of the faith in the world4 ,hence he struck out boldly on his own account4 ,he had a gospel1 he declares to the ,galatians1 which he had received from no man2 it was not 8according to any man10 but a distinct1 differentiated matter1 the apocalypse of ,jesus ,christ4 8,let the man1 or even angel1 that preaches any other gospel be anathema10 he declares4 ,he did not hesitate to denounce the ,ebionist apostles1 nor they in turn to set him forth as an impostor1 holding the doctrine of ,balaam and teaching faith without works or rites4 ,at ,antioch he withstood ,peter to the face1 and declares him condemned4 ,writing to the ,corinthians1 he denounces the schisms and deprecates the influence of ,apollos1 a ,jew from ,alexandria4 8,i1 the wise architect1 have laid the foundation10 says he1 8but another has built upon it4 ,that foundation is ,christ40 ,it is very plain1 however1 that the ,christ that he taught was rather an ideal than a literal personage4 8,i have seen the ,lord10 he declares1 and again avows that he preached 8,jesus ,christ and the ,crucified ,one40 ,yet when he refers to the death and resurrection he always treats of them as figurative matters1 pertaining to the spiritual and not to the corporeal nature4 ,a ,christ that he had seen could but be a spiritual entity4 8,flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of ,god10 he declares1 8neither doth corruption inherit incorruption40 ,this is a complete setting aside of any gross1 literal sense to be given to his language4 ,others who received the gospel were crucified as ,christ was1 and rose again to a new life while yet embodied in mortal flesh4 ,he was the type1 the model1 the exemplar1 and they who believed were walking in his footsteps4 8,know ye not10 he asks the ,roman believers1 8that so many of us as were baptized into ,jesus ,christ were baptized into his death8 ,we then are buried with him by this baptism into his death2 so that as ,christ was raised up from the dead1 even so we should walk in a new life4 ,for if we have become planted together in the likeness of his death1 we are also1 on the other hand1 in that of his resurrection3 knowing this1 that our old man was crucified together1 that the body of sin might be made inert1 that we may no longer be enslaved to sin4 ,if we died with ,christ1 we believe that we will also live to him2 being aware that ,christ having risen from the dead is no longer dying1 death no longer rules him4 ,for wherein he died1 he died to sin once for all2 but wherein he lives1 he lives to ,god4 ,so likewise reckon ye yourselves dead to sin1 but alive to ,god in ,christ ,jesus40 ,a spiritual crucifixion1 death1 and resurrection1 in strict analogy with the equinoctial crucifixion1 death1 and resurrection of the mystic rites1 is the foremost idea of this passage4 ,the baptism of ,jesus in the river ,jordan and his forty days' temptation in the wilderness were of the same character4 ,there was no literal dying signified in the case4 ,indeed1 nobody knew better than ,paul that the ,jewish ,sanhedrim did not sit and that capital punishments were not inflicted at the period of the ,passover1 the day of the crucifixion1 being1 according to the law1 8a day of holy convocation40 ,the crucifixion being figurative and suggested by an astrological period1 we are fully warranted in the hypothesis that the victim likewise was a symbolic personage of an astral character4 ,this ideal ,jesus1 with the emphatic but ambiguous phrase of ,paul--8,him crucified0--was not sufficient for the exigencies of the ,christian leaders of the subsequent century4 ,the ,gnostics and other cultured men were satisfied1 but the lower classes wanted a more tangible character1 a physical corporeity4 ,the great want1 therefore1 was some proof of the literal existence of the individual by the evidence of men that had seen him and been familiar with him4 ,this was now furnished by the production of the three synoptic ,gospels and their adoption in the place of other evangelical literature4 ,afterward1 ,irenus or some one with his approval added the ,gospel according to ,john4 ,the fiction of an apostolic succession was then originated1 and forgery for religious purposes was a general practice4 ,the quarrels of ,christians with ,christians were for centuries more scandalous than all the atrocities of actual martyrdom4 ,previous to this the ,church had labored indefatigably and successfully to destroy the influence and reputation of ,paul4 ,he was now taken into favor2 his ,epistles were revised1 interpolated1 toned down1 and accepted as canonical4 ,the ,acts of the ,apostles was next produced4 ,it is a work in two parts--one set apart to the story of the apostle ,peter1 and the other to the achievements of ,paul4 ,the purpose evidently was to indicate that the two were not at variance1 but were laborers in the same field4 ,the work of harmonizing must have been difficult4 ,in our day it would not have been possible4 ,books cannot be got out of the way as in former centuries1 and inconsistencies of writers are sure to be exposed4 ,justin ,martyr lived at ,rome in the reign of the ,antonines and wrote a ,defence of the ,christians4 ,yet he makes no mention of 8,st4 ,peter the first bishop40 ,he had never heard of him4 ,irenus1 however1 did not hesitate to say anything to advance the gospel1 and accordingly boldly asserts that ,peter and ,paul founded the church at ,rome2 overlooking their reciprocal animosity1 and the fact that the ,epistle of ,paul to the ,romans addresses the 8saints10 but makes no mention of a church4 ,claudius had banished the ,jews from ,rome for their turbulent conduct under the instigations of ,chrestos1 and the emperors ,trajan and ,adrian seem to have known of ,christians only from information which they had derived solely from the provinces in the ,east4 ,but all this made no difficulty for ,irenus4 ,this ,french prelate also declared that the ministry of ,jesus lasted upward of ten years2 also that he lived to be an elderly man4 ,the anachronisms and bad geography of the ,gospels are notorious1 but they do not compare with the absurdities of ,irenus4 ,he invented the name ,antichrist1 and hurled it with ferocious rage whenever he had been assailed and hard pushed in controversy4 ,he was never so much in his element as when quarrelling2 and his designation of ,irenus 7a man of peace7 is one of the most stupendous misnomers ever heard of4 ,we have alluded to the fact that passages had been interpolated into the ,epistles of ,paul4 ,the object was to harmonize the ,logos of ,philo and his school with the ,christ or ,chrstos of the apostle4 ,it would have been a futile attempt if it had been made when ,paul was castigating the ,corinthian ,christians in regard to ,apollos4 ,a dead man's words1 however1 can be mutilated and perverted without his resistance4 ,we accordingly find the sturdy ,hebrew diction of the apostle interlarded with ,gnostic utterances1 and new epistles purporting to have been written by him which give a different complexion to his doctrines4 ,the pleroma or fulness which is treated of in the ,epistle to the ,ephesians was taken bodily from the ,gnostics4 ,the pre-existence of ,christ as the ,creator of the world was asserted in a spurious document purporting to be a letter from him to the ,colossians1 and interpolations of a corresponding nature were made in the genuine ,corinthian ,epistles4 ,thus in the famous chapter on the resurrection we find the following sentiment of ,philo in an amplified form3 8,man1 being freed by the ,logos 7or ,word7 from all corruption1 shall be entitled to immortality40 ,gibbon has shown us that the first regular church government was instituted at ,alexandria4 ,this is in keeping with the other facts4 ,the dogmas of an incarnate ,god1 of the ,trinity1 and the sacred character of the ,blessed ,virgin were all introduced into the creed by the influence of the ,alexandrians1 and it would therefore seem to be legitimately their right to institute the government4 ,we have noticed already that the ,therapeut of that country had offices with similar titles and functions as those now possessed by officers of the ,church1 and as they and the ,christians were closely allied1 we have good reason for the belief that they had united with the new organization in such numbers as to outvote the original members4 ,certain it is1 that thenceforth the names of ,essenes and ,therapeut occurred no more4 ,but the sect which gave shape to the concept had thus1 to a certain degree at least1 resumed control over the whole matter4 ,that such an individual as ,jesus ,christ ever lived is entirely without proof from history4 ,we find ,josephus making mention of one and another who acquired notoriety4 ,he describes ,judas of ,galilee as the founder of a fourth philosophic sect1 and tells of ,jesus the son of ,hanan who predicted the destruction of ,jerusalem and its temple years before it occurred4 ,we observe similarity enough in his utterances to those of the twenty-fourth chapter of ,matthew1 and in his deportment when brought before the ,roman governor to that described in the ,gospels1 to warrant some little surmise of identity with the ,jesus of the ,gospels4 ,but of ,jesus as the founder of the ,christian religion1 or more properly the ,ebionite sect1 we have no such delineation4 ,of him we have only an utterance which is a palpable forgery4 ,this preaching of ,jesus as a veritable individual of like passions with other men1 having a will not always consonant with the divine will1 and yet divine in qualities and attributes1 has been very justly 8to the ,jews a stumbling-block and to the ,greeks foolishness40 ,intelligent men1 however reverent and impartial1 have been compelled to dissent4 ,the fanatic ,tertullian in declaring his own position gave utterance to what many felt to be the substance of the whole matter3 8,i reverence it because it is contemptible2 ,i adore it because it is absurd2 ,i believe it because it is impossible40 ,we are outgrowing a faith and veneration so utterly childlike as to be fatuity itself4 ,if we search for ,jesus at ,nazareth in ,galilee1 we shall not find a footprint4 ,if1 however1 we look for him in the testimonies of the ,nazarim and ,essenes as the personification of their school of philosophic thought1 thus representing in concept the emanation of ,god and the evolution of man as a spiritual being1 we shall see him as he is4 ,hence to surrender the popular notion of a literal man as an infallible teacher and exemplar is not to renounce anything that is vital in truth4 ,we will only dispense with the paganism and raan-worship4 ,we eliminate the sensuous imagery1 but preserve intact the life1 the power1 and the energy4 ,the parables and aphorisms which are in the ,gospels are as true1 as wholesome1 and inspiring as ever4 ,jesus the ideal represents1 and will continue to represent1 all that was implied in the arcane religions in the ,east4 ,upon this ground1 therefore1 it is well that ,christianity in its external forms as well as in its esoteric principles should supplant the other worships4 ,it repeats what there is of value in them1 and at the same time it comes more closely home to the higher consciousness4 ,in the personification of ,jesus the true ideal of our humanity is suggested4 ,we are born of our earthly father and mother1 whose image and name we accordingly inherit1 and we have to pass through the pains and throes of a second birth as children of the celestial parent4 ,this was outlined distinctly by symbols in the initiations1 and the successful candidate1 having overcome in the trial1 was enthroned and acknowledged as the son of the ,most ,high4 ,hence ,jesus sets forth in the ,gospel the last disclosure of the ,essenen rite3 8,call no man father on the earth1 for one is your ,father2 he is in the heavens2 and you are brothers40 ,paul repeats the sentiment in other words3 8,as many as are led by the ,spirit of ,god1 they are the sons of ,god2 heirs of ,god and joint-heirs with ,christ40 ,this idea1 often too much lost sight of1 lies at the core of all real knowledge4 ,the end of all worship1 all philosophic discipline1 and all religious teaching is to open the way in every mind to a higher perception and a profounder conscientiousness4 ,yet the suggestion of the angel at the sepulchre is pertinent--that we forbear to seek for the living among the dead4 ,the real enlightenment of mankind comes not from teachers1 but only from the fountains of interior illumination4 ,we have no call or occasion to go to this man or to that man as a leader4 ,it may be the province of individuals to stand out conspicuously in order to indicate the next advance to be made4 ,but when each has thus performed his service1 his glory is outshone by the refulgent light which he has induced others to seek and obtain4 ,we require no display of spiritual pyrotechnics4 ,enough for us that there is truth1 and that we have the intellect to perceive it--that there is right1 and we have the will to obey it4 ,neither a human ,god nor a divine man can enlighten us further than this4 ,there are freedom and impulse for us to attain the highest degree of illumination of which we are capable4 ,the human aspiration soars beyond the path of the lightning4 ,in every noble idea1 every worthy desire1 we have a mediator with ,god4 ,the more silent the work1 the more certain that the principle of all life is performing it4 ,in this is our eternity1 and there is nothing beyond4 ,,chapter ,,xi4 ,,the ,,ideal ,,christ 8,what think ye of ,christ8 ,whose son was he80--,matt4 #bb3 #db4 ,,nearly a quarter of a century ago 7#ahfh7 a very remarkable pamphlet was published by request of the ,free ,religious ,association1 written by that remarkable man1 the ,rev4 ,samuel ,johnson1 a ,unitarian minister and an author of no little repute4 ,the subject was ,the ,worship of ,jesus4 ,it had a very limited circulation1 and the stereotype plates were destroyed in the great ,boston fire1 and it is now very difficult to find a copy4 ,mr4 ,johnson takes the ground that 8,christianity is a temporary step in the divine growth of man through the worship of the ideal2 and this hope lies1 not in pausing on this step as final1 nor in proving the names and personalities associated with it to be as valid for ever as they have been in the past1 but in that which underlies and governs the whole process--the law of religious idealization4 8,this is no speculation2 it is the positive law of progress1 as history presents it4 ,to worship ideals is the condition of spiritual life4 ,to lose belief that there is somewhere a better than ourselves is to gravitate downward to what is worse than ourselves4 ,we grow better by definite homage to a best4 ,and this worship of ideals is a process of idealization4444 ,man's power of growth1 therefore1 resides in the ability to shift his veneration4444 8,ideals prove themselves to be idealizations1 that they may point him on to higher levels4 ,this is religious progress4444 8,so a time comes when every religion that centres in an individual's prerogative of divinity falls under criticism1 and is1 so far1 referred to temporary causes4 ,christianity cannot escape this law4 ,as a distinct religion it is but ,christism1 and passes away1 like ,jehovism1 before a broader faith4 ,whether what succeeds it be called ,theism or ,pantheism1 this terminology of systems fails to express its scope4 ,it is free worship of the one infinite and eternal life of the spiritual1 moral1 and physical universe4444 8,how1 then1 did the concentration of the religious sentiment upon ,jesus originate8 ,not1 as the ,church insists1 in the undeniable rights of a perfect ,being to the everlasting allegiance of mankind1 for there is no evidence of his perfection1 intellectual or spiritual1 but in the fact that the religious sentiment1 at a certain stage of its historical progress1 demanded a single human centre1 and knew how to satisfy its own demand by its own process of idealization4 8,the ideal itself was sent in the soul of the age4 ,it was bound to do what it would with its materials by its own divine gift4 ,it was the creative force of the time4 ,it is not the whole truth to say with ,merivale1 then1 that7 the religion of ,christ seized and developed1 with a divine energy1 the latent yearnings of mankind for social combination1 having for its essence1 in a human point of view1 the doctrine of the equality of man_/ ,rather did that religion catch a spirit of universality already abroad in the age--not latent1 but mighty to transform society1 to inspire both ,hebrew ,messiah and ,gentile philosopher1 to make its god in its own image1 and to transform the little ,jewish sect at last into a ,church of civilization4444 8,and this1 at least1 is sure2 always there is a man for the hour4 ,somehow or other1 a great demand will find satisfaction4 ,but the man is not what the hour reports him when it has crowned him with all that faith and fancy can bestow1 and set up1 through him1 its own special demand as valid for all time4 ,future ages will revise1 from a freer standpoint1 the image it transmits for their adoration4444 8,the earliest types and emblems of ,christ-worship betray this powerful element in its origination4 ,jesus is represented in the form of the old deities and in conjunction with them4 ,between the images of ,mercury ,criophorus and ,apollo ,nomius1 and that of the #8,good ,shepherd_/ the transition is so gradual that it is hard to decide whether the picture is pagan or ,christian4 ,in the ,catacombs ,jesus sits as ,pluto on the judgment-seat1 with ,mary as ,proserpine1 while ,mercury leads in souls4 ,still earlier emblems of ,jesus1 the ,lamb1 the ,fish1 the ,ship1 the ,cross1 the ,dove1 are all associated with older heathen mysteries or mythological beliefs1 as are also the ,christian festivals and rites4 8,and so the idealization of ,jesus went on steadily and consistently till it reached deification4 ,the early ,christian #8apologists' ridiculed the human gods of the old polytheism1 yet they did but concentrate the same principle more perfectly in the form of their ,christ4 ,hebrew monotheism was indeed too strong in ,paul to allow of his finding in ,jesus more than a man in whom the fulness of the ,godhead dwelt4 ,but this hovers very close upon the larger desire of the nations4 ,and later1 in the ,gospel of ,john1 the ,gentile current has absorbed the ,hebrew and the call for a ,god-man is boldly met4 ,a life of ,jesus is here dramatically constructed1 not out of historical facts1 nor even traditions1 but out of that preconceived ideal of an incarnate word attaching itself1 in its longing for actual and living substance1 to the growing prestige of his name4444 8,the records of ,jesus' life have had to be idealized also2 and these are not1 like his person1 so dim and veiled as to leave the religions imagination a certain margin of freedom1 however inadequate1 but a definite statement of doctrines1 doings1 and claims2 so that science1 philosophy1 art1 and morality have been taught to bow in his name to the limitations of half-developed times and men4 8,it is not denied that by leaving out what we dislike we can find in the ,new-,testament ,jesus as noble an ideal as we will1 though it can be only of a purely interior individualism1 unrelated to practical and political functions4 ,but we cannot ignore the many sources1 apart from the real life of ,jesus1 from which this feast of good things has been derived4 ,the ,new ,testament is1 in fact1 not so much the record of a life as the fruit of two ancient civilizations1 the ,oriental and ,greek1 of whose confluence ,christianity itself was the product4444 8,it is urged that we destroy the basis of religious unity when we take away this historical and personal centre of faith4 ,men absolutely need1 it is said1 that concrete form1 that individuality1 under which the divine is represented to them in the ,christ4 ,there would be more cause for this anxiety if it could be shown that they have ever possessed such a centre4 ,but what have they had1 after all1 but a common name for ever-changing ideals8 ,the belief that all eyes were turned to a common authoritative centre was an illusion1 which had its uses1 indeed1 but becomes a breeder of strife in proportion as men learn the rights of free inquiry4 #8,worship the ,christ6 follow ,jesus6' cry the ages4 ,but who is ,jesus8 and what is the ,christ8 ,the ,jesus of ,matthew is one1 the ,christ of ,john is another1 the #8second ,adam' of ,paul is a third4 ,the moral as well as the theological contents of the name vary with the ages and the sects that appeal to it4 ,as the ,christ of ,luther was not the ,christ of ,augustine1 nor his the ,christ of ,james1 so the ,christ of the ,unitarian is one1 of the ,calvinist another4 ,whom the one will save1 the other will destroy2 what to the one is moral wrong1 to the other is divine right2 what love would require in the one1 justice would foreclose in the other4 ,what common centre can the liberal ,bible scholars and the panic-stricken1 text-ridden ,revivalists find in the name of ,christ8 ,all the warring sects have been #8standing up for ,jesus2' and which of them knows what ,jesus was8 ,the farther you get back toward the original1 the less sure do you feel of your own knowledge1 and the less right should you feel from what you know in part to assume that you have found the appointed centre of religious thought4 ,it would be easy to show that unity is impossible so long as it is sought to found it on the claims of a person to that position1 since the mysterious irrationality of such an office must keep the speculative faculties of mankind in ceaseless self-contradiction and strife4 ,it would be easy to show that this claim of ,jesus has been the perpetual root of dogmatic warfare--that all barbarism of the ,christian ,church in past ages has come of jealousy about the honor due the person of the ,christ40 ,we offer no apology for these long extracts from ,mr4 ,johnson's inimitable little book of ninety pages4 8,he being dead yet speaketh10 and his words give no uncertain sound4 ,he was in advance of the times1 and if his brethren in the ,unitarian ministry would regard ,jesus1 whom they almost deify1 as an ideal 7quite imperfect7 that has come down to us from pagan peoples1 and cease to court the favor of the orthodox1 they would have more self-respect and more real regard from the thinking men of the age4 ,we might as well now come directly to the question whether the ,jesus of the ,gospels was an ideal rather than a historical individual--an impersonation rather than a person4 ,and here we take the broad ground that whether there was a real man or not makes no difference whatever1 because the writings themselves are largely ideal1 and so make the man what he was not4 ,no two persons worship the same ,god1 the 8personified ,infinite40 ,the conception of ,god must itself be limited and incomplete1 and therefore inadequate and largely ideal4 ,no two persons believe in the same ,jesus1 so there must be as many ideals as there are believers4 ,the habit of exaggerating1 of deifying those whom we have been taught to regard as the greatest and best1 is a well-known disposition of the human mind4 ,indeed1 8the function of the ,church is the cultivation of the ideal40 ,this is so palpable that the legends of all religions recognize this principle to such an extent that most of them represent their 8saviors0 as having been born of virgin mothers4 ,catholics flock to their temples and in parrot-like utterances worship an ideal ,jesus and an equally ideal ,virgin1 and thus cultivate only the ideal side of their nature4 ,it is very much easier to excite the imagination than to convince the understanding2 and this is the real secret of the strength of ,catholicism and of the weakness of ,protestantism4 ,catholic worship is mainly spectacular1 an appeal to the senses1 and is therefore attractive alike to the uneducated and the educated4 ,they believe the ,gospels literally1 because they have had the principal incidents recorded in them set forth before their eyes from their very birth1 and they cannot be reasoned out of what they have never been reasoned into4 ,but we are told that ,jesus must have been a real person or he never could have exerted the influence that he has for the last eighteen hundred years upon so many millions of people4 ,let us see3 ,if ,jesus ever dwelt upon this earth1 it must have been several hundred years ago4 ,not one of the many millions who have worshipped him since his few years of sojourn here but have done so in view of what they have heard of him or read of him4 ,they never saw him and never heard his voice4 ,he wrote nothing1 and never authorized any one else to write anything4 ,after the lapse of nearly two centuries the four ,gospels appeared4 ,very little is told of him there4 ,if you take out what is repeated concerning him therein1 you would not have1 in length1 what would make a modern sermon2 and that would be found full of contradictions1 absurdities1 and impossibilities4 ,those who have believed on him have believed on what they called testimony concerning him2 and that testimony would have produced the same effect whether true or false if they really believed it4 ,the real existence of an alleged person is not essential to excite admiration if it is really believed that he existed4 ,the ,swiss loved and honored ,william ,tell just as much as if he had not in these latter years been proved a myth4 ,the world's history teems with the heroic deeds of many noble persons 7impersonations7 who never had an existence1 and the literature of the race would greatly suffer by striking out all that is fictitious4 ,the reason that the ideal ,christ has exerted so much greater influence than any other impersonation is because so many skilful artists have bestowed their best labor upon it1 and because the figure is so ancient and contains so many features that commend themselves to the human mind and heart4 ,we find in ,natural ,genesis1 by the ,english poet ,gerald ,massey1 a passage which so beautifully portrays our own view of this subject that we cannot forbear copying it3 8,it has often been said that if there were no historic ,christ then the writers who represented such a conception of the divine man must have included amongst them one who was equal to the ,christ4 ,but the mythical ,christ was not the outcome of any such conception4 ,it was not a work of the individual mind at all1 but of the human race--a crowning result of evolution versus any private conception of a hero4 ,this was the hero of all men1 who never was and was never meant to be human1 but from the beginning was divine2 a mythical hero without mortal model1 and equally without fault or flaw4 ,this was the star-god who dawned through the outermost darkness2 this was the moon-god who brought the message of renewal and immortality2 this was the sun-god who came with the morning to all men2 this in the ,kronian stage was the announcer of new life and endless continuity at the opening of every cycle1 and in the psychotheistic phase the typical son of the ,eternal as manifester and representative in time4 8,as a mental model the ,christ was elaborated by whole races of men1 and worked at continually1 like the ,apollo of ,greek sculpture4 ,various nations wrought at this ideal1 which long-continued repetition evoked from the human mind at last as it did the ,greek god from the marble4 8,egypt labored at the portrait for thousands of years before the ,greeks added their finishing touches to the type of the ever-youthful solar god4 ,it was ,egypt that first made the statue live with her own life1 and humanized her ideal of the divine4 ,hers was the legend of supreme pity and self-sacrifice so often told of the canonical ,christ4 ,she related how the very god did leave the courts of heaven and come down as a little child1 the infant ,horus born of the ,virgin1 through whom he took flesh or descended into matter1 crossed the earth as a substitute_/ descended into ,hades as the vivifier of the dead1 their vicarious justifier and redeemer1 the first-fruits and leader of the resurrection into eternal life4 ,the ,christian legends were first related of ,horus1 or ,osiris1 who was the embodiment of divine goodness1 wisdom1 truth1 and purity--who personated ideal perfection in each sphere of manifestation and every phase of power4 ,this was the greatest hero that ever lived in the mind of man--not in the flesh--to influence with transforming force2 the only hero to whom the miracles were natural because he was not human4 ,the canonical ,christ only needed a translator1 not a creator1 a transcriber of the #8sayings' and a collector of the #8doings' already ascribed to the mythical ,christ4 8,the humanized history is but the mythical drama made mundane4 ,the sayings and marvellous doings of ,christ being pre-extant1 the #8spirit of ,christ1' the #8secret of ,christ1' the #8sweet reasonableness of ,christ' were all pre-,christian1 and consequently could not be derived from any #8personal founder' of ,christianity4 ,they were extant before the great delusion had turned the minds of men and the figure-head of ,peter's bark had been mistaken for a portrait of the builder4 8,the ,christ of the ,gospels is in no sense an historical personage or a supreme model of humanity--a hero who strove1 and suffered1 and failed to save the world by his death4 ,it is impossible to establish the existence of an historical character even as an impostor4 ,for such an one the two witnesses1 astronomical mythology and ,gnosticism1 completely prove an alibi4 ,the ,christ is a popular lay figure that never lived1 and a lay figure of pagan origin--a lay figure that was once the ,ram and afterward the ,fish2 a lay figure that in human form was the portrait and image of a dozen different gods4 8,the imagery of the ,catacombs shows that the types there represented are not the ideal figures of the human reality4 ,they are the sole reality of the centuries after the ,christian era1 because they had been in the centuries long before4 ,the symbolism1 the allegories1 the figures1 and types remained there just what they were to the ,romans1 ,greeks1 ,persians1 and ,egyptians1 ,the iconography of the ,catacombs absolutely proves that the lay figure1 as ,christ1 must have sat for the portraits of ,osiris1 ,horus the child1 ,mithras1 ,bacchus1 ,aristus1 ,apollo1 ,pan1 the ,good ,shepherd4 ,the lay figure or type is one all through4 ,the portraits are manifold1 yet they all mean the mythical ,christ under whatsoever name4 8,the typical ,christ1 so far from being derived from the model man1 has been made up from the features of many gods1 after a fashion somewhat similar to those #8pictorial averages' portrayed by ,mr4 ,galton1 in which the characteristics of various persons are photographed and fused in a portrait--a composite likeness of twenty different persons merged in one that is not anybody4 8,it is pitiful to track the poor faithful gleaners who picked up every fallen fragment or scattered waif and stray of the mythos1 and to watch how they treasured every trait and tint of the ideal ,christ to make up the personal portrait of their own supposed real one4 ,his mother1 like the other forms of the queen of heaven1 had the color of the mater frugum1 the complexion of the golden corn2 and a ,greek ,father of the eighth century cites an early tradition of the ,christians concerning the personnel of the ,christ to the effect that in taking the form of ,adam he assumed features exactly like those of the ,virgin1 and his face was of a wheaten color1 like that of his mother4 ,that is1 he 7the seed7 was corn-complexioned1 as was the mother of corn1 like ,flava ,keres1 ,aurea ,venus1 the ,golden ,lakshmi1 the ,yellow ,neitli2 and the son was her seed1 which in ,egypt was the corn brought forth at the vernal equinox1 and which was continued in the cult of ,rome as the #8bread-corn of the elect4' 8,in the chapter of #8knowing the spirits of the ,east' the ,osirified assumes the type of the virile and hairy ,horus1 the divine hawk of the resurrection4 ,this is called the type under which he desires to appear before all men2 and it is said1 #8his hair is on his shoulder when he proceeds to the heaven4' ,this long hair of the adult ,horus reaching down to the shoulders is a typical feature in the portraits of the ,messiah1 the copy of the ,kamite ,christ made permanent by the art of the ,gnostics4 ,the halo of ,christ is the glory of the sun-god seen in his phantom phase when the more physical type had become psychotheistic4 ,hence it is worn by the child-,christ as the karast mummy4 ,it is the same halo that illumined ,horus and ,iu-em-hept1 ,krishna and ,buddha1 and others of whom the same old tales of deliverance and redemption were told and believed4 ,yet the dummy ideal of paganism is supposed to have become doubly real as the man-god standing with one foot in two worlds--one resting on the ground of the fall from heaven1 and the other on the physical resurrection from the earth40 ,it is a well-known fact that many early ,christian sects absolutely denied the existence of ,christ in the flesh1 regarding him as a phantom4 ,it is very difficult to decide whether the apostle ,paul believed in a real or an ideal ,christ4 ,he wrote his ,epistles before the ,gospels were written1 and therefore could have learned nothing from that source4 ,concerning the various appearances of ,jesus after the resurrection1 he says3 8,last of all1 he was seen of me1 as by one born out of