,,the ,,bible ,,unveiled ,by ,m4 ,m4 ,mangasarian #aiaa ,when ,i seriously believe a thing1 ,i say so in a few words1 leaving the reader to determine what my belief is worth4 ,but ,i do not choose to temper down every expression of personal opinion into courteous generalities4 ,let us learn to speak plainly and intelligibly first1 and1 if it may be1 gracefully afterwards4--,john ,ruskin4 ,,to make it possible for a man to be as honest in his religion as he would like to be in his business2 to make him as unafraid in church as he aims to be anywhere else1 and to help make him as impatient of a lie on ,sunday as he is on any other day of the week1 is the object of these studies on the bible4 ,i wish to be able to kindle in the breast of every free citizen of this free country the love of truth1 irrespective of whether it helps or hurts2 ,i wish to shame cowardice and cant out of every man and woman who speaks the ,english language4 ,,contents ,an ,extraordinary ,book ,a ,word with the ,reader--,protestant and ,catholic ,a ,word with the ,jews ,,part ,i4 ,i4 ,the ,neglected ,book ,what ,makes a ,book ,inspired8 ,the ,sects and ,their ,bibles ,catholic and ,protestant ,bibles ,catholics ,make ,their ,own ,bible ,,part ,,ii4 ,i4 ,the ,tercentenary of the ,english ,bible ,some ,lay ,defenders of the ,bible--,bryan's ,challenge ,bryan's ,defense of the ,bible ,,ii4 ,roosevelt on the ,bible ,,iii4 ,let ,them ,produce ,it ,what ,is the ,best ,thing ,that ,can ,be ,said in ,favor of the ,bible8 ,,iv4 ,how to ,test a ,book ,speak ,according to ,knowledge ,,part ,,iii4 ,i4 ,the ,first ,chapter of the ,bible ,the ,first ,verse of the ,bible ,theologians ,discover ,that ,six ,days ,means ,six ,periods ,the ,great ,tragedy ,,ii4 ,taboo and ,totem4 ,the ,totem ,,iii4 ,the ,bible and ,magic ,the ,unbelievable in the ,bible ,,iv4 ,the ,strangest ,story in the ,bible ,,part ,,iv4 ,i4 ,god and ,his ,book ,the ,deity ,demands ,human ,flesh ,,ii4 ,the ,portrait of ,god in the ,bible ,a ,bible ,saint ,,iii4 ,the ,bible and ,judaism ,,iv4 ,bible and ,talmud ,v4 ,the ,masterpiece of the ,bible--,solomon's ,temple ,,part ,v4 ,contradictions in the ,bible ,serious ,discrepancies in the ,story of ,jesus ,one ,writer ,makes ,jesus ,affirm ,what ,another ,made ,him ,deny ,,part ,,vi4 ,i4 ,what ,was ,the ,bible ,meant to ,teach8 ,,ii4 ,the ,bible and ,religion ,,iii4 ,does the ,bible ,teach ,morality8 ,,iv4 ,righteousness in the ,bible ,v4 ,the ,ten ,commandments ,,vi4 ,the ,commandments ,broken ,,vii4 ,thou ,shalt ,despise ,women ,,viii4 ,the ,sermon on the ,mount ,,ix4 ,the ,parables of ,jesus ,,part ,,vii4 ,i4 ,a ,better ,bible ,conclusion4 ,the ,book of ,god and the ,book of ,man ,an ,extraordinary ,book ,a ,,book which claims infallibility2 which aspires to absolute authority over mind and body2 which demands unconditional surrender to all its pretensions upon penalty of eternal damnation1 is an extraordinary book and should1 therefore1 be subjected to extraordinary tests4 ,neither ,christian priests nor ,jewish rabbis approve of applying to the bible the same tests by which other books are tried4 ,why8 ,because it will help the bible8 ,it can not be that4 ,because it might hurt the bible8 ,we can think of no other reason4 ,but why devote so much space and time to the discussion of a book in which the educated world no longer believes8 ,why not take up issues that are more alive and more useful8 ,i am of the opinion that the people who leave the bible alone do so1 not because they think the book has ceased to hurt1 but because they are still afraid of it1 or its clientle4 ,the generality of reformers would rather fight giants than the great paper idol of the churches--because it is safer4 ,clergymen with liberal tendencies seek to dull the edge of all criticism against the bible by admitting in advance the conclusions of scholarship in reference to it1 but still pretending to find a unique use for the book as literature4 ,indeed6 ,and since when has the bible1 from being a divine revelation1 fallen to the level of mere letters8 ,if the bible is mere literature1 would the mails accept it in its present form8 ,would it be tolerated in the homes of the people8 ,and why should there be a paid army of men in the service of a book which is only literature8 ,why so many priests and rabbis to do its bidding1 and why should so many costly and untaxed temples and cathedrals be built for a book which is no more than any other literature8 ,why should missionaries be maintained to push the sale of this one book if it is nothing but literature8 ,why is the world broken up into sects and creeds without number in the name of this literature8 ,peculiar literature1 this6 ,the veil lifted6 ,i am not going to give new names to the bible1 or find new hidden meanings in it4 ,that is not my profession4 ,occultism1 which enables a reader to find in any book whatever he is seeking1 has never commanded my respect4 ,by lifting the veil1 ,i mean a very simple thing--showing up the bible4 ,all idols are veiled4 ,the veil is the idol4 ,uncovered1 they scare nobody4 ,i shall try to do to the great idol of ,christendom what the sun does to the earth--coax it into the light4 ,a ,word with the ,reader--,protestant and ,catholic ,,let me assure the prospective ,catholic and ,protestant readers of this volume that ,i do not harbor a single feeling toward them which is not of the kindest and the most respectful4 ,i have no quarrel whatever with individuals1 or with parties4 ,it is altogether foreign to my nature to take pleasure in giving pain to others4 ,if the truth gives pain1 it is not the fault of the teacher1 nor of the reader who hears it for the first time1 but of error1 which stabs and stings before it will surrender its victims4 ,having been a ,christian believer myself1 ,i have the warmest sympathy for all who still wear the yoke of superaturalism4 ,but ,i have no pity for error4 ,i will not consult its pleasure4 ,i will not spare it4 ,before any of my readers condemn me for speaking openly1 and without reservation1 ,i trust they will think of something else ,i could have said about the bible which would have been better than the truth4 ,and as ,i am going to make the bible speak for itself1 ,i am sure no one will charge me with misrepresenting the facts4 ,but ,i have no business to be concerned about either pleasing or displeasing anybody4 ,i am going to tell the truth1 even if it hurts4 ,if telling the truth hurts me1 it is ,i1 and not the truth1 that has to get out of the way2 if it hurts you1 it is you1 and not the truth1 that has to be sacrificed4 ,not truth for truth's sake1 but truth for humanity's sake1 is the better motto1 argue certain teachers2 but is there a better way of serving humanity than through truth8 ,even as ,art for art's sake will give humanity the highest art1 ,truth for truth's sake will give to the world the only bread it can live by4 ,a ,word with the ,jews ,,as the bible is the work of ,jewish authors1 and as ,i say quite a little about ,jews and ,judaism in this book1 ,i wish to take the pains to explain my position in advance4 ,rationalism is much indebted to the educated ,jew4 ,even more is the ,jew indebted to ,rationalism4 ,the only miracle in the history of ,israel was performed by ,rationalism4 ,all the bible miracles are nothing in comparison4 ,rationalism has saved the ,jew from his greatest enemy--the bible4 ,it is to the great credit of the ,jew that he has survived his holy book4 ,no people have suffered more from it than the chosen people4 ,the bible has made the ,jew a wanderer and an alien in every country4 ,when thinking of the martyrdom of this race through the centuries1 the poet ,heine exclaimed3 ,judaism is not a religion2 ,judaism is a misfortune4 99 ,the same poet congratulates himself upon the hastening departure of ,jehovah3 ,it is the old ,jehovah himself that is preparing for death4 ,hear ye not the bells resounding8 ,kneel down1 they are bringing the sacraments to a dying ,god4 99 ,heine3 ,philosophy and ,religion in ,germany4 ,the great strides which the modern ,jew has made in culture as well as in commerce1 he owes to his emancipation from the influence of the bible4 ,the more he disobeys the bible the more universal he becomes in his sympathies and tastes4 ,with the crushing load of the bible taken off his shoulders1 the ,jew is swift in responding to the most beneficent influences of environment4 ,away from ,judaism lies the salvation of the ,jew4 ,it was in ,europe and ,america1 among the ,gentiles1 and not in ,palestine1 that the ,jew discovered himself4 ,not until he turned his back upon ,jehovah and his book did the ,jew leap forth to conquer in art1 in literature1 in science1 and in all the graces that help to make genius and virtue attractive4 ,i do not say that all persecution and prejudice will end when ,jew and ,christian cease to follow the teachings of the bible1 but surely the most formidable obstacles to the fraternization of the races shall be removed4 ,it is a service to humanity to try to free the ,jew from the rabbinical yoke1 and the ,christian from that of the priest4 ,the rabbi is as much a schismatic as the priest4 ,the parent of both is the bible4 ,once for all1 ,i beg the readers of this book to know that ,i do not believe for a moment that the ,jews ever taught the absurdities1 or practiced the atrocities1 with which the bible credits them4 ,i do not believe they ever started on an expedition to murder babes and sucklings1 or to capture girls for their harems1 for which acts the bible praises them4 ,like the ,catholics and the ,protestants1 the ,jews1 inspired by these same scriptures1 have committed many follies through the centuries1 but ,i am positive in my own mind that the terrible ,old ,testament picture of the ,jew is a libel against humanity1 as well as against the ,jews4 ,not until the ,jew has completely parted with bible and ,talmud2 not until he has completely surrendered to ,rationalism in mind and body--for as long as he practices the ,abrahamic rite upon his children as a religious duty he will continue to be an alien in every land--will the ,jew end his wanderings in the wilderness and enter the land of promise4 ,the ,messiah of the ,jew1 as well as of the ,christian1 is come4 ,it is ,rationalism4 ,and what is ,rationalism8 ,the authority of ,reason4 ,,part ,i4 ,i4 ,the ,neglected ,book ,,the bible is a sort of national pet in this country4 ,we are taught from the cradle to revere1 and almost worship it4 ,in time1 the bible comes to be as near and dear to us as our own mothers4 ,when anybody praises it1 we applaud him2 when anybody criticizes it1 we feel toward him as we would toward one who has betrayed his country1 or insulted the national flag4 ,when1 recently1 ,president ,taft praised the bible by saying that ,our laws1 our literature and our social life owe whatever excellence they possess largely to the influence of this1 our chief classic1 he was1 ,i am sure1 quite sincere4 ,but1 evidently1 all he knows about the bible is what was taught him in the nursery1 the ,sunday-school1 or the church4 ,the majority of people who exalt the bible above all other books have not studied the book--not even read it1 except a chapter here and a passage there4 ,if the bible had been a smaller book1 people would have been more familiar with its contents1 but being a book of ponderous size1 the generality of people have only a dilettante acquaintance with its contents4 ,really1 the size of the book has been its best protection4 ,there is scarcely any other book which is more reverenced1 and less known1 than the bible4 ,the bible societies1 however1 claim that for long centuries the bible has been the best seller4 ,about twenty million copies a year have been disposed of during the past three hundred years4 ,but selling a book1 and getting it read1 are not the same thing4 ,there are reasons which explain the enormous traffic in bibles4 ,a great deal of money is expended every year to push its sale4 ,great legacies are devoted to the translation and dissemination of the bible in every country4 ,powerful corporations exist all over ,christendom to introduce the bible into new territories4 ,besides1 the book is sold at a nominal price1 often below cost1 which is made possible by large endowments and legacies4 ,another reason which explains the vogue of the bible is the fact that it is protected against all competition4 ,the king is behind the book2 the press is behind it2 and a halo of divinity is thrown about it to scare people from examining their own holy book with the same freedom that they examine the holy books of other countries4 ,what other book has ever received the patronage which the bible commands1 even to-day8 ,and what would have been the fate of the bible had no more been done for it than has been done for ,shakespeare1 for example8 ,not until all artificial helps and props have been removed1 will we be in a position to say whether the bible sells on its own merits1 or whether it is indebted for its popularity to special privilege4 ,but1 as already intimated1 notwithstanding these enormous sales1 the bible is read so little by the present generation that it may well be called ,the ,neglected ,book4 ,to prove this1 we are not going to quote ,rationalists1 but clergymen4 ,the complaint from every pulpit is that the bible is being ignored by the people more and more every day4 ,the ,rev4 ,lyman ,abbott read1 at one of his lectures1 a chapter from the bible1 without1 however1 mentioning the name of the book to his hearers4 ,he was addressing an lite audience2 on the platform were judges1 bankers and the first citizens of the town4 ,at the conclusion of his lecture two of the gentlemen on the platform1 one of them a judge1 asked him for the name of the book he had read from4 ,lyman ,abbott himself tells this and other similar stories to show how ignorant the ,american public is of the contents of the book they venerate so piously and gush over so spectacularly4 ,the very people1 however1 who are so ignorant of the bible1 would be the first to throw up their hands in horror should the least criticism be directed against its contents4 ,the same complaint1 namely1 that people are neglecting the study of the bible1 is made by other clergymen4 ,in schools and colleges1 even1 great ignorance has been discovered among the pupils about the bible4 ,professor ,hamilton reports that1 in visiting certain schools in ,new ,york1 he found among pupils preparing for college1 and nearly of an age for entrance1 whole classes that could not answer the easiest questions about the contents of the bible4 ,it is my opinion that the complaining clergymen themselves are not so well acquainted with the bible as they should be4 ,of course1 no harm is done either to science or ethics by this general ignorance of the stories in the bible2 personally1 ,i am pleased at the indifference of the public to a collection of writings which has to be labeled holy to command respect4 ,the above facts are quoted only to prove that1 despite its enormous sales1 the bible is a stranger in the home1 the school1 the study1 the shop1 and in all the assemblies of the people4 ,but the less some people are acquainted with the bible1 the more they seem to believe in it4 ,indeed1 ignorance of the bible is indispensable to faith in its inspiration4 ,moreover1 it is this ignorant veneration which makes it dangerous for any one to read and tell the truth about it4 ,formerly1 when the church had the power1 such a man was either hacked to pieces1 or burned to cinders2 to-day1 even1 he is persecuted as much as public opinion will permit4 ,it is a matter of history that in the name of this ,jewish-,christian volume1 which people do not read and are but superficially acquainted with1 nearly a hundred millions of lives have been destroyed in ,europe alone4 ,could anything be more appalling8 ,in modern times1 the church can no longer do to the unbelievers in the bible what it did to them for over seventeen hundred years1 but it does to them as much as public sentiment will allow4 ,the reader will be interested in examining with me the book in the defense of which1 ,i regret to say1 nearly every imaginable crime has been committed4 ,it gives me pain to say this1 but who can hide the truth8 ,moreover1 my sole purpose in telling the plain truth is not to offend1 or give pain1 but to encourage everybody to approach the book without fear4 ,i am not going to praise the bible2 but ,i am not going to denounce it either2 ,i am going to explain it4 ,it is my desire not so much to talk about the bible--when1 and where1 and by whom1 it was compiled2 how it was lost and discovered2 burned in the destruction of the temple1 and later restored by the scribe ,ezra2 how it has been edited and revised again and again 99 --but to lift the veil and show the book to the world4 99 ,these questions are discussed in the author's pamphlet1 ,how the ,bible ,was ,invented4 ,what ,makes a ,book ,inspired8 ,,before proceeding to read the book1 may ,i explain that an inspired book must be different from uninspired books4 ,if it has excellences and defects like other books1 then it is in no sense different from any of the works of man4 ,an inspired book must be a perfect book1 else what advantage is there in being inspired8 ,again1 an inspired book must contain original matter1 to justify its inspiration4 ,if the bible needed the help of inspiration to say what other books have said without inspiration1 then1 instead of being a greater1 it must needs be a more ordinary book4 ,is there anything in the bible which can not be found elsewhere8 ,while there is not a single idea in the bible which was not known before1 there are many glorious truths of science and philosophy in other books which can not be found in the bible4 ,wherein1 then1 is the bible inspired8 ,let me also explain that an argument1 or the presentation of important facts1 produces an impression only upon the unprejudiced4 ,the soundest reasoning will no more convince a partisan than the most copious shower will give nourishment to the sand4 ,but an argument is never addressed to a biased mind4 ,the appeal of reason is to the fairminded and the free4 ,when1 for instance1 it is shown that certain passages are in one bible1 and not in another2 or how passages1 regarded as divine at one time1 have been dropped or altered in more recent revisions1 a telling point is made against an infallible book1 in the opinion of all honest minds4 ,or1 when it is shown that the bible positively teaches falsehood and immorality1 the question of inspiration is at once closed for all self-respecting and impartial judges4 ,but1 as intimated1 nothing can satisfy prejudice1 or conquer wilful ignorance4 ,prejudice on the one hand1 and stupidity on the other1 are as impervious to argument as a duck's back is to water4 ,the present book is not for minds that are closed4 ,when we go to court to have a case tried1 the value of the evidence we present does not depend upon the appreciation of our adversary's counsel4 ,however convincing our testimony1 he will never admit that it proves his client guilty4 ,it is the impartial judge1 and it is1 again1 the open-minded jury1 that must pass upon the evidence4 ,in the same way1 what we say here about the bible will not convert the priests or the rabbis4 ,we do not write for them4 ,our book will have no effect upon the pope2 it is not meant to change his views4 ,this book is for those who can afford the truth4 ,in conclusion1 the bible is a very delicate subject to handle4 ,the material in hand is so prodigious1 and of such a nature1 that ,i am at a loss to know what to say and what to omit4 ,there are many things in the bible to which ,i would like to call attention but which ,i am debarred from so doing because good taste will not allow it4 ,yet not to be able to refer to these matters places me in the position of an attorney who has his best witnesses and evidence thrown out by a ruling of the court4 ,the church people are permitted to go on and print in every language the texts and stories of the bible which ,i am not allowed even to read in public--much less to comment on them4 ,they can sell the book by the millions1 containing absurdities and atrocities which1 by order of the court 7that is to say1 of public opinion1 or of good taste71 ,i am prohibited from referring to in my argument against the authority of the book4 ,the reader can have no idea what a protection that is to the bible4 ,the defendant1 as it were1 has gagged the prosecution4 ,it needs no effort to realize how much the bible is indebted to this fact for its being tolerated at all in the twentieth century4 ,courtesy prevents the exposure which would completely change the world's opinion of the book4 ,but one can be a little freer in a book than on a public platform4 ,many of the texts quoted in this volume could not have been read from the platform4 ,but there are numerous passages in the bible which would cause even cold print to blush4 ,we shall not disturb those4 ,the ,sects and ,their ,bibles ,,the ,jews deny that the second half of the bible is inspired2 the ,christians admit that the first part of the bible is not as binding as the second part4 ,the ,jew fails to observe that1 in denying inspiration to the ,new ,testament1 he is also depriving the ,old of its inspiration4 ,the arguments by which he disproves the ,new ,testament are the same which disprove the ,old1 and all other inspired documents4 ,the ,christian1 by admitting that the ,old ,testament is no longer as binding upon the conscience of man as it was at one time1 or as the ,new ,testament is now1 surrenders the whole question of inspiration4 ,if the ,old ,testament has been superseded1 the ,new might be1 too4 ,if what ,god says in one part of the book can be ignored by the ,christians1 what he says in another part of the book may just as reasonably be ignored by the ,jews1 and--this is important--what ,god says in either part of the book may be ignored by the ,rationalist4 ,in other words1 the ,rationalist agrees with the ,christian that the ,old ,testament is pass1 and with the ,jews1 that the ,new ,testament is nothing more than ecclesiastical literature4 ,the ,rationalist uses the arguments of the ,jew against the ,new ,testament1 and the arguments of the ,christian against the ,old1 with the result that practically both ,testaments fall by the blows of the sectarians themselves4 ,both ,jew and ,christian seem to be unable to perceive1 or if they do1 they are unwilling to admit1 that not only has each destroyed the position of the other1 but also his own4 ,all the objections which the ,jew brings against ,christianity are equally valid against his own ,judaism4 ,does he object to the ,christian trinity8 ,there is a trinity also in his religion4 ,in ,genesis we read that the ,lord appeared unto ,abraham in three persons4 ,he entertained and worshiped the three men as one ,lord4 99 ,does the ,jew object to the dogma of incarnation8 ,in the ,old ,testament1 ,god repeatedly appears in flesh and blood4 ,is it the immaculate conception that the ,jew can not accept8 ,in ,judaism1 too1 that miracle was of frequent occurrence4 ,maidens in the ,old ,testament1 as in the ,new1 see an angel of the ,lord and become pregnant4 ,is it the doctrine of hell to which the ,jew objects8 ,jesus1 in all probability1 borrowed it from the ,talmud4 ,is it an exclusive salvation that the ,jew rejects8 ,but the extra ecclesia non est solus of the ,catholic is but another version of the ,outside ,israel there is no salvation of the ,old ,testament4 ,is it the doctrine of blood atonement in the ,new ,testament which offends him8 ,the ,old ,testament is as red as the ,new4 ,the difference between ,judaism and ,christianity is one of name1 largely4 ,is it not remarkable how people will subscribe to the very doctrines which they reject1 if presented to them under a different name8 ,jew and ,christian have persecuted one another in the past4 ,why8 ,only for a name4 ,the pity of it6 ,judaism is ,christianity1 and ,christianity is ,judaism4 ,they are called by different names--that is all4 ,to the ,jew we say3 ,you will not take upon you the yoke of the ,new ,testament2 cast down also the yoke of the ,old4 ,and to the ,christian we say3 ,you have already emancipated yourself from the authority of the ,old ,testament to a great extent2 free yourself also from the authority of the ,new4 ,catholic and ,protestant ,bibles ,,the ,catholics do not believe in the ,protestant bible2 the ,protestants do not trust the ,catholic bible4 ,each tells the truth about the bible of the other1 but not of his own4 ,as in the case of the ,jew and the ,christian1 neither the ,catholic nor the ,protestant seems to realize that in condemning each other's bible as untrustworthy1 or as a manipulated copy1 they are condemning also each his own bible4 ,if the ,catholics have tampered with the ,word of ,god1 as the ,protestants claim they have2 and if the ,protestants have a defective bible1 as the ,catholics charge1 then the claim that ,god has preserved his revelation from human error falls to the ground4 ,if ,god did not protect the ,protestant bible from corruption1 he is liable to be equally unconcerned about the ,catholic bible1 from which it follows that the ,word of ,god can be1 and has been1 corrupted1 which1 if true--and both ,catholics and ,protestants say it is--then there is no incorruptible ,word of ,god4 ,the ,rationalist shares with the ,catholic the latter's opinion of the ,protestant bible2 and of the ,catholic bible1 it doubts its reliability just as the ,protestants do4 ,putting what the ,protestants and ,catholics say of each other's bible side by side1 the ,rationalist arrives at the conclusion that both bibles are untrustworthy4 ,let us now consider another phase of the ,catholic-,protestant position on the bible4 ,the ,protestants are apparently very anxious to make the reading of the bible in the home and the school imperative2 the ,catholics1 on the other hand1 seek to make it equally imperative not to read the bible4 ,it is well known that the popes of ,rome1 as heads of the church and vicars of ,christ1 have repeatedly forbidden the reading of the bible by the people4 ,an index of forbidden books is kept in ,rome for the guidance of the faithful1 and1 surprising as it may seem1 the bible was placed upon this ,index ,expurgatorius by the popes themselves4 ,the bull of ,pius ,,iv4 reads3 ,whosoever shall dare to own a copy of this book 7bible7 and read it without having procured a special dispensation shall not receive absolution for his sins4 ,similar prohibitions were given by ,pius ,,vi41 ,leo ,,ii1 ,,xii41 ,gregory ,,xvi41 ,pius ,,ix4 in his ,syllabus1 and ,clement ,,xi4 in his famous bull1 ,unigenitus4 ,in the ,index of forbidden books of ,pope ,innocent ,,xi41 #agjd1 one of the books forbidden is the bible in any of the popular languages4 ,this prohibition was not against the ,protestant bibles only1 for the fourth clause in the ,index is a warning against ,catholic bibles as well1 bibliorum ,catholicis autoribus versorum4 ,my sympathies in this matter are with the ,catholics2 if the bible is an infallible book1 we ought to have an infallible reader4 ,to say that everybody may interpret the bible as he pleases is to say that the bible has no meaning at all1 except what the readers themselves read into it4 ,but if it has an infallible meaning1 only an infallible interpreter can pronounce upon it4 ,and when it is remembered that an erroneous interpretation might be the means of damning the souls of many1 it becomes a positive duty not to read the book for one's self4 ,the ,pope may read it1 because being infallible1 he can not misread it4 ,i admire the logic of the ,catholic church in this respect4 ,grant the premises that the bible is a special revelation--and infallible--and all the arguments of the ,protestants against the ,catholic position shatter to pieces1 like the waves against a rock4 ,but1 as already intimated1 the ,protestants believe in putting the bible in every house1 hotel and school4 ,they want every man to carry a pocket-bible2 and if women had pockets they would be urged to do the same4 ,from all this one would suppose that they were very anxious to get everybody acquainted with the contents of the bible4 ,the different ministerial assemblies1 at their annual gatherings1 recently attacked by official resolutions the decision of the ,supreme ,court of ,illinois1 which made the reading of the bible in the public schools unconstitutional4 ,the ,protestant churches do not seem to care at all about the constitution--they want the bible in the schools1 constitution or no constitution4 ,in the twentieth century the supreme court rules the bible out of the people's schools6 ,had not ,greece fallen before the wave of ,asiatic mysticism1 the bible would have been ruled out of ,europe two thousand years ago4 ,the ,supreme ,court of ,illinois is doing now what the supreme court of ,europe should have done in the year one4 ,notwithstanding protests to the contrary1 ,i am of the opinion that the ,protestants are at heart as opposed to the reading of the bible as the ,catholics4 ,indeed1 they would have everybody read the bible1 but they must not read it with their own eyes1 but as ,calvin1 or ,wesley1 or ,luther read it4 ,but that is not different from the ,catholic position that the ,pope must read the bible for the people4 ,if the ,protestants really permit each to read and interpret the bible according to his best thought1 why are there heresy trials among them8 ,that is a searching question4 ,heresy trials prove beyond a doubt that the ,protestants do not wish anybody to read the bible for himself4 ,see what the church did to me for reading the bible with my own eyes4 ,at the age of twenty-five1 myself1 my wife and baby were dispossessed of church1 position and support4 ,what was done to me for reading the bible with my own eyes has been done to thousands of others8 ,let me read the bible for you1 says the ,catholic4 ,read the bible with my eyes1 says the ,protestant4 ,what is the difference8 ,catholics ,make ,their ,own ,bible ,,one of the significant facts about the bible is that no two copies of it are exactly alike4 ,there are nearly as many versions of it as there are sects4 ,the most important variations are to be found between ,catholic and ,protestant bibles4 ,as ,i write ,i have before me a copy of the ,catholic ,holy ,bible1 on the title-page of which are these words3 ,,holy ,,bible4 ,translated from the ,latin ,vulgate4 ,this edition of the ,holy ,catholic ,bible1 having been duly examined1 is hereby approved of4 ,then follows a long list of the names of bishops and archbishops4 ,it is thus intimated that no bible is the ,word of ,god unless it has the endorsement of these ,catholic dignitaries4 ,only after these men have examined the bible and given it their sanction does the book become divine4 ,no layman can tell for himself1 unaided by a priest1 the ,word of ,god from the word of man4 ,in fact1 it is the priest who changes the word of man into the ,word of ,god by the same process that he converts ordinary bread into a ,god4 ,there is given also in the ,holy ,catholic ,bible1 before me1 a list of the books which are pronounced to be inspired by the ,council of ,trent4 ,to introduce into the bible any book not contained in this list1 or to exclude from the bible any one of the books which the ,council of ,trent has decided to be inspired1 is to be guilty of blasphemy4 ,this is what it says3 ,now if any one reading over these books in all their parts1 as they are usually read in the ,catholic ,church444 does not hold them sacred and canonical444 and does industriously contemn them let him be anathema4 ,to be anathema means to be accursed4 ,in other words1 there is no choice2 it is the ,catholic bible or a curse4 ,no man has any right to choose for himself1 or decide according to his own conscience and knowledge1 which is the ,word of ,god1 or how much in the various bibles is actually the ,word of ,god4 ,he must1 then1 choose between the priest's bible or--his curse4 ,to try to prove a book inspired by threatening to curse all those who may tell the truth about it1 is a sure sign that the makers of the bible themselves do not believe in its inspiration4 ,it is impossible to think that if the priests really believed the bible to be divine1 they would have undertaken to hedge it about with anathemas4 ,but they curse to conceal their own unbelief4 ,there is not another book that had to curse its readers to make them believe in it4 ,the most effective argument against the bible is furnished by the church itself4 ,for nearly fifteen hundred years it hanged and burned people alive to make them believe in the bible4 ,that is a good way to prove one's unbelief1 not one's faith4 ,it shows what little confidence the ,catholics had in the ability of the ,word of ,god to defend itself against a ,giordano ,bruno1 when they burned him at the stake2 and how dubious the ,protestants were of their bible1 when they burned ,michael ,servetus at the stake4 ,the long list of terrible crimes committed in defense of the bible is a conclusive proof1 first1 of the unbelief of the ,christians themselves in the ability of the bible to win men by the beauty and truth of its teachings2 and1 second1 of the evil influence of the book upon those who accepted its authority4 ,the preface to the ,catholic bible offers a further proof of the lack of confidence of ,christians in the ,word of ,god4 ,it forbids people1 as already shown1 to read the ,word of ,god without first securing the consent of a priest4 ,it is a heinous thing1 according to the church authorities1 to undertake to read the bible on one's own responsibility4 ,to prevent and remedy this abuse 7namely1 that of reading the bible1 and interpreting it for one's self71 says this same preface1 it was judged necessary to forbid the reading of the scriptures in the vulgar tongues4 ,of course1 ''there is no prohibition against reading it in ,latin1 or ,hebrew1 or ,greek1 or in any language that one does not understand1 but it is forbidden to read it in the vulgar1 that is to say1 in any language that the reader is familiar with1 without the advice and permission of the pastors and spiritual guides whom ,god has appointed to govern his church4 ,to prove this authority of the priest to forbid the reading of the bible1 the following text is quoted3 ,he that will not hear the church1 let him be to thee as the heathen and the publican4 99 99 ,matthew xviii1 #ag1 ,catholic ,bible4 ,the church must be obeyed4 ,the commandment says nothing about obeying the church only when she is in the right1 or only when she is reasonable1 or even only when she is scriptural--she must be obeyed because she is the church4 ,and this1 too1 is quite consistent with the claims of an infallible revelation4 ,if everybody is to be given the liberty to decide when the church is right1 reasonable1 or scriptural1 and when she is not1 then it is not the church1 but the individual1 who is infallible4 ,if the bible is inspired1 there is no escape from the conclusions of the ,catholic church4 ,did not ,jesus say to the ,apostles1 and1 therefore1 to the priests3 ,whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven2 and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven8 99 ,does not this make everybody the slave of the church8 99 ,matthew xviii1 #ah1 ,catholic ,bible4 ,the ,catholic bible contains nearly a dozen more inspired books than the ,protestant bible1 and many of the texts in the books which are common to both are differently translated4 ,by comparing the list of books in the ,catholic bible with the books in the ,protestant bible1 we find that the ,protestants are accursed by the decision of the ,council of ,trent1 inasmuch as they deny the inspiration of1 and exclude from their bible1 about twelve of the books in the ,catholic bible4 ,now1 what is a layman to do when infallible churches disagree8 ,we are commanded by the bible to hear the church1 but which church8 ,if we could decide ourselves which is the true church1 we would then be greater than the church1 as it would need our approval before it could exercise any authority over us4 ,but if we can not decide which is the true church1 what are we going to do8 ,this is an important question1 because unless we belong to the true church we can not have the true bible4 ,the ,catholics curse the ,protestant bible4 ,this is the literal truth4 ,the ,protestants1 on the other hand1 call the ,catholic bible a popish imposture4 ,while they are wrangling about it1 what becomes of the ,word of ,god8 ,but the most interesting part in the preface to the ,catholic bible is the warning which the church gives to the reader of the bible1 not to be shocked1 or scandalized1 by the immoral and impossible stories contained therein4 ,the reader is cautioned against applying to the bible the standard of morality by which other books are judged4 ,to scare the reader into praising in the bible what he would unreservedly and sweepingly condemn in other books1 the following biblical text is quoted3 ,my thoughts are not as your thoughts1 neither are my ways as your ways1 saith the ,lord2 for as the heavens are exalted above the earth even so are my ways exalted above your ways and my thoughts above your thoughts4 99 ,well1 of course1 that being the case1 the reader shall start with his mind made up that he must not understand anything he reads4 ,the better and much safer thing to do is not to read the bible at all4 ,and that is honestly what both ,catholics and ,protestants would like to say1 if they could4 ,the ,catholic bible in its preface comes as near giving that advice as it dares1 as the following will show3 ,how then shall any one1 by his private reason1 pretend to judge1 to know1 to demonstrate1 the incomprehensible and unsearchable ways of ,god8 ,what is the use of reading an incomprehensible and unsearchable book8 ,the ,word of ,god could not have been meant for man4 ,let it pass4 99 ,isaiah lv1 #h-i1 ,catholic ,bible2 same in ,protestant bible4 ,,part ,,ii4 ,i4 ,the ,tercentenary of the ,english ,bible ,,just at present there is a revival of interest in the bible4 ,the three hundredth anniversary of the ,king ,james' version of the ,holy ,bible was recently celebrated in the great cities of ,christendom4 ,all the pulpits have been heard from in praise of the book4 ,it will be noticed1 however1 that almost every one of the preachers confined himself to glittering generalities about the bible4 ,judging by the reports of their sermons1 there was not a single speaker who attempted a careful and instructive study of the book--its origin1 its growth1 or the character of its contents4 ,although the book was eloquently praised as the best ever written1 no effort was made to point out wherein1 or in what respect1 the bible deserved the honor and the worship demanded in its behalf4 ,the preachers spoke of the bible with the same confidence1 or conceit1 that the ,moslem displays when he is praising his bible4 ,one of the well-known speakers1 ,w4 ,j4 ,bryan1 challenged the world1 at the bible-meeting in ,chicago1 to produce a better book than the ,jewish-,christian scriptures4 ,the celebration of the three hundredth anniversary of the publication of the authorized version presented also an opportunity to many of the defenders of the bible to praise the translators of the bible under ,king ,james of ,england4 ,an idea of the moral and intellectual standing of these divines may be had by reading the preface which is attached to every bible printed in ,great ,britain4 ,in this1 they dedicate the work to the king1 whom they exalt as a paragon of virtue4 ,james ,i4 was1 by universal consent1 one of the meanest and most worthless pedants that ever wore a crown4 ,yet1 even as the divines who formulated the ,nicene creed addressed to ,constantine1 who had murdered the members of his own household in cold blood1 the words1 ,you have established the faith1 exterminated the heretics4 ,that the king of heaven may preserve the king of earth is the prayer of the church and clergy1 the ,english authors of the authorized version looked upon ,james1 the meanest of the ,stuarts1 as the vicar of ,god on earth1 and presented him the following address3 ,to the ,most ,high and ,mighty ,prince ,james1 by the grace of ,god1 ,king of ,great ,britain1 ,france and ,ireland1 ,defender of the ,faith1 the translators of the ,bible wish ,grace1 ,mercy and ,peace1 through ,jesus ,christ our ,lord4 ,great and manifold were the blessings1 most dread ,sovereign1 which ,almighty ,god1 the ,father of all mercies1 bestowed upon us1 the people of ,england1 when first he sent ,your ,majesty's ,royal ,person to rule and reign over us4 ,for whereas it was the expectation of many1 who wished not well unto our ,sion1 that upon the setting of that bright ,occidental ,star1 ,queen ,elizabeth of most happy memory1 some thick and palpable clouds of darkness would so have overshadowed this ,land that men should have been in doubt which way they were to walk2 and that it should hardly be known who was to direct the unsettled ,state2 the appearance of ,your ,majesty1 as of the ,sun of strength1 instantly dispelled those supposed and surmised mists and gave unto all that were well affected exceeding cause of comfort2 especially when we beheld the ,government established in ,your ,highness1 and ,your hopeful ,seed1 by an undoubted ,title1 and this also accompanied with peace and tranquillity at home and abroad4 ,and much more1 in this same strain1 concluding with these words3 ,the ,lord of heaven and earth bless ,your ,majesty with many and happy days1 that1 as his heavenly hand hath enriched ,your ,highness with many singular and extraordinary graces1 so ,you may be the wonder of the world in this latter age for happiness and true felicity1 to the honour of that great ,god and the good of his ,church1 through ,jesus ,christ1 our ,lord and only ,saviour4 ,what made these divines so proud of ,james8 ,he was their king4 ,what makes the divines of to-day praise the bible so effusively8 ,it is their bible4 ,we regret to say that the divines of to-day no more speak the truth about the bible than the divines of three hundred years ago spoke the truth about ,king ,james4 ,some ,lay ,defenders of the ,bible--,bryan's ,challenge ,,one of the speakers at the tercentenary celebration was ,william ,jennings ,bryan4 ,though not a divine as yet1 he may become one1 according to reports1 in the near future4 ,bryan was invited to deliver the principal address at a mass meeting of the ,christian churches of ,chicago 7the ,catholic church not included71 in ,orchestra ,hall4 ,in this address1 the oft-time presidential candidate openly challenged the critics of his bible and of its divine origin to produce a book equal in wisdom and teachings to the volume which has stood the test of centuries4 ,after ,i made sure that ,mr4 ,bryan had really made the challenge1 as will appear by the quotations from his paper1 ,the ,commoner1 which will be given later1 a telegram was addressed to him1 signed by myself1 in which ,i accepted his challenge and invited him to state the terms on which he would join me in the discussion of this timely and most important subject1 at the ,auditorium1 which seats six thousand people4 ,receiving no reply1 a telegram was forwarded to the proprietor of the ,lincoln ,star--,lincoln being the home town of ,mr4 ,bryan--requesting the publisher to please interview ,mr4 ,bryan about this matter4 ,to the courtesy of this gentleman ,i am indebted for the following message from ,lincoln3 ,charles ,bryan has forwarded letter to ,w4 ,j4 ,bryan1 who returns here ,june #c4 ,will hand ,mr4 ,bryan your telegram when he reaches ,lincoln4 ,the ,charles ,bryan in the dispatch is1 ,i am told1 the secretary1 as well as the brother1 of ,william ,jennings ,bryan4 ,he says he has forwarded letter1 ostensibly about my telegram1 to ,w4 ,j4 ,bryan4 ,why did he not send him the telegram1 itself8 ,if his letter merely informed ,bryan that there was a telegram for him from ,chicago1 without either enclosing the same in his letter1 or telling him of its contents1 ,mr4 ,bryan had good reason to discharge such a secretary4 ,but if he enclosed the telegram1 or1 which is more likely1 informed ,mr4 ,bryan of its import1 why does he say that he will hand the telegram to ,bryan when the latter reaches ,lincoln8 ,why keep a telegram a whole month before giving it to the person to whom it is addressed8 ,but if his letter had already advised ,bryan of my acceptance of his challenge1 and my offer to let him dictate his own terms1 why pretend that the telegram will remain sealed until ,mr4 ,bryan returns to ,lincoln on the third of ,june8 ,evidently1 all that the two ,bryans wanted was to postpone the day of reckoning4 ,the third day of ,june arrived1 but no answer came from ,bryan4 ,another appeal was made to the ,lincoln ,star3 ,if no trouble1 would you mind finding if ,bryan is at home2 and what he expects to do about ,mangasarian's acceptance of his challenge4 ,and as promptly as in the former instance1 the answer came3 ,bryan says he will take no action re challenge4 ,but it was ,mr4 ,bryan who made the challenge in the first place4 ,his challenge was not only made in public1 but it is now in print1 as the following from the report of his ,orchestra ,hall address1 as it appeared in ,bryan's own paper1 fully shows3 ,the ,christian world has confidence in the bible2 it presents the book as the ,word of ,god1 but the attacks made upon it by its enemies continue in spite of the growth of the bible's influence4 ,the ,christian world by its attitude presents a challenge to the opposition1 and this is an opportune moment to emphasize the challenge4 ,how does the distinguished ,nebraskan get over these words8 ,if ,the ,christian world444 presents a challenge to the opposition1 and this is an opportune moment to emphasize the challenge1 why did not ,mr4 ,bryan promptly and gladly accept an offer which placed one of the greatest halls in the country at his disposal1 without any expense whatever to himself or to the ,christian world8 ,to say the least1 it is significant that a successful orator and popular lecturer like ,mr4 ,bryan1 with his implicit confidence in the bible as the best book in all the world1 would even hesitate1 much less decline1 to accept so great an opportunity as was placed at his disposal4 ,moreover1 if he were not going to make the action suit the word1 why did he speak of a challenge at all8 ,was this only an oratorical display on his part8 ,was it mere bravado8 ,if he were talking on the same subject again1 would he repeat his challenge to the opposition8 ,if our little episode with him will prevent him from ever using the word challenge again in his religious speeches1 we shall consider our services well rewarded4 ,but the real reason for ,bryan's collapse as a bible champion will be seen in perusing the following comments on his address at the tercentenary celebration4 ,bryan's ,defense of the ,bible ,,as reported in ,the ,commoner 99 ,bryan began his address by saying that the critics of the bible 444 have disputed the facts which it sets forth and ridiculed the prophesies which it recites2 they have rejected the account which it gives of the creation and scoffed at the miracles which it records4 ,they have denied the existence of the ,god of the ,bible and have sought to reduce the ,savior to the stature of a man4 ,they have been as bold as the prophets of ,baal in defying the ,living ,god and in heaping contempt upon the ,written ,word4 ,why not challenge the atheists and the materialists to put their doctrines to the test8 ,when ,elijah was confronted by a group of scorners who mocked at the ,lord whom he worshiped1 he invited them to match the power of their ,god against the power of his1 and he was willing to concede superiority to the one who would answer with fire4 ,when the challenge was accepted he built an altar1 prepared a sacrifice1 and then1 to leave no room for doubt1 he poured water upon the wood and the sacrifice--poured until the water filled the trenches round about4 ,so firm was his trust that he even taunted his adversaries with their failure while his proofs were yet to be presented4 ,the prophets of ,baal1 be it said to their credit1 had enough confidence in their ,god to agree to the test1 and their disappointment was real when he failed them--they gashed themselves with knives when their entreaties were unanswered4 ,why not a bible test8 99 ,may #ab1 #aiaa4 ,mr4 ,bryan does not tell the rest of the story1 although as much of it as he gives is bad enough4 ,elijah had no desire to convert his rivals to the true faith2 he wanted to kill every one of them1 which he did3 ,and ,elijah said unto them1 ,take the prophets of ,baal2 let not one of them escape4444 ,and ,elijah brought them down to the brook ,kishon1 and slew them there4 99 99 ,there were #dej of them4 ,this is the same ,elijah who prayed for a drought1 and for the space of three years not a drop of rain fell upon the land4 ,if there is an educated man who can admire such a prayer1 or the ,being who answered it1 or who can believe that for three years1 men1 women1 children1 plants and animals went thirsty--he is really beyond hope4 ,mr4 ,bryan did not accept our invitation1 because1 ,i believe1 he felt that he would not have the courage to repeat this story of ,elijah before any other kind of an audience than one composed strictly of such ,christian or ,jewish believers who dare not think straight4 ,what1 for instance1 would ,bryan have answered if he were asked why ,elijah did not leave to the deity the killing of the four hundred and fifty priests of an alien faith8 ,if ,god could send down fire from heaven to burn up the bullock1 he could just as easily send down fire to destroy the whole priesthood of ,baal--as he sent down fire to destroy ,sodom and ,gomorrah4 ,but ,elijah executed his critics himself2 he did not believe1 evidently1 that his ,god could get rid of them without his help4 ,in this he was more infidel than the priests he killed4 ,murder was ,elijah's intent from the first4 ,in the history of religious persecution was there ever a priest who believed enough in ,god to leave to him the burning1 or the quartering of heretics alive8 ,how much nobler was the example of the ,roman emperor who refused to give his sanction to religious persecution on the ground that the gods could avenge their own wrongs499 99 ,deorum injurias deis curae4 ,and does ,bryan really believe that1 once upon a time1 the only way the ,deity could hold his own was by giving pyrotechnic exhibitions1 which ended in wholesale bloodshed8 ,is that the kind of a test ,bryan desires8 ,the fact that there are even more unbelievers to-day than in ,elijah's time is a proof that the fire and blood test is a failure4 ,it is ,reason that questions the bible1 ,mr4 ,bryan6 ,and if the bible can not conquer ,reason1 all the murders1 the burnings and the hells of theology1 here or hereafter1 are worse than a waste4 ,can'st thou conquer ,reason8 ,but again1 ,bryan declines a meeting with ,rationalists1 because he is not sure that the ,god who answered ,elijah by fire will do the same for him4 ,if he were1 he would not have hesitated for a moment4 ,he would have had an altar built on the platform and invoked the fire which would have come down as soon as ,bryan gave the word--injuring no one except the unbelievers4 ,but his faith was not strong enough for that4 ,he is a good enough ,christian to believe that1 once upon a time1 that very thing happened1 but not a good enough ,christian to believe that it will happen a second time4 ,the church has only old miracles to boast of4 ,if ,i were in ,mr4 ,bryan's place1 ,i admit1 ,i would have declined an invitation to defend the bible before an audience of inquirers1 just as he has done4 ,the mistake he made was his challenge to the opposition1 as he expresses it1 and not his refusal to appear as counsel for the bible before a critical audience4 ,he did the only consistent thing under the circumstances when he told the representative of the press that he will not consider our invitation4 ,had he been equally thoughtful in his ,orchestra ,hall address he would not have even admitted that there are some people who do not believe in the inspired bible--much less have challenged them4 ,a good ,christian must never undertake to defend his bible against criticism2 the moment he attempts this he takes the whole question out of ,god's hands4 ,who are you that you should undertake to defend the ,word of ,god8 ,and what makes you think that ,god's ,word needs a defense8 ,no better proof could be asked for to show that both ,bryan and his hearers had lost the faith of ,elijah1 and were struggling in the slough of doubt1 than his elaborate attempt to defend the bible and his mock challenge to its critics4 ,the difference between ,bryan defending an infallible book1 and the critics of the same book1 is not one of kind1 but one of degree4 ,bryan would not have undertaken to defend the bible did he not think a defense was necessary1 and to think that ,god's book needs to be defended is a criticism against the book4 ,the ,nebraska champion of the bible1 then1 has already entered the first stages of the doubt which1 in all logical minds1 culminates in a denial of its divine origin4 ,no book which has to be defended can be divine4 ,the man who defends a divine book and the man who attacks it are both doubters4 ,mr4 ,bryan might reply that1 had he been a doubter1 he would never have challenged the opposition1 as he did in his tercentenary address4 ,as already stated1 it is true that he made the challenge1 and repeated it many times during the course of his speech4 ,it is equally true that there is an air of confidence in ,mr4 ,bryan's challenge1 which must have greatly impressed his audience4 ,let them produce1 he demanded1 a better bible than ours1 if they can4 ,let them collect the best of their school to be found among the graduates of universities--as many as they please and from every land4 ,let the members of this selected group travel where they will1 consult such libraries as they please1 and employ every modern means of swift communication4 ,let them glean in the fields of geology1 botany1 astronomy1 biology and zoology1 and then roam at will wherever science has opened a way2 let them take advantage of all the progress in art and in literature1 in oratory and in history--let them use to the full every instrumentality that is employed in modern civilization2 and when they have exhausted every source1 let them embody the results of their best intelligence in a book and offer it to the world as a substitute for this bible of