Article R4411 "An Ultimate Gospel for defending Mythicism"

[Clayton_Veno]

 

 

A Preface By Reverend Clayton Jesse Veno Defending our Creed of Osiris/Horus Krst and Jesus Mythicsm in general against Atheists/Stalinists, Wikipedia Wiccans, "Vigilant Christians", "Inspiring Philosophies", "ERRMEN", "Carriers", "SJW's", "Leftists", Pugs and other "Obstinant Heathens" possessed by Set/Apep's 72 legions of "Demons" that shall be Rebuked in the name of The Holy KRST!

 

 

 

Hi There It's me Clayton this article is an updated version of my "Zeitgeist Debunked? 'Are you sure about that' - John Cena" Article/Topic I am well aware that the primary purpose of this website is discussion and encouragement/comfort of Ex Christians and this technically can be considered encouragement to strengthen Ex Christians in there debates with Xtian Antichrists as well as to introduce everyone to a new Mythicist position that I already introduced in the original version of this article and to refute the "blasphemy" so to speak of Zeitgeist Debunkers, Errior (Richard Carrier) and his fanatics, Xtian Apologists and other villains against the faith. 

 

However although I know this websites primary purpouse I am still writing this Article for everyone here to share and provide a link to in there debates with Christians both on and off this website as well as because although I love the original version of this essay I feel it had many flaws and things I could have done alot better such as too much vulgarity (Or more than there should have been anyway) and broken up weird looking sentences pictures not loading in areas other areas I could have detailed more hence why I am rewriting an updated version of the original in the first place.

 

I wont be writing anymore Articles on this website just Discussions and Debates here on this site from here on out and any Articles as well as updated versions of them will be published on my website or wordpress blog post once I have created it.

 

My Mythicist Position is that Jesus Christ Never Existed and that he Is a fictional Composite Character who's story is a religious syncretism derived from numerous places including Alexander The Great, Julius Caeser, Titus Flavius, Apollonius of Tyanna (Paul The Apostle), Nebuchadnezzer, Simon Magus and Izas Manu King of Edessa as well as a syncretic fusion of many Popular Mystery Cult Gods and Old Testament Characters including Ra/Osiris/Horus, Mithras, Dionysus, Buddha, Qetzalcoatl, Hercules/Melqart, Asclepius/Serapis, Odin, Perseus, Romulus/Quirinus, Tammuz/Adonis and Inanna/Ishtar among many many others.

 

As well as Adam, Archangel Michael, Joseph (Genesis), Melkizedek, Kind David, King Solomon, Joshua, Elisha, Elijah and Moses.      

I am also of the opinion that the Jesus Story is a Caesarian and Roman Propaganda largely based on Astrotheology and Gnostic Pagan Sun worship and that Christianity is a syncretic stitching together of sorts that has it's origins in numerous time periods and places.

 

Many Atheists in there attempts to disprove Christianity and uphold our faith have brought up the numerous parallels between Jesus and various Pagan Gods but unfortunatly all too often come ill equipped providing no supportive evidence or primary sources in there defences of our Creed and because of this end up rendering themselves fools to the Non Believers, other Atheists as well as other villainous heathens and blasphemers evidently blinded by the forces of evil.

 

Such examples of this are Atheist Youtuber Jaclyn Glenn who made herself seem a fool to The Vigilant Christian and to others sinful plebs as well as Secular Comedian Bill Maher who sadly also came ill equipped made himself a fool in the eyes of everyone and an antagonist to the one true faith WLC (William Lane Craig) took advantage of this and made Mahr look stupid and lastly Michael Maletin who also made a similar mistake I shall get into.

 

Jaclyn Glenn's vid:

 

 

 

 

Bill Maher "Religulous"

 

 

WLC's Villainy:

 

 

 

Michael Maletin:

 

 

The Mistake being made was that he cites Daniel Miessler for all the pagan Jesus paralles he mentions in the vid However Dan ended up removing most of the parallels and the ones he left intact he provided no primary sources for them and had this to say: [ November 2015 ] A number of the facts listed above about mythical beings that pre-dated Jesus are up for debate. Back when I wrote this I took the content to be factual (I was less careful then), but the truth is that there is much discussion around these details. The important thing to capture from that section is that there were popular concepts that predated Jesus by hundreds of years that ended up in his stories as well. You can research the details more deeply if you want; I have removed a couple of points already, and will be cleaning it up more as I have time. I’d currently give that section an 85% accuracy rating. 

 

 

However these "up for debate" and "careful" arguements Ive heard many times and are quite frankly bullshit because as we will see later these important parallels are indeed real and are not up for debate.... Period! and such contentions as this one are erroneous regardless of weather or not jesus existed and weather Christianity/KRSTIANITY is true or not and as we will see there really is nothing to "be careful" about when it comes to these important parallels aside from maybe over reliance on Graves and Massey. 

 

 

Hopefully this apologist Article/Gospel in defence of our religious faith of Mythicism I have written will serve to remedy this matter and shall serve as a refutation/rebuttle to as well as a debunking of various antagonists to our faith particularly Seth Andrews "The Thinking Atheist" 

Bart Ehrman, Richard Carrier, John Gleason (Godless Engineer), Paulogia, William Lane Craig, Mike Winger, Frank Turek, Steven Bancarz,

Jon Sorensen, Religion for Breakfast, James Macgrath, Inspiring Philosophy, Adherent Apologetics, J. Warner Wallace, Dereck Lambert,

Jacob Berman, Truthunedited, Elliot Necsh, Chris White, TVC Mario and other Antichrists against our Mythicist "Crusade" so to speak who blindly follow and accept there "heathenry" with little to no challange.

 

 

 

 

Seth Andrews: "Now we have to be careful with some of these analogies I've made sure I vetted all of these and there's alot more "out there" and I'm sure you've all seen the movie Zeitgeist and some of the misinformation that's been tossed in there we've got to be very very "careful" *WOOO" - Seth/Apophis Andrews and (some drunk video gamer in the back lol) starting at the 33:36 mark.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bart ERRRMANN:

 

    

 

Blasphemy begins after the questions asked at 57:23 mark 

 

 

 

Richard Carrier: We shall deal with this fine, dapper young "Devil" later lol

 

 

Mike Winger:

 

 

Frank Turek: Sadly another young lad and defender/apologist to our Mythicist faith ill equipped to "Exorcise Demons" such as Frank Turek himself!

 

 

Here's John (The Baptist) Gleason's unprofessional and not well researched response...

 

 

 

Apostle Paulogia:

 

 

 

 

Steven Bancarz: 

 

https://reasonsforjesus.com/zeitgeist-debunked-jesus-is-not-a-copy-of-pagan-gods/ 

                                   

https://reasonsforjesus.com/jesus-vs-osiris-debunking-the-alleged-parallels/

 

 

 

 

 

Jon Sorensen: 

 

https://avemariaradio.net/horus-manure-debunking-the-jesushorus-connection/  

 

https://strangenotions.com/horus-manure/

 

https://www.catholic.com/magazine/print-edition/cleaning-up-the-horus-manure

 

He mentions how Murdock spends an entire chapter defending Gerald Masseys scholarship and yet dosent even address any of these defences in his attempts to refute Masseys work and makes many other fallacious and garbage criticisms and deliberate lies and "blasphemy" that shall be refuted here in this Article/Gospel....

 

 

 

Religion For Breakfast:

 

 

 

 

James Mcgrath: https://www.patheos.com/blogs/religionprof/2020/03/copycat-anti-religion.html

 

 

 

Here Is a meme from an atheist that as we will see later is poorly researched which will just further strengthen my point that a lot of atheists have not actually done proper research and thus are not experts and we will fact check this "Atheotard" to see if he himself really fact checked the film or just made biased assumptions off of surface level information. He also used questionable sources more particularly kingdavid8 and Tekton Apologetics (who actually was responsible for the abduction of DM Murdocks son! ) that are biased in favour of Christianity and who themselves have been exposed and refuted on many occasions by DM Murdock and others. 

 

 

 

Adherant Apologetics:

 

 

 

 

J Warner Wallace: https://coldcasechristianity.com/writings/is-jesus-simply-a-retelling-of-the-horus-myth/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dereck Lambert:

 

 

 

 

 

Jacob Berman:

 

 

 

 

To Be Fair I like Jacob and his work as well as his contribution to Mythicism overall but he is unintentionally doing the Devil's (Set/Apep's)

work! 

 

 

Truthunedited: He basically just makes fun of and ridicules those who point out Horus Jesus Parallels but as Ken Humphreys points out: "Hostility and pomposity earns few friends"

 

 

Elliot Nesch and Chris White will already be more or less refuted in there heresy by the end of this article however I shall post videos by the end of this Article or Gospel defeating them and there treachery against the faith of Osiris/Horus once and for all!

 

But Alas! All of these Antichrists, Villains, Blasphemers and Sinful Plebs I have adressed Clearly Possessed by the forces of Set/Apophis, Typhon, The Lernean Hydra, Amun-Min/Pan, Apollo/Apollyon, Dionysus/Bacchus, Hades/Pluto, Medusa, Lamia, Saturn, Hel, Surtr, Jormangandr, Tezcatlipoca, Yama, Mara, Angra Mainyu and many other facets of Azazel by the end of my Gospel shall be refuted and the Demons/Devils that  Possess them shall be exorcised in the name of our LAWD Re-Osiris/Horus!!!!!!

 

 Before we move on want to clarify the intent of this Article isn't to disprove Christianity but rather to prove that zeitgeist was indeed right about most of it's info contrary to the frantic smears and advid denials of many Christian Apologists and Atheists.

 

I also want to make it clear that I am a Deist/Pantheist/Panentheist hybrid and I am also a Gnostic Christian who dosen't view the stories in the Bible to be literal historical accounts but rather as simple allegories for Nature, Life and Astrotheology.  

 

I am a Mythicist because although I believe in Jesus Christ at least at a symbolic level the evidence however that he was a literal historical figure who had 12 diciples and performed miracles and literally rose from the dead three days later is rather paper thin and not very credible upon rigerous critical scrutiny and I do believe that Jesus Christ as potrayed in the Gospels is a fictional/symbolic religious syncretism of the many historical figures, pagan gods and old testament prophets who I mentioned at he very begining of this article.

 

Also it should go without saying that this is at least partially a saterical piece written from the perspective of a worshipper of Horus, Mithras, Dionysus, Hercules, Julius Caeser etc who in the vain of Justin Martyr and other early Christians defends his "Gospel" from "Pagans", 

"Heathens" and "Demons" (Christians and Atheists) but it should be noted that I obviously don't literally think this way about our antagonists (except for Carrier he's a Jackass quite frankly lol!)

 

I'm also going to be utilizing alot of 18th and 19th Century Scholarship to support my thesis why you may ask? because despite the rather biased fad of "Obsinant Paganism" and "Blasphemy" in Mainstream "Scholarship" to reject any and deny all sources pertaining to this issue of Pagan-Christian Parallels from Pre Modern Scholarship the fact will remain that all "Modern" Scholarship is built upon what came prior and one must study the past if one is to find any semblance of truth and if we are to dismiss all of these sources as being outdated simply because of the time they were written in or simply because there are many aspects of there work here and there that are outdated or at least highly speculative then by these very same impossible standards of logic we can dismiss all sources from the past as outdated for these very same absurd reasons whenever Modern sources are cited the clamour is for older "primary sources" but if one cites past sources the Demons and Demon Possesed Villains to our Faith will bitch and moan "Outdated" hence the Defender of our Gospel is left in a double bind trap for the critcs and "Atheists" to ensnare us in and in such a picky whiney enviroment it's a wonder anything of any worth gets published.

 

Also 18th century and 19th century scholarhip was superior in many ways to modern scholarhip interms of a lot less biased dismissles of pagan christian parallels and better preservation of artifacts and were able to cover wider and more broad topics indeph than the specialized restrictions of today's scholarship which the apologist of the faith may now lable the "Church of SET-TYPHON!" 

 

See Acharya S: Suns of God (PP 8-9) 

 

*Also any Images that don't load up here in this "Gospel" just right click on them and then click load image and as for links to websites and books/book pages I cite you will have to copy and paste them into your web browser 

 

Lastly Richard Carrier is not someone who's opinion on this matter is worthwhile:

Richard Carrier Owes Acharya an Apology

#1  by Marvin99 » May 16, 2014 9:35 pm

Please read this link below and pass it around. More people need to be made aware of all the malicious smears Richard Carrier has been spreading on Acharya S for 10 years now and it's finally time he was called out for it:
 

STUPID THINGS RICHARD CARRIER HAS DONE AND SAID:

Richard Carrier Owes Acharya an Apology

http://www.freethoughtnation.com/forums ... 4771#p4771

Somebody needs to make a video exposing Carrier's lies from the link above.

For starters:
 

The Nativity Scene of Amenhotep III at Luxor

"However, in "skimming" Brunner's text, as he puts it, Carrier has mistakenly dealt with the substantially different Hatshepsut text (Brunner's "IV D"), demonstrating an egregious error in garbling the cycles, when in fact we are specifically interested in the Luxor narrative (IV L)...."

- Acharya S

Bayes Theorem, from the 18th century

Richard Carrier constantly bludgeons Acharya to death for discussing 18th/19th century works, yet, Carrier's 'Bayes Theorem' originates from the 18th century!!! "Bayes' theorem is named after Thomas Bayes 1701–1761".  How much more hypocritical could Carrier possibly be?
 

"Carrier admits on video he has no interest in studying Astrotheology:

In a recent 2014 video, Nuskeptix "Christ Myth Theory" Video Chat, Carrier admits (at 53-54 minutes) he has no interest in pursuing or investigating astrotheology as he finds it "dull," which is basically an admission that Carrier has never studied the subject and has no interest in doing so, therefore, Carrier is not qualified to comment on it with any authority or competence whatsoever. Carrier says he "could never write a book on the subject" (ain't that the truth!). Carrier is simply not a reliable or credible source on the subject of astrotheology or Acharya's work and he needs to be called out on it by others."

 

"It's important to note that Richard Carrier has never read a single book by Acharya S/Murdock as the information he obtains of her work apparently comes from e-mails from others asking for Carrier's opinion. Since Carrier's critique above he has actually gotten worse, Dick Carrier's criticisms of her work have been very sloppy including egregious errors, so, be very skeptical of his criticisms as Richard Carrier is not a reliable or credible source on Acharya's work. It's also important to realize that Carrier has been criticizing Acharya's work for at least 10 years since 2004, yet, he has never proven anything of significance wrong. Take note how Carrier has always been quick to criticize Acharya's work even though he has never actually read a single book of hers, yet, he also has never acknowledged that she may be right about anything - all signs of biases and ulterior motives. In fact, he's so quick to criticize her work that he consistently makes sloppy and egregious errors, which he NEVER apologizes for. We expect far more integrity, character and ethics from the mythicist camp. It appears his agenda is merely to 'poison the well.' Somebody needs to explain to Carrier that part of being a good scholar is also having good ethics and the treatment he gives to Acharya, a fellow mythicist, has been disingenuous and unethical and others also need to call him out on it. "

 

 

 

Without furthur adieu a very special thanks to Acharya S / D.M. Murdock, Kenneth Humphrys, Timothy Freke, Peter Gandy, Neal Boswell,

Roger Viklund, Joseph Atwill and Francesco Carotta for the following Info.  

 

 

 

The First 3 Characters we shall be discussing are Ra/Re, Osiris and Horus of Egypt.

 

               

 

 

                           Ra/Re

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                Osiris

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Antinous as Antinous-Osiris

 

 

 

 

 

Re-Osiris a Syncretic Composite of Ra and Osiris With Nephthys and Isis.

 

 

 

 

 

                              Horus KRST

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All Seeing Eye of Ra/Horus (Oh My God! It Must be an Illuminati Demon Conspiracy LOL!)

 

https://www.ancient-origins.net/artifacts-other-artifacts/eye-horus-0011014

 

 

 

First some videos from a "Demon Posessed" blasphemer to our Mythicist Creed by the name of Michael Jones or Inspiring Philosophy to compare our apologetic defences and supporting evidence for our faith to: 

 

 

 

And Another One! -DJ Khalid

 

 

 

"Horus wasn't a Sun God he was The Sky God RA Was The Sun God!!!" -Chris Forbs

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PROOF THAT HORUS WAS A SUN GOD, FROM PRIMARY SOURCES AND THE WORKS OF HIGHLY CREDENTIALED AUTHORITIES

As is the case with many gods in other parts of the world, several Egyptian gods (and goddesses) possess solar attributes, essentially making them sun gods. These Egyptian sun gods included not only the commonly known Ra or Re, but also Osiris and Horus, among others. This fact of Horus as a sun god was confirmed five centuries before the common era by the Greek historian Herodotus (2.144, 156), when he equated Osiris with the Greek god Dionysus and Horus with the Greek sun god Apollo: “In Egyptian, Apollo is Horus, Demeter is Isis, Artemis is Bubastis….”

In the first century BCE, the Greek writer Diodorus Siculus described Osiris as the sun, while his sister-wife, Isis, is the moon:

 

Now when the ancient Egyptians, awestruck and wondering, turned their eyes to the heavens, they concluded that two gods, the sun and the moon, were primeval and eternal: they called the former Osiris, the latter Isis….

 

The ancient writer Porphyry (c. 235-c. 305 AD/CE) related (according to early Catholic Church father/historian Eusebius):

 

But the fiery power of [the sun’s] revolving and circling motion whereby he ripens the crops, is called Dionysus… And whereas he revolves round the cosmical seasons [Grk. horas] and is the maker of “times and tides,” the sun is on this account called Horus.

In my book Suns of God (112), I discuss the equation of Horus with Apollo and the sun by ancient writer Macrobius (4th cent. AD/CE):

 

The newborn sun god about whom he writes is Horus, whom Macrobius equates with Dionysus. Both Dionysus and Apollo are identified with Horus, as is further evidence by the fact that Apollo and Horus were represented by the hawk. Macrobius too equates Apollo with Horus…

As concerns primary sources, in Christ in Egypt (47), I write (47):

 

In ancient Egyptian writings such as the Pyramid Texts, in which he is called the “Lord of the Sky,” along with other solar epithets such as “He Whose Face is Seen,” “He Whose Hair is Parted,” and “He Whose Two Plumes are Long,” Horus’s function as a sun god or aspect of the sun is repeatedly emphasized, although this singularly pertinent fact is seldom found in encyclopedias and textbooks, leaving us to wonder why he would be thus diminished. In the Coffin Texts as well is Horus’s role as (morning) sun god made clear, such as in the following elegantly rendered scripture from CT [Coffin Text] Sp. 255:

 

“…I will appear as Horus who ascends in gold from upon the lips of the horizon…”

In CT Sp. 326, Horus is even called “Lord of the sunlight.”

Concerning the nature of certain Egyptian gods, Dr. James P. Allen, Curator of Egyptian Art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, remarks:

 

…Ruling over the universe by day, the Sun was identified with Horus, the god of kingship; at sunset he was seen as Atum, the oldest of all gods. The Sun’s daily movement through the sky was viewed as a journey from birth to death, and his rebirth at dawn was made possible through Osiris, the force of new life… …In the middle of the night the Sun merged with Osiris’s body; through this union, the Sun received the power of new life while Osiris was reborn in the Sun.

 

As we can see, these various gods are often interchangeable, and their attributes and stories may overlap. As stated by Egyptologist Dr. Erik Hornung:

 

Many Egyptian gods can be the sun god, especially Re, Atum, Amun, and manifestations of Horus. Even Osiris appears as the night form of the sun god in the New Kingdom. It is often not defined which particular sun god is meant in a given instance.

 

In this regard, I also relate in CIE (45):

 

…Horus of the Horizon or Horakhty is a solar deity and the morning sun, part of the combined Re-Horakhty, whose name Egyptologist Dr. Rudolf Anthes renders, “Re, the heavenly Horus of the horizon in which he appears as the sun..” As Egyptologist Sir Dr. Gaston Maspero remarks:

 

Horus the Sun, and Ra, the Sun-God of Heliopolis, had so permeated each other that none could say where the one began and the other ended…

 

Once more, Maspero says:

 

When the celestial Horus was confounded with Ra, and became the sun…he naturally also became the sun of the two horizons, the sun by day, and the sun by night.

 

Hieroglyph representing either Horus or Ra in his Sun Disk. (Budge, ‘An Egyptian Hieroglyphic Dictionary,’ cxiv)

 

Egyptologist Dr. Allen further discusses Horus’s solar attributes:

 

Horus was the power of kingship. To the Egyptians this was as much a force of nature as those embodied in the other gods. It was manifest in two natural phenomena: the sun, the most powerful force in nature; and the pharaoh, the most powerful force in human society. Horus’s role as the king of nature is probably the origin of his name: hrw seems to mean “the one above” or “the one far off”… This is apparently a reference to the sun, which is “above” and “far off” in the sky, like the falcon with which Horus is regularly associated…

 

Illustrating certain motifs including the sun god’s movement through the night and day, Sir Dr. E.A. Wallis Budge (1857–1934), noted English Egyptologist, Orientalist, and philologist who worked for the British Museum and published numerous works, remarks:

 

The Sun has countless names, Ptah, Tmu, Ra, Horus, Khnemu, Sebek, Amen, etc.; and some of them, such as Osiris and Seker, are names of the Sun after he has set, or, in mythological language, has died and been buried…. All gods, as such, were absolutely equal in their might and in their divinity; but, mythologically, Osiris might be said to be slain by his brother Set, the personification of Night, who, in his turn, was overthrown by Horus (the rising sun), the heir of Osiris.