due time10 and this seems to bear out the conjecture that ,jesus was an ideal1 inasmuch as it was not in the flesh that he saw him1 and his refusal to know him after the flesh indicates his strong preference for him as an idea1 and not as a person4 ,paul makes no mention of any miracle but that of the resurrection1 and that was manifestly a spiritual rather than a physical fact4 ,moreover1 he was a ,pharisee1 and it is difficult to see how he could have 8gloried in the cross0 had he taken the cross in a literal sense4 ,he casts no reproach on the ,jews for causing ,jesus to suffer1 and never speaks of the crucifixion as a crime1 nor shows a particle of sympathy or compassion with the sufferer4 ,he seems to have been the real founder of ,christianity1 and might have had in view the direct action of the solar divinity with whom ,christ had become associated4 ,a careful analysis of the ,pauline ,epistles will show1 we think1 that the ,christ of ,paul was an idea4 ,and here it is important to bear in mind that those who attributed to him at least ten ,epistles he never wrote would not scruple to alter1 amend1 interpolate1 and change portions of the ,epistles he actually did write4 ,those who formed the system of ,christian ecclesiasticism never could afford to have a conscience4 ,those ,fathers of the second century who formed the foundations of the ,catholic hierarchy were most unscrupulous men4 ,of the ,gnostics1 ,mr4 ,gerald ,massey speaks as follows3 8,the ancient wisdom of ,egypt and ,chaldea lived on with the men who knew1 called the ,gnostics4 ,they had directly inherited the gnosis that remained oral1 the sayings uttered from mouth to ear that were to be unwritten1 the mysteries performed in secret1 the science kept concealed4 ,the continuity of the astronomical mythos of ,equinoctial ,christolatry and of the total typology is proved by the persistence of the type--the ancient genitrix1 the two sisters1 the hebdomad of inferior and superior powers1 the trinity in unity represented by ,iao the tetrads male and female1 the double ,horus1 or ,horus and ,stauros1 the system of ns1 the ,karaite divinities1 ,harpocrates and ,sut-,anubis1 ,isis and ,hathor4 ,theirs was the ,christ not made flesh1 but the manifester of the seven powers and perfect star of the pleroma4 ,the figure of eight1 which is a sign of the ,nnu or associate gods in ,egypt1 who were the primary ,ogdoad1 is reproduced as a gnostic symbol1 a figure of the pleroma and fellow-type of the eight-rayed star4 ,the #8,lamb of ,god' was a gnostic sign4 #8,lord1 thou art the ,lamb' 7and #8our ,light'7 was a gnostic formula4 ,the #8,immaculate ,virgin' was a gnostic type4 ,on one of the sard stones ,isis stands before ,serapis holding the sistrum in one hand1 in the other a wheatsheaf1 the legend being #8,immaculate is our ,lady ,isis1' which proves the continuity from ,kam4 8,it was gnostic art that reproduced the ,hathor-,meri and ,horus of ,egypt as the ,virgin and child-,christ of ,rome1 and the icons of characters entirely ideal which served as the sole portraits of the historical ,madonna and ,jesus the ,christ4 ,the report of ,irenus sufficed to show the survival of the true tradition4 ,he complains of the oral wisdom of the ,gnostics1 and says rightly they read from things unwritten--i4 e4 from sources unknown to him and the ,fathers in general4 ,chief of these sources was the science of astronomy4 ,he testifies that ,marcus was skilled in this form of the gnosis1 and enables us to follow the line of unbroken continuity1 and to confute his own assertion that ,gnosticism had no existence prior to ,marcion and ,valentinus2 which shows he did not know1 or else he denied the fact1 that the ,suttites1 the ,mandaites1 the ,essenes1 and ,nazarenes were all ,gnostics2 all of which sects preceded the cult of the carnalized ,christ4 ,hippolytus informs us that ,elkesai said the ,christ born of a ,virgin was onian4 ,the ,elkesites maintained that ,jesus the ,christ had continually transformed and manifested in various bodies at many different times4 ,this shows they also were in possession of the gnosis1 and that the ,christ and his repeated incarnations were ,kronian4 ,hence we are told that they occupied themselves #8with a bustling activity in regard to astronomical science4' ,epiphanius also bears witness that the head and front of the gnostic boast was astronomy1 and that ,manes wrote a work on astronomy1 astronomy being the root of the whole matter concerning ,equinoctial ,christolatry4 8,nothing is more astounding1 on their own showing1 than the ignorance of the ,fathers about the nature1 the significance1 the descent of ,gnosticism1 and its rootage in the remotest past4 ,they knew nothing of evolution or the survival of types1 and for them the new beginning with ,christ carnalized obliterated all that preceded4 ,such a thing as priority1 natural genesis1 or the doctrine of development did not trouble those who considered that the more the myth the greater was the miracle which proved the divinity4 8,also1 it has been asserted from the time of ,irenus down to that of ,mansel that the ,gnostic heretics of the second century invented a number of spurious ,gospels in imitation of or in opposition to the true gospel of ,christ1 which has descended to us as canonical1 authentic1 and historic4 ,this is a popular delusion1 false enough to damn all belief in it from the beginning until now4 ,the ignorance of the past manifested by men like ,irenus is the measure of the value of their testimony to the origines of ,equinoctial ,christolatry4 ,they who pretend to know all concerning the founding and the founder know nothing of the foundations4444 8,gnosticism1 according to those who are ignorant of its origin and relationships1 was supposed and assumed to have originated in the second century2 the first being carefully avoided1 only proves that the ,a-,gnostics1 who had literally adopted the pre-,christian types1 and believed they had been historically fulfilled1 were then for the first time becoming conscious of the cult that preceded theirs and face to face with those who held them to be the heretics4 ,gnosticism was no birth or new thing in the second century1 it was no perverter or corrupter of ,christian doctrines divinely revealed1 but the voice of an older cult growing more audible in its protest against a superstition as degrading and debasing now as when it was denounced by men like ,tacitus1 ,pliny1 ,julian1 ,marcus ,aurelius1 and ,porphyry4 ,for what could be more shocking to any sense really religious than the belief that the very ,god himself had descended on earth as an embryo in a virgin's womb1 to run the risk of abortion and universal miscarriage during nine months in utero1 and then dying on a cross to save his own created world or a portion of its people from eternal perdition8 ,the opponents of the latest superstition were too intelligent to accept a dying deity4444 8,never were men more perplexed and bewildered than the ,a-,gnostic ,christians of the third and fourth centuries--who had started from a new beginning altogether1 which they had been taught to consider solely historic--when they turned to look back for the first time to find that an apparition of their faith was following them one way and confronting them in another2 a shadow that threatened to steal away their substance1 mocking them with its arial unreality2 the ghost of the body of truth which they had embraced as a solid and eternal reality claiming to be the rightful owner of their possessions2 a phantom ,christ without flesh or bone2 a crucifixion that only occurred in cloudland2 a parody of the drama of salvation performed in the air1 with never a cross to cling to1 not a nail-wound to thrust the fingers into and hold on by1 not one drop of blood to wash away their sins4 ,it was horrible4 ,it was devilish4 ,it was the devil1 they said1 and thus they sought to account for ,gnosticism and fight down their fears4 #8,you poor ignorant idiotai6' said the ,gnostics1 #8you have mistaken the mysteries of old for modern history1 and accepted literally all that was only meant mystically4'--#8,you spawn of ,satan6' responded the ,christians1 #8you are making the mystery by converting our accomplished facts into your miserable fables2 you are dissipating and dispersing into thin air our only bit of solid foothold in the world1 stained with the red drops of ,calvary4 ,you are giving a ,satanic interpretation to the word of revelation and falsifying the oracles of ,god4 ,you are converting the solid facts of our history into your new-fangled allegories4'--#8,nay1' replied the ,gnostics1 #8it is you who have taken the allegories of mythology for historic facts4' ,and they were right4 ,it was in consequence of their taking the allegorical tradition of the fall for reality that the ,christian ,fathers considered woman to be accursed1 and called her a serpent1 a scorpion1 the devil in feminine form40 ,the ,gnostics are said by ,gibbon to have been 8the most polite1 the most learned1 and the most wealthy of the ,christian name40 ,they were finally forbidden by ,theodosias ,i4 to assemble at their places of meeting or to teach their doctrines4 ,their books1 too1 were burned1 so that we have now no full account of them4 ,only those who lied about them have been permitted a hearing4 ,the very fact that all the apparently historic events in the life of ,jesus have an astrological and metaphoric character lifts him out of the category of physical humanity into that of the ideal4 ,we may relegate him thither1 and yet leave no vacant place in the arena of common life4 ,this would be in perfect keeping with ancient usage4 ,among the reputed founders of philosophic systems we have no evidence of the existence of such great teachers as ,manu1 ,kapila1 ,vyasa1 ,kanada1 or ,gotama1 and the founding of the principal commonwealths was ascribed to demigods and fictitious eponymous heroes4 ,rome1 ,athens1 ,sparta1 ,thebes1 and indeed every ancient city of note1 was said to be established after that manner4 ,even leaders and teachers actually existing have been disguised by myth or the characteristics of the doctrine which they taught4 ,confucius and ,zoroaster are hidden from view by the character assigned to them by later writers4 ,even ,socrates as he appears and speaks in the ,platonic ,dialogues is little else than a personification of the ,academic philosophy4 ,when we consider that he is closely assimilated to the sages and hero-gods of the other worships1 and that every significant point in his history conforms to astrological periods and to similar characteristics in the pagan religions1 we cannot well avoid the conclusion that he too is an ideal4 ,mr4 ,william ,oxley of ,england1 in his great work on ,egypt1 takes the ground that the account we have of ,jesus in the ,gospels is substantially drawn from ,egyptian sources4 ,amenoph ,,iii4 was one of the greatest of the old ,egyptian kings4 ,amongst other gigantic works1 he built the temple at ,luxor1 much of which is buried in sand and covered over by native houses4 ,it is on the walls of this temple that very remarkable sculptures are portrayed relating to the birth1 etc4 of ,amenoph ,,iii42 they are on the inner wall of the sacred shrine1 the holy of holies1 and the sculptured scenes represent the annunciation1 the conception1 the incarnation1 birth1 and adoration of the divine man-child 7,amenoph ,,iii47 born from ,mut-em-,sa4 ,the two latter syllables mean 8the ,alone10 or ,only ,one1 and the whole title means 8the mother who gave birth to the ,only ,one40 ,one fact is established beyond all cavil1 and that is that the ,new ,testament is the product of an order of men well versed in astronomy1 and who by the aid of that science produced1 on lines laid down by the ancient ,egyptian hierophants1 a new version of the old myths and allegories4 ,we have as a fact the actual names and dates plagiarized from an ,egypto-,arabic source1 which undoubtedly betrays its origin1 and the interpretation of this1 and numberless instances besides1 in strict accordance with the astrological formula and system1 with its ,graeco-,egyptian zodiacal pictorial representations4 ,oxley says3 8,apropos to this doctrine1 ,i have in my possession two statuettes--one dating from the twenty-second dynasty1 #ijj ,b4 c4--of ,isis1 crowned and nursing the babe ,horus4 ,on my return from ,egypt through ,italy1 ,i obtained a statuette of ,mary1 crowned and nursing the babe ,jesus1 which is an exact copy of the ,virgin and ,child in the church of ,st4 ,augustine in ,rome4 ,the figures are identical40 ,face to face with such a fact1 who dare assert that the ,egyptian ,isis and ,horus are a myth1 and that the ,christian ,mary and ,jesus are really historical8 ,some simple-minded ones beguile themselves with the delusion that these ,egyptian and other heathen beliefs are prophecies of the real ,jesus who in the fulness of time came down from heaven and was born of a virgin4 ,but against this we have not only the actual claim of several ,egyptian kings to be the 8son of ,god according to promise or prophecy0 7sixteen hundred years before ,christ was born71 but we have the fact of a whole nation for thousands of years resting their hopes of eternal salvation upon a belief that 8the son of ,god1 ,osiris1 came down from heaven1 took upon himself the mortal form1 was slain by wicked hands1 rose again from the dead1 and ascended into heaven1 where he became the great judge of all mankind40 ,what adds to the difficulty is that no dates are given in the writings of the early ,christian authors1 and1 what is more1 many of their names are evidently noms de plume2 for instance1 the arch-heretic ,arius and the great ,nicene ,council seem to resolve themselves simply into a controversy relating to the sun-god under the form of ,aries 7the ,ram or ,lamb72 and as to dates in connection therewith1 they are simply ,masonic points with an astronomical reference and symbolical meaning4 ,in plain terms1 nearly the whole of both the ,old and ,new ,testaments is an allegorical record of astral1 solar1 and planetary phenomena1 with personages substituted for zodiacal signs2 and with this key in hand the ,hermetic student can unravel the allegories which are presented in such a form as to read like literal history4 ,our ,english name for the zodiacal sign referred to is the ,ram1 but in ,latin it is ,aries1 and ,nisan 7which is the month of ,march74 ,the 8sacred year0 of all systems commences with this month and sign2 hence the ,arian heresy and the ,council of ,nice2 which resolves itself into a descriptive personified account of a conjunction of planets about the definite fixing of the first point of ,aries as a basic point in time in history1 and which point is used in astronomical science to this day4 ,but the appearance of the ,cross1 with the letters ,i ,h ,s on the planispherical chart1 gives the key to the solution of the mystery4 ,the ,church interprets these letters to stand for ,jesus ,salvator ,hominum--i4 e4 ,jesus the ,saviour of ,men4 ,the initiates read them as numerals1 which stand for #fjh2 which is the exact period of a solar-lunar cycle--i4 e4 the number of years which pass before the sun and moon occupy the same relative positions in the heavens4 ,according to the astral theology of ancient religious systems1 this cycle of #fjh 7or #fjj7 years represented a ,messianic period1 at the completion of which a new messiah or avatar or savior was born upon the earth4 ,the one prior to ,jesus was ,cyrus1 who gave orders for the building of the temple at ,jerusalem just six hundred years before ,christ4 ,manatheo speaks of a 8,cyrus10 son of ,cambyses1 first king of the twenty-second dynasty1 but no ,cyrus appears in the ,egyptian annals4 ,the biblical ,cyrus is only another form of ,osiris1 and is in reality a sun-savior4 ,the ,arabs used the same system1 for their ,mohammed comes in just about six hundred years after ,christ1 and their era commences with their commencement of a new year1 which dates from #fbb ,a4 ,d4 ,even our latest era--,anno ,domini--did not come into general use until about one thousand years after the event it is said to commemorate had passed4 ,this epoch was introduced into ,italy in the sixth century by ,dionysius the ,little1 a ,roman abbot1 and it began to be used in ,gaul in the eighth1 but was not generally followed until the ninth century4 ,from extant charters in ,england it is known to have been used a little before the ninth century1 but it did not come into common use for a century later4 ,time was1 for centuries after the alleged birth of ,christ1 calculated from ,january #a in the #dth of the #aidth ,olympiad1 the #gec;d ,a4 u4 c4 of the foundation of ,rome1 and #dgadth of the ,julian period4 ,the astro-theological foundation of the ,new ,testament being demonstrated1 the actual date of the compilation of the matter becomes of secondary importance1 inasmuch as celestial phenomena are as true today as they were when first used to symbolize the intellectual and spiritual nature of man4 ,as all nations that have any pretensions to be considered civilized have had the same phenomena for their religious systems1 and as the path of the solar orb has been utilized for the history of its various personifications1 the question arises1 ,which out of the many messiahs or sun-saviors are true1 and which are false8 ,as has been already noted1 the leading incidents in the memoirs of ,osiris1 ,buddha1 ,chrishna1 and ,jesus are identical in conception1 but more or less varied in expression according to the idiosyncrasies of the writers4 ,the logical and true method is to regard one and all as allegorical symbols1 clothed not merely with an eclectic intellectuality1 but vested with a moral power that can affect the heart and conscience of men for good4 ,the parentage of ,christianism is in ,egyptian ,osirianism1 while that of what we understand as ,judaism is attributable to ,chaldean sources1 both converging to a common centre and finding a new expression through two diverse orders1 yet both equally versed in ,cabalistic science1 modified by the eclectic influences which were active at the period of their production4 ,the ecclesiastical party1 for reasons which are well understood1 never allowed the laity to be taught other than the literal and surface meaning1 while the mystic brotherhoods were forbidden by the rules of their orders to make public the real meaning of the symbols1 of which only the highest degree of initiates were allowed to know4 ,mr4 ,william ,oxley further thinks that if it were possible to raise the veil that obscures the historic past it would be found that the divine-human ideal figure of ,jesus ,christ is the combination of the ,western ,hesus and ,eastern ,christus4 ,this accounts for the title1 while the incidents in the life of the historic ,apollonius of ,tyana would supply material for the personal narrative4 ,in fact1 the nervous desire of ecclesiastical reviewers to suppress or explain away the too patent similarity between his and the ,gospel life of ,jesus is a half admission of there being a substratum of truth in the allegation4 ,oxley says3 8,against the claim for a very high antiquity in regard to even the ,old ,testament1 we are confronted with the fact that all the ,hebrew words used in its compilation have their roots in the ,arabic language 7or ,aramaic1 which closely borders upon the ,arabic72 and what is not less strange is1 that many of the so-called apocryphal writings of the ,christians are still extant in the same language4 ,as ,christian productions this fact is inexplicable1 but considered as ,chrestonian tales or legends1 it is easy to understand1 seeing that they relate to the humanized deity of that geographical district40 ,he concludes that ,christianity1 considered as a living spiritual truth1 is the gradual development of a system of thought1 and is the resultant of the highest and best conception of the human mind as an ideal of purity and every virtue that it is capable of expressing2 and1 further1 that this ideal was presented to different nations long before the ,christian one was known1 and that it was the literalizing or personification of this written ideal that afforded conditions for the superstructure of ecclesiastical systems1 dependent on a separate caste of men set apart for the purpose of its support and propaganda4 ,as these men were able to grasp and wield power over the intellect1 and even persons1 of their votaries1 so in exact ratio the spiritual and intellectual ideal 7which is not a monad1 but universal7 was lost1 and the assumed historical personage is exalted at the expense of spiritual liberty and the birthright prerogative of humanity4 ,in short1 the supposed ,founder of ,christianity is not an historical personage1 but an old ideal presented in a newer and better and higher form than its predecessors2 and1 further1 this ideal is not dependent upon a past historical1 but is held up as the standard of attainment by humanity2 and as each realizes the truth within him or herself1 then they will find that the real 8,christ0 is not and was not an historical person1 but a spiritual life-giving principle within themselves4 ,the records of history show that a dramatic ,christ has come down the stream of time from the earliest periods2 from ,india through ,egypt1 ,china1 ,assyria1 ,babylon1 ,persia1 ,arabia1 ,asia ,minor1 and ,palestine1 until the present time--from the ,buddha of the ,tauric constellations to the ,aries and ,pisces of the modern ,christ2 and all his manifestations possess the essential characteristics of the one sun-god4 ,midway between ,buddhists and the ,christians appears the sublimely idealistic mythology of ,greece1 shining all over with the glory of the solar legend4 ,very prominent in this system is the god-man ,prometheus4 ,the name is synonymous with ,logos1 which is used in the fourth ,gospel in reference to ,jesus1 and signifies a demi-deity2 and ,prometheus means ,providence1 and is represented by the all-seeing ,eye4 ,we select him rather than other notable impersonations1 for the purpose of referring to the wonderful ,greek drama written by schylus 7,prometheus ,bound71 which was acted in the theatre of ,athens at least five hundred years before the ,christian era4 ,the plot was derived from material even then of great antiquity1 and contains all the essential features of the modern 8,passion ,play0 so beautifully portrayed upon canvas in our churches and eloquently described by our ministers of the present day4 ,no author ever displayed greater powers of poetry in supporting through this ,promethean play the august character of this divine sufferer4 ,we give a few lines from ,potter's translation43 8,i will speak1 ,not as upbraiding them1 but my own gifts ,commending4 ',twas ,i who brought sweet hope ,to inhabit in their hearts2 ,i brought ,the fire of heaven to animate their clay1 ,and through the clouds of barbarous ignorance ,diffused the beams of knowledge4 ,in a word1 ,prometheus taught each useful art to man40 ,he was called upon to explain how his goodness could have brought upon him such extreme suffering1 and he says3 8,see what1 a god1 ,i suffer from the gods6 ,for mercy to mankind ,i am not deemed ,worthy of mercy2 but in this uncouth ,appointment am fixed here1 ,a spectacle dishonorable to ,jove6 ,on the throne of heaven scarce was he seated1 ,on the powers of heaven ,he showered his various benefits1 thereby ,confirming his sovereignty2 but for unhappy mortals ,had no regard1 but all the present race ,willed to extirpate and to form anew4 ,none save myself opposed his will4 ,i dared1 ,and1 boldly pleading1 saved them from destruction-- ,saved them from sinking to the realm of night2 ,for which oflnce ,i bow beneath these pains1 ,dreadful to suffer1 piteous to behold60 ,none remained to be witnesses of his dying agony but the chorus of ever-faithful women1 who bewailed and lamented him4 ,the earth trembled and the whole frame of nature was convulsed1 and the curtain fell on the sublimest scene ever presented to human sight--a dying god6 ,the preternatural darkness was exhibited on the stage1 and the most agonizing and heartfelt sorrow manifested by the weeping audience4 ,it was the 8,passion ,play40 ,let it be kept in mind that all of the incidents of the ,gospels have been acted in the theatres or illustrated in the sacred rites and religious ceremonies of pagan peoples from time immemorial4 ,are not the ,gospels a plagiarized and adapted drama8 ,we close this chapter with a further quotation from ,mr4 ,johnson3 8,i am not asserting that all this was pure fiction--that no one stood where men imagined they saw a ,god on earth4 ,but ,i do recognize the extreme difficulty of satisfying a free and sincere mind as to how much or how little did #8happen1' and the extreme hardihood of asserting at this day that there was anything in the person or life of ,jesus to vest in him the claim to be the enduring definitive centre of religious thought and association under any name or title whatsoever4 ,neither the character of the records nor the manner of their origination authorizes that postulate of perfection through which alone such claim could vest in any being4 ,the veneration of ages for his name deserves respect as the satisfaction of a natural demand during a certain stage of human progress4 ,but it does not prove him an exception to the law that the worship of personages must give way to the worship of principles--the centrality of an individual to the centrality of ideas--the divinity or #8lordship' of a man to the deity of the infinitely wise and good4 ,it illustrates that law4 ,christism in due time passes1 like polytheism1 and a larger faith succeeds4 ,thus the theory refutes itself4 8,the ,christian idealization demands that all imperfections in the ,new-,testament ,jesus shall be ascribed to the misapprehensions of the disciples and the ignorance of the biographers4 ,it is confident that ,jesus must have been greater than the record shows4 ,but we do not know that he was even so great as the record shows4 ,we are confidently told that such an ideal as can be there discerned presupposes its actual--that no man could have drawn such a character except from life4 #8,such a grand figure is not hewn out of air4' ,but it is quite possible to carry this kind of divination too far4 8,if a man could be that1 why could not a man or an age conceive that it ought to be8 ,all that can fairly be assumed is1 that there must have been an impressive life 7or lives7 behind all the construction2 and this is not denied4 ,but the necessities of the religious life in that time produced ,jesus4 ,why could they not magnify their own product and improve upon it ideally as they developed into new and larger demands8 ,if we are to insist that the idealizing faculty cannot go beyond actuality1 no meaning will be left to the word ideal1 and no such faculty will remain4 ,this is the irony to which the old belief comes4444 8,a pure and simple worship of the ,infinite and ,eternal is the necessity of philosophy2 it is the goal of science2 it is the true ground of trust and prayer and love1 of philosophic ,theism and spiritual ,pantheism alike2 it is the parent of prophets1 of mystics1 of reformers1 of all true builders of man's social unity and religious communion40 ,no reasonable man can doubt that the ,christ of ,paul and the ,gospels is largely1 if not altogether1 ideal2 and in the succeeding chapter we proceed to give more specifically our reasons for thinking so4 ,,chapter ,,xii4 ,,jesus ,,and ,,other ,,christs 8,come now1 let us reason together40--,isa4 #a3ah4 8,let me reason the case with thee40--,jer4 #ab3 #a4 ,,that there should be held so many different views concerning the character and work of ,christ is itself a very suggestive circumstance4 ,it implies that the evidence in the case is not direct and clear1 and that there are grounds for doubt and uncertainty4 ,that honest1 well-meaning men should be left in doubt regarding the most wonderful event in history1 involving their salvation1 is still more astounding4 ,one would suppose that if so wonderful an event as the incarnation of ,god had taken place it would have been made so manifest that the most skeptical could not doubt it4 ,there seems to have been great neglect or indifference regarding the matter4 ,contemporaneous history takes no notice of ,jesus1 and the biographies that we have of him cannot be shown to have had an existence until nearly two centuries after he is said to have made his advent2 and ,paul1 who had written concerning him before these ,gospels were compiled1 was so ambiguous that the most learned theologians differ as to whether he regarded the ,christ as an actual person or merely an impersonation4 ,the early records of the life of ,christ1 if any existed1 seem to have been destroyed or lost1 and there are no original documents nor authenticated copies of such records4 ,there can be no true faith1 no genuine intelligent belief1 without evidence2 and where is the evidence8 ,to believe without some reason for believing is blind credulity4 ,the most intelligent ,christian writers do not even pretend to have any documents relating to the existence of ,jesus that by any strain of language can be called evidence4 ,neander1 an eminent ,christian writer1 author of a ,life of ,christ1 acknowledges in so many words his painful consciousness of the utter lack of historic evidence in regard to him1 his acts1 and wonderful performances4 ,he demands1 as an imperative necessity1 to be permitted at the beginning to take the most important matters for granted4 ,he asks3 8,what1 then1 is the special presupposition with which we must approach the life of ,christ8 ,it is1 in a word1 the belief that ,jesus ,christ is the ,son of ,god in a sense that cannot be predicated of any human being1 the truth that ,christ is ,god-man being presupposed40 ,neander1 by making this confession1 surrenders the whole question4 ,there is no direct evidence of the existence of such a person as ,jesus of ,nazareth1 and all fair-minded1 intelligent ,christian writers admit it4 ,what is called evidence is found only in the short sketches of the ,new ,testament1 which have been shown to be no evidence at all4 ,we might rest the case here4 ,it is admitted that it cannot be proved that ,jesus existed1 and when we undertake to show to the contrary we undertake to prove a negative--a thing which is never required in a court of justice4 ,yet we do undertake it1 and reverently invite the reader to impartially consider the points in our case4 ,there is in the biography of ,jesus an utter want of originality4 ,it is a copy of other lives4 ,it is a significant fact that all the principal claims made for ,jesus of ,nazareth had been made for others long before him4 ,we can only mention a few4 ,the birth of ,buddha1 like the birth of ,jesus1 was announced in the heavens by an asterism on the horizon which is singularly called the 8,messianic star40 ,when ,chrishna was born his star was pointed out by ,nared1 a great astronomer4 ,the birth of every ,east ,indian avatar was announced by celestial signs4 ,even the ,jews have similar traditions regarding ,moses and ,abraham4 ,canon ,farrar admits in his ,life of ,christ that the ,greeks and ,romans always held this idea of the birth and death of great men being presaged by mysterious stars1 and ,tacitus affirms this regarding the dethronement of ,nero4 ,all candid theologians admit that this doctrine of the announcement of the birth of extraordinary persons by the appearance of stars was a universal belief among ancient peoples4 ,luke is the only evangelist who records the fact that the birth of ,jesus was attended with the songs of angels from the heavenly world1 and there is good reason for believing that this professed compiler drew his information from the apocryphal ,gospel called 8,protevangelion40 ,but there is nothing novel in this idea1 for the same thing had long before been recorded of ,chrishna at his birth1 that 8the quarters of the horizon were irradiate with joy10444 that 8the spirits and nymphs of heaven danced and sang1 and at midnight the clouds emitted low pleasing sounds and poured down rain of flowers40 ,it is only necessary here to state that similar demonstrations are alleged to have attended the advent of other ,hindoo saviors1 and also of ,confucius1 of ,osiris1 of ,apollonius1 of ,apollo1 of ,hercules1 and of ,esculapius4 ,it is certainly very singular that all the circumstances connected with the birth of ,jesus are recorded of several other persons long before4 ,chrishna was cradled among shepherds1 to whom his birth was first announced1 and the prophet ,nared visited his father and mother and declared the child to be of divine descent4 ,an aged hermit named ,asita1 like ,simeon of our ,gospels1 visited the infant ,buddha and predicted wonderful things of his life and mission1 and wept because he was too old to see the day4 ,not only was the infant ,chrishna adored by the shepherds and magi1 but was presented with 8gifts of sandal-wood and perfume10 very like 8frankincense and myrrh20 and he was also presented with gifts of 8costly jewels and precious substances10 very like 8gold40 ,substantially the same things are recorded of ,mithras1 the ,persian savior1 of ,socrates1 and many of the ,grecian and ,roman demigods4 ,it must suffice it to say that these incidents are too numerous and circumstantial to be mere coincidences4 ,king ,kansa was jealous of the infant ,chrishna1 and ordered a general