ours4 ,have they the confidence that the prophets of ,baal had in their ,god8 ,will they try8 ,if not1 what excuse will they give8 ,has man fallen from his high estate1 so that we can not rightfully expect as much of him now as nineteen centuries ago8 ,or does the bible come to us from a source that is higher than man--which8 ,any one listening to this flourish of trumpets would be led to think that ,mr4 ,bryan has already met and routed the enemy1 and is now celebrating his victory1 instead of having yet to hear from the other side4 ,encouraged by the silence of his audience1 the speaker grows bolder3 ,but our case is even stronger4 ,the opponents of the bible can not take refuge in the plea that man is retrograding4 ,they loudly proclaim that man has grown and that he is growing still4 ,they boast of a world-wide advance and their claim is founded upon fact4 ,and ,mr4 ,bryan expresses surprise that1 with all this progress1 the world is unable to produce a better book to-day than man1 unaided1 could have produced in any previous age4 ,referring once more to the opposition1 he says3 ,the fact that they have tried1 time and time again1 only to fail each time more hopelessly1 explains why they will not--why they can not--accept the challenge thrown down by the ,christian world to produce a book worthy to take the bible's place4 ,growing bolder and bolder1 in the absence of the enemy1 and feeling confident that should the enemy be heard from1 he could take refuge in a dignified silence1 ,mr4 ,bryan continues1 like ,don ,quixote1 to fight invisible foes3 ,they 7the agnostics7 have prayed to their ,god to answer with fire--prayed to inanimate matter1 with an earnestness that is pathetic2 they have employed in the worship of blind force a faith greater than religion requires1 but their ,almighty is asleep4 ,had ,mr4 ,bryan's ,almighty been awake there would have been no need of defenders of the bible4 ,if the agnostics without divine aid1 or with only a sleepy ,god to help them1 as ,bryan avers1 have done no more than to compel the believers to put up a defense for their ,word of ,god1 they have demonstrated what man1 unaided by ghostly powers1 can do4 ,and it is mere chatter to speak of agnostics as praying to their ,god to answer with fire1 etc4 ,agnostics will pray for fire only when they lose faith in ,reason4 ,and is it to be inferred from the above sentence of ,bryan1 that his ,god answers by fire8 ,we say again1 if this champion of an obsolete theology1 a theology which is being deserted by the ,christian scholars themselves1 is in earnest1 if he really believes all he says1 if he dares to put his faith to such a test as ,elijah imposed upon his1 or if he is prepared to prove to an intelligent audience that the science1 the history1 and the ethics of the bible can stand all the strain that ,reason and ,conscience may put upon them--why did he run under cover as soon as he heard the first sound of the ,rationalist's approach8 ,mr4 ,bryan speaks with an air of confidence1 as the extracts from his speech show1 but no battles are won by--air4 ,in his lecture on ,the ,prince of ,peace1 ,mr4 ,bryan takes the position that to doubt or to question the doctrines of the churches is something to be ashamed of4 ,to show the difference in mentality between ,william ,jennings ,bryan and the great ,thomas ,jefferson1 one has only to compare the daring and independence of the latter with the theological timidity of the former4 ,from ,bryan's ,prince of ,peace3 ,my purpose in delivering this lecture ,i will frankly avow4 ,after my first political defeat1 ,i deliberately refrained from talking religion in public1 so as to avoid the charge of using religion as a stepping-stone to further my personal ambitions4 ,after my second defeat the possibility of another nomination appeared so remote that ,i could not let it weigh against the duty that ,i felt impelling me to address the young men whom ,i saw refusing to attach themselves to a church4 ,my hope is that ,i may shame some young men out of their conceit that it is smart to be skeptical4 ,from ,jefferson's works1 ,vol4 ,,ii1 #baga3 ,fix ,reason firmly in her seat1 and call to her tribunal every fact1 every opinion4 ,question with boldness even the existence of a ,god2 because1 if there be one1 he must more approve the homage of reason than of blindfolded fear4444 ,do not be frightened from this inquiry by any fear of its consequences4 ,if it end in a belief that there is no ,god1 you will find incitements to virtue in the comfort and pleasantness you feel in the exercise and in the love of others which it will procure for you4 ,the ,presbyterian ,bryan is ashamed of ,reason2 the ,rationalist ,jefferson is prouder of his ,reason than an emperor of his crown4 ,had ,mr4 ,bryan been reading ,cicero instead of ,elijah2 had his culture been ,european instead of ,asiatic1 he would never have quoted the murder of four hundred and fifty men by one of the bible prophets as a proof of the truth of his religion4 ,there are two ways of ending a dispute1 wrote ,cicero1--discussion and force4 ,the latter manner is simply that of brute beasts1 the former is proper to beings gifted with reason4 ,we leave it to ,mr4 ,bryan to read between the lines4 ,,ii4 ,roosevelt on the ,bible ,,william ,,jennings ,,bryan was not the only politician1 or publicist1 who contributed to the tercentenary celebration of the bible4 ,writing in the ,outlook1 ,theodore ,roosevelt1 to his own satisfaction1 at least1 meets the opponents of the inspiration of the bible1 and briefly disposes of them4 ,occasional critics1 he writes1 taking sections of the ,old ,testament1 are able to point out that the teachings therein are not in accordance with our own convictions and views of morality4 ,is it only occasional critics who express disapproval of the ,jewish-,christian scriptures8 ,and suppose it true that only occasional critics call attention to the harm which the bible does by its immoral and impossible teachings3 ,does that fact relieve the defenders of the bible from the obligation to answer their criticisms8 ,the important question is not1 who makes the criticism2 but1 is the criticism just8 ,the ,old ,testament1 continues ,mr4 ,roosevelt1 did not carry ,israel as far as the ,new ,testament has carried us2 but it advanced ,israel far beyond the point any neighboring nation had then reached4 ,this is practically a plea of guilty4 ,why was not the ,old ,testament as good as the ,new is supposed to be8 ,was it not equally divine8 ,if the ,old ,testament was meant to prepare the ,jews to accept the ,new ,testament1 they have not accepted it yet4 ,but is it true that the ,old ,testament carried ,israel far beyond the point any neighboring nation had then reached8 ,it is now nearly two thousand years since the ,new ,testament began to carry us1 and where have we reached8 ,in how many things have we advanced beyond the ,greeks and the ,romans1 for instance8 ,only yesterday the black man carried chains in our land1 and throughout ,christendom white slavery of a more degrading type than ever known before is still with us4 ,political corruption of a character which ,mr4 ,roosevelt himself has pronounced the most deep-seated and chronic is eating away the vital parts of the ,american nation1 while the hunger1 the misery and the squalor in the slums of our great cities1 side by side with the waste of wealth and the worship of show1 prove daily the complete failure of ,christianity as a regenerating force4 ,whatever of hope there is to-day in the human heart for a better future on earth1 and whatever signs there may be of a realization of justice and happiness for all men1 here and now1 we are indebted for them1 not to the ,new ,testament1 but to modern thought1 which is heresy from the point of view of the ,new1 as well as the ,old1 ,testament4 ,it is the passing of the bible that has opened the way for real and radical reforms4 ,it is the failure of the inspired teachers to fulfill their promises that has at last induced man to step to the front and assume full control of the world's destinies4 ,man no longer prays to the gods2 he works4 ,when the bible was supreme in ,europe1 was the world better8 ,would ,mr4 ,roosevelt return to the ,middle ,ages8 ,will he go back to the times of ,knox1 ,wesley1 ,calvin and the ,new ,england clergy1 or to the times when1 by the authority of the bible which then ruled without a rival1 in court and church1 in the home and the school1 men and women were bought and sold like animals1 or burned alive as witches1 or tortured to death in a thousand dungeons for daring to think8 ,when the bible was supreme in ,europe there was neither science nor commerce4 ,when the bible was supreme1 tyrant and dissolute kings ruled by the grace of ,god1 and priests persecuted the thinker in every capital of the ,christian world4 ,it is the emancipation of thought1 and not the ,new ,testament1 that has conquered for us every blessing we enjoy4 ,not until the ,renaissance1 that is to say1 not until ,europe deserted its ,semitic or ,asiatic teachers for those of ,hellas and ,rome1 did modern nations begin to wax strong in mind and body4 ,the ,new ,testament really carried us to the times of the ,old ,testament4 ,it was the ,renaissance of ,greek thought and art that changed the thorns and thistles of theology into the golden fruit of science4 ,but what about the claim that the ,old ,testament advanced ,israel far beyond the point any neighboring nation had then reached4 ,i wish ,mr4 ,roosevelt would read these lines as carefully as ,i have read his1 which1 if he does1 ,i feel confident he will admit that he made the above statement without taking the pains to look up the evidence4 ,what answer would the ex-president of the ,united ,states make if he were asked to prove his claim that the ,old ,testament carried the ,jews to a higher state of civilization than the nations who were their contemporaries8 ,were the ,jews intellectually more advanced than any other nation of antiquity8 ,solomon was the contemporary of some of the immortal ,greeks1 but while ,greece was nursing the arts and crafts1 the ,jews1 in order to build a temple to ,god--a temple very much smaller than many of our modern cathedrals and churches and far less formidable--had to send abroad for masons and carpenters4 ,the laborers employed in the temple were all the strangers in the land1 says one of the texts4 ,under ,saul1 their first king1 while their enemies were well equipped with weapons of warfare1 the ,jews had neither sword nor spear in the hand of any of the people except ,saul and ,jonathan4 ,we are informed also that in all the land of ,israel not a smith was to be found1 and that the ,jews had to cross over to the land of the gentiles to sharpen every man his share and his ax4 ,surely we can not conclude from conditions as barbarous as these that the ,lord bestowed any great intellectual gifts upon the ,jews as tokens of his peculiar love for them4 ,it is admitted by the bible writers themselves that the neighboring nations were much more powerful than the chosen people1 and that only by the daily miraculous intervention of ,god could they cope with them at all1 and that even then they were not always successful4 ,the following text is quite significant3 ,and the ,lord was with ,judah1 and he drove out the inhabitants of the mountain1 but could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley1 because they had chariots of iron 99 99 ,judges i1 #ai4 ,we respectfully call ,mr4 ,roosevelt's attention to this positive testimony to the superiority in equipment of the ,gentiles to the ,jews in bible times4 ,even the ,god of ,israel was helpless against the science of the ,gentile nations4 ,he could throw down stones from heaven1 or stop the sun and moon1 or slay the firstborn of ,egypt1 but against science1 against human inventions1 he could do nothing4 ,is it a sign of superiority to depend upon miracles for one's daily existence8 ,is it not rather a proof of the intellectual sterility of the people8 ,i am aware1 of course1 of the argument that ,israel's superiority lay in its clearer moral visions4 ,but why should a people morally superior to their neighbors be so mediocre in everything else8 ,is moral excellence prejudicial to national development8 ,but it is not true that the ,old ,testament helped to make ,israel morally superior to the heathen round about them4 ,it is to be regretted that the opposite of this is the truth4 ,a few examples from the bible will be sufficient to support the thesis that the bible did even less for the moral development of ,israel than it did for its intellectual and industrial expansion4 ,abraham1 one of the most righteous characters of the bible1 twice trafficked in his wife's or sister's1 honor1 by selling her1 the first time1 to the ,king of ,egypt for sheep and oxen1 asses and camels1 and male and female slaves2 he repeated the imposture by selling her a second time to ,abimelech1 ,king of ,gerar1 for more sheep and oxen1 and men servants and women servants4 ,his son ,isaac followed his father's example1 and sold to the same ,abimelech his wife1 ,rebekah4 ,compare now the behavior of the heathen ,abimelech1 with that of the bible saints4 ,after ,rebekah had been introduced to the king as an unmarried woman by her husband1 ,isaac1 she was taken into his palace3 ,and it came to pass1 when he had been there a long time1 that ,abimelech1 king of the ,philistines1 looked out at a window1 and saw1 and1 behold1 ,isaac was sporting with ,rebekah his wife4 ,and ,abimelech called ,isaac1 and said1 ,behold1 of a surety she is thy wife3 and how saidst thou1 ,she is my sister8 ,and ,isaac said unto him1 ,because ,i said1 ,lest ,i die for her4 ,and ,abimelech said1 ,what is this thou hast done unto us8 one of the people might lightly have lien with thy wife1 and thou shouldst have brought guiltiness upon us4 ,and ,abimelech charged all his people1 saying1 ,he that toucheth this man or his wife shall surely be put to death4 99 99 ,genesis xxvi1 #h-;,,ii4 ,which of these two characters was the more civilized8 ,though in daily communion with ,god and protected by miracles at every step1 ,isaac preferred to lie about his wife than to trust in ,god1 and1 like his father1 ,abraham1 he enriched himself by her shame2 while the heathen ,abimelech1 on the other hand1 grieved at the thought of the wrong which the lying ,isaac might have tempted his subjects to commit4 ,and while not even ,david1 another bible saint1 ever thought of separating himself from the woman he had stolen by causing her husband to be shot1 these heathen princes returned to ,abraham and ,isaac their wives4 ,even ,jehovah is compelled to pay a tribute to the heathen king3 ,and ,god said unto him 7,abimelech7 in a dream1 ,yea1 ,i know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart2 for ,i also withheld thee from sinning against me3 therefore suffered ,i thee not to touch her4 ,now therefore restore the man his wife2 for he is a prophet1 and he shall pray for thee1 and thou shalt live3 and if thou restore her not1 know thou that thou shalt surely die1 thou1 and all that are thine4 99 99 ,genesis xx1 #f-h4 ,this is a terribly incriminating admission for the deity to make4 ,after paying a tribute to the integrity of ,abimelech1 and acknowledging his innocence1 ,jehovah threatens to kill him if he will not fall upon his knees before the mendacious ,abraham1 for he is a prophet1 and beg him to pray for his salvation4 ,but there is not a word of censure for ,abraham for lying about his wife or for keeping the price of her shame4 ,abraham was orthodox1 and that covers up a multitude of sins--even to this day4 ,is it any wonder that educated ,jews are deserting the synagogue8 ,in the thirty-fourth chapter of ,genesis we find another example of the superiority in morals of the neighboring nations to the children of ,israel4 ,one of the daughters of ,israel went out to see the daughters of the land4 ,it is difficult to understand just why this young woman went out among the heathen4 ,at any rate1 she was fair1 and it was not long before she found a princely suitor4 ,just as ,sarah and ,rebekah were taken into the homes of the ,gentiles1 so was ,leah1 ,jacob's daughter4 ,the prince desired to retain her as his wife1 and with this end in view he asked his royal father to get him this damsel to wife4 ,then ,hamor1 the king1 called upon ,jacob to ask for the hand of his daughter in marriage to his son1 ,shechem4 ,the soul of my son ,shechem1 he said to ,jacob1 longeth for thy daughter3 ,i pray you to give her him to wife1 and he enforced his plea for closer relations between ,jews and ,gentiles by the following sensible argument3 ,and make ye marriages with us1 and give your daughters unto us1 and take our daughters unto you4 ,and ye shall dwell with us3 and the land shall be before you2 dwell and trade ye therein1 and get you possessions therein4 99 ,the prince1 too1 following his father1 pleaded with ,jacob1 to let him marry his daughter3 ,and ,shechem said unto her father1 and unto her brethren1 ,let me find grace in your eyes1 and what ye shall say unto me ,i will give4 ,ask me never so much dowry and gift1 and ,i will give according as ye shall say unto me3 but give me the damsel to wife4 9999 99 ,genesis xxxiv1 #i1aj4 9999 ,genesis xxxiv1 #aa1ab4 ,we will let the holy bible tell ,mr4 ,roosevelt the rest of the story3 ,and the sons of ,jacob answered ,shechem and ,hamor his father deceitfully1 and said1 because he had defiled ,dinah their sister3 ,and they said unto them1 ,we can not do this thing1 to give our sister to one that is uncircumcised2 for that were a reproach unto us3 ,but in this will we consent unto you3 ,if ye will be as we be1 that every male of you be circumcised2 ,then will we give our daughters unto you1 and we will take your daughters to us1 and we will dwell with you1 and we will become one people4 ,but if ye will not hearken unto us1 to be circumcised2 then will we take our daughter1 and we will be gone4 ,and their words pleased ,hamor1 and ,shechem ,hamor's son4 ,and the young man deferred not to do the thing because he had delight in ,jacob's daughter3 and he was more honourable than all the house of his father4 99 ,and he was more honorable4 ,is there an ,old ,testament character of whom it is written anywhere in the bible that he was honorable8 ,but let us see how honorable the sons of ,jacob were in this affair4 ,after the ,hivites had accepted the conditions1 and were all circumcised1 this is what happened3 ,and it came to pass on the third day1 when they were sore1 that two of the sons of ,jacob1 ,simeon and ,levi1 ,dinah's brethren1 took each man his sword1 and came upon the city boldly1 and slew all the males4 ,and they slew ,hamor and ,shechem his son with the edge of the sword1 and took ,dinah out of ,shechem's house1 and went out4 ,the sons of ,jacob came upon the slain1 and spoiled the city1 because they had defiled their sister4 ,they took their sheep1 and their oxen1 and their asses1 and that which was in the city1 and that which was in the field4 ,and all their wealth1 and all their little ones1 and their wives took they captive1 and spoiled even all that was in the house4 9999 99 ,genesis xxxiv1 #ac-ai4 9999 ,genesis xxxiv1 #be-bi4 ,were the inspired sons of ,jacob superior to their uninspired heathen neighbors8 ,to marry a human being of another creed was to defile one's self4 ,how can there be any brotherhood in the world with such a doctrine8 ,that the bible ,god approved of these barbarities will be seen in the following story3 ,and1 behold1 one of the children of ,israel came and brought unto his brethren a ,midianitish woman in the sight of ,moses1 and in the sight of all the congregation of the children of ,israel1 who were weeping before the door of the tabernacle of the congregation4 ,and when ,phinehas1 the son of ,eleazar1 the son of ,aaron the priest1 saw it1 he rose up from among the congregation1 and took a javelin in his hand4 ,and he went after the man of ,israel into the tent1 and thrust both of them through1 the man of ,israel1 and the woman through her belly4 ,so the plague was stayed from the children of ,israel4 ,and those that died in the plague were twenty and four thousand4 ,and the ,lord spake unto ,moses1 saying1 ,phinehas1 the son of ,eleazar1 the son of ,aaron the priest1 hath turned my wrath away from the children of ,israel1 while he was zealous for my sake among them1 that ,i consumed not the children of ,israel in my jealousy4 ,wherefore say1 ,behold1 ,i give unto him my covenant of peace3 ,and he shall have it1 and his seed after him1 even the covenant of an everlasting priesthood2 because he was zealous for his ,god1 and made an atonement for the children of ,israel4 99 99 ,numbers xxv1 #f-ac4 ,do men like ,bryan and ,roosevelt1 who are representative men in ,america1 know that there are scores of such stories in the ,word of ,god8 ,how do they excuse ,jehovah for rewarding ,phinehas for so shameful a crime8 ,why kill a man who has loved and married a ,gentile8 ,but to this day1 the orthodox ,jew sits on the floor and mourns for his son or daughter who has married a ,gentile1 as one mourns for the dead4 ,in what sense1 then1 is it true that the ,old ,testament carried ,israel far beyond the point any neighboring nation had then reached8 ,of course1 as already explained1 ,i do not believe the shameful things the bible relates about the ,jewish people1 but had ,colonel ,roosevelt read the bible carefully before writing about it2 or had he taken the pains to acquaint himself with the results of higher criticism1 as presented by ,christian scholars themselves1 he would never have rushed into his statement about the ,old ,testament carrying the ,jews beyond any nation of antiquity4 ,in his ,ancient ,faiths ,embodied in ,ancient ,names1 ,dr4 ,t4 ,inman1 speaking on this same subject1 says this3 ,even the devil is not so black as he is painted2 and however dark may be the crimes of the ancient ,jews1 the historian is bound to ascertain whether there are not some bright spots in the vast pall of evil deeds that spreads over their history4 ,yet to me the task is hopeless2 ,i can not find one single redeeming trait in the national character of the ancient ,hebrews4 ,it is difficult to find a people in the olden times1 whereof we have a history1 who were not superior to the necks shall be your footstools4 ,the same scholar sums up the commandments1 exhortations1 ordinances and revelations of the authors of the ,old ,testament1 and finds their burden to be this3 ,keep yourselves to yourselves1 and to the ,god whom we preach2 shun your neighbors1 hate them1 and1 when you can1 plunder and kill them4 ,agree among yourselves and treat your priests well1 and then you shall be great and glorious1 princes1 kings and potentates in every land1 and your enemies' necks shall be your footstools4 99 ,it is very much safer for a public man to denounce the trusts than to read and tell the truth about the bible4 ,mr4 ,roosevelt has only made an assertion about the value of the ,old ,testament to the ,jews4 ,but an assertion is not an argument4 ,we respectfully call ,mr4 ,roosevelt's attention to the opinion which ,jehovah1 himself1 held of his own people1 which will settle the question of whether or not the bible helped to make the ,jews better than their neighbors3 ,and ,i sought for a man among them1 that should make up the hedge1 and stand in the gap before me for the land1 that ,i should not destroy it3 but ,i found none4 999999 99 ,vol4 ,,ii1 page #ccd4 9999 ,inman1 ,vol4 ,,ii1 page #cce4 999999 ,ezekiel xxii1 #cj4 ,,iii4 ,let ,them ,produce ,it ,,produce a book like the bible1 is the oft-repeated challenge addressed to the critics of the book4 ,it is impossible to produce a book like the bible1 without copying it4 ,another bible1 exactly like the one we now have1 could only be had by making the second a duplicate of the first4 ,there is no other way of reproducing a book4 ,we can no more reproduce the bible than we can the ,arabian ,nights1 or ,shakespeare4 ,in fact1 no two things in nature are exactly alike4 ,men differ from one another1 even as do books4 ,another ,socrates1 or another ,napoleon1 or another ,lincoln1 would be an impossibility4 ,it is equally out of the question to have another ,nero1 ,constantine1 or ,pope ,alexander ,,vi4 ,to ask us to produce a book like the bible is as unreasonable as to ask us to produce another ,koran1 or another ,mahomet4 ,if the new ,koran be like the old1 no addition1 or improvement has been made to religious literature by its production2 if the new ,koran be different from the old1 then it is not a reproduction4 ,let them produce it6 sounds pompous enough1 but it is all noise and rattle4 ,in a private letter to an inquirer1 to whom ,i am indebted for the quotation ,i am about to make1 ,mr4 ,w4 ,j4 ,bryan1 referring to the author of this book1 asks1 ,if ,mr4 ,mangasarian has books better than the bible1 there is nothing to prevent his presenting them to the public1 and driving the bible out of use4 ,but that is precisely what is being done4 ,the bible has been1 a step at a time1 driven completely out of use in the halls of learning4 ,it is no longer an authority1 for example1 on questions of science--geology1 astronomy1 chemistry1 biology and all the other branches of one of the principal pursuits of man4 ,better books on these subjects have replaced the ,word of ,god4 ,what is true of science is true of history1 politics1 government1 education1 commerce2 in all these departments and activities of life better books have relegated the bible into the background4 ,did the framers of the ,american ,constitution1 for instance1 which ,gladstone calls the proudest product of the pen and brain of man1 consult the bible for their work8 ,did they borrow the doctrine of the separation of ,church and ,state from the bible8 ,the ,church in the bible dominates the ,state2 but the ,americans compelled the ,church to take its hands off the ,state4 ,did they learn that lesson from the bible8 ,the ,constitution1 again1 declares that all power is derived from the consent of the governed4 ,is that biblical8 ,does not the ,word of ,god plainly teach that the powers that be are appointed of ,god1 and that not to obey the powers thus appointed1 whether they be good or evil1 is to receive damnation to their souls8 ,evidently1 then1 the makers of ,america had better books than the bible to be guided by4 ,where again1 is it permitted in the bible to tolerate all religions and to favor none8 ,if there is any one idea more prominent than any other in the bible1 it is that the religion which it announces is alone true1 and that all the others are pernicious1 and to be suppressed by fire and the sword4 ,and religious tolerance is one of the glories of the ,american ,constitution4 ,it is its tyranny that is attacked1 it is the forbidding and misleading labels which the priesthood has placed upon it1 which we wish to remove4 ,it is the bible as a fetish1 or as the best book1 or as a weapon of persecution1 that we wish to overthrow4 ,but if the bible is not divine1 we are asked again1 how explain the fact that despite all the attacks of all the ages1 it is still loved and cherished by so many8 ,we might as well ask1 ,if the bible is divine1 how is it that in spite of all the things done to bolster it up1 there are still so many who do not believe in it8 ,if long life and popularity prove the bible true1 they ought to prove the ,chinese and the ,hindu bibles true1 too4 ,is a man right because he is old1 or is he wrong because he is young8 ,is truth to be decided by counting beans1 as ,socrates would ask8 ,if it is majorities or age that counts1 then ,christianity must have been false when it was new1 and counted only a handful of followers4 ,and then1 there is the question1 ,what will you give us in place of the bible8 ,we can not take anything away from you which you can keep4 ,and if you can not keep the bible1 you have to let it go1 whether or not you can find another to take its place4 ,but are there not better stories in the world than those of the serpent in ,eden2 the fall of man2 the deluge and the drowning of the human race2 the ten plagues of ,egypt2 the talking ass2 the whale that swallowed a man1 and of the innumerable wars and massacres8 ,is it true that the foolish rites and ceremonies1 and the unintelligible trinities1 incarnations and resurrections in the bible can not be matched8 ,are we really worrying that1 if we give up these tales and mysteries1 we will not be able to find anything to replace them8 ,if we desire fairy stories1 there is the mythology of the ,greeks2 if we want miracles1 there is science with its real wonders2 if we want tales of human adventure and heroism1 there is history1 ancient and modern2 if we want biography1 better than the lives of ,abraham1 ,isaac and ,jacob1 is the story of the glorious discoverers and inventors whose genius transmuted human ignorance into knowledge and barbarism into civilization4 ,and for the sufferings of the gods1 read the story of the martyrdom of man6 ,what ,is the ,best ,thing ,that ,can ,be ,said in ,favor of the ,bible8 ,,let us put in the mouth of the defenders of the bible the strongest1 the most convincing and the most plausible arguments imaginable4 ,nothing is gained by denying to our adversary a fair chance4 ,who cares to measure swords with a shadow8 ,i4 ,the bible ought to be judged by its fruits1 is one of the most commended arguments in its favor4 ,it is claimed that civilization1 with all its blessings1 is the gift of the bible4 ,if this were true1 it could not prove the bible inspired4 ,the inventors of steam1 the mariner's compass1 and the printing-press have contributed much to human progress1 but would that prove that they were inspired8 ,the writings of ,socrates and ,aristotle greatly aided the development of ,europe1 as the wars of ,alexander the ,great helped to educate all ,asia4 ,but does that make ,greek literature1 or ,alexander's wars1 inspired8 ,but it is not true that civilization is the exclusive gift of the bible4 ,there was a civilization1 in many respects fairer than ours1 in ,rome and in ,greece1 without the bible2 while in ,christian ,abyssinia there is no civilization to-day to speak of4 ,if the bible is the only civilizer1 the ,jews should have been in advance of the ,egyptians1 the ,babylonians1 the ,greeks and the ,romans4 ,if the bible is the sole civilizing force1 how explain the ,dark ,ages1 when there was no other book that was even allowed to be named which did not agree with the bible8 ,,ii4 ,the next best argument in favor of the bible is that it gives the world the only information on ,god1 the soul1 the origin of man1 his destiny1 life beyond death1 and the mysteries of ,revelation4 ,but what is the information worth8 ,is its account of the creation of man and of the universe out of nothing1 and the creation of woman out of a rib1 believable8 ,is the portrait of ,god1 as given in the bible1 acceptable8 ,and as to the beyond1 does the bible throw any more light on the question than the older or newer theo-sophic books8 ,,iii4 ,a third best argument is that the bible presents the highest morality and the noblest ideals ever known by man4 ,what are they8 ,did the bible discover morality8 ,was selfishness1 or theft1 or murder1 or meanness1 a virtue before the bible forbade them8 ,was there no love of one's neighbor1 love of one's country1 or nobody to practice charity1 or justice1 in the world before ,moses or ,jesus8 ,but it is not true that the bible teaches the highest morality2 on the contrary1 as this book undertakes to show1 morality is the least of all the anxieties of the bible4 ,according to its teaching1 belief comes first2 and all the morality in the world1 we are told1 can not save the man who will not believe4 ,,iv4 ,another plea made in behalf of the bible is that it has comforted thousands and reformed some of the worst characters4 ,i have the witness of the spirit in me1 argues the convert1 that the bible is the ',word of ,god4' ,and he proceeds to relate how he was downcast1 or fallen in sin1 and the bible made a new man of him4 ,we rejoice whenever the disconsolate find cheer or the fallen arise4 ,nor is our happiness diminished in the least when we are told that it was the bible which worked the change4 ,whoever dries a tear upon the eyelid of sorrow1 and whatever the force which lifts the fallen to their feet1 deserves the gratitude of man4 ,but if that proves the bible divine1 why are there so many who are not comforted1 or so many of the fallen who do not rise at all8 ,an infallible book should save more people than the bible is claimed to do4 ,the greater part of ,christendom1 not to speak of the rest of the world1 is still to be saved4 ,if the bible only saves some1 so does education and other purely human agencies2 and if education does not save everybody1 neither does the bible4 ,wherein1 then1 is the superiority of the divine to the human8 ,moreover1 if a man is comforted by reading ,shakespeare1 or ,goethe1 or ,emerson1 or ,george ,eliot1 would that prove these authors inspired8 ,or1 if a sick man is made better by exercise1 or medical attention1 and a bad man becomes good by a change of environment1 would it follow that these agencies were divine8 ,if the bible is not the only power that can help1 then it is but one of many agencies1 and why should one of the many agencies which make for improvement be labeled divine8 ,nor does the plea that1 because ,i feel it in my heart that the bible is divine1 make it so4 ,if ,i feel it in my heart were enough to prove anything true1 other bibles would be as true as ours4 ,the ,turk and the ,chinaman feel it in their hearts about their gods as we do about ours4 ,the argument from feeling practically dispenses with knowledge1 and leads to intellectual nihilism4 ,v4 ,in defense of the bible it is further urged that1 it being a heavenly treasure in an earthen vessel1 allowance should be made for the unavoidable imperfections which have crept into its pages4 ,god was the author1 man was the amanuensis1 they say1 and1 therefore1 the defects of the bible should be charged to the account of man4 ,but why should a heavenly treasure be enclosed in an earthen vessel8 ,are there no heavenly vessels8 ,was not ,jesus as divine as his father8 ,why could not he have committed the revelation to writing8 ,why leave it to unknown and unreliable reporters to transcribe a divine message8 ,if the reporters were not unreliable1 then what is the complaint8 ,but if reliable reporters could not be found1 the deity could just as easily1 and very much more safely1 have written the whole of his message with his own hand4 ,besides1 a heavenly treasure which an earthen vessel can spoil is not very heavenly4 ,if the incorruptible can be corrupted1 then it is not any different from any other corruptible thing4 ,alas6 for the infallible book which has to be protected against printers' or revisers' mistakes4 ,let us have a better bible--one that no earthen vessel can contaminate4 ,,vi4 ,finally1 ,why not dwell upon the truths in the bible and let alone the errors8 is another of the strong arguments of the bible defenders4 ,there are truths enough in the bible1 and to spare1 say they4 ,why1 then1 waste time on its imperfections8 ,but it all depends upon how serious the imperfections are4 ,it is not the number of errors1 but their importance that counts4 ,one serious blemish in a book would be enough to condemn the whole book4 ,the strength of a chain is in its weakest link4 ,it is no comfort to think that there are many more sound links in the chain than weak ones4 ,when the defects in the bible are pointed out1 it is no answer to say that many1 or even most1 of its parts are all right4 ,but this leads us to the next important question4 ,,iv4 ,how to ,test a ,book ,,the character of a book is determined not by its best1 but by its worst parts4 ,this sounds paradoxical1 but let us see if it is not true4 ,the bulk of a book may be composed of harmless and even of wholesome matter1 but if there is in it even half a page of questionable teaching1 the book becomes unsafe4 ,one may write magnificently of liberty and the rights of man1 for instance1 but if anywhere in the book1 even though only for once1 assassination be recommended as a political weapon1 that one idea would give to the whole work a dangerous tendency4 ,indeed1 the good parts of such a book1 if anything1 add to the mischief it might do1 because they help to give it an air of respectability4 ,in the same way1 a comedy1 or a drama1 may be perfectly proper in nearly all its parts1 but if it offends good taste1 or attacks morality in a single line1 the play is bad4 ,one indelicate scene in a production will bring upon its author the just condemnation of the public4 ,likewise1 a novel may be crowded with helpful philosophical reflections1 but the least vulgarity in it would make the book a menace4 ,we are not taking the position that such books or plays should never be read or acted1 but that they should never be given an unqualified endorsement4 ,the bible is given an unqualified endorsement4 ,to deserve it1 it ought not only to be good in the main1 but good altogether4 ,we shall see if the bible is good even in the main2 but before we take up that phase of the subject let me give you a few more illustrations to show that it is not true of the bible only that its worst parts determine its character1 but also of the men in it who are held up for our emulation4 ,if any one of our physical organs is in an unhealthy or perilous condition1 the health of the whole body is in question4 ,the soundness of all our other parts can not excuse the alarming symptoms of the affected organ4 ,the insurance companies will reject our application if1 though perfectly well in all our other organs1 we are seriously affected in any one of them4 ,by the same rule is measured a man's intellectual parts4 ,it is not the thousand sensible things a man says1 but the one absurd or impossible statement he advances which gives us the gauge of his intellect4 ,to the objection that the rule which we have been applying would do a great injustice if applied to such a man as ,alfred ,russel ,wallace1 for instance1 who though an eminent scientist1 and the rival of ,charles ,darwin1 was also a firm believer in spiritualism1 the answer is that the example cited proves the inadvisability of endorsing any book or man1 unqualifiedly4 ,only an infallible book1 or an infallible man1 could command such endorsement4 ,the bible1 therefore1 must be perfect in everything1 else its unqualified endorsement by the clergy is a real danger4 ,but not only the physical and the intellectual1 but also the moral character of a man is ascertained by this rule4 ,one act of treachery or murder is enough to put a man behind the bars4 ,before such a man may be restored to society he must reform1 and1 likewise1 before a book may be given full endorsement1 the objectionable and the absurd must be eliminated therefrom4 ,in the same way1 before any man could be held up as a perfect example1 he must be above the charge of even a single serious defect4 ,if you would have your play staged1 cut out the offending lines2 if you would have your bible read in the home and the school1 and the characters therein depicted1 admired and followed1 cut out the scandalous stories and the immoral teachings it contains4 ,you will not do this8 ,then both science and morality have the right to condemn your book1 and forbid its use in the public schools1 by the help of the courts4 ,we hope that in the near future the civilized world will avail itself of this right1 by taking steps to render the bible as harmless in church and ,sunday-school as it now is in the public schools4 ,this can be done by breaking down the unqualified endorsement which the sectarian interests of the country have given the book4 ,unveil the bible6 and its glamour will vanish4 ,the most telling proofs in favor of the ,rationalist position on the bible are the admissions which1 from time to time1 the defenders of the bible themselves make4 ,the editors of the ,oberlin ,college ,magazine1 which is a religious publication1 in an article on ,bible ,hero ,classics1 suggest that parts of the bible should be excluded from the mails3 ,modern scholarship has so changed the point of view with which the bible is regarded1 that one no longer has the confidence1 in sending the seeker after ,god to the bible to believe that he will certainly find ,him there4 ,the ,old ,testament is a complete literature with units of varying value4 ,much of it is incomprehensible to the ordinary reader4 ,parts of it should be excluded from the mails4 ,prof4 ,dr4 ,charles ,henderson1 the chaplain of the ,university of ,chicago1 expresses his utter contempt for certain parts of the bible3 ,john the ,baptist's ,god was no better than our devil4 ,the things which made ,solomon and ,david saints in their own day would land them in the penitentiary in ours4 99 99 ,reported in the ,tribune1 ,chicago4 ,the bible quotes ,god as saying that ,david was a man after ,his own heart1 but this divine tells us ,david was a criminal4 ,could a more damaging admission be made by a clergyman8 ,and yet the book that can mistake a scoundrel for a saint is to be placed in the hands of our children at a very tender age1 and foisted upon the whole nation as the sublimest of books1 to quote the words of another divine4 99 ,a book concerning which its own friends can hold such diametrically opposite opinions can not be1 at least1 a very honest book4 ,honest people speak or write to be understood4 ,if what one reader of the bible calls ,god1 another calls the devil2 or if to one reader ,david is a great saint1 while to another he is only a scamp1 deserving a long term in jail1 then1 surely1 either we can not understand the bible1 in which case the book is worthless2 or the bible was not meant to be understood1 which leads to the same conclusion4 99 ,editor ,sunday ,school ,times4 ,the ,rev4 ,j4 ,biresley1 writing in the ,christian ,world1 pays1 unconsciously1 a great tribute to the ,rationalist3 ,more than thirty years ago ,i listened to a lecture by ,charles ,bradlaugh on ',is the ,bible ,true'8 ,his assertions shocked the orthodox among his hearers1 and yet there was scarcely one of them which the biblical students of to-day would not accept4 ,what a compliment this is to the courage of the ,rationalist4 ,he dared to shock the orthodox at a time when they had the power to persecute him unto death4 ,and what an admission this is1 of the intellectual and moral superiority of the heretic to the believer6 ,it takes thirty years of dilly-dallying before ,christian scholars will admit that the persecuted heretic was in the right4 ,is it any wonder that the world is losing respect for priest and preacher and honoring the heretics as the pioneers of the golden day of truth8 ,to the churches we say3 ,if you would save the bible1 separate the good from the bad1 and the false from the true4 ,do not print them all in one volume as the ',holy ,bible4' ,if you have not the courage to call any part of the bible bad1 or any of its statements false--we shall do it for you4 ,speak ,according to ,knowledge ,,there are also good things in the bible4 ,it would be regrettable1 indeed1 to believe it possible for a book of the size of the bible to be wholly bad4 ,literature is life2 and it would be as impossible to find a people with a literature wholly bad1 as it would be to find a people with an infallible literature4 ,together with the ,vedas of ,india1 the ,avesta of the ,pharisees1 the ,five ,kings of the ,chinese1 the ,buddhist ,tri ,pitikes1 and the ,moslem ,koran1 the ,jewish-,christian scriptures contain many splendid passages4 ,in all ancient literature we run across bits of fine poetry and eloquence4 ,it would really be impossible to collect all the literature of a people1 of whatever race or period in history1 into one volume1 without finding in the collection many a precious gem4 ,the cry of a man in distress is always touching1 be he ,jew or ,hindu4 ,the love of man for home and fatherland1 for wife and child1 for truth and freedom1 in any book1 is sublime4 ,friendship is the one rose without a thorn1 wherever it blooms4 ,a melody does not have to be inspired1 to be sung in all lands4 ,we weep for the sufferings of a savage of ten thousand years ago1 and we laugh with the men of wit and humor of every race and clime4 ,we have no prejudice against the bible4 ,all we demand is the liberty to read it as we do any other literature3 ,to enjoy what is noble and inspiring in it1 and to reject what is false and degrading4 ,it is the object of our efforts to make it perfectly proper1 as well as safe1 for any one to read and tell the truth about the bible4 ,no man shall be compelled to agree with it upon penalty of losing his standing in the community now1 or his soul in the hereafter4 ,in comparing one book with another1 we must bear in mind that it is not the ideas in which they agree1 but those in which they disagree1 that justifies their existence4 ,all the seven bibles of the world 99 forbid crime and recommend the virtues4 ,are they1 then1 all equally worthy8 ,if the important thing is sameness of teaching1 why is not one bible enough8 ,but there are many bibles1 because it is the differences that preserve1 as well as distinguish1 one book from another4 ,we would never be able to tell wherein the bible of ,confucius was superior to the ,moslem ,koran1 or the ,koran to the ,avesta of ,zoroaster1 or again1 the book of science to the creeds1 if we confined our investigations to the things held in common by them all4 ,it is by the things in which they disagree that their real character is revealed4 99 ,the seven bibles of the world are the ,koran of the ,mohammedans1 the ,tri ,pitikes of ,buddhists1 the ,five ,kings of the ,chinese1 the three ,vedas of the ,hindus1 the ,zend ,avesta of the ,persians1 the ,eddas of ,scandinavia1 and ,old and ,new ,testaments of the ,christians4 ,thou shalt love thy neighbor is in all the bibles1 but ,speak according to knowledge is not in any of the bibles--it is found only in the bible of science1 and that is the difference between religion1 which builds on faith1 and science1 which builds on knowledge4 ,in this one difference is the glory of science1 a glory which is not shared by any of the sectarian bibles of the world4 ,speak according to knowledge and ,speak according to knowledge4 ,that is to say1 ,let your tongue keep pace with your mind1 are the two commandments for which one looks in vain in the ,jewish-,christian bible4 ,neither ,moses nor ,jesus ever thought of commanding1 or at least of permitting1 people to confine their statements and beliefs to the facts--of never dogmatizing about the unknown1 which vice has converted the world into a babel of discord1 hatred and persecution4 ,never did either of these teachers think of inculcating so sweet1 so sane1 so wholesome1 so modest1 so reverent1 so peaceful1 a command as is expressed in the caution which science has posted up at every turn of the road3 ,speak according to knowledge4 ,nor does the bible allow people to speak their true thoughts4 ,could any book be guilty of a greater offense against the highest ethics8 ,all the ,ten ,commandments and the ,sermon on the ,mount can not make up for this failure of the bible to encourage1 yea2 and to command1 in unmistakably plain and persuasive language1 liberty of thought and speech as the only guarantee of honesty in religion1 and as the only enemy which falsehood fears4 ,on the other hand1 how can any book be called good1 much less the best1 in all the world1 which contains such a passage as the following3 ,he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved2 but he that believeth not shall be damned4 99 99 ,mark xvi1 #af4 ,can freedom and the bible live under the same roof8 ,would it be safe to speak according to knowledge1 when damnation is the penalty for so doing8 ,was it to encourage honesty1 liberty of conscience and tolerance that so ,asiatic and despotic a command as the above has been translated into all the languages of the earth8 ,would not the bible have been a more helpful book if it had said3 ,do not believe upon insufficient evidence1 for to do so is to prefer error to truth8 ,but there is not a single bible that contains so daring a commandment4 ,if a man may not ,speak according to knowledge1 he can not act according to conscience1 and a religion which denies to us these two rights instead of saving us1 destroys us body and soul4 ,the only difference1 in respect to freedom of worship1 between the ,new ,testament and the ,old is that1 while the ,new ,testament postpones the punishment of the free thinker until the day of judgment1 the ,old ,testament proceeds to damn him here and now3 ,if thy brother1 the son of thy mother1 or thy son1 or thy daughter1 or the wife of thy bosom1 or thy friend1 which is as thine own soul1 entice thee secretly1 saying1 ,let us go and serve other gods444 ,thou shalt not consent unto him1 nor hearken unto him2 neither shall thine eye pity him1 neither shalt thou spare1 neither shalt thou conceal him3 but thou shalt surely kill him2 thine hand shall be first upon him to put him to death1 and afterwards the hand of all the people4 ,and thou shalt stone him with stones that he die4 99 99 ,deuteronomy xiii1 #f-aj4 ,it brings tears into my eyes to think of ,europe and ,america upon their knees1 with blanched cheeks and trembling lips1 before such a text4 ,why retain so unjust and tyrannical a commandment in a book which the people are asked to love and obey8 ,and why translate such evil words into all the tongues of man8 ,what has happened to the ,european races--to the descendants of the glorious ,greeks and the proud ,romans--that they can fawn over a book that commands a mother to kill her child for not believing as she does8 ,surely a blight of some kind must have fallen upon both the heart and intellect of the ,western world--else how explain the gilt-edged bibles1 containing these inhuman texts by the score1 which young and old carry in their pockets1 and almost worship8 ,but the full import of this text is in the words we have printed in italics3 ,neither shall thine eye pity him4 ,it seems as though the being who gave the commandment feared that the natural affections might lead fathers or mothers to hesitate dipping their hands in the blood of their own sons and daughters2 hence1 the imperative1 ,neither shall thine eye pity him4 ,yes1 the heart must turn into a stone1 even as the head must be stunned1 before anyone can be a good ,jew or a good ,christian4 ,,part ,,iii4 ,i4 ,the ,first ,chapter of the ,bible ,,much depends upon what impression the first chapter produces upon our minds4 ,if we find the statements therein contained accurate1 precise1 reasonable1 original1 of course1 that fact will dispose us very favorably toward the remainder of the book2 but if1 on the other hand1 the first chapter should appear to us as fantastical1 fictitious1 legendary1 contradictory1 grotesque--made up of gossip borrowed from here and there--naturally1 we will be prejudiced against the chapters which follow4 ,if the first chapter is not true1 the credit of the book will certainly suffer4 ,we may read the rest of the book as literature1 or from curiosity1 but as the word of ,god--no6 ,curious1 is it not1 that there is not a ,christian scholar1 or a university man1 who does not admit that the opening chapter of the bible is legendary1 that is to say1 not true4 ,sir ,oliver ,lodge1 who is one of the champions of the church1 in his reply to ,professor ,haeckel1 refers to the first chapter as the old ,genesis legend4 ,canon ,farrar1 who was a shining light in the ,anglican church1 calls this same chapter an allegory1 that is to say1 a fable4 ,and the scholarly authors of the ,encyclopedia ,biblica do not hesitate to deal with the story of the creation in ,genesis as mere gossip1 borrowed from ,assyrian and ,babylonian sources4 ,there is hardly a single educated ,christian who accepts the first chapter of the bible as anything more than tradition or fiction4 ,the dean of the ,university of ,chicago1 who is a ,baptist clergyman1 recently said this in public print3 ,it is irreligious to teach that the world was made in six days1 when we know that it was not4 ,but the first chapter of the bible teaches that untruth1 and for two thousand years the churches1 according to this ,christian professor1 have taught what is not true4 ,in the ,ten ,commandments1 supposed to have been given by ,god himself1 and which are still read in all the churches1 we are ordered to keep the seventh day holy1 for in six days the ,lord made the heaven and the earth1 etc4 ,yet1 this ,christian professor says this is not true4 ,what is still more puzzling is that this same professor who condemns the first chapter as erroneous1 accepts the second1 or the third1 or the tenth1 as the word of ,god6 ,even more astonishing than this is the conduct of the religious teachers who from ,monday to ,saturday believe in the scientific doctrine of evolution1 but on ,sunday repeat with the ,westminster ,catechism that ,in six days the ,lord made the heaven and the earth4 ,what shall we think of a religion that can make people so callous as that8 ,of course1 a book or a man may make a number of statements of which some are true and some are not1 but the man or the book that makes statements of which some are true and some false ceases to be different from any other book or man4 ,the position of the orthodox preachers1 that the bible is infallible from cover to cover1 is very much more consistent than the position of the ,christian professor we have quoted1 who says that the first chapter of the bible is not the word of ,god1 but the second or the fifth is4 ,no4 ,if the first chapter of your holy book is not divine1 the whole book is human4 ,but to state1 as these ,christian scholars do1 that what the bible says in its first chapter is not true1 is to make a very serious admission4 ,if ,genesis is a legend1 ,jesus might be a legend1 too1 for both ,genesis and ,jesus are in the same holy book4 ,if the bible is unreliable when it says the world was created1 it may be equally unreliable when it says ,christ was incarnated4 ,if it is not true that the universe was made in six days1 it may not be true either that ,christ rose from the grave4 ,our evidence for either statement is the bible4 ,if the story of the fall of man is a myth1 the story of the ,lamb of ,god taking away the sins of the world1 may also be a myth4 ,you can not part with ,genesis and keep ,jesus4 ,the moment a single stone is removed from the structure of super-naturalism1 the safety of the whole