 

As can be seen, both Osiris and Horus are essentially sun gods, who both also battle with the “Prince of Darkness,” the god Set or Seth. Summarizing, Egyptologist Dr. Edmund Meltzer states:

 

Horus the falcon was predominantly a sky god AND a sun god.

 

There is much, much more to this subject, including a 39-page chapter “Horus, Sun of God” in my book Christ in Egypt. You will not get this important information from all the critics out there who are clearly not experts on this subject, as this one issue so roundly demonstrates. If you see this basic error, you would not be remiss in clicking off the page since the rest will likely be just as erroneous.

 

 

 

Derived From the Article HORUS WAS A SUN GOD!!!!! By Acharya S: https://stellarhousepublishing.com/horus-is-the-sun-god/  and the scholar in this video is Dr. Glenn Stanfield Holland. Moreover Norman J Lockyer Wrote In The Dawn of Astronomy: "We have the form of Harpocrates at its rising, the child sun-god being generally represented by the figure of a hawk. When in human form, we notice the presence of a side lock of hair. The god Ra symbolises, it is said, the sun in his noontide strength; while for the time of sunset we have various names, chiefly Osiris, Tum, or Atmu, the dying sun represented by a mummy and typifying old age. The hours of the day were also personified, the twelve changes during the twelve hours being mythically connected with the sun’s daily movement across the sky" (24-25)

 

In other words Horus the Child / Harpocrates became RA at 12:00 AM thus RA/Horus are the same God Mythologically Speaking same with Atum Khnum Osiris Amen Sokar and others and in the intepretatio Graeca Horus and RA were both sycretised with the Sun God Helios which would have made them syncretic with each other as well (Syncretism is the fusion of religious Gods and Goddesses from one culture with other Gods and Goddesses within the same culture or within other cultures or sometimes both or at least this the type we are discussing here) and Finally Horus and RA were interchangeable to the point of conflation into RA Horakthy or RE Herakhte  (Ra, The Horus Of The Two Horizons) Even the Ancient Aliens Illuminati Reptilian Geometry Class Triangle The All Seeing Eye Of Providence is known BOTH as the All Seeing Eye Of RA and the All Seeing Eye Of Horus too.

 

Here Is a comment on youtube I found pertaining to this Topic: " It depends on the time and place. Ra is also the god of heaven. A number of Horus and Ra's functions overlap and they share many of the same attributes. But even when Horus is considered the god of heaven/the sky, Horus' eye is the Sun." - StuartMason99

 

 

Lastly it's worth noting that when Horus is the Sky God or Ruler of Heaven his Left eye is the Moon and his right eye is the Sun.

 

Horus Is Also a Moon God in the form of Khonshu.

 

 

 

“Horus was combined, syncretized and closely associated with deities other than the sun god, Re, notably (but not exclusively) Min, Sopdu,  Khonsu and Montu.” 

 

Donald Redford The Ancient Gods Speak: A Guide to Egyptian Religion (167)

 

 

“As a Divine Child within various Egyptian triads, Khonsu is also connected to the god Shu, who was likewise identified with Horus” 

 

DM Murdock Christ In Egypt The Horus Jesus Connection (177)

 

Citation: Donald Redford The Ancient Gods Speak: A Guide to Egyptian Religion (186)

 

 

“At The Same Time as Horus appears on the sarcophagi as the third person in the Triad of Osiris, Isis and Horus so Khonsu the third person of the triad on the Khonsu Temple is often Identified with Horus.” 

 

Beatrice L Golff  Symbols of Ancient Egypt In The Late Period: The Twenty First Dynasty (237)

 

 

“Khonsu was a Moon god originally but became a Sun god at Thebes and was Identified with Horus.”

 

Robert B Clarke An Order Outside Time: A Jungian View Of The Higher Self From Egypt To Christ

 

Faith Under Fire:

 

 

"Sun/Son are homophones that have no etymological connection in other languages!"

 

Although Acharya would often respond it is just a happy coincidence in the english language that many ancient writers caught on to and utilized this as a play on words which is true however it is something I disagree with even her on as the 2 words are indeed etymologically connected even in other languages as we shall see this video will slam the door one and for all on this Apollo-gist objection

 

 

 

 

"Massey was a poet not an Egyptologist! His writings are from muh 18th centuries" OK BOOMER!

 

 

Who Is Gerald Massey? In exploring the various Egyptian influences upon the Christian religion, one name frequently encountered is that of self-taught lay Egyptologist Gerald Massey (1828-1907), whose works were utilized in ZEITGEIST as well. Massey was fortunate enough to live during an exciting time when Egyptology was in its heyday, with the discovery in 1799 of the Rosetta Stone and the subsequent decipherment of hieroglyphics in 1822 by Champollion. This monumental development allowed for the exposure to light of the fascinating Egyptian culture and religion, meaning that before that time no one could adequately read the Egyptian texts, which Massey ended up spending a considerable portion of his life studying and interpreting, and relatively little was known about the religion, for which Massey possessed a keen sense of comprehension. In his detailed and careful analysis of the Egyptian religion, Gerald Massey utilized the work of the best minds of the time, including that of Champollion, as well as that of Dr. Budge; Sir Renouf; famed Egyptologist Sir William Flinders Petrie; noted Egyptologist Sir John Gardner Wilkinson, the "Father of British Egyptology"; Egyptologist and professor at the University of Berlin, Dr. Heinrich Brugsch; French Egyptologist and curator of the Egyptian section at the Louvre, le vicomte de Rougé; and expert on Egyptian mummies, Dr. Thomas Joseph Pettigrew, among many other scholars in a wide variety of fields. For example, Massey also utilized the work of Sir J. Norman Lockyer, the famous royal English astronomer who was friends with Budge and knew Egypt well, and of Dr. Charles Piazzi Smyth, royal Scottish astronomer and professor of Astronomy at the University of Edinburgh. Massey further studied the work of Reverend Archibald Sayce, professor of Comparative Philology at Oxford, as well as that of famous mythologist Sir James Frazer, although he did not agree with their conclusions. He likewise cited the work of Francois Lenormant, professor of Archaeology at the National Library of France, as well as that of noted philologist and comparative theologian Oxford professor Dr. Max Müller. Massey was very influenced by the work of Dr. Samuel Birch (1813-1885), famous archaeologist, Egyptologist and Keeper of the Department of Oriental Antiquities in the British Museum. Dr. Birch also was the founder of the very prestigious and influential Society of Biblical Archaeology, to which belonged many other notables in the fields of archaeology, Assyriology, Egyptology, etc. Much of this eye-opening work on comparative religion, in fact, emanated from this august body of erudite and credentialed individuals. Birch held many other titles and honors, including from Cambridge and Oxford Universities. His numerous works on Egypt are cited to this day in scholarly publications. In the "Introduction" to his book The Natural Genesis, Massey writes: The German Egyptologist, Herr Pietschmann…reviewed the "Book of the Beginnings"... The writer has taken the precaution all through of getting his fundamental facts in Egyptology verified by one of the foremost of living authorities, Dr. Samuel Birch, to whom he returns his heartiest acknowledgements.[1] Dr. Richard Pietschmann was a noted professor of Egyptology at the University of Goettingen, an impressive "peer reviewer" for one of Massey's early works on Egypt. By verifying his "fundamental facts" with Dr. Birch, Massey appears to be saying that his work was also reviewed by Birch. In his scholarly works on Egypt, Gerald Massey demonstrates his knowledge of numerous works from the Greek and Latin world as well, including both the Classical writers and Christian fathers such as Church historian Eusebius. Having taught himself to read not only English but also several other languages including Egyptian hieroglyphics, Massey

 

[1] Massey, TNG, viii

 

 

 

scrutinized and interpreted the texts and monuments for himself, such as the Egyptian Book of the Dead or "Ritual,"1 as well as the famous zodiacs in the Temple of Denderah and the "Nativity Scene" at the Temple of Luxor, texts and images that predated the "Christian era" by centuries to millennia.[2] Massey was not only skilled at interpreting the Egyptian data in a highly intelligent and unusual manner, but, having been raised a Protestant Christian compelled to memorize whole sections of the Bible, he was also quite knowledgeable about the Bible and was able to see the numerous and profound correlations between the Christian and Egyptian religions, or the "mythos and ritual," as he styled them. Gerald Massey appeared to possess an understanding of the spirituality and astrotheology being conveyed by the Egyptians more profound than most who have worked on the subject. As was the case with the Egyptian masses, no doubt, the astronomical or astrotheological meanings behind Christianity have been lost on the majority of its adherents. The case demonstrating that astrotheology—the reverence for the sun, moon, stars, planets and other natural phenomena—has been in reality the main motivating factor behind major religious myths and rituals the world over can be found in my book Suns of God. This fact of an astrotheological foundation for major religious and spiritual concepts— so brilliantly discerned by Gerald Massey, who was far ahead of his time—is being demonstrated on a regular basis by numerous archaeological discoveries around the world. Although Dr. Budge also has been the subject of certain unwarranted criticism, perhaps because he too found many parallels between Christianity and the Egyptian religion, he also had a fine grasp of the spirituality within said faith, and expressed it in spiritual terms usually reserved—in a culturally biased move—for the Bible. Dr. James P. Allen also possesses an exceptional understanding of the Egyptian spirituality and astrotheology, remarking upon it throughout his important works on the Pyramid Texts and Egyptian language. Regarding Egyptian nature worship, Dr. Allen states: Just as there are hundreds of recognizable elements and forces in nature, so too there were hundreds of Egyptian gods. The most important, of course, are the greatest phenomena.[3] Thus, rather than constituting alien and incomprehensible concepts, the Egyptian gods are reflective of natural phenomena, the "greatest" of which would be the cycles and characteristics of the sun, moon, planets, stars and so on, a fact demonstrated repeatedly by Massey to reveal the true meaning behind not only the Egyptian but also the Christian religion. Over the decades, much has been made about the numerous correlations determined by Gerald Massey between Horus and Jesus as well as other characters in the Egyptian and Christian religions. In Origin and Evolution of Religion, one of Massey's students, Dr. Albert Churchward, repeated many of these correspondences, and in The Christ Conspiracy, I too reiterated some of the more germane comparisons—out of hundreds—between Jesus and Horus. These parallels eventually found their way into ZEITGEIST and have been seen by millions. Naturally, these numerous parallels draw the wrath and intense scrutiny of Christian apologists and other detractors, as has been the case since they were first published.

 

[1] This title of "Ritual" was originally given to the Book of the Dead by Champollion. However, Renouf (xviii) objects that the Book does not constitute a "ritual" per se. Rather, it is, according to the British Museum's T.G.H. James, a "compilation of spells, prayers and incantations." In any event, this term "Ritual" will be used here interchangeably with "the Book of the Dead."

 

[2] The term "Christian era" is misleading, as such a time varied widely depending on the area. For example, the country of Lithuania did not become Christian until the 14th century; hence, the "Christian era" did not occur there until then.

 

[3] Allen, J., ME, 44.

 

 

Independently of Massey, however, many others also noted these numerous and profound correlations between the Egyptian and Christian religions, with Budge, for example, definitively stating that a treatise on the Egyptian religion's influence on Christianity would fill a "comparatively large volume."[1] A professed Christian, Budge was so convinced of the important correspondences between the two faiths that he believed the Egyptian religion had been fulfilled in Christianity. In 1877, William R. Cooper (1843-1878), a young lawyer and Egyptologist who was the Secretary of Dr. Birch's influential Society of Biblical Archaeology, as well as a Fellow and Member of the Royal Astronomical Society, published a work entitled The Horus Myth in Its Relation to Christianity, in which he highlighted many germane correspondences between the myth of the Egyptian god Horus and Christianity. So many were these correspondences, including in numerous physical artifacts, that Cooper termed them "the Horus Christian class."[2] From his constant apologies and declarations of devotion to the Christian faith, it is evident that Mr. Cooper was disturbed by his findings and hoped not to run afoul of the authorities who might censure him or worse. Indeed, at that time "blasphemy" laws in England were not only on the books—as they still are—but they were actually being used, ensnaring Rev. Dr. Robert Taylor, for example, who was imprisoned twice in Britain a half century previously for revealing Christianity to be a rehash based on previous religions and mythologies. Unfortunately, William Cooper died at the young age of 35, but his several valuable works on Egypt—and its relationship to the Bible and Christianity—were issued years before Gerald Massey published his famous writings on the same subject. Thus, the claim of correspondences between the Egyptian and Christian religions did not originate with Gerald Massey at all, and a significant number of the previous writers on the subject were well respected Christians. Those who insist that Gerald Massey's work has been "debunked" or "refuted" have rarely read it. Although certain aspects of Massey's work may be considered speculative, as is the case with practically every scholar's work, it can be honestly stated that most of Massey's analysis is not only brilliantly insightful but appears to be sound, based on what was popular religiously and mythologically prior to the Christian era, sometimes centuries and many times millennia before the period in question. This information, of course, is not amenable to Christian claims of veracity and uniqueness; hence, fervent believers and especially their leaders do not enjoy knowing or hearing about it. Regardless of what details may have been lacking in total accuracy, the facts will remain that major aspects of the Christian myth and ritual can be found in the preceding pre-Christian religions and mythologies found in the "known world" of the time. Moreover, the preceding characters such as Horus, Osiris, Isis, Hercules, Krishna and many other gods and goddesses cannot be deemed any more mythical or any less historical than Jesus, as the evidences for their existence on Earth are as, if not more, abundant and convincing than those of Jesus Christ. Although we do not find the severe criticisms regarding Gerald Massey—many of which are driven by a desire to make the gospel story historical no matter how much truth and facts are bent—to possess merit, this present analysis of the claims made in ZEITGEIST is not dependent on Massey's work for the most part. Only a small portion of his exegesis will be cited, in places where extrapolation of the texts has been necessary in order to find the correspondences hinted at by Budge and other experts on the Egyptian religion. For example, when one studies the work of the famous royal astronomer Sir J. Norman Lockyer, who thoroughly and scientifically demonstrated numerous astronomical properties and alignments of Egyptian myths and architecture, one can readily understand how Massey would find astrotheological correspondences within Christianity, as, combining the opinions

 

[1] Budge, TGE, I, xvi

 

[2] Cooper, THM, 49.

 

 

of Lockyer, et al., with those of Budge, et al., who definitively stated that the Egyptian religion was a major influence on Christianity, we are left with the following inescapable and logical conclusion: • If the myths of Osiris, Isis, Horus and Set, etc., are largely astronomical in nature; and • If Christianity is highly influenced by—and is a fulfillment of—the Egyptian religion in significant part; then • Christianity too must represent astronomical myth or astrotheology. Once this conclusion is reached, someone with a passion may go on a quest such as Massey's to find these correspondences between the Egyptian and Christian religions, as well as the true astrotheological underpinnings of Christianity. Furthermore, many of Gerald Massey's most important contentions can be verified and demonstrated utilizing the primary sources of Egyptian texts and monuments—in other words, the parallels are real and significant. In order to understand the many important correspondences between the Egyptian and Christian religions and how they have been framed in media like ZEITGEIST, as well as in my books such as The Christ Conspiracy and Suns of God, we need to remember that these common motifs in the Egyptian religion are not necessarily found in story form, as they are in the gospel tale, which itself, we contend, is a patchwork of motifs, myths, sayings and rituals found in pre-Christian religion. It also needs to be kept in mind that the information concerning these previous myths, rituals and symbols was not written down in one neat, ancient encyclopedia but is found widespread around the Mediterranean and elsewhere. Many of the elements of the tale, however, could have been found within the walls of the massive Library of Alexandria, where undoubtedly much of the most serious work in creating Christianity, the gospel story and the character of Jesus Christ was committed. Indeed, it is my contention and that of others deemed "Jesus mythicists" that the creators of the gospel tale picked various themes and motifs from pre-Christian religions and myths, including and especially the Egyptian, and wove them together, using also the Jewish scriptures, to produce a unique version of the "mythos and ritual." In other words, the creators of the Christ myth did not simply take an already formed story, scratch out the name of Osiris or Horus and replace it with Jesus. They chose their motifs carefully, out of the most popular religious symbols, myths and rituals, making sure they fit to some degree with the Jewish "messianic scriptures," as they are termed, and created a new story that hundreds of millions since have been led to believe really and truly took place in history. Over the centuries, those who have clearly seen this development have asserted that this history is a fallacy imposed upon long pre-existing myths and rituals that have been reworked to result in the gospel story. In other words, we are convinced that "Jesus Christ" is a fictional character created out of older myths, rituals and symbols. While reading this companion guide, it is important also to recall these various caveats and points, including that what we ourselves are attempting to convey is that to the ancients these diverse themes and motifs shared by the pre-Christian and Christian religions were all important and very much in the front of their minds, such that they could not be overlooked or ignored when priests went about to create a new, empire-unifying religion that came to be called Christianity. With these facts at hand, as well as that there is no one concrete source for the complete story as found in the New Testament, but that there are many scattered sources used by the priesthood which created this tale, and that reconstructing their deeds can be very difficult, let us proceed through the claims made in the extraordinarily popular documentary ZEITGEIST, Part 1.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Steven Bancarz quote

 

 

 

 

Horus is the son of the god Osiris, born to a virgin mother.
The mother of Horus was believed to be the goddess Isis. Her husband, the god Osiris, was killed by his enemy Seth, the god of the desert, and later dismembered. Isis managed to retrieve all of Osiris’s body parts except for his phallus, which was thrown into the Nile and eaten by catfish. (I’m not making this up). Isis used her goddess powers to temporarily resurrect Osiris and fashion a golden phallus. She was then impregnated, and Horus was conceived. However this story may be classified, it is not a virgin birth.

 

Jon Sorensen quote 

 

 

Horus was born of a virgin Isis on 25 December in a cave

• Horus’ mother was indeed Isis but there are no Egyptologists who claim she was a virgin. She was a goddess married to Horus’ father, Osiris.
• The legend of Horus’ birth, according to Plutarch, involved Isis making love to the dead body of Osiris and Horus being conceived from that.

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                         

 

 

                                           Isis

    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

While It is true that Isis was indeed married to Osiris and had sex with her husbands corpse to conceive Horus in many myths and oral traditions and indeed Horus rapes his mother Isis in one story In the First Place we are discussing myths in regards to astronomical occurrences in nature not literal biographies of real people who posses real genitalia and contradictions such as having sex and/or being married and/or having many kids and yet remaining a perpetual Virgin are common place when it comes to ancient myths and mythology by it's very nature is contradictory.

 

Some other good examples of this would be Pseudo-Apollodorus which say's Amphitryon was swore under oath to keep his wife

Alkmene/Alcmena a virgin until his return and at the same time also says that Zeus/Jupiter bedded with her in the form and shape of Amphitryon and impregnated her with Herakles/Hercules.

 

And another example Is in the writings of Livy in which Rhea Sylvia Is Identified as a Vestal Virgin and at the same time also "ravished" I.e. Impregnated in a bush by the Roman War God Mars with 2 divine children (Romulus and Remus)

 

 “But the Fates had, I believe, already decreed the origin of this great city and the foundation of the mightiest empire under heaven. The Vestal was forcibly violated and gave birth to twins. She named Mars as their father, either because she really believed it, or because the fault might appear less heinous if a deity were the cause of it.” 

(Livy [Titus Livius], Ab Urbe Condita, From the Founding of the City, 1:4)

 

I could go on but hopefully you get the point by now. 

 

Moreover let's listen to what D.M Murdock had to say about this astral myth:

 

"The virginity of Horus’s mother, Isis, has been disputed, because in one myth she is portrayed as impregnating herself with Osiris’s severed phallus. In depictions of Isis’s impregnation, the goddess conceives Horus “while she fluttered in the form of a hawk over the corpse of her dead husband.”  In an image from the tomb of Ramesses VI, Horus is born out of Osiris’s corpse without Isis even being in the picture. In another tradition, Horus is conceived when the water of the Nile—identified as Osiris—overflows the river’s banks, which are equated with Isis. The “phallus” in this latter case is the “sharp star Sothis” or Sirius, the rising of which signaled the Nile flood.  Hence, in discussing these myths we are not dealing with “real people” who have body parts."

 

From The Zeitgeist Companion Source Guide and Acharya's article ISIS IS A VIRGIN MOTHER!!!!! 

https://stellarhousepublishing.com/isis-is-a-virgin-mother/

 

 

 

"It is erroneously claimed that, because in one version of the myth Isis impregnates herself with Osiris's severed phallus, she cannot be considered a "virgin." In the first place, we are discussing myths, not set-in-stone biographies of real people with the relevant body parts. In addition, there is at least one other version of the myth in which Isis merely hovers above Osiris's body in order to become pregnant with Horus, as illustrated in an image from Denderah, and the fact will remain that Isis was considered by many of her ardent worshippers to be chaste and virginal regardless of the manner in which she was impregnated."

 

Acharya S The Companion Guide to Zeitgeist Part 1 (41)

 

 

 

"Osiris...begetting a son by Isis, who hovers over him in the form of a hawk.” (Budge, On the Future Life: Egyptian Religion, 80)

 

Moreover this claim of there being no sources or Egyptologists who say this is simply false as we have ALOT of primary sources in relation to this but I'll cite Just a several out of hundreds:

 

"The Pyramid Texts speak of “the great virgin” (hwn.t wr.t) three times (682c, 728a, 2002a…); she is anonymous, appears as the 

protectress of the king, and is explicitly called his mother once (809c). It is interesting that Isis is addresseed as hwn.t in a sarcophagus oracle that deals with her mysterious pregnancy. In a text in the Abydos Temple of Seti I, Isis herself declares: “I am the great virgin.”… In the Late Period (712-332 BCE) in particular, goddesses are frequently called “(beautiful) virgins,” especially Hathor, Isis, and Nephthys."