slaughter of the infants under a certain age and in a certain district1 just as ,herod is falsely charged with having done when ,jesus was born2 and as ,joseph and ,mary were warned in a dream to flee into ,egypt to save the young child's life1 so the foster-father of ,chrishna was warned of danger by a 8heavenly voice10 and he was taken to ,mathura2 and ,canon ,farrar1 speaking of the sojourn of ,joseph1 ,mary1 and the infant ,jesus in ,egypt1 writes3 8,ancient legends say that they remained two years absent from ,palestine1 and lived at ,matarieh1 a few miles northeast of ,cairo40 ,this seems to be the same legend1 but the one regarding ,chrishna is sculptured upon the rocks and temples of ,india1 while contemporary history makes no mention of the slaughter of the innocents by ,herod2 and further embarrassment arises from the fact that ,herod was not king at that time1 as the taxing under ,quirinus did not take place under the reign of ,herod1 he having been dead for several years4 ,it would be easy to present more than a score of instances in which persons who came to be regarded as demigods and heroes had been obliged to flee from the wrath of the reigning monarch at their birth1 as is recorded of the infant ,jesus4 ,in all centuries of olden times the reigning monarch has generally been jealous of some mysterious child1 whose parents or caretakers were obliged to hide him away in some safe resort4 ,the long fast and temptation of ,jesus in the wilderness1 found in the ,gospel 8according0 to ,matthew1 have numerous parallels in the experience of other ,messiahs1 even in minor details4 ,the fast generally1 as in the case of ,moses1 the ,ninevites1 and ,jesus1 lasted forty days1 but that of ,buddha continued forty-seven days1 and in his weakness and attenuation of body he was tempted by ,mara1 the prince of evil1 who promised him all the kingdoms of the earth1 8universal empire10 on certain conditions2 but1 like ,jesus1 he said1 8,avaunt6 get thee away from me60 ,after the temptation and triumph both ,buddha and ,jesus were ministered unto by visiting angels6 ,zoroaster1 the founder of the ,persian religion1 had a similar experience with the devil1 of which there are fully detailed reports4 ,both ,chrishna and ,jesus were precocious boys1 disputing with doctors and astonishing their teachers with their learning1 which had not been acquired in the usual way2 and both wandered away from their parents and became objects of anxiety and search to anxious mothers4 ,both preached a celebrated sermon1 wrought numerous and very similar miracles1 were hated and opposed by the priests of their day1 and both suffered premature violent deaths at about the same age1 and then arose from the dead4 ,these parallels might be given to an indefinite extent1 as they appear in ,asiatic ,researches1 by ,sir ,william ,jones2 ,upham's ,history and ,doctrine of ,buddhism2 ,hardy's ,manual of ,buddhism2 numerous other ancient and modern writings on this subject2 and the parallel facts presented by these authorities are admitted by the most distinguished ,christian writers not a few4 ,in regard to miracles it is thought best to say only a passing word4 ,it is admitted by the ablest theologians of the orthodox schools that miracles are indispensable to establish the claim of a special supernatural revelation1 and great reliance is made upon the miracles accredited to the ,christian ,christ2 and yet we find other saviors and heroes credited not only with the same miracles substantially1 but with a larger number of even more wonderful miracles4 ,it would be easy to fill a large volume with the alleged miracles of ,buddha and ,chrishna1 and ,prof4 ,max ,mller affirms that the ,buddhistic miracles 8surpass in wonderfulness the miracles of all other religions40 ,zoroaster1 ,buddha1 ,osiris1 ,isis1 and ,horus all wrought miracles1 even the raising of the dead2 ,serapis1 ,marduk1 ,bacchus1 ,esculapius1 and ,apollonius did the same2 and the early ,christian ,fathers admitted the reality of heathen miracles1 but very conveniently attributed them to the devil4 ,in short1 it may safely be affirmed that more wonderful and better-authenticated accounts of miracles are given of numerous other persons1 both before and after the advent of the ,christian ,christ1 than are given of his miracles in the ,gospels4 ,the ,greeks were accustomed to say1 8,miracles for fools10 and the ,romans shrewdly said1 8,the common people like to be deceived--deceived let them be20 and even the ,christian ,father ,st4 ,chrysostom declared that 8miracles are proper only to excite sluggish and vulgar minds2 men of sense have no occasion for them40 ,the modern theological idea of proving the record by the miracle1 and the miracle by the record1 has become too transparent for even the most credulous4 ,there is also great confusion about the time of the birth of ,jesus1 though the ,church in a sort of perfunctory manner settled this by saying he was born ,december #be1 ,a4 ,d4 ,one4 ,but the ,church adopted this date for reasons of an astronomical character4 ,more than one hundred different dates1 some extending back nearly a century1 have been fixed as to his birth1 showing that no one knew anything about it4 ,a blundering notice of his birth assigns its date to the period when ,cyrenius was governor of ,syria1 and makes the enrolment ordered by that official the occasion of ,joseph's temporary sojourn at ,bethlehem when that event took place4 ,this enrolment1 however1 was not made till after the displacement of ,archelaus from the kingdom of ,judea and some ten years or more after the death of ,herod1 and the story is accordingly in direct contradiction with the account of the flight of ,joseph into ,egypt1 while ,herod was still alive1 to preserve the life of his son from that monarch's jealousy4 ,but what is very significant is the fact that when ,cyrenius commanded the enrolment ,judas of ,galilee arose and denounced it4 ,he established a distinct sect which continued till the overthrow of the ,jewish people4 ,josephus says3 8,when ,cyrenius had now disposed of ,archelaus's money1 and when the taxings were come to a conclusion1 which were made in the thirty-seventh year of ,caesar's victory over ,antony at ,actium10 ,antiq4 xviii4 #b4 ,the battle of ,actium1 in which ,octavianus gained his final victory over ,antony1 occurred in b4 c4 #ca4 ,counting thirty-seven years1 would bring the date of the taxings down to ,a4 d4 #f4 ,archelaus after reigning ten years was deposed for misconduct1 and banished into ,gaul4 ,cyrenius1 a ,roman senator1 had been sent by the government to settle up his finances and take an account of the substance of the ,jews1 or1 in other words1 to assess their property in order to apportion their taxes4 ,these things were done in the thirty-seventh year after the battle of ,actium1 or in #f ,a4 d4 ,counting ten years back1 we would be at the year #d b4 c41 or the year ,archelaus began to reign4 ,as ,herod of course was dead before ,archelaus ascended the throne1 he consequently died before ,christ was born1 and hence the entire story of the slaying of the infants1 the journey of the wise men1 and the flight into ,egypt falls helplessly to the ground4 8,but when he heard that ,archelaus did reign in ,judea1 in the room of his father ,herod1 he was afraid to go thither3 notwithstanding1 being warned of ,god in a dream1 he turned aside into the parts of ,galilee40 ,matt4 #b3bb4 ,here we have a strange state of affairs4 ,joseph and the young child turned from ,judea to ,galilee when ,archelaus was as powerful in the one country as in the other1 for his ethnarchy included both6 ,in reading the first chapter of ,matthew's ,gospel we find an inexplicable mystery4 ,the very first verse reads3 8,the book of the generation of ,jesus ,christ1 the son of ,david1 the son of ,abraham40 ,then in the sixteenth verse it is said1 8,and ,jacob begat ,joseph1 the husband of ,mary1 of whom was born ,jesus who is called ,christ40 ,in the eighteenth1 nineteenth1 and twentieth verses the ,holy ,ghost is represented as the real ,father of ,jesus by a virgin2 and his miraculous divine descent is elsewhere specifically taught in the ,gospels1 and the divine ,sonship of ,jesus has been accepted as a fact by the general ,church--,roman ,catholic1 ,greek1 and ,protestant4 ,on the other hand1 there is proof positive1 if the record is accepted1 that ,jesus claimed for himself simple humanity1 and consequent inferiority and subjection to ,god2 and ,roman ,catholics and orthodox ,protestants very conveniently settle these contradictions by affirming that he was both ,god and man2 while ,unitarians reject the divinity of ,jesus1 and by way of apology for so doing magnify his manhood so as to make him quite divine1 a human god4 ,it would be easy to fill volumes with accounts1 with very slight variations1 of the miraculous conception and birth of divine personages born of virgin mothers1 who1 after laboring and suffering for the good of men1 came to a tragic death1 which was generally followed by a triumphant resurrection and subsequent deification4 ,the cases are so numerous that one hardly knows where to begin to enumerate them4 ,it would be easy to furnish a roll containing the names of scores of incarnate deities1 and it would be tedious to describe the many things in which they substantially agree4 ,according to some modern writers1 supported by abundant sculptures in temples1 caves1 and rocks1 ,vishnu1 the second person of the ,hindoo trinity1 has been incarnated eight or nine times1 ,buddha being the first1 ,chrishna the eighth1 and ,gautama1 also called ,sakya-,muni1 the ninth4 ,the fact that these alleged incarnations took place at uniform intervals show their astronomical origin4 ,equally suggestive is the fact that there are so many peculiarities connected with the birth of these gods1 and also so many incidents in their lives and deaths absolutely identical4 ,the name of the mother of ,buddha was ,maia and the same name was given to the mother of the ,greek ,mercury and even to later divinities2 which1 like the name ,mary1 typifies the sea and sometimes the month of ,may4 ,buddha had no earthly father1 but was an immaculate conception of a ray of celestial light through a virgin mother4 ,chrishna1 the eighth ,indian incarnation1 was born of the left intercostal rib of a virgin4 ,his birth was concealed through fear of the tyrant ,kansa4 ,he raised the dead and wrought marvellous miracles1 and washed the feet of the ,brahmans4 ,it would be tedious to give details1 as almost every incident recorded in the ,gospels of the life of the alleged ,christian incarnation is recorded in circumstantial detail of some ancient pagan deity4 ,the fact is1 that all the great nations of antiquity1 and many of the smaller tribes1 have had very similar views as to divine manifestations in human flesh2 and you need only turn to the pages of any good dictionary of mythology to verify the truth of this allegation4 ,we might extend these analogies to an indefinite extent4 ,the author of ,bible ,myths has specified about fifty particulars in which ,jesus is said to have resembled ,buddha1 and as many more particulars in the case of ,chrishna4 ,nobody having any knowledge of the world's history will doubt that these ,indian divinities preceded the ,judean ,christ by several centuries1 as many distinguished writers1 like ,prof4 ,max ,mller1 have admitted4 ,we challenge the theologians to present one single prominent feature or characteristic said to have been shown in the career of ,jesus which did not appear in several other alleged incarnations hundreds of years before4 ,the fact is1 that the ,christ of modern times is a perfect copy of other ,christs who preceded him4 ,not only are all ancient ,oriental scriptures full of incarnated divine saviors1 but the same symbols and ceremonies abound in their worship4 ,take the cross1 for an example4 ,in ancient ,india the cross was as common as in modern ,rome1 and heathen temples were built in the form of a cross centuries before papists and ,puseyites and their liberal imitators ever thought of such a thing4 ,it was a common symbol in the ancient worship of ,egypt4 ,it was a ,druidic emblem in ,britain five hundred years before the introduction of ,christianity4 ,plato1 the ,grecian philosopher1 four hundred or five hundred years before ,christ proclaimed the cross to be the best symbol of the divinity next to the supreme4 ,the worshippers of ,serapis used it1 and ,hadrian1 the ,roman emperor1 as late as ,a4 d4 #acj mistook them for ,christians4 ,the standard portrait of ,jesus1 so honored by modern ,christians1 is a copy of the head of ,serapis1 the well-known sun-god1 according to the testimony of ,mr4 ,king in his able work1 ,gnostics and their ,remains 7p4 #fh74 ,the same is true of baptism and the ,eucharist1 as ceremonies identical with these1 in their main aspects1 existed among the ancient pagans4 ,the 8,lord's ,supper0 virtually was in use more than two hundred and fifty years before ,christ4 ,wherever ,christian missionaries have gone they have found substantially the same dogmas and religious observances1 and ,tertullian1 a ,christian ,father of the second century1 conveniently explained this fact by saying that the devil had taught the heathen these same things to forestall the preaching of the missionaries4 ,and yet ,justin ,martyr in the second century 7a4 d4 #adj71 in defending the ,christian religion against the assaults of pagans1 said3 8,for declaring that the ,logos1 the first-begotten ,son of ,god1 our ,master ,jesus ,christ1 to be born of a virgin without any human mixture1 and to be crucified and dead and to have arisen again into heaven1 we say no more in this than what you say of those whom you style the sons of ,jove40 ,here is a distinct admission in the second century1 from one in high authority1 that the doctrine of the death and resurrection of miraculously-incarnated deities born of virgin mothers was well known among pagans before the ,christian era4 ,but we are not done with ,justin ,martyr yet4 ,in his ,apology to the emperor ,hadrian he makes this most astonishing admission3 8,in saying that all things were made in this beautiful order by ,god1 what do we seem to say more than ,plato8 ,when we teach a general conflagration1 what do we teach more than the ,stoics8 ,by opposing the worship of the works of men's hands we concur with ,menander the comedian4444 ,for you need not be told what a parcel of sons the writers most in vogue among you assign to ,jove2 there's ,mercury1 ,jove's interpreter1 in imitation of the ,logos1 in worship among you4 ,there's sculapius1 the physician1 smitten by a thunderbolt1 and after that ascending into heaven4 ,there's ,bacchus1 torn to pieces2 and ,hercules1 burnt to get rid of his pains4 ,there's ,pollux and ,castor1 the sons of ,jove by ,leda1 and ,perseus by ,dan2 and1 not to mention others1 ,i would fain know why you always deify the departed emperors1 and have a fellow at hand to make affidavit that he saw ,csar mount to heaven from the funeral pile8 8,as to the ,son of ,god1 called ,jesus1 should we allow him to be nothing more than man1 yet the title of the ,son of ,god is very justifiable1 upon the account of his wisdom1 considering that you have your ,mercury in worship under the title of the ,word and ,messenger of ,god4 8,as to the objection of our ,jesus being crucified1 ,i say that suffering was common to all the forementioned sons of ,jove1 but only they suffered another kind of death4 ,as to his being born of a virgin1 you have your ,perseus to balance that4 ,as to his curing the lame and the paralytic and such as were cripples from birth1 this is little more than what you say of your sculapius40 ,st4 ,augustine says3 8,for the thing itself which is now called the ,christian religion really was known to the ancients1 nor was not wanting at any time from the beginning of the human race until the time when ,christ came in the flesh1 from whence the true religion which had previously existed began to be called ,christian2 and this in our day is the ,christian religion1 not as having been wanting in former times1 but as having in later times received this name40 ,a fellow and tutor in ,trinity ,college and lecturer on ancient history in the ,university of ,dublin 7,mr4 ,mahaffy7 closes one of his lectures in the following manner3 8,there is1 indeed1 hardly a great or fruitful idea in the ,jewish or ,christian system which has not its analogy in the 7ancient7 ,egyptian faith4 ,the development of the one ,god into a trinity2 the incarnation of the mediating deity in a virgin1 and without a father2 his conflict and his momentary defeat by the powers of darkness2 his partial victory 7for the enemy is not destroyed72 his resurrection and reign over an eternal kingdom with his justified saints2 his distinction from1 and yet identity with1 the uncreate incomprehensible ,father1 whose form is unknown and who dwelleth not in temples made with hands1--all these theological conceptions pervade the oldest religion of ,egypt4 ,so1 too1 the contrast and even the apparent inconsistencies between our moral and theological beliefs--the vacillating attribution of sin and guilt partly to moral weakness1 partly to the interference of evil spirits1 and likewise of righteousness to moral worth1 and again to help of good genii or angels2 the immortality of the soul and its final judgment1--all these things have met us in the ,egyptian ritual and moral treatises4 ,so1 too1 the purely human side of morals and the catalogue of virtues and vices are by natural consequences as like as are the theological systems4 ,but ,i recoil from opening this great subject now2 it is enough to have lifted the veil and shown the scene of many a future contest40 ,indeed1 the ablest of the ,christian ,fathers never claimed that ,christianity was a new religion recently and specially revealed by ,jesus1 but made many admissions quite to the contrary4 ,clarke in his ,evidences says that the most ancient writers of the ,church did not scruple to acknowledge the ,athenian ,socrates a ,christian4 ,clemens ,alexandrinus1 of the second century 7a4 d4 #aid71 wrote3 8,and those who lived according to the ,logos were really ,christians that is to say1 those who practically accepted the ,greek conception of a divine incarnation were really ,christians40 ,and why not1 for is not ,john's ,gospel an elaboration of the ,neo-,platonism of the ,greeks8 and is not the whole ,christian scheme an ingenious combination of ,judaism and ,oriental philosophy8 ,lactantius well said3 8,if there had been one to have collected the truth that was scattered and diffused among the sects into one1 and to have reduced it into a system1 there would indeed have been no difference between him and us40 ,could anything be more emphatic than this admission of a ,christian ,father of the fourth century that ,christianity is made up of fragments of other religions8 ,a volume might be filled with similar admissions from the highest ,christian authority1 for it would be easy to show that it was the main argument of ,justin ,martyr 7a4 d4 #ada7 that the ,christian religion contained nothing that might not be found in all earlier religions1 and that therefore its votaries deserved toleration and protection rather than persecution4 ,compare the following1 furnished by ,mr4 ,johnson1 with the teachings of ,jesus3 8,when you have shut your doors and darkened your room1 beware of saying that you are alone1 for you are not alone1 for ,god is within1 and your genius is within1 and what need have they of light to see what you are doing80 7,epictet41 i4 #ad72 8,dare look up to ,god1 and say1 #8,use me as thou wilt4 ,i am one with thee4 ,i refuse nothing that seems good to thee4 ,lead me whither thou wilt'0 7ii4 #af72 8,be not angry with the erring1 but pity them rather0 7i4 #ah72 8,be patient1 mild1 ready to forgive1 severe to none1 knowing that the soul is never willingly deprived of truth0 7ii4 #bb72 8,no need to lift up the hands or get close to the ears of an image1 so as to be heard4 ,god is near thee1 with thee1 in thee4 ,i tell thee1 ,lucilius1 a holy spirit dwells within us1 beholder of our conduct0 7,seneca1 ,ep41 xli472 8,between ,god and good men is friendship1 yea1 necessary intimacy0 7,de ,prov41 i4 #e72 8,what use in concealment from men8 ,nothing is hid from ,god0 7,ep41 lxxxiii4 #a72 8,god escapes the eyes2 he is seen by thought only0 7,nat4 ,quest41 vii4 #cj72 8,no temples are to be built to him4 ,he must be hallowed by each in his own breast0 7,seneca1 quoted by ,lactantius1 ,ind41 vi4 #be72 8,man's primal union is with ,god0 7,cicero1 ,de ,leg41 i4 #g72 8,virtue is the same in ,god and man2 man therefore is in the likeness of ,god0 7ibid474 ,we could multiply these quotations indefinitely1 but we forbear4 ,the fact cannot be denied that ,christianity is but the continuation and modification of the old pagan religions1 and that ,egypt has to be largely credited with supplying a great portion of the subject-matter of our so-called 8special revelation40 ,we could take up the sun-gods of ,egypt and show that all the titles and offices ascribed to them are given to ,jesus1 and that often the very language is used4 8,out of ,egypt have ,i called my ,son0 is emphatically true1 but in a broader and wider sense than is generally supposed4 ,this will be more clearly shown hereafter4 ,,chapter ,,xiii4 ,a ,,reverent ,,critique ,,on ,,jesus ,,we say 8reverent0 out of pure regard to the feelings of multitudes of devout persons who verily believe that ,jesus was and is ,god1 and so any criticism of him is simply blasphemous4 ,this subject is not to be treated in a light or frivolous manner4 ,we say 8reverent0 also out of respect to a smaller number of so-called liberals who deny the divinity of ,christ1 but who nevertheless believe that ,jesus was the one pre-eminently good and wise man1 and that no man equal to him ever existed or ever will exist upon the face of this earth2 that he was the special ,son of ,god1 the model man1 worthy of worship as the man who possessed so much of the divine spirit as to entitle him to the place of honor and grateful remembrance among men for all time and in all countries4 ,we think it more honest and respectful to reverently inquire into the evidences of his divine character1 and not to accept with blind credulity what other men say4 ,we are endowed with reason1 and it seems to us proper that we should exercise our rational faculties1 and not ignore them altogether4 ,honest doubt must be more acceptable to him1 if he is ,god1 than unreasoning faith4 ,now1 we propose to look at him in the light of the ,new ,testament1 and especially of the ,gospels1 assuming them to be authentic4 ,we shall here pass by his infancy and childhood 7utterly ignoring the doubtful and controverted passages concerning his immaculate conception and miraculous birth71 and take the first direct account we have of his life4 ,this commences when he was about twelve years of age4 ,we are told that he accompanied his mother and putative father to ,jerusalem1 whither they went to attend the feast of the ,passover4 ,luke states that he strayed away from his parents1 who were greatly concerned for his safety1 but he was at length found in the temple among the doctors asking and answering wonderful questions1 so as to astonish all who heard him with his wonderful knowledge4 ,his mother gently reproved him for giving them so much anxiety1 and he answered back1 rather impatiently1 8,how is it that ye sought me8 ,wist ye not that ,i must be about my ,father's business8 ,but he went home with his parents and was subject to them1 and for at least eighteen years dwelt with them and his brothers ,james1 ,joses1 ,judas1 and ,simon4 ,the names of his several sisters are not given4 ,during these eighteen years he is supposed to have learned the trade of a carpenter and worked with his reputed father1 who was a carpenter1 spending the most vigorous portion of his life in manual labor1 only devoting about three years to his mission as the ,messiah4 ,now1 ,jesus is held up as an 8example10 and we are 8to follow his steps10 and it does not appear that there was anything in his example specially worthy of imitation for about thirty years4 ,we must find it in the last years of his earthly career if we find it at all4 ,the first instance in which the evangelists bring ,jesus forward as a moral teacher is in the ,sermon on the ,mount4 ,this discourse is supposed by ,christians to be the masterpiece of wisdom and deep spiritual insight4 ,while ,matthew gives it as a complete discourse1 ,mark and ,luke intersperse the substance of the sermon throughout their ,gospels2 which is strong presumptive proof that it was not delivered as a connected discourse4 ,like the book of ,proverbs1 it seems to be a collection of the moral sayings of former times1 many of which can be pointed out1 with slight verbal alterations1 in the writings of pagan authors and of more modern ,jews of the ,hillel school4 ,in fact1 there is nothing in the sermon which had not been taught by many others a long time before1 while there is much that is absurd and impracticable1 not to say untrue and unjust4 ,even the deep spirituality involved in recognizing the spirit and intent of the law can be paralleled by several passages in ,buddhistic scriptures4 ,the so-called 8,golden ,rule0 was announced by ,confucius as an axiom nearly five centuries before the ,christian era1 both in its positive and its negative form1 while the same maxim is laid down in most choice and beautiful language by ,isocrates1 ,aristotle1 ,sextus1 ,pittacus1 ,thales1 and many others from three to six centuries before ,christ4 ,the same is true of the ,lord's ,prayer1 though it is often asserted that ,jesus first taught the 8,fatherhood of ,god and the brotherhood of man40 ,this is not true4 ,the 8,lord's ,prayer0 is found in the ancient ,jewish rituals1 and is entitled a 8,prayer to the ,father10 and the expression 8,our ,father who art in heaven0 is common to many1 if not all1 nations and religions4 ,while there are several things in the ,sermon on the ,mount truly beautiful1 there is nothing that is strictly original2 there are many sayings which show a great lack of knowledge1 and that are positively impracticable and immoral in their tendency4 ,no ,christian tries to keep these sayings4 ,it would lead to vagabondism and would convert a nation into a crowd of tramps4 ,it would be positively immoral to obey them4 ,if ,jesus did not intend that his teachings should be taken according to the common sense of the words used1 why did he not say so8 ,what is language for but to express one's meaning8 ,so far from teaching the non-resistance of evil1 in other places he runs into the extreme of teaching revenge4 7,see ,luke #aj3aj-ab2 ,matt4 #aj3ad1 #ae2 ,mark #f3aa47 ,he also sanctions the most gross injustice4 ,he commends the unjust steward 7,luke #af3e-h71 saying that he had 8done wisely0 in cheating his employer by compounding with his creditors1 and advises his hearers to make 8friends0 of the 8mammon of unrighteousness40 ,moreover1 whoever is familiar with the teachings ascribed to ,jesus must know that his first condition of discipleship is the total surrender of all worldly possessions and the non-accumulation of earthly treasures thereafter 7,matt4 #af3 #bd2 ,luke #ad3 #bf1 #bg2 ,matt4 #ai1 etc474 ,can words be more emphatic than the utterances of ,jesus reported in ,matt4 #f3ai-cd8--8,lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth1 where moth and rust doth corrupt1 and where thieves break through and steal40444 8,for where your treasure is1 there will your heart be also40444 8,ye cannot serve ,god and mammon40444 8,therefore ,i say unto you1 ,take no thought for your life1 what ye shall eat or what ye shall drink1 nor yet for your body1 what ye shall put on40 ,this absolute unconcern about food and raiment is emphasized by repeating the injunction twice3 8,therefore take no thought1 saying1 ,what shall we eat8 or1 ,what shall we drink8 or1 ,wherewithal shall we be clothed80444 8,take therefore no thought for the morrow1 for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself40 ,the attempts of theologians to modify these precepts are most preposterous4 ,they tell us that ,jesus meant to discourage anxious thought about worldly possessions and wants--that he intended to condemn undue anxiety and worriment of mind2 and they even assert that the original word implies and justifies this rendering4 ,to this it may be replied1 ,we cannot be certain as to what particular words ,jesus used1 as we have no manuscripts of the ,gospels dating back to within four hundred years of his time1 and the alleged copies that we have are not authenticated2 so that an argument1 even if justified by learned criticism1 based upon the implied meaning of particular words is useless1 unless we are sure1 as we cannot be1 that ,jesus used those very words1 and that he intended that his disciples and other unlearned and uncritical hearers should accept the implied rather than the obvious meaning4 ,but1 taking the words in the ,greek manuscripts of the ,gospels now most approved by scholars1 we deny that there is anything in them to justify the interpolation of the word 8anxious0 between the words 8no0 and 8thought40 ,there is the highest classical authority for the assertion that the verb employed here simply means to 8care10 8to be careful10 8to heed10 and is so translated in other portions of the ,new ,testament1 as1 for examples1 in #a ,cor4 #g3 #cb1 #cc1 #cd2 ,phil4 #d3f2 #a ,pet4 #e3g2 and in many other passages4 ,when ,paul exhorted the ,philippians to be 8careful for nothing10 because the ,lord was about to appear in judgment1 he obviously meant that it was not worth while to make any provision for future bodily wants4 ,it is a universally-admitted principle of critical interpretation that the meaning of words in any given text must be determined from the context1 the connection in which the word occurs4 ,it so happens that ,jesus has illustrated his doctrine in this connection so as to make it impossible to doubt as to the meaning of the words employed3 8,behold the fowls of the air1 for they sow not1 neither do they reap1 nor gather into barns2 yet your heavenly ,father feedeth them4 ,are not ye much better than they80444 8,and why take ye thought for raiment8 ,consider the lilies of the field1 how they grow2 they toil not1 neither do they spin1 and ,i say unto you that ,solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these40 ,the use of the illative word1 8wherefore1 if ,god so clothe the grass10 and the word 8therefore take no thought10 show beyond doubt that ,jesus intended to teach1 and did teach1 that his disciples were to be as indifferent to matters of food and clothing as are the birds of the air and the flowers of the field4 ,not only did he use words that sanction the utmost improvidence in regard to future bodily wants1 but he gave the sense in which his words were to be received by referring them to the well-known unconcern of the birds and lilies4 ,but it may be further shown what ,jesus meant to teach by reference to his own life and the lives of his first followers4 ,there is little or no evidence in the ,gospels or elsewhere that ,jesus or his first disciples ever possessed any earthly goods whatever1 or that they ever engaged in any of the useful or wealth-producing avocations of the country in which they lived4 ,matthew speaks of ,jesus as the son of a carpenter1 and ,mark calls him 8the carpenter1 the son of ,mary40 ,the fervid imaginations of modern writers have depicted ,jesus as an apprentice to his father and laboring at the carpenter's trade1 but there is no evidence that he ever pushed a plane or drove a nail4 ,there is no reason to believe that he ever erected a house for others1 and it is certain that he never built a house for himself1 for he has told us that 8the foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests1 but the ,son of man has not where to lay his head40 ,there is not in any of the ,gospels one single word accredited to ,jesus in favor of industrial pursuits1 not one syllable to justify the accumulation of property1 or any forethought whatever for sickness1 for helpless infancy1 or tottering age4 ,when ,jesus sent out his disciples he expressly forbade them to make any provision for food or raiment4 ,he said1 8,provide neither gold or silver nor brass in your purses1 nor scrip for your journey1 neither two coats1 neither shoes1 nor yet staves1 for the workman is worthy of his meat40 ,they were to throw themselves upon the charities of the world1 accept such things as were given them1 and to manifest the utmost indifference to worldly comforts4 ,there is no evidence that any of the followers of ,jesus who listened to his personal instructions ever engaged in any worldly avocation1 except to catch a mess of fish when driven by hunger to do so4 ,they lived from 8hand to mouth10 and if they had lived in our day they would1 every one of them1 have been denominated 8tramps10 and would have been amenable to our modern laws of vagrancy4 ',tis true1 there seems to have been some sort of care about future possible wants1 but only on the communistic principle4 ,they had a treasurer in the person of ,judas ,iscariot1 but no individual possessions were allowed4 ,we are told 7,acts #d3 #bf7 regarding early ,christians1 8,neither was there any among them that lacked2 for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them