,,christian ,,mystery  ,a ,,chinese     
,,tale1 ,,found ,,in ,,the ,,portfolio  
,,of ,a ,,portuguese ,,friar4           
,hear1 ,o prodigy6 ,o ,tenderness6 ,o   
,mystery6--,he has just      drowned the
 ,fathers2--and now he will die for the 
,children6       ,voltaire4   ,,london3 
,,printed  ,,published ,,by ,r4         
,,carlile1 #ee1 ,,fleet ,,street4       
#ahai4      ,,christian ,,mystery       
,commercial affaire had engaged me to   
make a sea voyage4 ,i had got far from  
the shores of my native country1 when a 
dreadful tempest threw me on an unknown 
coast2 however1 ,i fell into the hands  
of a very humane people1 and soon found 
they had brought the arts to great      
perfection1 that they practised many    
virtues1 and appeared to me in a state  
as enlightened as humanity could attain4
  ,my admiration of them equalled my    
gratitude1 but1 alas6 it is but too     
true1 that man always discovers by some 
failing the weakness of his being4      
,these people shewed as much friendship 

towards me as ,i could possibly do to   
them2 their mildness and civility       
entirely gained my affection4 ,they said
 to me one day1 ,of what religion are   
you8 ,the question surprised me2 ,i     
asked them if there were two religions1 
at which they smiled1 and ,i saw they   
were astonished at my ignorance4 ,my    
friend1 said one of them1 give thanks to
 ,god for having conducted you amongst  
us to be instructed in our holy         
religion4 ,you do not know then that    
,god has made himself a man8 ,i assured 
them it was the first time ,i had heard 
of it1 and asked them why he had become 
a man8 ,know1 continued they1 that the  
first man eat an apple which ,god had   
forbidden him1 in consequence of which  
all his posterity were condemned to     
eternal punishment4 ,at another time men
 became so criminal that the ,almighty  
repented of having created them1 and    
drowned them all with the exception of  
eight persons4 ,the posterity of these  
became no better1 ,god continued to be  

displeased1 and as it was necessary to  
reconcile him to mankind1 ,god the ,son 
became a man to appease ,god the        
,father4  ,this divine family astonished
 me a little4 ,and the daughter of ,god1
 said ,i1 what is become of her8 ,they  
answered gravely1 ,god has no daughter4 
,oh6 he has but a ,son3 but how do you  
know the sex of this ,son8 ,they        
answered1 ,god is incorporeal1 he has no
 sex4 ,i insisted--how could ,god the   
,father produce ,god the ,son8 ,he begot
 him4 ,god has a sex then1--he must also
 have a wife4 ,they smiled at me again4 
,but when did the ,father beget this    
,son8 ,from all eternity4 ,my friends1  
there is an apparent contradiction1 it  
is not possible for the ,son who was    
begotten to be as old as the ,father4   
,has the ,father then any other         
children8 ,no2 but there is a third     
person who proceeds from the ,father and
 the ,son4 ,i suppose he was begotten   
also8 ,no2 certainly not3 pray take care
 what you say1 or you will be guilty of 

heresy4 ,i replied1 ,i did not          
understand them4  ,o1 ,sir1 these are   
mysteries which ,god himself has        
revealed to men1 to the end that they   
might understand nothing4 ,wonderful1   
said ,i4 ,they continued3 ,god wished to
 humble men's reason1 that is1 to give  
them a disregard for the most precious  
gift they hold of his bounty4 ,and you  
make no use of your reason then8 ,o yes2
 we are allowed to use it in all other  
actions of our lives1 but in matters of 
religion it would be impious4 ,better   
and better1 said ,i4 ,so then ,i find   
you have three ,gods8 ,no1 no1 replied  
they1 we have indeed three persons1 of  
whom the first is the ,father1 the      
second is the ,son1 or word1 the third  
is the ,holy ,spirit2 but all these     
three make only one ,god4 ,how1         
,gentlemen8 these three make but one1   
and one makes three6 ,yes2 it is so1    
replied they1 though contrary to all the
 rules of arithmetic2 you must know that
 our theology is far superior to this   