building is threatened4 ,the tragedy of ,adam and ,eve in the ,garden of ,eden is inseparably related to the tragedy of a dying god on ,calvary4 ,christ is supposed to have shed his blood because ,adam's sin had brought a curse upon the whole human race2 and if ,adam is a myth1 what becomes of ,christ8 ,the ,first ,verse of the ,bible ,,but let us read the first verse of the first chapter3 ,in the beginning ,god created the heaven and the earth4 ,indeed6 ,the text could not be more childish if it read3 ,in the beginning ,god created the heaven and the moon4 ,is not the moon1 or the earth1 a very small part of the heaven and included therein8 ,why separate the earth1 or the moon1 from the rest of the universe8 ,how would it sound to say3 ,in the beginning ,god created the earth and the ,sandwich ,islands8 or the earth and a grain of sand8 ,but our next comment will show that if the writer of this first verse of the first chapter of the bible was pitiably ignorant of his subject1 the translator of it was even worse than ignorant--he was1 ,i am sorry to say1 also a falsifier4 ,in the beginning ,god created the heaven and the earth4 ,i hold my breath6 ,the very first verse shows deliberate manipulation and tampering with the text4 ,the ,hebrew word which has been rendered into ,english as ,god1 is ,elohim1 which means gods1 not ,god4 ,the singular of ,elohim is ,eloah--the dreaded one4 ,but the ,hebrew text reads ,elohim1 not ,eloah1 that is to say1 the plural and not the singular form is used4 ,had the translators of the bible been free from sectarian prejudices1 the first verse in the bible would have read3 ,in beginning 7not in the beginning7 the gods created the heaven and the earth4 ,but the priesthood1 which had the bible in its custody1 desired to prove by it the dogma of monotheism4 ,yet1 the first verse of the first chapter of the bible proved polytheism--more than one god4 ,whereupon1 the translators quietly dropped the letter s from the word gods1 and made it to read ,god1 thereby suppressing the fact that the supposed inspired writer of the opening chapter of the book was a ,pagan1 with more gods than the translators themselves believed in4 ,it does not require much effort to see what the consequences would have been had the first verse of the bible been truthfully rendered into the modern tongues4 ,in beginning the gods created the heaven and the earth might have relegated the bible to the limbo of other mythological compositions4 ,the gods would have made the exclusiveness of ,christianity or ,judaism impossible4 ,the history of ,european religions would have been different had not that one letter s in the first verse of the first chapter of the bible1 and the very first time the deity is mentioned1 been killed by the translators4 ,of course1 finding manipulation in the very first verse1 we will begin to suspect that other texts1 too1 have been doctored4 ,the very name of the book--,holy ,bible--shows manipulation4 ,by what1 or by whose authority is the book called holy8 ,it is nowhere stated in any of the manuscripts translated that the writings are holy4 ,the words ,holy ,bible1 then1 represent nothing more than the opinion or guess1 or1 at best1 the judgment1 of the ,english translators of the book4 ,but there is a more serious example of manipulation on the title-page of the ,bible4 ,instead of admitting that the translation has been made from ,hebrew and ,greek copies1 not originals1 for there are no originals 7and1 therefore1 there is no way of telling how true the copies are1 since they can not be compared with the originals71 the words ,translated out of the original ,greek is inserted on the title-page of the ,new ,testament4 ,this1 ,i am compelled to say1 is an indefensible misstatement4 ,the truth is that the originals1 if they ever existed1 are lost4 ,the bible as we have it is not quite two hundred and fifty years old1 and the most ancient manuscript in existence of the ,old ,testament is not a thousand years old4 ,this is the ,codex ,petropolitanus1 which is in the library of ,st4 ,petersburg4 ,but where are the originals8 ,why were they lost8 ,why were they inspired if they were not to be preserved8 ,but how can men who do not hesitate to state in print that they possess the original ,greek of the ,new ,testament when they do not and never have possessed it1 pose as the moral teachers of the world8 ,if the translators of the bible wished to confine themselves to the truth1 instead of saying ,translated out of the original ,greek1 which is not so1 they would have said this on the title-page of their work3 ,a ,collection of ,writings ,of ,unknown ,date and ,authorship1 ,rendered ,into ,english ,from ,supposed ,copies of ,supposed ,originals ,unfortunately ,lost4 ,rev4 ,t4 ,k4 ,cheyne1 who is one of the contributors to the most scholarly work recently produced by churchmen1 99 gives a number of instances of deliberate manipulation of bible texts by the translators4 ,the ,old ,testament1 he writes1 is not altogether in its original form2 it has undergone not merely corruption1 but editorial manipulation4 ,this is plainer in some books than in others2 but nowhere1 perhaps1 is it more manifest than in the ,psalter4 ,two of his examples of mistranslation are from the twenty-ninth psalm3 99 ,the ,encyclopedia ,biblica4 ,authorized ,version4 ,literal ,translation4 #a4 ,give thanks unto the ,ascribe unto ,yahwe1 ,o ye ,lord1 ,o ye mighty1 give unto sons of ,jerahmeel1 the ,lord glory and strength4 ,ascribe unto ,yahwe glory #b4 ,give unto the ,lord the and strength4 glory due unto his name2 ,ascribe glory1 ,o ye ,ish- worship the ,lord in the maelites1 unto ,yahwe1 beauty of holiness4 ,worship ,yahwe1 ,rehoboth and ,cush4 ,compare also the first verse of the one hundred and thirty-ninth psalm with its literal translation as given by ,doctor ,cheyne 3 ,authorized ,version4 ,literal ,translation4 #a4 ,o ,lord thou hast ,o ,yahwe 6 thou hast rooted searched me1 and known me4 up ,zarephath1 #b4 ,thou knowest my ,it is thou that hast cut down-sitting and mine upris- down ,maacath2 ing1 thou understandest my ,ashhur and ,arabia thou thoughts afar off4 hast scattered4 ,all ,jerahmeel thou hast subdued4 ,but one of the worst cases of tampering with inspired texts is to be found in the ,new ,testament4 ,for nearly two thousand years the seventh verse of the fifth chapter of the first epistle of ,st4 ,john has been saying this3 ,for there are three that bear record in heaven1 the ,father1 the ,word1 and the ,holy ,ghost2 and these three are one4 ,you may look high and low for that text in the ,revised ,version1 but you will not be able to find it there4 ,that text has slipped out of1 or has been spirited away from1 the bible1 revised4 ,after twenty centuries of time1 the forgery blushes to look criticism in the face4 ,the smuggled text for the trinity is still in the ,king ,james' bible1 but the best scholarship of the church1 at least1 is ashamed of it1 and has dropped it4 ,what confidence can be placed upon men who wait for twenty hundred years before they will admit that what the ,rationalist has been saying right along about the bible being a medley 7to which from time to time the sects made such additions as suited their interests or from which they dropped whatever was prejudicial to their claims7 is really true4 ,but let us return to the first verse of the bible3 ,it is evident that the writer of that verse believed in more than one god4 ,this is shown by other references to the subject in the same chapter4 ,he makes ,elohim1 or the gods1 say1 ,let us make man in our image1 after our likeness4 ,still another text reads3 ,behold the man has become as one of us1 which is also in keeping with the gods who created the heaven and the earth4 ,in reply to this criticism1 it has been argued that the we or the us and the our in this part of the bible prove the doctrine of the trinity4 ,the ,catholic bible1 in a footnote1 plainly says so4 ,evidently1 ,john ,milton was of the same opinion1 for in ,paradise ,lost he says3 444 ,therefore the omnipotent ,eternal father--thus to his ,son audibly spake3 ,let us make now man in our image444 99 99 ,paradise ,lost1 book ,,vii4 ,but why should the words us and our prove that there are only three persons in the ,godhead8 ,why may not we mean four1 or forty8 ,why only three8 ,it is really childish to see in gods1 or in we1 a proof of only three gods1 and no more4 ,besides1 the members of the trinity are all supposed to belong to the male sex2 but the gods in ,genesis say that they created man in their image1 male and female1 the implication being that there were female as well as male gods in the we of the first chapter of the bible4 ,this argument failing1 the defenders of the bible make a second attempt to explain away the letter s in gods3 ,the writer of the first chapter of the bible1 they argue1 wrote the plural form out of respect to the deity4 ,he used the royal style of speaking to express his veneration4 ,but if gods in the plural is the respectful title of the deity1 why did the translators use the disrespectful singular in ,english8 ,why did they drop the plural for the singular in the translation8 ,or is it only in ,hebrew that the royal style must be observed8 ,and is it conceivable that a ,god who elsewhere in the bible says ,i--,i am a jealous ,god1 and ,i only am ,god1 and there is none other beside me--would here1 and in the very first chapter1 and on a most important subject1 say we gods created the heaven and the earth8 ,there is no better way to prove the weakness of a cause than by trying to uphold it by equivocal arguments4 ,men would never be arguing that we means the trinity1 or that it is the royal style1 etc41 if they had more cogent arguments to advance4 ,it is only when we are hard pressed that we resort to sophistry4 ,but let us read the second verse3 ,the earth was without form and void2 and darkness was upon the face of the deep4 ,and the spirit of ,god moved upon the face of the waters4 ,honestly1 it is impossible to get any intelligible meaning out of such a sentence4 ,the earth was without form8 ,was not the form of our globe the same in the beginning as it is now8 ,can there be anything without a form of some kind8 ,the revisers of the authorized version of the bible1 wishing to remedy this ignorant statement1 have dropped the word form1 and substituted in its place the word waste3 ,the earth was waste and void4 ,but waste and void mean practically the same thing4 ,the revisers have simply refused to translate the word which means without form4 ,of course1 the revised version is not read in all the churches2 and in the authorized version1 the earth is without form4 ,this meaningless text has been made to support the idea that at one time there was only chaos1 out of which the creator evolved cosmos4 ,science1 however1 has shown that nature was never in a state of chaos4 ,the laws of matter are the same to-day1 and will be the same to-morrow--and they have never been different4 ,the law of gravitation1 for instance1 was as potent and inevitable when the earth was younger as it is now4 ,there was just as much order1 or to put it differently1 nature was as orderly a billion years ago as she is to-day4 ,everything happened according to the inherent properties of matter and force then1 as now1 and as it will happen to-morrow and forever4 ,chaos1 then1 is a figment of the theological mind4 ,to provide ,god with something to do1 a chaos was invented1 which had to be tamed into a cosmos to keep the deity occupied4 ,but the text proceeds to inform us that darkness was upon the face of the deep4 ,this can not mean that the land itself was in the light2 it must mean that the entire earth1 land and sea1 were wrapped up in darkness4 ,all we have1 then1 in the beginning1 is darkness1 and ,god's spirit moving about in the darkness4 ,what a beginning6 ,if ,god is light1 as we are told elsewhere in the bible1 how could there be darkness where he lived and moved about8 ,god in the dark6 or1 ,god and the darkness6 ,the unknown6 ,it is this ,darkness which men have called ,god6 ,and is it not significant that because of this early association with darkness1 the gods have always preferred it to the light4 ,in ,first ,kings1 sixth chapter1 fourth verse1 we read that ,solomon in building his temple made windows of narrow lights4 ,the house was meant to be the dwelling place of ,god1 and care was taken to shut out the light1 except what slipped in through narrow windows4 ,modern church buildings show the same prejudice against the light4 ,god feels at home in the darkness6 ,that was his first home--when he moved about in the universal night4 ,it is also plainly stated in the bible that ,god prefers darkness for his abode4 ,the ,lord said that he would dwell in the thick darkness4 99 99 ,i ,kings viii1 #ab4 ,god6 ,darkness6 ,they are joined together and no man has ever been able to put them asunder4 ,but let us read on3 ,and ,god said1 ,let there be light2 and there was light4 ,and ,god saw the light1 that it was good4 ,was that the first time the deity saw the light8 ,did he not know before this that the light was good8 ,if he really had been moving over the face of the waters in total darkness for oons1 who could blame him for calling the light good8 ,after he saw that the light was good1 he divided it from the darkness1 and he called the light day1 and the darkness he called night1 and the evening and the morning were the first day4 ,we have now day and night--evening and morning2 but we have as yet no sun4 ,indeed1 the sun is not created until the fourth day4 ,how could there be light without the sun8 ,and why create a sun if light could be had without it8 ,the earth is in darkness or in the light according to its relative position to the sun4 ,by its revolution on its axis the earth presents an ever shifting surface to the sun4 ,the earth's movements are caused by two contrary forces1 the centripetal and the centrifugal--the one tossing the earth like a ball into infinite space1 and the other tugging it toward the sun4 ,the equilibrium of these forces marks the diurnal course of the earth4 ,without the sun there would be no revolution of the earth1 and if the earth stood still1 there could be neither evening nor morning4 ,and yet this verse states there was day and night1 morning and evening1 before there was any sun4 ,the idea that the world is a progressive body1 with the reins in the grip of those two forces1 the centrifugal and the centripetal1 whipping her on1 and yet never letting her for a moment1 even1 to step out of the celestial race-course1 never entered the puny and prosaic minds of myth-makers4 ,is there any reason why we should accept so impossible an explanation of the origin of the universe1 or of the relation of the earth to the sun1 when we have within our reach the stupendous revelations of science8 ,the creation of the sun1 like the creation of the woman1 seems to have been an afterthought4 ,not only was there both light and darkness--a day and a night--before there was any sun1 but the sunless light was also strong enough to produce vegetation1 for the bible states that herbs and trees appeared and flourished on the third day2 that is to say1 vegetation arrived twenty-four hours before the sun4 ,not only does the bible speak of the stars as if they were thrown in1 ,he made the stars also1 but the sun seems to have been thrown in1 too--just as a grocer weighing beans tosses into the already loaded scales a few additional ones4 ,the sun was made to give light upon the earth1 say the ,scriptures4 ,but the earth was already lit up by the ,let there be light1 and there was light1 of the deity4 ,the grass grew and the trees bore fruit after their kind without any help whatever from the sun4 ,but an excuse must be provided for the existence of the sun3 it was made to give light upon the earth4 ,it never occurred to the infallible writer that the sun1 being one million five hundred thousand times bigger than the earth1 would give more light than the earth could use4 ,what would we say to the wisdom of creating a million million candle-power electric flame to light a molecule of dust8 ,yet1 not only the sun which is fifteen hundred thousand times bigger than ourselves1 but also the stars which are many times bigger than the sun1 and of which there are an infinite number1 were all created to dance attendance on this tiny dewdrop of a world1 trembling in infinite space4 ,the man who originated this gossip about sun and stars thought the firmament was a solid roof1 just about so large and so far from the earth4 ,it was made of hammered plate1 and was equipped with windows which opened and shut1 to let out or to stop the rain4 ,the stars1 sun and moon were fastened to this upper roof and worked to and fro like sliding panels4 ,is it possible that people find this infantile story of earth and sky inspiring8 ,and is it not a pity that we ,americans1 in this twentieth century1 lack both the courage and the frankness to speak our minds freely on the bible8 ,if this ,asiatic book has done no other harm than to seal the lips of science from fear1 it has done enough to deserve all the criticisms that ,rationalism has leveled against it4 ,theologians ,discover ,that ,six ,days ,means ,six ,periods ,,the defenders of the first chapter of the bible1 in their attempt to reconcile theology with science1 have advanced the theory that the six days of creation1 instead of meaning six natural days of twenty-four hours1 means six indefinite periods of time4 ,the object of this explanation is to give the deity sufficient time to build his universe in1 and so bring the story of theology and science into something like harmony4 ,of course1 six meant six1 and days meant days for nearly two thousand years1 and there was no idea of ever changing the meaning of these words until the voice of ,charles ,darwin was heard in the world4 ,then in haste the clergy1 too1 made a great discovery4 ,darwin discovered the law of evolution2 the clergy discovered that six days in the bible means six oons1 or eras of large proportions4 ,there is a semblance of truth in this contention of the theologians4 ,when1 for example1 we say in ,washington's day1 we mean1 the century1 or the times ,washington lived in4 ,or when we say in the day of the ,lord we do not mean a day of twenty-four hours1 but a long and indefinite period of time4 ,but this defense breaks down completely when it is remembered that the bible positively states the number of days required to make the world in4 ,one day of indefinite duration would have been enough if time were what ,god needed4 ,why six indefinite times8 ,the six before the word days is unanswerable proof that the inspired writer meant just six days and nothing more4 ,when the number of days required for any purpose is stated1 days can only mean one thing4 ,if we say ,washington crossed the ,delaware and drove the ,english out of the ,state in six days1 there is absolutely no way of making the six days mean anything else than six days4 ,the number six is fatal to the theological theory that days means eras4 ,god was for forty days on ,mount ,sinai2 ,jesus was in the wilderness for forty days2 and he remained with his disciples for forty days after his resurrection4 ,if forty days means forty days1 six days can mean six indefinite periods of time only when there is no other way of saving the creed4 ,still another proof that the bible writers believed the universe was called into existence in six natural days1 is their phrase1 and the evening and the morning were the first day1 and the evening and the morning were the second day1 and so on to the end of the week4 ,we do not need an evening and a morning to complete an indefinite era4 ,and the seventh day on which1 in imitation of the ,lord1 we are supposed to rest from our labors--is that1 too1 an indefinite period of time8 ,moreover1 to intimate that six days were not enough for an almighty god to create the universe in would be nothing less than skepticism4 ,it is expressly stated in the bible that nothing is too hard for ,god2 why1 then1 are not six days of twenty-four hours enough8 ,they were enough1 before ,darwin4 ,to extend the six days into six periods is to make terms with science1 and when one begins to do that one has already lost his faith4 ,in the bible of ,india1 ,god only thought of creating a world1 and behold the world was4 ,that way of creating is more becoming to a god4 ,he1 who could create out of nothing1 could create also without time4 ,the ,hindu god is bigger than the ,hebrew4 ,the former only thinks the world into being4 ,the latter needs six eras1 or indefinite time1 for the same piece of work4 ,it is the ,hindu who has faith4 ,let me explain3 ,if ,i were asked1 for example1 to tell the time according to my watch1 there is only one answer ,i could make1 if ,i wished to tell the truth4 ,i am limited to one answer--one only4 ,but if ,i did not care to tell the time as ,i have it1 there are a hundred things ,i could say instead4 ,a man can say many things that are not true1 but only one thing can he say if he wishes to answer a question honestly4 ,the theologians do not seem to want to tell the truth about the bible2 hence they have a hundred other things to say4 ,there is no end to the dodges1 excuses1 apologies1 sophisms--the allegorical1 metaphorical1 spiritual interpretations--they can resort to to avoid giving the one true answer about the bible4 ,to the scientist six days means six days2 to the theologian they mean whatever the interests of his creed require them to mean4 ,they may mean one thing to-day and another to-morrow4 ,if the theologian is addressing missionary converts1 six days means six days1 and if he is addressing scientists1 he may make the six days mean six very long periods--as long as his hearers desire4 ,the first and last duty of the theologian is to save his creed4 ,he will tell the truth when it helps his creed2 he will suppress the truth when he thinks it will hurt his creed4 ,he was not ordained to be loyal to the truth2 he was ordained to stand up for the creed4 ,an oath1 an oath1 ,i have an oath in heaven1 cried ,shylock1 when he was asked to listen to the voice of humanity4 ,likewise1 when ,reason appeals to the clergyman to tell the truth about the bible1 he answers3 ,an oath1 an oath1 ,i have taken an oath to defend the creed4 ,shall ,i lay perjury to my soul8 ,but ,genesis is as unreliable on the question of the age of the earth as it is on the way it came into existence4 ,while it is not stated in the bible just how old the earth is1 by comparing and computing the various dates it gives the precise biblical age of the earth may be arrived at4 ,according to the chronology of the bible1 the earth is something near six thousand years old4 ,of course1 it may be that years in the bible no more means years than days means days1 but if they do1 then the bible is wrong again4 ,it is now generally admitted by scientists that the age of our planet runs into the millions4 ,there is not a single scholar who accepts the bible chronology seriously4 ,according to ,darwin1 who weighs his statements before he makes them1 two hundred millions of years would hardly be enough to bring about the multifarious forms of life which now exist on the earth4 ,historians have discovered traces of a civilization on the banks of the ,nile long before the mythical ,adam opened his eyes in ,eden4 ,egypt was in blossom long before the forbidden tree was planted in paradise1 and archeology has proved the existence of man on this planet myriads of years before ,egypt reared her pyramids1 or ,athens her ,parthenon4 ,out of the caves of ,germany1 ,england and ,france have been dug the bones of primitive man who saw the light of the sun and heard the swing of the sea nearly two hundred and fifty thousand years ago4 ,in a publication of the ,smithsonian4 ,institution1 issued and paid for by the ,united ,states ,government1 it is stated that there is enough proof to make the age of the earth at least seventy millions of years4 ,every day1 except on ,sunday1 and everywhere1 except in church1 the ,united ,states affixes its official seal1 and gives full approval1 to the teachings of science2 but on ,sunday1 and in church1 the same ,united ,states officially bows down and worships as the ,word of ,god a book that makes all science a heresy and a blasphemy4 ,and we wonder that there is so much false profession in the land6 ,mr4 ,gladstone1 a few years ago1 tried to help the theologians defend ,genesis against the onslaughts of ,darwinism4 ,it was the object of his encounter with ,huxley to show that the bible account of creation was as consistent with the known facts as the theory of evolution4 ,in fact1 ,genesis1 according to ,gladstone1 was a sort of introduction to ,darwin's ,origin of ,species4 ,in his admirable reply to ,gladstone1 ,professor ,huxley gives the bible version of the origin of life and the world to show the irreconcilable difference between revelation and science4 ,says ,professor ,huxley3 ,the bible teaches that this visible universe of ours came into existence at no great distance of time from the present1 and that the parts of which it is composed made their appearance in a certain definite order1 in the space of six natural days1 in such a manner that on the first of these days light appeared2 that on the second the firmament or sky separated the waters above from the waters beneath the firmament2 that on the third day the waters drew away from the dry land1 and upon it a varied vegetable life1 similar to that which now exists1 made its appearance2 that the fourth day was signalized by the apparition of the sun1 the stars1 the moon and the planets2 that on the fifth day aquatic animals originated within the waters2 that on the sixth day the earth gave rise to our four-footed terrestial creatures1 and to all variations of terrestial animals except birds1 which had appeared on the preceding day2 and1 finally1 that man appeared upon the earth1 and the emergence of the universe from chaos was finished4 ,continuing1 ,professor ,huxley shows how the theologians try to wiggle out of all that this implies by quietly changing the natural meaning of the words used by the bible writers4 ,he says3 ,if we are to listen to many expositors of no mean authority1 we must believe that what seems so clearly defined in ,genesis--as if very great pains had been taken that there should be no possibility of mistake--is not the meaning of the text at all4 ,the account is divided into periods that we may make just as long or as short as convenience requires4 ,we are also to understand that it is consistent with the original text to believe that the most complex plants and animals may have been evolved by natural processes1 lasting for millions of years1 out of structureless rudiments4 ,a person who is not a ,hebrew scholar can only stand aside and admire the marvelous flexibility of a language which admits of such diverse interpretations4 99 99 ,controverted ,questions1 page #ajj4 ,the ,great ,tragedy ,,but it is when we come to read the bible story of the creation of man that its unreliability becomes more manifest than ever4 ,the story of ,adam and ,eve seems to have been lifted bodily out of some foreign document4 ,this is evident from the fact that it is never referred to again throughout the ,old ,testament4 ,when the ,jews were carried into captivity they became familiar with the ,babylonian legend of creation1 its ,garden of ,eden1 the serpent1 the forbidden tree1 the fall of man1 etc4 ,the name of the first man in the ,babylonian story was ,adami4 ,the belief that man was formed out of the earth is very ancient4 ,men saw dead bodies return to dust1 and1 naturally enough1 they inferred from it that man was made out of the dust of the earth4 ,in the ,jewish story1 as related in the second chapter of ,genesis1 the first man was a bachelor1 and if he had liked that sort of life1 woman1 in all probability1 would never have been created4 ,it is suggested in the story that ,god asked ,adam to choose a companion from among the animals1 which were made to pass before him1 that he might name them1 and if possible select from among them a companion for himself3 ,and ,adam gave names to all cattle1 and to the fowl of the air1 and to every beast of the field2 but for ,adam there was not found an helpmeet for him4 99 ,adam was lonely3 ,and the ,lord ,god caused a deep sleep to fall upon ,adam1 and he slept3 and he took one of his ribs444 and the rib which the ,lord ,god had taken from man1 made he a woman1 and brought her unto the man4 9999 99 ,genesis ii1 #bj4 9999 ,ibid4 #ba-bb4 ,the story of the temptation of ,adam and ,eve in the ,garden of ,eden1 on which the whole theological system of the churches is built1 is so crude that it can not stand any kind of an examination4 ,adam and ,eve1 for instance1 are warned against the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil4 ,but1 really1 they did not have to eat of this tree to be able to tell good from evil1 for they already knew the difference4 ,when ,adam saw ,god1 his maker1 did he not love and honor him8 ,if so1 he knew what was good4 ,did he not love his garden home8 ,if so1 he could tell what was good4 ,and did he not rejoice when ,eve appeared before him with the freshness of beauty in her cheeks and the sparkle of love in her eyes8 ,if so1 ,adam knew what was bliss4 ,what was the object1 then1 of telling ,adam that he must not learn to distinguish good from evil8 ,did not ,adam and ,eve enjoy their daily walks and musings8 ,did they not see that the trees and the flowers springing up at their feet were fair to look upon8 ,were they not able to smell the fragrance that came with each passing zepyhr1 or to feast on the luxury of shade and color that greeted their eyes8 ,did not the song of the birds wake melodies in their souls8 ,surely they were not wooden beings without either feeling or taste2 yet1 if they could feel and choose1 they certainly knew what was good and what was not good before they ate of the magical tree in ,eden4 ,again1 were not ,adam and ,eve made in the image of ,god8 ,how1 then1 could they be ignorant of good and evil8 ,if they could not tell the difference between good and evil1 or between ,god and the devil1 in what sense were they created moral beings8 ,a man really created in the likeness of ,god does not have to eat of a tree before he can tell right from wrong4 ,god said to ,adam3 ,for on the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die4 ,that is conclusive evidence that ,adam knew good from evil before he ate of the forbidden tree2 for he feared death4 ,he must have known that it was a terrible thing to die2 he must have known enough to prefer life to death1 else he could not have been scared by such a punishment4 ,but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil1 thou shalt not eat of it4 ,this was not only a superfluous commandment1 but also one that could under no conceivable circumstances be obeyed4 ,how could any one be prevented from acquiring knowledge8 ,to live is to learn4 ,why did ,god give ,adam eyes and ears if he was not to see or hear8 ,but to see and hear is to compare1 and to compare is to learn4 ,memory retains what the eyes and the ears have communicated to it1 and thus is born experience--the universal teacher4 ,to give a man a pair of lungs1 and then to tell him he shall not breathe1 would not be more unreasonable than to give a man organs1 senses1 brains--to make him in the image of ,god--and then to menace him with instant death if he should acquire knowledge4 ,to give an impossible commandment is to desire its violation4 ,the apologists of the bible say that ,god was only trying ,adam's character1 as he tried ,abraham's faith when he ordered him to sacrifice his son ,isaac4 ,but why try ,adam with the tree of the knowledge of good and evil8 ,why not with some other tree8 ,and why try him with an impossible commandment8 ,the first requisite of a trial is that it be fair4 ,was it fair to deny to living and growing minds1 divinely made1 the acquisition of experience8 ,is it fair to deny to one athirst1 the truth8 ,and for whose benefit was the trial8 ,god certainly must have known in advance how ,adam would behave under the circumstances2 and as for ,adam1 how could he act otherwise than as ,god had foreordained8 ,let the truth be told3 the bible deity was only seeking a pretext to damn the first man he ever created and to curse the only world he ever made4 ,and this1 that the clergy may be able to declaim1 ,god so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son to die for it6 ,if ,god meant only to test ,adam's loyalty to his creator1 how explain the following text3 ,and the ,lord ,god said1 ,behold the man has become as one of us1 to know good and evil3 and now lest he put forth his hand1 and take also of the tree of life1 and eat1 and live forever2 therefore the ,lord ,god sent him forth from the ,garden of ,eden4444 ,so he drove out the man4 99 99 ,genesis iii1 #bb-bd4 ,i am sorry1 but that text places ,god in a poor light4 ,the tree was forbidden1 to prevent ,adam from becoming a higher being4 ,the ,good ,god was angry because man had become like one of us4 ,and he drove out the man for an equally envious reason3 ,lest he put forth his hand1 and take also of the tree of life1 and eat1 and live forever ,the ,lord ,god did not desire man to be immortal--that is why he drove him out of ,paradise1 and to make the fall of man sure1 to prevent his ever rising to divine heights1 the ,lord ,god stationed guards with flaming swords at the gates of ,eden to beat back man from the way of the tree of life4 ,and is this the ,god who so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son to die for it8 ,had he been more honest with ,adam the crime of the crucifixion might have been prevented4 ,it is one of the principal tenets of all the churches that man was created immortal1 and that but for ,adam's disobedience there would have been no death in the world and ,paradise would have remained in man's possession forever4 ,but there is not the shadow of a foundation in the story as told in the bible for such an inference4 ,the bible teaches the very opposite of what the churches hold4 ,adam is driven from ,paradise to prevent him from becoming immortal by eating also of the tree of life4 ,if ,god really wished the happiness of nan1 he would1 instead of warning him against magical trees1 have instructed him in the things that preserve life and promote joy4 ,he would have told ,adam and ,eve how to love one another1 to moderate their desires1 and to labor daily for beauty as well as for bread4 ,he would have warned them1 not against the tree of knowledge1 but against the cunning1 crafty serpent1 of whose existence he leaves them in utter ignorance4 ,if the bible ,god were really the friend of man1 he would never have pitted two inexperienced children like ,adam and ,eve against ,satan1 the ,lord of hell1 and a match for ,god ,almighty himself4 ,and in the hour of danger the ,lord was not there to help his little ones6 ,he left them alone with the fiend who plays with loaded dice6 ,by whose permission did the devil make his appearance in ,paradise8 ,and was there a devil before ,adam fell8 ,what a story6 ,created and concealed in ,eden1 there was a devil1 a monster1 who springs upon the first human pair1 and they bleed to death in his clutches2 and the ,lord ,god does not appear on the scene until after the devil has retired4 ,and this is the being whom we must call ,our ,father6 ,we are unable to find in the bible either a paradise or a father4 ,we have been taught to believe that where the devil is there is hell2 the devil was in the ,garden of ,eden1 therefore1 the ,garden of ,eden could not have been truly a ,paradise4 ,and had ,god really been a father1 he would never have forgotten to warn his children against the serpent and his deadly sting4 ,but the story as told in ,genesis is more creditable to the ,evil ,one than to the ,lord ,god4 ,the devil told the truth to ,eve when he assured her that ,in the day ye eat thereof1 then your eyes shall be opened1 and ye shall be as gods1 knowing good and evil4 ,his statement squares with the facts4 ,he did not deceive them4 ,nor did he coax1 or urge them to eat of the fruit of the tree4 ,adam and ,eve were left to do as they pleased4 ,the devil did not threaten them with dire consequences if they refused to obey his word4 ,no attempt was made to scare or stampede them into plucking the forbidden fruit4 ,all he did was to tell them exactly what would happen if they ate of the fruit of the tree of knowledge2 and then he retired4 ,let us place in parallel columns the words spoken by the serpent1 or the devil whom he is supposed to have personified1 and those of the ,lord ,god3 ,the ,lord ,god said 3 ,and the serpent said 3 ,but of the tree of the ,ye shall not surely die4 knowledge of good and evil1 ,for ,god doth know that in thou shalt not eat of it3 for the day ye eat thereof1 then in the day that thou eatest your eyes shall be opened1 and thereof thou shalt surely ye shall be as gods1 knowing die499 good and evil4 9999 99 ,this was spoken to ,adam alone1 for as yet ,eve was not created4 ,see ,genesis ii1 #af1 #ag4 9999 ,ibid4 iii1 #e4 ,which of the two speakers told the truth8 ,adam and ,eve did not die on the day they ate of the tree1 as ,god had said they would--,adam lived to be nine hundred years old--and their eyes were opened to know good and evil1 just as the devil had predicted4 ,we have already anticipated and answered the argument that when ,god said they would die on the day they ate of the forbidden tree1 he meant they would become mortal4 ,they were not immortal before they had tasted of the fruit1 since ,god expelled them from ,eden to prevent them from eating also of the tree of life and becoming immortal4 ,to few of the readers of the bible has it ever occurred that the first commandment ,god ever gave to man practically made the acquisition of knowledge a crime4 ,the truth is that the first commandment of every revealed religion is a ,thou shalt not know4 ,according to ,genesis1 the ,lord offered a ,paradise to man on condition that he steer clear of knowledge4 ,there has been considerable discussion as to the precise location of the ,garden of ,eden4 ,but if we do not know where the ,garden of ,eden was1 we know very well what it was4 ,the ,garden of ,eden was--,ignorance4 ,this is the ,paradise which the revealed religions offer to man4 ,to know is to be expelled from ,paradise4 ,after ,god had placed ,adam in ,paradise1 that is to say1 in a state of ignorance1 he said to him3 ,thou shalt not eat of the fruit of the tree of knowledge1 threatening him at the same time with death on the day that he ate of the fruit of that tree4 ,everything else was permitted save the acquisition of knowledge4 ,on the day that man opened his eyes he lost the paradise of the gods--,ignorance6 ,it has been customary to trace modern scepticism1 or free inquiry1 to the eighteenth century1 or to the ,renaissance2 but in reality modern thought began with ,adam in the ,garden of ,eden--assuming for the time being the correctness of the narrative4 ,man broke the very first commandment the gods ever gave1 ,thou shalt not know1 and by so doing he became himself a menace to the gods4 ,that is very interesting4 ,it was not man who died on the day the fruit of knowledge was plucked2 it was the gods4 ,take care6 said man to ,god4 ,take care6 ,the day on which ,i eat of the fruit of the tree of knowledge thou shalt die6 ,it is now admitted by the foremost biblical scholars that there are really two different stories of the creation of man in the first and second chapters of the bible4 ,the universe is called into being by ,elohim in the first2 while ,jahve is the name of the creator in the second4 ,another important difference between the two accounts of the creation is that in the one1 man appears before the deity has completed the creation of the heaven and the earth2 while in the other man is the last thing ,god creates4 ,it will be observed also that there is not a word said in the second account about man being made in the image of ,god1 or of his being created male and female2 while there is nothing in the first account about a garden or a forbidden tree4 ,on the contrary1 in the earlier story every tree is given for meat unto the man and the woman1 who were created at the same time1 and not the one out of a rib of the other1 and at a later time1 as is related in the second account4 ,in the first1 or ,elohistic story1 ,god blesses ,adam and ,eve and commands them to be fruitful and multiply2 in the second1 or ,jehovistic story1 child-bearing is not a blessing1 but a curse pronounced upon the woman for having eaten of the forbidden fruit4 ,eve has no offspring until she is expelled from ,paradise in the second version1 while in the first1 ,adam and ,eve are commanded from the start to multiply and replenish the earth4 ,but why are both stories published8 ,in all probability1 to satisfy both the ,elohistic and ,jehovistic factions4 ,it is also probable that the different accounts are the work of different compilers or collectors of news4 ,the bible gives many signs of being a miscellany of floating reports and rumors1 or they says1 picked up here and there1 and put together very loosely4 ,nor should we be surprised at the differences between the ,elohistic and ,jehovistic writers1 for they are not more hopelessly at variance with each other than are the evangelists who tell the story of ,jesus4 ,,ii4 ,taboo and ,totem4 ,,what is the most probable explanation of the ,garden of ,eden story1 whether in its ,babylonian or ,hebrew form8 ,to answer this question and also to help explain many of the institutions and ceremonial observances in the bible1 it will be necessary to acquaint ourselves with the meaning of certain words1 such as taboo1 totem and magic4 ,the word taboo has come into the modern language from the ,polynesian1 and it means forbidden4 ,and yet there is a fundamental difference between a thing which is forbidden in the ,english sense of that word1 and a thing which is taboo in the sense which primitive races attached to that word4 ,for example1 when we see a notice which reads1 ,passengers are forbidden to stand on the platform of the train1 or ,smoking not allowed in the dining-car1 the object of the interdiction is in either case perfectly plain4 ,we know why the act in question is prohibited4 ,there is no suggestion of mystery about it4 ,a thing that is taboo1 however1 is so for a reason which is undiscoverable4 ,the bible forbids the eating of pork4 ,why8 ,the theologians try to explain that the prohibition against pork had a sanitary motive4 ,such an answer is tantamount to an admission on their part that they have not studied the bible with any care at all4 ,to say that ,moses objected to pork on sanitary grounds would be about as reasonable as to say that he commanded the extermination of ,gentiles on humanitarian grounds4 ,yet many fall into the mistake of supposing that it was the fear of leprosy1 or the thread-worm1 which induced the ,jewish legislator to place swine's flesh under a ban4 ,to see how inadequate this explanation is1 all we have to do is to remember that in all the bible there is not a single disease of any kind which is caused by the eating or the drinking of anything4 ,disease in the bible is supernatural4 ,meats or vegetables1 the observance or neglect of dietary and sanitary laws1 have absolutely nothing to do with the coming or going of a pestilence4 ,health1 in the bible1 has no more to do with cleanliness of the body1 with the use of soap1 or moderation and prudence in eating and drinking1 than success in war1 or prosperity in life has with personal merit or effort4 ,it is ,god who sends both health and sickness1 famine or the plague1 as he sends manna from the clouds and quails from the sea4 ,to win a battle the people had only to stand still1 and see the ,lord fight for them4 ,not until the ,greeks appeared in history was it discovered that health and sickness had natural causes1 and that the gods had nothing whatever to do with them4 ,what1 then1 is the explanation of the interdict against swine's flesh in the bible8 ,before answering that1 let us look at a few other examples1 of taboo in the ,old ,testament4 ,the name of ,god1 like swine's flesh1 was taboo4 ,that shalt not take the name of the ,lord thy ,god in vain 7the in vain is a rationalist explanation which was affixed to the text by a later hand74 ,now1 why was the name of ,god forbidden8 ,in all probability it was to prevent the stranger or the enemy from calling upon their ,god2 it explains the unwillingness of the ,jews to share ,jahve with the rest of the world4 ,but it is as much a guess to say why the name of ,god was taboo1 as it is to give a reason for the ecclesiastical ban against the hog4 ,the commandments of science are intelligible2 the dogmas of religion are dark4 ,why do we have to believe in the trinity1 the virgin birth1 etc41 in order to be saved8 ,it is a mystery4 ,another taboo was the ,ark of the ,covenant4 ,this was a wooden box1 supposed to be the retreat of the deity4 ,to touch this wooden chest meant instant death4 ,uzzah was instantly killed for trying to steady the ark in transit1 for the oxen shook it4 99 ,and1 on another occasion1 over fifty thousand people were massacred because they had looked into the ark of the ,lord4 9999 ,why destroy fifty thousand and three score and ten men for such a trifle8 ,if it were because they disobeyed the priest1 was it not the duty of the priest to give the reason which made touching or looking into a box a deadly crime8 ,but in religion to ask for an explanation is also taboo4 ,the things of religion are not supposed to be understood4 ,to understand is taboo4 99 ,,ii ,samuel vi1 #f4 9999 ,i ,samuel vi1 #ai4 ,a more important example of things forbidden without reason or rhyme is the ,sabbath4 ,the prevailing interpretation is that out of compassion for man and beast the deity ordained a day of rest4 ,but the truth is that pity for the laboring man or the animal had positively nothing to do with the institution of holy moons and ,sabbaths4 ,it is the stress of modern thought that leads priests and rabbis to explain the ,sabbath on ,rationalist grounds4 ,to begin with1 oriental races were not so exceeding fond of work as to necessitate a divine fiat to compel them to take a rest4 ,if anything1 they needed to be urged and scourged to work at all4 ,they were only too willing to let the ,lord do everything for them4 ,the ideal of the oriental believer was to be like the lilies of the field1 which toil not1 neither do they spin4 99 ,what need was there for the bible people to invent machinery1 to build factories1 or to acquire science1 when a miracle-working ,god was ever at their elbow4,o1 to be ,nothing1 ,nothing1 is to this day1 one of the hymns in the churches4 99 ,the ,sermon on the ,mount4 ,in the twenty-second chapter of ,deuteronomy it is forbidden to plough with an ox and an ass together4 ,the theologians quote the text to prove that kindness to animals was the motive of this ordinance1 as kindness to man was1 of the ,sabbath4 ,nothing could be farther from the truth4 ,why1 then1 is it unlawful to yoke an ass with an ox8 ,it is another one of the mysteries of religion4 ,we have only to read on to learn that motives of humanity1 justice or economy play no part at all in these ordinances4 ,thou shalt not sow thy vineyard with divers seeds1 says the same chapter4 ,surely this was not from any consideration of compassion for the soil or the seed4 ,and when the bible again says3 ,thou shalt not wear a garment of divers sort1 as of woolen and linen together1 is it for sanitary or economic reasons that the commandment was given8 ,when again we read1 ,ye shall eat no manner of fat1 of ox or of sheep1 etc41 it surely was not for any hygienic reason that fat was prohibited1 for it goes on to say that the fat belongs to the ,lord4 ,but why should the ,lord be so jealous of fat8 ,it is no more possible to understand the ordinance against fat1 or mixed seed sowing1 or garments of mingled yam1 and a thousand other similarly puerile edicts in the ,old ,testament1 than it is to understand why it is necessary to sprinkle a man with water1 or rub him with oil1 before he can be a good ,christian4 ,why an ox and an ass should not plough together is just as much a mystery as transubstantiation4 ,the ,english and the ,american bible societies are translating these ,hebrew and ,christian riddles and distributing the book at the rate of about twenty million copies a year1 costing an amount of money1 energy and time1 which if devoted to the advancement of health alone would do more toward making this earth a paradise for man1 now and here1 than all the mysteries and miracles of religion4 ,but let us not forget to explain the origin of the ban against the ,sabbath1 or the seventh day4 ,it will surprise the ,sabbatarian to learn that originally work was forbidden on the seventh day of the week for the same reason that many in our day object to start on a journey or on an enterprise of any kind on a ,friday1 or on the thirteenth of the month4 ,the prejudice against ,friday and the number #ac is based on the belief that both the day and the number are evil4 ,why8 ,nobody knows exactly4 ,in the same way1 the seventh day was considered by all ,semitic races as an evil day--a day of disaster1 unpropitious and accursed4 ,the fear of the savage for the seventh day was as foolish as our fear of ,friday1 or of the number #ac4 ,but we laugh at our own prejudice about ,friday and regard the savage's awe of the seventh day as inspired4 ,as already stated1 the seventh day was taboo because it was supposed to be accursed4 ,no work was to be done on that day1 not because the work would spoil the day1 but because they feared the day would spoil the work4 ,even in our day1 if a man goes fishing on a bright ,sunday1 and is drowned1 or if children go picnicking on the ,sabbath1 and are run over1 the usual comment is that they lost their lives1 not for fishing or picnicking1 but for doing these perfectly innocent things on a certain day4 ,sunday is an evil day--for fishing1 or for recreation of any kind4 ,on the ,sabbath1 the safest thing1 according to the bible1 is to stay indoors4 ,it is a bad day for pleasure1 and a bad day for labor4 ,there is only one thing that is safe on the ,sabbath--going to church4 ,do we wonder now that children hated the ,sabbath1 or that a gloom fell upon both young and old on that lugubrious day8 ,but this supposedly evil day in time came to be regarded as holy4 ,i say supposedly evil1 because there are no evil days1 even as there are no holy days4 ,one day is like another2 it is superstition that makes a certain day1 or place1 or number1 holier than another4 ,and we have a right to be suspicious of a religion that thinks more1 for example1 of the number #c1 or #g1 or #dj1 or of the first or seventh day of the week than of other days or numbers4 ,one of the motives which1 according to the bible1 actuated the building of a temple for ,jehovah was to observe more solemnly the ,sabbaths and the new moons of the ,lord4 99 ,the new moons6 ,why is a new moon more virtuous or talismanic than a full moon8 ,what has righteousness to do with new moons or full moons8 ,why do we have to spend millions of dollars every year to send missionaries abroad to teach them the observance of ,sabbaths and new moons8 ,i am aware that the missionaries omit the new moons1 but is it not also in the ,word of ,god8 ,and what right has the missionary to drop anything from the ,word of ,god8 ,has he forgotten the awful warning of the closing words of the bible8 ,and if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy1 ,god shall take away his part out of the book of life1 etc4 9999 ,but there is not a sect that has not both taken from1 and added to1 the ,word of ,god4 ,we tremble to think what will happen to them4 ,god shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book4 999999 ,and what could be worse than the plagues mentioned in the bible8 99999999 99 ,,ii ,chronicles ii1 #d4 9999 ,revelation xxii1 #ai4 999999 ,revelation xxii1 #ah4 99999999 ,one of the rather mild plagues is described in ,leviticus xxvi1 #bb-bi3 ,i will also send wild beasts among you1 which shall rob you of your children4444 ,and ye shall eat the flesh of your sons1 and the flesh of your daughters4 ,twenty million copies a year of this book are sold6 ,as a day of rest and recreation1 of intellectual1 moral and aesthetic culture and pleasure1 ,sunday will always be one of the dearest institutions of civilization4 ,but as already explained1 humanitarian or ethical motives had no share at all in the making of the ,jewish-,christian ,sabbath4 ,would the clergy1 for instance1 consent to have any other day than ,sunday observed as holy8 ,would they have the courage to call ,tuesday or ,thursday the ,sabbath of the ,lord1 sanctified and set apart from all eternity8 ,if not1 the inference is inevitable that what they are principally interested in is the day--the taboo--and not the rest and profit which may be derived from quitting work on a given day of the week4 ,among the primitive races a thing was taboo either because it was supposed to be unholy or because it was supposed to be holy4 ,a ,catholic must not touch the sacraments because they are holy1 and the ,jew must not touch swine's flesh because it is unholy4 ,in the one case1 as in the other1 it is a thou shalt not4 ,why the touch of the fingers should defile the sacraments but not the touch of the palate or the lips2 or why swine's flesh should mar one's character or standing before the community1 is not explained because it can not be explained4 ,theology is a collection of enigmas4 ,the less the people understand their religion the more they believe in it4 ,a taboo is not meant to be understood2 it is only meant to be obeyed4 ,the ,babylonians1 from whom the ,hebrews got their ,sabbath1 refrained from work on that day because they considered it an evil day2 we refrain from work on that day because we think the day too sacred for work4 ,it is not at all strange that the reason for a given taboo1 being no more than a whim1 should in the course of time change4 ,the thou shalt not remains2 the why does not matter much1 because the why belongs to reason1 and religion is a matter of faith4 ,the ,totem ,,to show further how the unholy becomes1 in time1 the holy1 or vice versa1 let us glance at another barbaric institution of the past1 that of the totem4 ,the word taboo1 as already explained1 is ,polynesian in origin2 the word totem has come to us from the ,american ,indian4 ,totem