and brought the prices of the things that were sold1 and laid them down at the apostles' feet1 and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need40 ,in ,acts #b3dd1 #de the facts are also fully set forth3 8,and all that believed were together and had all things common1 and sold their possessions and goods1 and parted them to all men as every man had need40 ,whatever was allowed as a community1 it is certain that no individual was allowed to accumulate or retain property on his own personal account4 ,in perfect consistency with the view here presented ,jesus taught that the possession of riches was almost sure to debar one from heaven--that while it might be possible for a rich man to be saved1 because all things are possible with ,god1 nevertheless it is 8easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into heaven40 ,riches were always denounced by ,jesus1 and poverty eulogized as if it were a virtue in itself1 commending one to the favor of ,god and greatly increasing his prospects for the heavenly inheritance4 ,if the triple testimony of the synoptical ,gospels amounts to anything1 it shows beyond a doubt that ,jesus would accept no man as a disciple who continued in the possession of worldly property1 or who accumulated earthly riches1 or who allowed himself to think of the future necessaries of life1 even food and clothing4 ,at the same time1 the most promiscuous and profuse almsgiving was enjoined3 8,sell all that thou hast and give unto the poor10 was the literal injunction4 8,give to him that asketh thee1 and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away40 ,besides this1 he required absolute non-resistance3 8,but ,i say unto you that ye resist not evil1 but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek turn to him the other also 8,and whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile1 go with him twain 8,and if any man will sue thee at the law and take away thy coat1 let him have thy cloak also40 ,this is even more than non-resistance2 it is a reward for unprincipled men to impose upon you4 ,it would be impossible to state the principle of absolute non-resistance in stronger language4 ,but modern commentators tell us that ,jesus did not intend to be so understood--that he merely intended to condemn the spirit of strife and retaliation4 ,why1 then1 did he not say so8 ,which shall we accept--what ,jesus plainly and repeatedly said1 or what commentators say he meant8 ,what are we to say about the doctrine of bodily mutilation taught in the ,sermon on the ,mount 7,matt4 #e3 #bi1 #cj78 ,theologians of to-day tell us that these words are to be taken in a metaphorical sense--that to secure salvation we must sacrifice every passion that would lead us into sin1 though it might be as dear as a right hand1 foot1 or eye4 ,the reason assigned by ,jesus for enforcing this precept cannot be reconciled with the assumption that it was intended to be figurative3 8,for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish1 and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell40 ,if by members of the body ,jesus meant principles or passions that might tempt and entrap one into evil1 we must charge upon the precept the absurdity that it would be better to enter into heaven with one evil principle or passion than to be cast into hell with many evil principles and passions6 ,the literal interpretation is favored by the fact that in ancient times bodily mutilation was recognized in religious matters4 ,in ,matt4 #ai3ab1 ,jesus is reported to have said1 8,and there be eunuchs1 which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake4 ,he that is able to receive it1 let him receive it40 ,if this is not a sanction of bodily mutilation1 what can it mean8 ,that it was understood literally by many early ,christians cannot be denied4 ,the ascetics of the second century practised the most extreme literal mortification of the flesh1 and even in the middle of the third century ,origen1 one of the most learned of the ,christian ,fathers1 destroyed his own manhood by bodily mutilation as an act of piety4 ,much curious matter upon this subject may be found in ,mosheim's ,ecclesiastical ,history1 page #caj1 and also ,gibbon's ,decline and ,fall1 chap4 xv4 and notes4 ,the fairest and most reasonable way to ascertain what ,jesus taught is to study his own life1 and then to follow his example4 ,it will be somewhat startling to many when we announce the proposition that the religion of the ,christian ,gospels is monastic and ascetic in the extreme1 and that ,jesus himself was an ascetic1 and that he required his disciples to become such4 ,one thing is certain3 ,no man can study the character of ,jesus and his teachings1 his own life and the career of his immediate disciples1 without admitting the monkish character of their religion4 ,it was emphatically the religion of sorrow1 the religion not only of anti-naturalism1 but of unnaturalism4 ,it virtually said3 8,whatever is natural is wrong2 whatever you desire is wrong4 ,to do what is painful is right1 while to do what you want to do is certain ruin4 ,life must be one incessant wail of suffering if it is to be followed with eternal blessedness4 ,the body is the enemy of the soul1 and the world the enemy of ,god4 ,worldly prosperity is a curse in disguise1 while poverty and want and persecution and suffering of all kinds are indications of the divine favor40 7,see ,secret of the ,east1 by ,dr4 ,felix ,l4 ,oswald47 ,at the very commencement of his public career ,jesus formed an alliance with that hardiest of anchorites known as ,john the ,baptist1 and in all the ,gospels the close relationship between the missions of ,john and ,jesus is constantly recognized4 ,it is a tradition of the early ,church that ,jesus was never known to smile1 and there is an implication in the ,gospels that his face was prematurely old4 ,he recommended a life of religious mendicancy and voluntary poverty as absolutely necessary for admission to his kingdom4 ,but there was scarce anything in the teachings of ,jesus that had not been insisted upon for hundreds of years before by the monks of ,india1 ,egypt1 and other countries4 ,it is impossible to go into details1 but no man of reading will deny this allegation4 ,like the ancient monks1 ,jesus practised long fastings and abstained from flesh meats1 though he ate fish and vegetables4 ,he neither possessed nor sought to acquire any worldly property4 ,while going about the streets and the seashore teaching by day1 he generally resorted1 like ancient monks1 to the mountains and wilderness at night1 and his principal religious devotions were performed in the darkness of midnight4 ,he abstained from marriage1 and had but little regard for the domestic relations4 ,asceticism was the distinguishing characteristic of the early ,church1 and the doctrine of the community of goods was practically received by the ,church for two hundred years1 and is so received by many to-day4 ,so far from practically condemning the literal teachings of ,jesus as we find them in the ,gospels1 we take the ground that they were just what might have been expected from one holding the doctrine that the world was about to be destroyed and a new kingdom established upon the regenerated earth1 of which he was to be the king and his disciples the princes4 ,if there was anything definite in the teachings of ,jesus1 it was the speedy coming of the end of the world4 ,carefully study the twenty-fourth chapter of ,matthew1 the thirteenth of ,mark1 and the twenty-first of ,luke if you have any doubts upon this subject4 ,the attempt of theologians to make it appear that ,jesus only referred to the destruction of ,jerusalem is most absurd4 ,it virtually charges ,jesus with the inconsistency of giving information upon one subject when his disciples desired information upon another4 ,they asked him for signs that should precede the destruction of the world1 and he distinctly affirmed1 8,this generation shall not pass away till all these things are fulfilled20 8,there be some standing here that shall not taste death till they see the ,son of man coming in his kingdom0 7,matt4 #af3bh74 ,the doctrine of the almost immediate end of all mundane things as they then existed is the only key to unlock what seems so absurd in the teachings of ,jesus4 ,if he believed what he taught as to the speedy end of the world1 it was perfectly consistent for him to condemn the holding or accumulating of property1 and to commend the most indiscriminate almsgiving1 the most absolute non-resistance1 with bodily mortification and mutilation1 and a life of unworldliness and practical mendicancy and poverty4 ,jesus and his disciples taught and acted just as men would teach and act if they believed that the end of the world was at hand4 ,his disciples so understood him4 ,in the year #ifj ,a4 d4 there was in the ,christian ,church a revival of this doctrine1 and the speedy end of the world and the second coming of ,jesus were proclaimed with great earnestness4 ,the clergy as a class adopted it1 and encouraged people to give away their possessions4 ,a universal panic prevailed2 all business was suspended2 men abandoned their families1 and multitudes undertook a pilgrimage to ,palestine to meet their returning ,lord4 ,it is hardly necessary to mention the craze of 8,millerism0 in #ahdc in this country1 when many1 in perfect consistency with their belief1 gave up their possessions and prepared their 8ascension robes10 and waited anxiously for the end4 ,if the clergy of all denominations should now unite in proclaiming just what ,jesus predicted concerning the end of the world1 just in proportion as people sincerely believed the message they would at once literally accept the teachings of the ,sermon on the ,mount1 and act accordingly4 ,this leads us to the inevitable conclusion that much of what ,jesus taught can only be understood and justified by his particular view and representation of the almost immediate end of all earthly things2 and this understanding of the subject is much more creditable to ,jesus as a teacher than the assumption that he failed to make himself understood1 and that he did not mean what he said1 though both he and his disciples practically in their lives exemplified the unworldliness and asceticism that he preached4 ,we submit as a key to the enigmas of the ,sermon on the ,mount and other hard sayings attributed to ,jesus that he and his disciples believed and taught that this world was about to be made new1 that the then present order was about to terminate1 and that therefore earthly possessions and pursuits were of no consequence1 and even the domestic relations were of little account4 ,that the teachings and examples of ,jesus 7in many respects7 cannot be accepted by the people of the nineteenth century without a complete overthrow of existing institutions and forms of civilization is a self-evident fact4 ,we must abandon all industrial pursuits1 change all our views of the rights of property1 adopt the communistic principle and policy1 and lead lowly lives of self-denial and bodily mortification and discomfort4 ,we repeat that the teachings and example of ,jesus were natural and rational from his conviction of the approaching end of all things4 ,it would be easy to point out many other things in the ,sermon on the ,mount equally defective and offensive to reason and common sense1 but we forbear4 ,we have dwelt upon this celebrated sermon at such length because it is held up as a model of moral teaching4 ,we pronounce it a very inferior compilation of things good and bad1 not at all corresponding with proper ideas of practical morality1 and not adapted to the present necessities of civilization4 ,what is said of the ,sermon on the ,mount may be said of many portions of the alleged teachings of ,jesus4 ,we mention only a few instances4 ,the parable of the ,unjust ,steward justifies a worldly cunning and a decidedly dishonest act 7,luke #af3e-h74 ,jesus commends him1 saying that 8he had done wisely0 in cheating his principal1 and advises his disciples to 8make to them friends of the mammon of unrighteousness40 ,a more grossly dishonest act could not have been committed by a person acting in a fiduciary capacity4 ,to follow his example would overthrow all business integrity and lead to universal knavery4 ,in the parable of the ,unjust ,judge he gives a very low and anthropomorphic view of ,god and the efficacy of prayer4 ,it is this3 ,a certain woman went to a judge for a certain favor1 and he would not grant her request4 ,she persisted1 and finally he said1 8,though ,i fear not ,god nor regard man1 yet because this widow troubleth me ,i will avenge her1 lest by her continual coming she weary me40 ,then the lesson taught3 8,and shall not ,god avenge his own elect which cry unto him day and night1 though he bear long with them80 ,this certainly teaches that if one teases and worries ,god long enough1 he will answer the prayer without regard to the rightfulness of the petition4 ,dr4 ,adam ,clark says in his ,commentary that the expression 8she weary me0 is a metaphor taken from boxers1 8who bruise each other about the face1 blacken the eyes60 ,we forbear to remark on this blasphemous doctrine4 ,we pass on without specifying the manifestly unjust principles laid down in the parables of the ,laborers in the ,vineyard1 the ,ten ,talents1 the ,great ,feast1 and other parables1 the manner in which he treated the woman of ,canaan1 the mystification and evasions he used1 leaving her in doubt with regard to his real meaning1 and the many instances in which he gave irrelevant answers and unfair and illogical conclusions4 ,his teachings were notable for their obscurity and ambiguity2 he tells us he did not desire to be understood2 and no wonder that his most trusted disciples wrangled about his true meaning and came to opposite conclusions4 ,his own family did not believe in him1 and some persons thought him insane4 ,indeed1 his mysterious and enigmatical style is so marked that it suggests whether1 after all1 what is said to have been spoken by ,jesus was not the utterances and traditions of initiates in the second ,christian century8 ,the claim of autocratic official authority to forgive and punish1 to deny before ,god those who should deny him before men1 to denounce whole cities for want of faith in him1 to come in ,god's name to judge all mankind1 to proclaim everlasting punishment and declare that some should never be forgiven1 mars the beauty of ,jesus' character4 ,a real deficiency in his teaching was the absence of any explicit declaration of human brotherhood4 ,it is a remarkable feet that no clear statement of this idea is recorded of ,jesus4 ,but the lack was supplied in a certain form by ,paul1 whose broader ethnic experience and more liberal culture made him recognize the demand more fully1 and who was therefore bound to have it satisfied in his religious ideal4 ,this was easy1 since he had never seen ,jesus1 and could construct his personality as his own reverence and sense of human need might prompt4 ,the clearest statement of human brotherhood in the ,new ,testament is that ascribed to ,paul3 8,god hath made of one blood all the nations of the earth40 ,yet even in ,paul's mind it seems to have been conditioned on faith in his ,master4 ,all were 8members of one another1 whether ,jew or ,gentile1 bond or free20 but it was only in so far as they were1 or were fit to be1 8in the body of ,christ40 ,cicero and ,seneca rest human brotherhood on broader and deeper foundations4 8,all are members of one great body10 says ,seneca also2 but in what sense8 8,by the constitution of nature1 which makes us kindred1 and more miserable in doing than in receiving an injury2 and by whose sway our hands are prepared for mutual help40 ,paul says1 8,in ,christ is neither bond nor free40 ,but ,seneca says more broad-ly1 8,virtue invites all1 free-born1 slaves1 kings1 exiles4 ,it asks no questions about rank or wealth4 ,it is content with the bare man40 ,again1 exhorting ,nero1 he says3 8,do not ask how much of manumission is endurable1 but how much the nature of justice and good will allows you which bids you spare even captives and persons bought with a price4 ,let slaves find refuge before the statute2 if all things are permitted you 7by custom and power7 against a slave1 there is that which the common law of life forbids to be done to a man2 for the slave is of the same nature as yourself40 ,so ,cicero says3 8,no other things are so alike as we are to each other20 8,there is no one of any nation who cannot reach virtue by following the light of nature20 8,the foundation of law is that nature has made us for the love of mankind40 ,other testimonies to like effect might easily be adduced from 8heathen0 writers of that age4 ,and the later ,stoics do but echo the thought of their predecessors from the days of ,zeno and ,cleanthes when they reiterate in the broadest terms the belief that men are created for the very purpose of mutual good4 ,and ,philo says3 8,we all are brothers by the highest kind of kindredship1 as children of reason20 8,slavery is impious1 as destroying the ordinances of nature1 which generated all equally and brought them up as if brethren1 not in name only1 but in reality and truth40 ,but with the apostles of ,christianity1 as probably with ,jesus himself1 brotherhood was inseparable from belief in 8the ,christ40 ,but let us not overlook the facts that the ,gospels attribute to ,jesus certain beliefs which our present knowledge positively contradicts1 and even sentiments and claims which the highest morality cannot approve4 ,for example1 take his belief in diabolic possession2 his claim of power to forgive sins and to judge mankind with his disciples on twelve thrones2 his denunciation of cities that should not receive his messengers2 his official retaliation 7,matt4 #aj3 #cc72 the unpardonable sin2 his giving ,peter the keys of the kingdom of heaven1 and to his apostles the same powers2 the second coming of the ,son of man1 with destruction of the world and the coming judgment day within that generation2 condemning to endless punishment those who have not succored believers2 no salvation to those found unrepentant at his coming2 the sinning brother who will not hear the ,church to be treated as a heathen2 his sweeping denunciation of ,pharisees and ,scribes2 a personal devil and an everlasting hell2 power over deadly serpents and the taking of poisons without injury2 the working of miracles by faith1 even to the removing of mountains and tearing up trees1 raising the dead1 etc4 etc4 etc4 ,but not only are the teachings of ,jesus subject to criticism1 but his acts are equally so4 ,take for an example the manner in which he addressed his mother when found disputing with the doctors in the temple1 but more particularly hear his words to his mother at the wedding in ,cana4 ,she told him that the wine had run out1 and he answered in the most uncouth manner1 8,woman1 what have ,i to do with thee80 ,that is to say1 of what concern was his mother to him1 and what had he to do with her trouble about the wine being out8 ,then the making of the wine1 upon which the people got drunk1 was by no means worthy of imitation4 ,the quantity1 according to some divines1 was not less than two or three hogsheads of intoxicating drink1 enough to last the balance of the week4 ,the guests were already drunk1 and1 though the wine was made out of water1 it was nevertheless highly intoxicating4 ,we might also mention his rude answer when his mother desired to speak to him 7,mark #c3 #ba-ce74 ,at the time of his triumphal entrance into ,jerusalem he took an 8ass and colt10 the private property of some person1 without permission1 and the bystanders so understood it4 ,he went immediately to the temple and beat out with a whip all the merchants 7whom he calls thieves71 all legitimate dealers in animals and doves for religious sacrifice1 and violently overthrew the tables of the money-changers1 whose business seems also to have been legitimate4 ,this act was a 8breach of the peace10 and in any civilized country would have been followed by arrest and imprisonment4 ,it was not right that he should assert his authority by such disorderly conduct1 and that too upon the eve of the celebration of a religious ceremony4 ,when waited on by a most respectable deputation of public men who served officially 7,matt4 #bc3 #ba7 and inquired of him 8by what authority he did such things10 instead of answering them frankly and making known to them his mission1 he raised an irrelevant question1 and because they could not tell whether 8,john's baptism was from earth or heaven10 he refused to give any apology or explanation of his most treasonable and violent actions4 ,he addressed the ,scribes and ,pharisees in the most extreme language1 calling them 8vipers10 8blind guides10 8hypocrites10 8serpents10 etc41 and used fulminations that were calculated to excite the worst passions and the most atrocious acts4 ,he told them that they were 8whited sepulchres0 and 8fools40 ,when he was accepting the hospitalities of a ,pharisee 7,luke #aa3cg-ed7 he abused and denounced both the host and his guests4 ,he is said to have looked on the ,pharisees 8with anger10 thus violating what he taught4 ,his unjustifiable conduct toward the 8barren fig tree0 will not be overlooked4 ,it was not the season for figs2 he had no right to expect to find fruit on that tree1 yet he 8cursed0 it1 and here again destroyed private property without rendering an equivalent4 ,so with the swine of the ,gadarenes4 ,this story is childish and wicked1 and his action resulted in the destruction of animals which must have been valued at about four thousand pounds sterling4 ,he was also chargeable with dissimulation greatly at variance with moral rectitude4 ,when his brothers would have him go to ,jerusalem to attend the feast of tabernacles he declined1 and advised them to go without him4 ,but when they had gone1 8then went up also to the feast1 as it were in secret0 7,john #g3 #b-aj74 ,he certainly here practised deceit4 ,when walking with the two disciples to ,emmaus he pretended to be another person1 and when they arrived there he 8made as though he would go farther that is1 he pretended what he did not intend4440 7,luke #bd3ac74 ,he practised the utmost dissimulation in several particulars in the affair of ,judas1 and carried it even farther than the traitor4 7,read and study ,matt4 #bf3 #df-ej and context47 ,we might pursue this subject indefinitely4 ,it is enough for our present purpose to affirm that many of the errors in natural philosophy1 physiology1 astronomy1 and other sciences that prevailed in that day are implied or incorporated in the ,gospels1 with many prevailing superstitions1 and that there are more mistakes and a greater number of contradictions in the four ,gospels than in any other writings of the same length now extant in any language4 ,there is no one subject upon which so many books have been written as what are called 8harmonies of the ,gospels40 ,there are now more than one hundred such books extant1 besides thousands that have gone out of print4 ,long ago as the seventeenth century ,thomas ,munn of ,london published such a book1 on the title-page of which he states that he has reconciled three thousand contradictions4 ,what does all this imply8 ,has it ever been found necessary to so reconcile the writings of ,plato1 ,socrates1 ,aristotle1 ,newton1 or ,bacon8 ,could not ,god make himself understood8 ,it is an acknowledged fact among juriste that the discrepancies in the four ,gospels would destroy the credibility of any four witnesses in any intelligent court of law4 ,we must here express our conviction that the ,gospels1 which profess to give the life of ,jesus1 are not original1 genuine productions1 and it is time to show how they came into existence and were palmed off by ecclesiastics as the productions of those whose names they bear4 ,about the time of the birth of ,christianity almost every system of philosophy and religion centred at ,alexandria in ,egypt4 ,the ,essenes1 though scattered throughout all the provinces of the ,roman empire1 had their head-quarters at ,alexandria1 where existed a flourishing university4 ,to this centre of learning seekers after truth from all countries of the globe found their way1 and1 comparing their various systems1 the result was the evolution of the ,eclectic philosophy1 made up of what was regarded as the best of every known faith4 ,palestine and ,egypt were geographically contiguous1 and the commerce between them was general and constant through ,alexandria4 ,here the various sects of ,judaism came into direct contact with ,greek and ,oriental thought and philosophy1 with which they had been made quite familiar during their captivity in ,babylon4 ,pythagorean1 ,platonic1 and even ,zoroastrian and ,buddhistic speculations were rife--were in the very air of ,alexandria4 ,it is notorious that in that city ,christian theology assumed a systematic form4 ,the first and best ,christian manuscripts were ,alexandrian1 and so were the first bishops2 so says ,prof4 ,calvin ,e4 ,stowe4 ,it is impossible for any party to escape entirely from the influence of its surroundings4 ,how could a new sect eighteen hundred years ago escape the influences that dominated the very atmosphere of ,alexandria8 ,christianity1 so called1 did not escape this influence1 but in a short time took an eclectic form made up of the then existing systems of faith and philosophy1 so that we now find in it ingredients taken from every known system of religion and philosophy1 including ,judaism1 ,platonism1 ,zoroastrianism1 and ,buddhism4 ,mosheim says this ,eclectic philosophy1 which 8chose the good and rejected the evil out of every system that had been propounded to mankind10 was taught in the university of ,alexandria when ,christianity came into existence4 ,a very interesting question arises in this connection1 which few have paused to ponder--viz4 ,what became of the sects of the ,essenes and ,therapeutists after the commencement of the ,christian era8 ,that they suddenly disappeared as sects is an historical fact4 ,but what became of them8 ,is there anything more natural than to assume that they became the pioneers of the ,christian ,church1 and1 in fact1 that it was these people to whom the name 8,christian0 was first given at ,antioch8 ,the entire ,new-,testament ,scriptures are full of phrases and allusions which clearly show the ,essenean admixture1 of which many examples might be quoted4 ,even ,eusebius1 styled the 8,father of ecclesiastical history10 without whose writings little or nothing is known of the early ,christian ,church1 not only admits the close resemblance between this sect and ,christianity1 but he even claims that they were ,christians4 ,a thorough investigation of this matter drives one to the conclusion that our ,catholic ,christianity came from ,alexandria--virtually from the ,essenean monks who flourished before the ,augustan age1 and that their writings are the foundation of our ,gospels1 re-edited1 changed1 and interpolated to suit times and occasions4 ,catholicism is the undoubted offshoot of ,egyptian monkery1 as ,protestantism is an offshoot of ,catholicism1 and improperly called a ,reformation4 ,paul probably became a sort of ,martin ,luther1 and led the great schism from the ,essenean ,church1 and it was then from a certain time called ,christian4 ,the four ,greek ,gospels of our ,new ,testament were made up at ,alexandria from ,egyptian asceticism1 and consist largely of a union of ,neo-,platonism with ,judaism1 and is full of the occult and mystical so common in that period4 ,they were not written by ,matthew1 ,mark1 ,luke1 and ,john1 as can be proved1 and he who is called ,jesus of ,nazareth was nothing more than an ,essenean impersonation4 ,this view is honestly held by the writer1 and did space permit he could give many pertinent reasons for it4 ,investigation in this direction would meet a rich reward4 ,many pious persons here confront us1 and inquire reproachfully1 8,what is the use of destroying the faith of the people in the ,christian religion80 ,this question implies what is not true1 as it is farthest possible from the object of these papers to ridicule or in any way to bring religion into disrepute4 ,it is not only good principle1 but it is also good policy1 to always tell the truth4 ,why should we say1 either directly or by implication1 that ,christianity is a supernatural religion when we know it to be of human origin1 and can show just how1 and when1 and where it grew out of then existing creeds and systems of philosophy8 ,is religion such a sham that it can best be subserved by falsehood and imposture8 ,we think not4 ,and if we should adopt the ,jesuistic maxims1 that 8the end justifies the means0 and that 8pious intent hallows deceit10 it is simply impossible in this inquisitive scientific age to keep up a deception1 however venerable for age and sacred from association4 ,knowledge is on the increase1 and the people will not for ever wear bandages over their eyes1 and1 thus hoodwinked1 swallow without question whatever is put into their mouths by the dispensers of theologic twaddle and priestly pap4 ,regarding ,christianity as a special divine revelation recently made1 it will not stand scientific and historic examination2 but regarding it as of human origin1 an evolution1 a product of that age of pessimism which resulted from the disappointment of the ,jews as to their national ,messiah1 and the disintegration and coming decadence and downfall of the ,roman empire1 coupled with the proclamation of the speedy destruction of the world itself1 it is just what might have been expected--a religion of pessimism1 of sorrow1 of unworldliness1 of evil forebodings4 8,when the devil got sick1 the devil a monk would be40 ,when ,charles ,,iv4 of ,spain was discomfited by the misfortunes of war1 he sought solace in embroidering a petticoat for the ,virgin ,mary4 ,ranc had a domestic tragedy1 and he founded the order of ,trappist monks4 ,loyola would never have founded ,jesuitism if he had not first been disfigured and crippled in a military siege4 ,dante was an exile when he wrote his ,inferno1 and ,john ,calvin was a dyspeptic and suffered from rheumatism1 gout1 and stone when he wrote his ,institutes4 ,the most distinguished devotees to the religion of self-reproach have always been sufferers from headache and neuralgia1 as 8crippled foxes decry the vintage10 and grapes are always sour that are beyond reach4 ,the germs of ,christianity grew out of the decaying carcasses of the ,jewish commonwealth and the ,roman empire1 and as the worship of sorrow and unnaturalness it is not promotive of the highest virtue and the best interests of human society4 ,it is only when the distinctive asceticism is eliminated and its extreme pessimism is destroyed by a rational optimism that it becomes a real blessing to humanity4 ,every religion reflects the characteristics of the place and time of its birth1 and the gloomy and melancholic temperaments of the dwellers by the ,jordan1 the ,nile1 and the ,euphrates thoroughly permeated and impregnated the sects of those countries4 ,regarding ,christianity as of human origin1 we are at liberty to cast aside its lugubrious spirit1 its impracticable unworldliness and unnaturalness1 and with higher esteem1 and a more genuine heartfelt appreciation1 and a sincere acceptance and approval we are free to adopt and glorify its general humane spirit under the divine impulse of the universal ,fatherhood of ,god4 ,the real religious basis is that he serves ,god best who serves man best1 and the coming of the kingdom of ,god is concomitant with the coming of the kingdom of man4 ,the claim of infallibility is always suspicious1 and there is no finality in religious truth and progress2 and it cannot be doubted that the religion of the nineteenth century is as great an improvement upon the religion of the first as our civilization1 science1 commerce1 and the mechanic arts are superior4 ,prof4 ,max ,mller1 of the orthodox ,university of ,oxford1 well says3 8,the elements and roots of religion were there as far back as we can trace the history of man1 and the history of religion1 like the history of language1 shows us throughout a succession of new combinations of the same radical elements40 ,in no system of religion is the principle of combination1 of previously existing forms of creed and conduct1 so apparent as in the ,christian religion4 ,it is the best because it is the latest of the great religions1 and contains the best selections and combinations of all previously existing ones1 ,jewish and pagan4 ,our faith in the sublime moral precepts of ,christianity is increased and strengthened as we realize that they are thousands of years old1 that they are the accumulated products of the ages--an evolution from the consummated wisdom of all previously existing religionists of all times and countries4 ,god's real revelations to man are from within1 and they would not be any more divine if they were from without4 ,of nothing can we be so sure as that ,god will take care of his own eternal truth1 and cause it to shine forth with more radiant splendor as knowledge shall increase and true science shall learn to read more intelligently the records of the divine character and will in the infallible book of nature4 ,ecclesiastical tomtits may twitter and flutter1 and theological owls may look solemn and wise and hoot out their gloomy forebodings1 but the true ark of ,nature's covenant is safe43 