petty science2 however we will explain  
the whole to you4  ,what do you call the
 third person8 said ,i4 ,the ,holy      
,ghost4 ,has the ,holy ,ghost been a man
 also8 ,no2 but he became a pigeon2 we  
do not know indeed that it was his      
natural form1 but when he appeared to   
the apostles he was pleased to borrow   
that shape4  ,and the ,son of ,god has  
been a man from all eternity8 ,o no1    
only seventeen hundred years4  ,of whom1
 and now was he born8 ,he was born of a 
virgin4 ,she would certainly be much    
surprised know-ing herself to be a      
virgin8 ,o yes2 you are right2 but an   
angel came to prepare her that she might
 not be alarmed in being brought to bed4
 ,yet ,i suppose you will be still more 
surprised when we tell you she was      
married8 ,o no2 pardon me1 ,i understand
 this mystery better than all the       
others4 ,nay1 do not jest1 ,sir1 her    
husband had not slept with her2 we have 
it so revealed to us4 ,and pray how did 
she conceive8 ,by the operation of the  

,holy ,ghost4 ,but you say that the     
,holy ,ghost proceeds from the ,son2 how
 then could he produce the ,son8 ,yes1  
,sir1 it is so1 by the infallible       
decision of the holy church4 ,and who   
was his mother8 ,the wife of a          
carpenter4 ,what kind of a life did he  
lead8 ,he served thirty years in his    
father's shop1 and was very serviceable 
to him4 ,indeed1 gentlemen1 very well6  
,i perceive you have sublime notions of 
the divinity4 ,at the age of thirty he  
began to preach to the people in the    
country1 which lasted some time2 at     
length the magistrates became           
displeased1 because in his sermons he   
said a great deal about rich men1 and   
the officers of the government4 ,he     
foresaw that he would be punished1 and  
perspired both water and blood4 ,indeed6
 that is another fine trait in his      
character4  ,at length he was arrested  
by the magistrates1 and crucified       
between two robbers4 ,and he died8 ,yes4
 ,and was buried8 ,yes4 ,well then ,i   

suppose that is the end of his history8 
,hold1 ,sir1 you go too fast2 he died1  
it is true1 but it was in consideration 
that ,god would pardon mankind4 ,oh1 ,i 
understand you4 ,god would pardon the   
sins of mankind because they had killed 
his ,son4 ,truly1 nothing could be      
better imagined4 ,but know for testimony
 of his divinity1 he rose again the     
third day4 ,and what proof have you of  
this8 ,the writings of his disciples4   
,but what said the people8 ,they        
contradicted it4  ,oh1 gentlemen6 ,i    
find you are as well provided with      
proofs as with reasonings2 but did he   
perform any other miracles8 ,yes2 he    
cured those possessed of evil spirits2  
dried a fig tree2 sent devils into a    
herd of swine2 filled the nets of his   
disciples with fishes1 and changed water
 into wine2 but he loved so to humble   
himself1 that never in his life did he  
own that he was ,god4 ,and why do you   
believe it8 ,his sectaries have disputed
 a long time on this important article1 

as well as of the ,holy ,ghost1 because 
three persons were not spoken of in the 
,old ,testament4 ,the ,holy ,ghost was  
found out to be ,god after twelve       
hundred years had passed over1 and as   
for the divinity of ,jesus1 three       
hundred years of disputes1 troubles1 and
 massacres sufficed to decide the matter
 in his favour4  ,as you love this ,god 
so much1 ,i suppose he was born in your 
country8 ,no2 he was born in another    
quarter of the globe4 ,indeed6 ,you go  
very far to seek your gods6 ,he must    
then have left a book of doctrines of   
religion1 which you thought proper to   
adopt8 ,no8 he did not teach a new      
religion1 neither did he write any      
thing2 but some of his disciples have   
written his history and discourses4 ,and
 your religion is there exactly         
prescribed8 ,oh1 no6 ,we have only a few
 particulars of his life1 accompanied by
 some moral precepts2 he has there      
declared that he came to fulfil the     
ancient law and not to change it4 ,then 