is a more difficult word to translate into modern thought4 ,the most popular definition ,i could give to it would be to say that a totem is a mascot4 ,and yet1 it is very much more4 ,to savage tribes a totem was an object1 more frequently an animal1 which was sacred to the particular tribe that had identified itself with it4 ,the thing1 or the plant1 or the beast thus selected1 became an emblem1 badge or bond of union4 ,it served also as a sort of password by which the members of the tribe were recognized1 and a center around which the clan grouped itself4 ,to the totem they looked for preservation against famine1 war and annihilation as a tribe4 ,the totem was the soul of the tribe--the tribe in essence4 ,the golden-rod is the national flower of ,america1 the lily is upon the shield of ,france1 the shamrock is ,irish1 the world over2 in some such sense1 only meaning very much more1 was the totem to our savage ancestors4 ,now we are in a position to guess at least why the bible forbids swine's flesh4 ,solomon ,reinach1 a distinguished ,jewish scholar1 and member of the ,french ,academy1 says that the boar was the totem of the ,jew long before ,moses appeared on the scene4 99 ,the totem was protected by a taboo1 and1 therefore1 to eat it was a national crime4 ,to destroy one's totem was a sacrilege and a blasphemy1 punishable by death4 ,they looked upon the man who ate his totem with more abhorrence than we would feel toward a fellow countryman who insulted his flag4 ,here1 then1 we have two counter currents2 the ,sabbath1 beginning as an evil day1 becomes holy1 while the hog1 once a totem1 an object of reverence1 a god1 degenerates into an unclean beast4 ,yet the one1 as much as the other1 is as taboo as ever4 99 ,orpheus1 ,solomon ,reinach1 page #bg3 ,les ,juifs pieux s'abstiennent de manger du porc1 parce que leurs lointains ancestres1 cinq on six mille ans avant notre ere1 avaient pour totem le sanglier4 ,the thou shalt not labor on the ,sabbath day1 and the thou shalt not eat swine's flesh1 remain the same1 though the why is shifted from the because it is unholy to a because it is holy1 in the case of the ,sabbath2 and from the because it is holy to a because it is unholy1 in the case of the hog4 ,in the meantime1 it remains as true as ever that there is nothing either holy or unholy about a hog or a day4 ,why was the seventh day cursed or blest8 ,why1 of all the animals1 was the hog selected1 first to be adored and then to be abhorred8 ,while many interesting reasons could be suggested1 the truth is that1 like the majority of religious rites and dogmas1 both taboo and totem are impenetrable mysteries4 ,when1 in the ,merchant of ,venice1 ,shylock is asked why he covets a pound of that merchant's flesh1 nearest his heart1 with a toss of his head1 and his eyes afire1 he replies3 ,it is my humor4 99 ,and if we were to ask ,jehovah why swine's flesh is taboo1 or why the seventh day is holy1 or why the priest under penalty of death must carry a golden bell and a pomegranate upon the hem of his robe1 9999 or why the man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised shall be cut off from his people 9999991 or why ,whosoever cometh any thing near unto the tabernacle of the ,lord shall die1 99999999 or why it is a deadly crime to peep into a wooden box1 or yoke an ass with an ox1 the answer would be the same3 ,it is my humor4 99 ,act iv1 ,scene ,i4 9999 ,exodus xxviii1 #cd-dc4 999999 ,genesis xvii1 #ad4 99999999 ,numbers xvii1 #ac4 ,nothing could be more convincing that humor and not reason dictated the commandments in the bible1 than the large number of taboos1 the neglect of which was invariably visited with death4 ,if a man kindled a fire in his kitchen on the ,sabbath1 or picked up sticks1 he shall surely be put to death2 if he forgot to observe the feast of the passover1 or ate leavened bread during the passover1 or ate the fat1 or the blood of the animals he slaughtered for food1 he shall surely be put to death2 if a man made a holy ointment1 or perfumery1 or if he offered sacrifices without the help of a priest1 or killed his cattle without giving a part of it to the priest1 he shall surely be put to death4 ,if a man entered the house of the dying1 or touched a pig or a dead animal1 and did not pay the priest to absolve him from his guilt1 he shall surely be put to death4 ,the ,old ,testament is a veritable deathtrap4 ,on every page1 and behind every sentence1 almost1 there is a trap4 ,it takes a very clever dodger to escape falling into one of them4 ,even ,moses was caught and smashed in a trap4 ,out of all the people who left ,egypt for the promised land1 all but two perished in the wilderness because of some infringement of the ceremonial law4 ,what a failure6 ,even as ,eden1 offered for a paradise to man1 became the tomb of the human race1 the promised land became the cemetery of the people who sacrificed their homes for it4 ,such is the humor of the gods6 ,but let us speak of another totem4 ,the ,catholics eat fish on ,friday4 ,not one out of a million ,catholics knows why fish is preferred to meat on a certain day in the week4 ,the fish1 too1 was at one time a totem in ,syria4 ,the early ,christians1 being largely from that part of the country where the fish was sacred1 made a place for it in their new faith4 ,in the writings of the ,christian ,fathers1 ,jesus is often called the ,big ,fish1 and his disciples the little fish4 ,upon many of the ancient ,christian tombstones there was engraved a fish4 ,tertullian1 a shining light in the early church1 speaks of his converts as the fishes born in the waters of baptism4 ,in the early communion service1 the fish represented the divine elements4 ,to this day the fish1 an ancient ,syrian totem1 holds its sway not only upon ,christians1 but also upon the ,jews4 ,an orthodox ,jew1 no matter how poor1 must have his fish every ,friday evening4 99 99 ,orpheus1 ,solomon ,reinach1 page #bi4 ,but how did people come to eat their totem8 ,it was explained above that swine's flesh is taboo1 because of the sacredness of the boar to an ancient ,semitic tribe2 if the fish was also sacred1 and protected by a thou shalt not1 or a taboo1 how did it come to be an article of diet8 ,under exceptional circumstances all primitive tribes ate their totems1 or their gods4 ,in the time of famine or war they fed on the sacred beast for self-preservation--before which all other laws break down4 ,moreover1 it was their belief that by eating their totem they acquired its virtues and strength4 ,to partake of the qualities of the totem1 and to become more closely identified with it--made one with it--it was deemed necessary on solemn occasions to eat it4 ,eating the totem came to be1 in time1 a religious rite4 ,of course1 it was with many regrets and apologies that the savage slew his totem for food4 ,he mourned over it and blamed himself for the death of his god4 ,on the other hand1 as intimated above1 he argued that the only way he could get into a closer communion with his totem1 and become a partaker of his virtues1 he must eat of his flesh and drink of his blood4 ,the ,christian communion service is the modern version of an ancient rite4 ,on ,sundays1 and with much mourning1 the ,christian crucifies again his totem1 to eat of his body1 broken for him on the cross1 and to drink of his blood1 shed for the remission of his sins4 ,is it not wonderful how one superstition is like another8 ,the ,holy ,ghost1 one of the members of the trinity1 is represented in the form of a dove1 because1 like the fish and the boar1 the dove was another ancient totem4 ,whenever an animal1 or a tree1 or any other object1 is made to represent the deity1 as the dove represents the ,holy ,ghost1 or the fish the ,son of ,god1 or the bull1 or the eagle ,zeus1 we may be quite sure that at one time these animals were gods4 ,gradually1 from being regarded as gods1 they came only to represent them4 ,when the ,holy ,ghost1 now and then1 takes on the form of a dove1 it goes to prove that the ,holy ,ghost started as a dove--the dove was the ,holy ,ghost4 ,and just as races of men sometimes fall back to the level of their ancestors1 the gods go back to the dove1 and the fish1 and the boar1 whence they came4 ,the gods1 too1 like their religions1 die of the same disease--that of being found out4 ,the point which it has been the object of the discussion on taboos and totems to establish is that the laws and commandments in the bible1 as well as the doings attributed to the deity represent1 not ,reason1 but humor4 ,whim plays the chief rle in the divine drama4 ,noah is ordered to take with him into the ark1 of every clean beast seven pairs2 and of beasts that are not clean1 two pairs1 the male and the female4 ,but no instruction is given him as to what makes a beast clean or unclean1 or how ,noah is to tell the one from the other4 ,nor is it explained why a certain number of unclean beasts are to be saved1 while all the unclean of the human race are to be drowned4 ,the only answer we would get from the ,lord ,god1 if we asked him for an explanation1 would be1 ,it is my humor4 ,and why should any animals be preserved at all8 ,if the deity could by a word of his mouth cause all forms of life1 vegetable and animal1 to spring forth out of the ground2 if by a mere ,let there be light1 he could create light--why should he trouble himself about packing the ark with specimen animals to preserve the species8 ,and why was it necessary to rain for forty days1 to drown a world which it took him about six days to create out of nothing8 ,but we are reasoning1 and in religion1 reason is taboo4 ,how different is science6 ,the bible is a book of puzzles2 science is common sense4 ,the bible treats of forms and ceremonies--of holy water1 holy oils1 holy wafers and of forbidden trees and animals4 ,science1 on the other hand1 explains the inexorable laws of nature1 a knowledge of which1 and obedience to which1 makes for life and happiness4 ,let us rejoice that science has broken for us the spell of superstition4 ,,iii4 ,the ,bible and ,magic ,,still another word1 the explanation of which would greatly help us to understand the bible1 is the word magic4 ,a magician1 according to ,voltaire1 is a man who pretends to possess the secret of doing what nature can not do4 ,another ,frenchman defines magic as the strategy of the savage4 ,there is not very much difference between these two definitions4 ,magic is the weapon1 or the art1 or the science1 of the savage against the powers of nature4 ,the magician claims to be able to go one better than nature1 or to bring nature to terms4 ,if there is a drought1 the magician offers to compel rain from the stubborn skies2 if the plague is upon the land1 the magician bids it steal away2 if wild beasts attack his hut1 the magician throws a spell over them and makes them harmless4 ,fire will not burn1 water will not drown1 the grave can not hold its prey1 and even the gods become helpless at a word from the magician4 ,magic1 in a sense1 is the coup d'etat of the savage4 ,when one country is at war with another1 the best generalship consists in finding out the tactics of the enemy with a view of beating him at his own game4 ,likewise1 the aim of the magician is to steal the secret of the gods and then play the part of a god not only better than the gods themselves1 but against them as well4 ,is not man wonderful6 ,in one sense1 magic is science in the making4 ,but while science seeks to control nature through knowledge1 magic resorts to spells1 charms1 incantations and concoctions4 ,in other words1 magic is dishonest science4 ,now1 much as ,i regret to say it1 the bible is more than tainted with this kind of science4 ,not a word is there in the bible about studying the laws of nature1 for study is not necessary where there is magic4 ,the real thing1 science1 is made superfluous by the imitation article--magic4 ,thus the bible1 by its preference for a false science1 postponed1 if it did not succeed in defeating altogether1 the intellectual evolution of man4 ,scarcely anything happens in the bible in a natural way4 ,miracles are so many1 and so frequent1 that there is practically no nature in the bible4 ,the dead arise1 the rivers flow backward1 the sea turns into dry land1 sticks change into serpents1 the axe head floats on the water1 walls and fortifications fall at the sound of a trumpet1 animals talk1 virgins become mothers1 sun and moon are arrested and then set free1 and a universe is produced out of nothing1 with as little ado as a magician requires to pull a rabbit out of his sleeve4 ,we are in the land of magic4 ,nature is suspended1 and the supernatural is in full swing4 ,i read the other day of a country farmer who went to see a celebrated conjurer perform his wonders4 ,he saw the wizard pick money out of the air1 shoot watches into people's pockets1 change copper into gold and silver1 and perform a hundred other equally marvelous feats4 ,as he was leaving the charmed presence of the juggler1 he expressed his surprise that so resourceful a man should be under the necessity of giving performances to earn a living4 ,he could not understand why a man whose touch turned everything to gold should collect dimes at the box office4 ,of course1 the explanation is perfectly simple3 ,the wonders which the conjurer performs are sham wonders4 ,in the same way1 the miracles in the bible never help anybody nor accomplish anything because they are sham miracles4 ,the bush which bums1 and yet is not consumed1 is a sham bush--the bush is not a bush1 and the fire is not real fire4 ,the few loaves and fishes with which ,jesus fed a great multitude were sham loaves and fishes1 and the multitude which1 though hungry1 could not exhaust the food1 was a sham multitude4 ,sham bread1 sham multitude1 sham hunger6 ,such are the wonders of the conjurer or the magician in or outside the bible4 ,if ,jesus really possessed the power of multiplying a few loaves into an exhaustless supply of bread1 why is there then any poverty in the world8 ,moreover1 the miracles--which are as thick on the pages of the bible as blackberries on a bush--what good did they do to the people for whose benefit they were performed8 ,if the ,egyptians perished in their homes1 the ,jews perished in the wilderness2 if the ,egyptians lost their slaves1 the ,jews lost their sons and daughters--lost themselves4 ,what good did all the miracles performed in their behalf do for them8 ,their city1 ,jerusalem1 was set on fire1 their homes pillaged1 their children put to the edge of the sword1 over and over again4 ,what benefit did they derive from the ten thousand miracles lavished upon them8 ,and look at the ,greeks6 ,not one miracle did ,jehovah perform for them4 ,yet they rose to be the masters of the world1 and are still by their worth and genius1 the teachers of mankind4 ,the most unexpected and impossible things are said and done in the bible4 ,when ,abraham was bom1 his father1 ,terah1 was seventy years old4 ,in every other book1 as the father grows older1 the son1 too1 would advance in years4 ,but in the bible1 while ,terah grows older1 ,abraham grows younger1 or stops growing altogether1 so that when his father is two hundred and five years old1 he himself is only seventy-five years old1 making him sixty years younger than he should be by all the laws of arithmetic4 ,but what is arithmetic to a magician8 ,when the theologian says three times one is one1 he is not thinking of so little a thing as mathematics--there are no impossibilities for the magician4 ,he can make the three one1 and the one three4 ,listen to one of the great ,christian ,fathers1 ,tertullian3 ,what have the philosopher and the ,christian in common8 ,the disciple of ,greece1 and the disciple of heaven8 ,what have ,athens and ,jerusalem1 the church and the academy1 heretics and ,christians in common8 ,there is no more inquiry for us1 now that ,christ has come1 nor any occasion for further investigation1 since we have the gospel4444 ,the ,son of ,god is dead2 it is right credible because it is absurd2 being buried he has arisen2 it is certain1 because it is impossible4 ,there are no difficulties for theologians4 ,if ,isaiah1 the prophet1 cried unto the ,lord1 and he brought the shadow 7of the sun7 ten degrees backward444 in the dial1 99 why could not ,abraham grow backward8 ,if ,joshua could arrest the sun1 what is a little miracle like that of ,abraham standing still while the whole world moved on8 ,if ,jesus could be bom without a father1 why could not ,melchisedec be bom without either a father or a mother8 ,this personage was1 perhaps1 one of the most wonderful in bible history4 ,he had neither beginning nor ending1 neither a father nor a mother4 ,for this ,melchisedec444 to whom also ,abraham gave a tenth 7of the spoils7444 without father1 without mother1 without descent1 having neither beginning of days1 nor end of life2 but made like unto the ,son of ,god4 9999 99 ,,ii ,kings xix1 ii4 9999 ,hebrews vii1 #a-c4 ,wonderful as he was1 he believed in getting his share of the spoils4 ,the theologians1 in the bible1 or outside of it1 do not seem to be in the least surprised at the incredible things in the ,word of ,god4 ,if ,eve were not startled when she heard the serpent talk1 neither is the ,american theologian who takes that for his text4 ,if ,balaam was not at all perplexed when his ass opened its mouth and asked him a question1 neither are the divinity professors in our universities who explain the incident to their pupils4 ,this1 if anything1 is the more wonderful miracle4 ,if ,i were riding a horse1 and all of a sudden the animal should turn around and ask me what the subject of my lecture would be for next ,sunday1 ,i would certainly be dumfounded4 ,yet neither ,balaam1 nor his fellow theologians of to-day1 show the least perturbation over an ass interrogating his rider4 ,they can not afford to4 ,is not ,god almighty8 ,and1 besides1 upon what grounds would they be justified in rejecting this or that miracle while accepting others8 ,was it more difficult for ,balaam's ass to have talked than for ,christ to have been bom without a father1 or ,melchisedec without any parents at all8 ,magic and miracle know no laws4 ,if ,god had not opened the mouth of the ass1 said ,father ,ignatius1 a modern evangelist of the ,anglican communion1 remember that there would have been no ,christ4 ,the ,christian who says he believes in the virgin birth1 but not in the talking serpent or ass1 is a sceptic already4 ,the reasoning by which he rejects the one miracle is equally effective against all the others4 ,to accept the ,christ miracle by faith1 and to reject the ,balaam miracle by reason1 is a procedure which leads to anarchism in thought and faith4 ,oh1 no2 if you believe in the supernatural at all you will have to believe in ,melchisedec and ,balaam1 as you do in the virgin-born ,christ4 ,you can not choose your miracles4 ,all or none6 ,and the man who believes in one miracle is not a bit different from the man who believes in a million4 ,the ,unitarian president of ,america 99 defines ,christianity as ,the fatherhood of ,god and the brotherhood of man4 ,when ,edward ,everett ,hale died1 the ,unitarians said that ,pater noster--our ,father--expressed the heart and soul of his ,christianity4 ,a short time ago1 ,doctor ,eliot1 president emeritus of ,harvard ,university1 undertook to reduce ,christianity to the same simple terms4 ,the idea common to these men is that the only essential thing is the ,god idea4 ,never mind about ,balaam1 or the virgin birth4 ,our ,father which art in heaven is all that is necessary4 ,but one moment3 ,is not ,god as much a miracle as ,christ or ,balaam8 ,how do we know ,god is1 or that he is a father1 or that he is in heaven8 ,by faith8 ,why then is not faith also enough to make all miracles true8 ,the ,our ,father is a chip of the same old block of supernaturalism4 ,there are against one little chip from the block all the objections that there are against the whole block4 ,if ,god is our father by faith1 then ,christ was bom of a virgin by faith1 and the whale swallowed ,jonah by faith1 and the pope is the vicar of ,god by faith1 and so on to the end of the creed4 ,let us be consistent2 which is another way of saying1 let us be honest4 99 ,president ,taft ,the ,unbelievable in the ,bible ,,the bible taxes even credulity beyond the point of endurance4 ,no matter how willing one may be to believe everything in the bible1 there is a limit even to one's willingness to believe4 ,when ,moses was upon the mountain talking with ,god1 the people down in the plain were worshiping idols4 ,is it possible that with the quaking and thundering mountain before them1 with the deity sitting on its summit1 the ,jews would have had the temerity to worship a golden calf8 ,yet this is precisely what the ,jews are accused of doing4 ,the parting of the ,red ,sea is easier to believe than that the ,jews worshiped a calf in the immediate presence of the one true ,god6 ,let us glance at the story as it is told in the bible4 ,and it came to pass on the third day in the morning1 that there were thunders and lightning1 and a thick cloud upon the mount1 and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud2 so that all the people that was in the camp trembled4 ,and ,moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with ,god4 ,and they stood at the nether part of the mount4 ,and when the voice of the trumpet sounded long1 and waxed louder and louder1 ,moses spake1 and ,god answered him by a voice4 99 ,is it believable that1 under such circumstances1 with the only ,god in sight of all the people1 and his voice in their ears1 the ,jews could have turned to ,aaron and said to him3 ,up1 make us gods1 which shall go before us2 for as for this ,moses1 the man that brought us up out of the land of ,egypt1 we wot not what is become of him4 9999 ,both stories can not be true4 ,either there was no quaking mountain1 or sounding trumpet1 or voice of ,god answering ,moses from the summit1 or the tale of the golden calf is an interpolation4 ,if the people were too stupid to know better1 how was it that ,aaron1 the brother of ,moses1 who had met the true ,god on several occasions1 instead of showing the least indignation or surprise1 says to them3 ,break off the golden earrings1 which are in the ears of your wives1 of your sons and of your daughters1 and bring them unto me4 999999 99 ,exodus xix1 #af1ag1ai4 9999 ,exodus xxxii1 #a4 999999 ,exodus xxxii1 #b4 ,yes1 bring me your gold1 has been the cry of the mystery-man from the beginning of the world6 ,and he received them at their hand1 and fashioned it with a graving tool1 after he had made it a molten calf3 and they said1 ,these be thy gods1 ,o ,israel1 which brought thee up out of the land of ,egypt4 99 ,all this in full view of the flaming mountain1 with ,god conversing with ,moses1 and the trumpet blowing louder and louder6 ,it is simply impossible4 ,there is not credulity enough in man1 it seems to me1 for such contradictory stories4 ,i know men say they believe in them1 but do they8 ,strange as was the conduct of ,aaron and the people on this occasion1 the behavior of ,moses1 when he came down and saw the people dancing like naked savages about their newly fashioned god1 9999 was even more inexplicable4 ,he made a drink out of the golden calf1 which he first ground into powder1 and caused the children of ,israel to drink of it4 999999 ,what could have been his idea in converting the god into a beverage8 ,a text like that indicates plainly the presence of fetishism in the bible4 ,even as looking at a brazen serpent was supposed to cure them of serpent bites1 the drinking of gods melted into a beverage was thought to be a remedy against idolatry4 ,other examples1 proving the fetishistic beliefs of ,moses1 are not wanting in the bible4 ,to make a house holy or proof against the plague1 ,moses put up the following magical prescription3 99 ,exodus xxxii1 #d4 9999 ,exodus xxxii1 #be4 999999 ,exodus xxxii1 #bj4 ,and he shall take to cleanse the house two birds1 and cedar wood1 and scarlet1 and hyssop3 ,and he shall kill the one of the birds in an earthen vessel over running water3 ,and he shall take the cedar wood1 and the hyssop1 and the scarlet1 and the living bird1 and dip them in the blood of the slain bird1 and in the running water1 and sprinkle the house seven times3 ,and he shall cleanse the house with the blood of the bird1 and with the running water1 and with the living bird1 and with the cedar wood1 and with the hyssop1 and with the scarlet4 99 ,to ascertain a woman's virtue1 the prescription was as follows3 ,and the priest shall take holy water in an earthen vessel2 and of the dust that is in the floor of the tabernacle the priest shall take1 and put it into the water3 ,and the priest shall write these curses in a book1 and he shall blot them out with the bitter water3 ,and he shall cause the woman to drink the bitter water that causeth the curse3 and the water that causeth the curse shall enter into her1 and become bitter4 ,this was not all2 an animal's flesh was also burned and mixed with the water4 ,and when he hath made her drink the water1 then it shall come to pass1 that1 if she be defiled444 her belly shall swell1 and her thigh shall rot3 and the woman shall be a curse among her people4 9999 99 ,leviticus xiv1 #di-eb4 9999 ,numbers v1 #aa-bg4 ,if these symptoms did not appear1 then the woman was not guilty4 ,but is it believable that1 with ,god at their elbow1 constantly answering questions1 revealing to them the pas and the future1 and making all hidden things plain1 they needed mixed drinks1 or concoctions1 to find out whether or not a woman was innocent8 ,and mark you1 evidence had no place at all in the ,mosaic court4 ,no witnesses were examined1 and no testimony taken2 it was the mixed preparations that did the work of judge and jury4 ,is it possible that all this is divine8 ,blood1 according to the bible1 is a great disinfectant4 ,the way to sanctify a man or a people was to sprinkle them with blood4 ,then shalt thou kill the ram1 and take of his blood1 and put it upon the tip of the right ear of ,aaron1 and upon the tip of the right ear of his sons1 and upon the thumb of their right hand1 and upon the great toe of their right foot1 and sprinkle the blood upon the altar round about4 ,and thou shalt take of the blood that is upon the altar1 and of the anointing oil1 and sprinkle it upon ,aaron1 and upon his garments1 and upon his sons1 and upon the garments of his sons with him4 99 ,and ,moses took the blood1 and sprinkled it on the people4 9999 ,how does such a practice differ from fetishism8 ,how can blood on the garments have any effect upon the conscience or the intellect8 ,the plea that all this was mere symbolism1 if applied also to the rites and ceremonies prescribed by the ,hindu or ,persian priesthood1 would make all religions inspired4 ,the ancient ,hindus believed that cow-dung was divinely prescribed for sanctifying purposes4 ,why was not that1 too1 mere symbolism8 ,the word symbolism is made to cover a multitude of superstitions4 ,lacking the courage1 and sometimes also the honesty1 to say that such ceremonies prove a very low state of culture on the part of the people who observed them1 clever theologians not only excuse or defend them1 but they even profess to find symbolized in them the mysterious purposes of the infinite4 ,superstition dies hard4 ,even as sprinkling with blood sanctified the people1 confessing to a goat secured a pardon from ,god for sin4 ,and ,aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat1 and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of ,israel1 and all their transgressions in all their sins1 putting them upon the head of the goat1 and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness3 ,and the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited4 999999 99 ,exodus xxix1 #bj-ba4 9999 ,exodus xxiv1 #h4 999999 ,leviticus xvi1 #ba-bb4 ,could this be the origin of the confessional8 ,the goat ceremony has a wider meaning than the commentators will admit4 ,there were really two goats1 upon which ,aaron1 the priest1 cast lots1 one lot for the ,lord1 and the other lot for the scapegoat4 99 ,the word scapegoat is a euphemism2 the ,hebrew text says ,azazel4 ,now this was one of the terrible names of ,god4 ,both ,jews and ,mohammedans believed ,azazel to be a dread divinity4 ,milton introduces ,azazel as the standard-bearer of the fallen hosts of heaven4 ,the ,arabs1 who are a branch of the ,semitic race1 paid homage to this celestial1 and spoke of him as the counsellor or advocate of ,allah who was banished from heaven because when ,adam1 the first man1 appeared upon the scene1 he would not bow to him4 ,azazel did not think much of man2 and it was for that he lost his position4 ,the scapegoat1 then1 in the text was none other than his ,satanic majesty1 the fallen chief of the heavenly hosts--the devil4 ,setting apart a goat for ,azazel1 or allowing him to share with ,jehovah the offering at the altar1 gives support to the belief that the ,jews worshiped the devil as well as ,jehovah4 ,it is plainly stated in other parts of the bible that devil worship was common among the ,jews even as late as the time of ,rehoboam1 who reigned after ,david and ,solomon4 9999 ,but more light is thrown on the subject of the intimacy between ,god and ,satan in the story of ,job4 99 ,leviticus xvi1 #g-h4 9999 ,,ii ,chronicles xi1 #ae3 ,and he ordained him priests for the high places1 and for the devils4 ,,iv4 ,the ,strangest ,story in the ,bible ,,one of the strangest chapters in the bible is the description of the interview between ,god and the devil4 ,the interview takes place in heaven4 ,we have already met the devil in ,paradise2 now we are to find him1 as the ,french say1 in a tte tte with ,jehovah1 at the exclusive headquarters of the latter4 ,there is much reason to believe that these two beings1 who seem to be together on important occasions1 originally sprang from the same stock1 if such a term could be used4 ,jehovah and ,azazel1 or ,satan1 appear to be first cousins4 ,this is the impression of nearly every student who looks into their pedigrees4 ,in the thought of early man ,god was hardly distinguishable from the devil4 ,the evidence bears out the bible suggestion that at one time ,god and the devil were on the best of terms1 and kept house together4 ,in those days it was really difficult to tell them apart4 ,in the twenty-first chapter of the first book of ,chronicles1 it is written by inspiration that ,god moved ,david to number ,israel4 ,in the twenty-fourth chapter1 the first verse1 of the second book of ,samuel1 we read that it was ,satan who moved ,david to take a census of the nation4 ,there is no inconsistency here4 ,god and ,satan belong to the unknown1 and they pull together4 ,when1 as the bible informs us1 there was war in heaven1 the two relatives quarreled and parted4 ,and though ever since they have maintained separate quarters1 now and then1 when there was a reunion of the family1 ,satan was invited to join the festivities4 ,there is a saying that blood is thicker than water1 and still another1 that blood will tell4 ,the occasional conferences and exchange of confidences between ,jehovah and ,satan1 as related in the bible1 is a confirmation of these popular proverbs4 ,the instructions given to ,aaron about being sure to have two goats1 and to let ,azazel have the one which fell to his lot1 even though it may be the fatter animal1 shows the care which ,jehovah takes of his ancient comrade and minister4 ,perhaps this was necessary to keep the peace4 ,at any rate1 it is evident that ,jehovah was mindful of the rights of ,azazel4 ,but now about the interview between ,jehovah and ,satan3 ,now there was a day1 says the bible1 when the sons of ,god came to present themselves before the ,lord1 and ,satan came also among them4 99 ,was he1 too1 one of the ,sons of ,god8 ,it is impossible to read the description of these family gatherings in heaven with ,satan also invited1 without being impressed with the importance of the devil in the councils of ,god4 ,perhaps the entente cordiale between ,satan and ,jehovah is to be explained by the fact that the latter had not found any one among all his ministers who could fill the place made vacant by the resignation of ,satan4 ,jehovah needed the devil1 and this dependence upon him to carry to a successful issue his most urgent and mysterious decrees was the secret of the deference shown to the devil in these periodical reunions at the throne of ,god4 ,on one of these occasions1 as we have seen1 when the children of ,god came to present themselves before the ,lord1 ,satan1 of course1 was there among them4 ,but this was not the only time that ,satan was invited to meet with ,god4 ,his presence at these gatherings created no surprise1 because he had been seen there frequently4 ,but ,i am not equally sure that the marks of special attention shown to him by the ,lord of heaven did not make the saints a little jealous of him4 ,the reports of these meetings in heaven confine themselves exclusively to what transpires between the two principals1 ,god and ,satan4 ,the other sons of ,god seem to have acted what in modern parlance would be called a silent part4 99 ,job i1 #f4 ,jehovah inquired of his distinguished guest1 the news and whence he came4 ,as the ,lord knew all the news himself1 and also whence ,satan came1 he must have asked these questions for the purpose of drawing him out1 to use an expression in vogue among diplomats4 ,but ,satan knew how to keep a secret4 ,he answered his host's question without really telling anything either of the news1 or whence he came3 ,from going to and fro in the earth and from walking up and down in it1 he replied4 ,if we were not afraid of exposing ourselves to the charge of blasphemy1 we would say that this was a devilish answer4 ,it said nothing4 ,evidently ,satan wanted ,god to show his hand first4 ,hast thou considered1 asked the ,lord1 addressing ,satan more confidentially1 and coming to the point1 my servant ,job1 that there is none like him in the earth1 a perfect and an upright man1 one that fear-eth ,god1 and escheweth evil8 99 99 ,job #a1h4 ,in all probability the reference to ,job was to prove that there was one man1 at least1 whom the devil had not yet been able to win over to his side4 ,but the devil had an explanation for his failure to get ,job2 it was not because ,job loved ,god1 but because of the favors ,god kept showering upon him4 ,doth ,job fear ,god for naught8 he asked4 ,hast not thou made an hedge about him1 and about his house1 and about all that he hath on every side8444 ,but put forth thine hand now1 and touch all that he hath1 and he will curse thee to thy face4 99 ,this was a challenge4 ,satan would not allow that there was even one man who loved and served ,god from choice4 ,to show his confidence in ,job1 the ,lord not only accepted the devil's challenge1 but volunteered to hand over his one faithful subject to the tender mercies of the ,evil ,one4 ,and the ,lord said unto ,satan1 ,behold all that he hath is in thy power4 9999 99 ,job i1 #i-aa4 9999 ,job i1 #ab4 ,thereupon ,satan hurried out in search of his victim4 ,whether or not the other children of ,god who were present at this reunion1 heard this interesting conversation between the two divinities1 and who they thought would come out winner in the contest over a denizen of the earth1 is not recorded4 ,job1 of course1 was not aware of the fact that ,jehovah and ,satan were throwing dice for his soul4 ,nor was he consulted whether or not he wanted to be turned over to the devil for the worst drubbing any one ever received4 ,from a human point of view1 it was an unspeakable outrage to take a perfect and upright man and hand him over to be thrashed within an inch of his life4 ,but there is1 the learned doctors of divinity tell us1 a difference between human and divine justice4 ,god's ways are not our ways1 as his conduct in this case amply proves4 ,the devil lost no time in falling upon ,job now that he had carte blanche to bring his ingenuity into play4 ,he began by attacking ,job's property1 which the ,sabeans carry off4 ,scarcely has the patriarch reconciled himself to this loss1 when word is brought to him that the fire of ,god is fallen from heaven1 burning up everything that belonged to him in the fields4 ,the fire of ,god8 ,it looks as if ,jehovah had not only permitted ,satan to ruin ,job1 if he could1 but he was helping him1 personally1 by sending down fire upon ,job's servants and cattle4 ,and what was the fault of these that they1 too1 should be punished8 ,and why were the sons and daughters of ,job killed8 ,for the next messenger tells ,job that all his children were destroyed by a terrific windstorm1 also sent by ,god4 ,but it is one thing to ask these questions of a theologian1 and another thing to get him to answer them4 ,despite these terrible blows1 however1 ,job remained loyal to ,god4 ,jehovah came out ahead in the first inning4 ,but the game is not over yet4 ,another meeting is arranged for between these two powers4 ,again they meet in heaven4 ,it was a dangerous thing to let the devil into heaven so often1 after the experience of ,adam and ,eve in ,paradise1 with its dire results1 not only to man1 but to the son of ,god himself1 whose crucifixion might have been prevented by refusing the devil admittance into ,eden4 ,when the devil was seated comfortably next to the deity--or perhaps he was standing--he was asked about ,job1 who had remained true to ,god despite the fact that the latter had delivered him up to the devil4 ,but we will let ,jehovah state his own case3 ,and the ,lord said unto ,satan1 ,hast thou considered my servant ,job1 that there is none like him in the earth1 a perfect and an upright man1 one that feareth ,god1 and escheweth evil8 and still he holdeth fast his integrity1 although thou movedst me against him1 to destroy him without cause4 99 99 ,job ii1 #c4 ,do you know1 reader1 why ,i have put in italics the concluding words in the above quotation8 ,it is the most terrible text in all the bible4 ,it is what the lawyers would describe as the most conspicuous instance of self-incrimination on record4 ,in this passage the ,lord of heaven and earth makes the frightful admission that he did wrong upon the suggestion of the devil--that he was tempted of the devil to commit a crime6 ,this is staggering4 ,he also admits that the crime was committed against a just man1 and without cause6 ,we have in this text a most humiliating picture of the deity--a ,god obeying the devil6 ,the ,english language is inadequate to help express the horror1 the pity1 the indignation1 the defiance1 the scorn1 the sorrow which the spectacle of a ,god admitting a heinous crime but pleading that the devil moved him to commit it1 provokes in me4 ,if ,i could weep the world into common sense1 ,i would do it2 if ,i could laugh these absurdities and immoralities out of the world's mind and conscience1 who would prevent me8 ,i am really afraid of a ,god who will take advice from the devil4 ,i am afraid of a ,god who will cause a perfect and upright man to be ruined without cause1 just to win a wager from the devil4 ,to me1 the strangest discovery one makes in the bible is that ,god and the devil are1 to use the nomenclature of the commercial world1 business partners4 ,they meet occasionally to discuss policies and to exchange views4 ,each is mindful of the rights of the other4 ,god would rather see his servant ,job ruined than drive the devil out of his presence for moving him to commit a crime4 ,which is ,god and which is the devil8 ,but let us return to the story3 ,satan was not willing to grant that he had lost1 until ,job had been punished some more4 ,so he asked for permission to attack ,job in his own person3 ,skin for skin1 yea1 all that a man hath will he give for his life4 ,but put forth thine hand now1 and touch his bone and his flesh1 and he will curse thee to thy face1 99 suggested the devil4 ,what did the other partner say to this8 ,although he had just admitted that he did wrong to an innocent man1 to a friend1 he is willing to do it again1 and this time he consents to be more cruel and unjust than before4 ,and the ,lord said unto ,satan1 ,behold1 he is in thine hand49999 ,like a flash1 ,satan fell upon ,job and smote him from the sole of his foot unto his crown4 ,job became a disgusting heap of prurient and carious flesh4 ,and he took him a potsherd to scrape himself withal2 and he sat down among the ashes4 999999 99 ,job ii1 #d-e 9999 ,job ii1 #f4 999999 ,job ii1 #i4 ,thus ,job becomes a football between these two gambling divinities4 ,after losing everything1 after being deprived of his sons and daughters1 he himself is brought down by foul sores and boils to the verge of death4 ,indeed1 death would have been preferable to being the toy and plaything of ,jehovah-,satan4 ,the preachers defend this loose story and call it inspired1 on the ground that it taught ,job patience4 ,but was there no saner way of teaching him the lesson of patience8 ,the bible ,god plays with fire4 ,his attempt to teach ,adam obedience cost the damnation of the human race and the death of his own son4 ,he almost tempted ,abraham to stick a knife into his own son in trying to make sure of his faith4 ,he tried ,jephtha's loyalty1 and it cost the latter the life of his young daughter2 and to teach ,job patience1 servants1 cattle1 sons and daughters--all are slaughtered4 ,moreover1 if ,job was a perfect and upright man1 as the text claims1 what need was there of teaching him patience--and at such a cost1 too8 ,the clergy1 lacking the courage to say that the story of ,god and ,satan1 gambling for the soul of ,job1 is a myth1 rack their brains for excuses and apologies to explain its presence in the ,word of ,god4 ,nor is it true that the story was meant to teach us submission to ,god1 whether he sends good or evil4 ,that is what free-born people would call blasphemy4 ,it is wrong to submit to evil4 ,it is base to kiss the hand that robs us of our rights4 ,we do not deserve freedom if we can endure slavery4 ,justice is born of the rebellion against wrong1 as truth is born of the protest against error4 ,the ,asiatic submits2 the ,european rebels4 ,of that rebellion is born civilization4 ,prometheus1 defying the gods1 and not ,job1 licking the hand that has crushed him1 is our inspiration6 ,i am also aware of the argument of the liberal clergy1 that the book of ,job is only a poem4 ,why not say so1 then1 in plain print8 ,why bind an imaginary composition in the same volume with the infallible word of ,god8 ,but1 even as the first chapter of ,genesis was inspired history until ,darwin exposed its untruth1 so was the ,book of ,job inspired history until criticism showed its inherent immorality4 ,as a play1 ,job is one of the most successful in ancient literature4 ,but what is a play doing in the ,holy ,bible8 ,but my main object in reciting the story of this ,arab sheik was to show the family resemblance between the two sovereigns1 the one of heaven1 the other of hell4 ,in the ,new ,testament1 too1 ,satan figures as a personage of importance1 and not at all as one who has been disarmed and degraded4 ,on one occasion ,jesus and the devil met in the wilderness4 ,the conversation which took place between them shows the devil was as independent and resourceful with the junior ,god as he was with ,jehovah4 ,according to ,st4 ,mathew1 the devil picked up the ,son of ,god and flew with him through the air4 ,when he had set him down on the pinnacle of the temple he told him what he wanted4 ,from there he carried ,jesus to an exceeding high mountain1 so high that from its summit all the kingdoms of the world could be seen4 99 ,now a being who could fly through the air with a god tucked away under his arm is not to be slighted4 99 ,matthew iv1 #a-ab4 ,satan has gone4 ,jehovah must follow4 ,neither can live without the other4 ,,part ,,iv4 ,i4 ,god and ,his ,book ,,when the deity had finished making his world1 the bible says that he looked his creation all over1 and behold1 everything that he had made was good4 ,he was1 according to this report1 perfectly pleased with his work4 ,he was proud of the world he had created1 for it was made in his own image4 ,but in the very next chapter we read that the first woman ,god ever made deceived her husband1 and the first man deserted his wife1 by throwing the blame of his transgression upon her1 instead of coming to her defense4 ,and the first son ever born to a mother--,cain--turned out to be a murderer--the murderer of his only brother4 ,and the world itself1 which a moment ago had been pronounced good1 became so wicked in a short time that it had to be drowned4 ,who would care to be the author of such a world6 ,of course1 it will be said that the collapse of ,god's world was the devil's fault1 but where did he come from8 ,why was there a devil in a universe created by ,god1 and in his own image8 ,that is the question against which all theologies dash themselves to pieces4 ,if the deity was powerless against the devil1 he could1 at least1 have refrained from creating a world for the devil to work his mischief in4 ,if you can not remove the quicksand1 would you build a house on it8 ,moreover1 this throwing the blame upon somebody else is the very tactics which ,adam and ,eve resorted to4 ,but did it help them8 ,when ,adam was asked why he ate of the fruit of the forbidden tree1 he threw the blame upon his wife4 ,when the woman was interrogated1 she threw the blame upon the serpent1 and now when we ask the ,lord ,god why his world went to pieces so soon after he had pronounced it perfect1 he throws the blame upon the devil4 ,well1 that will not do4 ,if shirking his responsibility did not save ,adam nor his innocent progeny--the human race--why should it save the deity8 ,the story of ,cain and ,abel is the first episode on1 earth4 ,the two were brothers4 ,abel was a shepherd2 ,cain1 a farmer4 ,surely they needed each other1 both commercially and socially4 ,according to the bible1 there were altogether only four people in the world1 at this time1 and1 therefore1 from every point of view1 it was more than a dastardly crime to kill one of the members of this precious group4 ,what was the cause of the hatred which led to the first bloodshed8 ,unfortunately these two brothers had a religion4 ,but for their religion they would never have hated one another1 nor would murder have stained the opening pages of history4 ,cain offered the ,lord for a sacrifice1 of the product of his farm2 ,abel brought to the altar a head or two of cattle4 ,they were both trying to please the ,lord1 each worshiping him according to his light4 ,ah6 but that is not enough2 there is only one worship that is orthodox4 ,all others are taboo4 ,god accepts ,abel's flesh offering1 and rejects ,cain's vegetables4 ,then the trouble begins4 ,the murder of ,abel by ,cain started the religious persecutions which have blackened the face of man4 ,to this source may be traced the inquisitions1 the crusaders the wholesale massacres which have made history a horror and a shudder4 ,the first bloodshed was in the name of religion4 ,the first murder was committed at the altar of ,god4 ,it was a religious difference which defiled with blood the cradle of the human race4 ,but who was responsible for the first murder in the world8 ,the deity6 ,had ,god been pleased to accept a vegetable offering with as much pleasure as roasting flesh1 or1 had he said1 ,never mind me2 be good to one another1 he would have removed thereby the most powerful motive for religious persecution4 ,the ,cain and ,abel story compels us to say that the first persecutor was the ,lord ,god himself4 ,and how could these two brothers tell that ,god had accepted one offering and rejected the other8 ,how can men tell to-day that ,god likes the ,catholic worship better than the ,protestant or the ,moslem8 ,who can enlighten us on this subject8 ,in the case of ,cain and ,abel1 in all probability1 the flesh offering1 being oily or fat1 burned readily on the altar2 while the vegetables1 being fresh and wet1 or covered with the soil1 did not burn as readily1 or they smoked instead of going up in a flame1 which natural circumstance was seized upon as a supernatural revelation1 and made the pretext for the most infamous deed on record--fratricide4 ,and where did these two brothers get the idea that ,god was fond either of flesh or of vegetables8 ,that is an interesting question4 ,in the days of ignorance and fear1 when the crocodile in the river was a god1 it was supposed that the monster had power to hurt people4 ,he must1 therefore1 be appeased4 ,the rumor went abroad that the monster was very fond of little children4 ,let us throw him a child for his breakfast1 suggests a priest4 ,the suggestion is followed4 ,with prayers1 incantations1 prostrations--with incense1 and chants1 on stated occasions1 the crocodile is presented a child4 ,to bribe the evil powers1 to put them in a friendly frame of mind by gifts of food and drink1 of song and prayer1 in order to turn their wrath into compassion--such was the beginning of human sacrifices4 ,at first the gods were very particular4 ,they demanded human flesh for their breakfast1 and not until man was sufficiently strong to make his own terms1 did the gods consent to accept the flesh of the animal4 ,the ,deity ,demands ,human ,flesh ,,the object of human and animal sacrifices in the bible1 as in all the older religions1 was to placate the deity4 ,the ,jews would not have offered ,jehovah the flesh of man and beast1 did they not believe that their god was not only exceedingly fond of roast meats1 but that this was the only way to secure any favors from him4 ,when an oriental desired a favor of his king or chieftain1 he approached him with many gifts1 as well as with prostrations and compliments4 ,the way to be admitted to an audience with ,jehovah was to praise him loudly1 and to offer him the best part of the spoils4 ,the psychological phase of the institution of sacrifices and worship is very instructive4 ,even as a child tries to put its father in an amiable state of mind before presenting its petition1 the believer's motive in coming forward with precious gifts--the flesh even of his own little ones--or with elaborate and highly finished compliments1 is to throw a spell upon the deity1 to charm him1 as it were1 into granting the petitioner his request4 ,the savage actually believed that the savour of burning flesh1 and the sight of palpitating blood shed at the altars1 so delighted or intoxicated the deity that almost any favor could be wrested from him while in that condition4 ,the object of the soft hymns and cajoling prayers in the churches to-day have the same purpose for which the sacrifices and dances of the barbarians were instituted4 ,how to charm the deity1 to please and engage his services1 is the end and aim of every kind of worship4 ,the word gospel is a combination of good and spell4 ,to read it1 is to become spellbound1 according to the teaching of the churches4 ,in the same sense1 a prayer-book is a collection of spells1 to be used in approaching the deity4 ,if we desire rain from him1 we must use the petition1 or the spell1 expressly prepared for that purpose2 if we desire good harvests1 or success in war1 or the removal from the land of the plague or infidelity1 we must use other spells4 ,we ask it all in ,jesus' name1 is the way nearly all prayers close4 ,that is one of the irresistible spells4 ,ask it in my name1 says ,jesus1 because the belief was current that there was magic in a name4 ,that is to say1 some names were spells4 ,the word charm comes from the ,latin carmen4 ,but that is also the word for song or hymn4 ,to sing to a god is to charm him1 or bind him with a spell4 ,the purpose of the chants is to enchant the deity1 that is to say1 to intoxicate him with praise1 as the savage tried to intoxicate him with his roasts and reeking altars4 ,the service of the gods was very much more expensive in olden times than now4 ,men had to part with their own children to keep on good terms with the powers above4 ,but1 as often explained1 the secular interests of life always act as a check on the follies and absurdities of religion4 ,instead of throwing his children to the crocodile1 or burning them alive upon the altar1 the natural affections prevailed upon man to experiment with animal flesh as an offering to his gods4 ,as man developed in power and independence1 he compelled the gods to draw up a new contract1 or a new testament1 which not only forbade human1 and later also animal1 sacrifices1 but allowed an offering of fruit1 flowers and vegetables to take the place of flesh and blood at the altars4 ,in each new bargain1 the crocodile was the loser and man the gainer4 ,the history of progress is the history of the successive bargains or covenants or testaments between man and the crocodile1 or man and the powers he fears1 each new contract adding to the rights of man and clipping from the claims of the crocodile4 ,is not this very interesting8 ,what the ,christians or ,jews call a progressive religion simply means that ,god is satisfied with less now1 or demands less now1 than he was wont to in the days of man's ignorance and impotence4 ,the yoke of ,jehovah is very much easier and not at all so pinching as formerly4 ,his ten thousand categorical commandments1 his taboos1 his long list of ceremonial observances of new moons and ,sabbaths1 and the mysteries and dogmas which had to be accepted upon penalty of excommunication and damnation1 have been one after the other discarded as non-essentials1 with the result that one may now join either the ,christian or the ,jewish church upon one's own terms--and this they call being liberal4 ,what a blessing has ,rationalism been even to the churches6 ,it has saved them from shedding the blood of their children1 saved them their domestic animals1 and saved also the waste of their garden products1 for the gods now get nothing but words for an offering4 ,the deity1 who at one time turned away from ,cain's vegetable and fruit offering1 and preferred the smell of roasting flesh1 is now glad enough to get a few verbal compliments once a week4 ,but in the bible1 ,god has not yet heard of reformed ,judaism or of liberal ,christianity1 and hence he will accept nothing less than human and animal sacrifices4 ,let me have blood1 and more blood1 is the refrain of revelation4 ,how many of the believers in the bible are aware that ,god demanded by the mouth of ,moses the first born of his people8 ,not only did he slay the first born of ,egypt1 but he also insisted upon having for himself the first fruits of the womb1 as well as of the land of the chosen people4 ,notwithstanding no devoted thing1 that a man shall devote