8,ever the truth comes uppermost1 ,and ever is justice done40 ,the only safe position1 because it is the only true one1 is that there is a ,god in the universe1 and that it is the divine order to make known his will by slow and uniform processes1 and not by sudden and miraculous revelations4 ,the principle of evolution is just as true in its application to moral and spiritual things as it is in regard to the material world1 and another ,darwin will some day arise who will demonstrate the fact4 ,indeed1 this field is 8ripe for the harvest10 as several new sciences1 not dreamed of until within a half century past1 are revealing facts and establishing principles which are sure to consign the old supernaturalism to regions of superstition and priestcraft4 ,,chapter ,,xiv4 ,a ,,few ,,fragments 8,gather up the fragments that remain1 that nothing be lost40--,john #f3ab4 ,,gnosticism4 ,,since preparing ,chapter ,,xi41 on ,the ,ideal ,christ1 and quoting freely from ,mr4 ,gerald ,massey regarding the ,gnostics1 some doubts have been suggested as to the soundness of his views4 ,we have therefore carefully reviewed this matter1 and can find no reason to abate one tittle from the conclusions presented by this painstaking and able writer4 ,the word gnosis1 meaning knowledge1 does not apply exclusively to a party or sect ,the ,gnostics were not distinguished from ,christians at first by sectarian lines4 ,the ,epistles of ,paul1 both genuine and spurious1 recognize the gnosis1 and there were ,gnostic sects1 as well as individual ,gnostics1 both before and after the ,christian era4 ,the gnosis consisted in knowing1 and mainly in not accepting as historical and literal what was really only allegorical4 ,the chief ,gnostic sects held as secret their essential doctrines1 and at the same time they had an exoteric statement which they gave to the common people4 ,even ,paul1 who seems to have been a first-class ,gnostic1 preached one gospel publicly to the ,gentiles1 and another which he gave 8privately to them that were of reputation0 7,gal4 #b3 #b74 ,his teachings were highly ,cabalistic1 and he seems to have delighted in 8mysteries40 ,he had no conference with any of the other apostles as to what he should teach1 but went to ,arabia1 where he doubtless met the ,essenean brotherhood1 and probably learned from them instead of the ,judean teachers4 ,the ,essenes were famous for the cultivation of sacred literature1 and had their personified ,christ1 as we have reason to believe4 ,mr4 ,c4 ,staniland ,wake thinks1 with good reason1 that the ,essenes were ,mithrasts1 and that they worshipped the sun1 and ,mithras1 the ,persian savior1 was a personification of the sun4 ,the ,essenes1 according to ,josephus1 treated the sun with great veneration1 and offered certain prayers early in the morning1 as if they made supplication for its rising4 ,the ,essenes and ,mithrasts were ,gnostics in that they held to a personified savior1 and not a literal man of flesh and blood4 ,the symbolism of the universe afforded models for the secrets of their religion1 and their rites were introduced into every part of the ,roman empire--of course including ,palestine--and for nearly four centuries the ,mithraic religion wellnigh overshadowed ,christianity4 ,much that was written of ,jesus indicates the characteristics of the secret initiations4 ,it may appear strange to the superficially informed when we affirm1 as heretofore1 that many of those matters which ,paul set forth with such seeming literalness were in fact mystic and arcane1 the transcript of older doctrines1 and were made up throughout of astrological symbolism4 ,the systems of many ancient peoples centuries before ,christianity contain doctrines and dramatic stories closely analogous to the gospel story of ,jesus4 ,the ,neo-,platonists held that these occult rites were merely a form of representing philosophic thought as if in scenes of daily life4 ,while ,paul refers to certain matters as apparently historical1 he never overlooks their symbolic import4 ,the interpolators of his writings misrepresented his real views1 as is evinced by internal evidence in the writings themselves4 ,the fourth ,gospel1 falsely credited to ,john1 was written for the evident purpose of opposing the ,gnostic doctrine of ,jesus not made flesh by presenting the ,neo-,platonic dogma of 8the ,word made flesh40 ,in many places throughout the ,new ,testament there is an implication that there were those who denied that ,jesus came in the flesh3 8,and every spirit that confesseth not that ,jesus ,christ is come in the flesh is not of ,god0 7#a ,john #a3 #c74 ,in #b ,john1 #gth verse1 it is said3 8,for many deceivers are entered into the world1 who confess not that ,jesus ,christ is come in the flesh4 ,this is a deceiver and an antichrist40 ,how does this comport with the assumption that the existence of the human ,jesus was never doubted in the apostolic age8 ,the ignorant and disingenuous ecclesiastics who wrote on ,gnosticism in early ages always observed one rule1 and that was to represent it as a mere offshoot and corruption of ,christianity1 invented because of disappointed ambition by apostates from the religion established by the apostles4 ,the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,king1 in his ,gnostics1 and their ,remains1 affirms that such representations 8are entirely false40 ,the truth is1 that ,gnosticism did not purport to be a ,christian system1 except by a kind of syncretism to reconcile different faiths4 ,the ,neo-,platonists attempted this1 and ,gnostics did the same on an analogous plan4 ,the historical existence of ,jesus was little else than a concession made to the unreasoning multitude1 while the esoteric doctrine was so much older as to make such an existence of no possible account except as a piece of folk-lore to hang illustrations of doctrines upon4 ,this is the central idea of every branch of ,gnosticism4 ,the forms set forth by different expositors are secondary and incidental1 liable to mislead those who attempt to place them in the front and draw deductions from them2 and hence ,saturninus taught that all that was considered physical in ,jesus was only a phantasy1 and that what was from ,god was spiritual only1 and not at all corporeal4 ,as for the writings of ,tatian1 they are 8lost0--that is1 destroyed--and we are under no obligations to accept what his enemies have said of them4 ,the period was one in which calumny1 slander1 and forgery were the rule1 as well as the main dependence for refuting an adversary4 ,we know nothing of ,cerinthus except through ,epiphanius1 whose reputation for truth and veracity is so bad that he would make falsehood appear like truth by his manner of telling it4 ,our evidence respecting ,cerinthus comes chiefly from ,epiphanius1 who once professed to be a ,gnostic 7,macosian71 and afterward turned ,catholic1 and1 ,judas-like1 betrayed some scores of his former associates1 including seventy women1 to the persecuting civil authorities4 ,the ,ophites were certainly mystics1 and read everything concerning ,jesus as a sacred allegory4 ,many think that ,christos was with them ,chrstos1 the good1 the incarnation and associate of ,sophia1 8the wisdom from on high40 ,the 8wisdom religion0 was extensively symbolized4 ,pythagoras named his esoteric doctrine the gnosis or 8knowledge10 and ,plato used a similar expression to indicate the 8interior knowledge40 ,marcion was evidently ,persian and used ,mithraic symbolism4 ,the ceremonials of ,mithraism 7red-cap ,christians7 and astral rites were adopted by the ,catholic ,church1 besides many other rites of paganism4 ,the ,jewish ,cabala and the ,gnostics had much in common4 ,the ,sethites were of ,jewish origin1 and they held that ,seth was the son of ,sophia1 who had filled him with the divine gnosis1 and that his descendants were a spiritual race4 ,the ,mandaites were ,gnostics1 as their name indicates1 and they found in the system the older type of doctrine which obtained in ,mesopotamia and in the old and elaborate ,babylonian religion4 ,this is seen from the fact that the names of the old pantheon were adopted4 ,the variety of legends regarding ,jesus show that he was not an historical character4 ,deriving the bulk of their theosophy from beyond the ,euphrates1 and even much from beyond the ,indus1 the early ecclesiastics changed names1 but retained their original ideas4 ,nearly all ,christian festivals are the equivalents of pagan observances1 as is well known4 ,prof4 ,f4 ,w4 ,newman denounces the assertions of ,tischendorf and ,canon ,westcott1 concerning the ,gnostics as 8unworthy of scholars1 and only calculated to mislead readers1 who most generally are ignorant of the actual facts in in the case40 8,the uncritical and inaccurate character of the ,fathers rendered them peculiarly liable to be misled by forgone conclusions40 ,oriental ,christianity and ,parseeism furnish a striking example of religious syncretism4 ,in the ,gnostic basis itself it is not difficult to recognize the general features of the religion of ancient ,babylon1 and thus we are brought nearer to a solution of the problem as to the real origin of ,gnosticism in general4 ,dr4 ,john ,tulloch1 principal of ,st4 ,andrew's ,university and the writer of the article on the ,gnostics in the ,encyclopaedia ,britannica 7ninth edition71 truly says3 8,the sources of ,gnosticism are to be found in diverse forms of religion and speculative culture antecedent to ,christianity1 especially in the theology of the ,alexandrian ,jews as represented in the writings of ,philo1 and again in the influences flowing from the old ,persian or ,zarathustrian religion and the ,buddhistic faiths of the ,east40 ,he also says it is 8the fact that the spirit of ,gnosticism and the language which it afterward developed were in the air of the apostolic age1 and that the last thing to seek in the early ,fathers is either accuracy of chronology or a clear sequence of thought40 ,in ,appletons' ,new ,american ,cyclopedia1 under the title 8,gnostics10 it is said3 8,the ,gnostics numbered two classes--the select few who were admitted to the divine secrets1 and the large class of common believers who were not able to rise above the physical condition40 ,the point is that the ,gnostics had a secret doctrine which their adversaries did not know4 ,the recognition of ,jesus as an actual person was only apparent1 and hence different people differed in that respect4 ,the doctrine came from the far ,east1 and teachers only sought to harmonize it with the new worship1 as they also did with ,mithraism4 ,the real ,gnostics were the spiritual men of the times1 and mere externalists could not understand them4 ,it would be amusing if it were not so serious to see men often affecting great learning1 themselves not professing orthodoxy1 yet vehement for what can only be called ,roman ecclesiasticism4 8,the letter killeth10 and 8the wise shall understand40 ,many writers on ,gnosticism seem to know no more than the cock on the dunghill knows of the jewels that lie before him4 ,the fact is1 that the writings of the so-called ,fathers1 and of the ,new ,testament itself1 have come down to us percolated through ,roman sacerdotalism1 and must be taken with many grains of allowance4 ,there were many men named ,jesus at the commencement of the ,christian era1 but that a ,jesus was crucified and rose from the dead is not supported by a particle of evidence4 ,the anonymous author of the great ,english book1 ,supernatural ,religion1 has shown how utterly valueless the ,gospels are as sources of evidence2 and where else shall we look for an historical ,jesus8 ,we can have no faith in historical 8phantoms10 8aions10 and 8illusions40 ,neither pagan nor ,jewish contemporaneous history gives any countenance to the orthodox claim of a personal1 crucified1 and risen ,jesus4 ,,origin ,,of ,,the ,,christ ,,story4 ,the ,gospels were doubtless compiled nearly two hundred years after the beginning of the ,christian era from the mythological and superstitious lore that was then circulating in great abundance2 and ,christ himself is only a mythological personage who1 if such a person ever had any existence at all1 existed many centuries before the ,christian era1 and was very different from the ,christ of the ,gospels1 being originally sculapius or some other character of the like fame1 and serving only as the basis of the ,christian fable4 ,it is certain that the primitive teachers of ,christianity converted to their own purposes the writings of ancient poets and philosophers1 mixing together the ,oriental ,gnosticism and ,greek philosophy1 and palming them on the world in a new form as things especially revealed to themselves4 ,it may further be remarked that at a most early period of the ,christian era there appears to have been great doubts as to the real existence of ,christ4 ,the ,manichees1 as ,augustine informs us1 denied that he was a man1 while others maintained that he was a man1 but denied that he was a ,god 7,august4 ,serm4 xxxvii4 c4 #ab74 ,there is1 therefore1 considerable force in the expressions of a modern writer that the being of no other individual mentioned in history ever labored under such a deficiency of evidence as to its reality1 or ever was overset by a thousandth part of the weight of positive proof that it was a creation of imagination only1 as that of ,jesus ,christ4 ,his existence as a man has1 from the earliest day on which it can be shown to have been asserted1 been earnestly and strenuously denied2 and that not by the enemies of the ,christian faith1 but by the most intelligent1 most learned1 and most sincere of the ,christian name who have left to the world proofs of their intelligence and learning in their writings and of their sincerity in their sufferings4 ,the existence of no individual of the human race that was real and positive was ever by a like conflict of jarring evidence rendered equivocal and uncertain4 ,nothing1 however1 is more common than for some persons to assume an air of contempt1 and to cry out that those who deny that such a person as ,jesus of ,nazareth ever existed are utterly unworthy of being answered4 ,it is1 truly1 very convenient for them thus to shelter themselves by assuming his existence as incontrovertible1 instead of fairly meeting historical facts which1 to say the least1 render his existence very problemetical4 ,it is to no purpose to urge that it might as well be denied that no such a person as ,alexander the ,great or ,napoleon ,bonaparte ever existed as to set at defiance the evidence of the existence of ,jesus4 ,for the existence of neither ,alexander nor ,napoleon was miraculous1 and there never was on earth one other real personage whose existence1 as a real personage1 was denied and disclaimed even as soon as ever it was asserted1 as was the case with respect to the assumed personality of ,christ4 ,but the only common character that runs through the whole body of the evidence of heretics is1 that they1 one and all1 from first to last1 deny the existence of ,jesus ,christ as a man1 and1 professing their faith in him as a ,god and ,saviour1 yet uniformly and consistently hold the whole story of his life and actions to be allegorical4 ,the very earliest ,christian writings that have come down to us are of a controversial character and written in attempted refutation of heresies4 ,these heresies must therefore have been of so much earlier date and prior prevalence2 they could not have been considered of sufficient consequence to have called 7as they seem to have done7 for the entire devotion and enthusiastic zeal of the orthodox party to extirpate or keep them under1 if they had not acquired deep root and become of serious notoriety--an inference which leads directly to the conclusion that they were of anterior origination to any date that has hitherto been ascribed to the ,gospel history4 ,in accordance with the notion that ,christ was a phantom1 the writer of the ,commentaries which are attributed to ,clement of ,alexandria1 apparently quoting from the ,gospel of ,nicodemus1 tells us that an apostle attempted to touch the body of ,christ1 but in so doing found no hardness of flesh and met with no resistance from it1 although he thrust his hand into the inner part of it4 ,a similar idea is conveyed by ,luke where he says that ,christ vanished out of the sight of his disciples1 but yet shortly after stood in the midst of them--a notion consistent only with that of an apparition 7,luke #bd3 #ca1 #cf74 ,similar remarks may be made on the words of ,christ to ,thomas and ,mary2 to the latter he says1 8,touch me not1 for ,i have not yet ascended to my ,father that is1 ,i am not to be felt20 and to the former he says1 8,reach hither thy hand1 and thrust it into my side0 7,john #bj3ag1 #bg74 ,both these expressions1 contradictory as they are with regard to ,jesus1 still show that the writer knew something of the notion entertained that ,christ was a phantom4 ,luke 7#bd3 #cg1 #ci7 also has words proving the same point1 where he says that the disciples1 when they saw ,christ after his resurrection1 thought they had seen a spirit and that he told them to handle him4 ,marcion of ,pontus1 who flourished about ,a4 ,d4 #abg1 believed ,christ not to have been born of a virgin and to have grown up gradually1 but that he took the form of a man and appeared as a man without being born1 and at once showed himself in ,galilee in full maturity4 ,manes also1 according to the testimony of ,socrates and others1 8denied that ,christ was ever really born or had real human flesh1 but asserted that he was a mere phantom40 7,see ,lardner's ,credibility1 vol4 ii4 p4 #ada47 ,for men who entertained this notion of 8the person of ,christ10 his sufferings1 death1 and resurrection were of course a delusion--were only in appearance4 ,thus1 according to ,father ,apelles1 who wrote about ,a4 ,d4 #afj1 ,christ was not born1 nor was his body like ours1 but consisted of arial and ethereal particles4 ,very probably1 ,apelles did not think it unlikely that a body composed of such subtile matter as this should rise from the grave and be capable of passing not only through the smallest aperture1 but even through solid matter4 ,barnabas1 the companion of ,paul1 in his ,gospel had another way of disposing of the question of the resurrection--namely1 by denying that ,christ was crucified at all1 but was taken up into the third heaven by four angels2 that it was ,judas ,iscariot who was crucified in his stead2 and that ,christ will not die till the very end of the world 7,toland's ,nazarenus1 ,letter i4 chap4 v4 p4 #ag47 ,the ,basilidians1 about the commencement of the second century1 disposed in a similar manner of the miracle of the resurrection by asserting that it was not ,christ1 but ,simon of ,cyrene1 who was crucified instead of ,jesus4 ,such are some of the various opinions of the origin of the story of ,christ's resurrection4 ,they are placed before the reader that he may have a choice of theories4 ,after matured reflection1 however1 he will1 most probably1 come to the conclusion that this tale originated in the same manner as 8,the ,gospel of the ,birth of ,mary10 8,the ,gospels of the ,infancy of ,christ10 8,the ,gospel of ,nicodemus10 the epistolary correspondence of ,christ and ,abgarus1 of the ,virgin ,mary and ,ignatius1 together with hundreds of other similar productions of the ages when facts were not so much appreciated as fables in the form of books4 ,if he arrive at this conclusion1 he will see no reason to believe that such a personage as the ,christ of the ,gospels was ever crucified1 much less raised from the dead4 ,,ancient ,,enigmas4 ,it is amusing to observe how1 in ancient times1 the dark1 enigmatical1 and allegorical style was practised1 particularly in the ,east1 by all public teachers1 both ,jews and ,gentiles4 ,by this means they explained away the fabulous tales current regarding their gods1 and discoursed on every branch of knowledge known to them4 ,they deemed religion a mystery not to be publicly explained1 and always delivered its dogmas clothed in dark allegories 7,oie4 de ,nat4 ,deor4 lib4 ii4 iii42 ,spencer de ,legibus ,heb41 p4 #ahb2 ,clerici ,hist4 ,eccles41 p4 #bc74 ,the ,egyptians and ,chaldeans were noted for their dark sayings 7,simon ,hist cr4 des ,comment1 p4 #d74 ,gale 7,opuscula ,mythologica7 gives an account of several ancient books expressly written as instructions to interpret allegories4 ,the ,greek poets1 ,homer not excepted1 are by their scholiasts regarded as treating of their gods in a mystical style4 ,the ,stoic philosophers dressed the whole heathen theology in allegorical language 7,cic4 de ,nat4 ,deor41 lib4 ii474 ,the ,pythagorean philosophy was taught in enigmatical expressions1 the meaning of which was studiously concealed from the vulgar mind1 and revealed even to the initiated only gradually as their years of maturity were thought to qualify them for its reception4 ,plato and his followers in the groves of ,academia practised the same mode of teaching religion1 especially theogony4 ,the writings attributed to ,paul the apostle1 as has been shown1 are replete with mystical and enigmatical expressions4 ,this he confesses1 saying that he spoke 8the wisdom of ,god in a mystery10 8comparing spiritual things with spiritual0 7#a ,cor4 #b3 #g1 #ac74 ,accordingly1 he regards the history of ,isaac and ,ishmael as an allegory 7,gal4 #d3 #bb-be71 which he condescends to explain4 ,the primitive ,fathers of ,christianity pursued the same mode of communicating instruction and of defending their religion against the pagans4 ,justin ,martyr1 ,clement of ,alexandria1 ,irenus1 ,tertullian1 ,origen1 all of them1 were very expert in this occult system1 in imitation of the heathen philosophers1 by whom most of them had been educated4 ,eusebius 7,hist4 ,eccles4y lib4 vi4 c4 #ai71 citing what he is pleased to call the assertions of ,porphyry1 writes that ,origen1 having been educated in ,greek literature1 intermingled it with the fictions of ,christianity1 that he dealt in the works of ,plato1 ,numenius1 ,cranius1 ,apollophanes1 ,longinus ,moderatus1 ,nico-machus1 ,chremon1 and ,cornutus1 and that he derived from these pagan authors the allegorical mode of interpretation usual in the mysteries of the ,greeks1 and applied it to the ,jewish ,scriptures4 ,thus1 ,origen's mode of teaching was identical with that of the pagans--a mode commended even by the learned ,dodwell 7,letters of ,advice1 etc41 p4 #bjh71 who says that the pagan mystical arts of concealment are of use toward understanding the ,scriptures4 ,the ,jewish rabbis also delivered their doctrines in the same obscure and mystical manner1 as their ,talmud1 ,cabala1 ,gemara1 and other books1 besides what we call the ,hebrew ,scriptures1 amply show4 ,the religious teachers of all the nations of antiquity thus delighting in dark sayings1 it is therefore by no means wonderful that the writers of the ,gospels1 whoever they were1 attribute similar enigmas to ,jesus4 ,this accounts1 in a measure1 for the obscurity of the ,gospels1 while1 however1 it traces their origin to a pagan source4 ,,gods ,,of ,,virgin ,,birth4 ,it is in perfect harmony with what has long ago been demonstrated by some of the most critical writers1 not only in ,english1 but also in other languages--namely1 that the ,new ,testament has been collected by ,eclectic monks--particularly ,egyptian monks of ,jewish extraction connected with the ,alexandrian college--from various legendary tales and other documents then afloat1 which they modified to answer their own purposes1 and which since their time have been considerably altered to suit the requirements of different religious communities4 ,the ,christian apologists of the second and third centuries evinced no lack of knowledge on this point4 ,justin ,martyr1 as already cited1 in addressing a ,roman emperor1 says that the ,christians1 by declaring ,jesus to be the ,son of ,god1 born of a virgin1 said no more than the ,romans said of those whom they styled the #bd sons of ,jupiter1 such as ,mercury1 ,bacchus1 ,hercules1 ,pollux1 and ,castor2 and as to ,jesus1 he repeats1 having been born of a virgin1 the pagans had their ,perseus1 son of ,jove and the virgin ,dana1 to balance this feature4 ,creusa1 daughter of ,erectheus1 was visited by the god ,apollo1 and in consequence became the mother of the god ,janus4 ,a ,chinese virgin by means of the rays of the sun--regarded as a deity--became the mother of the god ,fo1 who acted as a mediator between his followers and another superior god4 ,the ,hindoo virgin ,rohini in like miraculous manner gave birth to a god1 one of the ,brahman trinity4 ,another ,hindoo virgin1 ,devaci1 as already observed1 having had an intercourse with the deity ,yasudeva1 became the mother of an incarnate god whose name was ,chrishna2 whose birth was announced by the appearance of a new star2 whose life1 when an infant1 was sought in vain by the reigning tyrant of the country2 whose principal exploits were killing a terrible serpent1 holding a mountain on the tip of his finger1 washing the feet of the ,brahmans1 saving multitudes by his miraculous power1 raising many from the dead1 dying to save the world from sin and darkness1 rising from the dead1 and then ascending to his heavenly seat in ,vaicontha 7,sir ,wm4 ,jones's ,asiatic ,researches1 vol4 i4 pp4 #bei-bgc74 ,somonocodom1 who1 according to the sacred books of the ,talapoins of ,siam1 was destined to save the world1 was another personage who had a virgin mother4 ,the followers of ,plato about two hundred years after his death1 but more than a century before the ,christian era1 reported that he had been born of a virgin4 ,the most ancient ,alexandrian chronicles1 which furnish ample proofs of the universal prevalence of our gospel religion in ,egypt for ages before the ,christian era1 testify as follows3 8,to this day ,egypt has consecrated the pregnancy of a virgin and the nativity of her son1 whom they annually present in a cradle to the adoration of the people2 and when ,king ,ptolemy1 three hundred and fifty years before our ,christian era1 demanded of the priests the significancy of this religious ceremony1 they told him it was a mystery40 7,see ,christian ,mythology ,unveiled1 p4 #id47 ,indeed1 the fabulous lore of ancient times is teeming with the amours of gods with virgins and the results thereof4 ,some writers have intimated that such births were the consequences of the artful intrigues of the pagan priests with holy virgins2 but ,dupuis1 ,albert1 ,alphonso1 ,boulanger1 and others have clearly shown 8that these and similar tales1 which are revolting to common sense if taken literally1 were originally1 in ,oriental learning1 astronomical and other allegories1 conveying the most sublime truths then known touching the revolutions of the heavenly bodies and other physical and moral facts1 while their meaning in after ages was gradually perverted to answer other ends40 ,,the ,,epistles ,,silent ,,concerning ,,the ,,words ,,and ,,works ,,of ,,jesus4 ,it is a most remarkable fact that in none of the ,epistles is there any mention made of the various wonderful things narrated in the ,gospels as having been said and done by ,christ4 ,indeed1 there is scarcely an allusion made in them to those astounding details with which every page of the ,gospels is replete4 ,no mention is made in them of what the ,gospels state that ,christ declared regarding the day of judgment--nothing about ,christ's preternatural birth1 his baptism1 his temptation by ,satan1 his denunciations of the different existing sects1 his precepts1 his parables1 his intimate acquaintance with publicans1 with ,magdalene1 with ,mary and other women4 ,not one of his miracles is detailed1 and nothing is said of the marvellous circumstances which attended his crucifixion and death1 such as the sun darkening1 the earth quaking1 the temple rending1 rocks cleaving asunder1 graves opening1 the dead rising and walking the streets of ,jerusalem4 ,these are matters which1 one would imagine1 should occupy a very prominent position in all the ,epistles--should be relied upon by the writers respectively as facts with which to attest and establish the truth of their doctrines1 and which would1 of themselves1 suffice to convince and convert the most incredulous and obdurate mind4 ,in the ,epistles ascribed to ,peter1 ,james1 and ,john1 who are said to have been eye- and ear-witnesses of what ,christ did and said1 one would expect1 certainly1 to find frequent details of the marvellous things said of ,jesus in the ,gospels4 ,but ,peter does not so much as allude to the keys of heaven and hell which the ,gospels say were given him to keep1 nor even to the fact that ,jesus1 walking on the sea1 enabled him also to do so and saved him from drowning4 ,neither does he tell those to whom he writes that ,jesus conferred his blessing upon him when he pronounced him 8the ,christ1 the ,son of the living ,god20 nor that ,jesus1 after he had suspiciously asked him three times whether he loved him1 and had as often received affirmative answers1 charged him to feed his flock4 ,of course we cannot expect him to have recorded in his ,epistles that ,jesus graced him with the epithet 8,satan10 or that he denied the same ,jesus thrice4 ,if it was the son of ,zebedee who wrote 8the ,general ,epistle of ,james0 7about the authorship of which ,christians have not as yet agreed71 it would not seem too great a tribute to his divine ,master for him to refer to some of his mighty words and deeds which he must have witnessed4 ,or if the author is the brother of ,jesus 7which is not very likely1 since all his relatives except his mother shunned him71 he could deplore the fact that he and his brothers--,joses1 ,simon1 and ,judas--did not believe in the pretensions of their divine brother1 ,jesus4 ,but the very name of ,jesus is mentioned1 and that casually1 only thrice in the whole ,epistle4 ,john1 8the beloved disciple10 could in one of his ,epistles1 or at least in that which it is agreed he wrote--to the confirmation of the genuineness of ,matthew1 ,mark1 and ,luke's ,gospels--have adverted to that curious incident of his mother asking ,jesus to allow him and his brother ,james to sit on each side of him in his kingdom2 or could1 with a mixture of joy and sorrow1 ruminate on the pleasure he had felt in accompanying ,peter to prepare the last ,passover which they had eaten with their divine ,master1 and bemoan the fatal disaster which shortly after overtook his ,lord4 ,but he writes not one word about these remarkable events1 or about anything that occurred personally between him and ,jesus4 ,indeed1 the writers of the ,epistles totally ignore the contents of the ,gospels4 ,how1 then1 is this fact to be accounted for8 ,did the writers of the ,epistles--whoever they were--know anything at all about the contents of the present ,gospels8 ,are we not entitled to infer that either the churches1 etc4 to which these ,epistles were addressed were much older than the date of the ,gospels1 and even than the time at which the ,christ of the ,gospels was born1 or that1 if the present ,gospels then existed1 the authors of the ,epistles knew nothing of them8 ,,conclusion4 ,we have seen that1 so limited was the knowledge of ,jesus of futurity1 he falsely prophesied the end of the world1 the time of his own resurrection1 the perpetual praise of a woman who poured upon him a box of ointment1 and the signs which believers in ,christianity would manifest4 ,we have also seen that a vast number of his precepts and doctrines were obscure1 contradictory1 bigoted1 absurd1 and untrue1 and that much of his conduct was open to criticism4 ,we have further seen that he was deficient in knowledge of natural philosophy2 that he borrowed the best part of his doctrine from heathen mythology2 that his life1 his teaching1 and his practices were identical with those of heathen monks who had preceded him2 that1 like many other human beings1 he feared death2 that neither his own neighbors1 nor kinsmen1 nor even his disciples1 believed that he was1 either in nature or power1 superior to other mortals2 and that he himself avowed that the purpose for which he had been ushered into the world was to send strife1 division1 fire1 and sword on earth1 and to make 8brother deliver up brother to death1 and the father the child1 and incite children to rise up against their parents and cause them to be put to death0 7,matt4 #aj3 #ba74 ,such has been the result of our inquiry4 ,but let it not be supposed that there was nothing to admire in the alleged character and teachings of the ideal ,jesus4 ,there are many exceedingly tender things mingled with the arrogant and severe4 ,his character1 made up from many models1 could not be otherwise than inconsistent and contradictory4 ,it is a perfect mosaic1 but such has been the reverence for ,jesus1 in view of the extraordinary claims made for him1 that men have closed their eyes to his imperfections and faults1 while they have greatly magnified his virtues4 ,we have known many persons in our day who as far excelled ,jesus in every noble and manly quality as the civilization and morality of the nineteenth century are superior to those of the first4 ,it has been well said that ,jesus1 whether a person or an impersonation1 will continue to be the leader just so long as he leads2 but he no longer leads4 ,it is found 7assuming his personality7 that he taught nothing but what had been taught with equal distinctness before him1 and that he taught much not suited to this commercial age and to the wants of this nineteenth