 

Dr. Jan Bergman, Dr. Helmer Ringgren and Johannas G. Botterweck in The Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament Volume II (339)

 

 

So I am Isis.
So I am a flame goddess.
You are Osiris.
I am mother to Horus.
I am sister to the god.
I am Hmmy.t.
I am the Great Virgin.

 

Temple of Seti I, Chapel of Osiris, West Wall-South Gate (13th century BCE)

 

Amice M. Calverley and Myrtle F. Broome, The Temple of King Sethos I at Abydos: Volume I, The Chapels of Osiris, Isis and Horus, ed. A.H. Gardiner (London: The Egypt Exploration Society, 1933), pl.9.

 

 

 

Notice how Isis says she is mother to Horus first THAN states that she is "The Great Virgin" On a side note the word maiden is a synonym for Virgin and sometimes the two words are interchangeble to the point of both words meaning a woman who hasent had sex.

 

 

 

“Aeon/Horus was born of the Virgin Isis on 6 January … The Egyptian goddess who was equally ‘the Great Virgin’ (Hwnt) and ‘Mother of the   God’ was the object of the very same praises bestowed upon her successor (The Virgin Mary).” 

 

 Egyptologist Dr. Reginald E. Witt, Isis in the Ancient World (218) (273)

 

 

 

 

"Isis was the sacred embodiment of motherhood and yet was known as the Great Virgin an apparent contradiction that will be familiar to Christians"

 

Egyptologist Dr. James Curl Egyptian Revival (13)

 

 

 

 

"The pagan occasion (Jan.6) was in celebration of the birth of the year-god Aion to the Virgin goddess Kore a hellenized transformation of Isis."

 

Mythologist Joseph Campbell The Mythic Image (34)

 

 

Kore being another greek name for Persephone/Proserpine and the word to also means Maiden/Virgin

 

 

"Isis came to be worshipped as the Primordial Virgin and their child as the Savior of the World. … Her titles included those of Mother of God, Great of Magic, Mistress of Heaven and the New Year, Star of the Sea (in Alexandria), Virgin of the World (in the Hermetic tradition)."

 

Egyptologist Dr. Bojana Mojsov, Osiris: Death and Afterlife of a God (xii) (xvi) (Emphasis added)

 

 

According to Egyptologist Jan Assman in relation to the severed phallus myth: "The Egyptian texts which seldom mention this scene know nothing of this detail" 

 

Egyptologist Jan Assman Death and Salvation In Ancient Egypt (25)

 

 

 

 

 

"Isis was known as the “great virgin” and as the “mother of the god” among her devotees: in Egyptian mythology, she was credited with  giving birth to the Egyptian solar deity Horus."

 

Dr. Stephen J. Davis, The Early Coptic Papacy: The Egyptian Church and Its Leadership in Late Antiquity (77)

 

 

 

"Isis had been called both the ‘Mother of the God’, meaning the mother of the divine Horos (Harpocrates), and the ‘Great Virgin’."

 

Dr. Thomas F. Mathews and Dr. Norman Muller, in Images of the Mother of God: Perceptions of the Theotokos in Byzantium (4)

 

 

 

 

"This Egyptian deity under many names appears as the principle of natural fecundity among nearly all the religions of the ancient world. She was known as the goddess with ten thousand appellations and was metamorphosed by Christianity into the Virgin Mary, for Isis, although she gave birth to all living things – chief among them the Sun – still remained a virgin, according to the legendary accounts."

 

Manly P Hall (33rd Degree Freemason) The Secret Teachings Of All Ages (119)

 

 

 

 

 

“In Egypt the epithets add.t, rnn.t and Hwn.t, ‘girl; young woman; virgin’, are applied to many goddesses—e.g. Hathor and Isis—who had not   yet had sexual intercourse.” 

 

Dr. Bob Becking, in Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible (891)

 

 

 

“-Cybele, Aphrodite, Demeter, Astarte, Isis, Hathor, Inanna and Ishtar. Like them she (Mary) is both virgin and mother and like many of them 

she gives birth to a half-human half-divine child who dies and is reborn”

 

The Myth Of The Goddess: Evolution Of An Image by Anne Baring and Jules Cashford (548)

 

 

 

“Among the Egyptians, the zodiacal Isis is a virgin mother.”

 

Romualdo Gentilucci (1848), Life of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary (25)

 

 

 

“Even In the latter days of Egyptian Culture and religion Hathor retained her Independence and Virginity. In this respect she can be more   aptly compared to Athene who remain parthenos though sometimes called mother than with Aphrodite” 

 

Claas Jouco Bleeker Hathor and Thoth two key figures of the Ancient Egyptian Religion (64-65)  

 

 

 

“It is characteristic of the position of Hathor in the Ancient Egyptian Pantheon that there is no mention of a father as is the case with Horus   son of Osiris and Isis. Hathor’s motherhood is therefore conceived of as parthenogenesis or being purely symbolical.” 

 

Claas Jouco Bleeker Hathor and Thoth two key figures of the Ancient Egyptian Religion (63)

 

 

 

"According to the monuments themselves whose heiroglypghs we are now able to read he was a pious king who planned a temple to Hathor   the virgin mother of the gods offered images and golden ivory and wrote "the sacred book" "

 

Egyptologist James Bonwick  The Great Pyramid of Giza: History and Speculation 

 

 

 

"Hathor the divine mother: the Child Horus was now considered in the Lunar Cult as having been brought forth by Hathor. She was most commonly represented as a cow and was the mother goddess she was also the mother of generation childbirth and maternity. when she was depicted in human form she carried an ankh on her right hand and a staff in her left she was crowned with the double horns with the moons crecent wedged between them. When depicted as a cow she was wearing this same headgear in the legends she is concidered a Virgin" 

 

Jordan Maxwell, Paul Tice and Alan Snow That Old Time Religion (31)

 

Hathors Virginity is of equal importance to that of Isis primarily as she to was also Horus' Mother in some myths in place of Isis and she and Isis were quite often syncretized with each other and with Aphrodite/Venus too as we shall see later.

 

 

                  Hathor

 

 

 

 

Hathor-Sekhmet

 

Sekhmet a form of Isis-Hathor 

 

 

Thoth, Hathor and Dionysus

 

 

“PARTHENOGENESIS. The myth that certain divine beings or culture-heroes have owed their birth, to a mother without the co-operation of a father has been found to be widespread. For example, Isis, Cybele, Leto, Demeter, and Venus are all represented as " virgin " mothers. The Chinese culture-hero Hon Chi was born of a mother who conceived by treading in a footprint of God. The principal deity of the Uapes Indians of Brazil, Jurupari, was bom of a virgin who conceived after drinking a draught of native beer.”

 

AN ENCYCLOPEDIA OF RELIGIONS by Maurice Arthur Canney (278)

 

 

 

“Virgin-mothers. Long before the time of Christ parthenogenesis, or reproduction by a virgin, was as familiar to ancient Greek, Egyptian and Oriental legend as it is to modern biology. Guatama Buddha was only one of many Oriental heroes whose mother was a virgin. The Egyptian Horus was conceived by Isis without the direct intervention of a male. Isis has been identified with the Greek Demeter, and Demeter also was a virgin, even when she bore a child, Persephone or Proserpine.”

 

Heroes and Heroines of fiction by William Shepard Walsh (344) 

 

 

 

Of Course It Is worth noting that Isis was Syncretized / Equated with Demeter by many Greek and Roman authors Herodotus being an example already covered thus if Demeter is a Virgin and a mother than so too is Isis.

 

 

 

“As Mithraism moved westward it proved a fertile ground for the addition of mystic meaning. Practically all the symbolism of Osiris was added to the Mithraic cultus even to the fact that Isis became the virgin mother of Mithras.”

 

Religions Of The World by Gerald L. Berry (56)

 

 

 

“Many parts of the Jesus story are not based on Yeishu or ben Stada. Most Christian denominations claim that Jesus was born on 25 December. Originally the eastern Christains believed that he was born on 6 January. The Armenian Christians still follow this early belief while most Christians consider it to be the date of the visit of the Magi. As pointed out already, Jesus was probably confused with Tammuz born of the virgin Myrrha. We know that in Roman times, the gods Tammuz, Aion and Osiris were identified. Osiris-Aion was said to be born of the virgin Isis on the 6 January and this explains the earlier date for Christmas. Isis was sometimes represented as a sacred cow and her temple as a stable which is probably the origin of the Christian belief that Jesus was born in a stable. Although some might find this claim to be farfetched, it is known as a fact that certain early Christian sects identified Jesus and Osiris in their writings. The date of 25 December for Christmas was originally the pagan birthday of the sun god, whose day of the week is still known as Sunday. The halo of light which is usually shown surrounding the face of Jesus and Christian saints, is another concept taken from the sun god.”

 

The Myth Of The Historical Veracity Of Jesus by ben yehoshua hayyim.

 

A link to ben yehoshua hayyim's source will be provided at the end of this article.

 

 

Lastly before moving on it is worth noting that Osiris died before he could consumate his marraige to Isis and take her virginity:

 

 

“The marriage of Isis and Osiris was a very brief one, so brief, indeed, that they were not able to consummate their union while Osiris was alive. "Come to me, far face who passed beyond without my having seen him," Isis says after the death of her husband, leading one to suppose that he was murdered before their wedding night.” 

 

Dr. Dimitri Meeks and Dr. Christine Favard-Meeks , Daily Life of the Egyptian Gods (69) 

 

 

More proof of Isis' virginity comes from the fact that she was often Identified with a lesser known Virgin warrior goddess of war, wisdom and weaving called Neith who is the Egyptian equivalent Athena. and She was also known for spontaneously divine children including Ra, Apep, Osiris, Sobek and others all on her own without a male consort.

 

Egyptologist Barbara Lesko Talks alot about this in her book The Great Goddesses Of Egypt (44-63) (Although Lesko claims Neith wasn't a Virgin mother even in the myths in which she has no consort this statement is rather silly and untrue based the very fact alone she admitted the Goddess Neith could Produce Children all on her own without male presence which is the VERY pre requisite needed to be a Virgin Mother) and as does Margerite Rigoglioso in her Book Virgin Mother Goddesses Of Antiquity in an entire chapter called Neith/Athena/Metis.

 

 

                     Neith/Athena

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

* Snickers

 

 

 

 

"Neith (Net) was the mother goddess, … She was a creator goddess who formed all things. In the beginning, she found herself in the watery waste of Nun, and she formed herself when the world was still in shadow and when there was no earth on which to rest, when no plant grew."

 

Dr. Harold Scheub, A Dictionary of Mythology: The Mythmaker as Storyteller (172)

 

Now bearing those facts about Neith and her solitude in mind, there is a statue currently at the Vatican’s Gregorian Egyptian Museum which dates to the time of the Persian rule of Egypt, specifically the early reign of King Darius I, c. 519 BCE.[6] It is a depiction of Udjahorresnet, a Saitic physician and priest of Neith. The inscriptions on this statue contain several adorations to Neith, and one line in particular, located under the right arm, reads:

 

"I let his majesty know the greatness of Sais, that it is the seat of Neith-the-Great, the mother who bore Re and inaugurated birth when birth had not yet been."

 

Miriam Lichtheim Ancient Egyptian Literature Vol. I: The Old and Middle Kingdoms (38) 

 

http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/cambyses2.htm#:~:text=Udjahorresnet%20also%20tells%20us%20that,had%20not%20yet%20been...&text=His%20Majesty%20knew%20the%20greatness,there%20on%20their%20seats%20forever.

 

 

 

 

Statue of the priest Udjahorresnet, 6th century BCE, which attests to the virgin motherhood of Neith.

 

In corroboration with this is a statue of Neith herself that was once located at her temple in Sais. Though it is now no longer extant, its existence and inscription was documented by a couple of writers from antiquity. Reconstructing it from quotes by Plutarch and Proclus, the inscription said: I am what is, and what will be, and what has been, No one has lifted my veil.The fruit I bore was the sun. 

 

 

Dr. Erik Hornung comments that the veil having never been lifted “clearly refers to sexual union,” [1] and the obvious lack thereof. Egyptologist Jan Assmann states, concerning the inscription:

 

"It refers not to an epistemological dilemma, the absolute unattainability of truth, but to the parthenogenesis of the sun out of the womb of a maternal All-Goddess." [2]

 

 

 

[1] Erik Hornung, The Secret Lore of Egypt: Its Impact on the West (134)

 

[2] Jan Assmann, “Periergia: Egyptian Reactions to Greek Curiosity,” in Cultural Borrowings and Ethnic Appropriations in Antiquity, ed.                   Erich S. Gruen (47)

 

 

 

"Neith was a creator goddess, and she did not need a partner in order to conceive and give birth."

 

Dr. Olaf E. Kaper, The Egyptian God Tutu (105)

 

 

 

 

“Neith did not depend on a male partner for her creative powers, which encompassed the entire universe of gods, animals, and humans.” 

 

Dr. Barabara S. Lesko, The Great Goddesses of Egypt (50)

 

 

 

“In Sais in the Delta, for example, there was a virgin goddess who gave birth to the sun at the beginning of time by some form of parthenogenesis.” 

 

Dr. John D. Ray, Reflections of Osiris: Lives from Ancient Egypt (63)

 

 

So the Egyptian sun god Re was born of a virgin, and that was literally written in stone many centuries before the Common Era.

Special thanks and all credit goes to Neal Boswell for this information. I will provide a link to him and his work at the end of this article.

 

 

 

Although wikipedia and other villains of the faith try to disprove Neiths virginity by pointing out the various myths in which she is portrayed as having a consort weather it be Seth, Khnum, Sobek or even as E.A. Wallis Budge pointed out Amen-Ra was her husband as well but again we are discussing myths and myths do not possess genitalia and further more it isn’t even until later traditions she is said to have had consorts and earlier traditions held that she gave birth to several Gods without a father or male presence involved nor had any husband of any kind.  

 

 

I will list further sources on Neith as a Virgin Mother in a bit but first here are some dumb things Errior (Richard Carrier) had to say on this matter: 

 

 

"BTW, attempts to equate Neith with Isis or Cleopatra as also virginal mothers are not well-founded: see my discussion in That Luxor Thing Again."

 https://www.richardcarrier.info/archives/11161

 

 

Me and NW Barker had a blast dicussing this via email so here are quotes I made in response to Carrier

 

(Please keep in mind there is vulgarity my apologies but I am only quoting from what I said to FTL because It perfectly responds to and adresses Carriers point)

 

"First of all his claim is silly because he tries to say that Isis impregnating herself with the severed pee pee of Osiris means she cannot be considered a virgin which is dumb because it fails to take into account that contradictions such as being impregnated with a severed phallus to give birth to a child and yet also being "The Great Virgin" or "immaculate Virgin" and the sort are common place within ancient myth and myth/mythology are again keeping in mind by very nature contradictory."

 

 

"It also fails to take into account that are other myths in which Isis is impregnated in a variety of different ways that Don't have the phallus involved from being impregnated by a bolt of lightning as related in Coffin Text Spell 148 translated by Raymound Falkner and further related by Herodotus, Plutarch and Pomponius Mela in terms of a "Virgin Cow" Identified with Hathor and sometimes Isis in the Form of an "Isis cow" being Impregnated with the Apis Bull through a lightning flash or moonbeams to losing the severed phallus and having resort to Parthenogenisis (the Greek word and Scholarly Term For Virgin Birth) to conceive Horus on her own as related by James Curl in Egyptian revival page 13 or 15 can't quite remember at the moment  to being impregnated by magic spells as related by E.A. Wallis Budge "In all these Legends great magical powers were atributed to her for Thoth the heart and intelligence of the God had taught her the spells incantations magical names and words of power which he had employed in making the wishes of this God to take concrete form and he had also taught her how to use them By means of them Isis drew the seed into herself from Osiris after his death and concieved Horus"  Legends of Our Lady Mary the perpetual virgin and her mother Hannâ (lii) and Jan Assman (I'd marry someone just to have that name) even pointed out the egyptian texts which seldom mention this scene know nothing of this detail in other words it is a much LATER MYTH!"

 

On a side note before we move on to the rest it also goes without saying that a cute egyptian girl dildoing herself with a magically produced artificial phallus made from Gold, Wood, Clay and Reeds or the Sharp Star Sothis after losing her husbands phallus to a crocodile in order to give birth to a Horus isn't the same thing as actully having sex with a real organic penis to give birth to a child and thus is an immaculate conception.

 

"Further more Isis/Neith are the same goddess as according to Budgie Boy In From Fetish To God In Ancient Egypt pgs 58-59 stated that Neith "as a cow goddess was Identified with Hathor and Isis" furthermore the same information is relayed by Marguerite Rigoglioso In her book Virgin Mother Goddesses Of Antiquity (28) "Rock art throughout the northern part of the African continent dating as far back as 6000 B.C.E. widely depicts sacred bovines and female figures wearing horns, which may represent early forms of Neith and later goddesses with whom she was identified, such as Hathor and Isis" " 

 

"Joshua J Mark in his online article about Neith also said as much" " Neith (aka Net, Neit or Nit) and is one of the oldest deities of ancient Egypt who was worshipped early in the Pre-Dynastic Period (c. 6000 - 3150 BCE) and whose veneration continued through the Ptolemaic Dynasty (323 - 30 BCE), the last to rule Egypt before the coming of Rome. She was a war goddess, goddess of creation, mother goddess who invented birth, and funerary goddess who cared for and helped to dress the souls of the dead. Her cult center was at Sais in the Nile Delta and she continued as the most popular goddess of Lower Egypt even after her attributes were largely given to Isis and Hathor and those goddesses became more popular in Egypt. Neith continued to be honored as the patron goddess of Sais throughout Egypt's history as she was considered a great protector of the people of the land and the most effective mediator between humanity and the gods."

 

"Although many of her attributes were given to Isis and Hathor, as previously noted, her worship never declined. Even during eras where more popular deities received the greater attention, Neith continued to be regarded with reverence and awe and her festival was considered one of the most important in ancient Egypt."

 

 https://www.ancient.eu/Neith/

 

 

 

"Even Wikipedia admits this conflation" "Both Plutarch and a later philosopher, Proclus, mentioned a veiled statue of the Egyptian goddess Neith, whom they conflated with Isis, citing it as an example of her universality and enigmatic wisdom. It bore the words "I am all that has been and is and will be; and no mortal has ever lifted my mantle."

 

"The statue was at a temple in Sais, Neith's cult center. She was largely conflated with Isis in Plutarch's time, and he says the statue is of "Athena [Neith], whom [the Egyptians] consider to be Isis". Proclus' version of the quotation says "no one has ever lifted my veil," implying that the goddess is virginal.^[169] This claim was occasionally made of Isis in Greco-Roman times, though it conflicted with the widespread belief that she and Osiris together conceived Horus.^[170] Proclus also adds "The fruit of my womb was the sun", suggesting that the goddess conceived and gave birth to the sun without the participation of a male deity, which would mean it referred to Egyptian myths about Neith as the mother of Ra"

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isis

 

 

 

 

 

Mehet-Weret or Mehturt (Ancient Egyptian: mḥt-wrt) is an ancient Egyptian deity of the sky in ancient Egyptian religion. Her name means "Great Flood".She was mentioned in the Pyramid Texts. In ancient Egyptian creation myths, she gives birth to the sun at the beginning of time, and in art she is portrayed as a cow with a sun disk between her horns. She is associated with the goddesses Neith, Hathor, and Isis, all of whom have similar characteristics, and like them she could be called the "Eye of Ra".^[2]

Mehet-Weret is primarily known as being the "Celestial Cow" or "Cow Goddess" because of her physical characteristics, but she contributes to the world in more ways than that. She is also the Goddess of Water, Creation, and Rebirth; in Egyptian mythology, Mehet-Weret is one of the main components in the making and survival of life.^[3]

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mehet-Weret

 

 

 

 

"Moreover as we already know from Hildegard Temporini, Wilhelm Zitman and de Vos's sources that Isis and Neith were so strongly connected that the 2 were often Conflated in the form of Neith-Isis and Isis-Neith and we are informed by Plutarch in his On Isis and Osiris writings and as further related in the writings of the fourth century greek philosopher Proclus both Neith and Isis (in the form of Isis-Neith) were syncretised with the greek goddess Athena (herself the virgin mother of Apollo/Dionysus as related by Cicero in On the Nature of the Gods Book III as well as Macrobius and Arnobius in terms of Apollo and Dionysus being the same) in the form of a popular statue the Egyptians were worshiping around that time which thus would have made both goddesses syncretic with each other as well. Isis in the form of Neith/Athena even says according to an inscription "The present and the future and the past, I am. My undergarment no one has uncovered. The fruit I brought forth, the sun came into being." sound like Virgin Birth and Alpha and Omega anyone?

 

"Lastly according to the Egyptian Book Of The Dead Chapter 66 (Execute Order 66! -Palpatine) it states "I was conceived by Sekhet and the goddess Neith gave birth to me I am Horus" - Budge Translation. In other words Sekhmet herself a form of Isis in terms of the Papyrus Julihac and a form of Hathor too and as seen in Dawn of Astronomy (31) by Norman J Lockyer Sekhmet is a dawn goddess and of course in mythology the dawn goddess is inviolable and hence Sekhmet who is a perpetual Virgin symbolizing the “Virgin Dawn” in astrology was also considered to be the Virgin mother of Horus as well as Neith too. So it can be truthfully said Horus is the Son/Sun of Neith and Isis too so how do they have no connection if they are both mothers of Horus?" 