unto the ,lord of all that he hath1 both of man and beast1 and of the field of his possession1 shall be sold or redeemed3 every devoted thing is most holy unto the ,lord4 ,none devoted1 which shall be devoted of men1 shall be redeemed2 but shall surely be put to death4 99 99 ,leviticus xxvii1 #bh1bi4 ,and ,nehemiah relates how the faithful ,jews1 those who did not follow the example of the heathen1 continued under all circumstances to bring the firstfruits of our ground1 and the firstfruits of all fruits of all trees1 year by year1 unto the house of the ,lord3 ,also the first born of our sons 7daughters not acceptable71 and of our cattle1 as is written in the law4 99 99 ,nehemiah x1 #ce1cf4 ,and this is the book that must be circulated by the millions as the greatest and best in all the world6 ,even as the ,old ,testament demanded the sacrifice of the sons of the people1 the ,new ,testament demands the sacrifice of the ,son of ,god4 ,look at the animal about to be bound and made ready for the knife of the priest4 ,see its struggles and hear its moan6 ,but that is nothing compared to the piteous wail of the human child torn from its parents' arms to be offered as a sacrifice to the crocodile6 ,nay1 behold the agony of ,christ on the cross and listen to his heartrending cry1 ,my ,god1 my ,god1 why hast thou forsaken me8 ,if ,god failed to hear thee1 ,o ,jesus6 humanity has heard thy prayer1 and there shall be no more murder on the altars of the crocodile6 ,the story of how ,abraham was tempted1 as it is said1 to sacrifice his son to ,jehovah1 is well known4 ,abraham did not object at all4 ,neither was he shocked1 or surprised1 when commanded to kill his own son4 ,it does not seem to have been an unusual thing for ,jehovah to demand human flesh for his diet4 ,abraham started to do as his religion required of him4 ,that is my complaint against religion4 ,it makes a man willing to commit any crime under heaven in the name of ,god6 ,and there is not an ,american clergyman who has the courage to say that such a commandment--requiring a father to butcher his son--should never have been given1 or that1 having been given1 it should be stricken out of the bible4 ,and had ,abraham been a man1 he would have become an out and out ,atheist before he would have tied his little boy hand and foot and pulled out his knife6 ,but the clergyman is on hand with his excuses4 ,he has no arguments1 he has only excuses4 ,god was only trying ,abraham's faith1 he tells us4 ,indeed6 ,did not the deity know in advance how ,abraham would act under the circumstances8 ,is it not true1 ask again1 the defenders of the bible1 that ,abraham was not allowed to destroy his son1 ,isaac8 ,yes1 but ,god allowed ,jephthah to kill his daughter6 ,the story of this unfortunate father is told in the following verses3 ,and ,jephthah vowed a vow unto the ,lord1 and said1 ,if thou shalt without fail deliver the children of ,ammon into mine hands1 ,then it shall be1 that whatsoever cometh forth of the doors of my house to meet me1 when ,i return in peace from the children of ,ammon1 shall surely be the ,lord's1 and ,i will offer it up for a burnt offering4 ,jehovah accepted the bargain and gave ,jephthah the victory4 ,and ,jephthah came to ,mizpeh unto his house1 and1 behold1 his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances3 and she was his only child2 beside her he had neither son nor daughter4 ,and it came to pass1 when he saw her1 that he rent his clothes1 and said1 ,alas1 my daughter6 ,then the poor man explains to his child the vow he had made unto the ,lord4 ,the young woman was willing to be offered up as a burnt offering unto the ,lord1 if she could have two months' time to wander about and bewail her sad fate4 ,and it came to pass at the end of two months1 that she returned unto her father1 who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed4 99 99 ,judges xi1 #cj-ci4 ,why should ,americans have anything to do with an ,asiatic cult which tempts a father to kill the son that had called him papa1 or which actually permits a father to burn alive his only child--the child that ran to greet him with a kiss8 ,there was a good excuse to burn the clothes1 or the timbrels with which ,jephtha's daughter ran to meet her father1 instead of the young lady herself4 ,a good argument could have been made that the first object the returning general saw was the timbrels in her hand1 but the ,lord would not accept anything less than human flesh in those days4 ,there are many other examples in the ,holy ,bible as objectionable as those already mentioned4 ,frequently the only way to turn away the wrath of ,god from the people1 was to hang a few heads against the sun1 or massacre a whole community1 children included1 or to draw the sword upon the members of one's own family4 ,what does the reader think of all this--in the bible6 ,why are not men ashamed to print and distribute twenty million copies a year of a book so foreign to the best feelings of our age and country8 ,why should such a book be forced into our homes and schools1 or placed in the hands of our little ones immediately after they have left their cradles8 ,why should there be a copy of this book in every room of every hotel in the land8 ,before dismissing this subject it would be well to point out that the long practice of human and animal sacrifices is responsible for the cruelty to children and animals in modern times4 ,humanity to our dumb neighbors has not been one of the distinguished virtues of either ,jews or ,christians1 and though we live in the twentieth century we have to support societies specially devoted to preventing cruelty to children4 ,in the same way associations have been organized to protect animals against mistreatment4 ,that the bible gives little thought to the rights of animals may be inferred not only from ,st4 ,paul's rather brutal exclamation1 ,does ,god care for the oxen8 but also from the practice among the ,jews to this day1 of tormenting an animal before killing him for food4 ,in the ,humane ,review1 an eye witness of the ,jewish method of slaughter to provide ,kosher meat for the market gives the following description of the operation3 ,as soon as the animal has been brought into the slaughtering chamber it is thrown to the ground either by attaching a rope or chain to the legs and then suddenly hauling on it1 or by twisting the head upward and sideways by means of an appliance attached to the horns and passing under the jaw1 in such a way that the animal loses its balance and falls to the ground1 in doing which it not infrequently injures itself so that there is loss of blood or fracture of horn or rib4 ,the animal is then rendered powerless by having its feet bound together1 or the tail drawn through the hind legs forward and upward1 while one of the slaughtermen places his foot on the animal's stomach and prevents its attempting to offer resistance4 ,the head is then forced down so that it rests on the horns1 and the nose is pressed against the floor4 ,this can only be done by the exertion of great force on the part of the slaughtermen1 with corresponding resistance1 involving terror and suffering on that of the animal4 ,the ,jewish official who performs the act of slaughter then passes his hand over the animal's tightly drawn throat1 and mutters the so-called ,schechita prayer4 ,he then cuts the animal's throat right through the vertebrae1 drawing the knife to and fro in so doing4 ,the blood which spurts from the severed arteries is scattered like rain by the breath which escapes from the lungs1 and as the breath is drawn in it enters the gullet and lungs with a loud rattling noise4 ,the gaping wound yawns wide1 the animal opens and closes its eyes1 rolling them to and fro1 and opens and shuts its mouth as though gasping for breath4 ,if the flow of blood from the arteries in the neck ceases1 one of the slaughtermen--not the ,jewish official--draws them out1 cuts away part of them with the surrounding tissues1 and throws the severed portion away4 ,and while all this is going on the animal is alive and conscious of pain and terror4 ,,ii4 ,the ,portrait of ,god in the ,bible ,,to prove the charge that the bible ,god is quite unfit for modern purposes1 we have only to open the holy book at almost any page to find such positive commandments as the following emanating from him3 ,now go and smite ,amalek1 and utterly destroy all that they have1 and spare them not2 but slay both man and woman1 infant and suckling1 ox and sheep1 camel and ass499 ,slaughter on a small scale1 or at intervals1 does not seem to satisfy the bible deity4 ,like a vortex1 he cries for more1 more4 ,but of the cities of these people1 which the ,lord thy ,god doth give thee for an inheritance1 thou shalt save alive nothing that breatheth3 ,but thou shalt utterly destroy them2 namely1 the ,hittites1 and the ,amorites1 the ,canaanites1 and the ,perizzites1 the ,hivites1 and the ,jebusites2 as the ,lord thy ,god hath commanded thee4 9999 99 ,i ,samuel1 xv1 #c4 9999 ,deuteronomy xx1 #af1 #ag4 ,we would never have thought of calling attention to these gory pages but for the protection of our homes and schools1 which the clergy insist should be placed under bible influence and instruction4 ,and they have all the money and prestige in the world to force this book into our homes1 and will do so if they catch the modern world napping for a moment4 ,it is not only the heathen that are put to the edge of the sword1 but the ,jews themselves are repeatedly slaughtered on the flimsiest pretext4 ,when the people expressed any disagreement or complaint1 or offered any criticism1 they were consumed by the fire of the ,lord4 99 ,when the ,jews longed for a change of diet1 and remembered the better food they enjoyed in the land of ,egypt1 the anger of the ,lord was kindled3 ,and there went forth a wind from the ,lord1 and brought quails from the sea1 and let them fall by the camp4444 ,and while the flesh was yet between their teeth1 ere it was chewed1 the wrath of the ,lord was kindled against the people1 and the ,lord smote the people with a very great plague4 9999 ,when he was less angry1 he sent fiery serpents among the people1 and they bit the people2 and much people of ,israel died4 999999 ,on one occasion nothing less than the massacre of five hundred thousand of his own chosen people would restore his good temper4 99999999 ,is there any strong reason why a book containing such demoralizing stories should be translated into every language and carried into every country under the sun8 ,and is it not time for the ,american people to shut this holy book out of their homes1 as it is already shut out of their public schools8 99 ,numbers xi1 ,i4 9999 ,numbers1 xxi1 #f4 999999 ,numbers xi1 #d-f1 #ca-cc4 99999999 ,,ii ,chronicles1 xiii1 #ag4 ,not only did the commandments to kill and destroy proceed from the deity1 but the bible represents him as angry when his agents show any pity or weakness in carrying out his designs4 ,saul is dethroned for sparing the cattle of the people he had been sent by the ,lord to destroy4 ,but ,saul spared the best of the cattle1 after he had destroyed all the men1 women and children to sacrifice unto the ,lord4 ,by doing this he had hoped to please the ,lord1 but not so4 ,it repented me1 says ,jehovah1 that ,i have set up ,saul to be king4 ,david1 on the other hand1 was after ,god's own heart1 because he was made of sterner stuff4 ,as this bible character is often held up as a pattern1 and as children are expected to love ,david as one of the best and holiest men in the bible--of whom ,jesus was descended--it may not be amiss to recite a few of the stories in which this man of ,god figured so prominently4 ,in ,david we see the picture of his ,god4 ,my hand really trembles as ,i write the following verse3 ,and he 7,david7 brought out the people that were in it1 and cut them with saws1 and with harrows of iron1 and with axes4 ,even so dealt ,david with all the cities of the children of ,ammon4 99 ,could anything be more repugnant to civilized races than such unnecessary inhumanity8 ,we are trying to introduce a milder form of capital punishment than hanging1 but surely it is not the bible that has softened our manners4 ,i have so much faith in the saving common sense of the average ,american or ,european that ,i believe if they would only read the bible1 and become better acquainted with it1 they would not hesitate to do all in their power1 even if it involved much personal inconvenience and loss1 to break forever the power of these ,semitic tales of war and plunder4 ,is there no more courage left in the world8 ,oh1 but nobody believes in these parts of the bible any more4 ,very well1 then1 why print and sell them at the rate of twenty million copies a year8 ,but let us continue the story of ,david3 ,and he444 put them under saws444 and under axes of iron1 and made them pass through the brick-kiln4 9999 99 ,i ,chronicles1 xx1 #c4 9999 ,,ii ,samuel1 xii1 #ca4 ,and made them pass through the brick-kiln4 ,well6 and is that in the bible8 ,if the ,lord could not prevent such barbarity1 could he not have prevented1 at least1 the publishing of such criminal details8 ,the ,american public is about to pass a law prohibiting the newspapers from entering into the details of the daily murders and other horrible crimes they report4 ,it is claimed1 and justly1 that such particular descriptions of acts of cruelty and shame familiarize the young1 especially1 with the worst phases of life1 and by suggestion lead them astray4 ,but the bible sins in this respect more flagrantly than any modern journal1 not excepting the yellowest of them4 ,written1 on the whole1 by barbarians who lived in an age of brigandage and massacre1 the bible not only gives details of crime which would not be tolerated in any modern publication1 but1 what is infinitely more injurious to the cause of morality1 it sets upon unmentionable acts of cruelty and debauchery the stamp of divine approval4 ,once more1 ,i repeat that ,i would never have devoted any labor to the discussion of the contents of the bible1 if it were not that this is the great idol of the civilized world to-day--this the holy book1 the reading of which it is the desire of the churches to make compulsory in the home and the school1 and this the word of ,god without which1 it is claimed1 there can be no morality6 ,even as there is a movement to purge the daily newspapers of offensive details of lawlessness and crime1 there is also a movement to clear the billboards of objectionable displays and advertisements1 and the theaters of such plays and moving pictures as offend good taste and corrupt the manners of young and old4 ,still another worthy effort is in the direction of omitting from children's schoolbooks descriptions of war and carnage1 in order to win them over to the nobler cause of peace4 ,but why do not good men and women1 who have bravely undertaken these needed reforms1 try their hand also on the ,jewish-,christian bible8 ,i challenge these reformers1 who would expunge from children's text-books the descriptions of battles and slaughters1 to find a single passage in the secular history of ,europe and ,america which can compare with the descriptions of ,david's divine method of warfare4 ,and thus did he unto all the cities of the children of ,ammon4 99 99 ,,ii ,samuel xii1 #ca4 ,unto all the cities4 ,goodness6 ,it is not only upon one or two special offenders that these atrocities are practiced1 but upon all the cities4 ,and think of the state of heart and mind of a man that could be such a monster6 ,but there is something more appalling still3 think of the head and heart of the people of the twentieth century who dare not denounce such barbarities because they are in the bible1 and who translate these details into every language under the sun for edification in morals6 ,of course1 there are also many good things in the bible1 but if all the good editorials in newspapers can not atone for or justify the publication of offensive matter in other columns of the paper1 why should the good things in the bible be quoted to cover up or excuse such terrible passages as those quoted above8 ,and if it be said that neither ,jews nor ,christians approve of all the things in the bible1 ,i ask1 again1 why then do they go on translating and disseminating the book without expunging the objectionable parts8 ,if they have the courage to so rewrite the history of nations1 or report the news of the world1 as to omit all wanton descriptions of brutal and vulgar conduct1 why have they not the courage to put the bible through the same purifying process8 ,who or what are they afraid of8 ,a ,bible ,saint ,,the story of ,david1 which is placed in children's hands for their edification1 is really that of a brigand1 the personnel of whose followers is given in the following words3 ,and every one that was in distress1 and every one that was in debt1 and every one that was discontented1 gathered themselves unto him2 and he 7,david7 became a captain over them3 and there were with him about four hundred men4 99 ,led by their holy captain1 they went about to murder and plunder4 ,hiding themselves in caves and mountain fastnesses1 they became a terror to people laboring in the fields or traveling from place to place4 ,these freebooters1 naturally enough1 preferred going with ,david to staying at home to be sued for unpaid bills4 ,so every one that was in debt joined the robber band4 ,the thoroughness with which ,david and his marauders did their work won for them the favor of ,jehovah4 ,and ,david saved neither man nor woman alive1 to bring tidings to ,gath1 saying1 ,lest they should tell on us1 saying1 ,so did ,david4 9999 99 ,i ,samuel xxii1 #b4 9999 ,samuel xxvii1 #aa4 ,david never did anything without first consulting the ,lord4 ,he was not only cruel1 but he was also a coward1 for unless his ,god positively assured him of victory1 he would not fight4 ,the way he ascertained the mind of the ,lord shows him to have been as superstitious as he was unmerciful and cowardly4 ,and this is the ,saint ,david--the flower of ,judaism and ,christianity combined6 ,religion has so perverted the judgment of men that they admire in the bible what they would despise anywhere else4 ,and ,david said to ,abiathar1 the priest444 ,i pray thee1 bring me hither the ephod4 ,and ,abiathar brought thither the ephod to ,david4 ,and ,david enquired of the ,lord1 saying1 ,shall ,i pursue after this troop8 ,shall ,i overtake them8 ,and he answered him1 ,pursue3 for thou shalt surely overtake them1 and without fail recover all4 99 ,an ephod was a cloak made according to the instructions of ,god1 and worn by the priest4 ,david consulted the cloak1 and the cloak answered him4 ,perhaps there was some one in the cloak2 at any rate the cloak spoke4 ,david evidently had other gods besides ,jehovah and the ephod1 whom he kept at his home for consultation4 ,on one occasion his wife ,michal placed one of these domestic gods in ,david's bed1 to mislead his pursuers4 9999 ,but his gods1 big or small1 did not object to his barbarities3 ,wherefore ,david arose and went1 he and his men1 and slew of the ,philistines two hundred men2 and ,david brought their foreskins1 and gave them in full tale to the king1 that he might be the king's son in law4 999999 99 ,i ,samuel xxx1 #g1h4 9999 ,i ,samuel xix1 #ac4 999999 ,i ,samuel xviii1 #bg4 ,do parents desire their children to read such impure stories8 ,david puts the scalping ,indians to shame4 ,on one occasion1 after ,god had greatly blessed him and given him the throne of ,israel1 ,david1 who had already hundreds of wives and concubines1 caught sight of the wife of one of his soldiers4 ,to possess her1 he coolly planned1 and1 without scruple1 caused to be executed one of the meanest murders on record1 that of the husband of the woman he coveted4 ,the only person punished for this act of ,david was the innocent babe born of the crime4 ,what justice6 ,from this time on1 ,david became1 if anything1 more offensive in his conduct than ever before4 ,having escaped punishment for the foul murder of ,uriah1 the husband of ,bathsheba1 he caused to be hanged seven of the sons and grandsons of his ancient rival1 ,saul1 on the pretext that the three years' famine in the land would terminate by this sacrifice4 ,indeed1 he had consulted the ,lord before hanging these innocent youths1 with the result that1 immediately after the seven corpses fell to the ground before the ,lord1 the famine ceased4 99 ,it is curious how the deity always agrees with a powerful king or emperor4 ,kaiser1 czar1 and sultan always obey ,god1 because he never tells them to do anything they do not want to do1 and because he always approves of what they desire to do4 ,kings and emperors have the deity under perfect control4 99 ,,ii ,samuel xxi1 #a-i4 ,such was ,david's unrelenting spite that1 when on his death-bed1 he extracted a promise from his successor to the throne never to forgive or to show mercy to any one that had ever offended him4 ,mentioning his enemy by name1 his hoar head bring thou down to the grave with blood1 he hissed1 as he expired4 99 ,it would be perfectly safe to say that there is not another character of equal prominence in history1 with so many vices and so few virtues1 as that of ,david1 concerning whom it is said that he was a man after ,god's own heart1 and to whom is given the highest praise in the bible by the deity himself3 ,my servant ,david1 who kept my commandments1 and who followed me with all his heart1 to do that only which was right in mine eyes4 9999 99 ,i ,kings ii1 #i4 9999 ,i ,kings xiv1 #h4 ,,iii4 ,the ,bible and ,judaism ,,it is in examining the fundamental teachings of ,judaism that we discover the blighting influence of the bible upon ,jewish thought and conduct4 ,in all the ,old ,testament there is not even a suggestion that it is a duty to love the ,gentile1 or to treat him justly at least4 ,judaism believed the world outside ,israel lost1 and rejoiced in it4 ,to ,judaism the ,gentile was not worth saving4 ,a stranger might of his own accord1 seeing the light of ,israel1 unite himself with the people of ,god1 but it was no part of the ,jewish religion to concern itself about the balance of mankind4 ,moses ,mendelsohn1 in an otherwise admirable letter to the celebrated ,french theologian ,lavater1 who had sought to convert him to ,christianity1 says that the religion of the ,jew takes no thought of the salvation of people outside ,israel3 ,the religion of my fathers does not wish to be extended444 ,our rabbis unanimously teach that the written and oral laws which form conjointly our revealed religion are obligatory on our nation only4 ,the bible then does not concern itself about enlightening any other people than the ,jews4 ,not only all attempts to spread abroad the truths of revelation are strictly forbidden1 but the ,gentile who1 of his own accord even1 asks to share with the ,jew the blessings of his religion is to be rejected4 ,our rabbis1 continues ,mendelsohn in this same letter1 444 enjoin us to dissuade by forcible remonstrances every one who comes forward to be converted4 ,evidently1 then1 ,judaism was never meant for humanity at large4 ,it was the religion of a tribe4 ,people speak of the mission or the message of ,judaism2 but how could a religion have a message for mankind when it recognized no mankind outside ,israel8 ,was not the doctrine of a chosen people1 which is the spina dorsi of the bible1 the negation of human brotherhood8 ,was not its severe prohibition of intermarriage calculated to keep the ,jew separate and an alien in every land8 ,the bible-writers were shrewd enough to know that nothing would end their rgime1 or overthrow all race and creed wars by which that authority was maintained1 quicker than intermarriage1 and hence they did not hesitate to denounce it as an act of national suicide4 ,it is a pity that after many hundred years of residence among ,gentiles1 the hold of the bible on the ,jews in respect to getting into intimate relations with people not of their own faith and race is as firm as ever4 ,in a ,jewish catechism1 in use in their ,sunday-schools1 we read3 ,q4 ,what other ordinances has ,god made to prevent our falling into sin8 ,a4 ,those which forbid our associating with bad men or intermarrying with wicked and idolatrous nations4 ,the child is thus taught to look upon all non-,jews as wicked and idolatrous1 and forming relations with them as falling into sin4 ,this is supported by a text from the bible4 ,neither shalt thou make marriages with them2 thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son1 etc4 99 99 ,deuteronomy vii1 #c4 ,a religion which forbids a man to marry the woman he loves because she is of a different faith is a separatist religion4 ,another question in this ,jewish catechism reads3 ,are we commanded still to keep ourselves distinct from other nations8 ,to which the child answers1 ,assuredly1 etc4 ,observe the word still1 in the question1 which shows the old law is as binding as ever4 ,how can the rabbis justify such unfriendly teaching8 ,and how reconcile it with their protests against anti-,semitism8 ,if the ,gentile will not take the ,jew into his club1 the ,jew shuts his home to the ,gentile4 ,but why should not a ,jew marry a ,gentile8 ,moses and ,ezra will not allow it8 ,and why should the twentieth century be bound by ,moses and ,ezra8 ,how can ,god be a universal father1 and all peoples his children1 if it is a crime deserving of death1 as the bible plainly announces in many places1 for one of his children to love another not of the same faith8 ,this is the negation of brotherhood in the holiest sense of the word4 ,the ,catholic who denies salvation to all outside his church is not worse than the orthodox ,jew4 ,the ,hebrew who has the courage to marry the woman he loves1 in spite of all the theological fulminations of ,moses and ,ezra1 does more to bring ,israel into intimate fellowship with the world of to-day and more to unite all races in the bonds of brotherhood than all the rabbis of ,jewry4 ,the way to free ,israel is to educate the ,jew away from the rabbi1 and1 entre nous1 rabbi is only another name for priest4 ,the bible evidently does not believe either in equality or in brotherhood4 ,will it be right to allow the teachers in our public schools1 where all races and creeds are wrapped in the folds of one flag1 to read from a book that teaches the boys and girls1 who will be the men and women of the future1 to hate one another8 ,and yet the bible is guilty1 we regret to say1 of that very crime4 ,not only does it make it a capital crime for a ,jew to love a ,gentile1 but he must not even be on the square with him4 ,thou shalt not lend upon usury to thy brother4444 ,unto a stranger thou mayest lend upon usury4 99 ,evidently the stranger is not a brother1 else why does it say again3 ,of the children of the strangers444 shall ye buy444 they shall be your bondmen forever3 but over your brethren the children of ,israel ye shall not rule one over another with vigor4 9999 and again3 ,ye shall not eat of anything that dieth of itself3 thou shalt give it unto the stranger that is in thy gates1 that he may eat it2 or thou mayest sell it unto an alien4 999999 99 ,deuteronomy xxiii1 #ai1 #bj4 9999 ,leviticus xxv1 #de1 #df4 999999 ,deuteronomy xiv1 #ba4 ,to give or to sell putrid flesh to the ,gentile1 or the ,goim1 is that the way to educate and prepare the world for brotherhood8 ,the defenders of the bible have often pleaded that the wars of extermination in the bible had for their object the preservation of the chosen people from idolatrous associations4 ,to keep pure the religion revealed from above it was necessary1 it is argued1 to kill and destroy the surrounding races and forbid the ,jews under severe penalties from entering into close relations with them4 ,but how does selling bad meat to the ,gentiles help to preserve the purity of a religion8 ,how does enslaving the stranger contribute to the same end8 ,if it is association with the ,gentile that is feared1 why were the ,jews permitted to buy slaves of them and live with them in the same house or field8 ,and how does lending money upon usury to the stranger help to protect the divine religion from contamination8 ,candidly speaking1 it is difficult to see how anybody with a touch of the spirit of love and humanity in his breast can believe in the ,old ,testament4 ,the fall of the bastile did not mark the dawn of a better day for ,france more than the fall of the bible will for both ,jews and ,gentiles4 ,one of the most hopeful signs of the day is that the cultivated ,jew has completely broken away from the religion of his ancestors4 ,the synagogues are even emptier than the churches4 ,of course1 this has greatly alarmed the orthodox element4 ,recently the junior rabbi of the wealthiest ,new ,york synagogue1 99 in a sermon1 on the first day of ,passover1 publicly attacked the ,rationalists among the ,jews1 and held them responsible for the disrepute into which has fallen the religion of the bible3 99 ,temple ,emanuel4 ,the old tree that brought forth many beauteous blossoms is almost stripped of its foliage1 and one by one the golden autumn leaves are falling as the older men and women of the congregation pass to their rest4 ,there is no springtime here4 ,it is the winter that is before us4 ,for we have no youth1 no young ,jews and ,jewesses to take the place of the elders4 ,let each family of the congregation ask itself where the young are1 and the answer will be--not within the synagogue1 but outside of it1 indifferent to it2 and faithless and disloyal to ,judaism6 ,continuing his wail1 the rabbi said3 ,look among you6 ,your sons and your daughters1 many of them1 are marrying outside of their people4 ,they are rearing their children with all modern accomplishments1 but with no religion4 ,their homes are bare of piety and of the spirit of prayer4 ,some of them perhaps are engaged in charitable work1 but the work of charity is a negative work at the best1 and with our young men and women it is very seldom carried on in the spirit of ,jewish brotherhood1 but rather in a spirit of remote pity mingled with disdain4 ,are you satisfied with this result of your reform of ,judaism8 ,of course1 when this rabbi speaks of religion he means ,judaism2 and when he speaks of brotherhood1 he means ,jewish brotherhood4 ,it is as impossible to make ,judaism tolerant1 as it is ,christianity4 ,fortunately1 many of the fellow ,jews of this rabbi did not hesitate to combat a teaching which aims to hold the ,jews back while the whole world is moving forward4 ,why should the ,jew remain an ,asiatic in religious thought and practice8 ,it may be to the profit of the rabbi to keep the ,jew tied to the apron strings of the past1 and to prevent his exodus from the wilderness of ,sinai1 but what spells prosperity for the rabbi or the priest spells ruin for the people4 ,look at ,ireland4 ,the priests wear gold chains and live in palatial residences--they increase and multiply--while ,ireland is depopulated and wasted to the bone4 ,not until both ,catholic and ,jew dare to disobey their priests1 do they begin to prosper and enjoy the liberties and blessings of life4 ,as a ,jewish scholar expresses it1 the question is not whether or not the ,jews shall embrace ,christianity or remain ,jews1 but whether they shall be ,asiatic or ,american4 ,,iv4 ,bible and ,talmud ,,another way of showing how the ,old ,testament has injured the thought and conduct of the ,jewish race--as it has of all other races which have accepted its authority1 although1 not to the same extent1 for the obvious reason that they have wandered from its teaching more freely and daringly than the ,jews--would be by examining ,jewish religious literature1 especially the ,talmud4 ,the rank and file of the orthodox ,jews regard the ,talmud with almost as great a reverence as the ,old ,testament4 ,even by advanced rabbis it is regarded as the best commentary on ,mosaic morals and ritual4 ,the ,talmud is to the ,jews what the decisions and interpretations of church councils are to the ,catholics4 ,the ,talmud has been called the ,revelation on the ,lip1 that is to say1 the unwritten word of ,god4 ,for an intelligent understanding of ,judaism1 a knowledge of the ,talmud is as indispensable as that of the ,old ,testament4 ,we will make a few quotations here to show that the ,talmud goes even beyond the ,old ,testament1 if that were possible1 in regarding the ,gentile as an enemy1 instead of as a brother4 ,many among the ,jews are as ignorant of the contents of the ,talmud1 as many among the ,christians are of the contents of the bible4 ,let me reproduce a few of the ,talmudic texts3 ,if the ox of an ,israelite bruise the ox of a ,gentile1 the ,israelite is exempt from paying damages2 but should the ox of a ,gentile bruise the ox of an ,israelite1 the ,gentile is bound to recompense him in full4 99 ,if one finds lost property in a locality where the majority are ,israelites1 he is bound to proclaim it1 but he is not bound to do so if the majority be ,gentiles4 9999 ,if one who intends to kill a ,gentile1 he slay an ,israelite444 he shall be free4 999999 ,an alien forfeits the right to his own property in favor of the ,jews4 99999999 ,rabbi ,shemuel says advantage may be taken of the mistakes of a ,gentile4 ,he once bought a gold plate as a copper of a ,gentile for four zouzim1 and then cheated him out of one zouz in the bargain4 ,rabbi ,cahana says that he swindled a ,gentile1 while the ,gentile assured him that he confidently trusted to his honesty4 7v7 ,it is also expressly urged 7,bava ,kama1 fol4 #aac1 col4 #a 71 to resort to false and adroit pretexts to secure the acquittal of a guilty ,jew4 ,compare this from the people of ,god with the following from a ,pagan ,poet3 ,if ever called ,to give thy witness in a dubious case1 ,though ,phalaris himself should bid thee lie ,on pain of torture in his flaming bull1 ,disdain to barter innocence for life1 ,to which life owes its luster and its worth47vi7 99 ,talmud1 ,bava ,kame1 fol4 #ch1 col4 #a4 9999 ,bava ,metzia1 fol4 #bd1 col4 #a4 999999 ,sanhdrin1 fol4 #gh1 col4 #b4 99999999 ,bava ,kama1 fol4 #ch1 col4 #a4 v ,bava ,kama1 fol4 #aah1 col4 #b4 vi ,juvenal1 ,sat4 #h1a1hj4 ,doctor ,edersheim quotes the following from the ,talmud3 ,the best of the ,gentiles kill2 the best among serpents1 crush its head4 ,now this is the book which is to the orthodox ,jew in ,poland and ,russia what the ,pope is to the ,italian and ,spanish peasantry4 ,that it is binding upon the conscience of every believing ,jew may be inferred from the following3 ,whosoever transgresses any of the sayings of the scribes is guilty of death4 99 ,the ,talmud with its twelve large folio volumes1 represents the national literature of the ,jews for a long period of time4 ,what its worth is1 aside from the few scattered passages quoted above1 may be seen from the following estimate3 ,but yet ,i venture to say that it would be impossible to find less wisdom1 less eloquence and less high morality1 imbedded in a vaster bulk of what is utterly valueless to mankind--to say nothing of those parts of it which are indelicate and even obscene--than in any other national literature of the same extent4 9999 99 ,eiruvin1 fol4 #ba1 col4 #b4 9999 ,dean ,farrar1 in ,a ,talmudic ,miscellany4 ,but what ,canon ,farrar says of the ,talmud could with equal truth be said of the bulk of the bible4 ,the ,jews could ask for no better illustration of the baneful influence of the bible upon their national literature for long centuries than the worthless character of the ,talmudic writings4 ,it would have been a real miracle for the ,jews to have developed a great literature1 or to have created a great civilization like that of the ,hellens or the ,latins1 with an infallible bible1 and its offspring1 the ,talmud1 blocking their progress on every side4 ,it is interesting to note that the only races of antiquity which blossomed morally1 as well as intellectually1 are those which had no revelation to hamper their free movements or to stunt their growth4 ,the unfortunate ,jews went through life carrying the burden of ,jehovah4 ,the ,greeks made sport of their gods2 ,jehovah made sport of the ,jews4 ,if in modern times the ,jews have produced first-class scholars in nearly every branch of the activities of the mind1 it is because1 like the glorious ,spinoza1 the heretic ,jew who was cursed and expelled from the synagogue1 they have divorced barren ,judaism and taken for spouse science--the only redeemer that redeems4 ,i sincerely hope--and there are many signs that this hope will be realized in the not distant future--that even as the ,french after centuries of submission to ,rome threw off its yoke and came out of ,catholicism into modern thought--not a few individuals only1 but the best part of the nation--government and all2 and as ,spain1 the most ,catholic country in the world1 is preparing to follow the example of ,france2 and as noble little ,portugal has just reasoned and voted itself out of the papacy into freedom of thought and action1 ,i earnestly hope that the ,jews1 too1 after untold centuries of intellectual bondage to an ,asiatic religion1 which is inimical to culture and humanity1 will come out of the synagogue en masse1 thereby registering their protest against both bible and ,talmud1 and proving1 as the ,french have done1 for instance1 that they are great enough to change their religion4 ,the fear that the decline of ,judaism will bring about national disintegration is without foundation4 ,if the ,jew is an ,american in ,america1 an ,englishman in ,england1 a ,german in ,germany--how can his withdrawal from ,judaism affect his nationality8 ,is ,judaism the name of a nation or of a religion8 ,it is argued that the ,jews are compelled to cling to one another1 and to keep together in a body1 because of the general prejudice against them4 ,will ,i be forgiven if ,i were to say that ,judaism is largely responsible for this fearful prejudice4 ,is there a text in bible or ,talmud1 which any rabbi could quote1 to prove that ,jew and ,gentile should love and respect one another and dwell together in fraternal relations1 taking and giving in marriage1 as though they were one people8 ,produce such a text6 ,and if there be not1 is it any wonder that the ,gentile1 the world over1 and in all the ages1 has looked upon the ,jew as an alien8 ,it is not true that the cause of the prejudice against the ,jew is the charge that his ancestors crucified ,christ4 ,that is a foolish argument4 ,it is invented by the rabbis to throw dust into the eyes of inquirers4 ,then why did the ancient ,romans1 long before ,christ1 entertain a prejudice against the ,jews8 ,the ,latin authors explained the reason for the prejudice3 ,it was the religious scruple of the ,jew against mingling cordially and honestly with people other than his own4 ,judaism shut up the ,jew in his shell4 ,to come in contact with a non-,jew1 to treat him1 in every respect1 as a brother1 was blasphemy4 ,is it any wonder that ,cicero1 writing about the ,jews1 said that the ,romans were better acquainted with the ,hindus who lived thousands of miles away1 than with the ,jews who lived next door to them8 ,it was the exclusiveness of the ,jew which created and which1 alas1 prevents from dying1 the prejudice against them4 ,it is far from my purpose to contend that this is the only source of the ill-feeling between ,jew and ,christian1 but ,i am confident that were the ,jews to abandon ,judaism1 an ,asiatic religion which will not assimilate modern thought1 and abandon also such rites and ceremonies which are unbecoming to a civilized people1 and enter into the most intimate domestic relations with their neighbors1 in a few generations the ugly sectarian and racial prejudices1 lacking their daily nourishment1 will waste away and die4 ,ah1 but if we do that1 we will lose our ,judaism1 says the rabbi4 ,keep your ,judaism1 if you prefer it to humanity4 ,of course1 the ,christians1 too1 must outgrow their exclusive religion4 ,but my point is that the ,christians1 as in ,france1 ,germany1 ,spain1 ,portugal1 and ,america are coming out of the old faiths en masse1 while there is as yet no such definite movement among the ,jews4 ,true enough1 here and there one meets a ,jew who has all but repudiated ,judaism4 ,as a representative of this class is the writer of the article on ,judaism in ,chambers' ,encyclopedia--,doctor ,krauskopf1 of ,philadelphia4 ,this gentleman almost completely strips ,judaism of all its biblical and ,talmudic features4 ,the program put forth by him is of so very radical a character as hardly to deserve the title of ,judaism4 ,it comes near leaving out supernaturalism altogether4 ,we discard1 says ,doctor ,krauskopf1 the belief in a ,god who is a man magnified1 who has his abode somewhere in the interstellar spaces4 ,we discard the belief that the bible was written by ,god1 or by man under the immediate dictation of ,god1 and that its teachings are therefore infallible4444 ,we discard the belief in the coming of a human ,messiah who will lead us back to ,palestine1 establish us as the rulers of the world1 and make all nations tributaries to us4 ,we discard the belief in bodily resurrection1 hell-torments1 ,paradisian rewards1 prophecy1 superstitions1 all biblical and rabbinical beliefs1 rites and ceremonies and institutions1 which neither elevate nor sanctify our lives4 99 ,another step1 and ,judaism will be swallowed up in ,rationalism4 ,will ,judaism take that other step8 ,the ,jew will2 but ,i fear that ,judaism will not4 ,like ,christianity and every other form of organized religion1 ,judaism is too aged to put forth new shoots4 ,abandon it1 is my earnest suggestion4 ,it has hurt the ,jew4 ,judaism has made the ,jew narrow and anti-social4 ,at a ,jewish ,congress held at ,basle in #ahih1 ,doctor ,mandelstam1 ,professor in the ,university of ,kiev1 said3 ,the ,jews energetically reject the idea of fusion with other nationalities1 and cling firmly to their historical hope--that is1 of a world empire4 ,again1 ,dr4 ,leopold ,kahn1 the ,vienna rabbi1 in #aija declared that the ,jew will never be able to assimilate himself2 he will never adopt the customs and ways of other peoples4 ,the ,jew remains ,jew under all circumstances4 ,every assimilation is purely exterior4 9999 99 ,on the ,progress of ,liberty of ,thought1 ,c4 ,e4 ,plumpter1 page #ga4 99 ,ethical ,world1 ,august1 #aiaa4 ,the educated ,jews everywhere should combat such bigotry4 ,if the ,jewish people desire universal respect and equality1 they must fuse with other people1 which they can only do by coming out of the ancient oriental wilderness4 ,to say that the jews energetically reject the idea of fusion with other nationalities1 is to expose them to the charge that they are the sworn enemies of the human race4 ,rabbis1 beware6 ,during the recent ,race ,congress in ,london1 ,mr4 ,h4 ,snell spoke as follows on this important question3 ,regarding the question from the standpoint of ethical internationalism1 it is not the ,jew1 but ,judaism1 that is at fault4 ,as a citizen pursuing his daily avocation1 sharing in the duties and responsibilities of the common life1 the ,jew is the equal of his ,english neighbor1 and should be so regarded4 ,he is a reliable business man1 a loyal comrade and a good friend4 ,the ,jew in the synagogue is a totally different matter4 ,it is the curse of organized religion that it divides men from their fellows1 and engenders strife rather than harmony4 ,the moment the orthodox ,jew remembers his ,judaism1 he ceases to be one with the nation in which he lives1 and he falls back upon those racial prejudices which certainly perpetuate1 even if they did not actually create1 the aversion with which he is regarded4 ,it is1 ,i repeat1 not the citizen ,jew1 but the theocratic ,jew and the financial ,jew1 that constitutes the problem4 ,no people can expect to be loved when they1 through their habits and institutions1 openly deride the institutions and customs of the nations under whose laws they live4 ,the orthodox ,jew is not an ,englishman or a ,german1 even though he may happen to have been born in the countries named4 ,in so far as he obeys the ,jewish law he represents a firm1 isolated1 yet international political unity1 having as its goal the dominancy of the ,jewish people4 ,the land in which he lives does not appear to count4 ,the ,jewish people become a ,state within a ,state1 living their own life1 and cutting themselves off from the customs and ideals of the populations among whom they exist1 and through whom they attain to material comfort4 ,the ,jew will not eat or drink with his ,gentile neighbors2 their marriage laws are not good enough for him2 he regards marriage with any one outside his race with horror2 he will not accept the day of rest enjoined by the peoples among whom he dwells for his own ,sabbath1 but makes one day's rest in seven practically impossible for large sections of the people by insisting upon a special day of his own4 ,it is this senseless isolation of ,judaism1 and its badly concealed contempt for the ,gentile1 that make the change of attitude toward the ,jew so difficult4 ,the prejudice against the ,jew is one of the most degrading things in modern life4 ,such is the solidarity of humanity that what hurts one is bound to hurt also the other4 ,but we see no solution of the ,jewish problem except in the complete emancipation of the ,jew from ,judaism1 and of the ,christian from ,christianity4 ,reason will unite what religion has put asunder4 ,v4 ,the ,masterpiece of the ,bible--,solomon's ,temple ,,the masterpiece of the bible was ,jerusalem4 ,the proudest building in the holy city was ,solomon's temple4 ,both ,jehovah and his people exerted themselves to do their utmost to build a temple that was to be the envy of all ages and peoples4 ,preparations for its erection were begun in the reign of ,david1 to whom ,god gave untold wealth4 ,it is related in the bible that-- ,david the king444 prepared for the holy house1 even three thousand talents 99 of gold1 of the gold of ,ophir1 and seven thousand talents of refined silver1 to overlay the walls of the houses withal444 ,then the chief of the fathers and princes of the tribe of ,israel444 offered willingly1 and gave for the service of the house of ,god of gold five thousand talents and ten thousand drams1 and of silver ten thousand talents1 and of brass eighteen thousand talents1 and one hundred thousand talents of iron4 9999 99 ,cruden makes a talent of gold about #ce1jjj1 and a talent of silver about #b1jjj4 9999 ,chronicles xxix1 #a-g4 ,here then was a sum which in our money would run up to about three hundred millions of dollars4 ,we are not going to ask how the chief of a petty tribe1 in one of the poorest and most barren parts of ,asia1 could1 at so remote a time1 raise so enormous a fund2 our desire is only to show the elaborate preparations undertaken for the erection of ,solomon's temple4 ,but this is not the only reference to the big sums of money and other precious things which ,david collected for the temple1 which was to be the glory of ,jerusalem4 ,elsewhere in the bible we read3 ,now1 behold1 in my trouble ,i have prepared for the house of the ,lord an hundred thousand talents of gold1 and a thousand thousand talents of silver2 and of brass and iron without weight4 99 ,this was fabulous wealth4 ,david must have had a gold mine of miraculous proportions4 ,mongredien1 as quoted by ,g4 ,w4 ,foote1 of ,england1 estimates that the total value of all the gold and silver of every sort in the ,british ,isles barely amounts to seven hundred millions of dollars1 and ,david1 the bible says1 raised1 in my trouble1 when times were not very prosperous1 three thousand and six hundred millions in gold1 and nearly two thousand and two hundred millions in silver4 ,for no other building were such preparations ever made4 ,but money alone was not all that was needed4 ,a wise king1 indeed the wisest that ever sat on a throne1 if the bible is to be believed1 appeared just at this time to take charge of the building of the temple4 ,the ,lord asked ,solomon to draw upon him for whatever he wanted4 ,ask what ,i shall give thee1 9999 he said4 ,solomon asked for wisdom1 and got very much more4 ,and ,god said to him444 ,i have done according to thy words3 lo1 ,i have given thee a wise and an understanding heart2 so that there was none like thee before thee1 neither after thee shall any rise like unto thee4 ,and ,i have also given thee444 both riches and honour4 999999 99 ,i ,chronicles xxii1 #ad4 9999 ,i ,kings iii1 #e4 999999 ,i ,kings iii1 #aa-ad4 ,thus equipped ,solomon took up the work of preparation for the building of a suitable monument to ,jehovah1 which his father1 ,david1 had begun4 ,one of the first things ,solomon did was to put thirty thousand men to the task of gathering material for the construction of the temple4 ,for the space of four years this crowd of men traveled into foreign countries in search of timber1 as well as of skilled men for the temple3 ,so ,hiram gave ,solomon cedar trees and fir trees according to all his desire4 ,and ,solomon gave ,hiram twenty thousand measures of wheat for food to his household1 and twenty measures of pure oil3 thus gave ,solomon to ,hiram year by year4444 ,and ,king ,solomon raised a levy out of all ,israel2 and the levy was thirty thousand men4 ,and he sent them to ,lebanon1 ten thousand a month by courses4 99 ,and ,solomon told out threescore and ten thousand men to bear burdens1 and fourscore thousand to hew in the mountain1 and three thousand and six hundred to oversee them4 9999 ,so was he seven years in building it4 999999 ,four years collecting materials1 and seven years building the temple--eleven years altogether4 ,and threescore and ten thousand men1 added to fourscore thousand to hew in the mountain1 plus three thousand and six hundred overseers1 make a hundred and fifty-three thousand men in the service of the temple4 ,by adding to this number the thirty thousand traveling abroad for the same object1 we get the grand total of one hundred and eighty-three thousand and six hundred laborers devoting eleven years to the erection of the temple4 ,when at last the monument which had taxed the whole nation and its ,god to the utmost was completed1 people came from far and near to behold it and its royal architect3 ,and when the ,queen of ,sheba 99999999 heard of the fame of ,solomon1 she came to prove ,solomon with hard questions4 99 ,i ,kings v1 #aj-ad4 9999 #a ,kings vi1 #ch4 999999 ,,ii ,chronicles ii1 #b4 99999999 ,country unknown4 444 and ,solomon told her all her questions3 and there was nothing hid from ,solomon which he told her not4 ,and when the ,queen of ,sheba had seen the wisdom of ,solomon1 and the house that he had built4 ,and the meat of his table1 and the sitting of his servants1 and the attendance of his ministers1 and their apparel2 his cupbearers also1 and their apparel2 and his ascent by which he went up into the house of the ,lord2 there was no more spirit in her4444 ,and she gave the king an hundred and twenty talents of gold1 and of spices great abundance1 and precious stones4 99 ,there was no more spirit in her1 ,i suppose1 means she was dumb with astonishment4 ,indeed1 the fame of the temple of ,solomon threw a sort of magic spell upon all the rival nations of the world1 hypnotizing them into submission to ,israel3 ,and all the kings of the earth sought the presence of ,solomon1 to hear his wisdom1 that ,god had put in his heart ,and they brought every man his present1 vessels of silver1 and vessels of gold1 and raiment1 harness1 and spices1 horses1 and mules1 a rate year by year4 9999 99 ,,ii ,chronicles ix1 #a-i4 9999 ,,ii ,chronicles ix1 #bc1bd4 ,everything turns into silver and gold4 ,every one of ,jehovah's favorites1 ,abraham1 ,isaac1 ,jacob1 ,david1 ,solomon1 became exceeding rich4 ,in the present instance1 not only are all the kings of the earth on their knees before the man who conceived and carried into completion so stupendous a monument--one of the seven or eight wonders of the world--but they also empty their purses in his lap4 ,the temple is already earning a dividend4 ,but when we draw nigh unto this bible masterpiece to take its measurements1 we find that the one hundred and eighty-three thousand and six hundred men1 working for eleven years1 and spending the wealth of many modern countries put together1 produced only what we would call to-day an unusually small meeting-house4 ,and the house which ,king ,solomon built for the ,lord1 the length thereof was three-score cubits1 and the breadth thereof twenty cubits1 and the height thereof thirty cubits4 ,and the porch before the temple of the house1 twenty cubits was the length thereof1 according to the breadth of the house2 and ten cubits was the breadth thereof before the house4 99 99 ,i ,kings vi1 #b4 ,now a cubit is the length of the forearm from the elbow to the end of the middle finger1 or about eighteen inches4 ,the ,egyptian cubit was about twenty inches4 ,it is not quite certain whether the ,hebrew cubit was as long4 ,some commentators1 wishing to help ,solomon's temple1 stretch the cubit to nearly twenty-six inches4 ,figuring1 however1 on the basis of the cubit of bible times1 the ,egyptian cubit1 to ascertain the size of ,solomon's temple1 we find that this national monument of ,israel1 the pride of the desert1 was about ninety feet long1 thirty feet wide1 and forty-five feet high2 which would have cost to-day1 when labor and material are very much higher1 but a few thousand dollars1 and a short time to build it in4 ,surely not all the gold and silver which ,david and his son ,solomon raised by taxing the people1 and by collecting tribute from foreign powers were spent in the erection of this modest little chapel6 ,into what other channels could the money have been diverted8 ,who did the stealing8 ,nobody1 really4 ,it was only mythical wealth1 and a mythical army of workmen1 building a mythical temple4 ,the real temple which was destroyed when ,jerusalem was sacked must have been a very inexpensive affair4 ,the only striking feature of the vaunted ,solomonic edifice was its porch1 which was altogether out of proportion to the rest of the building1 being one hundred and forty feet higher than the temple itself4 ,but the eccentric porch1 climbing up a hundred and forty feet higher than the building it was designed to serve1 as well as the building itself1 and the untold moneys it cost1 together with the huge army of toilers1 existed only in the imagination of the ,jewish scribe4 ,we have only to think of the pyramids of ,egypt1 the cities and temples of ,babylonia1 the still-abiding wonder of ,baal-bec--the temple of the sun1 to realize that even when they vaunt their gifts and possessions1 