century4 ,while many persons profess to be disciples of ,jesus1 yet nobody even pretends to conform their lives to his alleged teachings4 ,properly speaking1 there is not now a real ,christian upon the face of the earth1 as no one attempts to practise the extreme precepts ,christ is said to have laid down in the so-called ,sermon on the ,mount4 ,what is called ,christianity is proved and admitted to be an evolution from various religions which were before it4 ,the good in every religion is the same1 and men will go on weeding out the impure and imperfect1 the fittest only surviving4 ,christianity claims to be an infallible divine revelation1 and that it is complete in itself1 and of course admits of no progress4 ,this is the difficulty between the old orthodoxy and the new orthodoxy of the creeds4 ,the ,church carries no flag of truce4 ,it says1 ,you must believe6 ,true men answer1 ,we cannot believe the impossible and the absurd4 ,there can be no doubt as to who will survive in this struggle for existence4 ,the 8spirit of truth0 is coming1 and it will 8teach in all things40 ,,chapter ,,xv4 ,,blood-,,salvation 8,and almost all things are by the law purged with blood2 and without the shedding of blood there is no remission40--,heb4 #i3 #bb4 8,the blood of ,jesus ,christ his ,son cleanseth us from all sin40--6 ,john #a3 #e4 ,,it would be tedious to quote even one-tenth of the passages from the ,new ,testament in which salvation is ascribed to the blood of ,jesus4 ,indeed1 from ,genesis to ,revelation sacrificial blood seems to be the one prominent theme4 ,the salvation of ,christ is emphatically the salvation by blood1 and this idea runs through the whole system of what is called evangelical theology4 ,jeremy ,taylor wrote about 8lapping with the tongue the blood from the ,saviour's open wounds10 suggesting the well-known habit of the bloodthirsty dog4 ,but ,mr4 ,taylor was outdone by the late ,rev4 ,bishop ,jesse ,t4 ,peck1 when he frantically exclaimed1 in the presence of thousands of people at a religious mass-meeting1 8,we have not enough blood in our religion4 ,i want to wade in the blood of ,calvary up to my armpits1 and wallow in it10 suggesting the well-known habits of the filthy sow4 ,but the ,rev4 ,t4 ,d4 ,talmage1 ,d4 ,d41 capped the climax when1 in his usual rhapsodical style1 he exclaimed in a recent sermon3 8,it seems to me as if all ,heaven were trying to bid in your soul4 ,the first bid it makes is the tears of ,christ at the tomb of ,lazarus2 but that is not a high-enough price4 ,the next bid ,heaven makes is the sweat of ,gethsemane2 but it is too cheap a price4 ,the next bid ,heaven makes seems to be the whipped back of ,pilate's ,hall2 but it is not a high-enough price4 ,can it be possible that ,heaven cannot buy you in8 ,heaven tries once more4 ,it says3 #8,i bid this time for that man's soul the torture of ,christ's martyrdom1 the blood on his temple1 the blood on his cheek1 the blood on his chin1 the blood on his hand1 the blood on his side1 the blood on his knee1 the blood on his foot--the blood in drops1 the blood in rills1 the blood in pools coagulated beneath the cross2 the blood that wet the tips of the soldier's spear1 the blood that plashed warm in the faces of his enemies4' ,glory to ,god6 that bid wins it6 ,the highest price that was ever paid for anything was paid for your soul4 ,nothing could buy it but blood6 ,the estranged property is bought back4 ,take it4 ,you have sold yourselves for naught2 and ye shall be redeemed without money4' ,o atoning blood1 cleansing blood1 life-giving blood1 sanctifying blood1 glorifying blood of ,jesus6 ,why not burst into tears at the thought that for thee he shed it--for thee the hard-hearted1 for thee the lost80 ,henry ,,iii4 of ,england was presented with a small portion of the blood of ,jesus1 said to have been shed upon the cross1 and to have been preserved in a phial1 duly attested by the ,patriarch of ,jerusalem and other distinguished functionaries as genuine4 ,it was carried in triumph through the streets of ,london with rapturous shoutings by a large procession1 from ,st4 ,paul's to ,westminster ,abbey1 and the historian testifies that it made all ,england radiant with glory4 ,indeed1 there has been enough of the so-called genuine blood that was shed on ,calvary given to the faithful to float the largest ship in the navy of ,great ,britain4 ,a sufficient quantity of the real cross upon which ,jesus is said to have been crucified has been preserved to erect the largest temple the world ever contained4 ,there is no end to the superstition on this subject1 all going to show how deep-seated is the credulity which exists in the popular belief in regard to this matter4 ,there are many illustrations which might be given of 8blood-evocation0 among ancient pagans who regarded blood as the great arcanum of nature4 ,but what was the origin of the idea that blood is purifying1 cleansing1 purging8 ,there is nothing in the thing itself that suggests this idea4 ,take a basinful of newly-drawn blood and set it upon the table before you4 ,it soon coagulates1 and emits an offensive odor1 so that you are forced to hurry it from your presence4 ,it is the very opposite of cleansing4 ,if you get a drop upon your finger1 you immediately wash it off4 ,indeed1 some persons cannot stand the sight of blood1 and shrink from its touch as from a deadly poison4 ,there must be some reason for the idea that in some way blood is suggestive of cleansing or purifying4 ,now1 we go to nature in search of knowledge4 ,there is only one phenomenon in which the shedding of blood is a natural process1 and that is when the young girl arrives at the stage of pubescence1 and in this case1 and in this case only1 does it suggest the idea of purification4 ,before the period approaches nothing can be more suggestive of the untidy than the unpubescent girl4 ,she is generally awkward1 slouchy1 and unattractive4 ,but let the sanguineous evidence of approaching womanhood appear1 and how changed6 ,her complexion becomes then most beautiful and bewitching4 ,her eyes sparkle with a fire which cannot be described4 ,her once ungraceful form becomes lithe1 and her whole person changes in such a manner as to indicate that some great thing has happened4 ,she has been purified or cleansed4 ,she is a new creature4 ,old things have passed away4 ,each succeeding month she has a similar experience until the full bloom of womanhood has passed away4 ,indeed1 we find among the primitive customs of ancient ,africans a special observance of the commencement of the catamenial period4 ,before the arrival of the time of periodicity the young girl is of very little account1 and is not numbered as a member of the tribe4 ,it is not considered indecent for her to run around in a state of nudity until she is fourteen years of age or until the evidence of pubescence appears4 ,stanley says of certain ,african girls3 8,they wait with impatience the day when they can be married and have a cloth to fold around their bodies40 ,there was in use among certain ancient people1 now worn by ,catholic priests1 an apron known as the peplum1 which was worn after puberty4 ,the tribal mark and totemic name were conferred in the baptism of blood4 ,a covenant was entered into which was written with menstruous blood1 because blood was the announcer of the female period of pubescence4 ,from time immemorial the ,kaffirs have preserved the custom of celebrating the first appearance of the menstrual flow4 ,all the young girls in the neighborhood meet together and make merry on the happy occasion4 ,we are told by ,irenus how the feminine ,logos was represented in the mysteries of ,marcus1 and the wine was supposed to be miraculously turned into blood1 and ,charis1 who was superior to all things1 was thought to infuse her own blood into the cup4 ,the cup was handed to the women1 who also consecrated it with an effusion of blood proceeding from themselves4 ,it would seem that the blood of ,charis preceded the blood of ,christ1 and it is doubtful whether there would have been any cleansing by the blood of ,christ if there had been no purification by the blood of ,charis4 ,thus ,nature's rubrics are written in red4 ,the ,eucharist is derived by ,clement of ,alexandria from the mixture of the water and the ,word1 and he identifies the ,word with the blood of the grape4 ,we give these delicate hints for what they are worth4 ,we have a deep conviction that the conception of the idea of purification by blood had at first some connection with the natural issue of blood at the commencement of periodicity in the female4 ,in the ,eleusinian ,mysteries1 celebrated by pagans centuries before the paschal supper of the ,jews or the ,lord's ,supper of ,christians1 the element of blood was very conspicuously set forth1 and ,higgins has shown in his ,anaealypsis that the sacrifice of bread and wine in religious ceremonies was common among many ancient peoples1 the wine representing the blood4 ,in #ahhe a very remarkable book appeared1 entitled ,the ,blood ,covenant1 by ,rev4 ,h4 ,clay ,trumbull1 ,d4 ,d41 and we have obtained the consent of this author 7whom we have the honor to recognize as an old and very dear personal friend7 8to use anything we please1 in any way we please1 without giving any credit40 ,for this permission we are truly thankful1 though we only avail ourself of a few of the facts bearing upon the point concerning which we write4 ,our author says3 8,one of these primitive rites1 which is deserving of more attention than it has yet received1 as throwing light on many important phases of ,bible-teaching1 is the rite of blood-covenanting--a form of mutual covenanting by which two persons enter into the closest1 the most enduring1 and the most sacred of compacts as friends and brothers1 or as more than brothers1 through the intercommingling of their blood by means of its mutual tasting or of its transfusion4 ,this rite is still observed in the unchanging ,east2 and there are historic traces of it from time immemorial in every quarter of the globe1 yet it has been strangely overlooked by biblical critics and biblical commentators generally in these later centuries4 8,although now comparatively rare1 in view of its responsibilities and of its indissolubleness1 this covenant is sometimes entered into by confidential partners in business or by fellow-travelers2 again1 by robbers on the road1 who would themselves rest fearlessly on its obligations1 and who could be rested on within its limits1 however untrustworthy they or their fellows might be to any other compact4 ,yet1 again1 it is the chosen compact of loving friends--of those who are drawn to it only by mutual love and trust4 8,there are1 indeed1 various evidences that the the of blood-covenanting is reckoned in the ,east even a closer tie than that of natural descent--that a #8friend' by this tie is nearer and is dearer1 #8sticketh closer' than a #8brother' by birth4 ,we in the ,west are accustomed to say that #8 blood is thicker than water1' but the ,arabs have the idea that blood is thicker than a mother's milk4 ,with them1 any two children nourished at the same breast are called #8milk-brothers' or #8sucking brothers2' and the tie between such is very strong4 8,lucian1 the bright ,greek thinker1 writing in the middle of the second century of our era1 is explicit as to the nature and method of this covenant as then practised in the ,east3 #8,and this is the manner of it3 ,thereupon1 cutting our fingers1 all simultaneously1 we let the blood drop into a vessel1 and1 having dipped the points of our swords into it1 both of us holding them together1 we drink it4 ,there is nothing which can loose us from one another after that4' 8,yet1 a little while earlier than ,lucian1 ,tacitus gives record of this rite of blood-brotherhood as practised in the ,east4 ,he makes an explanation3 #8,it is the custom of ,oriental kings1 as often as they come together to make covenant1 to join right hands1 to tie the thumbs together1 and to tighten them with a knot4 ,then1 when the blood is thus pressed to the finger-tips1 they draw blood by a light stroke and lick it in turn4 ,this they regard as a divine covenant1 made sacred1 as it were1 by mutual blood or blended lives4' 8,sallust1 the historian of ,catiline's conspiracy against ,rome1 says3 #8,there were those who said at that time that ,catiline at this conference1 when he inducted them into the oath of partnership in crime1 carried round in goblets human blood mixed with wine1 and that1 after all had tasted of it with an imprecatory oath1 as is men's wont in solemn rites1 he opened to them his plans4' ,florus1 a later ,latin historian1 describing this conspiracy1 says3 #8,there was added the pledge of the league--human blood--which they drank as it was borne round to them in goblets4' ,and yet later ,tertullian suggests that it was their own blood1 mingled with wine1 of which the fellow-conspirators drank together4 #8,concerning the eating of blood and other such tragic dishes1' he says1 #8you read that blood drawn from the arms and tasted by one another was the method of making covenant among certain nations4' 8,as far back even as the fifth century before ,christ we find an explicit description of this ,oriental rite of blood-covenanting4 #8,now1 the ,scythians1' says ,herodotus1 #8make covenants in the following manner1 with whomsoever they make them3 ,having poured out wine into a great earthen drinking-bowl1 they mingle with it the blood of those making covenant1 striking the body with a small knife or cutting it slightly with a sword4 ,thereafter they dip into the bowl sword1 arrows1 axe1 and javelin4 ,but while they are doing this they utter many invokings1 and afterward not only those who make the covenant1 but those of their followers who are of the highest rank1 drink off the wine mingled with blood4' 8,again1 ,herodotus says of this custom in his day3 #8,now1 the ,arabians reverence in a very high degree pledges between man and man4 ,they make these pledges in the following way3 ,when they wish to make pledges to one another1 a third man1 standing in the midst of the two1 cuts with a sharp stone the inside of the hands along the thumbs of the two making the pledges4 ,after that1 plucking some woollen from the garments of each of the two1 he anoints with the blood seven stones as the 8heap of witness0 which are set in the midst4 ,while he is doing this he invokes ,dionysus and ,urania4 ,when this rite is completed1 he that has made the pledges introduces the stranger to his friends1 or the fellow-citizen to his fellows if the rite was performed with a fellow-citizen4 8,going back1 now1 to the world's most ancient records in the monuments of ,egypt1 we find evidence of the existence of the covenant of blood in those early days4 ,so far was this symbolic thought carried that the ancient ,egyptians spoke of the departed spirit as having entered into the nature1 and1 indeed1 into the very being1 of the gods by the rite of tasting blood from the divine arm4 8#8,the ,book of the ,dead1' as it is commonly called1 is a group1 or series1 of ancient ,egyptian writings representing the state and the needs and the progress of the soul after death4 ,a copy of this funereal ritual1 #8more or less complete according to the fortune of the deceased1 was deposited in the case of eveiy mummy4 #8,as the ,book of the ,dead is the most ancient1 so it is undoubtedly the most important of the sacred books of the ,egyptians2' it is1 in fact1 #8according to ,egyptian notions1 essentially an inspired work2' hence its contents have an exceptional dogmatic value4 ,in this book there are several obvious references to the rite of blood-covenanting4 ,some of these are in a chapter of the ritual which was found transcribed in a coffin of the eleventh dynasty1 thus carrying it back to a period prior to the days of the patriarchs4 8#8,give me your arm2 ,i am made as ye1' says the departed soul1 speaking to the gods4 ,then1 in explanation of this statement1 the pre-historic gloss of the ritual goes on to say3 #8,the blood is that which proceeds from the member of the ,sun after he goes along cutting himself1' the covenant blood which unites the soul and the god is drawn from the flesh of ,ra when he has cut himself in the rite of that covenant4 ,by this covenant-cutting the deceased becomes one with the covenanting gods4 ,again1 the departing soul1 speaking as ,osiris--or as the ,osirian1 which every mummy represents--says3 #8,i am the soul in his two halves4' ,this was at least two thousand years before the days of the ,greek philosopher4 ,how much earlier it was recognized does not appear4 8,moreover1 a #8red talisman1' or red amulet1 stained with #8the blood of ,isis1' and containing a record of the covenant1 was placed at the neck of the mummy as an assurance of safety to his soul4 #8,when this book this amulet-record has been made1' says the ritual1 #8it causes ,isis to protect him4' #8,if this book is known1' says ,horus1 #8he the deceased is in the service of ,osiris4444 ,his name is like that of the gods4'0 ,dr4 ,trumbull properly remarks3 8,thus in ancient ,egypt1 in ancient ,canaan1 in ancient ,mexico1 in modern ,turkey1 in modern ,russia1 in modern ,india1 and in modern ,otaheite1 in ,africa1 in ,asia1 in ,america1 in ,europe1 and in ,oceanica1 blood-giving was life-giving4 ,life-giving was love-showing4 ,love-showing was a heart-yearning after union in love and in life and in blood and in very being4 ,that was the primitive thought in the primitive religions of all the world4 8,an ancient ,chaldean legend1 as recorded by ,bero-sus1 ascribes a new creation of mankind to the mixture by the gods of the dust of the earth with the blood that flowed from the severed head of the god ,belus4 #8,on this account it is that men are rational and partake of divine knowledge1' says ,berosus4 ,the blood of the god gives them the life and nature of a god4 ,yet1 again1 the early ,phnician and the early ,greek theogonies1 as recorded by ,sanchoniathon and by ,hesiod1 ascribe the vivifying of mankind to the outpoured blood of the gods4 ,it was from the blood of ,ouranos1 or of ,saturn1 dripping into the sea and mingling with its foam1 that ,venus was formed1 to become the mother of her heroic posterity4 #8,the ,orphies1 which have borrowed so largely from the ,east1' says ,lenormant1 #8said that the immaterial part of man1 his soul1 his life1 sprang from the blood of ,dionysus ,zagreus1 whom444 ,titans had torn to pieces1 partly devouring his members4' 8,homer explicitly recognizes this universal belief in the power of blood to convey life and to be a means of revivifying the dead4 8,indeed1 it is claimed1 with a show of reason1 that the very word 7surquinu7 which was used for #8altar' in the ,assyrian was primarily the word for #8table'--that1 in fact1 what was known as the #8altar' to the gods was originally the table of communion between the gods and their worshippers40 ,from the writings of ,livingstone1 the ,african explorer1 as well as from the reports of ,stanley1 it appears that the custom of blood-covenanting is kept up in ,africa in these modern times4 ,describing the ceremony1 ,livingstone says3 8,it is accomplished thus3 ,the hands of the parties are joined 7in this case ,pitsane and ,sambanza were the parties engaged74 ,small incisions are made on the clasped hands1 on the pits of the stomach of each1 and on the right cheeks and foreheads4 ,a small quantity of blood is taken from these points1 in both parties1 by means of a stalk of grass4 ,the blood from one person is put into a pot of beer1 and that of the second into another2 each then drinks the other's blood1 and they are supposed to become perpetual friends or relations4 ,during the drinking of the beer some of the party continue beating the ground with short clubs and utter sentences by way of ratifying the treaty40 ,the primitive character of these customs is the more probable from the fact that ,livingstone first found them existing in a region where1 in his opinion1 the dress and household utensils of the people are identical with those represented on the monuments of ancient ,egypt4 ,concerning the origin of this rite in this region1 ,cameron says3 8,this custom of making brothers1 ,i believe to be really of ,semitic origin40 ,henry ,m4 ,stanley1 who was sent to rescue ,livingstone1 gives many interesting accounts of his experience with the blood-covenanters4 ,in #ahga1 ,stanley encountered the forces of ,mirambo1 the greatest of ,african warriors4 ,they agreed to make 8strong friendship0 with each other4 ,the ceremony is thus described3 8,manwa ,sera1 ,stanley's #8chief captain1' was requested to seal our friendship by performing the ceremony of blood-brotherhood between ,mirambo and myself4 ,having caused us to sit fronting each other on a straw carpet1 he made an incision in each of our right legs1 from which he extracted blood1 and1 interchanging it1 he exclaimed aloud1 ',if either of you break this brotherhood now established between you1 may the lion devour him1 the serpent poison him1 bitterness be in his food1 his friends desert him1 his gun burst in his hands and wound him1 and everything that is bad do wrong to him until death4'0 ,the same blood now flowed in the veins of both ,stanley and ,mirambo4 ,they were friends and brothers in a sacred covenant--life for life4 ,at the conclusion of the covenant they exchanged gifts1 as the customary ratification or accompaniment of the compact4 ,they even vied with each other in proofs of their unselfish fidelity in this new covenant of friendship4 ,again and again1 before and after this incident1 ,stanley entered into the covenant of blood-brotherhood with representative ,africans more than fifty times1 in some instances by the opening of his own veins2 at other times by allowing one of his personal escort to bleed for him4 ,thus we see that in ancient and modern times1 among all people and in all portions of the earth1 this idea of blood-friendship prevailed4 ,in the primitive ,east1 in the wild ,west1 in the cold ,north1 and in the torrid ,south this rite shows itself4 8,it will be observed10 says ,dr4 ,trumbull1 8that we have already noted proofs of the independent existence of this rite of blood-brotherhood or blood-friendship among the three great primitive divisions of the race--the ,semitic1 the ,hamitic1 and the ,japhetic2 and this in ,asia1 ,africa1 ,europe1 ,america1 and the islands of the sea2 again1 among the five modern and more popular divisions of the human family--,caucasian1 ,mongolian1 ,ethiopian1 ,malay1 and ,american4 ,this fact in itself would seem to point to a common origin of its various manifestations in the early ,oriental home of the now scattered peoples of the world4 8,the ,egyptian amulet of blood-friendship was red1 as representing the blood of the gods4 ,the ,egyptian word for 'red' sometimes stood for 'blood4' ,the sacred directions in the ,book of the ,dead were written in red2 hence follows our word #8rubric1' ,the ,rabbis say that when persecution forbade the wearing of the phylacteries with safety1 a red thread might be substituted for this token of the covenant with the ,lord4 ,it was a red thread which ,joshua gave to ,rahab as a token of her covenant relations with the people of the ,lord4 ,the red thread in ,china to-day binds the double cup from which the bride and bridegroom drink their covenant draught of #8wedding wine1' as if in symbolism of the covenant of blood4 ,and it is a red thread which in ,india to-day is used to bind a sacred amulet around the arm or the neck4 ,among the ,american ,indians scarlet1 or red1 is the color which stands for sacrifices or for sacrificial blood in all their picture-painting2 and the shrine1 or tunkan1 which continues to have its devotees1 'is painted red1 as a sign of active or living worship4' ,the same is true of the shrines in ,india2 the color red shows that worship is still living there2 red continues to stand for blood40 ,when a ,jewish child is circumcised1 it is commonly said of him that he is caused 8to enter into the covenant of ,abraham and his godfather or sponsor is called ,baal-beerith1 master of the covenant40 ,moreover1 even down to modern times the rite of circumcision has included a recognition1 however unconscious1 of the primitive blood-friendship rite1 by the custom of the a rabbi1 ,god's representative1 receiving into his mouth the prepuce or foreskin that is cut from the boy1 and thereby made a partaker of the blood mingled with the wine according to the method described among the ,orientals1 in the rite of blood-friendship1 from the earliest days of history4 ,we make this statement on the testimony of ,buxtorf1 who is a recognized authority in matters of ,jewish customs1 though he gives it in ,latin1 with a view of limiting a knowledge of the facts4 ,all that we have stated concerning the blood-covenant brings us nearer and nearer to the disgusting and beastly habit of cannibalism4 ,dr4 ,trumbull says3 8,it would even seem to be indicated1 by all the trend of historic facts1 that cannibalism--gross1 repulsive1 inhuman cannibalism--had its basis in man's perversion of this outreaching of his nature 7whether that outreach-ing were first directed by revelation or by divinely-given innate promptings7 after inter-union and intercommunion with ,god1 after life in ,god's life1 and after growth through the partaking of ,god's food or of that food which represents ,god4 ,the studies of many observers in widely-different fields have led both the rationalistic and the faith-filled student to conclude that in their sphere of observation it was a religious sentiment1 and not a mere animal craving--either through a scarcity of food or from a spirit of malignity--that was at the bottom of cannibalistic practices there1 even if that field were an exception to the world's fields generally4 ,and now we have a glimpse of the nature and workings of that religious sentiment which prompted cannibalism wherever it has been practised4 ,in misdirected pursuance of this thought men have given the blood of a consecrated human victim to bring themselves into union with ,god2 and then they have eaten the flesh of that victim which had supplied the blood which made them one with ,god4 ,this seems to be the basis of fact in the premises1 whatever may be the understood philosophy of the facts4 ,why men reasoned thus may indeed be in question4 ,that they reasoned thus seems evident4 ,certain it is1 that where cannibalism has been studied in modern times it has commonly been found to have had originally a religious basis2 and the inference is a fair one that it must have been the same wherever cannibalism existed in earlier times4 ,even in some regions where cannibalism has long since been prohibited there are traditions and traces of its former existence as a purely religious rite4 ,thus1 in ,india little images of flour paste or clay are now made for decapitation or other mutilation in the temples1 in avowed imitation of human beings who were once offered and eaten there40 ,rville1 treating of the native religions of ,mexico and ,peru1 comes to a similar conclusion with ,dorman1 and he argues that the state of things which was there was the same the world over1 so for as it related to cannibalism4 8,cannibalism10 he says1 8which is now restricted to a few of the savage tribes who have remained closest to the animal life1 was once universal to our race4 ,for no one would ever have conceived the idea of offering to the gods a kind of food which excited nothing but disgust and horror40 ,in this suggestion ,rville indicates his conviction that the primal idea of an altar was a table of blood-bought communion4 ,there is something that looks very much like cannibalism in the sixth chapter of ,john's ,gospel4 ,the ,jews murmured that ,jesus spoke of himself as the bread which came down from heaven1 and inquired1 8,how can this man give us of his flesh to eat8 ,jesus therefore said unto them1 ,verily1 verily1 ,i say unto you1 ,except ye eat the flesh of the ,son of man and drink his blood ye have not life in yourselves4 ,he that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath eternal life2 and ,i will raise him up at the last day4 ,for my flesh is meat indeed1 and my blood is drink indeed4 ,he that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood abideth in me1 and ,i in him4 ,as the living ,father sent me1 and ,i live because of the ,father2 so he that eateth me1 he also shall live because of me4 ,this is the bread which came down out of heaven2 not as the fathers did eat1 and died2 he that eateth this bread shall live for ever4 ,these things said he in the synagogue1 as he taught in ,capernaum40 ,this was spoken nearly two years before he is said to have instituted the memorial ,supper1 and has always been a mystery to commentators1 though they allege that the whole mystery is explained in ,john #f3 #fc3 8,it is the spirit that quickeneth2 the flesh profiteth nothing3 the words that ,i speak unto you1 they are spirit and they are life40 ,this seems to be very farfetched indeed--an afterthought4 ,it did not satisfy some of his disciples1 for 8from that time many of his disciples went back1 and walked no more with him40 ,from this simple idea of securing faithfulness by the transfusion of the blood of two persons seems to have come the idea of propitiating the gods by offering them bloody sacrifices4 ,in primitive times1 among barbarous and uncivilized peoples1 the conception was universal that the gods were very much like themselves1 and that therefore they would be pleased with presents4 ,when offended they could be conciliated1 and when some crime had been committed they could be induced to forgive the transgressor by some valuable offering1 such as the first-fruits of the soil or the most immaculate animals of the flock4 ,this idea of obtaining favors from the invisible powers was carried to such extremes that for the honor of humanity we should feel inclined to doubt the monstrous stories were they not so well attested4 ,the offering of these sacrifices became so degraded and disgusting by superstition that it ended in the belief that the deity's anger could be appeased1 his revenge satisfied1 his vanity flattered1 and that he could be made generally pleased1 by holocausts of human beings2 so that the more costly the sacrifice1 the more certain was the deity to smile upon the donor4 ,the ,moloch-worship1 the mother placing the babe in the arms of the monstrous idol and seeing it burned before her own eyes1 seems to exhaust the horrors of human ingenuity4 ,we have only space to state that these abominations prevailed over most of the heathen world when the ,old-,testament rites and ceremonies came into use among the ,jews4 ,we find the custom of offering sacrifices in the early pages of ,genesis1 when it led to the first murder4 ,cain's sacrifice1 sacerdotal-ists tell us1 was not accepted by ,jehovah because there was no blood in it1 as there was in the offering of ,abel4 ,abraham was about to slay his own son when the blood of a ram was provided instead2 and1 in fact1 all the ,bible patriarchs sacrificed1 and the exodus from ,egypt itself was brought about under the pretence that the people had to go to the desert to offer their accustomed sacrifice4 ,the ,jews borrowed their idea of sacrifice from the heathen1 and sometimes were more heathenish than the heathens themselves4 ,thousands and thousands of innocent animals were cruelly butchered for sacrifice1 as the ,jews were full of ,egyptian reminiscences on one hand and of ,canaanitish modes of worship on the other4 ,it is said that ,jehovah allowed these abominations because of the ignorance of these people and their hardness of heart1 lest they might despise a naked religion and be dazzled by the imposing ceremonies by which they were surrounded4 ,the whole system of bloody sacrifices was based upon anthropomorphic conceptions of their ,jehovah1 to whom the 8agreeable smell0 of the blood was a sweet satisfaction4 ,the ,jews adopted the very worst features of paganism in regard to these bloody sacrifices1 which they offered on all occasions--so much so that their prophets cried out against them and ,jehovah himself denounced them4 ,the life or blood of the animal was distinctly said to make 8the atonement for the soul40 ,this notion of a representative victim is one that belonged to the whole ancient world1 as can be seen by reference to any of the great cyclopaedias4 ,it was adopted by the ,jews1 not revealed to them by ,jehovah4 ,the scape-goat 7,lev4 #af7 and many other cases of seemingly expiatory sacrifices are embodiments of this idea1 which was adopted by ,christianity directly from ,judaism1 whose priests had adopted it from other people4 ,the practice of bloody offerings was common to ,hindoos1 ,assyrians1 ,phnicians1 ,greeks1 and ,northmen4 ,there is a ,hindoo ritual for human as well as for brute animals set forth in ,asiatic ,researches4 ,in ,fragments of ,sanchoniathon1 ,kronos sacrifices his 8only son0 to his father ,ouranos1 his 8father in heaven40 ,agamemnon sacrificed his daughter1 ,iphigeneia1 before going to ,troy1 and ,polyxena1 daughter of ,priam1 was immolated on the tomb of ,achilles to his manes4 ,repeatedly in the ,punic wars children of noble families were burned alive to sculapius1 god of medicine4 ,burning at the stake and hanging upon a gibbet were sacrifices to appease the divine justice4 ,in short1 all bloody sacrifices were propitiatory1 to appease the rage of hunger in a famished god4 ,blood was excellent1 