 

"Thus in conclusion Isis Is Neith and Vice versa Neith is Isis there for Carrier/Errior cannot honestly claim that Neith was a virgin mother of Ra/Horus (as the 2 were interchangeable to point of syncretism in the form of Re Herakte and Harpocrates became Ra/Re at 12 noon as related by Norman J Lockyer and other sources) but Isis somehow wasn't."

 

"Furthermore Shitchard Errior in his Virgin Birth Its Pagan Guys Get Over It Article tries to make a distinction Between Virgin Birth and Sexless Conception....as if they somehow aren't the same. From Aphrodite/Venus (Hathor) born from the seafoam of Uranus's severed balls lol to Ra/Atum/Ptah and others in Egypt being "Self Created" To Ishtar being born sexlessly from Kumarbi eating the magic sky pixie Anu's Deez Nuts (HA! GOTTEEEEEM HA!) to Adam, Lillith and Eve being born from the Earth and a rib to Minerva's birth from the side of Jupiter/Jove's head and even Mithras birth from a rock and Dionysus born to the Virgin Semele by a flash of lightning or alternatively by her drinking his torn up heart in the form of a potion these among many many other examples are NO DIFFERENT than Virgin Birth!"

 

 

“Isis, taking the shape as a falcon. The lightening-flash strikes and the gods are afraid. Isis wakes pregnant with the seed of her brother Osiris . She is uplifted, even she the widow, and her heart are glad with the seed of her brother Osiris. She says: ‘Oh gods! I am Isis the sister of Osiris who wept for the father of the gods, Osiris, who settled the slaughterings of the Two Lands. His seed is within my body, and it is as the son of the foremost of the Ennead who will rule this land and who will become heir to Geb and who will speak for his father and who will slays Seth, the enemy of his father Osiris, that I have molded the shape of the god within (my) egg. Come, Oh gods, so that you shall make his protection within my womb. Know in your hearts that your lord is he, this god, who is in his egg, blue(?) of form, the lord of the gods. Great is their beauty, namely (that of) the blue barbs(?) of the two plumes’.”

 

Egyptologist Raymond Faulkner “Translation of Spell 148 of the Coffin Texts” The Journal of Egyptian Archeology 54: (40-44)

 

 

 

“This Apis is the calf of a cow which is never afterwards able to have another. The Egyptian belief is that a flash of light descends upon the cow from heaven, and this causes her to receive Apis.”

 

Herodotus, Histories 3.28.2 

 

 

 

“The Apis, they say, is the animate image of Osiris, and he comes into being when a fructifying light thrusts forth from the moon and falls upon a cow in her breeding-season”

 

Plutarch, Moralia, 368C

 

 

 

“Apis—a black bull, marked by particular spots and different from other bulls in his tail and in his tongue—is the divinity of all the Aegyptian peoples. He is born only rarely, conceived not from mating cattle, as they say, but miraculously in a celestial fire. The day of his birth is particularly festive to the whole people."

 

Pomponius Mela, Description of the World.” 1.9.58 (mid 1st cen. CE)

 

 

 

"I was conceived by Sekhet and the goddess Neith gave birth to me I am Horus"

 

E.A. Wallis Budge Ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead: Prayers, Spells, and Other Texts (120) (EBD CH.66)

 

 

 

 

 

"But Horus was not the only sun-god recognised by the Egyptians. His own father Osiris, the Saviour (of whom Horus was a re-incarnation) was born - also at the winter solstice - of an immaculate virgin, the goddess Neith who like Isis mother of Horus was known by the titles of Mother of God, Immaculate Virgin, Queen of Heaven, Star of the Sea, The Morning Star, The Intercessor."

 

Wiiliam Williamson The Great Law: A Study of Religious Origins and Of The Unity Underlying Them (26)

 

 

 

"...at the last, when [Osiris's] cult disappeared before the religion of the Man Christ, the Egyptians who embraced Christianity found that the moral system of the old cult and that of the new religion were so similar, and the promises of resurrection and immortality in each so much alike, that they transferred their allegiance from Osiris to Jesus of Nazareth without difficulty. Moreover, Isis and the child Horus were straightway identified with Mary the Virgin and her Son, and in the apocryphal literature of the first few centuries which followed the evangelization of Egypt, several of the legends about Isis and her sorrowful wanderings were made to centre round the Mother of Christ. Certain of the attributes of the sister goddesses of Isis were also ascribed to her, and, like the goddess Neith of Sais, she was declared to possess perpetual virginity. Certain of the Egyptian Christian Fathers gave to the Virgin the title 'Theotokos,' or 'Mother of God,' forgetting, apparently, that it was an exact translation of neter mut, a very old and common title of Isis."

 

Dr. E.A. Wallis Budge, The Gods of Egypt (xv-xvi)

 

 

"Virgo, who now lends her name to this sign of the zodiac, is the heavenly Nut, the virgin mother of Osiris, who was called the “perfect one” and “the ancient one,” and symbolized light and goodness, concord or harmony, peace and happiness. This virgin, the “great mother,” the “queen of heaven,” the “inscrutable Neith, whose veil no mortal could lift and live..."

 

Orlando P Shmidt A Self-Verifying Chronological History of Ancient Egypt: From the Foundation of the Kingdom to the Beginning of the Persian Dynasty (53)

 

"Zeus, Father of the gods, visited Semele in the form of a thunderstorm; and she gave birth to the great saviour and deliverer Dionysus. Zeus, again, impregnated Danae in a shower of gold; and the child was Perseus Devaki, the radiant Virgin of the Hindu mythology, became the wife of the god Vishnu and bore Krishna, the beloved hero and prototype of Christ. With regard to Buddha, St. Jerome says “It is handed down among the Gymnosophists of India that Buddha, the founder of their system, was brought forth by a Virgin from her side.” The Egyptian Isis, with the child Horus on her knee, was honored centuries before the Christian era, and worshipped under the names of “Our Lady,” “Queen of Heaven,” “Star of the Sea,” “Mother of God,” and so forth. Before her, Neith, the Virgin of the World, whose figure bends from the sky over the earthly plains and the children of men, was acclaimed as mother of the great god Osiris. The saviour Mithra, too, was born of a Virgin, as we have had occasion to notice before; and on Mithraist monuments the mother suckling her child is not an uncommon figure."

 

- Edward Carpenter Pagan and Christian Creeds http://www.edwardcarpenter.net/ecpcc10.htm

  

 

"Osiris- like priest of Amun- Ra, king of the gods, Osorkon deceased, son of the priest of Amun-Ra, king ofthe gods, Shishank deceased, the royal son of King Amunmai Osorkon ,” Denon, pl. 137. 108. The same; Osiris the son of Neith and the son of Seb,” M.H. i. 13. “ In the year LXII., on the twenty-ninth day of Pachon , of the reign of King Rameses II., beloved by Osiris lord of Amenti,” E. I. 8. As the king was beloved by this god he was probably dead, and thus his series of dates may have been continued by his successors : he could hardly have reigned sixty two years."

    

Samuel Sharp: Egyptian Hieroglyphics: Being an Attempt to Explain Their Nature, Origin, and Meaning : with a Vocabulary (50)

 

"Thirdly, it is the opinion of the students of esoteric Egyptian religion that Isis, Neith, etc., were the same ; so also Osiris, Ra, and the other Gods. Isis is said to be the wife, mother, sister, and daugh ter of Osiris, also the mother of Horus. Neith is said to be the mother of Ra. Ra, however, is identified with Osiris, and Horus is called the son of Ra (See translation by Chabas of Alexandrian Obelisk where Horus is repeatedly called " Son of the Sun," " Son of Ra," and he is even spoken of as the Son of Ptah)."

 

Historic Magazine and Notes and Queries: A Monthly of History ..., Volumes 9-10 (114)

 

"In the case of Merneptah, Neith addresses the deceased, who is equated with Osiris, as her son, while in the case of Amenemhet, Horus addresses his father."

 

Egyptologist Jan Assman Death and Salvation In Ancient Egypt (272)

 

"Isis is the sister, wife, daughter , and mother of Osiris ; in her cosmogonic property she is like Neith ; in the Papyrus she is called the Neith of Lower Egypt."

 

An Essay On Pantheism John Hunt (43)

 

 

Christian Karl Josias Freiherr von Bunsen in Egypt's Place in Universal History: An Historical Investigation in ..., Volume 1 (418-19) noted that Isis was the "Neith of Upper and Ma of Lower Egypt:"

https://books.google.ca/booksid=JpBJAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

 

Moreover it is worth noting that the egyptian word for Neith NT was transliterated as Nut (prononced Newt or Noot) and Mut/Muth (prononced as Mewt or Moot and Muth) as pointed by John Morris in the New Nation Volume I or II (88-92)

 

https://books.google.ca/bookid=K_sCAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA89&lpg=PA89&dq=in+the+above+i+have+stated+that+nut+is+neith&source=bl&ots=st_xi3m6Gl&sig=ACfU3U3cNVgCAruPlp3a1u6uSYy7gbbZw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwicqrWpvDqAhWGZs0KHV77BaI4ChDoATAEegQICBAB#v=onepage&q&f=false

 

Meaning that Nut the Egyptian Sky Goddess and Mut the Egyptian Mother Goddess and Queen of the Gods/Goddesses were both Identical to Neith who was quite often syncretized with Isis and Hathor just as Sekhmet who was identified with Mut at thebes was also equated with the 2 aforementioned goddesses and If Nut is the same as Neith than not only is she a Virgin Mother and "Queen of Heaven" but this would further prove Neith as being mother of Osiris plus here is more Info: "The authority of Thebes waned later and Amun was assimilated into Ra. Mut, the doting mother, was assimilated into Hathor, the cow-goddess and mother of Horus who had become identified as Ra's wife. Subsequently, when Ra assimilated Atum, the Ennead was absorbed as well, and so Mut-Hathor became identified as Isis (either as Isis-Hathor or Mut-Isis-Nekhbet), the most important of the females in the Ennead (the nine), and the patron of the queen. The Ennead proved to be a much more successful identity and the compound triad of Mut, Hathor, and Isis, became known as Isis alone—a cult that endured into the 7th century CE and spread to Greece, Rome, and Britain." https://religion.wikia.org/wiki/Mut#:~:text=Subsequently%2C when Ra assimilated Atum,the patron of the queen. thus Isis-Neith is in fact Mut which is important for reasons I'm about to get into. 

 

Mut was the wife of Amen Ra and mother of Khonsu (the lunar Horus later turned identical to him) and yet at the same time was also said to have gave Parthenogenesis (Virgin Birth) to the ENTIRE UNIVERSE! Furthermore one of Mut's symbols was a Vulture and she was sometimes even depicted as a woman with the head of a vulture which was identifed with the concept of Parthenogenesis/Virgin Birth as admitted by

Early Church Fathers such as Origen and Tertullian. As well as noted by many modern egyptologists such as John Anthony West in

The Travelers Key to Ancient Egypt (70) 

 

https://books.google.ca/books/about/The_Traveler_s_Key_to_Ancient_Egypt.html

id=EG0BzbCu0m4C&printsec=frontcover&source=kp_read_button&redir_esc=y#v=snippet&q=parthenogenesis&f=false

 

 

 

                    Nut

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                      Mut

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"The Egyptians fable the whole species [of vultures] is female, and they conceive by receiving the breath of the East Wind, even as the trees do by receiving the West Wind."

 

Plutarch, Moralia 286C 595

 

 

"The belief that the vulture represented femininity and motherhood, and the related ideas that there were only female vultures and that they were virgin born, without a male begetter, thus appears to come from Egypt. In an Egyptian Demotic papyrus from the second century CE, we can read the following words of the goddess Mut: “I am the noble vulture (nryt) of the male brother, the lord of Thebes, i.e. the noble vulture of which no male exists.” This Egyptian statement that there were only female vultures is confirmed by various Graeco-Roman writers." 

 

Dr. Herman Te Velde, in Servant of Mut: Studies in Honor of Richard A. Fazzini (244) (Emphasis Added)

 

 

 

"They say, too, that among vultures there are only females, which become parents alone."

 

Tertullian of Carthage,Adversus Valentinianos 4.10

 

 

 

"It is said that no male vulture is ever born: all vultures are female. And the birds knowing this and fearing to be left childless, take measures to produce them as follows. They fly against the south wind. If however the wind is not from the south, they open their beaks to the east wind, and the inrush of air impregnates them, and their period of gestation lasts for three years."

 

Aelian, On the Characteristics of Animals 2.46 598

 

 

 

"I have to say that the Creator showed in the birth of various animals that what He did in the case of one animal, He could do, if He wished, also with others and even with men themselves. Among the animals there are certain females that have no intercourse with the male, as writers on animals say of vultures; this creature preserves the continuation of the species without any copulation. Why, therefore, is it incredible that if God wished to send some divine teacher to mankind He should have made the organism of him that was to be born come into being in a different way instead of using generative principle derived from sexual intercourse of men and women? Moreover, according to the Greeks themselves not all men were born from a man and a woman."

 

Origen Adamantius, Contra Celsum 1.37

 

 

 

 

All These strong links between Mut/Muat and Virgin motherhood / Parthenogenesis couple that with the fact that she is Identified with Isis inderectly with her being equivelant to Neith and Sekhmet and directly in terms of being Identifed syncretized with Isis-Hathor or when she is in her form as Mut-Isis-Nekhbet and Isis Usurped the role of Mut as Goddess in the Egyptian triad so therefore Isis Is Mut therefore the points made are not only more proof of more pre christian pagan virgin mothers in egypt besides Isis but also serve as further proof of Isis herself as a virgin!

 

 

In fact many artworks of Isis potray her as having a vulture headress or even as being a literal vulture! Here are various Images Potraying Isis, Hathor, Mut and other Goddesses and Queens related to them wearing the Sinister Six Vulture headresses lol!  

 

 

 

 

Various pics of Aset/Isis donning the Vulture head cap

 

                                     

 

 

 

 

                      

 

 

 

 

                                                                                    

 

 

                 

 

 

                               

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Depictions of Isis as a Vulture!

 

"One explanation of the specifically funerary connotations of the vulture and cobra in the dead king’s tomb is suggested by another object from Tutankhamun’s burial. It is a naoform pectoral, on which the king, as Osiris, stands flanked by a vulture wearing a White Crown with plumes, and a winged cobra in a Red Crown. The two stand on ‘neb’-baskets, extend ‘shen’-signs towards Osiris, and in every way look exactly like Nekhbet and Wadjet. But 642 their inscriptions say otherwise: the vulture is named as Isis, and the cobra as Nephthys. … Given the frequency of such representations, it is not surprising that Isis and Nephthys should sometimes be represented as a vulture and a cobra, nor, given her association with the White Crown, that it was Isis who was identified with the vulture. … It is this image that seems to be invoked by Spell 157 of the Book of the Dead, which explicitly associates the vulture of gold at the throat of the deceased with Isis."

 

Dr. Edna R. Russmann, Chief of Seers: Egyptian Studies in Memory of Cyril Aldred (271-272)

 

 

"Spell for the vulture of gold put at the throat of the blessed one. To be said by Osiris N.: Isis has returned after alighting at the cities and seeking places of concealment (for) Horus at (his) going forth ‹from› the swamps." Book of the Dead, Spell 157 P 1-S

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Furthermore Mut and Hathor in the interpretatio graeca were both Syncretized with Hera/Juno who despite her Marital status to Zeus/Jupiter and amount of children she was said to have given birth to renewed her Virginity yearly in a lake near Argos and was thus mythically speaking was a perpetual virgin mother! infact she gives birth to several kids without union of her husband Zeus in several stories from giving birth to Set/Apep/Typhon by merely smacking her hands on the ground (Mother Earth) And While Homer States that Hera/Juno was impregnated through sexual intercourse with Amon Ra/Jupiter with Ptah/Hepheastus/Vulcan another writing found in Apollodorus, The Library 1.3.5, 2nd century BC says she instead gives birth to Vulcan on her own through will power alone and in Ovid's Metamorphesis Mut/Juno enters the garden of the flower goddess flora and becomes pregnant with Onuris/Ares/Mars merely through touching a flower all rather obvious virgin birth tales precedeing Christianity. 

 

                      Hera/Juno

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Watch at the 8:35 mark for the flower Virgin birth of Mars to Juno mentioned eariler.

 

 

 

 

                                 

 

 

 

 

                                   Onuris

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

               

                 Ares/Mars

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                 

                       

 

 

                        Ptah

 

 

 

 

 

             

       

         

 

       Hephaestus/Vulcan

 

 

 

 

 

In Virgin Mother Goddesses of Antiquity (65-99) Margerite Rigoglioso has an entire chapter dedicated to this matter titled 

Hera: Virgin Queen of Heaven, Earth, and the Underworld. Proving that Isis-Mut, Hathor and Hera/Juno as Virginal mothers at least centuries if not millenia before the common era.

 

 

As we have seen from prior sources and Information Hathor despite her role as goddess of Sex, Beauty, Love and fertility at the same time had virginity comparable to Athena/Minerva and like Isis she to was a later form or variation of Neith and thus would have had all of Neith's Virgin Birth Creatrix powers couple this with the fact that she was concidered the mother of Horus/Harpocrates and Apis and it is for these reasons she would have been concidered the Virgin mother of Apis and Horus further substantiating Horus being born of a Voigin as the

I-talians of the Sopranos or Godfather series would put it lol. 

 

Increasingly in the Graeco Roman period onward Hathor is also associated or identified with Isis as Isis-Hathor who had her temple at Dendera and who was identified with the Greek goddess of love Aphrodite as was purportedly also the Virgin Mary on the Greek Island of Cyprus not far from Egypt Isis is thus strongly associated love which is mri in Egyptian Moreover shortly before the common era Isis had "completely assimilated" Hathor persumably absorbing her epithets as well.

 

Heyob, 49; Meyboom, 35, 38, 59, 60, 78, etc. 

Meyboom, 59.

Heyob, 49

Witt, 124

 

 

“The more general archetype was often seen in mythology as threefold; thus, for example, Aphrodite was seen as Aphrodite the Virgin, Aphrodite the Wife, and Aphrodite the Whore. A similar triplicity is found in the figure of Isis as Sister, Wife and Widow of Osiris.”

 

Adam Mclean: The Triple Goddess (16)

 

Aphrodite herself as we have seen from prior sources in spite of her marital relations with Montu Ra/Mars, amount of children she had and her role as a Vain and openly promiscuous Sex Goddess was also a perpetual Virgin and thus would have been concidered the Virgin Mother of Cupid, Phobos, Deimos, Hermaphrodite, Harmonia, Anneus and Our LAWED and saviour Julius Christ! Who after the beheading of Pompey the Baptist was betrayed and murdered by Brutus Iscariot!  and because of her syncretizem with Isis/Neith and Hathor she would also have been concidered the Virgin Mother of Ra Horakthy, Osiris, Sobek and Apep/Apophis or Seth as he was also called as we will see later.

 

Isis-Aphrodite statue from 2nd century A.D.

 

 

Queen Cleopatra (Mary Magdalene) as Isis-Aphrodite

 

 

 

 

 

 

Furthermore Because Aphrodite/Hathor was identicle to the "Virgin Cow" that gave birth to Apis Via a flash of lightning or moonbeams and Apis himself was syncretic with Osiris hence the Popular Mystery Cult God Serapis this means Venus/Hathor would in some myths have been concidered the Virgin Mother of Osiris through a "Satanic" Lightning flash or by Lunar Rays.

 

 

 

The Virgin Isis The Virgin Isis-Mery

 

"...at the last, when [Osiris's] cult disappeared before the religion of the Man Christ, the Egyptians who embraced Christianity found that the moral system of the old cult and that of the new religion were so similar, and the promises of resurrection and immortality in each so much alike, that they transferred their allegiance from Osiris to Jesus of Nazareth without difficulty. Moreover, Isis and the child Horus were straightway identified with Mary the Virgin and her Son, and in the apocryphal literature of the first few centuries which followed the evangelization of Egypt, several of the legends about Isis and her sorrowful wanderings were made to centre round the Mother of Christ. Certain of the attributes of the sister goddesses of Isis were also ascribed to her, and, like the goddess Neith of Sais, she was declared to possess perpetual virginity. Certain of the Egyptian Christian Fathers gave to the Virgin the title 'Theotokos,' or 'Mother of God,' forgetting, apparently, that it was an exact translation of neter mut, a very old and common title of Isis."