even with their passion for inflation and swagger1 the bible writers do not rise to the level of the achievements of their heathen neighbors4 ,but it is only by comparing ,athens with ,jerusalem that we realize how very much more wonderful is the truth of paganism than ,jewish fiction4 ,it is not our intention to enumerate the masterpieces of ,athens4 ,to preserve even its dust and broken fragments1 museums far more stupendous than ,solomon's temple have been reared all over the world4 ,was not ,athens--as a city1 as a place of habitation1 as a school for the mind1 as a spectacle for the eye1 as the home of liberty--better than ,jerusalem8 ,and is not the book or books which tell the story of the wonderful ,greeks--how they lived1 and thought1 and sang1 and wrought their masterpieces--better than the book which tells the story of the desert8 ,both ,judaism and ,christianity will disappear1 but ,greece1 that is to say1 science1 that is to say1 art1 that is to say1 civilization1 will continue to produce masterpieces1 and yet remain as prolific as time4 ,,part ,v4 ,contradictions in the ,bible ,,consistency is as admirable in a book as it is in a man4 ,inconsistency is born either of ignorance or insincerity4 ,in either case1 it is a serious blemish in both man and book4 ,there is1 of course1 a sense in which all growing minds are inconsistent1 and proudly so4 ,manhood is inconsistent with childhood1 experience contradicts want of knowledge1 and progress is the very antithesis of custom and tradition4 ,but there is no contradiction in dropping an idea which we find to be outworn and untenable1 to espouse its very opposite4 ,on the other hand1 it would be the most unpardonable inconsistency to try to hold on to an opinion in the face of all the evidence against it4 ,equally insincere and contradictory would be our conduct if we advocated the new idea without giving up the old4 ,the ,protestants1 for instance1 profess to believe in private judgment2 but they also believe in an infallible revelation4 ,how can an honest mind hold on to both these ideas8 ,what is private judgment good for where there is an infallible guide8 ,but1 if private judgment is meant to help us test or interpret infallibility1 then private judgment is the judge of infallibility1 which is absurd4 ,and when a man uses his private judgment and disagrees with any part of the bible1 is he not summarily dropped from the list1 and delivered up to ,satan1 as the apostle commands8 ,is that the way to respect the right of private judgment8 ,the bible is replete with contradictions of this description4 ,a thing is often said and unsaid in the same sentence4 ,an idea is affirmed and denied2 a promise made and broken2 a doctrine given and withdrawn1 in about every chapter of the bible4 ,the most contrary propositions may be proved by texts equally inspired4 ,not only does one writer pull down what the other builds up1 but the same writer repeatedly demolishes his own work4 ,the author of ,exodus1 for instance1 states as plainly as language will allow that ,god is invisible2 but the same writer assures us that ,god has been seen by man1 and his form and shape discerned4 ,moses reports the ,lord as saying to him1 ,thou canst not see my face2 for there shall no man see me1 and live4 99 ,but the same ,moses testifies that the ,lord spake unto ,moses1 face to face1 as a man speaketh unto a friend4 9999 ,the ,apostle ,john bluntly contradicts this divine statement1 by another equally divine1 that ,no man hath seen ,god at any time4 999999 ,and whereas ,jacob swears that he not only saw ,god but had also a wrestling match with him1 which lasted for many hours199999999 the ,apostle ,paul testifies that1 not only has no man ever seen ,god1 but no man can ever see him4 7v7 ,it is also stated that ,abraham dined with the ,lord1 and that about seventy of the elders went up the mount and saw the ,god of ,israel4 7vi7 ,but more serious than the textual discrepancies1 which are numerous1 are the moral contradictions1 of which the following is but one out of many4 99 ,exodus xxxiii1 #bj4 9999 ,exodus xxxiii1 #aa4 999999 ,john i1 #ah4 99999999 ,genesis xxxii1 #bd-ca4 v4 ,timothy vi1 #af4 vi4 ,exodus xxiv1 #i-aa4 ,in telling the story of the ,tower of ,babel1 and1 describing the state of society immediately after the deluge1 the bible paints a pleasing picture of the world after all the bad people in it had been drowned3 ,and the whole earth was of one language1 and of one speech4 99 ,an ideal state6 ,to educate the races of the world to dwell together as one great family1 speaking the same language and cherishing the same hopes--is not that the object of all our efforts8 ,but this was precisely what the ,god of the bible is represented as not desiring4 ,when ,jehovah looked down from heaven and saw the state of harmony in which these people dwelt1 and the energy and unanimity with which they labored to erect a tower which in their simplicity they thought would protect future generations from such a deluge as had destroyed their fathers and mothers1 he was very much alarmed1 and1 as the text says1 he decided to break up this happy family1 and to make strangers and wanderers of its members over the whole earth4 ,could anything be more inconsistent6 ,and the ,lord came down to see the city and the tower1 which the children of men builded4 ,and the ,lord said1 ,behold1 the people is one 7that1 he did not like71 and they have all one language2 and this they begin to do3 and now nothing will be restrained from them1 which they have imagined to do4 9999 99 ,genesis xi1 i4 9999 ,genesis xi1 #e1f4 ,this picture of human concord and purpose displeased the being1 one of whose supposed titles is ,our ,father in ,heaven4 ,nor did he enjoy the sight of a united people1 building a city1 and a tower to defend themselves against the fury of nature2 in other words1 progress and science provoked the anger of ,jehovah4 ,and so the ,lord said3 ,let us go down1 and there confound their language1 that they may not understand one another's speech4 ,so the ,lord scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth3 and they left off to build the city4 99 ,what an occupation for a good ,god6 ,instead of blessing their union and brotherhood1 he destroys them4 ,and this is the being whose fatherhood is to be the basis of human brotherhood6 ,even as ,adam was expelled from the garden1 lest he put forth his hand1 and take also of the tree of life1 and eat1 and live for-ever1 9999 the people dwelling in peace and laboring in unison must be scattered lest they become great and happy4 ,and is this the book which is to teach us human brotherhood8 99 ,genesis xi1 #g1 #h4 9999 ,genesis iii1 #bb4 ,the brotherhood of man existed2 but the bible-,god destroyed it4 ,and the ,lord said1 ,behold1 the people is one4 ,is not that brotherhood8 ,they were not fighting one another2 they were not persecuting one another2 they were not idle2 they were not working at cross-purposes4 ,but after the ,lord had sown the seeds of discord1 this unity was no more4 ,how different is the bible from what people think it is6 ,but it would be easier to make a list of the consistencies to be found in the ,old ,testament than to undertake to call attention even to a limited number of its most glaring inconsistencies4 ,the ,old ,testament1 being miraculous from beginning to end1 is but a mass of mutually destructive statements1 from the ,mosaic commandment1 which forbids a man to trim the corners of his beard1 to the saying of the ,lord that he himself will turn barber and shave the people3 ,in the same day shall the ,lord shave with a razor that is hired444 the head1 and the hair of the feet2 and it shall also consume the beard4 99 ,a sane word in the bible is as rare as an oasis in a desert4 ,the ,old ,testament is mostly paradox and platitude4 ,serious ,discrepancies in the ,story of ,jesus ,,but what about the ,new ,testament8 ,the ,jesus story is as miraculous as the ,mosaic1 and1 therefore1 equally well stocked with contradictions4 ,in presenting to us the narrative of the birth of ,jesus1 the first evangelist1 ,saint ,matthew1 states that ,joseph took the young child 7,jesus7 and his mother by night and departed into ,egypt1 and was there until the death of ,herod4444 ,but when ,herod was dead444 he 7,joseph7 arose and took the young child and his mother and came44 and dwelt in a city called ,nazareth4 9999 ,the ,evangelist ,luke1 on the other hand1 not only ignores the flight to ,egypt1 but leaves absolutely not a shadow of a foundation for the story as told in ,matthew1 which is1 that as soon as the wise men from the ,east had departed1 an angel of the ,lord ordered the ,holy ,family to ,egypt4 ,this was to protect the infant ,jesus from the machinations of ,king ,herod4 ,it is also clearly stated that they remained in ,egypt until the death of ,herod4 ,but according to ,luke1 ,jesus did not leave the country at all1 nor did he avoid ,jerusalem1 where ,herod reigned3 99 ,isaiah vii1 #bj4 ,the hair of the feet4 ,the translators were too civilized to render this sentence into plain ,english1 so they substituted the word feet in place of the objectionable word in the ,hebrew4 9999 ,matthew ii1 #ad-bc4 ,and when the days of her purification1 according to the laws of ,moses1 were accomplished 7eight days after birth of the child7 they brought him to ,jerusalem1 to present him to the ,lord4444 ,and when they had performed all things according to the law of the ,lord1 they returned into ,galilee1 to their own city ,nazareth4 99 ,when1 then1 did they visit ,egypt8 ,according to the law of ,moses1 ,mary1 the mother of ,jesus1 having given birth to a child1 could not appear in public until the days of her purification were over1 and ,jesus1 the child1 was required by another law1 equally binding1 to be circumcised on the eighth day1 which he was1 according to ,luke's ,gospel3 ,and when the eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child1 his name was called ,jesus4 9999 99 ,luke ii1 #bb-ci4 9999 ,luke ii1 #ba4 ,but if ,mary and her son remained in the land to perform these ceremonies1 and if they appeared in the temple at ,jerusalem1 where ,herod could have easily seized him1 if he was really looking for him1 what becomes of the story in ,saint ,matthew1 that ,jesus fled by night from ,bethlehem to a foreign country1 where he remained in hiding until ,herod died8 ,matthew says1 ,jesus fled to ,egypt2 ,luke says1 he did not go to ,egypt at all1 but was taken to ,jerusalem1 and publicly circumcised in the temple1 after which he and his parents went to live in ,nazareth4 ,if ,jesus followed the course laid down by ,matthew1 he could not possibly have gone to ,jerusalem1 eight days after his birth1 and thence to ,nazareth2 if1 on the other hand1 he did as ,luke reports1 then it was a physical impossibility for him to have fled to ,egypt4 ,is it not evident from these random and careless statements that the writers are not reporting actual events1 but merely reproducing floating gossip8 ,let us quote another instance3 ,mark says that immediately after his baptism1 ,jesus went into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil1 and that he remained there for forty days4 ,note the words immediately and for forty days1 and then read what ,john says about what ,jesus did after he was baptized4 ,according to this evangelist1 ,jesus1 three days after he was baptized1 went to a wedding in ,cana of ,galilee1 where he turned water into wine4 ,will the interpreters of the ,scriptures please tell us how ,jesus could have gone to the wilderness immediately after his baptism and remained there for forty days1 if1 according to another report1 he went to a marriage feast three days after his baptism8 ,a historical account in which such contradictions occur would lose1 and deserves to lose1 the confidence of the reader4 ,perhaps few events are so essential to the ,christian plan of salvation as the alleged crucifixion of ,jesus4 ,but there is not a consistent report of even this all-important occurrence in the ,gospels4 ,mark has it that ,jesus was crucified at the third hour2 ,john thinks that ,jesus was not crucified until some time after the sixth hour4 ,now1 if ,jesus were really crucified1 and these reporters were in ,jerusalem at the time1 and were also present at the crucifixion1 they would have known1 even without inspiration1 at what hour the awful tragedy took place4 ,the very fact that they report the time of the day shows that they are anxious to give to their report all the earmarks of a historical document4 ,if1 therefore1 the event had really transpired1 and if the apostles had been eye-witnesses of it1 there would have been unanimity as to the hour in which ,jesus was crucified4 ,the lack of such unanimity shows1 we believe1 that the reporters were far removed from the supposed events they are describing1 and that they had nothing more than rumors to guide them4 ,in the description of the scene on ,calvary1 there are nearly as many inaccuracies as there are sentences4 ,matthew and ,mark say3 ,the thieves1 also1 which were crucified with him444 reviled him4 ,john says3 ,and one of the malefactors444 railed on him4444 ,but the other rebuked him 7his companion7 saying1 ,dost thou not fear ,god8 etc4 ,matthew says3 ,they gave him 7,jesus7 vinegar to drink1 mingled with gall4 ,mark says3 ,and they gave him to drink1 wine mingled with myrrh4 ,nor do the biographers of ,jesus agree as to whether ,jesus drank the vinegar-wine1 or not4 ,matthew says1 he tasted thereof1 but would not drink4 ,mark says3 ,and they gave him to drink444 but he received it not4 ,john is sure this is a mistake1 for he says3 ,he received the vinegar4 ,luke does not mention the wine-vinegar drink at all4 ,we wonder what he would have said had he also referred to the matter4 ,but a better idea of the character of these documents will be had by comparing the different accounts of the last hours1 and the last words of ,jesus4 ,if ,luke may be credited1 ,jesus delivered quite a little speech on his way to ,calvary4 ,seeing the great company of people1 and of women which followed him1 he said1 addressing the women alone3 ,daughters of ,jerusalem1 weep not for me1 but weep for yourselves1 and for your children4 ,for1 behold1 the days are coming1 in which they shall say1 ,blessed are the barren1 and the wombs that never bore1 and the paps which never gave suck4 ,then shall they begin to say to the mountains1 ,fall on us2 and to the hills1 ,cover us4 ,for if they do these things in a green tree1 what shall be done in the dry8 99 99 ,luke xxiii1 #bi-ca4 ,this is quite pessimistic1 and contains no suggestion of the great hope and salvation which a dying ,saviour is said to have brought to the world4 ,and as none of the other evangelists reports this somber lamentation of ,jesus1 it is likely that some celibate alarmist1 who expected the speedy destruction of the world1 penned the lines4 ,is it conceivable that1 if ,jesus actually delivered the above speech on his way to the cross1 and under the most impressive circumstances--that three of his intimate and inspired biographers would have omitted any mention of it8 ,we are willing to waive the claim that an infallible document should be free from such errors as are liable to slip into human writings1 but should they not1 at least1 be as free from them as any uninspired historical document is expected to be8 ,it is reported that ,pilate wrote a superscription in three languages to be placed on the cross1 and which could be read even by the people in ,jerusalem4 ,what was this superscription8 ,each of the four evangelists gives a different reading of it4 ,matthew3 ,this is ,jesus1 the ,king of the ,jews4 ,mark3 ,the ,king of the ,jews4 ,luke3 ,this is the ,king of the ,jews4 ,john3 ,jesus of ,nazareth1 the ,king of the ,jews4 ,notwithstanding that we have four supposedly inspired witnesses1 the exact wording of the short superscription remains unknown4 ,we are equally in the dark as to the last words of ,jesus3 ,i thirst1 and ,it is finished1 were his last words according to ,john4 ,father1 into thy hands ,i commend my spirit1 are the words reported by ,luke4 ,my ,god1 my ,god1 why hast thou forsaken me1 were the last words according to ,matthew and ,mark4 ,when we consider the miracle of the resurrection1 it can not escape notice that the documents which tell of it are nothing but a collection of popular rumors which1 as usual1 contradict one another at every point4 ,there is1 on the one hand1 for instance1 the emphatic and unqualified statement1 ,so shall the son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth4 ,then follows an equally unqualified statement that ,jesus was buried late ,friday1 and rose before or at sunrise1 ,sunday1 thereby allowing only1 at the utmost1 one day and two nights for ,jesus to remain in his grave4 ,again1 if the four narrators of the events in ,jesus' life were eye-witnesses of them1 they would have surely agreed in the report of the place from which ,jesus ascended4 ,the writer of the ,book of ,acts tells us that ,jesus ascended to heaven from the ,mount of ,olivet4 ,the writer of the third ,gospel says it was from ,bethany that he went up to heaven4 ,the author of the second ,gospel intimates that it was from neither of these places that ,jesus ascended1 but that it was while they were all at dinner4 ,add to these conflicting reports1 the important omission of ,john1 the author of the fourth ,gospel1 who does not so much as even mention this wonderful finale in the earthly life of the ,christian god1 and an idea may be formed of the character of the events narrated in our ,gospels4 ,according to one version of the miraculous conversion of ,paul1 who may be called the real founder of ,christianity--at least1 the man who was responsible for its introduction into ,europe--the men who were with him when he saw his famous vision on the road to ,damascus stood speechless1 hearing a voice1 but seeing no man4 ,this is as explicit as any statement can be4 ,but according to another version the men who were with ,paul saw indeed the light444 but they heard not the voice4 ,paul's ,conversion6 ,paul's ,conversion4 99 99 ,read the ninth and the twenty-second chapters of ,acts4 ,paul's ,conversion46 ,paul's ,conversion4 ,story ,no4 #a4 ,story ,no4 #b4 ,and the men which jour- ,and they that were with neyed with him 7,paul7 stood me saw indeed the light speechless1 hearing a voice1 4 4 4 but they heard not the but seeing no man4 voice4 ,the only way to account for so decisive a disagreement in the narration of1 presumably1 one of the most significant events in the history of ,christianity1 is that the writer or writers had no first-hand knowledge of what they were reporting1 and that both of the above versions were matters of popular gossip--some holding to the earlier and others to the later accounts1 and the narrator1 wishing to please both parties1 and possessing no reliable data himself1 incorporated them both in his report4 ,an equally impressive event in the rise of ,christianity is the suicide of ,judas1 one of the twelve apostles4 ,that ,jesus should have selected ,judas for an apostle1 knowing he was a murderer in embryo1 is puzzling enough1 but that there should be no unanimity as to the fate of a man who plays one of the principal rles in the ,christian scheme of salvation1 lends serious support to the theory that ,judas1 too1 is a myth4 ,observe the irreconcilable accounts concerning ,judas1 as given in ,matthew and in the ,acts of the ,apostles3 99 ,read the ninth and the twenty-second chapters of ,acts4 ,according to ,matthew4 ,according to ,acts4 ,judas 4 4 brought ,now this man 7,judas7 again the thirty pieces of purchased a field with the silver to the chief priests and reward of iniquity4 9999 elders4 99 ,matthew's account makes ,judas return the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders who had bribed him with the amount2 the other makes ,judas purchase a piece of land with the money4 ,there are also two contradictory accounts of the way in which ,judas met his death4 ,according to ,matthew4 ,according to ,acts4 ,and he 7,judas7 went and ,and 7,judas7 falling head- hanged himself4 999999 long1 he burst asunder in the midst and all his bowels gushed out4 99999999 99 ,matthew xxvii1 #c4 999999 ,matthew xxvii1 #e4 99999999 ,acts i1 #ah4 99999999 ,acts i1 #ah4 ,the writer of ,acts knows nothing about the hanging story4 ,his ,judas has a headlong fall1 which causes him to burst open in the midst1 tearing out his bowels4 ,a man hanging himself can not have a headlong fall1 and if it had been known to the writer of ,acts that ,judas went and hanged himself1 he would have left out he burst asunder in the midst and all his bowels gushed out4 ,we leave it to the theologians to explain the manner of ,judas' death4 ,one ,writer ,makes ,jesus ,affirm ,what ,another ,made ,him ,deny ,,when we come to study the sayings attributed to ,jesus the contradictions become more and more pronounced4 ,the most irreconcilable statements are put in ,jesus' mouth1 often by the same evangelist1 as the following few quotations will show3 ,jesus ,is the ,judge of ,men4 ,the ,father judgeth no man1 but hath committed all judgment unto the ,son4--,john v1 #bb4 ,jesus ,is ,not the ,judge of ,men4 ,i 7,jesus7 judge no man4--,john viii1 #ae4 ,if any man hear my words1 and believe not1 ,i judge him not4 ,for ,i came not to judge the world4--,ibid4 xiii1 #dg4 ,jesus ,witness of ,himself ,is ,true4 ,i am one that bear witness of myself444 ,though ,i bear record of myself1 yet my record is true4--,ibid4 viii1 #a1 #d1 #ah4 ,jesus ,witness of ,himself ,is ,not ,true4 ,if ,i bear witness of myself1 my witness is not true4--,ibid4 v1 #ca4 ,temptations ,are to ,be ,avoided4 ,lead us not into temptation4--,the ,lord's ,prayer1 ,matthew vi1 #ac4 ,temptations ,are to ,be ,courted4 ,count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations4--,james i1 #b4 ,in the same way it could be proven by the bible that ,jesus worked miracles of every description to inspire faith in his mission1 and from the same book it could just as positively be shown that ,jesus not only worked no miracles whatever1 but that he gave his word of honor he would under no circumstances give a sign to prove his claims3 ,jesus ,refuses to ,perform ,miracles4 ,jesus ,recites ,his ,many ,miracles4 ,and the ,pharisees came ,jesus answered and said forth1 and began to question unto them1 ,go and shew ,john with him1 seeking of him a again those things which ye sign from heaven4 4 4 4 do hear and see4 ,the blind ,and he sighed deeply in his receive their sight1 and the spirit1 and saith 4 4 4 ,there lame walk1 the lepers are shall no sign be given unto cleansed1 and the deaf hear1 this generation4 ,and he left the dead are raised up4 9999 them4 4 4 499 ,it is difficult to suppose that the ,pharisees1 after seeing all these miracles performed in their midst daily1 desired a sign from1 him1 or that ,jesus1 instead of pointing to his many miracles1 should declare1 positively3 ,there shall no sign be given unto this generation4 ,the miracle of ,jonah1 who was in the belly of a fish for three days1 was enough1 ,jesus said to the ,jews1 to prove his own divinity4 ,again1 it is as clear as anything can be1 for instance1 that the words1 ,go1 ye1 therefore1 and teach all nations1 baptizing them in the name of the ,father1 and of the ,son1 and of the ,holy ,ghost1 999999 were interpolated into the text of the ,gospels after the ,trinitarian party had come into power4 ,if ,jesus really delivered the words to his disciples just before they began their missionary labors1 how is it that not one of the baptisms by the ,apostles recorded in the ,new ,testament were in the name of the ,trinity8 ,paul was not baptized according to the formula given in the ,gospels2 ,peter did not baptize in the name of a triune ,god2 ,philip1 who baptized the ,ethiopian1 does not seem to have known of the ,father1 ,son and ,holy ,ghost form of baptism4 99 ,mark viii1 #aa-ac4 9999 ,matthew xi1 #d1e4 999999 ,matthew xxiii1 #ai4 ,again1 if ,jesus really commanded his ,apostles to go into all the world1 and teach all nations1 is it likely that only a short time thereafter1 ,peter1 one of the pillars1 who had seen the risen ,lord1 and was now confirmed in his faith1 would have refused to preach the ,gospel to ,cornelius because the latter was not a ,jew8 ,and if ,jesus really sent them unto all the nations of the world1 how are we to explain the bitter controversy over the admission of ,gentiles into the church--a controversy that led ,paul to denounce ,peter as a dissimulator8 ,it is not a lack of moral courage1 but courtesy1 which1 in view of these revelations1 restrains us from calling the above text in the ,gospels a partisan forgery4 ,is it reasonable to suppose that the same ,jesus who forbade his disciples to go to the ,gentiles1 telling them to confine themselves exclusively to the ,jews1 also commissioned them to make no distinction of race1 country or religion8 ,below we present one of the most important commandments of ,jesus1 and the prompt cancellation of the same1 in parallel columns3 ,go not into the way of the ,go ye into all the world ,gentiles1 and into any city of and preach the ,gospel to the ,samaritans enter ye not3 every creature4 9999 ,but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of ,israel4 99 ,again1 ,jesus said3 ,i am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of ,israel4 999999 99 ,matthew x1 #e4 9999 ,luke xvi1 #ae4 999999 ,matthew xv1 #bd4 ,it is claimed that ,jesus postponed the giving of the larger command until his disciples could appreciate it4 ,but there is a serious objection to this explanation4 ,when ,jesus forbade his apostles to visit any of the cities of the ,gentiles1 he stated his reason for it4 ,i am not sent1 he said1 but unto the444 house of ,israel4 ,could any pronouncement be more explicit than that8 ,he further explained to his disciples that they would not finish visiting the cities of ,israel before they would see him in his second coming4 ,it was after ,christianity had crossed over into ,europe that a note of universality was introduced into it4 ,that ,jesus had no idea1 or even desire1 to include the non-,jewish peoples of the world into his heavenly kingdom1 is clearly inferred from his definite declaration that the world would come to an end during the lifetime of some of those who heard his preaching4 ,and now1 how do the orthodox defend themselves against these revelations8 ,one of the answers they offer is that contradictions and inaccuracies occur in all books1 but we do not discredit them on that account4 ,therefore1 they conclude1 it is not fair to discredit the bible because of the mistakes it contains4 ,but the bible is claimed to be an infallible book2 and for an infallible book to stand in need of the courtesy and indulgence shown to human writings is a terrible humiliation4 ,moreover1 the kind of contradictions which exist in the bible would destroy the reputation of any book4 ,a second defense is that the mistakes in the bible are limited to details only1 and that in the essentials1 it is infallible4 ,it will not be necessary to remind the readers of this book of the untruth of that statement4 ,but why could not an inspired book be as accurate in the details as in the essentials8 ,if1 for instance1 the world were really created1 or if ,jesus were crucified and raised from the grave1 why is there not a consistent account of these events8 ,a third defense is that these contradictions really prove the inspiration of the bible4 ,had there been one consistent account of the life and teachings of ,jesus1 instead of four contradictory ones1 the apostles might have been suspected of collusion1 but the inconsistencies in their narratives show1 it is said1 that they were honest men4 ,let us test the value of the above defense by applying it to a specific instance3 ,matthew and ,luke testify that the women1 upon their return from the empty grave of ,jesus1 communicated their experience to the disciples3 ,and they departed quickly from the sepulchre444 and did run to bring his disciples word4 ,mark1 on the other hand1 testifies that the women fled from the sepulchre in consternation2 neither said they any thing to any man4 ,now1 did the ,holy ,ghost1 under whose inspiration both accounts were supposedly produced1 purposely cover the facts1 or misinform the reporters1 that it may never be definitely known what the women really did when they returned from the grave2 or1 did he confuse the writers that the world may see in their disagreements the proof of their honesty8 ,but such a manouvre would only prove the ingenuity of the ,holy ,ghost--not the honesty of the reporters4 ,if the women communicated with the disciples upon their return from the grave1 then1 to have reported as ,mark does1 that neither said they any thing to any man1 was an error4 ,it may have been an honest error1 but if he were prompted by the ,holy ,ghost to make the error1 it does not prove his honesty1 any more than the contrary report proves the honesty of ,matthew and ,luke4 ,but there is a more important question suggested by this discussion3 ,why are there four ,gospels8 ,if it were for the purpose of supplementing what the others have omitted1 we ask1 why should there be omissions in an inspired document8 ,if all four of the evangelists in reporting the same event agree perfectly1 three of the reports would be superfluous4 ,one inspired and truthful account of it would have been enough4 ,if1 however1 the four accounts of the same event do not agree1 as we have seen that in numerous instances they do not1 then no one will attempt to maintain that all four of them could be true4 ,if one evangelist testifies that the ascension took place from the ,mount of ,olives1 and another is equally sure that it was from ,bethany1 about three miles from the former place1 it is evident that only one of them can be correct1 if ,jesus ascended at all4 ,the only good reason for more than one inspired account of ,jesus' life is that given by a great pillar of the early church1 namely1 there had to be as many ,gospels as there were corners to the earth1 or winds of heaven4 ,,part ,,vi4 ,i4 ,what ,was ,the ,bible ,meant to ,teach8 ,,let us now examine the claim that nothing has or can hurt the bible1 and that this fact is the proof of its divinity4 ,we will have no trouble in proving to the reader1 that1 in spite of the most expensive and extensive protection which the bible has enjoyed for centuries1 criticism has compelled it to part1 one after another1 with all its claims4 ,the science of the bible1 for instance1 has been thoroughly discredited4 ,its story of creation and of the origin of man has been everywhere replaced by the truer revelation of science4 ,darwin has placed ,genesis on the shelf4 ,the fire of criticism has irrevocably destroyed the ,mosaic narrative4 ,inspiration has gone down before investigation4 ,there is not a single institution of learning which accepts any longer the bible for a guide in matters of science4 ,even in ,catholic schools1 the world revolves around the sun1 and the heresy of ,galileo is to-day the faith of both pope and cardinals4 ,yes1 the world goes around1 and even the ,catholic church does not wish to prevent it1 but goes around with it4 ,is not the word of man1 then1 as far as it relates to science1 more reliable than the ,word of ,god8 ,in science1 at least1 the bible has been replaced by the better books of modern thinkers4 ,the bibliolater1 however1 tries to turn the edge of this strong point against his fetish by answering that the bible was not meant to teach science4 ,very well1 if science is not the province of the bible1 then1 it leaves out one of the most important branches of knowledge1 and to that extent it is inferior to the books that include science4 ,but really1 to say that the bible does not teach science1 is to admit that it is unscientific1 or false in its science4 ,it may not have been the intention of ,moses to deny the doctrine of evolution1 but when he says the universe was made in six days1 and apparently1 out of nothing1 he talks unscientifically1 and1 therefore1 ignorantly and falsely4 ,joshua may not have intended to combat the law of gravitation1 but when he stops both sun and moon for his private business1 he makes himself a rival of ,sir ,isaac ,newton by teaching a contrary science1 that is to say1 a false science4 ,it is impossible for the bible to speak about the origin of man--the animals1 vegetation and the formation of sun and star--without entering the field of science4 ,when1 therefore1 its clerical defenders say that the bible was not meant to teach science1 they really mean it is something else in the bible that is inspired1 and not its science4 ,it is then admitted that the science of the bible is not inspired1 and that the science of man is better than that of the bible2 let us now see if the history of the bible is inspired4 ,if we desire the truth about the nations of antiquity--,egypt1 ,assyria1 ,persia1 ,greece1 ,rome--do we go to the bible for information8 ,are not the stones dug out of the ground1 and the uncovering of buried cities1 the reading of the inscriptions upon monument and pyramid1 a more reliable source of knowledge than ,hebrew gossip8 ,is it the bible or the hieroglyphics which have resisted the wear and tear of time that introduce us to the laws1 institutions1 the manners and morals of remote nations8 ,did ,herodotus get his facts from the bible8 ,did ,rawlinson discover his wonderful story of ancient empires in the bible8 ,did ,gibbon copy his monumental history of the ,roman world from the bible8 ,there is to-day in the ,louvre1 in ,france1 a stone1 called the ,hammurabi stone1 which gives a truer glimpse into the public and private life of ancient ,chaldea than all the five books of ,moses4 ,it is discoveries like the ,hammurabi stone which enable us to understand also the bible and the sources it borrowed from4 ,in the ,british museum are the sculptures1 the slabs1 the bas-reliefs1 the mummies1 the tombs1 the thrones1 and the gods of the world of long ago2 and it is from them1 and not from the anonymous and undated copies of lost documents which compose the bible that we receive accurate information concerning the races of the past4 ,but1 perhaps1 the bible was not meant to teach history1 any more than it was meant to teach science4 ,the history of the bible is as unreliable as its science4 ,what information it gives us about the ,egyptians is not true2 what it says about the ancient ,assyrian empire is not true2 even what it says of the chosen people is not true4 ,the excavations and investigations of man have shown that the bible writers invented1 in the majority of instances1 the vices they attributed to their neighbors and the virtues which they claimed for themselves4 ,both their own greatness and the insignificance of their rivals existed only in their own imagination4 ,but if the bible were not meant to teach either science or history1 what does it teach8 ,it will not be denied that before the days of modern thought the bible taught everything--science and history as well4 ,it is criticism that has compelled the bible to retire from those fields4 ,but to say1 as the clergy do1 that the bible is not an authority on science or history1 is to make a fearful admission4 ,either the inspired authors knew the truth about the universe and the ancient empires1 or they did not ,if they knew the truth1 why did they tell an untruth2 if they were ignorant1 why did they not admit their ignorance8 ,the books which teach both science and history represent1 in that respect1 at least1 a greater and richer collection of books than the ,jewish-,christian scriptures4 ,but is philosophy the specialty of the bible8 ,the wisest man in the bible1 who is also the wisest man ,god is said to have created1 is ,solomon4 ,there are many excellent maxims in the writings attributed to this ,jewish author4 ,but writing maxims does not make a man a philosopher4 ,to be a philosopher1 one must not only have some kind of an answer to the many questions which come up in the life of the world1 but he must also work these answers1 acquired after years of study and research1 into what might be called a system1 comprehensive in its sweep and harmonious in the relation of its parts to the whole4 ,is there an author or a teacher in the bible who may be called a philosopher1 or who has a philosophy1 in this sense of the word8 ,compare ,solomon with ,aristotle1 whom ,goethe called ,the intellect of the world6 ,what are ,solomon's handful of proverbs compared with ,aristotle's monumental work1 touching upon every phase of human life--art1 science1 history1 politics1 ethics1 music1 the drama1 education1 government1 international law1 medicine1 finance1 economics1 religion6 ,how diminutive appears the wisest man of the bible beside this colossus1 whom ,dante named ,the master of those who know6 ,and while ,aristotle was not inspired1 there is not in all his writings one idea that is degrading or immoral1 while much of ,solomon's writings would be denied the privilege of the mails were they not labeled holy4 ,the ,songs of ,solomon1 which abound in passages we can not quote in this place1 are defended by the clergy on the theory that they were meant to describe the love of ,christ for his church4 ,but ,solomon had never heard of ,christ4 ,and1 then1 why should ,christ use the language of a debauchee to express his affection for the church8 ,how desperate must be the case of the bible champions to resort to so foolish an explanation6 ,in the book of ,ecclesiastes1 another of ,solomon's philosophical treatises1 there are expressed ideas which are positively hurtful4 ,the whole tenor of his teaching is that everything is a vanity4 ,vanity of vanities1 all is vanity1 he cries4 ,like a satiated oriental sultan1 he has lost the ability to take pleasure in life4 ,like ,macbeth1 he wishes the estate of the world were now undone4 ,life to him is but a strut across the stage4 ,there is no difference1 he says1 between a man and a beast2 between a fool and a wise man1 between a good man and a bad man1 for what happens to the one happens to the other4 ,and the conclusion he arrives at is this3 ,a man hath no better thing under the sun1 than to eat1 and to drink1 and to be merry4 99 99 ,ecclesiastes viii1 #ae4 ,few people1 and even few preachers1 who quote the words ,let us eat and drink and make merry1 for to-morrow we may die1 know1 or are willing to admit1 that the words did not originate with some ,french infidel1 but with the wisest man ,god ever created4 ,speaking of women1 ,solomon is inspired to make the following comment3 ,which yet my soul seeketh1 but ,i find not3 ,one man among a thousand have ,i found2 but a woman among all those have ,i not found4 99 99 ,ecclesiastes vii1 #bh4 ,no other man but an inspired ,jew would be forgiven for such an insult to woman4 ,solomon plainly states that while both men and women are bad1 yet women are much worse1 for he has found one good man among a thousand1 but not one good woman among all those4 ,could any book be more unholy than the one which contains so sweeping and spiteful an accusation8 ,and yet this is the book the reading of which our preachers are trying to make compulsory in the home and school4 ,but the saddest and strangest of all is the conduct of the women1 who notwithstanding this insult1 fall upon their knees before this ,asiatic volume and kiss the text that filches from them their good name6 ,of course1 there are bad women1 as there are bad men4 ,but if the ability to restrain one's passions be a virtue1 if resistance to temptation is indicative of strength of character1 women are much stronger than men4 ,there are few men who would not make fools of themselves if women encouraged them4 ,if patience1 endurance of pain1 and self-sacrifice are desirable traits of character1 women are braver than men4 ,every time a woman becomes a mother1 she descends1 so to speak1 into the grave to give life to another4 ,there is not a man who was not at one time carried in a woman's arms4 ,but for her love1 tenderness and unselfishness1 there would have been no civilization499 ,if woman counts for anything to-day2 if intellectually1 socially1 industrially and politically1 she has stepped to the front1 it is all due to her own efforts--efforts against ancient and inspired prejudices1 against the opposition of bibles and the creeds1 of priests and politicians1 and of ,church and ,state4 ,unaided by man or ,god1 woman has saved herself from a life of slavery and inaninity1 of injustice and drudgery1 and to-day both ,church and ,state fear the rising power of woman6 99 ,consult the author's ,woman ,suffrage2 or1 the ,childbearing ,woman and ,civilization4 ,but perhaps the bible is great for its literary qualities4 ,much is said in praise of the bible in this respect4 ,we are asked to admire it as a collection of literary masterpieces4 ,but which are the masterpieces in the bible8 ,is it the book of ,ruth8 ,is it ,esther8 ,is it ,jonah1 or ,daniel1 or ,ezekiel8 ,is it ,leviticus1 or ,isaiah8 ,is it the ,psalms of ,david1 or the ,songs of ,solomon8 ,the only book that comes near being a masterpiece is the book of ,job1 which1 with the exception of the first and second chapters1 in which ,satan makes a fatal wager with ,jehovah for the soul of ,job1 is the work of a sceptic4 ,is there any story or romance in the bible that can compare in beauty and might to the ,faust of ,goethe1 or the ,omar ,khayyam of ,fitzgerald1 or to the ,prometheus ,unbound of ,shelley8 ,is there a book among the five attributed to ,moses1 or the dozen or more attributed to the prophets1 that is as entrancing as ,victor ,hugo's ,les ,miserables8 ,is ,joshua's story of brigandage to be likened to ,schiller's drama of the ,robbers8 ,and where is the tale in the bible that permeates the thought with an indescribable sweetness as the ,david ,copperfield of ,dickens1 or the ,adam ,bede of ,george ,eliot8 ,what is there in the two books of ,kings1 and the two books of ,samuel1 and the two books of ,chronicles that can be mentioned in the same breath with the glories that enrich the pages of a ,walt ,whitman or an ,emerson8 ,is there any wit or humor in the bible as refreshing1 as innocent1 as contagious1 and as illuminating as that which made ,mark ,twain the darling of two hemispheres8 ,is there such music in the bible as throbs and swells in the lyric of ,heine1 in the thunder tones of ,milton1 or in the wild wonder of ,byron's song8 ,and in richness of style1 in fluency and charm of language1 in the sublimity and pathos of poise and period1 in purity of diction1 in felicity of expression1 in soundness of conception and reasoning1 is there any part of the ,hebrew bible that can approach the incomparable authors of ,athens and ,rome1 whose thought is the perpetual fragrance of the centuries8 ,and ,i have not yet even mentioned the thousand-souled1 the myriad-minded ,shakespeare1 whose monument is in the wonder and astonishment of the world1 and whose cemetery is the heart of humanity1 where he lies in such pomp and splendor that for such a tomb the gods even would wish to die6 ,and as for eloquence4 ,i do not have to belittle the bible prophets in order to score a point in favor of the men and the voices which have thrilled the ages4 ,i have read chapter after chapter from the preachments of ,isaiah and ,jeremiah without deriving any more meaning out of them than ,i do from the verbose pages of prophet ,dowie or ,eddy4 ,all theosophist writers speak in cryptic phrases4 ,it is the thought that is like a clear and transparent stream1 flowing as a sparkling gem1 and not the thick and muddy source1 that inspires true eloquence4 ,if the bible prophets were to reappear in our midst1 doing and saying the things they are charged with in the ,word of ,god1 ,i am sure they would be placed under bonds to keep the peace4 ,let us see what it meant to prophesy in bible times4 ,in the first book of ,samuel1 the nineteenth chapter1 we read that ,saul sent a regiment to capture ,david4 ,it so happened that his messengers1 while en route1 became prophets1 every one of them4 ,he sent a second regiment with the same result4 ,a third set of messengers become also prophetic and began to prophesy4 ,we will let the bible explain what these men did when they became prophets1 by quoting the lines which describe the conduct of ,saul1 who1 going in search of his regiments1 became himself a prophet3 ,and he 7,saul7 went thither to ,naioth in ,ramah3 and the ,spirit of ,god was upon him also1 and he went on1 and prophesied1 until he came to ,naioth in ,ramah4 ,and he stripped off his clothes also1 and prophesied before ,samuel in like manner1 and lay down naked all that day and all that night4 ,wherefore1 they say1 is ,saul also among the prophets8 ,mark the word also1 which means that all his messengers had likewise stripped themselves when the ,spirit of the ,lord was upon them4 ,david did the same thing when he danced naked before the ark4 ,to the chief of the ,old ,testament prophets1 ,isaiah1 came this instruction from heaven3 ,at the same time spake the ,lord by ,isaiah the son of ,amoz1 saying1 ,go and loose the sackcloth from off thy loins1 and put off thy shoe from thy foot4 ,and he did so1 walking naked and barefoot4 99 ,and he walked the streets1 if the bible is to be depended1 for three years naked and barefoot4444 for a sign and wonder upon ,egypt and upon ,ethiopia1 whatever that may mean4 ,another prophet1 ,micah1 declares he will not only go about stripped and naked1 but he will also howl4 9999 ,and are these the men to be compared with the masters of eloquence in ancient and modern history8 99 ,isaiah xx1 #b4 9999 ,micah i1 #h4 ,is it necessary1 after all this1 to call attention to the better and purer eloquence of ,demosthenes1 thundering against the menace of ,macedonia to the liberties of ,athens2 of ,cicero1 defending1 both with his voice and sword1 the culture of ,europe against the barbarians of the north2 of ,plato's ,apologia of ,socrates1 the finest argument for freedom of thought and speech that has come down to us from the past2 of ,pericles1 eulogy of ,athens1 city of the light2 of the ,antigone of ,sophocles1 or the ,prometheus of schylus1 unexcelled in literature1 as the ,grecian ,pantheon is in architecture6 ,and have we not forty centuries of forensic eloquence to pit against the explosions and fulminations of the diviners and soothsayers of the bible8 ,there is ,mirabeau1 ,danton1 ,cavour1 ,castellar1 ,garibaldi1 ,mazzini1 ,burke1 ,charles ,sumner1 ,carl ,schurz1 ,abraham ,lincoln1 and a glorious host of others1 whose voices trembled with the woes of ,ireland1 or the victories of ,england1 or the hopes of ,united ,germany1 or the cries of mangled ,france6 ,besides1 the orators of ,europe saved their countries by the new hope and energy they instilled into them2 the prophets of the bible drove the nation they represented into ignominious bondage1 and left desolation and ruin where there was once a people and a nation4 ,even the debris which ,rome and ,greece have left behind them is the envy of all the world to-day1 while not even the ,jews are willing to go back to their own ,jerusalem4 ,,ii4 ,the ,bible and ,religion ,,but if the bible were not meant to teach science or history2 if it were not meant to be a literary masterpiece1 or a text-book of philosophy and eloquence1 was it meant to teach religion8 ,the claim is persistently made that it is essentially as a book of religion that the bible is to be judged1 and that1 as such1 it is unsurpassed by any work of man4 ,it is true that religion is the principal theme of the bible1 but has it made any original contributions to it8 ,does the bible throw any more light on what are called the mysteries of religion than any other book8 ,before the bible1 men speculated about the hereafter2 has the bible changed speculation into knowledge8 ,before the bible1 men believed or doubted the gods2 has the bible changed faith1 or doubt1 into certainty8 ,which unsolved problem concerning the origin of the universe1 or of man1 has the bible illuminated8 ,the bible has added to the number of sects and creeds1 but has it removed even one theological tenet from the field of controversy and uncertainty8 ,a book concerning the most important deliverances of which ,christians themselves do not1 and will not agree1 can not very well be a revelation4 ,nor has the bible added a single new doctrine to the religious creeds that were already current in the world4 ,was it the doctrine of immortality1 or of the incarnation1 the immaculate conception1 the trinity1 the devil1 original sin1 or atonement by blood which the bible discovered4 ,all these beliefs1 together with baptism1 circumcision1 communion1 etc41 existed among the peoples of the world long before the advent of the ,jews4 ,alexander von ,humboldt says that when the different religions of the world are placed side by side it is difficult to tell them apart4 ,like mosses or grass1 they spring up the same in every soil1 and only by a very powerful microscope could be detected the slight variations1 due to climate1 time and environment4 ,i know the final plea for the bible is that it announced for the first time the one ,god idea4 ,but we had occasion to ask in former comments on this subject1 what was the value of such a contribution8 ,why is one ,god better than three or three hundred8 ,would the world have been better off with only one man in it1 or the heavens with only one ,god1 and no angels1 cherubim1 seraphim1 ,christs1 or any other celestial being8 ,but it is not true1 as the following texts clearly prove1 that the bible teaches the one-,god theory4 ,it is impossible not to infer from the way the ,jewish writers speak of ,jehovah that they believed in the existence of other gods besides their own3 ,who is like unto ,thee1 ,o ,lord1 among the gods8--,exodus ,,xv1 ,,ii4 ,now ,i know that the ,lord is greater than all gods4--,exodus xviii14 n4 ,our ,lord is above all gods4--,psalms cxxxv1 #e4 ,before the gods will ,i sing praise unto thee4--,psalms cxxxviii1 #a4 ,great is our ,god above all gods4--,,ii ,chronicles ii1 #e4 ,thou shalt have no other gods before me4--,exodus xx1 #c4 ,worship him1 all ye gods4--,psalms xcvii1 #g4 ,the same idea is conveyed by the declaration of ,david that among the gods there is none like unto his ,god1 and by the further fact that ,moses1 when he met ,god in the bush1 asked for his name1 to distinguish him from other gods4 ,there is no necessity for nomenclature in heaven if there is only one ,god4 ,we do not need a name for ,god1 unless more than one ,god exists in the universe4 ,to name ,god1 then1 is a clear proof that it is done to distinguish him from others in the same calling4 ,why should ,god have a name8 ,when ,moses asked for the name of ,god1 the latter should have replied3 ,a name6 for me6 ,i1 who am the ,infinite1 the ,eternal6 ,names are to distinguish one from another4 ,i have no equal1 or rival4 ,has the ,universe a name8 ,has ,time a name8 ,has ,truth a name8 ,the mere fact of ,god having a name shows he is but one of the many idols1 labeled and classified1 that he may not be confused with others of the same profession4 ,a further proof of the plurality of gods in the bible is furnished by one of the texts which has been deliberately tampered with4 ,the distinguished scholar1 ,dr4 ,christie ,david ,ginsburg1 in his ,introduction to the ,hebrew ,bible1 gives a long list of biblical passages which the ,sopherim1 or the rabbis1 have purposely changed4 ,one of the altered texts is in second ,samuel1 xxi3 ,every man to his gods1 ,o ,israel4 ,by transposing the two middle letters of the ,hebrew word for gods1 the translators converted the gods1 into tents1 and so the text now reads1 ,every man to his tents1 ,o ,israel4 ,in the next chapter will be discussed the claim that the superiority of the bible lies in the perfect morality which it teaches4 ,,iii4 ,does the ,bible ,teach ,morality8 ,,the question which opens this chapter will surprise many of my readers4 ,it has so often and so confidently been claimed that the bible is the text-book of morality1 that hardly any one has thought of even investigating the claim4 ,just as the people have believed the bible to be inspired because they say so1 they have come to believe1 for the same reason1 that the bible is the book of morals4 ,the truth is1 however1 as ,i will endeavor to show1 that the bible no more teaches morality than it does science1 history or philosophy4 ,that was not the purpose for which it was written1 and that is an end toward which it makes practically no contribution at all4 ,morality may be defined as the assertion of our rights and the defense of the rights of others4 ,there is not a single phase of the question which is not covered by this definition4 ,even if morality were defined as the sum of our duties1 personal and social1 even then we must conquer the right to perform these duties1 else we can not live a moral life4 ,to obey our consciences we must have freedom1 and freedom is a right2 to sacrifice ourselves for a cause1 or to keep ourselves unspotted of the world1 we must be allowed the right to develop along the line of our best ideals4 ,therefore1 to be moral is to have the strength and the independence to be ourselves1 and to defend others in the exercise of the same right4 ,it is in the very nature of a revelation to deny man the right to be himself4 ,but that is the very negation of morality4 ,you must obey1 says the bible2 never mind whether you understand the commandments1 or whether you approve of them or not4 ,is that morality8 ,and the bible can not treat you as its equal1 else what will become of its infallibility8 ,in other words1 the bible wants slaves who will do its bidding without protest or question4 ,under slavery there can be no self-development2 that is to say1 slaves can not be moral4 ,it will be seen that by morality we mean very much more than the observance of a few thou shalt nots4 ,but1 again1 a revelation1 by forbidding us to improve upon its teachings1 denies to us the greatest of all rights--that of growing better than our teachers4 ,to believe in infallibility is to deny one's self the right to learn1 and people who can not learn1 or who can not correct their mistakes1 can not be moral4 ,but to say that the bible does not object to our changing its commandments1 dropping some and adding others1 is to admit that the bible is not divine4 ,but if we may not add1 nor take away1 nor improve upon the bible commandments1 then we are automatons1 and not men1 and for automatons there is no morality4 ,the gods will not permit anybody to be better than themselves4 ,such a thought is blasphemy to them4 ,the progress that leaves the gods behind is denounced by all the churches4 ,but what is this but denying a man the right to be himself1 even if by being himself he should eclipse the gods4 ,do as ,i tell you1 or ,be as ,i am1 is the bible commandment4 ,the commandment of morality is ,be yourself4 ,but what about the many texts in the bible which demand purity1 charity1 love of one's neighbor1 and1 above all1 righteousness8 ,it is difficult to believe that the bible writers could have meant by the word righteousness what we mean by it1 namely1 ethical rectitude4 ,how could such men as ,abraham1 ,isaac1 ,jacob1 ,david and ,moses be held up as saints1 and1 at the same time1 the most immoral deeds be attributed to them1 without one word of disapproval8 ,these men were holy1 not because they were pure1 kind1 just1 honorable1 or righteous1 but because they were orthodox4 ,listen to this text3 ,and he believed in the ,lord2 and he counted it to him for righteousness4 99 ,abraham was righteous1 not because his conduct was right1 but because he had the right faith4 ,to the god of the bible himself1 the difference between good and evil1 or right and wrong1 was altogether secondary1 else how could he have said1 ,i gave them also statutes that were not good1 and judgments whereby they should not live4 9999 99 ,genesis xv1 #f4 9999 ,ezekiel xx1 #be4 ,it no more troubles the conscience of ,jehovah to play a trick upon his people than it did that of ,abraham when he trafficked in his wife's honor4 ,nor did it in the least surprise the prophets when they caught their god lying to them4 ,wilt thou be altogether unto me as a liar8 asks ,jeremiah2 and again he says1 ,ah1 ,lord ,god6 surely thou hast greatly deceived this people4 99 ,but is he then going to look for another and a more honest god8 ,not at all4 ,he does not regard lying as an insurmountable defect in the character of his god4 ,and this because there is no ethical code in the bible2 the bible is jealous of one thing--the right belief4 ,jeremiah is not the only prophet who is willing to overlook in his deity so slight a defect as immorality3 ,shall there be evil in a city and the ,lord hath not done it8 is the exulting cry of ,amos4 9999 ,isaiah makes the ,god of ,israel say3 ,i make peace and create evil4444 ,i1 the ,lord1 do all these things4 999999 ,nor did it in the least disconcert another prophet to admit that the ,lord hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets4 99999999 ,like people1 like ,god4 ,it is not religion that shapes and molds a people1 but the people who make their religion4 ,this explains such passages as the following1 which the ,jews attributed to their ,god3 ,and if the prophet be deceived when he hath spoken a thing1 ,i the ,lord have deceived the prophet4 7v7 ,thus saith the ,lord1 ,behold1 ,i frame evil against you1 and devise a device against you4 7vi7 99 ,jeremiah xv1 #ah2 iv1 #aj4 9999 ,amos iii1 #f4 999999 ,isaiah xlv1 #g4 99999999 ,i ,kings xxii1 #bc4 v4 ,ezekiel xiv1 #i vi4 ,jeremiah xviii1 #aa4 ,in one of his letters1 ,st4 ,paul does not hesitate to write that ,god purposely causes people to believe in a lie that he may have an excuse to damn them for not believing the truth4 ,that people could read such a passage without protest and abhorrence1 shows how effective has been the blight of this ,asiatic cult upon the mind and heart of the western world4 ,and for this cause1 writes the ,apostle ,paul1 ,god shall send them strong delusion1 that they should believe a lie3 that they all might be damned4 99 ,the ,god who in the ,old ,testament hardened the heart of ,pharaoh that he might ruin him and his people1 leads people1 in the ,new ,testament1 to hug a delusion to their souls that he might damn them4 ,and this is the being who is not only to be our pattern for morality1 but it shall also be considered impossible for any one to be better than he is4 ,to try to improve on this divine pattern is blasphemy1 both to the ,jew and the ,christian4 ,to teach that no one can be better than ,jehovah1 as he is depicted in the bible1 is the most hopeless pessimism4 ,morality is born of hope and courage4 ,it is the idea of human perfectibility and the idea of progress which give wings to human effort4 ,the bible denies to man the privilege to transcend the ideals of the past1 or to be better than his ,asiatic gods4 99 ,,ii ,thessalonians ii1 #aa1 #ab4 ,,iv4 ,righteousness in the ,bible ,what doth the ,lord require of thee1 but to do justly1 and to love mercy1 and to walk humbly with thy ,god4 99 99 ,micah vi1 #h4 ,,this1 and similar passages1 are often quoted to give the bible a reputation4 ,many commentators1 ,mathew ,arnold among them1 contend that righteousness is the major key-note of the ,old ,testament4 ,to prove this1 the above passage from the prophet ,micah is often quoted4 ,another text which these commentators are fond of quoting reads as follows3 ,and to him that ordereth his conversation aright will ,i show the salvation of ,god4 99 99 ,psalms #a1 #bc4 ,to deserve this salvation by a life of righteousness1 it is claimed1 was the one all-permeating thought of the people of the bible4 ,but this last passage from the ,psalms occurs only once in the ,old ,testament1 and it is a little strange that there should be just one reference to the thought which is said to permeate the whole bible4 ,however1 that is not the real answer to the conclusions drawn from this passage4 ,by consulting the margin of the ,revised ,version of the bible1 which1 too1 is the work of ,christian scholars and has this advantage over the ,authorized ,version1 that it is more accurate--by consulting1 then1 the latest and more accurate translation of the bible1 we find that the text reads3 ,whosoever offereth the sacrifice of thanksgiving glorifieth me1 and prepareth a way that ,i may show him the salvation of ,god4 ,there is nothing here about righteousness1 or ethical conduct1 or conversation4 ,it was the ,english translators who gave the text its moral tone4 ,let us now examine the text which opens this chapter4 ,it declares that ,god requires of his people justice1 mercy and humility4 ,the word which has been translated into ,english as mercy is hesed4 ,it is difficult to believe that this word meant in ,hebrew what we understand by mercy4 ,in the one hundredth and thirty-sixth ,psalm1 ,david1 whose character we explain in this book1 thus praises the hesed1 or mercy of ,god3 ,to him that smote ,egypt in their first-born2 for his mercy 7hesed7 endureth forever4 99 ,surely no modern moralist would think of attributing the wholesale murder of all the first-born in a land to the mercy of ,god6 ,in the same vein1 ,david1 while praising ,jehovah's mercy for overthrowing ,pharaoh and his host1 in the ,red sea1 for slaying great kings1 and famous kings1 whom ,god killed in battle and whose lands he gave to the ,jews1 he exclaims1 ,for his hesed 7mercy7 endureth forever4 ,we associate with the idea of mercy1 tenderness1 compassion and charity4 ,what makes mercy or charity a great quality is that it is1 as a rule1 bestowed upon the unfortunate1 and even the undeserving4 ,but to describe killing people in their sleep1 or throwing down stones from heaven to destroy soldiers defending their homes1 9999 or to drown a nation trying to recover their property from the ,jews who had spoiled the ,egyptians1 before fleeing the land1 as acts of mercy1 is to make of morality a mockery4 ,what is the difference between the red ,indian extolling ,manitou for the scalps he has given him1 and ,david singing3 99 ,psalms cxxxvi1 #aj4 9999 ,joshua x1 ii4 ,to him that smote ,egypt in their first-born3 ,for his mercy endureth forever4 99 99 ,consult ,chilperic's article in ,the ,reformer1 ,vol4 ,,vi1 page #ffd4 ,who would for a moment hesitate between these lines of ,david and ,the quality of mercy is not strained2 ,it droppeth1 as the gentle rain from heaven ,upon the place beneath3 of ,shakespeare8 ,it is not our purpose to show that the ,old ,testament knows nothing of mercy in the modern sense of the word1 but that the word hesed in the bible text1 which figures in the ,english translation of this text as mercy1 means something quite different4 ,following the lead of the great ,hebrew scholar1 ,gesenius1 ,chilperic makes the word hesed in this text from ,micah1 synonymous with our word piety4 ,what ,jehovah desires of his people1 then1 is not clemency1 but piety2 not the love of man1 but the love of ,god4 ,it is the duty of man to ,god1 not the duty of man to his fellows1 the world over1 that the ,jewish prophet has in mind4 ,the first-born of ,egypt and all the other foes of ,israel were destroyed as a reward for the piety of the chosen people4 ,it is for this ,david praises the hesed of the ,lord4 ,in the same way1 the do justly in the text has also a purely ceremonial meaning4 ,the word justly in the translation is not the ,english of the ,hebrew word in the text1 which is mishpat4 ,the ,jews used the word in the sense of the law1 or the judgments and ordinances1 of ,jehovah4 ,what the ,lord requires1 then1 in this text from ,micah1 which the commentators make so much of1 is to perform the law1 to love piety1 and to submit to ,jehovah4 ,and when the prophet quotes the ,semitic ,god as saying3 ,i desired hesed 7mercy71 and not sacrifice2 and the knowledge of ,god more than burnt offerings1 99 he means just what the modern revivalist means when he says3 ,all your morality can not save you4 ,what ,god insists upon is piety4 ,if further evidence be required to know that what we understand by justice1 love1 charity1 had no place in the vocabulary of the bible writers1 there is the story narrated in ,i ,samuel1 xv4 ,this moral teacher1 ,samuel1 orders ,king ,saul1 in the name of ,jehovah1 to slaughter the ,amalekites1 both man and woman1 infant and suckling1 ox and sheep1 camel and ass4 ,the king1 in carrying out this program1 manages to spare the lives of the best of the cattle2 he also allows the ,amalekite king to escape alive4 ,whereupon1 ,jehovah is so provoked that1 it repenteth me that ,i have set up ,saul to be king1 he says4 ,then ,samuel goes to see the king1 who relates to him how he had consumed the ,amalekites by putting everything to the sword4 ,and ,samuel said1 ,what meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears and the lowing of the oxen which ,i hear8 ,the king replied that the best of the sheep and of the oxen were reserved to sacrifice unto the ,lord4 ,observe now the answer which the prophet of ,god gave to the king3 99 ,hosea vi1 #f4 ,hath the ,lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices1 as in obeying the voice of the ,lord8 ,behold1 to obey is better than sacrifice1 and to hearken than the fat of rams4 ,now we understand what it is that the ,lord demands2 so did ,saul1 after ,samuel had explained it to him1 for ,samuel hewed ,agag 7the king whose life had been spared7 in pieces before the ,lord in ,gilgal4 ,from a human point of view1 it would have been more moral to sacrifice to ,god the cattle ,saul had saved than to hew in pieces a human being1 but that is the morality of man2 to be moral in the bible sense is to do as ,god commands1 whether what he commands you to kill be a sheep or a human being4 ,morality1 according to the bible1 means unquestioning obedience4 ,addressing a monster revival meeting1 the ,christian preacher declared that3 ,violation of the sixth commandment1 cursing1 theft1 drunkenness1 and even murder1 are pardonable sins1 but refusal to accept the ,son of ,god is an eternal barrier to the heavenly kingdom4 99 99 ,the ,toledo ,news-,bee1 ,may #ag1 #aiaa4 ,that is our definition of immorality4 ,v4 ,the ,ten ,commandments ,,it is the claim of both ,jews and ,christians that the ,ten ,commandments form the foundation1 not only for the moral and civil laws of our country1 but of the civilized world as well4 ,some bibliolaters1 in their zeal1 go so far as to say that there was no morality in the world before the ,ten ,commandments were announced4 ,that is to say1 in their opinion1 morality is but a few thousand years old4 ,why1 the world itself1 according to the bible chronology1 is nearly six thousand years old4 ,are we to understand1 then1 that until the time of ,moses the world managed to get along without any morality at all8 ,but we know that the world is very much older than six thousand years1 and that there were great empires and a civilization which was already old1 long long before the ,jews arrived4 ,egypt was at the zenith of her culture when the sons of ,jacob appeared within her gates to beg for bread1 and ,babylonia and ,persia were world-empires when the ,jews were still slaves4 ,but to admit that there was any morality before ,moses1 is to give up the bible4 ,what need could there be of a moral law coming down from heaven1 if there were one already growing out of the earth8 ,no deity is needed to find for us what was never lost1 or to give us what we already possessed4 ,to admit1 therefore1 that there were ancient nations who flourished and waxed strong in art and commerce1 in culture and character1 long before the ,ten ,commandments descended from the clouds1 would be fatal to the claim that there can be no morality without the bible4 ,the defenders of the bible find themselves in a very embarrassing position4 ,they can not deny ,egypt1 ,assyria1 ,persia1 ,greece1 ,rome2 but if they admit the greatness and glory of these empires1 what becomes of their claim that morality was first given to the world by ,moses in the wilderness8 ,there is only one way out of the dilemma3 ,refuse to discuss the question4 ,and that is practically the tactics of the bible champions at present4 ,it is absolutely impossible to find any more an educated and respectable churchman who is willing to debate the question before an audience of inquirers4 ,silence is their one remaining asset4 ,it is related in the bible that the ,ten ,commandments were written on two tables of stone by the deity himself4 ,but in a fit of anger1 ,moses1 in whose custody the documents in stone were placed1 cast the tables out of his hands1 and brake them beneath the mount4 99 ,this was a device to account for the nonexistence of the tables4 ,if ever there were a time when a miracle would have been in order1 it was when ,moses dropped the commandments4 ,after forty days of labor1 ,jehovah delivers the moral law1 and not wishing to entrust the work of taking down his dictation to ,moses1 he inscribes them on imperishable stone1 with his own hand4 ,and then they fall and break1 like any schoolboy's slate4 ,the slates should not have broken--and they would not have broken--if all the other miracles told in the bible are true4 ,to have miracles without number when we do not need them1 and then to refuse the one miracle that could have saved the handwriting of ,god1 is a fatal argument against the miraculous4 99 ,exodus xxxii1 #ai4 ,it is true that ,moses was summoned to the mountain for a new set of tables and commandments1 but as ,i shall proceed to explain1 the second ,ten ,commandments were not written by the deity4 ,his handwriting was irretrievably lost by the breaking of the first tables4 ,we have miracles to preserve shoes and garments1 and dead men's bones1 but none to save the writing of ,god4 ,thus it is that all the original documents of the prophets and the apostles have perished1 while the real wood of the cross and the coat of ,jesus have been miraculously preserved4 ,in ,exodus1 thirty-second chapter1 verse sixteen1 we read3 ,and the tables were the work of ,god1 and the writing was the writing of ,god1 graven upon the tables4 ,but what was the use8 ,the tables broke1 and the writing is lost4 ,why go to all that trouble to produce original documents1 only to lose them so shortly after they are finished8 ,the thirty-fourth chapter and the twenty-seventh and twenty-eighth verses of the book of ,exodus inform us that the second collection of ,commandments which were given to replace the broken tables of stone1 were not written by ,jehovah1 but by ,moses3 ,and the ,lord said unto ,moses1 write thou these words444 ,and he 7,moses7 was there with the ,lord forty days and forty nights444 ,and he wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant1 the ten commandments4 99 99 ,exodus xxxiv1 #bg1 #bh4 ,but not only were the new commandments not in ,god's handwriting1 but they were also totally different from the first ,ten ,commandments4 ,thus it was not only the divine writing that perished1 but also the moral law as first given4 ,it is true that ,moses reports what the lost commandments were1 but if he could remember them1 why was it necessary for him to go up the ,mount for a transcript of them8 ,the unpleasant conclusion is forced upon our minds that not only had ,moses forgotten what the broken tables of stone contained1 but ,jehovah1 himself1 could not remember them4 ,where1 then1 did ,moses get the ,ten ,commandments which he says were on the broken slates8 ,i do not know4 ,if he reported them from memory1 and his memory were reliable1 why was a second set of slates ordered1 that the ,lord might write on them the words that were in the first tables1 which thou breakest8 99 ,if a second series of commandments were given1 as the text plainly states1 because the first series was lost1 how did ,moses reproduce the lost commandments8 ,could he have put the fragments of the broken tables together1 restoring thereby the handwriting of ,god8 ,really1 it is not history that the bible gives us1 but gossip4 ,it has already been shown that the deity did not write the second version of the moral law with his own hand1 although he promised he would4 ,let me now present the second version of the ,ten ,commandments1 to show that ,jehovah had forgotten just as completely as had ,moses1 the first ,ten ,commandments which he himself had inscribed on the slates4 99 ,exodus xxxiv1 #a1 abbreviated4 ,exodus ,,xxxiv4 #a4 ,thou shalt worship no other god3 for the ,lord1 whose name is ,jealous1 is a ,jealous ,god4 #b4 ,thou shalt make thee no molten gods4 #c4 ,the feast of unleavened bread shalt thou keep4 #d4 ,every firstling that is male is mine4 ,and the first fruits of the land thou shalt bring unto the ,lord4 #e4 ,six days thou shalt work1 but on the seventh day thou shalt rest4 #f4 ,thou shalt observe the feast of weeks4 #g4 ,thrice in the year shall all your men children 7women not wanted7 appear before the ,lord ,god4 #h4 ,thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leaven4 #i4 ,the sacrifice of the passover shall not be left over till the morning4 #aj4 ,thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother's milk4 ,that these were the commandments given to take the place of those unfortunately lost appears by the text that follows1 and which we ask permission to quote again3 ,and the ,lord said unto ,moses1 ,write thou these words3 444 ,and he wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant1 the ten commandments4 99 99 ,exodus xxxiv1 #bg4 ,by comparing these two pronouncements1 only a very slight resemblance can be discovered between them4 ,in both documents1 ,god is jealous1 and the feast of ,sabbaths and weeks is ordered to be scrupulously observed4 ,there is not a single commandment in the second deliverance which can be described as ethical in its import4 ,it is a moral law without the remotest suggestion of morality in it4 ,nothing is said about the duty of man to himself1 his neighbor1 or his posterity4 ,the ,ten ,commandments which were broken and lost contained1 at least1 prohibitory clauses against murder1 theft1 adultery1 and the bearing of false witness against one's neighbor4 ,even though these interdictions had in view the protection of the ,jew only1 as the conduct of ,israel toward other peoples plainly shows2 and even though only a portion of the lost decalogue concerned itself with morality at all1 the others being of a theological and ceremonial character1 still they1 at least1 have the appearance of being a moral law1 while the second decalogue is not even that4 ,and why are there ten commandments8 ,the ,protestants split the first commandment which forbids the worship of other gods and the making of graven images into two separate commandments2 the ,catholics1 on the other hand1 divide the last commandment1 which says1 ,thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house1 or wife1 or ox1 or ass1 into two1 by separating the wife from the ass and the ox4 ,thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife1 is a commandment by itself in the ,catholic bible1 while1 as explained1 the ,protestant bible makes no distinction between a man's ox1 ass and wife4 ,of course1 we prefer the ,catholic manipulation of the bible1 in this respect1 to that of the ,protestants1 who are more jealous of the favor of ,jehovah than of that of woman4 ,but by what authority do these sects go about splitting the divine commandments8 ,only recently ,cardinal ,gibbons expressed great horror at the suggestion of certain ,protestants that the ,ten ,commandments should be abbreviated and modernized4 ,what blasphemy1 exclaimed the cardinal4 ,yet1 his church was guilty of that very kind of blasphemy when it separated what ,god had joined together--the ass1 the ox and the wife4 ,,vi4 ,the ,commandments ,broken ,,the most telling criticism against the bible as an ethical work is that1 while every one of its moral commandments are deliberately countermanded and cancelled and allowed to be1 yes1 ordered to be1 broken1 not one of the ceremonial or theological commandments was for a single time even suspended1 or its neglect winked at1 by the all-seeing ,jehovah4 ,the man who gathered kindling wood on the seventh day1 or called on other gods1 or ate his totem1 or forgot his taboo1 or omitted the ,abrahamic rite1 or ate fat1 or forgot his blood offerings1 or married a ,gentile1 or ate leavened bread on certain days1 or approached too near to a priest or the candlesticks1 was never allowed to escape punishment2 while the thief1 the murderer1 the debauchee1 the falsifier1 the traitor1 the assassin1 was again and again applauded and rewarded with special favors4 ,the commandment1 ,thou shalt not kill1 was barely spelled out in full when the ,lord orders a saturnalia of murder4 ,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 neighbor444 even every man upon his son4 99 ,who can have patience with such a book8 ,what has become of the intellect of ,europe that it can go to such a book for its morality8 ,in one of ,napoleon's unpublished letters1 addressed to ,junot1 after giving secret instructions about the movement against ,lisbon1 he adds1 ,shoot1 say1 sixty persons4 9999 ,if that makes him a monster1 what shall we say of a being who asks fathers to murder their sons1 and sons their fathers1 in cold blood1 and that1 too1 immediately after he had said1 ,thou shalt not kill4 ,but why was this bacchanalia of bloodshed ordered8 ,the answer will cause a shudder3 ,that he 7,jehovah7 may bestow upon you a blessing this day4 999999 ,to kill was an act of worship4 ,to please ,god was better than to spare one's children from the edge of the sword4 ,god demanded murder1 and not until he was obeyed would he bless them6 ,do we need any further proof that there is only one commandment in the bible3 ,thou shalt obey the ,lord thy ,god1 that is to say1 the priest4 ,if he forbids murder1 obey him2 if he commands murder1 obey him4 ,but the most important point about all this is that both the giving and the breaking of a moral commandment is for the purpose of furthering the theological and ritualistic interests4 ,and the ,lord plagued the people1 that is to say1 he ordered this internecine murder--why8 ,not because they had violated any of the moral commandments1 but1 mark the excuse given1 because they made the calf4 99999999 ,the most abominable thing in the sight of this priest-made ,god1 is not immorality1 but infidelity4 99 ,exodus xxxii1 #bg-bi4 9999 ,lettres ,mdits de ,napoleon4 ,le cestre4 999999 ,exodus xxxii1 #bi4 99999999 ,exodus xxxii1 #ce4 ,it would be easy to enumerate the so-called moral commandments1 one after the other1 and show how every one of them was ordered broken when the interests of the creed required it4 ,thou shalt not steal was revoked again and again1 and a thousand encouragements offered to seize the land and goods of others4 ,the commandment ,thou shalt not commit adultery was made a mockery of by the express instruction to make a raid on neighboring countries and carry off the young girls by force4 99 ,we have reason to be ashamed of ,europe1 of the ,aryan races1 for wanting to place such a book into the hands of young and old as the ,word of ,god4 99 ,numbers xxxi1 #ah4 ,indeed1 without any violence1 either to the letter or to the spirit of the bible1 we may offer the following as the real ,ten ,commandments given by ,god to ,moses3 #a4 ,thou shalt steal everything thou canst--thou shalt plunder1 and practice usury4 #b4 ,thou shalt murder the alien and the heathen as well as thy own brother4 #c4 ,thou shalt bear false witness4 #d4 ,thou shalt commit adultery4 #e4 ,thou shalt covet4 #f4 ,thou shalt hate thy neighbor of another faith4 #g4 ,thou shalt persecute4 #h4 ,thou shalt be cruel1 and buy and sell human beings4 #i4 ,thou shalt be superstitious4 #aj4 ,thou shalt despise woman1 but permit a man to marry as many wives1 and keep as many concubines as his fancy dictates4 ,and let a man divorce his wife whenever it shall please him to do so4 ,space fails us to quote all the texts in the bible which support the above commandments4 ,it would be like reproducing the greater portions of the bible to offer even a partial list of the direct and indirect ways in which the bible lends its authority1 as well as encouragement1 to the commission of what we would consider criminal acts4 ,moreover1 it would be a very unpleasant task to repeat1 or to call attention to1 those parts of the bible which this phase of my subject leads me into4 ,and yet ,i do not see how ,i can altogether shirk the disagreeable task4 ,the reader has no idea how big a part of the bible is unreadable4 ,if anybody undertook to bring out a cleanly version of the bible for family use1 he would soon find that the ,old ,testament1 at least1 would have to be left out1 almost completely4 ,dr4 ,thomas ,inman says3 ,a long experience in life and a retentive memory would lead me to say that the bible1 as we have it1 is the first book which leads many youths astray4 99 ,that ,jehovah ordered his people to steal1 is clearly indicated by the following text3 ,when ye go1 ye shall not go empty3 ,but every woman shall borrow of her neighbour1 and of her that sojourneth in her house1 jewels of silver and jewels of gold1 and raiment3 and ye shall put them upon your sons and upon your daughters2 and ye shall spoil the ,egyptians6 ,what they were ordered to do to the ,egyptians1 they were ordered to do to all the nations they could lay their hands upon4 ,the lands and goods of others were to be seized by force4 ,stealing was forbidden if the property belonged to a ,jew2 it was sanctioned if the property belonged to the heathen4 ,murder is plainly commanded in the following text3 ,slay every man his brother1 and every man his companion and every man his neighbour4 9999 99 ,ancient ,faiths1 etc41 ,vol4 ,,ii1 page #gg4 9999 ,exodus iii1 #ba1 #bb4 ,there is hardly a page in the ,old ,testament which is not red with bloodshed4 ,lying was approved by the deity4 ,moses was commanded to tell a falsehood to ,pharaoh1 as were many of the other prophets advised to practice deception4 ,despite all the plagues which ,god is said to have sent upon the ,egyptians to prove his might and power to deliver his people out of bondage1 it was found necessary1 as a last resort1 to tell a lie to the king of ,egypt to induce him to permit their departure4 ,upon being asked by ,pharaoh why and where they wanted to go1 ,moses answered3 ,the ,god of the ,hebrews hath met with us3 let us go1 we pray thee1 three days' journey into the desert1 and sacrifice unto the ,lord our ,god2 lest he fall upon us with pestilence1 or with the sword4 99 ,while planning to go on an expedition to seize the lands which their ,god had promised them1 they tell ,pharaoh that they only desire to hold some kind of a prayer-meeting in the desert1 after which they would come back1 supposedly to return the jewels of gold and silver they had borrowed from the neighbors4 ,the falsehood was effective when all the miracles had failed4 ,the ,egyptians actually1 if the story is true1 allowed the ,jews to rob them before they left4 ,god also commanded ,samuel to lie3 ,and the ,lord said unto ,samuel444 ,i will send thee to ,jesse the ,bethlemite3 for ,i have provided me a king among his sons4 ,and ,samuel said1 ,how can ,i go8 if ,saul hear it1 he will kill me4 ,and the ,lord said1 ,take a heifer with thee1 and say1 ,i am come to sacrifice to the ,lord4 9999 ,in the same way1 the bible1 it is to be regretted1 sanctions sexual immorality4 ,and the ,lord said to ,hosea1 ,go take unto thee a wife of whoredom4 999999 ,again1 the ,lord commands3 ,when thou goest forth to war against thine enemies1 and the ,lord thy ,god hath delivered them into thine hands1 and thou hast taken them captive1 and seest among the captives a beautiful woman1 and hast a desire unto her444 thou shalt go in unto her1 and be her husband1 and she shall be thy wife4 ,and it shall be1 if thou have no delight in her1 then thou shalt let her go whither she will4 99999999 ,not a word is said about obtaining the woman's consent4 ,and the following3 ,but all the women children that have not known a man by lying with him1 keep alive for yourselves4 7v7 99 ,exodus v1 #c4 9999 ,samuel xvi1 #a1 #b4 999999 ,hosea i1 #b4 99999999 ,deuteronomy xxi1 #aj-ad4 v4 ,numbers xxxi1 #ah4 ,such texts show how indifferent the bible is to what we understand by morality4 ,as to coveting3 ,the whole of the biblical instructions was nothing more than a continuous encouragement to the ,jews to covet everything that was their neighbors1 from the jewelry of the ,egyptian1 to the lands1 the cattle1 the homes and daughters of the nations of the earth3 ,and ,abram fell on his face3 and ,god talked with him1 saying444 ,i will give unto thee1 and to thy seed after thee1 the land wherein thou art a stranger1 all the land of ,canaan1 for an everlasting possession4 99 ,for all the land which thou seest1 to thee will ,i give it1 and to thy seed for ever4 9999 ,but it will be impossible to command people to rob and slay their neighbors1 and to covet their homes and women1 without at the same time1 commanding them to hate them4 ,ye shall not eat of anything that dieth of itself2 thou shalt give it unto the stranger444 that he may eat it2 or thou mayest sell it unto an alien4 999999 ,thou shalt not lend upon usury to thy brother4444 unto a stranger thou mayest lend upon usury4 99999999 ,jesus improved upon the ,old ,testament by calling upon his followers to include in their hatred the members of their own family3 ,if any man come to me1 and hate not his father1 and mother1 and wife1 and children1 and brethren1 and sisters1 yea1 and his own life also1 he cannot be my disciple4 7v7 99 ,genesis xvii1 #c1 #h4 9999 ,genesis xiii1 #ae4 999999 ,deuteronomy xiv1 #ba4 99999999 ,deuteronomy xxiii1 #ai1 #bj4 v4 ,luke xiv1 #bf4 ,religious persecution is openly sanctioned both in the ,old and the ,new ,testaments4 ,every expression of independence1 or disagreement with the priesthood1 was blasphemy1 and punishable by death4 ,and he that blasphemeth the name of the ,lord1 he shall surely be put to death1 and all the congregation shall certainly stone him3 as well the stranger1 as he that is born in the land1 when he blasphemeth the name of the ,lord1 shall be put to death4 99 ,the ,bible gives a very long list of blasphemies for which the death penalty is ordered--from failing to circumcise one's children1 to gathering sticks on the ,sabbath4 ,and as to those professing a different faith1 the commandment was as follows3 ,these are the statutes and judgments1 which ye shall observe to do in the land1 which the ,lord ,god of thy fathers giveth thee to possess it1 all the days that ye live upon the earth4 ,ye shall utterly destroy all the places1 wherein the nations which ye shall possess served their gods1 upon the high mountains1 and upon the hills1 and under every green tree3 ,and ye shall overthrow their altars1 and break their pillars and burn their groves with fire2 and ye shall hew down the graven images of their gods1 and destroy the names of them out of that place4 9999 99 ,leviticus xxiv1 #af4 9999 ,deuteronomy xii1 #a-d4 ,could intolerance go further than that6 ,other peoples are not to have any gods at all4 ,even as their lands will be taken away from them1 so shall their gods4 ,and since their ,jehovah never intended to be the god of anybody else but a ,hebrew1 it followed that the ,jews were the only people privileged to own a god4 ,why should all the high places1 where the other nations served their gods1 be destroyed8 ,did not ,moses go to ,mount ,sinai1 a high place1 to worship ,jehovah8 ,why may not a ,gentile have his own high place1 as well as a ,jew8 ,surely1 the heathen gods on their mountains could not possibly have given a more unmerciful set of commandments than those which ,jehovah dictated to ,moses4 ,there was no breadth in the ,god of the ,jews4 ,live and let live1 or ,think and let think1 is the conquest of modern thought for which we are indebted to ,rationalism4 ,we say it1 reluctantly1 but say it we must1 ,jehovah was a bigot4 ,how long will the ,jews continue to profess a religion which requires of them to live in ,europe and ,america1 and in the twentieth century1 according to the ways of the desert8 ,if ,gentiles1 in every country1 are in great numbers forsaking ,christianity1 let the exodus of the ,jews from the synagogue be equally earnest and pronounced4 ,cruelty was to be the accompaniment of religious persecution4 ,the descriptions of acts of cruelty against the stranger seem to have given positive pleasure to the writers of the bible1 for they enter into the most repulsive details in narrating them3 ,for the ,lord shall sell ,sisera into the hand of a woman4444 ,howbeit ,sisera fled away on his feet to the tent of ,jael the wife of ,heber the ,kenite3 for there was peace between ,jabin the king of ,hazor and the house of ,heber the ,kenite4 ,and ,tael went out to meet ,sisera1 and said unto him1 ,turn in1 my lord1 turn in to me2 fear not4 ,and when he had turned in unto her into the tent1 she covered him with a mantle444 ,then ,jael ,heber's wife took a nail of the tent1 and took an hammer in her hand1 and went softly unto him1 and smote the nail into his temples1 and fastened it into the ground3 for he was fast asleep and weary4 ,so he died4444 ,behold1 ,sisera lay dead1 and the nail was in his temples4 99 99 ,judges iv1 #i1 #ag-bc4 ,for this act of treacherous cruelty ,jael was sainted3 ,blessed above women shall ,jael the wife of ,heber the ,kenite be1 blessed shall she be above women in the tent4444 ,she put her hand to the nail1 and her right hand to the workmen's hammer2 and with the hammer she smote ,sisera1 she smote off his head1 when she had pierced and stricken through his temples4444 ,so let all thine enemies perish1 ,o ,lord4 99 ,superstitions of the most degrading type are recommended and their daily practice sanctioned4 ,though they claimed to be on talking terms with the deity1 they had1 nevertheless1 to cast lots1 and resort to sorcery and divination1 to find out the mind of the ,lord4 ,take me an heifer of three years old1 and a she goat of three years old1 and a ram of three years old1 and a turtledove1 and a young pigeon4 ,and he took unto him all these1 and divided them in the midst1 and laid each piece one against another3 but the birds divided he not4444 ,and it came to pass1 that1 when the sun went down1 and it was dark1 behold a smoking furnace1 and a burning lamp that passed between those pieces4 ,in the same day the ,lord made a covenant with ,abram4 9999 ,could anything be more meaningless8 444 ,and it came to pass1 when ,moses held up his hand1 that ,israel prevailed3 and when he let down his hand1 ,amalek prevailed4 ,but ,moses' hands were heavy2 and they took a stone1 and put it under him1 and he sat thereon2 and ,aaron and ,hur stayed up his hands1 the one on the one side1 and the other on the other side2 and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun4 ,and ,joshua discomfited ,amalek and his people with the edge of the sword4 9999 99 ,judges v1 #bd-ca4 9999 ,exodus xvii1 #aa-ac4 ,only the most hopeless ignorance could credit such a performance4 ,and ,jesus thought that by self-mutilation one could become a candidate for heaven3 ,for there are some eunuchs1 which were so born from their mother's womb3 and there are some eunuchs1 which were made eunuchs of men3 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 it4 ,and the four beasts said1 ,amen4 ,,vii4 ,thou ,shalt ,despise ,women ,,the most unfortunate person in the whole bible is a woman4 ,how is it then that the bible has come to be regarded as really the emancipator of woman8 ,well1 that is only one of many fictions about the ,holy book4 ,not only is the responsibility for the fall of man1 and the existence of such a place as hell1 thrown upon woman1 because she ate of the forbidden tree2 but she is also introduced as a mere fragment of man1 made out of one of his ribs4 ,as soon as born she was sold into perpetual slavery4 ,thy desire shall be to thy husband1 and he shall rule over thee499 99 ,genesis iii1 #af4 ,never once did ,god promise a daughter to any of his favorites4 ,and girls are completely left out from the family chronicle4 ,in biblical genealogies there are no women4 ,the ,hebrew word used in the bible for 'female1' says ,joseph ,mc,cabe1 can not with decency be translated literally into ,english4 ,women were strictly excluded from the service of ,jehovah4 ,nor were they privileged to repair to ,jerusalem on the stated occasions required1 by the national worship to appear before ,jehovah4 ,it is no wonder that under these conditions the women of the bible1 as ,lecky says1 were of a low order1 and certainly far inferior to those of ,roman history1 or ,greek poetry4 ,paul was inspired to command3 ,let the woman learn in silence with all subjection4444 ,i suffer not a woman to teach 7,paul never could have dreamed of our public schools71 nor to usurp authority over the man1 but to be in silence4 99 ,in the ,old ,testament motherhood is an act deserving atonement1 and rules are given how a woman shall apply for absolution1 as it were1 after childbirth4 ,if her offspring were a boy1 the punishment was lighter than when she gave birth to a girl4 9999 99 ,i ,timothy ii1 #aa1 #ab4 9999 ,leviticus xii1 #b-e4 ,the commandment for a man to sell his daughter into slavery1 as also the institution of polygamy1 and concubinage and divorce1 extensively practiced by the leaders in the ,holy ,bible1 show what precious little interest ,jehovah took in the welfare of woman4 ,the bible continued for centuries--down to the time of the ,renaissance--to keep woman in subjection4 ,even to-day1 one of the greatest obstacles in the path of woman is the bible4 ,in a sermon at ,saint ,crantock's1 preached only six years ago1 the vicar offered the following reasons for opposing the granting to women the rights and opportunities enjoyed by man3 7#a7 ,man's priority of creation4 ,adam was first formed1 then ,eve4 7#b7 ,the manner of creation4 ,the man is not of the woman1 but the woman of the man4 7#c7 ,the purport of creation4 ,the man was not created for the woman1 but the woman for the man4 7#d7 ,results in creation4 ,the man is the image of the glory of ,god1 but woman is the glory of man4 7#e7 ,woman's priority in the fall4 ,adam was not deceived2 but the woman1 being deceived1 was in the transgression4 7#f7 ,the marriage relation4 ,as the church is subject to ,christ1 so let the wives be to their husbands4 7#g7 ,the headship of man and woman4 ,the head of every man is ,christ1 but the head of the woman is man4 ,for this one sin alone--its insult and injustice to woman--we should never make our peace with the bible4 ,worse than all its miracles1 fables1 absurdities1 immoralities1 contradictions1 indecencies1 is its tyranny over woman because she is weak4 ,this is unpardonable4 ,it is no defense to say that allowance must be made for the remote times in which these barbarities were committed4 ,it is not the morality of the times but the morality of an infallible book that is under discussion4 ,moreover1 why could not the people who daily saw ,god and heard from him1 be at least as decent as their heathen neighbors8 ,the ,midianites1 whose virgin daughters ,moses ordered his followers to abduct1 after all the rest of the inhabitants had been put to death1 had sheltered ,moses for forty years when he fled for his life from ,egypt4 99 ,their hospitality is repaid by ,moses in this unspeakable fashion4 ,why could not ,moses be as honorable and humane as the ,midianites8 ,even by the admissions of the bible itself1 the nations whom ,jehovah ordered to be exterminated were very much more hospitable than the ,jews4 ,had ,assyria1 ,egypt1 ,babylonia or ,persia followed the example of the ,jews1 there would not have been any ,jews left in the world to-day4 ,and the fact that1 after long years of captivity in heathen countries1 when permission was given the ,jews to return to ,jerusalem1 many of them refused to do so1 preferring a foreign country to their own1 is decisive proof that the heathen did not treat the ,jews so unmercifully as ,jehovah wanted the ,jews to treat the heathen4 ,i can protest against the massacre of the ,christians by the ,turks1 or of the ,jews by the ,christians1 because ,i do not believe the bible is binding upon my conscience4 ,but how can a ,christian or a ,jew plead for liberty of conscience8 ,how can a ,jew or a ,christian protest against being massacred while hugging to his bosom a book which commands and approves of the most inhuman treatment of one people by another8 99 ,exodus ii1 #ae4 ,my forehead throbs as ,i quote these forbidden texts1 and my pulse rises4 ,but ,i have the consolation that the book is not true1 that the wild stories it tells about ,jews and ,christians had no basis in history4 ,if ,i could only get the devout ,jews and ,christians to realize this6 ,,viii4 ,the ,sermon on the ,mount ,,however imperfect the teachings of others in the ,old and ,new ,testament might be1 it is urged that ,jesus himself is the one infallible revelation of ,god1 and that even if everything else is lost1 nothing is really lost so long as ,jesus abides4 ,this is the remaining consolation of the apologists of the bible4 ,no reasons are given as to why1 in an inspired book1 there should be only one person who is really inspired4 ,nor do these new theologians stop to think that such an admission is equivalent to a plea of guilty--for if no one but ,jesus in the bible is to be trusted1 then ,jesus can not be trusted either4 ,in plain words ,jesus tells his hearers that they must believe in him1 because ,moses and the prophets testify of him4 ,repeatedly ,jesus expressed his unquestioning belief in the ,old ,testament4 ,he had come not to destroy the law of ,moses1 but to fulfil it4 ,and he expressly told them1 that there was no necessity for any one to come down from heaven to teach the people1 for if they hear not ,moses and the prophets1 neither will they be persuaded1 though one rose from the dead4 99 ,but if ,moses and the prophets are not to be depended upon1 what becomes of ,jesus' testimony of them8 ,jesus says ,moses and the prophets were of ,god1 the new theologians say they were not4 ,in the meantime1 the same new theologians say that ,jesus knew what he was talking about4 ,but the new theologians1 who have nearly thrown overboard everything else1 still cling1 or pretend to cling1 so ardently to ,jesus as a moral teacher1 because of the supposed beauty of the ,sermon on the ,mount1 and the other teachings of ,jesus4 ,this is not the first time that the present writer makes the ,sermon on the ,mount a subject for comment4 9999 ,there are many fine passages in the collection of utterances attributed to ,jesus1 but we have the same objection against the moral teachings of ,jesus that we have against the moral teachings of ,moses and the prophets4 ,the best in ,jesus' sermons are to be found in the ,old ,testament1 and there is enough of the worst in the ,old ,testament in the sayings attributed to ,jesus to make his teachings unfit1 in the main1 for universal uses4 99 ,luke xvi1 #ca4 9999 ,consult the author's ,is the ,morality of ,jesus ,sound4 ,on one theme all parts of the bible are in perfect unison--,god comes before man4 ,to us this is the negation of morality4 ,blessed are the pure in heart1 preaches ,jesus2 and why are the pure blessed8 ,because1 is the answer1 they shall see ,god4 ,there is not a word said about the social worth of personal and public purity of heart4 ,not a word that to be pure is to bless the world in which one lives1 or that by being pure we help to make life on earth sweeter and more lovable4 ,the idea that to be pure in thought and conduct is the way to serve humanity1 and make this earth a heaven1 does not occur to ,jesus at all4 ,he is not interested either in humanity or in this earth4 ,his eyes are fixed upon the mists beyond4 ,his one thought is of the invisible ,god1 not of man who is made of flesh and blood4 ,and when the purity required is examined1 it will be found that1 in consonance with the ,old ,testament1 purity of belief is what is meant by it4 ,the thief on the cross would see ,god1 not because he was pure in heart1 but because he believed before he died4 ,in the same way the other virtues are recommended1 not for their civic values1 not as the means of social well-being and blessedness1 but as auxiliaries to piety1 namely1 to the worship of ,god4 ,that ,jesus had no message to man is seen in his attempt to shift the center of gravity1 so to speak1 from this world to the next4 ,he would take away from man the world in the hand1 for the one hidden away in the clouds4 ,blessed are ye that hunger now1 cries ,jesus to the starving multitude1 for ye shall be filled4 99 ,but when8 ,it reads very much like the vague and airy promises which a politician makes to his constituents when he is bidding for votes4 ,give us bread now1 cry the poor4 ,can the famished eat a promise for bread8 ,but ,jesus was not interested in helping them now4 ,he had come to reveal ,god and his glory1 not to make the world a happy home for man4 ,he prayed for and predicted the speedy destruction of the world2 why1 then1 should he labor for its betterment8 ,and in his next world is there really going to be no more poverty8 ,let us read what ,jesus says3 ,blessed are ye that hunger now3 for ye shall be filled4444 ,woe unto you that are full6 for ye shall hunger4 9999 99 ,luke vi1 #ba4 9999 ,luke vi1 #ba-be4 ,in the dim1 distant day those who hunger now will have all that they can eat1 but those who now are filled will starve4 ,what then is the advantage of that future day over the now8 ,instead of doing away with hunger1 it is to be shifted on to another set of people4 ,there will be just as much poverty in the beautiful future ,jesus predicts1 as there is to-day1 only the people who are poor here1 will be rich there1 and the rich now1 will be the poor then4 ,is there any inspiration in such a prospect8 ,is it not like clinging to a straw1 to expect help from such haphazard utterances as these8 ,what a serious world desires to know is not how to beat around the bush1 but how to remedy real evils4 ,by taking the bread from one man and giving it to another1 we neither add to the quantity of food1 nor diminish the stress of poverty4 ,yet that is precisely the solution ,jesus proposes with such a flourish of trumpets4 ,is it any wonder that people do not care for his heaven1 or that humanity has turned away from ,jesus to look for help elsewhere8 ,again ,jesus says3 ,blessed are ye that weep now1 for ye shall laugh4444 ,woe unto you that laugh now6 for ye shall mourn and weep4 99 99 ,luke vi1 #ba-be4 ,is it not fantastic8 ,jesus seems to believe that to laugh now is a crime2 and yet he holds it up as a future reward to those who weep now4 ,there is an oriental saying that the food which each one that comes into the world needs1 is set apart for him by ,allah2 he may eat it all at once1 and starve the rest of his life1 or use it moderately1 and have enough to last him all the days of his life4 ,likewise1 ,jesus appears to be of the belief that there is just so much happiness set apart for man2 he can take it in this world1 and go to hades in the next2 or he can make this world a place of mourning1 and go to heaven in the next4 ,therefore1 ,woe to those who want their heaven here1 for they shall be tormented forever after1 and blessed are those who mourn and weep here1 for they shall laugh in the hereafter4 ,is this sense8 ,according to ,jesus1 as long as a man is weeping and mourning he is blessed1 but as soon as he begins to laugh1 then woe unto him4 ,in the same way1 a man is blessed as long as he is hungry1 but the moment he is filled ,jesus turns upon him with a woe unto you4 ,who could fail to draw the conclusion from such teaching that to help people to be happy now1 is to expose them to the woe unto you of ,god1 and to help people out of poverty now1 is to bring upon their heads the curse of the future2 and that1 therefore1 we should let the poor be the poor1 and the rich1 the rich--leaving it to the unknown future to settle all accounts4 ,such a teacher deserves to have only the unthinking for his disciples4 ,one ,sunday in ,june1 about three years ago1 ,i went to hear the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,aked1 of the ,fifth ,avenue ,baptist ,church1 in ,new ,york city4 ,for his scripture lesson he read the parable of the ,wheat and the ,tares4 99 ,this is about a farmer who sows good seed in his field4 ,but while he was asleep1 his enemies came and sowed tares among the wheat4 ,as the blades sprang up and brought forth fruit1 then appeared the tares also4 ,the farm-hands1 when they saw this1 asked the owner for permission to destroy the tares4 ,nay1 replied the master1 lest while ye gather up the tares1 ye root up also the wheat with them4 ,let both grow together until the harvest3 and in the time of harvest ,i will say to the reapers1 ,gather ye together first the tares1 and bind them in bundles to burn them3 but gather the wheat into my barn4 99 ,matthew xiii1 #bd-cj4 ,what edification is there in such a story8 ,to bring a church full of people together--tired1 busy1 perplexed1 hungering for ideas1 for truth1 for beauty--only to tell them that the tares must not be touched or separated even from the wheat until some day in the future1 some judgment day in the clouds1 when the ,lord of the harvest shall gather up the tares to be burned1 and the wheat to be deposited in his chests6 ,could anything be more destructive of human endeavor and hope than this shifting of all responsibility upon ,god and the future8 ,if the parable has any meaning1 it is this3 ,let every field become rank with weeds1 and let nothing be done to destroy the weeds now--the future will take care of that4 ,the future is the one great asset of the priest4 ,wait until you die1 is his answer to every challenge to show present results4 ,the weeds injure the wheat during the time that the crop is growing1 and not after it is ready to be harvested4 ,what is gained by burning up the tares when they can no longer hurt the wheat and after they have done all the harm they could to the grain by stealing sun and moisture from them8 ,besides1 there is just as much danger of gathering up the wheat with the tares at harvest time as there is of rooting up the wheat with the tares while they are growing together4 ,why postpone the purging process8 ,why let a child1 for example1 grow up to be a criminal to be hanged1 if there is a way of saving him from evil associations earlier in life8 ,what farmer or educator will follow the advice of ,jesus1 to let the bad and the good alone until judgment day8 ,suppose1 instead of such an unprofitable story1 with its impracticable lesson1 and its suggestion of laissez faire1 the preacher had read the page from ,ralph ,waldo ,emerson1 which contains a grander passage than is to be found in the whole bible1 ,my freedom is part of my faith2 or suppose he had read to his audience the page from ,thomas ,paine in which occurs that thrilling and musical pan1 ,where liberty is not1 there is my country--and why8 ,not to wait until some distant day1 but to bring about and share with them now1 and here1 the blessings of liberty2 or suppose the preacher had greeted his hearers with the words of ,goethe1 ,in the whole1 the good1 the true1 the beautiful1 resolve to live4 ,would he not have read to them from a better bible8 ,but the gem in the ,sermon on the ,mount is supposed to be the1 ,but ,i say unto you1 that ye resist not evil2 but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek1 turn to him the other also4 99 ,this advice is supplemented with the ,love your enemies1 which is claimed to be the noblest utterance in all religious literature4 ,the philosophy underlying these commandments is the same which we found in the parable of the ,wheat and the ,tares4 ,even as the tares are to be allowed to have their way in a wheat field1 evil is not to be resisted in the world of men1 but let alone4 ,it is not the business of man1 according to ,jesus1 to effect reforms2 he must leave it all to ,god4 ,in his own time1 and in his own way1 ,god will fill the hungry and punish the rich2 he will burn the tares and save the wheat2 and he will reward the good and destroy the evil4 99 ,matthew v1 #ci4 ,this ,asiatic fatalism is quite consistent with the belief in an all-wise and powerful being at the head of affairs4 ,if ,god were not almighty1 we might assist him in his work2 or if he were not all-wise1 we might enlighten him on some things1 but being almighty1 and all-wise1 he does not wish any meddling on our part4 ,besides1 if we resist evil1 or weed the tares1 or fight poverty and misery1 we might think that it is our efforts which have made the world better4 ,but that is taboo4 ,really1 ,jesus is quite right2 there is no room for human effort where an infinite being is doing things4 ,the plea that ,god wants us to help him1 because if we neglect to do our part1 neither will he do his1 is nonsensical4 ,an attitude of passivity is alone becoming to a believer4 ,to bestir oneself about the tares1 or the evil in the world1 