because its aroma was the vehicle of life1 and so afforded support to life4 ,in ,homer's ,odyssey1 ,ulysses slays animals before the ghosts of ,hades1 and these run up to be nourished by the blood4 ,he draws his sword1 rushes upon them1 and drives them away4 ,then1 selecting one with whom he wishes to talk1 he feeds him with the invigorating vapor1 and the ghost is then made strong enough to talk4 ,but none of these sacrifices were strictly vicarious4 ,the old gods were angry at neglect1 but never had the kind of justice that a sheep or goat or cow could not appease4 ,the ,jews were not unfamiliar with human sacrifices 7,lev4 #bg3bh1bi2 ,judg4 #aa3cj-ci71 and even the early ,christians are said to have offered bloody sacrifices of human beings4 ,the deification of ,jesus to correspond with the apotheosis of other personages required a divine parentage4 ,this idea was not gotten up until the second ,christian century4 ,justin made ,jesus a second god4 ,but the earlier ,fathers did not connect the notion of the vicarious atonement with that of original sin and total depravity4 ,basilides maintained that penal suffering or suffering for purposes of justice of necessity implies personal criminality in the sufferer1 and therefore cannot be endured by an innocent person as a substitute4 ,prof4 ,robertson ,smith1 ,,ll4,d41 in the ,encyclopaedia ,britannica1 in his learned article on 8,sacrifice1 says part3 8,where we find a practice of sacrificing honorific gifts to the gods1 we usually find also certain other sacrifices which resemble those already characterized1 to be consumed in sacred ceremony1 but differ from them1 inasmuch as the sacrifice--usually a living victim--is not regarded as a tribute of honor to the god1 but has a special or mystic significance4 ,the most familiar case of this second species of sacrifice is that which the ,romans distinguished from the hostia honoraria by the name of hostia piacularis4 ,in the former case the deity accepts a gift2 in the latter1 he demands a life4 ,the former kind of sacrifice is offered by the worshipper on the basis of an established relation of friendly dependence on his divine lord2 the latter is directed to appease the divine anger or to conciliate the favor of a deity on whom the worshipper has no right to count0 7vol4 xxi4 p44 #acb74 ,piamlar ,sacrifices4--8,the idea of substitution is widespread among all early religions1 and is found in honorific as well as piacular rites4 ,in all such cases the idea is that the substitute shall imitate as closely as is possible or convenient the victim whose place it supplies2 and so in piacular ceremonies the god may indeed accept one life for another1 or certain select lives to atone for the guilt of a whole community2 but these lives ought to be of the guilty kin1 just as in blood-revenge the death of any kinsman of the manslayer satisfies justice4 ,hence such rites as the ,semitic sacrifices of children by their fathers ,moloch1 the sacrifice of ,iphigeneia and similar cases among the ,greeks1 inasmuch as something is given up by the worshippers nor the offering up of boys to the goddess ,mania at ,rome4444 8,in advanced societies the tendency is to modify the horrors of the ritual1 either by accepting an effusion of blood without actually slaying the victim--e4 g4 in the flagellation of the ,spartan lads--or by a further extension of the doctrine of substitution3 the ,romans1 for example1 substituted puppets for the human sacrifices to ,mania1 and cast rush dolls into the ,tiber1 at the yearly atoning sacrifice on the ,sublician ,bridge4 ,more usually1 however1 the life of an animal is accepted by the god in place of a human life4444 ,among the ,egyptians the victim was marked with a seal bearing the image of a man bound and kneeling with a sword at his throat4 ,and often we find a ceremonial laying of the sin to be expiated on the head of the victim 7,herod1 ii4 #ci2 ,lev4 #d3 #d1 compared with #ad3 #ba74 8,in such piacular rites the god demands only the life of the victim1 which is sometimes indicated by a special ritual with the blood 7as among the ,hebrews the blood of the sin-offering was applied to the horns of the altar or to the mercy-seat within the veil71 and there is no sacrificial meal4 ,thus1 among the ,greeks the carcase of the victim was buried or cast into the sea comp1 with most important ,hebrew sin-offerings and sacrifice of children to ,moloch--outside the camp or city4 8,when the flesh of the sacrifice is consumed by the priests1 as with certain ,roman piacula and ,hebrew sin-offerings1 the sacrificial flesh is seemingly a gift accepted by the deity and assigned by him to the priests1 so that the distinction between a honorific and a piacular sacrifice is partly obliterated4 ,but this is not hard to understand2 for just as a blood-rite takes the place of blood-revenge in human justice1 so an offence against the gods may in certain cases be redeemed by a fine 7e4 g4 ,herod1 ii4 #fe7 or a sacrificial gift4 ,this seems to have been the origin of the ,hebrew trespass-offering 7p4 #acf74 8,the most curious developments of piacular sacrifice take place in the worship of deities of the totem type4 ,here the natural substitute for the death of a criminal of the tribe is an animal of the kind with which the worshippers and their god alike count kindred--an animal1 that is1 which must not be offered in a sacrificial feast1 and which indeed it is impious to kill4 ,thus1 ,hecat was invoked as a dog1 and dogs were her piacular sacrifices4 ,and in like manner in ,egypt the piacular sacrifice of the cow-goddess ,isis-,hathor was a bull1 and the sacrifice was accompanied by lamentations as at the funeral of a kinsman40 ,under the head of ,mystical or ,sacramental ,sacrifices--i4 e4 sacrifices at initiations and in the ,mysteries3 8,according to ,julian1 the mystical sacrifices of the cities of the ,roman empire were444 offered once or twice a year1 and consisted of such victims as the dog of ,hecat1 which might not ordinarily be eaten or used to furnish forth the tables of the gods4444 ,the mystic sacrifices seem always to have had an atoning efficacy2 their special feature is that the victim is not simply slain and burned or cast away1 but that the worshippers partake of the body and blood of the sacred animal1 and that so his life passes1 as it were1 into their lives and knits them to the deity in living communion4 8,in the ,old ,testament the heathen mysteries seem to appear as ceremonies of initiation by which a man was introduced into a new worship4444 ,but originally the initiation must have been introduction into a particular social community4444 ,from this point of view the sacramental rites of mystical sacrifice are a form of blood-covenant4444 ,in all the forms of blood-covenant1 whether a sacrifice is offered or the veins of the parties opened and their own blood used1 the idea is the same3 the bond created is a bond of kindred1 because one blood is now in the veins of all who have shared the ceremony40 ,a learned friend writes me3 8,i doubt whether a real distinction can be made between propitiatory and expiatory sacrifices4 ,propitiation is by expiation4 ,the basic idea in all sacrifices of that nature appears to be substitution2 that is1 something taking the place of the offender4444 ,it seems that the basis of all sacrifice is to be found in a relationship1 or kinship 7through blood71 between the deity--who is only the representative of the tribal head regarded as still living in the spirit-world--and the worshipper4 8,i may add that the idea of pollution by wrongdoing--i4 e4 offending the tribal deity--to be got rid of only by the shedding of blood1 is not unknown to so-called savages4 ,this applies especially to offences against chastity1 as with the ,mlers of ,rajmahal1 ,india1 and the ,dyaks of ,borneo4 ,the pig is the animal usually sacrificed--probably because it is the most valuable animal food4 ,the ,pdam ,abors of ,assam look upon all crimes as public pollutions which require to be washed away by a public sacrifice4 ,here we have the idea of cleansing by the application of blood1 and this appears to be the idea also with the ,mlers1 and probably among the aboriginal hill-tribes of ,india generally40 ,mommsen1 the ,roman historian1 says3 8,at the very core of the ,latin religion there lay that profound moral impulse which leads men to bring earthly guilt and earthly punishment into relation with the world of the gods1 and to view the former as a crime against the gods1 and the latter as its expiation4 ,the execution of the criminal condemned to death was as much an expiatory sacrifice offered to the divinity as was the killing of an enemy in just war2 the thief who by night stole the fruits of the field paid the penalty to ,ceres on the gallows1 just as the enemy paid it to mother earth and the good spirits on the field of battle4 ,the fearful idea of substitution also meets us here3 when the gods of the community were angry1 and nobody could be laid hold of as definitely guilty1 they might be appeased by one who voluntarily gave himself up 7devovere se740 ,but it was left for ,anselm of ,canterbury1 late in the eleventh century1 to first formulate the doctrine of vicarious atonement4 ,before this there seemed to be among the theologians the idea that in some way ,christ came to restore1 at least in part1 all that was lost in ,adam4 ,during the first four centuries of the ,christian era there seems to have been no fixed opinion as to whether there was a ransom-price paid to ,god or the devil4 ,under the article 8,devil in the ,encyclopdia ,britannica it is said3 8,he the devil was1 according to ,cyprian 7,de ,unitate ,ecd471 the author of all heresies and delusions3 he held man by reason of his sin in rightful possession1 and man could only be rescued from his power by the ransom of ,christ's blood4 ,this extraordinary idea of a payment or satisfaction to the devil being made by ,christ as the price of man's salvation is found both in ,irenus 7,adv4 ,hcer41 v4 #a4 #a47 and in ,origen1 and may be said to have held its sway in the ,church for a thousand years4 ,and yet ,origen is credited with the opinion that1 bad as the devil was1 he was not altogether beyond hope of pardon4 ,it would be tedious to note the various views that have prevailed among theologians to the present day4 ,some hold that the offering was made to ,god to satisfy divine justice2 others hold that it was a commercial transaction--so much blood for so many souls2 and still others regard the whole as a governmental display to impress the world with a sense of the hatefulness of sin4 ,calvinists seem to think that the atonement was only made for the elect1 but that the blood of ,christ had sufficient merit to save the whole world4 ,roman ,catholics hold that it is the literal1 material blood of ,christ that saves the sinner1 and hence their extreme belief in the dogma of transubstantiation1 the real body and blood of ,jesus being offered in the sacrifice of the ,mass1 and taken by the penitent in the ,holy ,communion4 ,protestants generally hold to a sort of consubstantiation--a sort of real presence in the sacrament2 while persons of intelligence profess to believe that this whole theory of blood-salvation is only to be accepted in a figurative sense4 ,the fact is1 that the whole scheme of vicarious atonement is an ancient superstition1 though taught in the ,new ,testament1 and is absurd and unphilosophical1 and false in principle and in practice1 as we shall hereafter show4 ,we leave altogether out of view the logical conclusion that if the blood shed by ,jesus was the blood of a man1 it could have had no more efficacy than the blood of any other human being1 and that if the blood shed was the blood of a ,god1 the very mention of the thought is absurd and blasphemous in the extreme4 ,it is nonsense to say that it was the union of the divine with the human nature that gave the blood of ,christ its peculiar efficacy--that the altar sanctifies the gift for if the blood was changed by the man being united with the ,god1 it was not human blood1 but the blood of a divine man4 ,now1 there is no evidence that the blood of ,jesus 7supposing that he was crucified7 differed in its essential qualities from other human blood4 ,if analyzed by the chemist1 it would have been found to contain only the constituent particles which belong to human blood4 ,the white and red corpuscles and other chemical properties would have been found in it4 ,the dogma of blood-salvation as held by ,romanists is cannibalism1 pure and simple1 and as held by ,protestants it is sheer superstition1 without one grain of reason to support it4 ,it has no analogy in nature1 nor in the philosophy of legal jurisprudence as held and practised by the most enlightened nations of the world4 ,it seems to us that the doctrine of vicarious atonement is not only immoral1 but demoralizing4 ,it represents ,god as punishing the innocent for the guilty to make it possible to forgive the guilty4 ,this is inconsistent with the eternal principles of justice and rightfulness4 ,it must have a demoralizing influence upon the mind and conscience of the sinner1 to be told that his sins are already atoned for1 and he only need to be cleansed by the blood of ,christ2 and this is to be obtained by simple faith and trust6 ,believe that ,jesus shed his blood for you1 and that he is waiting and anxious to apply it in washing away your guilt1 and it is done6 ,then as often as you sin afterward you need only go through the same process to secure pardon6 ,the easiness with which sins may be blotted out and washed away must have a demoralizing influence upon uneducated minds1 though truly intelligent persons may not reason in this way4 ,the low state of morals among those who really believe in this device for the forgiveness of sins may thus be accounted for4 ,the numerous defalcations and downright thefts among the higher classes of ,christians1 and the petty lying and stealing among the great mass of ,catholics and ,protestants1 are notorious1 and can be traced1 we think1 to the easy methods of getting rid of the consequencees of wrong-doing4 ,our prison-statistics are truly suggestive1 and should be carefully studied4 ,freethinkers are far in advance of ,christians in the matter of practical morality4 ,many of those whom the courts exclude as witnesses1 because they do not accept certain religious dogmas1 are pre-eminently truthful1 and would sooner die than tell a falsehood4 ,they do not rely upon the blood of ,jesus to wash away the vilest sins and make them white as snow4 ,our statesmen are beginning to find out that our system of pardon is most pernicious4 ,to relieve from the consequences of wrong-doing through a divine contrivance of the vicarious sufferings of an innocent person1 and that human disobedience is made all right as to consequences by this obedience of a divine-human person1 does not commend itself to the intelligence of this nineteenth century4 ,the answer of theologians to this charge is familiar and specious enough1 but it is not practically accepted by the common people4 ,when a child enters the ,sunday-school room1 and his eyes rest upon the conspicuous placard1 8,jesus ,paid it ,all0 the natural inference is there is nothing more to pay1 nothing to do but to accept the free gift4 ,thousands of ignorant persons1 ,catholics and ,protestants1 no doubt secretly accept and rely upon this easy device to cover up their numerous shortcomings and misdoings4 ,this doctrine is a welcome one in the murderer's cell and upon the platform of the gallows4 ,in thousands of uncultivated minds the thought is no doubt deeply hidden that about the surest way to get to heaven is to commit a murder and have the 8benefit of clergy10 and in due time to be 8jerked to ,jesus0 7as described by a ,western journal7 by the hangman's rope4 ,why should it not be so8 ,the vicarious atonement has been made1 and is being made in the ,mass1 and they have only to accept it4 ,two priests or ministers actually opposed the postponement of the execution of a certain murderer on the ground that he then believed in ,jesus1 but that if execution was postponed they did not know that he would continue to 8believe10 and that his soul might thus be lost6 ,suppose that our ,state authorities should proclaim in advance free pardon and a princely palace to all lawbreakers on the simple condition of trusting in the mediatorial interposition and substitution of another1 already made and accepted2 what would be the effect on public morals8 ,the system of redemption and pardon set forth in the ,new ,testament is infinitely more than this1 and must be demoralizing4 ,all public officers know the evil effects of the pardon system1 and how even the faintest hope of pardon encourages crime1 and how certainly a free pardon is almost sure to be followed by a life of increased criminality4 ,there should be no such thing as pardon in our ,state jurisprudence--no 8board of pardons0 and no 8exercise of the executive clemency40 ,if a convict is believed to have been wrongly imprisoned1 or by after-discovered evidence is found to be innocent1 let no 8pardon board0 or 8executive0 interfere1 but let the case go back to the court that convicted him or to one of like jurisdiction1 and let the case be judicially reviewed in the light of evidence2 and if the accused is found innocent1 let him be honorably acquitted1 or if guilty remanded to prison4 ,there is nothing in reason1 philosophy1 or science that approves the theologie method of dealing with offenders4 ,it violates every principle of justice1 and has not one single quality of rightfulness in it4 ,it is a fiction pure and simple1 in form and in fact4 ,macaulay well said of this redemptive scheme1 8,it resembles nothing so much as a forged bond1 with a forged release endorsed upon its back40 ,gregg pungently put it thus3 8,it looks very much like an impossible debt paid in inconceivable coin2 or a legal fiction purely gratuitous got rid of by what looks like a legal chicanery purely fanciful4 ,it gives unworthy conceptions of ,god as one delighting in the blood of human beings1 and even suggests the disgusting practices of cannibalism4 ,it is a relic of the ancient barbaric fetichism borrowed from savages by sacerdotalists for purposes of priestcraft1 and should be scouted by all honest and intelligent men40 ,the severely orthodox ,rev4 ,professor ,shedd1 as well as ,dr4 ,priestley1 admits that there was no scientific construction of the doctrine of the atonement in the writings of the apostolic ,fathers 7,hist1 of ,doc41 vol4 ii41 p4 #bjh74 ,the doctrine was evidently manufactured when the ,romish ,church was evolved out of the innumerable sects of early ,christendom1 and was enforced by wholesale excommunication of dissenters and the death penalty4 ,christianity was planted in ,germany1 ,prussia1 and ,sweden by military power4 ,the ,saxons were 8converted0 by ,charlemagne4 ,all the secret religions have a god or demi-god put to death4 ,even the ,freemasons have ,hiram ,abiff4 ,the death of ,osiris was the central point in the ,egyptian system4 ,he was killed by ,seth or ,typhon1 and returned to life as ,rat-,amenti1 the judge4 ,in ,egypt1 ,christianity moulded its doctrines of the ,trinity1 atonement1 and 8mother of ,god40 ,the ,osirian theology was grafted on the ,christian stock1 if indeed the ,christian system was not an evolution of ,osirianism2 and of this the monstrous concoction known as vicarious atonement was made1 and thrust down men's throats by threats of hell and the visits of the executioner4 ,we might extend our remarks upon this subject indefinitely1 but we have not space4 ,we have seen that blood-salvation did not originate with either ,jews or ,christians4 ,dr4 ,trumbull has proved this over and over again1 and ,kurtz1 an orthodox writer1 has admitted this fact4 ,he says3 8,a comparison of the religious symbols of the ,old ,testament with those of ancient heathendom shows that the ground and the starting-point of those forms of religion which found their appropriate expressions in symbols was the same in all cases2 while the history of civilization proves that on this point priority cannot be claimed by the ,israelites4 ,but when instituting such an inquiry we shall also find that the symbols which were transferred from the religions of nature to that of the spirit first passed through the fire of divine purification1 from which they issued as the distinctive theology of the ,jews1 the dross of a pantheistic deification of nature having been consumed40 ,all this is very frank1 but we should not overlook the fact1 so clearly established1 that this doctrine of cleansing blood1 so constantly taught in the ,new ,testament and proclaimed from every orthodox pulpit in the land1 was not a divine revelation specially made to ,jews or ,christians1 but has been adopted and modified from the religions of nature1 celebrated in all parts of the world by the most barbarous peoples in the remotest periods of time4 ,indeed1 the more gross and savage the people1 the more disgusting has been this doctrine of blood-salvation4 ,dr4 ,trumbull could only think of two possible ways of explaining these marvellous things3 8,how it came to pass that men everywhere were so generally agreed on the main symbols of their religious yearnings1 and their religious hopes in this realm of their aspirations1 is a question which obviously admits of two possible answers4 ,a common revelation from ,god may have been given to primitive man1 and all these varying yet related indications of religious strivings and aim may be but the perverted remains of the lessons of that misused or slighted revelation4 ,on the other hand1 ,god may originally have implanted the germs of a common religious thought in the mind of man1 and then have adapted his successive revelations to the outworking of those germs4 ,whichever view of the probable origin of these common symbolisms1 all the world over1 be adopted by any ,christian student1 the importance of the symbolisms themselves1 in their relation to the truths of revelation1 is manifestly the same4444 8,because the primitive rite of blood-covenanting was well known in the lands of the ,bible at the time of the writing of the ,bible1 for that very reason we are not to look to the ,bible for a specific explanation of the rite itself1 even where there are incidental references in the ,bible to the rite and its observances2 but1 on the other hand1 we are to find an explanation of the biblical illustrations of the primitive rite in the understanding of that rite which we gain from outside sources4 ,these assumptions are very flimsy stuff upon which to found the most prominent and mysterious doctrine of the orthodox ,christian religion1 making it the ,alpha and ,omega of the whole 8scheme of redemption0 ,to witness the mummeries of ,roman ,catholic priests and the manipulations of ,protestant ministers in the celebration of the 8,eucharistic ,feast0 or 8,holy ,communion0 is enough to lead a truly intelligent man to wonder why these celebrants do not laugh each other in the face4 ,even our ,universalist and ,unitarian ministers sometimes indulge in this heathen diversion1 though some of them deeply feel the absurdity of the rite1 and the consequent humiliation to which they are subjected4 ,nevertheless1 some of our most profound statesmen1 when about to die1 call in a priest1 ,catholic or ,protestant1 to administer the heathen ordinance4 ,when will the world open its blind eyes1 and learn that all that ,god requires of men is to 8walk humbly1 love mercy1 and deal justly08 ,there is no difficulty in accepting the words of a ,god who is said to have uttered the burning reproof to ritualists and hypocrites as follows3 8,to what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices8 ,i delight not in the blood of bullocks1 or of lambs1 or of he-goats4 ,bring no more vain oblations2 incense is an abomination unto me2 the new moons and sabbaths1 the calling of assemblies1 ,i cannot away with2 it is iniquity even the solemn meeting4 ,and when you spread your hands ,i will hide mine eyes from you1 yea1 you make many prayers ,i will not hear1 your hands are full of blood4 ,wash ye1 make you clean1 put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes2 cease to do evil2 learn to do well1 seek judgment1 relieve the oppressed1 judge the fatherless1 plead for the widows40 ,this doctrine of bloodsalvation is1 in our judgment1 most unphilosophical and even absurd4 ,it originated1 as we have shown1 in the most gross and anthropomorphic conceptions of ,god1 and its solemn celebration in orthodox churches is inseparable from the most ignorant and superstitious rites of the most savage peoples4 ,its tendency must be demoralizing4 ,,chapter ,,xvi4 ,,things ,,that ,,remain 8,that those things which cannot be shaken may remain40--,heb4 #ab3 #bg4 ,,in the preceding chapters we have shown that in our judgment the time has fully come for the fearless proclamation of the whole truth1 regardless of temporary consequences4 ,we think that we have also shown that for many important reasons we cannot expect the whole truth from the professional clergy4 ,we have shown that the ,jews are not the very ancient and numerous people that they have been supposed to have been1 and that many of their claims are purely fabulous2 and that this is specially true of their ,pentateuch1 which ,moses1 supposing such a man to have lived1 could not have written4 ,we have shown how extensively symbolism anciently prevailed in sacred writings1 how modern sacerdotalists have accepted as literal history and matters of fact what was at first a romance or an allegory intended to illustrate certain principles1 and how the introduction of astral keys can only explain many of the ,old-,testament stories1 which1 taken literally1 are extremely absurd and foolish4 ,we think we have shown that the 8fall0 of the mythical ,adam and ,eve is an allegory1 and not an historical fact1 and that it is extremely unfortunate that the whole system of dogmatic theology is made to depend upon a mythus4 ,we have gone in search of the 8second ,adam10 and have not found him1 except in the ,new ,testament1 and we have shown how utterly incomplete and unsatisfactory that account is1 not rising in any degree to the character of evidence4 ,we have shown that the ,gospels are highly dramatic2 that the ,christ is largely ideal2 that many other persons before the ,christian era claimed all that was claimed for ,jesus2 and that he1 his conduct1 and alleged sayings 7he wrote nothing7 are widely open to criticism4 ,we have shown that the distinguishing feature of the ,new ,testament--blood-salvation--is not a special revelation1 but that it has been borrowed and modified and adapted from savages and from the most ignorant and superstitious tribes2 and that what is called the 8redemptive scheme0 is full of absurdities and contradictions1 and that it is philosophically and naturally demoralizing in its tendency and influence if its logical consequences are accepted4 ,we now come to the practical question1 ,what have we left8 ,is there anything in religion worth preserving8 ,indeed1 is there anything condemned in this book that is essential to the purest religion and the highest morality8 ,after doubting and throwing discredit on so much1 have we anything left worth preserving8 ,having cast so much of the cargo overboard to lighten the ship1 is the vessel worth saving8 ,having cast away the accretions and superstitions of religion1 we are only now just prepared to defend its essential and sublime principles4 ,let us see what remains4 ,i4 ,our ,faith in ,god remains4--,not a ,god4 ,the passage in the ,new ,testament 7,john #d3 #bd7 admits that 8a0 is an interpolation4 ,there is no personality in ,god in a sense which implies limitation4 ,god is spirit1 and so spirit is ,god4 ,even ,professor ,hckel1 the ,german materialist1 says3 8,this monistic idea of ,god1 which belongs to the future1 has already been expressed by ,bruno in the following words3 ,a spirit exists in all things1 and no body is so small but contains a part of the divine substance within itself by which it is animated40 ,the words ,god and religion have been so long associated with superstition and priestcraft that many liberal thinkers have a repugnance to both4 ,but we must not let these perversions of sacerdotalism rob us of good words4 ,we can conceive of ,god as the ,over-all and ,in-all ,spirit of the ,universe4 ,that spirit is causation1 and matter1 its palpable form1 is one of its manifestations4 ,we know that ,nature's method of making worlds and brutes and men is by a uniform system of evolution1 taking millions and billions of years to carry on the work to the present time1 and that it is likely that it will take millions more to perfect it4 ,when asked what spirit is1 we answer1 ,we do not know2 neither do we know what electricity is1 nor can we answer one of a thousand questions that come up regarding the subtle and occult qualities of matter4 ,we see no difference between the ,unknowable of ,herbert ,spencer and the ,unsearchable of ,zophar in the book of ,job4 ,the ,unknown ,power is the ,noumenon1 the absolute ,being in itself1 the inner nature of force1 motion1 and even of conscience4 ,we have said1 in substance1 elsewhere3 ,it is a great mistake to think of ,god as outside of and distinct from the universe4 ,if there be a ,god at all1 he is in the universe and in every part of it4 ,we cannot properly localize him1 and say that he is present in one place and not in another1 or that he is in one place more than another4 ,he must be everywhere and in everything4 ,anthropomorphic 7man-like7 views of ,god are what make atheists and agnostics4 ,men constantly talk of the laws of ,nature1 forgetting that law itself is a product and cannot be a cause4 ,the law of gravitation is not the cause of gravitation4 ,a self-originating and self-executing law is unthinkable4 ,the prevalence of law supposes the existence of a lawmaker and a law-executor4 ,we accept the law of evolution1 but cannot conceive of evolution independent of involution and an ,evolver4 ,it may be said that this is 8begging the question0 by assuming the existence of an infinite ,god4 ,but we deny that it is an assumption in its last analysis4 ,what is known as the scientific method leads logically to the conclusion that there must be something that theists generally name ,god4 ,you may call it 8protoplasm10 8molecular force10 the 8potentiality of matter10 or even matter itself2 and when you tell us what these words mean we will tell you what we mean by 8,god40 ,possibly we all mean the same thing4 ,we know of the existence of ,god1 as we know other things1 by palpable manifestations4 ,astronomers assumed the existence of ,neptune from certain phenomena long before its existence could be demonstrated2 and if the discovery had never been made the phenomena so long observed would have nevertheless justified the conclusion that there must be some stupendous cause for such unmistakable and marvellous perturbations4 ,when men talk of the eternity of matter we do not even profess to understand them4 ,the most advanced scientists do not attempt to explain one of a thousand mysteries in which the phenomena of the material world is enshrouded4 ,why1 then1 should we be expected to explain where and how and when ,god came into existence1 or how he could have had an eternal existence or be self-existent8 ,we affirm no more of ,god than materialists imply of matter1 and we endow him with no attributes that they do not virtually ascribe to matter4 ,so far as assumption is concerned1 both stand on the same ground4 ,they1 indeed1 call things by different names1 but mean about the same thing4 ,what theists prefer to call 8the works of ,god0 materialists call 8,nature10 8cosmic laws10 8spontaneous generation10 8the potency of matter10 8conservation of energy1 8correlation of force1 and 8natural selection4 ,the fundamental error of modern scientists is that they limit their investigations to the physical and palpable1 while we have demonstrable evidence of the existence of the spiritual and invisible4 ,we know nothing of matter but from its properties and manifestations1 and we have the same kind of evidence in regard to spirit1 and know that it is superior to gross matter1 and therefore cannot be tested by the same crucibles4 ,in the very nature of things a great cause must ever be imponderable and invisible4 ,it cannot be weighed and measured1 but must ever remain intangible and incomprehensible4 ,the spirit in physical man in its relation to the ,supreme ,spirit is as the drop of water to the ocean or the single glimmering ray to the full-orbed1 refulgent sun4 ,men may talk of 8force correlation1 and trace its progress and products1 but they must remain dumb as to the beginning or origin of force unless they accept the doctrine of an intelligent ,first ,force4 ,there is no way of accounting for the existence of spirit1 of life1 of intelligence1 but by premising the prior existence of spirit1 life1 and intelligence4 ,like only causes like4 ,an egg does not come from a stone1 and the ascidian did not come from a lifeless rock4 ,the logical conclusion from the facts and principles herein suggested is that there must be an intelligent ,first ,cause of all things--an all-pervading1 fecundating1 animating ,spirit of the universe2 and we prefer to call this ,god4 ,science has taught us the processes of his work1 and denominates them the 8laws of ,nature40 ,in point