 

                                                                                                                                                                                                         

                                                                                                                            Dr. E.A. Wallis Budge, The Gods of Egypt (xv-xvi)

 

 

 

"…Horus was not the only sun-god recognised by the Egyptians. His own father Osiris, the Savior (of whom Horus was a re-incarnation), was born—also at the winter solstice—of an immaculate virgin, the goddess Neith, who, like Isis, the mother of Horus, was known by the titles of Mother of God, Immaculate Virgin, Queen of Heaven, Star of the Sea, The Morning Star, The Intercessor."                                                                                                                             

 

 

                                                                                                                                                                                       

                                                                                                          William Williamson, The Great Law: A Study of Religious Origins (26)

 

 

 

Over the centuries, a number of individuals have brought to attention the obvious correspondences between the Christian Madonna and Child and the images of the great goddess Isis holding and suckling her babe, Horus. There are many pre-Christian images of Isis and Horus in this "Madonna and Child" pose, and it has been asserted by not a few people, quite logically, that the Christian iconography is directly based upon this extremely popular Egyptian image. Furthermore, it has been claimed repeatedly that, like her Christian counterpart, the Egyptian Mother of God was deemed an "immaculate virgin."[1] In addition, it has been evinced that the two Divine Mothers even shared the same name, with Jesus's mother named "Mary," of course, while Horus's mother possessed the epithet of "Meri" or "Mery," as the Egyptian word is transliterated by several authors including famed Egyptologist Dr. W.M. Flinders Petrie.[2] In addition to the fact that there have been pre Christian goddesses named "Mari," such as on the Greek island of Cyprus,[3] this epithet "Meri" or "Mery" in Egyptian simply means "beloved" or "delight," and we would thus expect it to have been applied many times to Isis at some point in the history of her long reverence by millions of people around the Mediterranean. In reality, the epithet meri/mery was so commonly used in regard to numerous figures in ancient Egypt, such as gods, kings, priests, government officials and others, that we could not list here all of the instances in which it appears. For example, many Egyptian kings and authorities bore the appellation of "Meri," including Meri-ab-taui, Meri-Amen-setep, MeriAten, Meri-ka-Ra, Meri-mes, Meri-neter and so on.[4] Some of these royal epithets represent

 

[1] Cf. Acharya/Murdock, SOG, 200-201.

[2] Petrie, 139.

[3] Graves, 326.

[4] Budge, BKE, 243.

 

 

"Horus names," while Horus himself is called "beloved"—i.e., meri—in the Book of the Dead.[1] Indeed, one of Horus's common titles is Se-meri-f: "the Beloved Son."[2] The famous pharaoh Ramses II's wife, Nefertari, was also named Mery Mut, [3] "Beloved Mother" or " Mother Mary," so to speak, long before the Christian era. Another queen was named "Merneith," a compound of mery with the goddess name Neith.[4] Hence, in consideration of the fact that Neith was a virgin mother, [5] in this name we possess the concept of a "virgin Mery" long prior to the Christian era. Obviously, the Egyptian name was not in English; nor was the "Virgin Mary" called as much in the ancient Greek texts in which her story was originally told. The point is that the Egyptians who would later become Christians were already familiar with a virgin mother of God named Mery.[6] Several gods in addition to Horus, such as Ra and Amen, also had the epithet meri/mery attached to their names: Ra-Meri or Meri-Ra and Amen-Meri or Meri-Amen, meaning "beloved of Ra" or "beloved Ra" and "beloved of Amen" or "beloved Amen." The god Ptah was likewise deemed "beloved," as in "Ptah-Meri."[7] Even Egypt itself is called Ta-Meri— "beloved land."[8] In an inscription regarding one of the Greek rulers of Egypt called the Ptolemies, we find a reference to "Horus, son of Isis, beloved," the word for "beloved" being meri/mery. It is unclear exactly who is being called "beloved," Horus, Isis or the Ptolemy, but it certainly could be Isis described as mery. As is also common with gods and goddesses, and especially in the Egyptian religion, gods and their epithets are frequently interchangeable with one another, representing the ultimate oneness expressed in ancient Egyptian spirituality. For example, in the chapter of the "Deification of the Members" from the Ritual (Papyrus of Ani), we find the following: "The head of this Meri-Ra is the head of Horus... The eyes of this Meri-Ra are the eyes of the Great Lady," i.e., Isis.[9] Thus, it could be said that Meri-Ra is equivalent to both Horus and Isis. Moreover, in the cartouches of several Egyptian kings we find references to "Auset Meri," or "Isis beloved,"[10] including in that of the king Thekeleth or Takeleth II, who is called "Amenmeri Auset-Meri."[11] In fact, Caesar Augustus's cartouche likewise contained the epithet

 

[1] Renouf, 150.

[2] Renouf, 54.

[3] Petrie, 82.

[4] Rice, 126.

[5] Tiele, OHR, 50.

[6] In the original Greek of the New Testament, of course, the name for Jesus's mother is "Maria." However, one must ask why the name was shortened in English to "Mary"—was it because, centuries into the common era, Isis remained a beloved goddess surnamed "Mery?" When was Maria first called "Mary," and by what mechanism did this change occur? Early Christians noted the similarity between Maria and "mare" or "mari," meaning "sea" in Latin, as in "stella maris." Thus, it appears that Mary was called as such fairly early, certainly long before the time Isis worship had disappeared openly. In any event, it is beyond "coincidence" that the Egyptian virgin mother of God was called Mery centuries before the Jewish virgin mother of God was likewise termed.

[7] Budge, AHE, 40.

[8] Budge, AHE, 306.

[9] Budge, PA, 95.

[10] Budge, TM, 102, et seq.

[11] Budge, AGTSER, 206.

 

"Ptah Auset-Meri" or "Ptah and Isis Beloved."[1] Also, Isis was apparently called "his beloved one," or Meri-f-u, the "his" referring to Horus.[2] In an article in The Contemporary Review under the entry for "Miriam"—the Jewish name for Mary—Dr. W. Robertson Smith ventures a derivation from "probably the Egyptian Meri-(t)," meaning, "beloved, a woman's name..."[3] Since the name Miriam in Hebrew is said to mean "rebellion," this last point is debatable, as is frequently the case within the field of etymology. Nevertheless, the same logical association of Meri and Mary is posited by Rev. Henry Tompkins in Journal of the Transactions of the Victoria Institute: "May not Miriam be one of the many Egyptian names beginning with Meri?" [4] In any event, the assertion that Horus's mother was called "Mery" is a sound and important one, as is the claim that, like Jesus's, his mother was a virgin. Indeed, verifying this Egyptian claim to a virgin birth, Bonwick relates: In an ancient Christian work, called the "Chronicle of Alexandria," occurs the following: "Watch how Egypt has consecrated the childbirth of a virgin, and the birth of her son, who was exposed in a crib to all the adoration of the people…"[5] The "Chronicle of Alexandria" or Chronicum Alexandrinum is also called the "Paschal Chronicle" or Chronicon Paschale, a Christian work begun in the 3rd century and finished in the 7th century.[6] In The Origin of All Religious Worship, French Abbé Charles Dupuis relates the same information: …the author of the Chronicle of Alexandria…expresses himself in the following words: "The Egyptians have consecrated up to this day the child-birth of a virgin and the nativity of her son, who is exposed in a 'crib' to the adoration of the people. King Ptolemy, having asked the reason of this custom, he was answered that it was a mystery, taught by a respectable prophet to their fathers."[7] Also verifying these assertions, Arthur D. Thomson states: The Chronicle of Alexandria has preserved the tradition of the practice of exhibiting the sun on the supposed day of his birth as a new-born infant as being held sacred in the mysteries of Egypt... "Up to the present time Egypt has held sacred the delivery of a virgin and the birth of her son, who is exposed in a cradle to the adoration of the people. King Ptolemy having asked the reason of this practice, the Egyptians told him that it was a mystery taught to their ancestors by a venerable prophet."[8] The part about Ptolemy and the mysteries is important, for a couple of reasons: [1]. It means that this custom of bringing forth the newborn sun of the virgin mother dated back at least to the time of Ptolemy Soter, three centuries prior to the Christian era; and [2]. The custom being a mystery indicates it was not widely known by the masses or exposed by initiates under the penalty of death, such that we do not find it recorded in numerous sources from the pertinent era. We do, however, possess this curious passage from the Christian text the Chronicon Paschale. Citing the Chronicum Alexandrinum (366) as his source, Thompson

 

[1] Budge, CH, 211.

[2] Gordon, 460.

[3] TCR, 362.

[4] JTVI, 137.

[5] Bonwick, 143.

[6] On p. 256, McCabe relates that the pertinent passage of the Chronicon Paschale may be found in Migne's Patrologia Graeca, xcii, or "PG92," col. 385.

[7] Dupuis, 237.

[8] Thomson, 481.

 

provides the original Greek, which does indeed say what it is alleged to relate, the pertinent word here being parthenos or "virgin."[1] The assertion that Horus's mother was a virgin can also be found in the Book of the Dead, chapter 66, in which the deceased identifies himself as Horus and says: "I know that I have been conceived by Sechit and that I am born of Neith."[2] Budge's translation of the same passage from ch. 66 is as follows: "I was conceived by the goddess Sekhet, and the goddess Neith gave birth to me. I am Horus..."[3] Sechit or Sekhet is the wife of Ptah and mother of the god Atum, representing the "second personage of the Memphis triad,"[4] one of the Egyptian "holy trinities." Identified with the goddess Hathor,[5] who in turn is identified with Isis, Sekhet represents another form of the Dawn goddess.[6] Not surprisingly, in the mythology of other cultures, such as the Indian and Greek, appears the same theme of the personified and deified Dawn giving birth to the sun—the inviolable or virgin mother. [7] In addition, in this ancient text we possess an identification of the mother of Horus as the goddess Neith, who is by all accounts a virgin mother from thousands of years prior to the Christian era. In fact, some scholarship provides for estimates of the pre-historic Neith's worship dating back some 7,000 years.[8] Regarding the important and ancient goddess Neith, from whom Horus is said to have been born, Budge states: And the priests of the goddess Net (Neith) of Sais...held the view that she was selfbegotten and self-produced, that she was the mother of the Sun-god, and at the same time a perpetual virgin-goddess.9 Moreover, in a startling series of admissions concerning Isis, sincere Christian Budge further remarks: …it is clear that early Christians bestowed some of her attributes upon the Virgin Mary. There is little doubt that in her character of the loving and protecting mother she appealed strongly to the imagination of all the Eastern peoples among whom her cult came, and that the pictures and sculptures wherein she is represented in the act of suckling her child Horus formed the foundation for the Christian figures and paintings of the Madonna and Child. Several of the incidents of the wanderings of the Virgin with the Child in Egypt as recorded in the Apocryphal Gospels reflect scenes in the life of Isis as described in the texts found on the Metternich Stele, and many of the attributes of Isis, the God-mother, the mother of Horus, and of Neith, the goddess of Sais, are identical with those of Mary the Mother of Christ. The writers of the Apocryphal Gospels intended to pay additional honour to Mary the Virgin by

 

[1] "Εως νυν Αιγυπτιοι θεοποιουσιν Παρθενου λοχον και ΒρεΦος εν Φατνη τιθεντες προσκυνουσιν. Και Πτολεµαιω τω Βασιλει την αιτιαν πυνθανοµενω ελεγον, οτι παραδοτον εστι µυστηριον υπο οσιου Προφητου τοις πατρασιν ηµων παραδοθεν." This citation appears to refer to a version published in the 17th century.

[2] Renouf, 128.

[3] Budge, EBD (Routledge), 228.

[4] Wilkinson, 39.

[5] Lockyer, TDA, 211.

[6] Lockyer, TDA, 31.

[7] Cf. Acharya/Murdock, SOG, 178, 180, 182, 199, 202, 205, 214, 222.

[8] Bonwick, 114.

[9] Budge, ASH, 168-169.

 

ascribing to her the attributes which up to the time of the advent of Christianity they had regarded as the peculiar property of Isis and Neith and other great indigenous goddesses, and if the parallels between the mythology history of Isis and Horus and the history of Mary and the Child be considered, it is difficult to see how they could possibly avoid perceiving in the teachings of Christianity reflections of the best and most spiritual doctrines of the Egyptian religion. The doctrine of parthenogenesis was well known in Egypt in connexion with the goddess Neith of Sais centuries before the birth of Christ; and the belief in the conception of Horus by Isis through the power given her by Thoth, the Intelligence or Mind of the God of the universe, and in the resurrection of the body and of everlasting life, is coeval with the beginnings of history in Egypt. We may note too in passing the probability that many of the heresies of the early Christian Church in Egypt were caused by the survival of ideas and beliefs connected with the old native gods which the converts to Christianity wished to adapt to their new creed.[1] Essentially Budge is indicating that much of the Christian religion and tradition is related to the Egyptian religion, including direct lifts of attributes from Egyptian goddesses later ascribed to the Virgin Mary. Budge states definitively that "partheno-genesis"—virgin birth— was known in Egypt centuries prior to the Christian era, specifically as concerns the goddess Neith. Of Neith, Bonwick likewise states, "Neith or Nout is neither more nor less than the Great Mother, and yet the Immaculate Virgin, or female god, from whose bosom all things has proceeded."[2] Again, Budge states, "She was the Virgin-mother of the Sun-god, and the 'Mother-goddess' of the Western Delta."[3] In his History of the Egyptian Religion, Dr. Cornelius P. Tiele (1830-1902), a professor of the History of Religions at the University of Leiden, likewise commented on the virginity of Neith: ...Neith is distinguished...by being a virgin goddess. This is expressed in the words inscribed on her temple, "My garment no one has lifted up," which is immediately followed by, "The fruit that I have borne is the sun." She is thus the virgin mother of the sun...[4] In Religious Systems of the World, Dr. Tiele also refers to "Isis the virgin."[5] As Neith gives birth to the sun god Ra (and Horus), so too does Isis give birth to the sun god Horus. In reality, Isis is a later form of Neith, the two combined as "Isis-Neith" or "Neith-Isis." Budge also states that Neith was "identified with Hathor and Isis." The goddess Neith was celebrated at the Egyptian site of Sais, where she had a temple, also dedicated to her alter-ego Isis. Budge further discloses that "at Sais there were several chambers in which the 'Mysteries' of the ancient Virgin Mother-goddess Neith were celebrated."[6] According to Plutarch (ch. 9), "In Saïs the statue of Athena, whom they believe to be Isis, bore the mysterious inscription: 'I am all that has been, and is, and shall be, and my robe no mortal has yet uncovered.'"[7] As noted, this inscription at Sais finished with the sentence, "The fruit I have produced is the sun."

 

[1] Budge, TGE, II, 220. (Emph. added.)

[2] Bonwick, 115.

[3] Budge, FFGAE, 59.

[4] Tiele, CHEMR, 204.

[5] RSW, 214.

[6] Budge, FFGAE, 25.

[7] Plutarch/Babbitt, 25

 

Regarding this inscription at Sais, Thomson remarks: Proclus, who, as well as Plutarch, has given the inscription over the temple of the Virgin of Sais, the mother of the sun, whom they both say is identical with Minerva [Athena], speaking of the seat of this goddess in the heavens, gives her two places— the one near Aries, or the equinoctial Lamb, whose form the god of light assumes in spring, and other in the celestial Virgin, or in the sign which presides at her birth (Procl. in Tim. p. 43); so that it appears that Isis, the mother of the sun, to whom the temple at Sais was dedicated, was the same that Eratosthenes places in the constellation Virgo, which opened that year. The symbolic representation of the year itself was a woman called Isis, according to Horapollo (vol. I. cap. iii.). It was in honour of this same virgin, the image of the pure and luminous substance, that the celebrated feast of lights (on which Candlemas, or the feast of Lights of the Purification, is founded) and was celebrated.[1] In his Commentary on Plato's Timaeus, Greek neoplatonist Proclus (c. 412-485 AD/CE) also discusses the city of Sais, the founding goddess of which is Neith, whom he likewise says the Egyptians equate with the Greek goddess Athena.[2] Proclus's rendition in Greek of the inscription at Sais is as follows: τα οντα και τα εσοµενα και τα γεγονοτα εγω ειµι. τον εµον χιτωνα ουδεις απεκαλυψεν. ον εγω καρπον ετεκον, ηλιος εγενετο.[3] My very literal translation of this inscription is as follows: The present and the future and the past, I am. My undergarment no one has uncovered. The fruit I begot, the sun came into being. Regarding the meaning of the statement concerning no one uncovering Neith's garment, William Coleman remarks: The point is this: Does the expression, "lifting the garment"...of Neith refer to her perpetual virginity or to her inscrutability? There is not a shadow of doubt that it refers to the former, and I am confident that every Egyptologist in the world will so decide.[4] The general interpretation of this inscription is that Neith, one of the most important deities of the Egyptian pantheon, is not only the "Alpha and Omega," so to speak, but also the inviolate begetter of the sun, the Immaculate Virgin and Great Mother. The fact of her association with the Greek goddess Athena—herself a chaste and pristine virgin, as indicated by the name of her temple at Athens, the Parthenon—confirms Neith's esteemed virginal status. Also, that the perpetual virginity of the goddess was a mystery is indicated by both Plutarch and Budge, the former of whom further identifies the virginal goddess at Sais as Isis. Among other attributes, scholars have found in Neith a representation of both the winter solstice and the summer solstice, as well as the sun itself.[5] The suggestion that Neith—who gives birth to the sun—is also the winter solstice lends credence to the assertion that Horus was born on the winter solstice, especially since in the Book of the Dead Horus says he is born of Neith, further validating the inscription at Sais.

 

[1] Thomson, 468-469.

[2] Proclus (Tim. 21E), 97.

[3] Proclus (Tim. 21E), 98.

[4] Coleman, 66.

[5] Bonwick, 117.

 

As stated, in the myths of other cultures, the "inviolable begetter of the sun" is the dawn, personified as a chaste goddess. Indeed, concerning Isis, Budge remarks, "As a nature goddess she is seen standing in the boat of the sun, and she was probably the deity of the dawn."[1] Royal astronomer Sir J. Norman Lockyer concurs. "Isis represents the Dawn and the Twighlight; she prepares the way for the Sun-god."[2] Interestingly, Budge names Neith and Isis as among the goddesses who are "names of the Sky, especially at sun-rise and sunset." (AGFSER, 2) That fact would make of Neith also a dawn goddess, and once again the identification of Neith with Isis is made. Concerning the identification of Isis with Neith, whose virginal state long prior to the Christian era has been attested by a number of sources, Bonwick likewise says of Isis: "She is seen to assume the role of Neith."[3] It is erroneously claimed that, because in one version of the myth Isis impregnates herself with Osiris's severed phallus, she cannot be considered a "virgin." In the first place, we are discussing myths, not set-in-stone biographies of real people with the relevant body parts. In addition, there is at least one other version of the myth in which Isis merely hovers above Osiris's body in order to become pregnant with Horus, as illustrated in an image from Denderah,[4] and the fact will remain that Isis was considered by many of her ardent worshippers to be chaste and virginal regardless of the manner in which she was impregnated. Furthermore, in his eye-opening comparison of Isis with the Virgin Mary, Budge states that in the Osirian myth it is by incantations, spells and words that Isis draws the seed into herself to conceive Horus.[5] Says Budge: By these spells she, assisted by her son Horus and by Anubis, the divine physician, reconstituted and revivified the body of Osiris, and thus created her son Horus, and recreated Osiris.[6] The identification of Isis with the Virgin is further made in an ancient Greek text called The Katasterismoi, or Catasterismi, allegedly written by the astronomer Eratosthenes (276-194 BCE), who was for some 50 years the head librarian of the massive Library of Alexandria.[7] Although the original of this text has been lost, an "epitome" credited to Eratosthenes in ancient times has been attributed by modern scholars to an anonymous "PseudoEratosthenes" of the 1st to 2nd centuries AD/CE. [8] In this book, the title of which translates as "Placing Among the Stars," appear discussions of the signs of the zodiac. In his essay on the zodiacal sign of Virgo (ch. 9), under the heading of "Parthenos," the author includes the goddess Isis among others such as Demeter, Atagartis and Tyche, as identified with and as the constellation of the Virgin. [9] In Star Myths of the Greeks and Romans, Dr. Theony Condos translates the pertinent passage from the chapter "Virgo" by Pseudo-Eratosthenes thus:

 

[1] Budge, EBD, cxiv.

[2] Lockyer, TDA, 29. 31

[3] Bonwick, 113.

[4] Budge, ER, 80.

[5] Budge, LOLM, liii.

[6] Budge, LOLM, liii.

[7] Condos, 17.

[8] Condos, 18-19.

[9] Eratosthenes, 244-245.

 

Hesiod in the Theogony says this figure is Dike, the daughter of Zeus and Themis… Some say it is Demeter because of the sheaf of grain she holds, others say it is Isis, others Atagartis, others Tyche…and for that reason they represent her as headless.[1] The headlessness of the goddess/constellation is interesting in consideration of the story that Isis too was at some point decapitated.[2] Thus, Isis was associated with the constellation of Virgo, the Virgin. In fact, as we know well, much of the myth surrounding Osiris, Isis and Horus is indeed astrological or astrotheological. Hence, in the myth of Isis and Horus appears the theme of the constellation of the Virgin giving birth to the baby sun at the winter solstice, long before the Christian era and undoubtedly serving as the germ for the Nativity story of Jesus Christ. Nor is Neith-Isis the only pre-Christian and non-Christian virgin mother. In Heroes and Heroines of Fiction, William Shepard Walsh states: Virgin-mothers. Long before the time of Christ, parthenogenesis, or reproduction by a virgin, was as familiar to ancient Greek, Egyptian and Oriental legend as it is to modern biology. Guatama [sic] Buddha was only one of many Oriental heroes whose mother was a virgin. The Egyptian Horus was conceived by Isis without the direct intervention of a male. Isis has been identified with the Greek Demeter, and Demeter also was a virgin, even when she bore a child, Persephone or Proserpine.[3] As we have seen, it has been contended that the Greek earth mother Demeter/Ceres, who gave birth to the season-goddess Persephone/Kore, was said to be a virgin, equated with Virgo by Pseudo-Eratosthenes, for one. Regarding the virginal status of Demeter, the authoritative Christian publication The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge, in its entry on the "Virgin Birth," reports: Nowhere, perhaps, has comparative religion discovered a more impressive instance of virgin birth than in the Eleusinian Mysteries. The supreme moment of the solemn celebration of these rites was marked by the marriage of the sacred mother and the birth of the sacred child. The mother was Brimo, a maiden, a goddess of the underworld, the Thessalian Kore or Demeter, the goddess of the fruits of the cultivated earth…. Thus at the very heart and culmination of the ceremonies at this sacred shrine in ancient Greece, centuries before its appearance in the Septuagint, the dogma had been created, "A virgin shall conceive and shall bear a son.[4] Not only does this passage validate the claim that there were other, pre-Christian virgin births, but it also supports the notion that this motif of parthenogenesis constituted a mystery. Thus, this motif represented part of the famous Eleusinian Mysteries, which, we contend, is one of the reasons the virgin birth is not widely known, including in the myth of Isis, who also had her mysteries, evidently including her own perpetual virginity. Mary is Mery Redux? The similarities between the Egyptian and Christian mothers of God do not end with their names or perpetual virginity. Like the Virgin Mary turned away from an inn while with child, the pregnant Isis too is refused a "night's lodging."[5] Also like Mary, who flees with the baby

 

[1] Condos, 205.