is to show that one has lost faith in the ,lord of the harvest4 ,stand still and see the salvation of the ,lord1 is the word of inspiration4 ,and could anything be more pessimistic than ,resist not evil8 ,if not the evil1 what then shall man resist8 ,nothing8 ,but he will fall into decay unless he resists the forces that menace his well being4 ,and why was man made a moral agent or created in the divine image if he is to let the powers of darkness have their way1 instead of girding himself for battle against them8 ,but the decline of man is desired because that is the only way the world may come to an end1 and ,god and his heaven ushered in4 ,such is the philosophy of ,jesus4 ,if ,god does not wish us to resist evil1 pray what is the devil's pleasure8 ,we have been told that the devil always wants us to do the things which ,god has forbidden4 ,does he1 then1 want us to resist evil8 ,not to resist the agencies of evil1 is not to resist the devil1 if there is such a being2 and not to resist the devil is to surrender to him1 which is just what he would want us to do4 ,the ,sermon on the ,mount1 if complied with1 would lead the world to an impasse4 ,we must not resist the ,holy ,spirit1 according to ,jesus1 and1 according to the same teacher1 we must not resist evil either4 ,but unless the ,holy ,spirit and evil are the same1 how can we be as hospitable or as passive toward the one as toward the other8 ,we must stand still and let ,god work in us his purposes1 says the bible1 and1 according to the same book1 we are to be equally passive to the operations of the ,evil ,one4 ,is such advice intelligible8 ,could anything be more confusing and bewildering to the moral sense than so contradictory a commandment8 ,if the gospel writers had put in ,jesus' mouth the words1 ,i am the darkness of the world1 they would not have been very far wrong4 ,why resist not evil8 ,if evil is evil1 and if we have power to resist it1 why may we not do so8 ,what is morality but the exercise of the power of resistance against evil8 ,the idea that by resisting evil we become evil ourselves1 as ,tolstoi maintains1 is as much a conundrum as the text itself4 ,did not ,jesus resist the devil in the wilderness8 ,did he not drive the evil spirits out of his patients8 ,did he not denounce the scribes and ,pharisees who would not accept his ,messiaship8 ,and did he not scourge the money-changers out of the temple court1 and overturn their tables by sheer physical force8 ,why did he resist evil himself8 ,and did such resistance degrade him8 ,in all probability1 the reason we are warned against resisting evil is that evil is one of the agencies ,god works by1 and1 therefore1 to resist it is to rebel against ,god4 ,but not to resist evil is to do evil4 ,if any man1 says ,jesus1 in this famous sermon1 will sue thee at the law1 and take away thy coat1 let him have thy cloak also4 99 ,but there need be no law courts1 even1 to go to1 if we will only notify the robbers in advance that they may have all they can lay their hands on4 ,why not strip ourselves for the benefit of the oppressor and thereby save him also from the trouble of suing us for anything8 ,is the above advice given for the benefit of the honest man or the robber8 ,surely the latter will not object to being given more than he sought to steal4 ,and why should an honest man labor to possess anything1 since he must permit the thief and the brigand to enjoy all the fruits of his own economy and thrift8 ,by what process of ratiocination does ,jesus arrive at the conclusion that the man of fraud and violence should not only not be denied any demand he may make upon us1 but that he should have more1 nay all we have earned and saved4 ,is not this nihilism8 99 ,matthew v1 #dj4 ,no extraordinary intelligence is needed to see what would happen to the state that decided to live up to the teachings of ,christ4 ,every precaution to protect our homes and families would be condemned as unchristian4 ,instead of throwing the burglar out1 or arousing the police to pursue and arrest him1 we must thank him for giving us an opportunity to practice the rare virtue of giving also the other coat1 as well as of turning also the other cheek to him4 ,if the brigand strikes us once1 we must encourage him for a second blow2 if he has killed but one member of the family1 he must be pampered into further indulgence in his bloody pastime4 ,is this the ,christian religion8 ,surely it is not the religion of common sense4 ,but ,jesus does not seem to reflect upon the consequences to the robbers themselves of this policy of non-resistance1 and of giving freely to him that would borrow of us4 ,in order to be able to take or borrow of one's neighbor1 that neighbor must have something4 ,but to encourage the having of things1 the possessor of things must be protected4 ,jesus1 by taking away this protection1 endangers the creation of wealth of any kind4 ,what is the robber or the beggar to take when there is nothing to take8 ,and there will be nothing to take when the industrious are sacrificed to the lazy and the vicious4 ,jesus strikes at the roots of civilization by his doctrine of let alone4 ,and that is really what he is after4 ,wealth1 culture1 liberty1 help to make us fonder of this world than of the next1 fonder of things than of ,god6 ,and that1 a jealous religion will not tolerate4 ,we are aware of the many ingenious explanations proposed to retain the ,sermon on the ,mount in the creeds1 though it is diligently excluded from life4 ,praise the ,sermon on the ,mount1 but do not practice it1 seems to express the attitude of the church4 ,jesus is not supposed to have really meant what he said about turning the other cheek1 or allowing the oppressor his way4 ,what he was trying to say1 argue the commentators1 was that we should be patient under provocation1 not given to seeking vengeance2 and that we should be generous to the indigent and the unfortunate4 ,that was what ,jesus wanted to say1 according to defenders of the bible2 but instead of saying that1 he said something so totally different that a large army of commentators is kept busy trying to excuse and explain what he really said4 ,the world needs a teacher who can say what he means1 and mean what he says4 ,if his commentators can make themselves understood why could not ,jesus8 ,besides1 it is not right to be patient with wrong1 or generous to the oppressor4 ,shakespeare's thought was very much more wholesome when he said that kindness to the guilty is injustice to the honest4 ,instead of these nihilistic or pessimistic utterances1 which no self-respecting nation will translate into daily life1 suppose ,jesus had said1 ,not to resist crime is also a crime4 ,suppose he had said1 ,if ever evil1 or darkness1 or poverty1 is to be conquered1 it will be by the efforts of man only4 ,but ,jesus was trying to put man to sleep1 not to provoke him into action against the enemies of his progress4 ,compare the three simple but puissant commandments of ,volney1 the author of ,the ,ruins1 to the whimsical ethics of the ,sermon on the ,mount3 ,i4-- ,preserve thyself6 ,this is the first task to which man must apply his head and hands4 ,he must preserve himself4 ,a thousand things conspire against his life4 ,he is beset by dangers and temptations4 ,under every stone lurks a menace to his well being4 ,he must compel a place for himself in nature1 and be able to hold it against all rivals4 ,,ii4-- ,instruct thyself6 ,mark the positiveness of both commandments4 ,by being active1 not by passivity1 will man succeed1 both in self-preservation and self-instruction4 ,once we are confident of our standing in nature1 and reasonably sure of our daily bread1 it is our high privilege to start on the quest for knowledge4 ,instruct thyself6 ,knowledge is the all-conquering weapon4 ,know thyself1 thy fellows1 thy world4 ,the sun is the light of the body2 knowledge is the light of the mind4 ,,iii4--,moderate thyself6 ,having conquered the means which assure self-preservation1 and having through much labor acquired science--the intellectual sun which turns man's night into day--the next virtue1 the practice of which alone can enable man to enjoy the life he has learned to preserves1 and the arts and pleasures he has created through knowledge1 is to put a wholesome check upon his appetites by exercising moderation4 ,not until a man can moderate himself does he really become a moral1 that is to say1 a superior1 being--a conqueror who can hold his possessions4 ,in one of his romances1 ,voltaire makes the first man ask his ,maker what he must do to get the most beauty and joy out of life4 ,the answer to this question is also ,voltaire's3 ,practice ,moderation4 ,how simple are all the commandments of ,reason compared with the contradictions of ,revelation6 ,there is not one word of ,reason ever spoken which has lost either its authority or beauty1 while it is admitted by the believers themselves that more than half of the divine ,revelation has become obsolete4 ,to the question1 ,why do not men obey the ordinances and commandments in the ,old ,testament8 the answer of the churches is1 ,the times have changed1 or1 ,they were meant only for the ,jews4 ,revelations grow old and expire4 ,reason1 like the sun1 rises daily to give unto each day its daily light4 ,if ,rationalists ever succeed in building a ,hall of ,reason1 the two commandments which they will inscribe over its entrance will never need revision3 #a4 ,speak according to knowledge4 #b4 ,act according to conscience4 ,,ix4 ,the ,parables of ,jesus ,,jesus is supposed to be the vein of gold in the bible4 ,as already intimated1 if the whole book is of ,god1 it is difficult to see why certain portions of it should be more or less godly than others4 ,among the parables of ,jesus1 that of the ,prodigal ,son is said to be one of the most inspiring4 ,it is the story of a young man who borrows in advance his portion of his father's wealth1 while the latter is still living1 and leaves home4 ,after wasting his inheritance by riotous living1 he finds himself face to face with starvation4 ,the worst thing happens to him that might happen to a pious ,jew--he is compelled to take care of a herd of swine1 and to eat of their food4 ,in this condition1 he remembers that his father is still rich1 with plenty of servants1 and food for everybody4 ,he decides to go back to him1 just as he is1 and to throw himself upon his mercy4 ,it never occurs to him to try and make for himself a good reputation before he returns to his father1 or to earn back the wealth he has squandered by a life of debauchery4 ,why should he8 ,it is not his father's respect he wants1 but his forgiveness4 ,his foolish father does just as the prodigal expected2 he gives him a royal welcome4 ,a ring is slipped on his finger1 the richest robe is thrown over his shoulders1 and the fatted calf is killed for him4 ,nobody will claim that the good-for-nothing son deserved all these honors4 ,indeed1 it is quite plainly insinuated that he is honored for being a repentant sinner1 unlike his elder brother1 who had no need of repentance1 because he remained at home and did his duty4 ,to eat the fatted calf1 it is necessary to be a great sinner1 suing for mercy4 ,for the honest1 who have no need to cry for forgiveness1 there are no banquets4 ,this is shown by the treatment accorded the other son1 who had not asked for his portion of the inheritance1 and had not wasted his years and money in self-indulgence1 who had not deserted his aged father1 but stood at his side in the home and the vineyard1 doing also the work of the younger brother who had run away from home4 ,no favors are conferred upon him1 no feast is given in his honor1 and strangest of all1 he is not even invited to the party4 ,it is by accident that he finds out about the costly banquet at which his prodigal brother was being entertained1 while he himself was toiling in the fields4 ,who ate the fatted calf8 ,not the man who raised it1 but the man who had lost all claim upon the fruits of his brother's or father's toil4 ,is this the way to encourage virtue8 ,rob the honest son who has not shirked labor--who has been faithful1 devoted and frugal--to feast the prodigal1 who has already consumed one fortune and is now begging for another8 ,begging1 ,i say1 for the idea of earning one is very disagreeable to prodigals4 ,as long as there is a father who is willing to treat his prodigal son better than the worthy son1 prodigals will not be wanting in the world4 ,and this is the gem of the collection over which we are supposed to go into ecstasies6 ,but we must read between the lines2 the purpose of ,jesus1 or whoever was the author of the parable1 was to show that the greater the sinner1 greater still is the welcome that awaits him4 ,and this welcome is not to be deserved1 or earned through merit2 it is given as a favor4 ,god1 whom the father in the parable typifies1 cares little for character4 ,people must not flatter themselves that they are saved because they deserve it4 ,look at the worthy elder son who had done his duty3 he was not invited to the feast4 ,look at the prodigal son1 who had descended to the level of the swine2 he was dined and wined4 ,now we understand why the malefactor on the cross was saved1 and all his crimes wiped out in the twinkling of an eye4 ,had he been a better man than he was1 or had he been innocent of the crimes for which he was crucified1 there would have been no chance for him4 ,nor does ,jesus say a word about the subsequent conduct of the forgiven prodigal8 ,did he make amends for the harm he had done to others by his selfishness8 ,was he really a changed character after he was feted8 ,not a word4 ,the promise ,jesus holds out to the sinner is not reform1 but forgiveness4 ,let us take another parable3 ,a very rich farmer1 or landlord1 goes out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard4 ,he hired some very early in the day2 others about the noon hour1 and others again as late as the eleventh hour1 that is to say1 just an hour before the close of day4 ,when the laborers came to receive their pay for the day's work1 the landlord paid the man who had put in a full day just as much as he paid those who had only worked for one short hour4 ,naturally1 the men who had borne the brunt of the hot day1 and had done most of the work1 complained4 ,to which the lord of the vineyard made this reply3 ,is it not lawful for me to do what ,i will with mine own8 ,is thine eye evil1 because ,i am good8 99 ,and turning to his disciples1 ,jesus said3 ,so the last shall be first1 and the first last2 for many be called1 but few chosen4 9999 ,the full meaning of which is that an employer's or the ,lord's whim is law4 99 ,matthew xx1 #ae4 9999 ,matthew xx1 #af4 ,what man of affairs can derive any benefit from such a parable8 ,but the object of ,jesus1 in this1 as in the former parable1 is to show the independence of ,god of what we would call the moral law4 ,god is not bound by any considerations of justice4 ,he is an oriental who showers favors or withholds them just as his pleasure dictates4 ,and whatever he gives is a favor1 and not a debt which he must pay because of any merit on the part of anybody4 ,if wages are to be distributed according to the quality and quantity of the work done1 then what is there left for ,god to do8 ,to ,jesus1 ,god was something like a ,turkish sultan of the olden days who exalted his barber to the rank of a grand vizier1 and humbled the vizier to the level of a keeper of his stables1 all in one night1 to show that his pleasure is above any consideration of justice and character4 ,but this is not morality2 this is caprice4 ,to pay the man who has worked only for one hour as much as the man who has worked all day long1 is to rob the latter of his dues4 ,the ,asiatics may submit to it1 but the ,american or ,european laborer will not4 ,because he is the sultan1 or because he is ,god1 is no excuse for such eccentricity4 ,no2 you are not at liberty to pay as you please1 or to make contracts which sacrifice justice to whim4 ,in the parable of ,lazarus and ,dives1 the fondness of the bible for the worthless1 the fallen1 the good for nothing1 so to speak1 becomes all the more evident4 ,at the door of a rich man sits a miserable beggar4 ,he is not only poor1 but also diseased4 ,like many an oriental fakir1 he is covered with sores1 which by their stench attract the hungry dogs to his person4 ,there he sits all day long--a menace to the public health1 and an object of disgust4 ,when this beggar dies1 he is carried by angels straight to ,abraham's bosom2 ,it is1 of course1 a pity he had to remain on earth so long before entering ,paradise4 ,but what had he done to deserve so great a reward8 ,we might as well ask what the prodigal son had done to deserve the fatted calf1 or the eleventh-hour laborer to deserve a full day's wages4 ,nor is it true that ,lazarus was saved for the inner beauty of his character4 ,as ,i have shown elsewhere1 99 by refusing a few drops of water to cool the parched tongue of the man who had given him of the crumbs of his table on earth1 ,lazarus proved himself to be as small of soul as he was leprous of body4 ,but the point of the parable is to show that a man is saved1 not because he deserves salvation1 but because ,god takes a fancy to him4 ,and the more unworthy the subject1 the better it illustrates that it is whim1 and not justice1 that presides over the destinies of man4 ,we may plead with justice2 against whim we are helpless4 ,it is the sense of this helplessness of man in the hands of a whimsical ,god that makes ,christianity so pessimistic4 ,of course1 for the elect favor and whim are better than law and justice2 and for the mediocre and the sinner1 it is a good thing that merit or character does not count for anything before ,god4 ,but what about those who have no other pull than their own self-respect and honor8 ,and the dogma of total depravity has been invented to relieve the duty of being just to any one1 since all mankind deserves to be damned4 99 ,is the ,morality of ,jesus ,sound4 ,the same indifference to reason is shown in the next parable3 ,a certain slave owed his king the enormous sum of ten thousand talents4 ,in round numbers a talent is worth one thousand dollars4 ,accordingly this slave was indebted to his royal master for the sum of ten million dollars4 ,a slave owing more money than any one king ever owned in ,jesus' day6 ,how he incurred this impossible debt is not explained4 ,but the king pressed the slave for payment4 ,whereupon the slave fell at his sovereign's feet and begged for mercy4 ,as expected1 the king1 with a wave of his hand1 makes the slave a present of the ten million dollars which he owes1 thereby canceling the entire indebtedness4 ,does this not remind us of the parable of the prodigal son8 ,even as he was forgiven the waste and debauchery which had disgraced him1 this slave is quickly freed from his obligation4 ,the motive in making the debt a fabulous one was to emphasize the generosity of the sovereign4 ,this brings us to the conclusion already announced1 that great sinners are preferred to little ones1 because they help to show more directly that it is not character or personal merit that saves1 or even helps a man with ,god1 but pure patronage on the part of the deity4 ,salvation is a favor4 ,that is the burden of the parables of ,jesus4 ,the slave1 however1 fails to be as generous toward his debtors as his lord was to him4 ,instead of canceling their obligations as his own had been1 he cast them into prison4 ,when the king heard of this he summoned the slave into his presence1 and said to him3 ,o thou wicked servant1 ,i forgave thee all that debt1 because thou desiredst me4 ,should not thou also have had compassion on thy fellow servant1 even as ,i had pity on thee8 99 ,in other words1 debtors should be allowed to keep what they have borrowed for the mere asking4 ,the whole tenor of the parable is antisocial4 ,to follow such teaching is to head toward bankruptcy4 ,there will be no lenders1 if there are to be no collections4 ,once more ,jesus sacrifices the worthy members of society to the spendthrifts and the prodigals4 ,the man who can lend is the real benefactor1 not the borrower2 but ,jesus is interested in saving the latter1 and in such a way as to ruin the former4 ,but the shortsightedness of this policy1 as already pointed out1 is seen in its effects upon the creator and conserver of wealth--he will stop saving1 and then what is the borrower going to do8 ,jesus' advice practically amounts to this3 ,allow your debtors to defraud you4 ,but the process will kill the debtor as well as the lender4 ,if ,jesus really wanted to encourage mendicancy1 and to make this earth a paradise for the beggar1 he could not have served his purpose better than by such a parable1 or by the advice to ,give to him that ask-eth thee1 and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away4 9999 ,the beggar could not wish for a stronger endorsement of his profession4 ,everything belongs to the beggar1 and he is to have what he wants1 not for any work he may do in return1 but because he wants it4 99 ,matthew xviii1 #cb-cc4 9999 ,matthew v1 #db4 ,in the ,lord's ,prayer1 one of the petitions reads3 ,forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors1 which really means1 ,we have allowed our neighbors to impose upon us2 you must allow us1 ,lord1 to impose upon you4 ,jesus could have found a hundred other ways of recommending compassion for the weak and the unfortunate1 if that were really what he was aiming at4 ,but his purpose was to show that the borrower1 the beggar1 the prodigal1 the good-for-nothing1 are the favored children of ,god4 ,it is not the strong1 the self-reliant1 the industrious1 the successful1 whom ,god has chosen for his kingdom1 but the foolish of this world4 ,and why8 ,the question has already been answered3 to show that it is not merit or character that saves1 but the grace of ,god4 ,by saving the worthless1 ,god gets all the glory2 while if he saved the strong and the virtuous1 it might be said that it was their character which helped to save them4 ,my name is ,jealous1 99 saith the ,lord4 99 ,exodus xxxiv1 #ad4 ,but ,jesus does not forget to speak a good word also for the robber4 ,indeed the beggar and the robber belong to the same profession4 ,and if anything1 the robber's is the more respectable calling4 ,he does not whine and weep and1 cant as the beggar does1 to get his neighbor's goods2 he takes it by force1 or craft1 which is better than pious prating4 ,the robber risks his life1 shows skill and daring1 and is not so prosaic1 or at all sanctimonious1 like the beggar4 ,but1 in the final analysis1 they are partners in business4 ,they are both agreed that their rich neighbors must not object to part with their possessions on demand4 ,if ,jesus had the beggar in his mind when he commanded1 ,give to him that asketh thee1 and from him that would borrow of thee turn thou not away1 he had the welfare of the highway robber in mind when he commanded3 ,if any man take away thy coat1 let him have thy cloak also4 ,in the parable of the ,good ,samaritan1 which1 from our point of view1 comes nearest to being the most innocent and harmless among the parables1 while ,jesus deservedly lauds the humanity of the ,samaritan toward his fellow man1 who had fallen among thieves1 there is not a word said in condemnation of the robber4 ,a splendid opportunity to denounce the lax conditions which made life and property insecure1 which encouraged plunder and murder along the highways of travel and commerce1 was overlooked by ,jesus4 ,he fails to call upon the authorities to take measures to prevent the repetition of such crimes as he has been describing4 ,he does not call upon the officers of the law to pursue and catch the thief1 and mete out to him the punishment he deserves4 ,nothing of this4 ,he praises the pity1 the compassion of the ,samaritan1 which praise was well deserved1 but a man has not done his best when he has helped a victim of the robbers to a dinner and a bed--he must protect future travelers from such outrages by assisting in the arrest and prompt punishment of the criminal4 ,but ,jesus is not interested in reforming robbers1 or converting beggars into productive citizens4 ,in fact1 one reading between the lines can not avoid the conclusion that ,jesus would let the robbers alone1 inasmuch as they give the good ,samaritan a chance to practice piety and to show compassion4 ,the beggar and the robber you always have with you1 ,jesus seems to say1 for how can men be kind and forgiving without them8 ,in conclusion1 the lesson of the parables1 to an unprejudiced mind1 is this3 the more worthless and degraded a man1 the more loaded down with debts1 the more dangerous he is to his fellows1 the more suitable he will be to prove that ,god saves whom he wishes1 independent of the question of merit1 and that the righteousness of man is as filthy rags4 99 ,a more opprobrious phrase could not have been used to express utter contempt for human virtues4 ,according to the ,gospel1 the whores and harlots1 as well as beggars and robbers1 9999 shall enter the kingdom of ,god1 before the righteous1 or the wise of this world4 999999 ,but upon what grounds8 99 ,isaiah lxiv1 #f4 9999 ,jesus saith unto them1 ,verily ,i say unto you1 ,that the publicans and the harlots go into the ,kingdom of ,god before you4--,matthew xxi1 #ca4 999999 ,for ,god hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise4'--,i ,corinthians i1 #bg4 ,paul also states that the way to be wise is by becoming a fool3 444 let him become a fool1 that he may be wise4--,i ,corinthians iii1 #ah4 ,it is my whim4 ,,part ,,vii4 ,i4 ,a ,better ,bible ,i ,,am not able to say what makes a book holy1 but ,i would like to give my idea of a good book4 ,no book deserves to be called good or great which does not grapple with the problems of life in such an open and disinterested way as to challenge the most unsparing tests which may be applied to its conclusions1 or to the methods by which it has arrived at them4 ,the book that objects to or fears criticism1 or is injured by it1 is certainly not a great book4 ,even as gold outlives the fire1 a great book must outlive criticism4 ,the works of such men as ,copernicus and ,la ,place1 and of ,galileo and ,herschel1 who opened up for us the heavens1 are truly great1 for the reason that not only do they not plead for protection against criticism1 but they resist all the strain that the freest and boldest criticism can bring to bear upon them4 ,the same is true of the works of ,darwin1 ,haeckel1 ,herbert ,spencer1 who need neither the sword of the king nor the curse of the priest to prove their conclusions true4 ,and men like ,shakespeare1 who have circumnavigated the human intellect1 and sailed around the globe of beauty and truth1 may justly be proud of their work1 because criticism can no more hurt them than fire the gold4 ,can the bible stand the test which proves greatness8 ,to answer this question we have only to observe how vehemently the bible objects to criticism3 ,he that believeth not shall be damned1 and ,blessed are they who have not seen and yet have believed--that is to say1 who believe blindly4 ,and the defenders of the bible have1 alas6 committed every conceivable crime in their effort to prevent criticism of the bible4 ,does this prove the greatness of the bible8 ,let us make a brief comparison between the ,book of ,god and some of the books of man4 ,suppose we wished to teach the splendid truth of the solidarity of the human race--the oneness of mankind--is there anything1 either in the ,new or the ,old ,testament1 which in breadth or beauty approaches the thoughts of the pagan philosophers on this subject8 ,i am a citizen of the world4--,socrates4 ,nature ordains that a man should wish the good of every man1 whoever he may be1 and for this very reason--that he is a man4--,cicero4 ,did any ,jew1 or ,christian1 ever say anything like that8 ,i was not born for one corner2 my country is this whole world4--,seneca4 ,and it was not a slave1 but a citizen of the proudest empire the world ever saw1 who thus opens his sympathies to embrace the whole of the human family4 ,where is the bible prophet1 or apostle1 who could transcend creed and country with the same elan8 ,the much admired ,republic of ,zeno aimed simply at this1 that neither in cities nor towns we should live under distinct laws1 one from another1 but should look on all men as our fellow countrymen and citizens444 like a flock feeding together with equal rights in a common pasture4--,plutarch4 99 99 ,the ,fortune of ,alexander1 #f4 ,what would not ,jews or ,christians give for such a passage in their holy book6 ,how proudly the clergy would quote it1 to prove the divinity of their religion1 if this beautiful gem sparkled somewhere within the covers of their bible6 ,i am a man1 and nothing human can be foreign to me4--,terrence4 ,a sentiment like that makes the whole page which expresses it of solid gold4 ,in vain do we look for so big an utterance in infallible books4 ,to the ,hebrew there was no world outside ,israel1 and to ,jesus all that came before him were thieves and robbers4 ,not until ,christianity crossed over into ,europe did its missionaries discover that ,god hath made of one blood all the nations of the earth1 though even then it was a creed they had to accept or perish4 ,in the name of the universal brotherhood which binds together all men under the common father of nature4 ,nature is the only impartial father4 ,the chosen people of this father are those of whatever race and religion who conquer knowledge and follow ,reason4--,quintillian4 ,love mankind4--,antoninus4 ,is it not better than the love one another1 of ,jesus1 which really meant1 love only your fellow-believer8 ,jesus declared that it will be worse for those who rejected him and his apostles1 on the last day1 than for ,sodom and ,gomorrah1 which were consumed by fire from heaven4 ,what good man will look on any suffering as foreign to himself8--,juvenal4 ,the ,universe is but a great city2 never1 in reply to the question to what country you belong1 say you are an ,athenian1 or a ,corinthian1 but say you are a ,cosmopolitan--a citizen of the world4--,epictetus4 99 99 ,discourses i1 #i4 ,but it was not only in their universalism that the ,european writers excelled the ,asiatic seers and miracle-workers4 ,it has been persistently claimed that both love and justice are exclusively biblical virtues4 ,we regret to say that this is another untruth1 the extensive circulation of which was deemed necessary to protect the bible against its rivals4 ,love is the foundation of the law4--,cicero4 ,sympathy is what distinguishes us from brutes4--,juvenal4 ,the love of all to all4--,pythagoras4 ,he who commits injustice is ever made more wretched than he who suffers it4 ,it is never right to return an injury4 -- ,plato4 ,we should be good to our enemy and make him our friend4 -- ,cleobulus4 ,ask thyself daily to how many ill-minded persons1 thou hast shown a kind disposition4--,antoninus4 ,to the very end of life we will be in action1 we will not cease to labor for the common weal1 to help individuals1 to give aid even to our enemies4--,seneca4 ,moreover1 the motives which the philosophers held forth were very much more creditable to human nature than the rewards1 either here or in the next world1 which the bible held out as inducements to action4 ,what more dost thou want when thou hast done a man a service than the fact of having done it8 ,art thou not content to have done something conformable to thy nature1 and dost thou seek to be paid for it1 as if the eye demanded a recompense for seeing1 or the foot for walking8--,seneca4 99 99 ,de ,benef ix1 #da4 ,if so sweet and sane1 so large and pure a sentiment could be found in any part of the ,word of ,god1 ,i shall forever after keep my mouth closed4 ,the servitude of man1 not the service of man1 is the theme of the bible2 and if ,jesus said that the charities should be done in secret1 it was because that was the best way to secure a public reward4 ,and your father which seeth in secret1 said ,jesus1 will reward you openly4 ,the secrecy recommended was a matter of policy4 ,reward is the constant refrain in the bible4 ,promises of territory1 lands1 cattle1 jewelry1 oil and wine1 women and girls1 in the ,old ,testament2 and in the new1 thrones1 crowns1 golden streets1 harps1 robes1 and endless life beyond the clouds1 are the inducements held out to the devotee4 ,another equally frequent and equally unfounded assertion of the pulpit has been that but for the bible there would have been no hospitals in the world1 or any interest in the poor1 by the rich4 ,the defenders of the bible seem to feel that it is only by shutting their eyes and closing their ears that they can continue to believe that the ,jews were the only inspired people in the world4 ,in the first place1 hospitals are more of a necessity in the modern world than they were in olden times4 ,science has taught us to apply method and system in the department of philanthropy as in that of business1 while formerly the care of the needy was largely a private matter4 ,besides1 our cities are bigger1 and our populations more heterogeneous1 and the struggle for existence more intense to-day1 than ever before4 ,we have hospitals to-day1 in self-defense1 if not for any other reason4 ,our own peace and comfort would be disturbed and our doorsteps and business offices1 as well as homes1 would be converted into hospitals1 if the ,state1 or public enterprise1 did not undertake in some systematic way the housing and nursing of the sick and the unfortunate4 ,it is not only from charity that we have hospitals to-day4 ,we support them also from necessity4 ,to say1 however1 that the ancients1 being deprived of the bible1 took no interest in the care of the sick1 or the hungry1 is a clear misrepresentation4 ,if the bible is the hospital builder1 how many hospitals did the ,old ,testament people build in ,palestine under the reign of ,david or ,solomon8 ,was there ever a single movement started in ,palestine for the protection of the oppressed or the unfortunate of the world8 ,in his ,paganism and ,christianity1 ,j4 ,h4 ,farrer1 speaking of the practice of charity in the pre-,christian world1 cites the examples of ,cimon the ,athenian giving of his abundance to feed the poor and clothe the naked2 of the ,lacedaemonians supplying the people of ,smyrna with food in time of scarcity1 and replying1 when thanked for it1 that they only deprived themselves and their cattle of a dinner2 of ,apollonius reminding ,vespasian that the supply of the needs of the poor was one of the best uses of a sovereign's wealth2 of ,arcesilaus visiting ,apelles1 and1 to relieve him of the indigence to which sickness had reduced him1 placing twenty drachms under his pillow1 while pretending to make him more comfortable2 of the ,roman nobles1 after the accident to the amphitheater at ,fiden whereby fifty thousand persons were killed or wounded1 opening their houses and procuring doctors and relief for the victims2 of all the cities of ,asia relieving with money or shelter the victims of the great earthquake in ,smyrna in #agg ,a4,d4 99 ,seneca's description of the wise man offering aid to the shipwrecked1 hospitality to the exile1 money to the needy1 redeeming prisoners from their chains1 releasing them from the arena1 and giving sepulture to the criminal1 9999 is clearly a picture drawn from nature and daily life1 not from his imagination2 and to suppose that such deeds required the impulse of the church to make them more common is to suppose that human nature itself changed with the change that came over religion4 99 ,aristides i1 #bfj4 9999 ,de ,clementta ii1 #f4 ,the ,roman historian1 ,tacitus1 gives the following touching description of the behavior of the ancient ,pagans in the presence of the suffering and distress caused by the great calamity in ,smyrna3 ,the grandees of ,rome displayed their humanity on this occasion2 they threw open their doors1 they ordered medicines to be distributed1 and the physicians attended with assiduity in every quarter4 ,the city of ,rome recalled1 in that juncture1 an image of ancient manners1 when1 after a battle bravely fought1 the sick and wounded were received with open arms1 and relieved by the generosity of their country4 99 ,and let it not be forgotten that it was from the ,pagan ,greeks we received the word philanthropy1 which means the love of man1 into our modern languages4 ,mr4 ,farrer quotes again many authorities to show that both in ,athenian and ,roman society there was a constant solicitude for the welfare of the poor3 ,in the best days of ,athens none of her citizens were in want for the necessities of life2 for the rich1 according to ,isocrates1 regarding the poverty of their fellow citizens as a disgrace to themselves and the city1 helped all who were in need1 sending some abroad as traders1 letting lands to others to cultivate at fair rents1 and enabling others to engage in different occupations4 ,the ,areopagus1 too1 checked pauperism by providing public works4 9999 99 ,annals iv1 #fb1 #fc4 9999 ,areopagiticus #ab1 #ba1 #ch4 ,he also calls attention to the free schools2 the exemption of orphans from the ,state charges2 the maintenance at the public expense of the children of citizens killed in war2 the daily payment of money from the treasury to the destitute and the wounded1 and the public monthly dinners given by the rich for the benefit of the needy4 ,under the great ,trajan1 the like of whom never sat on ,jewish or ,christian throne1 a monthly distribution of food was made to the children of the poor all over ,italy1 which was paid for by devoting to it a portion of the interest lent by the ,state to the owners of farms on mortgage4 ,in ,rome1 there were1 in every section of the city1 medical officers1 paid by the ,state1 who devoted their whole time to the protection of the health of the citizens4 ,one of the laws of ,nerva required every one giving a banquet first to make a donation for the poor of his district4 ,the sick and the poor have never failed to provoke sympathy and help in any age or country of the world1 and for any one religion to claim all the 'good in the world as its own exclusive property1 is enough to make all brave and honest minds recoil therefrom with horror and sorrow4 ,but people never make such absurd claims except when they are in despair4 ,the pulpit is constantly lauding what it calls the beatitudes of ,jesus1 and challenging the world to parallel them if it can4 ,we have accepted the challenge4 ,when asked how a man might best revenge himself1 ,diogenes replied3 ,by becoming himself a good and honest man4 99 ,and how much saner is ,seneca's advice3 ,some one has struck you1 withdraw2 by striking back you will give both an occasion and an excuse for many blows1 9999 compared with the ,turn also the other cheek1 of ,jesus6 ,what is the best way for a man to hurt his enemy1 or to give him the greatest pain8 ,epictetus was asked4 ,by preparing to lead himself the best life he can1 was his answer4999999 ,but a really ,european sentiment which perhaps never swelled the breast of any ,asiatic teacher was expressed by ,seneca1 when he wrote3 ,a great mind that truly respects itself does not revenge an injury1 because it does not feel it4 99999999 ,the ,sermon on the ,mount is a series of dogmatic utterances1 without enlightenment or logic4 ,jesus gives no reasons1 nor does he try to prove the truth of his statements1 while ,seneca's beatitudes are luminous--like a fountain1 crystal clear to its depths4 ,and where will we find finer examples of men who lived up to these teachings than in ,pagan annals8 ,pittacus1 one of the seven wise men of ,greece1 when his enemy had fallen into his hands1 instead of avenging himself on him1 let him go with this explanation of his conduct3 ,forgiveness is better than revenge1 for while the former is the sign of a gentle nature1 revenge is that of a savage nature4 7v7 ,can his example be matched in the bible8 ,it is true jesus prayed for his murderers1 but did he really mean to forgive them8 ,then why did he only save the thief on the cross that praised him1 while he let the other1 who reviled him1 go to perdition8 ,and why do not the ,sunday-schools1 instead of teaching our children of ,joseph and ,joshua1 who caused famine and destruction for their own aggrandizement1 recite to our boys and girls the story of ,gescon1 who1 recalled from banishment and exalted to the rank of chief general1 instead of punishing his persecutors1 allowed them to depart in peace1 saying3 ,i will not return evil for evil1 but good for evil4 99 ,polyoenus v1 #b4 9999 ,de ,ira ii1 #cd4 999999 ,fray #acj4 99999999 ,de ,ira iii1 #e4 v4 ,epictetus1 ,fray #fh4 ,it is in the book of man1 not in the book of ,god1 that we must look for examples of heroism1 love1 pity1 justice1 truth1 honor1 humanity4 ,in his ,history of ,european ,morals1 ,mr4 ,lecky writes3 ,amongst the many wise sayings which antiquity ascribed to ,pythagoras1 few are more remarkable than his division of virtue into two branches--to seek truth1 and to do good4 9999 ,and is there a finer passage1 in any of the divine books of the many sects1 than the creed of the tutor of ,alexander the ,great--,aristotle3 ,cleanse and purify thy heart1 for it is the seat of all sin1 not by worthless ceremonies1 prayers and moanings1 but by the stern resolve to sin no more--to uphold right and do right4 ,sacrifice thyself at the shrine of duty1 forgiving injuries1 and acting only toward others as you would have them behave towards thy self4 999999 ,where1 again1 in ,jewish or ,christian psalm1 or hymnology1 is there a finer ideal than this1 from ,marcus ,aurelius ,antoninus1 rendered in verse by the author of ,paganism and ,christianity3 ,that pleases me which pleases thee1 ,great ,universe3 ,i murmur not1 ,if but the evils of my lot ,may serve thy wider harmony499999999 ,or this from ,seneca3 ,man's mind1 not birth1 determines his degree2 ,no slave so mean but virtue sets him free4 ,what if his body's bound6 ,his soul can rise ,on wings of thought unfettered to the skies4 ,what if his body's bought6 ,his soul is free2 ,no servitude can mar its liberty4 7v7 9999 ,vol4 ,i1 page #ed4 999999 ,short ,texts on ,faith and ,philosophies1 ,forlong4 99999999 ,paganism and ,christianity1 ,farrer1 page #id4 v4 ,ibid1 #if4 ,and how much purer the motives recommended in the following1 compared with the fear of hell and the hope of heaven1 so conspicuous in ,christian hymns3 ,nature made ,virtue man's chief aim and goal ,when she made ,conscience mistress of his soul1 ,his noblest actions taste no sweeter praise ,than that which conscience to itself conveys2 ,nor on his crimes can punishment be laid ,worse than inflicts a conscience disobeyed4 ,virtue calls1 and1 easy of access1 ,spreads smooth the road that leads to happiness2 ,mountains may crumble1 ,etna fall away1 ,true virtue only suffers no decay4 99 ,to find out how radically anti-biblical1 or how essentially ,pagan are our civil and political institutions1 compare the following from the ,american ,constitution with the ,asiatic teaching of the ,apostle ,paul3 ,the ,constitution teaches3 ,st4 ,paul teaches3 ,that all political power is ,let every soul be subject inherent in the people1 and unto the higher powers4 ,for all free governments are there is no power but of ,god 3 founded on their authority1 the powers that be are or- and instituted for their ben- dained of ,god4 ,whosoever efit2 and that they have at therefore resisteth the power1 all times an undeniable and resisteth the ordinance of indefeasible right to alter ,god 3 and they that resist their form of government in shall receive to themselves such manner as they may damnation46 think expedient4 ,would it not be more edifying if our preachers or publicists1 like ,roosevelt and ,bryan1 instead of lavishing praises on an ,asiatic book1 out of tune with the intellectual and moral ideals of the modern world1 recommended to their countrymen the nobler thoughts of the ,european masters8 ,on a ,sunday morning1 what church could listen to a better sermon against superstition than is contained in these lines of ,plutarch3 99 ,paganism and ,christianity1 ,farrer1 page #if4 ,few of the ills we mortals bear ,excel or equal those we fear2 ,but worst his lot of all mankind ,whom superstitious terrors bind4 ,he dreads no storm who stays on shore1 ,nor battle who goes not to war2 ,but he who thinks of ,god with dread ,hath terror always overhead1 ,and draws from land and sea and sky ,one long unending agony4 ,and so1 methinks1 they wrong ,god less ,who doubt or disbelief confess ,than they who worse of ,god believe ,than of a man they could conceive1 ,and every vice to ,him assign ,to prove ,him fickle1 false1 malign2 ,as ,i would rather men should say ,there is no ,plutarch than that they ,should speak of ,plutarch as so mean1 ,so full of petty spite and spleen1 ,that1 if you vexed him in the least1 ,into your crops he'd turn his beast4 99 99 ,paganism and ,christianity1 ,farrer1 pages #ih1 #ii4 ,we often read in the newspapers of some foolish remark by a clergyman in his sermon1 as1 for instance1 that the fearful and murderous wave of heat in the summer is a punishment from ,god for the sins of this or that city2 or that earthquakes are sent to show the divine displeasure against this or that heresy in the church2 or that ,god is opposed to aviation because the air belongs to the birds1 as the sea does to the fishes2 or that ,christ is coming soon on a white horse3 ,the ,son of ,god is coming on a white horse and the armies of heaven will follow him4 ,then he will be crowned king of all ,israel4 ,the kingdom promised to ,david will be resurrected1 said the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,ford ,c4 ,ottman1 at the ,winona ,lake convention4 ,the reverend speaker had in mind the following exquisite bible text when he was looking for the white horse3 ,i saw heaven opened1 and behold a white horse2 and he that sat upon him was called faithful and true4444 ,and he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood4444 ,and the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses4444 ,and out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword1 that with it he should smite the nations4444 and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of ,almighty ,god4 99 ,is it possible that the ,american mind has so deteriorated as to hope for the fulfillment of such a prophecy8 ,but it is to the credit of the ,christian clergy that they do not say more foolish things or oftener than they do--seeing that their entire life is spent in reading and teaching from a book full of fables1 gossip1 inanities1 miracles1 and1 if ,i may say so--conundrums4 ,what1 for instance1 may be expected from men who have to feed on such meaningless and even revolting texts as the following3 ,i will tread down the people in mine anger1 and make them drunk in my fury4 9999 ,the deity making the people drunk to get even with them6 ,we leave the text to the clergy4 ,thus saith the ,lord ,god2 ,speak unto every feathered fowl1 every beast of the field4444 ,come2 gather yourselves on every side to my sacrifice that ,i do sacrifice for you1 even a great sacrifice upon the mountains of ,israel1 that ye may eat flesh1 and drink blood4 ,ye shall eat the flesh of the mighty1 and drink the blood of the princes of the earth4 444 ,thus ye shall be filled at my table with horses and chariots1 with mighty men1 and with all men of war1 saith the ,lord ,god4 999999 99 ,revelation xix1 #aa-ae4 9999 ,isaiah lxiii1 #f4 999999 ,ezekiel xxxix1 #ag-bj4 ,and again3 ,and ,i saw an angel standing in the sun2 and he cried with a loud voice1 saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven1 ,come and gather yourselves together1 unto the supper of the great ,god2 that ye may eat the flesh of kings1 and the flesh of captains1 and the flesh of mighty men1 and the flesh of horses1 and of them that sit on them1 and the flesh of all men of war1 both free and bond1 small and great4 99 ,and what is the sense in the following3 ,his glory is like the firstling of his bullock1 and his horns are like the horns of unicorns3 with them he shall push the people together to the ends of the earth4 9999 99 ,revelation xix1 #ag1 #ah4 99 ,deuteronomy xxxiii1 #ag4 ,a sensible man would leave such a text severely alone2 but the clergy try to make the bullock stand for ,christ1 the horns1 for the extremities of the cross1 and the pushing has reference to the day of judgment1 etc4 ,dear me6 ,who would care to spend the red blood in his veins in such an occupation8 ,the beauty of the better bible1 composed of such words of ,reason as ,i have culled from only a few of the ancient masters1 lies in the fact that there is not a single passage therein to perplex the understanding1 pervert the moral sense or cause a blush4 ,it can not be said of the ,jew-ish-,christian bible that it is free from passages which no civilized community would allow in any other than an inspired production4 ,and this is enough to condemn the book4 ,the argument that the offensive portions of the ,word of ,god should not be taken separately1 but in connection with the better parts of the book1 amounts to a plea of guilty4 ,how can the commandment to bear false witness1 or to plunder1 or to outrage women1 become divine by being printed in the same book with the ,golden ,rule8 ,compare1 once more1 the saying of ,jesus1 that1 ,if thy right eye offend thee1 pluck it out and cast it from thee444 and if thy right hand offend thee1 cut it off and cast it from thee3 for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish1 and not that thy whole body shall be cast into hell1 7,matthew v1 #bi-ca72 and this other remarkable advice to make eunuchs of themselves for the kingdom of heaven's sake 7,matthew xix1 #ab71 with the gloriously wholesome thought of ,seneca on such absurd religious practices3 ,one1 out of zeal1 makes himself an eunuch1 another lances his arms2 if this be the way to please their gods1 what should a man do if he had a mind to anger them8 or1 if this be the way to please them1 they do certainly deserve not to be worshiped at all444 the most barbarous and notorious of tyrants444 never went so far as to command any man to torment himself4 99 99 ,seneca's ,morals xvii4 ,what would not the clergy have given if the above passage had been in their bible1 instead of in the writings of a heathen8 ,jesus recommended self-torture2 ,seneca says1 even tyrants never went so far as to recommend any man to torment himself4 ,of course1 in his extremity1 the ,christian will plead for a spiritual interpretation of ,jesus' sayings3 ,but why use such decidedly materialistic terms1 as plucking out eyes1 cutting off arms1 and making eunuchs of one's self1 to convey ideal meanings8 ,why could not ,jesus talk plainly1 like ,seneca8 ,in the selection of these few quotations1 ,i have refrained from culling also from the pages of modern writers1 lest it be said that since these modern men and women appeared after ,christianity1 it is to the bible that the world is indebted for their great thoughts and works4 ,of course1 this is not true1 seeing how the church persecuted these men and women1 and drove them to the stake1 or at least1 placed the offspring of their brain upon the ,index1 branding their thought as blasphemy4 ,nevertheless1 ,i have denied myself the pleasure of invoking the galaxy of intellectual leaders1 from ,bruno and ,spinoza1 to ,goethe and ,voltaire1 and1 ,shakespeare and ,shelley1 and ,ibsen and ,emerson1 who though they had their many faults1 were morally as well as mentally1 as far above ,ezra1 ,nehemiah1 ,noah1 ,solomon1 or ,peter and ,paul1 as sense and beauty are above folly and platitude4 ,we have really paid the ,hebrew-,christian scriptures an unmerited compliment in comparing them with the noblest teachings of the ,pagan philosophers4 ,not only is it impossible to find in the bible the high aspirations of the ,european mind1 its independence and fearlessness of the gods1 so eloquently expressed in ,seneca's prayer3 ,o ,neptune1 your ocean is big1 and my bark is frail4 ,you may save me if you will2 you may sink me if you will1 but whatever happen1 ,i shall keep my rudder true1 but even when we compare the contents of the bible with the teachings and practices of the most primitive peoples in the world the result is far from being favorable to the inspired volume4 ,was ,molock1 for instance1 who devoured children1 as destructive as ,jehovah who consumed whole nations by fire and the sword8 ,was ,baal or ,astaroth as sanguinary as the being who slaughtered in one night all the first-born of ,egypt8 ,did the idols of savages ever think even of drowning a world8 ,is it possible to find in the dictionary of the gods1 one who can compare with the inventor of the ,christian hell8 ,when the missionaries entered ,borneo to convert the natives1 the ,rajah drove them out of the land1 because the ,christian ,god used people as firewood after death4 ,in conclusion1 before ,mr4 ,bryan and his colleagues may ask us to produce a better bible1 let them find in the ,jewish-,christian scriptures a text or a passage which will describe a more enviable state of society in any ,jewish or ,christian country1 of the past or the present1 than the picture presented by the unrivaled ,pericles in his ,athenian oration1 beginning with the words3 ,we are lovers of the beautiful1 yet simple in our tastes1 and we cultivate the mind without loss of manliness4 ,wealth we employ not for talk and ostentation1 but when there is real use for it4 ,we regard a man who takes no interest in public affairs not as a harmless but as a useless character4 ,conclusion4 ,the ,book of ,god and the ,book of ,man ,,the former is a miracle4 ,the latter is the actual story of man on earth1 and his achievements4 ,god finished his book long ago4 ,man is still writing4 ,there is between these two books the same difference that there is between the rock and the vine4 ,the rock does not grow1 neither can it move4 ,sun and shower fall upon it in vain4 ,the vine1 on the other hand1 responds to the caress of the life-forces4 ,it swings with the wind1 and reaches up with every growing thing1 for the sunshine4 ,the book of ,god is arrested1 like the rock4 ,the book of ,man is alive and increasing1 like the vine4 ,,the ,,end4 ,there appears to be need of some bold man who specially honors plainness of speech1 and will say what is best for the city and citizens1 ordaining what is good for the whole state1 amid the corruptions of human souls1 opposing the mightiest lusts1 and having no man his helper but himself1 standing alone and following reason only4--,plato4