of fact1 as little is known of the origin and essence of matter as of spirit1 and there is as good ground for agnosticism in the former as in the latter4 ,there is therefore no necessary conflict between true science and a rational theism or monism4 ,it is a rational proposition that something must have been before what is called creation4 ,there must have been an intelligent potency1 and that power theists call ,god4 ,materialism in its last analysis ascribes to matter all that theists ascribe to ,god4 ,it gives matter an eternal self-existence--endows it with an inherent infinite intelligence and an omnipotent potency4 ,it spells 8,god0 with six letters instead of three4 ,it makes a ,god of matter1 and then denies his existence6 ,we now submit that it is more rational to postulate the existence of an eternal ,supreme ,intelligence and ,power1 the ,creator and ,ruler of all things visible and invisible1 who is the ,author and ,executor of the laws by which both mind and matter are governed4 ,this ,supreme ,being is alone the ,self-existent ,one1 and what are called the properties and modes of inert matter are but the proofs and manifestations of his eternal power and ,godhead4 ,there cannot be a poem without a poet1 nor a picture without an artist4 ,there cannot be a watch or other complex machine without an inventor and artisan4 ,the universe is the sublimest of all poems1 and ,cicero well said that it would be easier to conceive that ,homer's ,iliad came from the chance shaking together of the letters of the alphabet than that the atoms should have produced the cosmos without a marshalling agency4 ,the visible and palpable compel us to acknowledge their counterpart in the invisible and intangible1 and we cannot rationally account for the origin of man without postulating the existence of an ,intelligence and ,power greater than humanity4 ,we are reproached for the inconsistency of believing in a ,power we cannot comprehend1 and endowing him with attributes of which we can form no just conceptions4 ,atheists do not seem to realize that they are guilty of a greater inconsistency4 ,they tell us that we believe in a ,being of whom we can form no conception1 but they themselves must form some conception of such a ,being1 else how could they deny his existence8 ,there is no difficulty in admitting the existence of a ,supreme ,power if we do not attempt to comprehend and describe it4 ,matthew ,arnold says3 8,we too would say ',god' if the moment we said ',god1 you would not pretend that you know all about him40 ,his definition of ,god is indeed vague1 but vastly suggestive3 8,an enduring ,power not ourselves that makes for righteousness40 ,this suggests the moral element in the unknown ,power4 ,there is not only a spiritual sense in man which recognizes the supersensuous1 but there is an indwelling witness to the eternal principle of rightfulness4 ,the sentiment of oughtness is inherent and ineradicable4 ,every man who is not a moral idiot has a feeling that certain things ought and ought not to be--that there is an essential right and wrong4 ,human intuition sees and feels this mysterious ,power that answers to our ,ego1 and from which it proceeds2 and this inward conviction cannot be eradicated from the average mind by the pretensions of science4 ,the patient watcher in the dark room at the terminus of the ocean cable sees in his suspended mirror the reflection of an electric spark1 and he at once recognizes it as a message from the operator three thousand miles away4 ,so ,god is seen by the aspiring and contemplative in the concave mirror of man's own spirit1 and1 though it is a mere reflection1 a spark1 a flash1 it clearly proves the existence of the ,central ,magnet4 ,it is this recognition of the moral element that forms the basis of moral government and of that worshipfulness which has manifested itself among all nations1 barbarian and civilized4 ,it is safe to assume that the average ,atheism is disbelief in the ,god of the dominant theology1 and not in the ,ultimate ,power that makes for righteousness4 ,vulgar1 anthropomorphic conceptions of ,god1 which endow him with certain speculative attributes1 are condemned by reason and science2 but nevertheless phenomena have something behind them1 and energy has something beneath it1 and all things have something in them which is the source of all phenomena and energy2 and this enduring1 all-pervading ,power is our sure guarantee of the order of the universe4 ,and this ,power theists persist in calling ,god4 ,theologians may call this ,pantheism1 but it is only seemingly so4 ,there is a vast difference between saying that everything is ,god1 and that ,god is in everything4 ,the old watchmaker-mechanician idea1 a ,god separate and outside of the universe1 has become obsolete1 and science and reason and the law of progressive development now compel men to reshape their conceptions of ,god as identical with the ,cosmos1 plus the ,eternal ,power4 ,herbert ,spencer has beautifully said3 8,but amid the mysteries1 which become the more mysterious the more they are thought about1 there will remain the one absolute certainty that man is ever in presence of an ,infinite and ,eternal ,energy1 from which all things proceed40 ,the felt and the seen have their fulness in the unseen and intangible1 and the visible impels us to seek its counterpart and complement in the invisible4 ,,ii4 ,our ,faith in ,religion remains4--,and here the question comes up1 ,what is religion8 ,the commonly-accepted meaning of the word is as derived from the ,latin religare1 which means 8to bind back or to bind fast40 ,we do not accept the definition1 because it is suggestive of bondage4 ,it implies a previous harmonious relation with ,god which had been lost4 ,it favors the dogmas of the fall of ,adam and man's alleged reinstatement and 8binding back0 to the divine allegiance1 through what is called1 in theological parlance1 a 8redemptive scheme40 ,it is a significant fact that ,lactantius1 a theologian of the early part of the fourth century1 was the first to apply the word religion to 8the bond of piety by which we are bound to ,god40 ,augustine of the fifth century followed his example1 and so did ,servius about the same time2 and their example has been followed by theologians ever since1 presumably because it favors the dogmas of the fall of ,adam and the redemption by ,christ4 ,but the highest classical authorities derive the word religion from relegere or religere1 signifying 8to go through or over and over again in reading1 speech1 or thought--to review carefully and faithfully to ponder and reflect with conscientious fidelity40 ,cicero must have understood the original meaning and origin of the ,latin word1 and he took this view of the subject4 ,he lived more than three hundred years before ,lactantius1 and he said3 8,but they who carefully meditated1 and as it were considered and reconsidered all those things which pertained to the worship of the gods1 were called religious1 from religere40 ,the word religio was in common use in ancient ,rome in the sense of scruple1 implying the consciousness of a natural obligation wholly irrespective of the gods4 ,the oldest popular meanings of the word religion were faithfulness1 sincerity1 veracity1 honor1 punctiliousness1 and conscientiousness4997#a7 ,religion1 then1 in its true meaning1 is the great fact of duty1 of oughtness or right-fulness1 of conscience and moral sense4 ,its great business is to seek conformity to one's highest ideal4 ,it consists in an honest and persistent effort by all appropriate means to realize ideal excellence and to transform into actual character and practical life4 7#a7 ,see ,a ,study of ,religion1 by ,francis ,e4 ,abbot4 ,religion in this sense is universally approved4 ,it is false religion which is condemned4 ,it is what some men would require you to believe in spite of history1 science1 and self-consciousness4 ,it is superstition1 bigotry1 credulity1 creed1 sectarianism1 that men detest4 ,religion is innate and ineradicable in man1 and there is a natural religion concerning which man cannot be skeptical if he would4 ,bishop ,butler has well said that the morality of the gospel is 8the republication of natural religion and it would be easy to show the evolution of religion from very small beginnings and how this work is going on to-day4 ,regarding religion as an evolution1 a development1 and not as something as inflexible as a demonstrated proposition in mathematics1 we are all the while expecting an improvement4 ,we have a right to expect that ,christianity should be better than more ancient religions1 because it is the latest2 and so it is in many respects4 ,but we have a right to expect that this improvement will go on with the lapse of time4 ,the religion of the nineteenth century is an improvement on the religion of the first century1 but we are reaching forward to greater perfection4 ,even the system of morals taught in the ,new ,testament is defective4 ,we want something purer and better1 and it is rapidly coming4 ,all true religion is natural1 and its morality relates to the mutual and reciprocal claims of men arising from organized society4 ,if we are right in our dealings with our fellow-men1 we cannot be out of harmonious relations with ,god4 ,all happiness here and hereafter depends upon our knowledge of the order of the universe and the conformation of our lives to it4 ,it is impossible to divorce true religion from real science1 and the more we know of the latter the more we shall have of the former4 ,whatever tends to promote pure religion ought to be encouraged1 and no man has any more reason to be ashamed of his religion than he has to be ashamed of his appetite4 ,we sum up our ideas of religion by saying3 ,do all the good you can to all the persons you can by all the means you can1 and as long as you can4 ,,iii4 ,the ,scriptures remain for just ,what they are4--,portions of the ,bible command our most profound reverence and our most unqualified admiration4 ,we respond heartily to some of the truly excellent moral maxims of the ,bible1 and read with rapture some of the selections of poetry from the ,hebrew prophets4 ,but right in close connection we often find stories of uncleanness1 fornications1 adulteries1 and incests that the vilest newspaper of to-day would not dare publish4 ,jael meanly murders ,sisera1 and is praised for it1 while the deceit and treachery of ,rahab are commended in the ,new ,testament4 ,the story of ,boaz and ,ruth is only fit for a dime novel4 ,solomon's ,song is full of lasciviousness4 ,abram lies4 ,moses gets mad4 ,david commits adultery and murders ,uriah4 ,jacob is deceitful and a trickster2 and so on to the end4 ,polygamy is shown to have been the rule1 and not the exception1 among ,jehovah's favorites4 ,war is everywhere tacitly justified1 and slavery is practised and not an abolitionist opens his mouth4 ,we go to the ,new ,testament1 and ,he who is called the 8,perfect ,one0 curses a fig tree for not bearing fruit out of season1 drives out with small cords men engaged in legitimate business1 upsets their tables1 and uses the most violent and reproachful language toward them4 ,he shows want of respect for his mother1 and is ambiguous and evasive in his conversation with the woman of ,canaan--says he does not know whether he is going to the feast at ,jerusalem or not1 and then straightway sets out for the ,holy ,city1 and makes believe by his actions that he is going to one place1 when he is actually going to another4 ,we want a higher morality than is taught in the ,bible4 ,we want higher and more noble conceptions than are given in the parable of the 8,unjust ,judge10 and more just and equitable principles than are taught in the parable of the 8,unjust ,steward0 or the 8,laborers in the ,vineyard0 or the 8,ten ,talents40 ,we want a morality that relates to this life rather than to the next ,we do not want the possession of property held up as a crime1 and poverty represented as a virtue entitling one to a seat in the future kingdom4 ,we want good homes to live in now1 rather than 8mansions in the skies40 ,we do not want a morality that appeals to selfishness only1 that discriminates in favor of celibacy1 and that only tolerates marriage as a remedy for lust1 as taught in the seventh chapter of ,first ,corinthians4 ,we want a higher morality than the morality of even the ,new ,testament4 ,it is difficult to speak to ears polite of the obscenity of the ,bible4 ,there are more than one hundred passages of the most coarse and vulgar description4 ,to print these in a book and send it through the ,united ,states mails1 if law were impartially administered1 would put a man in the penitentiary4 ,there are entire chapters that reek with obscenity from beginning to end4 ,we cannot tell you about ,onan1 and ,tamar1 and ,lot and his two daughters1 and scores of other obscene matters4 ,there are passages even in the ,new ,testament that cannot be mentioned in the presence of a virtuous woman4 ,when we enter a lady's parlor and see the richly-gilded ,bible upon the centre-table1 we shudder as we remember the obscenity that is contained between its costly lids4 ,when we see a young girl tripping along our streets1 ,bible in hand1 we wonder if she knows that she carries more obscenity than ,byron ever wrote1 than ,shelley ever dreamed of1 than the vilest ,french novelist ever dared to print4 ,we have very grave doubts about putting the ,bible into the hands of children4 ,they are1 through it1 made familiar with much that is demoralizing4 ,we have many reasons for rejecting the dogma of the plenary inspiration of the ,scriptures and of their infallibility4 ,these fragmentary writings must be judged by their merits--by what they are4 ,it has been shown by the author of ,supernatural ,religion that we gain more than we lose by taking this rational view of the ,bible4 ,an illusion is lost1 but a reality is gained which is full of hope and peace4 ,the unknown men who mostly wrote the little pamphlets which make up the ,bible probably did the best they knew--that is1 they wrote according to the degree of their development--but some of the writers were on a very low plane4 ,we should read these books and all other sacred writings of all nations just as we study geology--as showing what was in the mind of man when the books were written1 #8just as we learn from the earth's strata the history and order of the various periodic formations4 ,the bibles of the ages are accessible to every man who can read4 ,all of them contain much that is valuable1 with much that is frivolous1 superstitious1 and false4 ,but these books belong to our race1 and happy is the man who knows how to use them wisely4 ,he who rejects all makes as great a mistake as he who accepts all4 ,the true position is that the ,bible contains the best thoughts of many of the best men that have lived in the ages of the past1 expressed according to their light2 and1 while their obvious errors should be rejected1 whatever commends itself to our reason1 according to the best light of to-day1 and to which each man's own inspiration and spiritual discernment responds1 should be reverently studied and highly esteemed4 ,religion is not a product of the ,bible1 but the ,bible is a product of religion--natural religion--though often misunderstood and perverted4 ,we do not throw aside the bibles1 but accept them for just what we find them to be worth4 ,we eat the kernel and throw away the shell4 ,,iv4 ,our most ,implicit ,faith in the ,continuity of ,life remains4--,we have no more confidence in ,materialism than we have in ,atheism4 ,we believe that some men at least are immortal--that the intellectual and moral giants should be blotted out at death is unthinkable4 ,we find in this doctrine of a future state much that has a moral tendency4 ,it inspires self-respect and esteem4 ,it leads to a proper appreciation of humanity4 ,it inspires hope for the future4 ,it affords comfort in bereavement4 ,it furnishes a proper motive for aspiration and progress4 ,when we consider the millions of years that have been employed in bringing man to his present high estate1 it is rational to assume that a capacity for such immense progress is good ground for faith in still greater progress1 so that there shall be no end to the advancement and attainments of humanity4 ,if primitive man was not immortal1 there may have been a time when he became immortal1 just as there is a time when the embryo becomes a conscious1 breathing babe1 and when the undeveloped child begins to exercise the functions of rationality and becomes an accountable being4 ,it is not true that even the extreme ,darwinian doctrine is necessarily opposed to the doctrine of a future life for man4 ,on the contrary1 its fundamental principles suggest the hypothesis of immortality4 ,if the 8conservation of energy0 is a true principle of science1 it favors the faith of man in the doctrine of a future life4 ,greatness and goodness developed in man must be 8conserved10 and how can it be done if death is a destroyer8 ,the 8persistency of force0 in the human personality must at least be equal to the primary elements which environ that personality4 ,is it rational to suppose that the sweep of evolution which has brought man from such unfathomable depths will not carry him up to still more illimitable heights8 ,are these vast achievements of ,nature to be so un-thriftily wasted8 ,do not the products of a past eternity point unmistakably to still greater things in an eternity to come8 ,and1 then1 does not the scientific doctrine of the 8indestructibility of matter0 favor the belief in life after death8 ,the theory of 8natural selection0 also favors the doctrine of a future life1 and never appears so real and so beautiful as when we realize that as man progresses in everything that is grand and good he voluntarily falls in with this natural law1 and of choice not only selects that which is most to be desired1 but by self-denial and almost superhuman exertions strives to attain the highest ideal of his heavenly aspirations4 ,the unwearied effort of the most highly-developed men to reach a higher perfection and a more exalted excellence is evidence that ,nature is true to herself1 and that man will not be blotted out of conscious existence just as he first clearly perceives the essential difference between good and evil4 ,having tasted the fruit of the tree of life1 he is destined to live for ever4 ,it is certainly a significant fact that the faith of man in1 and a desire for1 a future life are strongest in his moments of greatest mental and spiritual exaltation4 ,if this is an illusion1 it is strange that it should be particularly vivid when he is in his most god-like moods and when he is most in love with the beautiful1 the true1 and the good4 ,is it possible for ,nature to thus trifle with and deceive and disappoint man when he is most serious and truthful1 and when all the elements of his better nature are in the ascendant and predominate over everything that is gross and perishable8 ,a future life and an immortal one must exist to enable man to reach that perfection to which he aspires1 and feels himself bound to attain as the only end worthy of his being1 and which1 during the brief span of mortal life1 is never reached even by the most virtuous4 ,nature cannot be so blind1 so stupidly improvident1 as to throw away her most precious treasures1 gathered by so much labor and suffering1 and not permit man to carry forward the great work1 in which he has just began to succeed1 to that perfection to which all his aspirations unmistakably converge4 ,then every cultivated man realizes as age increases that his attainments and successes in this ephemeral life fall far short of1 and are absolutely inadequate and disproportionate to1 his inherent powers2 and it is irrational to conclude that his very existence is to be blotted out and life itself become utterly extinct just as he has learned how to live1 and what life is1 and what is his being's end and aim4 ,we do not desire to argue this question here3 we only make a profession of our faith4 ,v4 ,our ,faith in the ,doctrine of ,present and ,future ,rewards and ,punishments remains4--,while it is irrational to accept the horrible dogmas of sacerdotalism as to the eternal torments of the wicked1 it is equally unreasonable to believe that all men enter upon a state of perfect happiness without regard to moral character4 ,the doctrine of rewards and punishments after death is clearly suggested by the principles of natural religion which have been recognized by all men1 pagan and ,christian4 ,that virtue brings its own reward and vice its own punishment is a fact in the experience of men in this life4 ,it must be so in the life to come1 as the order of the universe cannot be changed by time or place4 ,no valid objection can be made to the principle of future punishment4 ,but its nature and object must be taken into the account4 ,true punishment is never arbitrary nor vindictive4 ,it is remedial1 reformatory1 disciplinary1 and has respect to the constitution of moral government and the best interests and welfare of its subjects4 ,suffering is a consequence of sin1 not a judicial penalty1 and happiness is not a favor conferred by grace1 but a legitimate product of right being rather than of right doing4 ,men are rewarded or punished1 both in this life and the life to come1 not so much for what they have done or not done as for what they are4 ,suffering is intended to put an end to that which causes suffering1 and is for the good of the sufferer4 ,in this world and in all possible worlds sin must be a source of suffering1 and goodness a fountain of happiness4 ,the degree of happiness or misery of man after death must be in proportion to the degree of his perfection or imperfection in character evolved during life that will constitute his 8meetness40 ,the same penal code must prevail in the next life that prevails here1 and it may be thus summarized3 7#a7 ,suffering is a consequence of imperfection and wrong-doing4 7#b7 ,imperfection and wrong-doing will meet their appropriate punishment in the future life as in this world4 7#c7 ,the effect will only continue so long as the cause exists4 7#d7 ,men will for ever make their own heaven or hell1 and there is good reason for believing that the sufferings of many persons after death will be1 beyond all conception1 awful in the extreme4 7#e7 ,but the 8immortal hope0 justifies the conclusion that all men will1 sooner or later1 be established in holiness and happiness4 ,in response to the question1 ,after death--what8 the proper answer to the interrogative is1 ,in life--what8 ,death is transition1 not transmutation4 ,it is emigration1 not ,pythagorean transmigration4 ,change of place does not make change of character4 ,it is therefore reasonable to conclude that a man after death is just what he was before death4 ,every man will gravitate to his own place4 ,there will be as many grades of moral character after death as in this life1 and therefore as many heavens and hells4 ,misers and drunkards and libertines will still be such4 ,those who love the pure and beautiful1 the true1 the right1 the unselfish1 and the humane will still have the same desires and tastes after death as before death1 and will naturally gravitate to kindred spirits4 ,after mature reflection the conclusion must be reached that the greatest happiness of which man is capable arises from three sources3 7#a7 ,the perception of new truth2 7#b7 ,its impartation to others2 7#c7 ,doing good to others4 ,a more rational conception of future blessedness than this is impossible4 ,if these views are correct1 it is the highest wisdom to cherish and cultivate on earth and during life the tastes1 the desires1 the affections1 the principles which in themselves constitute the highest bliss of saints and angels in all possible worlds4 ,and as to hell after death1 we have nothing to fear but the hell we may carry with us--the hell of unholy lust1 the hell of unsanctified passion1 the hell of selfishness1 the hell which follows wrong living and wrong doing4 ,but we must bring this book to a close4 ,the writer is a firm believer in ,god1 in religion1 and in morality2 he accepts the ,bible for just what it is4 ,he believes in the continuity of life after death and in future rewards and punishments4 ,if he believed that he had written anything in this book to weaken faith in these doctrines1 he would commit the manuscript to the flames instead of to the printer4 ,,index 99,a99 ,abraham a myth1 #adi and his servant1 #aca and phallic emblems1 #aca and ,saturn1 #aej offering ,isaac--,parallels1 #aea- #aed ,abrahamie ,covenant1 #aee ,abydos and ,bunsen's ,egyptian tables1 #if ,adams1 ,dr41 on forty-two children and the she-bears1 #afb ,capt4 ,r4 ,c41 how to dispense with ministers1 #dj ,admission of ,albertus1 #ahj of ,ambrose1 #agi of ,augustine1 #cba of ,clemens ,alexandrinus1 #cfd of ,tertullian1 #agi ,alexandria1 systems of religion prevalent in1 #cdg ,anno ,domini1 invented in the sixth century1 generally adopt-#a ed in the tenth1 #bii ,aristotle1 maxims of1 disapproved1 #bd ,arnold1 ,matthew1 his definition of ,god1 #dba ,assyrian cuneiform tablets1 discovery #ahgc-gd1 #ig ,athens and ,sparta1 date #aeej ,b4,c41 #ajh ,avatars1 all announced by celestial signs1 #cji- #cab 99,b99 ,bagster's ,comprehensive ,bible on the phallic oath1 #acb ,barlow on tree-worship1 #abe ,beatty1 ,hon4 ,james1 his opposition to salaried ministers1 #dj ,berosus on ,chaldean history1 #ih ,blackstone on witches1 #aah ,blauvelt1 ,dr4 ,a41 #af #ag ,british ,museum1 manuscripts1 #gd ,brooks1 ,bishop1 on insincerity in the pulpit1 #dc ,brotherhood of man1 #cdb #cdc ,buckland on ,may music in ,magdalen ,church1 #acg ,buddha1 died #cgg years before ,christ1 #ajd ,budge1 ,dr41 manuscripts classified by1 #ge ,burnet1 ,bishop1 on the story of the creation1 #adf ,dr41 on concealing the truth1 #dd ,burr1 ,w4 ,h41 on area of ,palestine and its population1 #fc-gj4 99,c99 ,cardinal ,cajetan's admission1 #agh ,chaldean history1 date of1 #aji ,child1 ,lydia ,maria1 and women at ,ocean ,grove1 #acf ,christ1 doubts as to his existence1 #cfg- #cfi ,christus and ,christianus1 evidence of modern fabrication1 #bjg ,chrysostom on the #beth of ,december1 #bdc ,cicero on symbolism1 #abb ,cicero's definition of religion1 #ab #dbd ,circumcision originated in phallic-ism1 more ancient than ,judaism1 #acj ,clark1 ,dr4 ,adam1 points ont thirty-five parallels to ,philo in ,john's ,gospels1 #bai ,clement1 admission of1 #agi ,colenso1 ,bishop1 collates from ,pen-tateucn1 #he ,confucius's ,golden ,rule1 #bb ,constantine a pagan priest1 #bi ,cross very ancient1 #cah 99,d99 ,david's nude dance1 #acb ,davidson1 ,prof41 on 8,catholic canon10 #bbg ,deluge1 ,the1 ,jews obtained the account from ,babylon1 #aef ,doket1 #bff ,draper on ,pentateuch1 #ajc ,driver1 ,prof41 and ,philadelphia editor1 #aee 99,e99 ,edwards1 ,miss ,amelia ,b41 on date of ,egyptian monarchy1 #if ,elisha and she-bears explained1 #afb ,epistles1 silence of1 concerning the ,gospels1 #cgb ,essenes existed before ,christianity1 #bcj identical with ,mithraism1 #bcb profound regard for the sun1 #bci ,eusebius regarded the ,essenes as ,christians1 #bbi ,eusebius's ,history a probable forgery1 #bjf 99,f99 ,farrar1 ,canon1 on priestcraft1 #dh ,fisher1 ,prof41 on decline of clerical authority1 #db ,fisk1 ,john1 on glacial period1 #ie ,forlong1 ,gen41 on ,jews1 #ee on area of ,judea and ,samaria1 #ei ,forlong1 ,gen41 on prevalence of phallicism1 #acj #acc on the fall1 #agj 99,g99 ,gnosticism1 #cee- #cfb ,gnostics1 what they held1 #bfg ,gerald ,massey on1 #bhj- #bid ,gibbon on1 #bid ,golden ,rule used by ,confucius1 ,isocrates1 ,aristotle1 ,sixtus1 ,pittacus1 ,thales1 from three to six centuries before ,christ1 #cbg ,gospel in the ,stars1 #add #ade ,grecian ,argos1 date of1 #ajh ,gregory on ignorance and devotion1 #dd 99,h99 ,hale1 ,dr41 on insincerity in the pulpit1 #db ,sir ,matthew1 condemns a witch to death1 #aah ,harmonies of the ,gospels1 #cdg ,herod died before ,jesus was born1 #cae ,heyne on myths and philosophy1 #abc ,hindoo laws quoted1 #aje- #ajh ,hirsch1 ,rabbi1 on ,pentateuch1 #aai #abj ,holmes1 ,o4 ,w41 ,rector and ,doctor1 #be ,huxley on clerical opposition to progress1 #dh on the deluge1 #aeg #aeh on the fall1 #ahg #ahh 99,i99 ,i ,h ,s1 numerals which stand for #cjh explained1 #bih ,inman1 ,dr41 on ,adam and ,eve1 #afi ,irenus the real founder of the ,roman hierarchy1 #bbj 99,j99 ,jacob and ,joseph1 #aba ,jefferson to ,pickering1 #df to ,dr4 ,cooper1 #dg ,jeoud1 son of ,saturn1 origin of the name of ,jew1 #aej ,jesus1 ,essenism personified1 #bfd ,jesuses1 many1 #aig ,jews1 mongrels1 #ed origin of1 #ee real cause of exodus1 #gh ,john's ,gospel first mentioned by ,theophilus of ,antioch in ,a4 d4 #agf #bai ,johnson1 ,rev4 ,samuel1 on the ideal ,christ1 #bgf- #bha also #cje #cjf #cbc #cbd ,jonah and the fish1 with its parallel myths1 #aei ,jones1 ,sir ,william1 on antiquity of the ,vedas1 #aje ,josephus1 forgery of passages relating to ,jesus1 numerous authorities quoted1 #bjj- #bjc4 joins the ,essenes1 #bbi on the 8burning bush10 #abf ,joshua1 and the sun standing still1 #afb ,justinian ,code1 origin of1 #aje 99,k99 ,kaffirs celebrate the catamnial period1 #cha ,keys of ,peter1 an interpolation1 #bdf ,knight1 ,richard ,payne1 on the 8,worship of ,priapus10 #acj 99,l99 ,lactantius1 admissions of1 #cbc ,lardner1 ,dr41 on deceit1 #dd admissions of1 #agg concerning fall1 #agc ,lenormant's admission1 #ih ,le ,renouf on origin of ,egyptian civilization1 #ajd ,lesley1 ,prof41 on phallicism1 #aca ,lord's ,prayer very ancient1 #cbg ,luther on ,copernicus1 #add ,lyell on delta of ,mississippi1 #ie 99,m99 ,mahaffy1 ,prof41 on the identity of the ,egyptian and ,christian religions1 #cba #cbb ,manetheo on date of ,egyptian monarchy1 #ig ,manning1 ,archbishop1 consecration of1 suggestive1 #acc ,manu1 laws of #bfhj slocas1 #ajd #aje ,maomonide#h1 admission as to the fall being allegorical1 #agh ,marius1 story of1 #bd ,martyr's1 ,justin1 comparison of ,christianity and other religions1 #cai- #cba ,massey on the ideal ,christ1 #bhd #bhh on symbolism1 #abc ,matthew1 ,gospel of1 written in ,hebrew according to ,irenus1 ,origen1 and ,jerome1 #bag ,menes1 date of reign1 #if ,merrell1 ,rev4 ,geo4 ,e41 gap of three1 centuries in ,,mss41 #bab ,miller1 ,dr41 on examination of ministers1 #cc ,milman on deceit1 #dd ,mitchell1 ,prof41 on mummy coffin1 #adc ,mithraism1 its prevalence1 #bcc #bch ,moses1 strange coincidences in the life of1 #aji- #aab a myth2 horns1 #adg and the ,midianites and witches1 #aae #aah ,mosheim on deceit1 #dc ,,mss41 date of1 #bac ,mller1 ,max1 on dates1 #ajd ,mutilation1 bodily1 #cce 99,n99 ,neander's concession1 #cjh ,neo-,platonists1 what they taught1 #bcg ,newton1 ,sir ,isaac1 what he perceived1 #bch ,nineveh not three days' journey from the coast1 #aei ,noah and the deluge2 ,chaldean and other nations1 #aef 99,o99 ,origen on the fall1 #agh ,orphic and other dramas1 #bce ,oswald1 ,dr4 ,felix ,l41 quoted1 #ccf ,oxley1 ,william1 accounts of ,jesus from ,egyptian sources1 #bif concerning ,egyptian statuettes1 #bif #cja on the ,jews1 #gi 99,p99 ,pagan contemporaneous with ,jesus2 authorities quoted1 #bjd4 ,papius and ,polycarp1 not instructed by ,john the son of ,zebedee1 but probably by ,john1 a ,presbyter of ,asia ,minor1 #bai ,paul's genuine ,epistles1 #bad #bae ,paxson1 ,chief-,justice1 open letter to1 #aba ,peck1 ,bishop1 on blood1 #bgg ,pentateuch1 date of1 #ig #ih #ajj #aja ,peter's name of ,chaldaic origin1 #bdh ,phallicism not necessarily obscene1 #abi #ace ,philo1 admission of1 #agh ,phnicians1 date of1 #aji ,plato on ,homer's poems1 #abb ,presbyterian serpent symbolism1 #abh ,proclus on ,plato1 #abb ,prometheus1 the god-man1 #cjc 99,r99 ,rachel sitting on the wedges1 #acb ,rameses ,,ii41 ,pharaoh of the captivity1 #if ,reber exposes a fraud1 #bbj ,religion1 definition of1 #ab ,renan on religion1 #ab ,roberts1 ,dr4 ,alexander1 ,version #ahha1 #baj ,roscoe1 ,william1 description of the consecration of ,pope ,alexander ,,vi41 #acd ,ryan1',bishop1 installed1 #ca #afc 99,s99 ,sabbath observed #aajj years before the ,hebrews existed1 #aac ,sacrifices1 human1 beasts1 #cig #cih ,samson story and the twelve labors of ,hercules2 the foxes1 #afj #afa ,sethi ,,ii41 ,egyptian king1 his good old age1 #if ,shedd1 ,prof41 admission1 #dji ,smith1 ,dr4 ,robertson1 on the ,gospels1 #bae on sacrifice1 #cih etc4 ,spencer1 ,herbert1 on infinite and eternal energy1 #dbc ,st4 ,patrick and the snakes1 #abh ,stanley on blood-friendship1 #chi ,stuart1 ,moses1 on the 8indefinite-period0 theory1 #age 99,t99 ,tacitus1 ,annala of1 forged1 #bje ,talmage on blood1 #cgg ,talmud1 ,babylonian1 #bb 8wilderness of speculations_/' #aif ,taylor1 ,jeremy1 on blood1 #cgg ,tertullian1 fanatical expression of1 #bgc ,testimony1 hint as to the origin of the word1 #acb ,theodosius1 ,emperor1 ordered books burned1 #bdd #bid ,toldoth ,jethu1 #bfe ,trumbull on blood covenant1 #chb-chi ,tyndall on religion1 #aa 99,u99 ,ussher1 ,archbishop1 his chronology1 #ie 99,v99 ,vedio prophecies1 #aid ,virgin-born gods1 #cfi #cga ,von ,martins1 conversion of1 #ahc 99,w99 ,wake1 ,c4 ,staniland1 on ,pentateuch1 #aja ,whately1 ,archbishop1 converted by ,sir ,john ,lubbock and ,taylor1 #ahc ,white1 ,andrew ,d41 shows how science contradicts theology1 #ahc ,winchell1 ,dr4 ,alexander1 and the ,methodists1 #ahd ,witches executed1 modern examples1 #aah 99,z99 ,zodiac1 #adj #ada age estimated1 #adc ,zoroaster prophesied of virgins1 #aid ,,the ,,end4