[2] Griffiths, 104.

[3] Walsh, 344.

[4] Schaff-Herzog, 212.

[5] Budge, LOLM, liii-liiii.

 

Jesus into Egypt to escape the tyrant Herod, Isis must flee with the baby Horus to another part of Egypt to escape the tyrant Set.[1] Like Jesus, Isis is imbued with the ability to raise the dead, first resurrecting Osiris, and then, after Set as a scorpion stings the baby Horus to death, resurrecting her son as well.[2] Isis is also depicted as the healing deity, likewise saving the life of the sun god Ra, when he too was poisoned.[3] Of Isis's healing abilities, Budge remarks, "The great Codices of the Book of the Dead written under the XVIIIth dynasty prove that the blood of Isis was believed to possess great magical protective powers."[4] Thus, Isis's magical blood is like that of Christ. In addition, as Christians do with the Virgin Mary, Isis's female worshippers petitioned her to make them fertile and able to conceive. [5] Isis's titles were many, including: "Divine Lady," "Greatest of gods and goddesses," "Queen of the gods," "Lady of heaven," "Holy one of heaven," "Great goddess of the Other World," "Mother of Horus," "Mother of the God," "Lady of Life," "Lady of joy and gladness" and "Queen of heaven."[6] By the time of the common era, it would not be an exaggeration to say that Isis was the most important deity of the Roman Empire, and, as such, her influence cannot be overstated. Her millions of worshippers would no more simply forget her than would the devotees of the Virgin Mary today, without a very powerful and concerted effort to usurp her worship by setting up a competing cult, which is precisely what happened with Christianity. As Budge points out, the powerful gods of the Isian cult became widespread around the Mediterranean, including and especially in Greece, four to five centuries before the Christian era, with Isis one of the most popular gods at Rome by the first century BCE. [7] From Rome, the cult of Isis spread throughout other parts of the Roman Empire, including Europe and Libya. At this point, these many worshippers of Isis all around the vast territory of the Empire perceived reality in the following manner: ...The resurrection of Osiris taught them to believe in the resurrection of the dead, the conception and birth of Horus, preached the doctrine of life arising out of death, the triumph of Horus over Set symbolized the ultimate victory of good over evil, and the sorrows of Isis and her tender mother-love touched all hearts.[8] Concerning this "preparation for Christianity," as apologists over the centuries have disingenuously deemed it, Budge states: ...the knowledge of the ancient Egyptian religion which we now possess fully justifies the assertions that the rapid growth and progress of Christianity in Egypt were due mainly to the fact that the new religion, which was preached there by Saint Mark and his immediate followers, in all its essentials so closely resembled that which was the outcome of the worship of Osiris, Isis and Horus that popular opposition was entirely disarmed. In certain places in the south of Egypt, e.g., Philae, the worship of Osiris and Isis maintained its own until the beginning of the fifth century of our era, though this was in reality due to the support which it received from the Nubians, but, speaking generally, at this period in all other parts of Egypt Mary the Virgin and Christ had taken the places of Isis and Horus, and the "God-mother" or "mother of

 

[1] Budge, LOLM, liii-liiii.

[2] Budge, LOLM, liiii.

[3] Budge, LOLM, liiii.

[4] Budge, LOLM, liv.

[5] Budge, LOLM, lv.

[6] Budge, LOLM, lv-lvi.

[7] Budge, LOLM, lvii-lviii.

[8] Budge, LOLM, lviii.

 

 

 

the god," was no longer Isis but Mary whom the Monophysites styled θεοτοκος ["Mother of God"].[1] Again, Budge remarks on the takeover of the Egyptian religion by Christianity: And the bulk of the masses in Egypt and Nubia who professed Christianity transferred to Mary the Virgin the attributes of Isis the Everlasting Mother, and to the Babe Jesus those of Horus.[2] Once more Budge says, "When the Egyptians embraced Christianity they saw nothing strange in identifying [Isis] with the Virgin Mary, and her son Horus with the Babe Christ."[3] Of this apparent development and transparent usurpation of the Egyptian religion by Christians, Budge concludes: It has often been said and written that the cult of Isis and Horus and the worship of Mary the Virgin and the Child are one and the same thing... [4] With all these facts in mind, the insistence that Christianity sprang up in a vacuum as a unique and new "divine revelation" appears completely ludicrous and unsustainable. Nevertheless, Budge, a pious Christian, attempts to delineate the two cults, based on the allegation that Mary was not a goddess but a "real person." However, we think the apologist does protest too much and that it is obvious the Christian myth was designed to take over the Egyptian one, with the mythical Virgin Mary composed in order to overthrow the highly popular Isis. Oddly, even in face of his protests Budge continues to make these strong comparisons between Isis and Mary, even claiming that Mary too had "raised the dead and worked other miracles." Budge persists with the parallels: Osiris, more than Horus, resembles Jesus in respect of His murder by the Jews. Isis bewailed Osiris in the shrines of Egypt, as Mary bewailed her Son at Golgotha. The seven scorpion-goddesses who attended Isis seem to have their counterpart in the seven maidens who were associated with Mary in weaving the Veil of the Temple....[5] At this point, Budge tries again to differentiate the two stories, all the while assuming the Judeo-Christian tale to be "historical." In reality, the differences are slim and to be expected if Jewish priests were merely weaving Egyptian myths together with their own scriptures, which is precisely what we contend was done in the creation of the Christ and Virgin Mary characters, as well as Christianity as a whole. These peculiar attributes of Mary related by Budge that are not found in the canonical gospels, it should be noted, come from the apocryphal or "hidden" texts concerning her alleged life. As yet another example of how the Egyptian religion was copied to become "Christian revelation," Budge discusses a "little work" of magical writings called the "Lefafa Sedek," or "Bandlet of Righteousness." In the Lefafa Sedek, the Christian author claims the booklet constituted a "divine revelation" dictated to Jesus and passed along firstly to the Virgin Mary and then to the archangel Michael, who revealed its contents to the apostles. Concerning this booklet, Budge remarks, "The Lefafa Sedek is constructed on the same plan as the

 

[1] Budge, TGE, 220-221. (Emph. added.)

[2] Budge, OOER, 306.

[3] Budge, ASH, 181.

[4] Budge, LOLM, lix. (Emph. added.)

[5] Budge, LOLM, lix-lx.

 

Egyptian Book of the Dead, and is a veritable Ethiopian Book of the Dead. But the author, who was a Christian, substitutes God for Ra, Christ for Thoth, and the Virgin Mary for Isis."[1] Just like the Ritual, this Christian book was written on strips of linen and wrapped around dead bodies. Thus, we possess an apparently cut-and-dry case of Christians copying the Egyptian religion, texts and rituals, which, again, we assert was done with the gospel story itself and many other aspects of Christianity. This changeover from the Egyptian to the Christian religion occurred within the Gnostic movement as well. As Budge further states: The Egyptian Gnostics rejected many of the pagan cults of the early dynastic Egyptians, but they regarded Ra, Horus and Harpokrates [Horus the Child] as forms of their "One God of heaven," and they connected Isis with the Virgin Mary, Osiris and Serapis with Christ...[2] In fact, if we were we to include the apocryphal and Gnostic texts in our investigation, we would develop a much longer list of parallels between the Egyptian and Christian religions. This significant situation regarding the virgin mother of the god serves as a perfect example of how myths are made, as in the Ritual we possess not a story of Horus being born of the virgin mother Neith but the "deceased" (through his living representative) making statements that "I am Horus" and "I am born of Neith." Thus, when we say that Horus was born of a virgin, we are not claiming this fact is laid out in a concise story but, rather, that it was indeed a characteristic of Horus long prior to the Christian era. And again, the virgin birth motif appears to have been one of the major mysteries, not to be divulged to the "vulgar masses." Hence, it was not readily written down and made publicly available. In the end, rolling all of these qualities and myths into one, we can honestly say that the Egyptian son of God Horus was born on December 25th of the Virgin Mother Isis-Mery. From all the evidence so far presented, it may further be truthfully asserted that this same statement regarding Jesus and Mary represents a mythical construct based in large part on the Egyptian religion.

 

[1] Budge, AS, 195-196.

[2] Budge, AS, 203.

 

 

Before we move on I just want to cover a few more Virgin Birth Myths that I feel are important to cover before we move on

For starters Perseus a figure who you can see from the Raglan Hero Scale shares many parallels with Christ one of the most interesting and notable parallels between these 2 characters however is Perseus being born of Danae a Chaste Virgin locked in a tower and inaccesable to any man when Jupiter/Jove impregnated her through a "Golden shower" of coins so to speak...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And Io (Isis) Virgin mother of Epaphus (Apis) who was impregnated merely through Zeus touching her forhead with his hand:

 

 

Apis/Epaphus

 

 

Enter Io, a young woman transformed into a cow. [564-65]…
Do you hear my voice, the voice of the cow-horned girl? [601]…
“You lucky, lucky girl, why stay a virgin, when you have the chance to make the greatest marriage? Zeus is inflamed by the arrow of desire to join with you in love. Don’t reject his bed, child, but go out to Lerna’s deep meadow and your father’s herds, so the eye of Zeus may gain relief from longing.” [664-69]… 
There’s a city, Canopus, at the edge of the land,
by the Nile’s mouth, where the river drops its silt.
There Zeus will bring you to your senses, with
a gentle touch, a hand you need not fear.
Your son, dark Epaphus, born from that touch
and named for it, will harvest all the land
irrigated by the broadly flowing Nile. [850-56]… 

Never, never, long-lived Fates,
may you see me sharing the bed of Zeus.
No marriage with one of the heavenly sort for me.
I’m frightened when I see Io,
a virgin who shunned a husband,
destroyed by Hera’s hard traveling. [901-06]

 

 

Aeschylus, Prometheus Bound (5th cen. BCE) 

 

 

As we have already seen and shall continue to see Virgin Mothers are a very common motif in the Pagan world. Regardless of Marital status, amount of children and matter of impregnation these goddesses I have went through so far as well as many others we shall get into later retained there virginity due to them being astrotheological motifs symbolizing  for Virgo the "Virgin" in the Zodiac. and because of this reasons can be concidered "Virgin Mothers" isuch examples i shall cover more later and some I've already covered include but are not limited to:

 

Rhea Sylvia Virgin Mother of Romulus and Remus

Alcmene Virgin Mother of Herakles/Hercules

Nut/Neith Virgin Mother of Ra, Osiris, Set, Horus The Elder, Isis, Nepthys, Apap, Sobek and Tutu

Isis-Meri Virgin Mother of Osiris-Aion and Horus

Mut Virgin mother of Khonsu and the entire Marvel Universe

Hathor Virgin mother of Osiris and Apis (Serapis) and Horus

Danae Virgin mother of Perseus 

Hera/Juno Virgin Mother of Enyo, Ares/Mars, Alcides, Heaphestus/Vulcan and Typhon

Semele, Demeter/Ceres and Persephone/Kore Virgin Mothers of Dionysus/Bacchus

Io Virgin Mother of Epaphus

Nephthys Virgin Mother of Anubis or Anup The Baptizer

Inanna/Ishtar Virgin Mother of Tammuz/Dumuzid

Myrrah/Maia Virgin Mother of Hermes/Mercury, Adonis/Tammuz, and Dionysus/Bacchus 

Maya Royal Virgin Queen of Heaven Mother of Buddha

Aditi Virgin Mother of Vishnu and Mitra

Devaki Virgin mother of Krishna

Cybele/Nana Virgin Mother of Attis

Anahita Virgin Mother of Mithras

Athena/Minerva Virgin Mother of Ericthonius and Apollo/Dionysus

Aphrodite/Venus Virgin Mother of Eros/Cupid, Phobos, Deimos, Hermaphrodite, Harmonia, Anneus and Julius Caesar

(Et Tu Judas/Brutus? than fall Caesar!)

Artemis/Diana Virgin mother of Aphrodite/Venus as per Cicero On The Nature Of The Gods Book III

Gaia (Mother Earth) Virgin Mother of Uranus, Pontus, The Nymphs, The 12 Titans, Scorpio and Mithras

Olympias Virgin Mother of Alexander The Great 

 

 

Lastly before we move on here is an intersting debate between a Gospel Apologist by the name of "Windword" and a "Demon" named 

 

windword

posted on Feb, 26 2014 @ 04:27 PM

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reply to post by adjensen

 

 

1) I asked you for an ancient Egyptian source that calls Isis the "Great Virgin".
2) I asked you how learning the mysteries of the universe means having sex.

Here ya go. According to the Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament, at the Abydos Temple of Seti, Isis claims that she is "The Great Virgin" Ptolemaic text require that women acting, for ritual purposes, on behalf of Hathor, Isis or Nephthys must be virgins.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jesuslives4u

posted on Feb, 26 2014 @ 05:35 PM

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adjensen
reply to post by Eniii

 

What is this guy's PhD in? 'Cause it sure isn't history, lol.

There is a reason that the existence of a person in the First Century named Jesus who began a new sect of Judaism, call Christianity, is almost universally accepted --and that is because there is something called historical evidence.

You can start with the Surviving Documents from the Council of Nicaea and work your way back from there.

ETA: Oh, here he is: Black Liberation Network


Call me old fashioned, but I prefer my history from historians, not counselors.

ETA2: Okay, I can get past him not knowing how to pronounce Ptolomy and for not knowing what the Greek word "Christus" means, but the "Son/Sun" argument? THE BIBLE WASN'T WRITTEN IN ENGLISH, YOU IDIOT!!!

lol

 

edit on 24-2-2014 by adjensen because: (no reason given)

His PhD is most likely a diploma mill bought off the internet for $39.95

 

gazzerman

posted on Feb, 26 2014 @ 08:08 PM

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IMPORTANT

youtube

At the 1hr 20min mark this guy says something that I think is actually criminal?

For the next 3 minutes he talks about how he is not condoning violence but says remove the heads of your enemies, he then says he was robbed and some people he knows took care of the guy and removed his hands!!

So he is aware of the people that did this, did this violent act get reported to the police?

To be honest the reason I was watching this video was because of the one the OP posted and I found this guy to be fairly interesting in his views, its always interesting to see peoples points of view. However I think he steps in to a dangerous place at the 1hr 20min mark and condones violence in a scary way.

Thoughts?

edit on 26-2-2014 by gazzerman because: (no reason given)

 

adjensen

posted on Feb, 26 2014 @ 10:10 PM

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reply to post by windword

 

Thanks for finding that. I guess that we can conclude that some ancient Egyptians thought that Isis was a virgin, and some thought that she had sexual intercourse with Osiris' corpse (I presume that we can agree that Isis did not exist and did not actually declare herself "the Great Virgin".)

But, once again, I stand by my claim that Isis' virginity is of no consequence for Egyptian theology, while Mary's virginity is significant for Christianity, so it is highly unlikely that the writers of the Gospel simply "copied" any claims of Isis' virginity and applied them to Mary -- there is no evidence that they even would have known about such, and absolutely no reason for them to have done so.

 

 

bigfatfurrytexan

posted on Feb, 26 2014 @ 10:14 PM

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reply to post by adjensen

 

I am not proclaiming that Mary is based on Isis.

but it is important to note that the story of Jesus had to have the "chops" to pass muster among the people who were being targeted for conversion (the intended audience of the marketing pamphlets that became our bible). To be of a virgin birth is just another checkmark in legitimizing Jesus as a god on earth. Akin to the symbolic importance of riding into jerusalem via the east gate.

 

windword

posted on Feb, 26 2014 @ 10:57 PM

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reply to post by adjensen

 

 

Thanks for finding that. I guess that we can conclude that some ancient Egyptians thought that Isis was a virgin, and some thought that she had sexual intercourse with Osiris' corpse.

Your welcome. 

 

No. I don't agree with that. I think it was common knowledge and widely accepted that Isis was a virgin goddess. There is no ancient Egyptian text, that I know of, nor pictorial inscription of of Isis, the woman, having sex with a contrived phallus. The conception of Horus took place with Isis hovering over Osiris as a bird, a hawk. There was no sexual intercourse, between a man and woman, or a man and a bird, in the conception of Horus. It was magic, magic that was orchestrated and overseen by the God Thoth.
 

(I presume that we can agree that Isis did not exist and did not actually declare herself "the Great Virgin".)

I don't know. The character of Isis may have been based off a real prediluvia queen. But the essence of the mother goddess, the feminine principle of the holy trinity is a spiritual truth. That essence has never incarnated in one person who lived and walked on earth, among the living, just as the essence of "God" never incarnated into one flesh and blood body and lived and died on earth, in my opinion.
 

But, once again, I stand by my claim that Isis' virginity is of no consequence for Egyptian theology, while Mary's virginity is significant for Christianity, so it is highly unlikely that the writers of the Gospel simply "copied" any claims of Isis' virginity and applied them to Mary -- there is no evidence that they even would have known about such, and absolutely no reason for them to have done so.

Why wouldn't the writers of the Gospel know about Egyptian mythology? Didn't the holy family supposedly "hide out" in Egypt?

The similarities between the Osiris, Horus Isis mythology and the Christian theme of Jesus and the issues surrounding his virgin birth can't be dismissed.
 

"The miraculous birth of Jesus could be viewed as analogous to that of Horus, whom Isis conceived posthumously from Osiris, and Mary was closely connected with Isis by many other shared characteristics."

- Dr. Erik Hornung, The Secret Lore of Egypt, 75

 

"The Egyptian goddess who was equally ‘the Great Virgin’ (hwnt) and ‘Mother of the God’ was the object of the very same praise bestowed upon her successor [Mary, Virgin Mother of Jesus]."

- Dr. R.E. Witt, Isis in the Ancient World, 273

 

"...the resemblances between Isis and the Virgin Mary are far too close and numerous to be accidental. There can, in fact, be no question that the Isiac cult was a profound influence on other religions, not least Christianity ... [Isis] was the sacred embodiment of motherhood, yet was known as the Great Virgin, an apparent contradiction that will be familiar to Christians."

- Dr. James Curl, The Egyptian Revival, 12-13

 

adjensen

posted on Feb, 26 2014 @ 11:23 PM

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reply to post by windword

 

 

There is no ancient Egyptian text, that I know of, nor pictorial inscription of of Isis, the woman, having sex with a contrived phallus.

Oh, come on. I cited the Egyptian text, way back when, that says that Isis collected the pieces of Osiris, reassembled him, and copulated with the corpse to produce Horus. In the picture that I posted, it has Isis, in the form of a bird, hovering over the phallus of Osiris, clearly copulating with him, in order to produce Horus.

Give it a rest. Some, probably not all Egyptians believed that Iris had sex with Osiris. If you continue in your belligerent argument against that position, I'm done with this thread.

 

gazzerman

posted on Feb, 27 2014 @ 12:31 AM

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So I guess nobody cares about my post above? And this guys murderous actions?

 

Year1

posted on Feb, 27 2014 @ 02:26 AM

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There are just do many blatant untruths in this video. At just past 34 minutes, he says “There was one God.  ‘He ain’t got no son’....That was Arius’ argument.”

Yet nearly every letter from Arias mentions "He begat a Son"....

I just cannot overlook that this man preaches based upon human emotion, and appeals to pride....which blinds people to truth. The above example is small, but is so easily proven as an untruth -

 

adjensen

posted on Feb, 27 2014 @ 09:19 AM

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reply to post by gazzerman

 

YouTube is full of nuts like this guy… if you think that there is something criminal being attested to in the video, report it to YouTube.
 

 

Tragically, as noted in the screenshot, in the case of VonHelton videos, there is no "This video is an insult to intelligence" option, lol.

 

bigfatfurrytexan

posted on Feb, 27 2014 @ 09:44 AM

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reply to post by gazzerman

 

Not really.

If someone robs me, there'll be a funeral procession in my town too.

 

windword

posted on Feb, 27 2014 @ 11:33 AM

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reply to post by adjensen

 

 

Give it a rest. Some, probably not all Egyptians believed that Iris had sex with Osiris. If you continue in your belligerent argument against that position, I'm done with this thread.

Can you admit that "Some, probably not all" Christians believed that Mary had sex to conceive Jesus?

I can take no responsibility for your perception of me, as I harbor no hostility or aggression toward you or your position, and I'm truly sorry if I gave you that impression. I'm merely arguing against your evidence, by tediously presenting my own. If you feel so intimated by this discussion, that you feel you need to leave the thread, I'll understand. But I won't acquiesce to a concept that I believe to be false.