there was a particular religion in the  
country where he was born1 before his   
time8 ,yes4 ,and it is that same        
religion that you still observe8 ,no2   
ours is in direct opposition to it4 ,but
 whence then is this new religion1 for  
you own that it was never announced by  
your ,god8 ,we have explained1          
commented1 interpreted without ceasing  
these seventeen hundred years on the    
discourses of ,christ2 and have drawn   
from them a long succession of dogmas   
and mysteries quite new4 ,and do you all
 agree in these interpretations8 ,no3   
far from it4 ,we have always been       
disputing1 fighting1 and killing one    
another on account of them4 ,well1 ,i am
 very sorry to tell you that ,i do not  
think your religion very attracting4    
,what do you say8 ,you do not agree in  
your explanations1 and you quarrel and  
kill each other about them8 ,your       
religion does not at all please me2 yet 
,i suppose it had been adopted by the   
people of the country where your ,god   

dwelt8 ,you are again deceived2 ,christ 
had but a very small number of          
disciples1 and these were from the      
lowest class of the people4 ,have we not
 already told you that he was put to    
death by order of the magistrates8 ,what
 do you say1 gentlemen8 ,was not his    
doctrine believed by the people he      
attempted to instruct8 ,no4 ,his        
miracles1 have they not persuaded those 
who were witnesses8 ,no4 ,and why should
 you believe them2 you who came         
seventeen hundred years after him8 ,o1  
,sir1 all things require an explanation4
 ,know then that ,god sent his ,son     
among this people whose hearts he had   
hardened1 purposely that they might not 
believe in him4  ,well explained6 ,i am 
quite delighted with your mode of       
reasoning2 but pray what name do you    
give this people8 ,jews4--,jews8 ,jews6 
,i never heard of them8 ,no1 ,i believe 
you4 ,they occupied such a small        
territory that their reputation did not 
extend far2 nevertheless they were      

formerly ,god's favourite people4 ,god  
chose them from among all the nations of
 the earth2 he governed them himself1   
and often conversed with their chiefs4  
,sometimes through tenderness for his   
people he ordered them to massacre each 
other2 and at one time twenty three     
thousand were put to death by their own 
citizens at the express command of ,god4
  ,god ordered one of their kings to    
murder every man of a nation they had   
vanquished2 the king had the audacity to
 spare some who were not in a state to  
defend themselves and was punished for  
it4 ,a son of this king was condemned to
 die for eating honey on the day of     
battle1 and ,god1 who was justly        
irritated at the father as well as son1 
proscribed them both1 and made choice of
 a new king4  ,this king 7whom ,god had 
expressly chosen7 committed adultery    
with the wife of one of his generals1   
and massacred her husband4 ,by the      
adultress he had a son who kept seven   
hundred wives and three hundred         

concubines in his seraglio2 but you must
 know these two kings were cherished by 
our ,god2 both had heavenly benedictions
 heaped on their heads4 ,the father was 
the man after ,god's own heart1 and the 
son was the wisest of men4 ,the ,son of 
,god1 who became a man1 descended in a  
direct line from this wisest of men1 and
 from the adultress of whom we have just
 spoken4  ,o1 gentlemen1 exclaimed ,i1  
you make me shudder at your impious     
ideas4 ,they resumed4 ,have we not told 
you that the conduct of this ,god was   
always mysterious1 purposely to humble  
our weak reason8 ,the first legislator  
whom ,god gave to his favourite people  
was an assassin2 but he had nevertheless
 the gift of performing a number of     
miracles4 ,he composed a body of civil  
and religious rites and laws which we   
still revere as having been inspired by 
the ,deity4 ,and yet1 you do not observe
 them8 ,no2 truly4 ,we hold those people
 in horror who do so4 ,it is true1 that 
this was formerly the favourite people  

of ,god1 and all other nations were     
rejected2 afterwards the other nations  
were chosen1 and this favourite people  
rejected4 ,do you not admire1 ,sir1 the 
wisdom of the ,god we adore8  ,at this  
discourse1 ,i stole away from them1 and 
could scarcely persuade myself it was   
more than a dream4 ,having before seen  
to what great perfection this people had
 attained in every human science1 ,i    
began to fear the weakness of my nature1
 and determined to return to my country2
 lest those abominable ,european        
prejudices should make me forget my duty
 to my fellow creatures1 and reverence  
for the ,god of all worlds4   ,,the     
,,end4