I might also remind you, that YOU are the one who first brought up Horus and the claim the Isis was not a virgin. Had you not made that assertion, in this POST in this thread, I would not have challenged you.
 

Me
There is no ancient Egyptian text, that I know of, nor pictorial inscription of of Isis, the woman, having sex with a contrived phallus.

 

Adjenson
Oh, come on. I cited the Egyptian text, way back when, that says that Isis collected the pieces of Osiris, reassembled him, and copulated with the corpse to produce Horus. In the picture that I posted, it has Isis, in the form of a bird, hovering over the phallus of Osiris, clearly copulating with him, in order to produce Horus.

That is not how the story goes, according to the Pyramid Texts.
 

As for your picture, here is one of Isis, in the form of a bird, having sex with Osiris.

                             


That picture/relief is pretty damaged, and I can see how you might think that looks like a phallus. Here's a better example the image of the Conception of Horus that archaeologists/scholars have presented.
 

PLATE XIV.
The Procreation of Horus, son of Isis.
 

Details of the engagement are wanting, but the Pyramid Texts state that the body of Osiris was hurled to the ground by Set at a place called Netat, which seems to have been near Abydos.

1 The news of the death of Osiris was brought to Isis, and she at once set out to find his body. All legends agree in saying that she took the form of a bird, and that she flew about unceasingly, going hither and thither, and uttering wailing cries of grief. At length she found the body, and with a piercing cry she alighted on the ground. The Pyramid Texts say that Nephthys was with her that "Isis came, Nephthys came, the one on the right side, the other on the left side, one in the form of a Hat bird, the other in the form of a Tchert bird, and they found Osiris thrown on the ground in Netat by

p. l

his brother Set." The late form of the legend goes on to say that Isis fanned the body with her feathers, and produced air, and that at length she caused the inert members of Osiris to move, and drew from him his essence, wherefrom she produced her child Horus.
www.sacred-texts.com...

There was no dismemberment, there was no regathering and reassembling of the body, there was no fake phallus. There is no coitus, no copulation. The essence of Osiris, through Thoth's magic, entered Isis to be reborn as Horus. Horus was not a genetic child produced through chromasonal donation.

If you can provide the ancient Egyptian text of Isis reassembling Osiris's body and created a prosthetic phallus, in order to conceive, I would be happy to admit that there are at least two ancient Egyptian versions. But as it is, the story just isn't in any of the Pyramid Texts, that I can find. And, I have looked! It appears, to me anyway, that this story is later oral adaptation to the Osiris/Isis/Horus saga.

 

edit on 27-2-2014 by windword because: (no reason given)

 

adjensen

posted on Feb, 27 2014 @ 12:47 PM

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reply to post by windword

 

 

Can you admit that "Some, probably not all" Christians believed that Mary had sex to conceive Jesus?

People believe all sorts of things, correct or not. Saying that Mary had sex with a man to conceive Jesus would be heretical, and an indication that the person does not hold Christian beliefs. So the answer is "no", Christians did not believe that Jesus was just a man, because that belief would make them something other than a Christian.
 

That picture/relief is pretty damaged, and I can see how you might think that looks like a phallus.

For at least the third time, it is not my opinion, it is the stated opinion of Egyptologists -- the picture came from a book, Daily Life of the Egyptian Gods, by Dimitri Meeks and Christine Favard-Meeks. Meeks was a research director for the French National Centre for Scientific Research, with a specialization in Egyptology.

From your quoted text:

at length she caused the inert members of Osiris to move, and drew from him his essence, wherefrom she produced her child Horus

That sure sounds like sex to me.
 

There was no dismemberment, there was no regathering and reassembling of the body, there was no fake phallus.

Perhaps in that version, though it doesn't say that there was none, it just doesn't say that there was. But it says different things in different legends:
 

One night, whilst Mighty Isis slept, Seth happened upon the Dead King. In a fury, He tore the body of Osiris into fourteen pieces and scattered them throughout Egypt to ensure they would not all be found.

When Isis found the empty coffin, Her cries reached unto the heavens; even unto the ears of Her beloved Nephthys. She came to Isis' side, and the two sisters searched the land for the scattered body of Osiris. For many sad years the Daughters of Nuit wandered through Egypt. Everywhere They found a fragment They built a shrine. At last, all the pieces were gathered; with the exception of the God's phallus. Isis reassembled Osiris' body, and fashioned a phallus of pure gold to replace the lost member. She wrapped the body in cloth and perfumed it with many scents. Thus was Osiris whole again, and mummification was created.

Isis then transformed Herself into the form of a swallow, and with Her wings She fanned the Breath of Life into Her husband. The Lord of Eternity arose, restored to life at last. But it was only to last for the length of one night, so that He and Isis could conceive their Divine Son Horus. (Source)

I see that version of the conception of Horus far more often than the one you keep citing, so I don't know how you manage to keep overlooking it.

 

windword

posted on Feb, 27 2014 @ 01:40 PM

link   

reply to post by adjensen

 

I have proven, with irrefutable evidence, time and time again, that Isis was "The Great Virgin" by proclamation. It's not a matter of opinion.

An unsubstantiated narrative isn't going to cut it. Again, I ask you cite the authentic ancient Egyptian texts that corresponds to the narrative in the link you have cited. I am aware of the oral narrative of the myth of the "golden phallus", or a "wooden phallus", but I can't find any authentic ancient Egyptian text or hieroglyphs that support that version of the conception of Horus.

My citations are from translations and commentaries on passages from Hymn to Osiris taken from The Egyptian Book of the Dead , as well as the translations of the glyphs from and pictures from the Temple of Seti and Pyramid texts.
 

Thy sister protected thee, and she drove away thy foes, 14. and she warded off from thee evil hap, and uttered the words of power with all the skill of her mouth; her tongue was trained, and she committed no fault of utterance, and she made [her decree and [her words to have effect, Isis, the mighty one, the avenger of her brother. She sought thee without weariness, 15. she went round about through this land in sorrow, and she set not to the ground her foot until she had found thee. She made light with her feathers, she made air to come into being with her wings, and she uttered cries of lamentation at the bier of her brother. 16. She stirred up from his state of inactivity him whose heart was still (i.e., Osiris), she drew from him his seed, she made an heir, she suckled the babe in solitariness, and the place wherein she reared him is unknown, and his hand is mighty within the house 17. of Seb.
The Hymn to Osirus
Read more: www.touregypt.net...

There is nothing in this text to suggest that Isis reassembled a disembodied Osiris, let alone needed a prosthetic phallus to get the job done!

Although, I don't think using a "dildo" qualifies as actual sexual intercourse, I'll just close by saying, unless you can provide authentic ancient Egyptian textual and/or pictorial evidence of Isis reassembling the body of Osiris and fashioning and utilizing a fake phallus, in order to conceive Horus, and not just some guy who says so, I'll consider this discussion over, and the fact of the tradition of Isis, "The Great Virgin" stands.

 

http://www.abovetopsecret.com/forum/thread999391/pg6

 

WindWord did an excellent defence against the "Pagan" adjensen however it is important to remember we are dealing with myths not actual people and thus regardless of any sex Isis engaged in from a mythological perspective she retained her Virginity inspite of the intercourse with the golden phallus and any of supposed images/depictions of her hovering over Osiris's Erect Penis.

 

Also has Adjensen not read from Our Church Pastors and defenders of the faith Dimitri and Christine Meeks? the very same source he cites for the Golden Phallus intercourse?

 

“The marriage of Isis and Osiris was a very brief one, so brief, indeed, that they were not able to consummate their union while Osiris was alive. "Come to me, far face who passed beyond without my having seen him," Isis says after the death of her husband, leading one to suppose that he was murdered before their wedding night.” 

 

Dr. Dimitri Meeks and Dr. Christine Favard-Meeks , Daily Life of the Egyptian Gods (69)

 

 

*Sigh the "Obstinancy" and "Satanism" never end do they?

 

 

 

Born on December 25th

 

"As the annual rebirth of the sun's light, the winter solstice was important in most parts of the world. In fact, the Romans already had an ancient winter festival whose seven days bracketed the solstice.... Choosing the birth of Christ as December 25 successfully integrated long-standing popular traditions with the imagery of a new religion, and the theme of renewal is still part of Christmas."

                                                                                                                                                           

Dr. Edwin C. Krupp, Echoes of the Ancient Skies (81)

 

"The well-known solar feast…of Natalis Invicti, celebrated on 25 December, has a strong claim on the responsibility for our December date [for Christ's Nativity]."

 

Catholic Encyclopedia,

 

"Christmas" "An early Christian work, the 'Paschal Chronicle' (Migne ed. xcii, col. 385), tells us that every year the temples of Horus presented to worshipers, in mid-winter (or about December 25th), a scenic model of the birth of Horus. He was represented as a babe born in a stable, his mother Isis standing by. Just in the same way is the birth of Christ dramatized today in every Roman Catholic church in the world on December 25th. The Roman writer Macrobius makes the same statement about the representation of the birth of Horus in the temples…and adds that the young god was a symbol of the rebirth of the sun at that date. The fact is, at all events, beyond question. We are brought to the very threshold of Christianity. The whole world by the year 1 A.D. was familiar with the Egyptian statues or pictures of Isis with the divine babe Horus in her arms."

 

Joseph McCabe, The Story of Religious Controversy (169)

 

 

Although many people remain unaware of the real meaning behind "Christmas," one of the better known correspondences between pre-Christian religion and Christianity has been the celebration of the god's birth on the 25th of December. Nevertheless, it has been argued that this comparison is erroneous because Jesus Christ was not born on December 25th, an assertion in itself that would come as a surprise to many, since up until just a few years ago only a miniscule percentage of people knew such a fact. In any event, this argument constitutes a logical fallacy, because over the centuries since the holiday was implemented by Christian authorities, hundreds of millions of people have celebrated Jesus's birthday on December 25th, or Christmas, so named after Christ. Moreover, hundreds of millions continue to celebrate the 25th of December as the birth of Jesus Christ, completely oblivious to the notion that this date does not represent the "real" birthday of the Jewish son of God.[1] In actuality, it would be highly refreshing for the facts regarding the true meaning of Christmas to be known around the world: To wit, "Christmas"—or the winter solstice— represents the birth of the sun god dating back millennia. Concerning the origins of this solar holiday vis-à-vis Christianity, the authoritative Catholic Encyclopedia states: The earliest rapprochement of the births of Christ and the sun is in [the writings of Church father] Cyprian [200-258]…"O, how wonderfully acted Providence that on that day on which that Sun was born…Christ should be born."

 

[1] In 2007, the U.S. House of Representatives passed HR 847, officially declaring December 25th to be the birthday of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ: "Whereas on December 25 of each calendar year, American Christians observe Christmas, the holiday celebrating the birth of their savior, Jesus Christ…"

 

 

In the fourth century, Chrysostom…says:… "But Our Lord, too, is born in the month of December…the eight before the calends of January [25 December]…, But they call it the 'Birthday of the Unconquered'. Who indeed is so unconquered as Our Lord…? Or, if they say that it is the birthday of the Sun, He is the Sun of Justice."[1] As we can see from these revealing remarks, the birth of Christ at the winter solstice has been asserted since as early as the 3rd century. Moreover, the reason for this birthdate is clearly given: This date represents "the birthday of the Sun!" Regarding Christ's birth and the establishment of Christmas, Christian apologist Thomas Thorburn relates: The earliest church commemorated it at various times from September to March, until in 354 A.D. Pope Julius I assimilated the festival with that of the birth of Mithra (December 25), in order to facilitate the more complete Christianisation of the empire.[2] Thus, Christ's birth at the winter solstice was not formalized until the fourth century—and this fact demonstrates a deliberate contrivance by Christian officials to usurp other religions, as we contend the entire Christian religion was specifically created to do. Prior to its celebration as the birthday of Jesus Christ, the 25th of December/winter solstice was claimed as the birthday for a number of other gods and godmen, including the PersoRoman god Mithra and the Greek god Dionysus.[3] So too, apparently, do we find this annual celebration in Egypt concerning the sun god, which represents the "birth" of the "new sun" after the "old sun" "dies" around December 21st (in the northern hemisphere), lying in his "tomb" or "cave" for three days and on December 25th being "born again." There appears to be frequent confusion regarding the dates of December 21st, 22nd and 25th . The fact is that all of them represent the time of the winter solstice, which begins at midnight on the 21st—equivalent to the morning of the 22nd—and ends at midnight on the 24th, which is the morning of December 25th. To summarize, in the solar myth the "death" of the "old sun" occurs as the days decrease in length towards the winter solstice, the word "solstice" meaning "sun stands still," as for three days the sun appears not to be moving south or north. Hence, it was considered "dead" and did not "return to life" until three days later, at midnight on December 24th, when it began its northerly journey again. Therefore, the ancients said the sun was born on December 25th . In this regard, it has been the frequent contention of writers since antiquity that the Egyptians likewise celebrated the birth of the sun at the winter solstice, a logical conclusion, considering the reverence with which the sun was held in Egypt. Concerning this cycle in Egypt, in "Isis and Osiris" (ch. 65), Plutarch remarked that Horus—or "Harpocrates," his Greek name—was "born about the winter solstice, unfinished and infant-like..."[4] A couple of centuries after Plutarch, in his Saturnalia (I, XVIII:10), ancient Latin writer of the fourth century Macrobius also reported on this annual Egyptian "Christmas" celebration: …at the winter solstice the sun would seem to be a little child, like that which the Egyptians bring forth from a shrine on an appointed day, since the day is then at its shortest and the god is accordingly shown as a tiny infant.[5]

 

[1] CE, "Christmas."

[2] Thorburn, 33.

[3] Thomson, 481.

[4] King, 56; cf. Babbitt, 153.

[5] Macrobius/Davies, 129. The original Latin of this paragraph in Macrobius is: "…ut parvulus videatur hiemali solstitio, qualem Aegyptii proferunt ex adyto die certa, quod tunc brevissimo die veluti parvus et infans videatur…"

 

 

 

 

As to the antiquity of the Egyptian winter-solstice, solar-birth drama depicted by Plutarch and Macrobius, Professor Orlando P. Schmidt makes some interesting claims regarding the Egyptian king Amenemhet or Amenemhat I (c. 1991/1985-c. 1962/1956 BCE), called in Greek "Amenemes" or "Ammenemes," founder of the 12th dynasty: Now, as the sun of the Sothiac year reached the winter solstice in the seventeenth year of the reign of King Amenemes I, he assumed the title of Nem-mestu, meaning "Re-born," in commemoration of his birth as Harpokrates.[1] Thus, according to Schmidt the birth of Harpocrates at the winter solstice apparently dates back to almost 2,000 years prior to the Christian era, a tradition evidently verified by Plutarch. This epithet "Nem-mestu" is the king's "Horus name" and means "repeater of births," "repetition of births" or "reborn." Regarding this title, Budge says: ..."nem mestu," i.e., "repeater of births," the allusion being to the idea that the king was like the Sun-god Re who was reborn daily; this title became a great favorite with the kings of the XIIth Dynasty.[2] Budge thus verifies that this particular Horus name was indeed popular in the dynasty in question. Intriguingly, according to Budge the Egyptian word for winter solstice is nen, which would make a Horus name of "Nen-mestu" equivalent to "born of the winter solstice." Also according to Budge, citing German Egyptologist Professor Heinrich Brugsch, the hieroglyphic for the winter solstice reveals two deities holding the sun with its rays extending down over an ankh,[3] the symbol of life. If these two deities surrounding the sun being given life are indeed Osiris and Isis, as they appear to be, this hieroglyph would represent a clear indication that their child, Horus, was in fact born at the winter solstice. In any case, this Horus name "repeaters of births" as a reflection of the sun god's birth, whether daily, annually or both, dates back thousands of years in Egypt, and the significance of the winter solstice in Egypt, as well as its perception as the birth of the sun god, seems evident. In the Egyptian language, Harpocrates is "Her-pa-chruti" or "Heru-pa-Chrat," "the morning sun."[4] On the subject of Plutarch and Harpocrates, Budge remarks: The curious legend which Plutarch relates concerning Harpocrates and the cause of his lameness is probably based upon the passage in the history of Osiris and Isis given in a hymn to Osiris of the XVIIIth Dynasty.[5] Budge never seems to return to this "curious legend," apparently coming from chapter 19 of Plutarch, which omits the pertinent part about Harpocrates representing the weak or "lame" sun of the winter solstice, as in chapter 65. Concerning the Osirian myth presented in Plutarch, in Egyptian Ideas of the Future, Budge remarks: When we examine this story by the light of the results of hieroglyphic decipherment, we find that a large portion of it is substantiated by Egyptian texts...6 Budge proceeds to name many of the most significant details from Plutarch as having been verified by hieroglyphics, including texts, inscriptions, papyri, etc. The passage from

 

[1] Schmidt, 19.

[2] Budge, EUGPB, 190.

[3] Budge, AEHD, 351.

[4] Budge, TM, 271-272.

[5] Budge, EBD, cvi.

[6] Budge, EITFL, 35.

 

 

 

Plutarch quoted here by Budge is also from chapter 19 and, again, although mentioning the birth of Harpocrates, lacks the pertinent part about the winter solstice found in chapter 65. In neither book, in fact, does Budge describe the assertion in chapter 65. Perhaps as a professed Christian, Budge did not wish to reproduce these significant remarks concerning the "Christmas" birth of the Egyptian sun god. From comments by various writers of the time, it appears there was indeed a debate as to whether or not to accept the "opinions of the Greek" with regard to Harpocrates's nature as the sun born at the winter solstice. One must therefore ask whether or not this debate about the "correctness" of the ancient Greeks in their assertions regarding this figure—a debate continued by apologists today—has been based on scientific reasoning or religious prejudice, representing an intentional suppression and censorship of pertinent data. And, if the bulk of Plutarch's summary of the myth of Osiris, Isis and Horus is sustainable through Egyptian writings, as Budge himself states, can we not assume that this winter-solstice part would be reliable as well? If Horus was not born at the winter solstice, why does Plutarch state that he was, in his form as Harpocrates or Horus the Child? Why does Macrobius record an Egyptian festival of apparent antiquity that celebrated the birth of the baby sun at the winter solstice? Would the Egyptians—who were so keenly aware of astronomy, solar mythology and astrotheology—truly be completely oblivious to, or deliberately unaffected by, the revered status of the sun at the winter solstice? Certainly the Egyptians were highly conscious of the all-important solstices—as demonstrated abundantly by the alignments of their monuments—could they possibly fail to integrate them into their solar religion? Indeed, according to Budge the solstices were personified as gods. In fact, Budge claims that the personification of the winter solstice is the god "Ap-uat,"[1] while Renouf says Apuat is "identical with Osiris."[2] Thus, Osiris would represent the winter solstice, making this time of year highly significant to the Egyptians. Furthermore, it is agreed that in Egypt "the summer solstice was paramount, for it heralded the rise of the Nile."[3] As Herodotus states, the Nile began to overflow around the summer solstice—specifically named as such by Herodotus (1:19). The Greek historian further remarks that the river continues to rise for about 100 days, at which point it levels off and then starts to drop again, remaining low throughout winter.[4] This life-giving time of year was so important to the Egyptians that at periods over the millennia they opened the new year with the summer inundation of the Nile. During other periods, apparently, the year began at the winter solstice, which would be indicative that such a time was considered the "birth of the sun," as in so many other cultures. In Horae Aegyptiacae: Or, the Chronology of Ancient Egypt, Discovered from Astronomical and Hieroglyphic Records Upon Its Monuments, Egyptologist and professor of Archaeology Dr. Reginald Stuart Poole, another Keeper at the British Museum, states: "The Season of the Waters," in the ancient nomenclature, plainly shows that the Tropical Year to which that nomenclature was originally applied commenced at the winter solstice, and not at, nor near, either of the equinoxes, or the summer solstice... Thus we find that the true period of the commencement of "the Season of the Inundation" was one month before the autumnal equinox; and the end, at the winter

 

[1] Budge, TGE, 264.

[2] Renouf, 99.

[3] Lockyer, TDA, 57.

[4] Herodotus, 92-93

 

 

 

solstice; and, consequently, that the Tropical Year anciently in use among the Egyptians commenced at the winter solstice, when all things in Egypt begin anew.[1] Obviously, the Egyptians were well aware of the winter solstice, which they evidently identified with Osiris and other gods at some point and which during certain eras or in various places opened with Egyptian year. Concerning these important times of the year, astronomer Sir Lockyer remarks: Did the ancients know anything about these solstices and these equinoxes? That is one of the questions which we have to discuss. Dealing with the monumental evidence in Egypt alone, the answer is absolutely overwhelming.[2] Lockyer next describes a number of astronomical alignments of various monuments and buildings in Egypt, beginning with the temple enclosure at Karnak. Calling the temple of Amen-Ra at Karnak the "finest Egyptian solar temple" and "the most majestic ruin in the world,"[3] Lockyer dated its foundation to 3700 BCE, using astronomical measurements.[4] Encompassing twice the area covered by St. Peter's in Rome, the complex comprised "two temples in the same line back to back, the chief one facing the sunset at the summer solstice, the other probably the sunrise at the winter solstice."[5] Concerning the smaller temple, Lockyer states: The amplitude of the point to which the axis of the small temple points is 26º S. of E., exactly the position of sunrise at the winter solstice. There is more evidence of this kind....[6] Lockyer then discusses the colossal statues of Amenhetep III on the plain of Thebes, which were oriented to watch "for the rising of the sun at the winter solstice."[7] Astronomer Dr. Edwin C. Krupp likewise comments on the winter-solstice alignment of Egyptian buildings: Winter solstice sunrise alignment was also found at the solar sanctuary in Hatshepsut's mortuary temple at Deir el-Bahri, and these sanctuaries were linked with the Egyptian beliefs about the passage of Re through the netherworld and the transformation of the soul of the deceased pharaoh.[8] The Temple of Amun-Ra at Abu Simbel, built by Ramses II, ranks as another edifice aligned with sunrise at the winter solstice.[9] In the Encyclopedia of the Archaeology of Ancient Egypt ("EAAE") appears a discussion of the small temple at Aghurmi in the Siwa Oasis. This temple possesses a window in the west wall of the sanctuary that connects with an opposite window opposite, producing a lightshaft which illuminates the "god's barge naos in the center of the sanctuary." EAAE then states:

[1] Poole, 4-5.

[2] Lockyer, Nature, 10.

[3] Lockyer, TDA, 99.

[4] Lockyer, TDA, 119.

[5] Lockyer, TDA, 102.

[6] Lockyer, Nature, 57.

[7] Lockyer, Nature, 57; TDA, 79.

[8] Krupp, xii.

[9] Clark, 147, 193.

 

 

 

 

The fact that Onuris and Tefnut are represented right next to this window and the mythology connected with these two gods suggest that occurrence of this event to have coincided with the winter solstice.[1] Hence, we find multiple astronomical alignments proving that the ancient Egyptians highly valued the winter solstice. Moreover, a number of ancient Egyptian water clocks, such as at Karnak, were designed to measure the winter and summer solstices.[2] Indeed, that the Egyptians were keen measurers of time may be seen in an inscription from the tomb of the Karnak clock's creator, a "certain official" named Amenemhet who was buried "near the top of the hill of Sheikh Abd el-Gurna in Western Thebes." This very ancient inscription describes the measurements of the "longest night of wintertime" and the "shortest night of summertime," the former of which, of course, would be the winter solstice and the latter, the summer. This inscription also refers to Egyptian sacred literature as "the books of the divine word,"[3] demonstrating the reverence with which these texts were held, no less than the holy books of today. The official in question dedicated his clock to Amenhotep I, who reigned in the 18th Dynasty, during the 16th century BCE. In Ancient Egyptian Science, professor of Historical Studies Dr. Marshall Clagett (1916- 2005) depicts another ancient Egyptian clock used to measure the equinoxes and solstices: The first (and indeed only) Egyptian technical description of an ancient Egyptian shadow clock is found in an inscription in the cenotaph of Seti I (ca. 1306-1290 [BCE])...[4] Dr. Clagett also describes an Egyptian sundial from Luxor that apparently dates to the "Greco-Roman period" and that possesses marks to measure, among other things, the winter solstice.[5] As another example of Egyptian astronomical knowledge and the particular importance of the winter solstice, in 46 BCE famed Alexandria astronomer Sosigenes created a new solar calendar for Julius Caesar, called the Julian Calendar: "The new system, depending wholly on the sun, would naturally have commenced with the winter solstice,"6 called bruma in Latin, one source of the Roman celebration the Brumalia.[7] In The Sacred Tradition in Ancient Egypt, Rosemary Clark describes another festival that purportedly took place on the winter solstice: As the winter solstice denotes the literal decline of solar light, festivals celebrated at this time are connected with the renewal of the life force. One of these festivals was the annual raising of the Djed pillar of Asar [Osiris] at his great temple at Busiris in Lower Egypt. This was a symbolic restoration of the Neter's [God's] life, an event

 

[1] EAAE, 742.

[2] So closely have the Egyptian gods been associated with time that it has been repeatedly claimed that the name Horus has been brought forth into English in the word "hours." In his translation of Diodorus, Edwin Murphy—who is not prone to fantasy—remarks, "Horus was also said to have first divided the day into hours, which still reflect his name." (Siculus/Murphy, 32, footnote 51.)

[3] Clagett, 69-70.

[4] Clagett, 84, 86-87.

[5] Clagett, 96-97.

[6] Froude, 425.

[7] The dates of the Brumalia, a Bacchic or Dionysian festival, have been reckoned as March 12th and September 18th. However, Bell relates that "there are others who say that the Brumalia was a religious festival, celebrated on the day of the winter solstice." This confusion evidently comes from two different terms as the basis for "Brumalia," one referring to the "shortest day" and the other to Bacchus/Dionysus. (Bell, 141)

 

 

which followed a ritual reenactment of an episode in the great Osirian mythos, The Contendings of Heru [Horus] and Set. It took place, according to ancient records, on the 30th of Choiach [Khoiak], a time coinciding with the end of the Nile's inundation over the land. In our calendar the festival begins on December 10 and culminates at the winter solstice (December 22).[1] The djed-pillar is a very ancient "cult icon of Osiris" that was "erected in a rite symbolizing Osiris's revivification after death."[2] The raising of the djed-pillar at Busiris is mentioned in chapter 18 of the Book of the Dead. The month of Choiach/Khoiak/Koiak corresponding to December comes from the Coptic calendar and is presumably an accurate rendering of an ancient Egyptian dating system. In Calendrical Calculations, Professors Dershowitz and Reingold state: The Christian Copts, modern descendants of the Pharaonic Egyptians, use a calendar based on the ancient Egyptian solar calendar...but with leap years.[3] Dershowitz and Reingold further say that "the Copts celebrate Christmas on Koiak 29 (which is always either December 25 or 26 on the Julian calendar)..."[4] Modern Egyptians also still celebrate a festival around the vernal equinox called "Sham elNessim," or "Shamo," which traditionally occurs in April and closely resembles the Western celebration of Easter. Since this spring festival is estimated to date to at least 4,500 years ago, it would be reasonable to assert that comparable winter-solstice celebrations may approach that age in Egypt as well. Knowing all these facts, it is logical and rational to assume that Plutarch and Macrobius were not in error in their reports about the Egyptian sun god celebrated at the winter solstice. If Macrobius is correct in his assertions that the Egyptians brought out an image of the baby sun at the winter solstice, we have no credible, scientific reason to dismiss Plutarch's statement regarding Harpocrates/Horus being this baby sun born at the winter solstice, especially since many of his contentions can be verified by the hieroglyphics, as stated by Budge. In fact, the "restoration of Osiris" at the winter solstice—which would essentially constitute his rebirth in Horus—is also related by Plutarch: Moreover, at the time of the winter solstice they lead the cow seven times around the temple of the Sun and this circumambulation is called the Seeking for Osiris, since the Goddess in the winter-time yearns for water; so many times do they go around, because in the seventh month the Sun completes the transition from the winter solstice to the summer solstice. It is said also that Horus, the son of Isis, offered sacrifice to the Sun first of all on the fourth day of the month, as is written in the records entitled the Birthdays of Horus.[5] Although here Plutarch discusses Osiris's water aspect, logic would indicate that the god's solar nature was also being sought at the winter solstice, when the sun is viewed as "weakening," "dying" or otherwise diminishing, in line with the shortening days of the years. Furthermore, the "Seeking of Osiris" at the solstice is confirmed by the conservative Encyclopedia Britannica as one of the Egyptians' "most characteristic celebrations":

 

[1] Clark, 131.

[2] Allen, J., TAEPT, 428.

[3] Dershowitz, 73.

[4] Dershowitz, 77.

[5] Plutarch/Babbitt, 127

 

 

Among those most characteristic celebrations of the Egyptians were those which took place at the αφανισµος or disappearance of Osiris in October or November, at the search for his remains, and their discovery about the winter solstice...[1] The discovery of Osiris's remains at the winter solstice means that he was "born again" at that time, since he was thereafter resuscitated. Because Horus and Osiris were one and interchangeable, the new sun replacing the old, it could be truthfully stated that the "rebirth" of Osiris at the winter solstice represents the "new birth" of Horus. Hence, again we find Horus being born on December 25th . The winter-solstice motif is also represented in the story related by Plutarch of Osiris being shut up in his ark during the sign of Scorpio, the "backbiter," who robs the sun of its strength as it nears the death of winter. Horus being killed by a scorpion would likewise represent the same theme. Obviously, it would be fascinating to inspect the ancient "records entitled the Birthdays of Horus" to which Plutarch refers. It is possible these texts could be found in the Library of Alexandria, which unfortunately was destroyed, taking with it a vast amount of human culture and knowledge, including many of these mysteries and secrets. Again, when we hear the clamor for "primary sources," we are reminded of this heinous destruction of ancient culture, often by religious fanatics trying to prevent the truth from becoming known. In the same vein as Plutarch, and quite possibly discussing the same records or text, in his treatise on the dual birthdays of Horus—one at the vernal equinox and the other at the winter solstice—Massey refers to "the Egyptian Book of the Divine Birth": The double birth of Horus at the two times, or the birth of the babe in the winter solstice and the rebirth as the adult in the Easter equinox is acknowledged in the Egyptian Book of the Divine Birth. The celebration of the Nativity at the solstice is referred to in the calendar of Edfu, and it is said that "everything is performed which is ordained" in the "Book of the Divine Birth."[2] The text Massey is referring to was also mentioned by Austrian professor Dr. J. Krall, quoted by Lockyer: On the 6th of Pachons...the solstice is then celebrated. The Uza-eye is then filled, a mythical act which we have in another place referred to the celebration of the solstice, and "everything is performed which is ordained" in the book "on the Divine birth."[3] This solstice that is celebrated on the 6th of Pachons is that of the summer, once again demonstrating the significance of that time of year. The "Uza-eye" being filled apparently refers to the Eye of the Sun (Ra and/or Horus) approaching its culminating strength at the summer solstice. According to Lockyer, Krall also discusses an inscription discovered at both Edfu and Esne "which seems to have astronomical significance." This inscription describes a feast day during the period of "1. Phamenoth" called the "Festival of the suspension of the sky by Ptah" or the "Feast of the suspension of the sky."[4] In chapter 43 of "Isis and Osiris," Plutarch also remarks upon a festival that falls on the new moon in the month of Phamenoth called "Osiris's coming to the Moon," which the historian says "marks the beginning of

 

[1] EB, 221.

[2] Massey, AE, 572.

[3] Lockyer, TDA, 284-285.

[4] Lockyer, TDA, 284.

 

 

 

spring."[1] However, Krall clarifies these festivals as being "connected with the celebration of the Winter Solstice, and the filling of the Uza-eye..." He then continues: Perhaps the old year, which the Egyptians introduced into the Nile valley at the time of their immigration, and which had only 360 days, commenced at the Winter Solstice. Thus we should have in the "festival of the suspension of the sky" by the ancient god Ptah—venerated as creator of the world—a remnant of the time when the Winter Solstice...marked the beginning of the year, and also the creation.[2] As we have seen on the very good authority of Dr. Poole, the Egyptian year at one point apparently began with the winter solstice. Adding to this notion is the suggestion that this period preceded the adjustment of the Egyptian 360-calendar with the addition of the five intercalary or epagomenal days. The god Ptah is the very ancient Father-Creator figure who, in "suspending the sky," resembles other Egyptian deities such as Isis and Horus with arms outstretched in the vault of heaven, as well as the Greek god Atlas supporting the world on his shoulders, and various renderings of the Christian Father and Son depicted as holding up the heavens. In On Mankind: Their Origin and Destiny, Arthur Thomson summarizes the story of the baby sun at the winter solstice, who was born of a virgin mother, specifically as applied to Horus and Isis: The Egyptians did in fact celebrate at the winter solstice the birth of the son of Isis (Plut. De Iside), and the delivery of the goddess who had brought this young child into the world, feeble and weak, and in the midst of the darkest night. This child, according to Macrobius, was the god of light, Apollo, or the sun, painted with his head shorn of his beaming hair, his head shaved, and with only a single hair left. By this, says Macrobius, the dimness of the light at the winter solstice, and the shortness of the days as well as the darkness of the deep cave in which this god seemed to be born, and from which he issued forth to rise in the direction of the northern hemisphere and the summer solstice, in which he reassumed his dominion and his glory, was indicated… It was this child of whom the virgin Isis called herself the mother in the inscription over her temple at Sais (Plut. De Iside) which contained the words, "The fruit which I have begotten is the sun." (Procl. in Tim. p. 30). This Isis of Sais has been correctly assumed by Plutarch to be the chaste Minerva, who, without fearing to lose her name of virgin, nevertheless says of herself that she is the mother of the sun. This Isis cannot be the moon, for she would never be called the mother of the star whose light she borrows. She is the Virgin of the constellations, who is called by Eratosthenes, a learned Alexandrian (Eratosthen. cap. vii.), Ceres or Isis; that Isis who opened the year, and presided over the birth of the new solar revolution, and of the god of day—in a word, of her in whose arms we shall soon see the symbolic child.[3] As another version of the solar hero, the Greek god Dionysus too was asserted to have been born at the winter solstice, when his followers held a wild celebration in his and the sun god Apollo's honor.[4] This winter-solstice birth may also have come with Dionysus's identification with Osiris, since, as Plutarch states (35), "Osiris is identical with Dionysus."[5]

 

[1] Plutarch/Babbitt, 105-106.

[2] Lockyer, TDA, 284.

[3] Thomson, 468-469.

[4] Sophocles, 136fn.

[5] Plutarch/Babbitt, 85.

 

 

Concerning winter solstice "Feasts and Festivals," the Encyclopedia Britannica further reports: The common people in China have a similar custom on the arrival of the winter solstice... ...The Phrygian festivals were also arranged on the theory that the deity was asleep during the winter and awake during the summer...[1] The EB also names several other cultures as having winter celebrations, including the Mexicans and Peruvians. Of course, the Romans were famed for their lengthy winter festival of Saturnalia, which encompassed the solstice. Even the lunar Jews had their winter holiday, or "Feast of the Dedication," as mentioned in John 10:22. As we can see, the celebration at the winter solstice represents an ancient tradition. [2] Christian Sun Worship? The fact that this highly important solar festival was not added to the Christ myth until centuries after the purported advent of Jesus does not make it any less significant or him any less of a solar hero himself. Indeed, so common was the claim that Christians worshipped the sun that Church fathers such as Tertullian (c. 155-230) and Augustine (354- 430) were compelled to write refutations of it. In Ad Nationes (I, 13), Tertullian writes: The Charge of Worshipping the Sun Met by a Retort. …Others, with greater regard to good manners, it must be confessed, suppose that the sun is the god of the Christians, because it is a well-known fact that we pray towards the east, or because we make Sunday a day of festivity. What then? Do you do less than this? Do not many among you, with an affectation of sometimes worshipping the heavenly bodies likewise, move your lips in the direction of the sunrise? Once more, in his Apology (16), Tertullian addresses what appears to be a widespread insight that he surprisingly asserts comes from those with "more information" and "greater verisimilitude" or truth: …Others, again, certainly with more information and greater verisimilitude, believe that the sun is our god. We shall be counted Persians perhaps, though we do not worship the orb of day painted on a piece of linen cloth, having himself everywhere in his own disk. The idea no doubt has originated from our being known to turn to the east in prayer. But you, many of you, also under pretence sometimes of worshipping the heavenly bodies, move your lips in the direction of the sunrise. These contentions of Christian sun worship evidently continued well into the fifth century, as St. Augustine also was forced to address them in his Tractates on the Gospel of John (34).[3] Adding to the suggestion of sun worship, the orientation of Christian churches towards solar alignments is well known, as explained by Sir Lockyer: All our churches are more or less oriented, which is a remnant of old sun-worship. Any church that is properly built today will have its axis pointing to the rising of the sun on the Saint's Day, i.e., a church dedicated to St. John ought not to be parallel to a church dedicated to St. Peter.... Certainly in the early centuries the churches

 

[1] EB, 220.

[2] A more in-depth study of the subject is provided in my book Suns of God.

[3] For more on the subject of Christianity and sun worship, see my books The Christ Conspiracy and Suns of God.

 

 

 

were all oriented to the sun, so the light fell on the altar through the eastern doors at sunrise.[1] There are in reality numerous astrotheological characteristics within Christianity, many of which can be found in my books The Christ Conspiracy and Suns of God. It is likely that anyone who wished to turn the popular and powerful sun god into a Jewish messiah, as we contend was done, would not immediately attach anything so obvious as the most popular solar festival—the birth of the sun god himself—to the myth they were attempting to propagate as "history." The fact that this celebration eventually was added to the expanding Christian mythology indicates: [1]. The powers that be had some inkling as to what they were dealing with, i.e., a solar myth; and [2]. No birthday of Jesus was previously celebrated to any significant degree. Indeed, the December 25th date is in reality one of many birthdays for Christ proposed by the various Church fathers and Christian authorities over the centuries.2 If Jesus Christ were a historical figure, it is perplexing that no one knew his real birthday and that there were so many suggestions, a number of which also possessed astronomical or astrotheological meaning. In the end, the December 25th birthday represents the birth not of the Jewish messiah but of the sun.

 

[1] Lockyer, TDA, 95-96.

[2] Acharya/Murdock, SOG, 231, et seq

 

 

 

                             SET             

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ra Vs Apophis

 

 

Set Vs Apep

 

Azazel/Baphomet

 

Knumn/Kneph

 

 

 

 

Set-Typhon

 

Horus Vs Set

 

"The Christian Trinity ousted the old triads of gods, Osiris and Horus were represented by our Lord Jesus Christ, Isis by the Virgin Mary, Set the god of evil by Diabolus [Satan]…and the various Companies of the Gods by the Archangels, and so on."

 

Dr. E.A. Wallis Budge, Egyptian Tales and Romances (12)

 

 

 

"The god Seth, called Typhon by the Greek writers, was the Satan of later Egyptian mythology. He was the personification of the evil in the world, just as Osiris was the personification of the good."

 

Philip Van Ness Myers, Ancient History (38)

 

 

"Horus is presented in manifold aspects in Egyptian mythology. Mainly as the vindicator of the principle of Good; as the avenger of his father, Osiris, who succumbed temporarily in his struggle against Evil embodied in the god Set, who corresponds to our Satan. Set was represented as a beast with long pointed ears and erect tail, and may perhaps be the origin of the popular representations of Satan, the ears having come to be regarded as horns."

 

H. Villiers Stuart, Egypt After the War (191)

 

 

Despite the misconception that the ancients were primitive, many cultures of old were in reality highly sophisticated, as evidenced not only by their impressive architectural accomplishments such as the massive ruins around the world, but also by other artifacts such as political organization, language development and philosophical achievement. One of these advanced cultures was that of Egypt, which created along with its magnificent edifices such as the Great Pyramid and the Temple complex at Karnak both a sophisticated cosmology and an elegant writing system in which to express it. When we examine the religious and mythological beliefs of the Egyptians, in fact, we discover there is little theological they did not consider and incorporate into their faith that we possess in modern religions today. In other words, the Egyptians in particular not only were highly spiritual but also either originated or developed many of the cosmological and theological concepts found in current popular religions, such as the afterlife, immortality, heaven, deity and so on. One of the main religions in which we find the most apparent Egyptian influence is Christianity, in both its myths and rituals. Like many other faiths, the Egyptian and Christian religions share a strong overall theme of good versus evil and light versus dark. In the case of the Egyptian religion, good and evil were manifested in several gods, including and especially Horus and Set, while their Christian counterparts are Jesus and Satan. As we explore the original Egyptian mythos and ritual upon which much of Christianity was evidently founded, it needs to be kept in mind that the gods Osiris and Horus in particular were frequently interchangeable and combined, as in "I and the Father are one." (Jn 10:30) In fact, as part of the mythos, Osiris was "re-born under the form of Horus," as we have seen. This particular development exists in significant part because these figures are largely sun gods, and when one sun god "dies," as is the case with Osiris daily, monthly and annually, another replaces him and becomes him, as happens with Horus taking the place of his father. Like Osiris's many followers, whose prayers included a request to become "the Osiris" in the afterlife, so too does Horus become his father upon Osiris's demise, which is caused by these sun gods' enemy, the serpent of the night and Prince of Darkness, Set.

 

To reiterate, as is the case with myths around the world, the story of Osiris was not neatly laid out in an entry in an ancient encyclopedia, but, rather, appears in bits and pieces in ancient sources such as the Pyramid Texts and the Book of the Dead, which were compiled and altered over a period of centuries to millennia, beginning more than 6,000 years ago and ending well before the so-called Christian era. Nevertheless, nearly 2,000 years ago Plutarch did tell the cyclical myth of Osiris/Horus in some detail and in a fairly cohesive manner as a story. In the commonly known depiction of his death, the good god Osiris is killed by his evil brother Set, who first encloses the god in a container or "ark" and later dismembers him into 14 pieces, scattering the parts around Egypt.[1] In the version by Plutarch, Osiris's wifesister, Isis, finds most of the pieces, except Osiris's phallus, and eventually Osiris is resurrected and returns from the "other world" to instruct his son Horus to battle and defeat "Typhon," the Greek name for the god Set. Concerning the conflict between Osiris and Set, Budge remarks, "Details of the engagement are wanting, but the Pyramid Texts state that the body of Osiris was hurled to the ground by Set at a place called Netat, which seems to have been near Abydos."[2] The Pyramid Texts, in fact, contain another, older version of Osiris's death, in which he was said to have been drowned by Set, or Seth.[3] According to a later magical papyrus, this drowning took place in the "water of the underworld." This aspect of the myth is interesting in light of the fact that in Greek mythology the sun god Helios was said to have been drowned in the river Eridanus or "Jordan," in which Jesus was likewise said to have been baptized or dunked.[4] The earliest versions of Osiris's passion[5] depict Set simply as slaying the god, without the ark and the dismemberment, while later sources attach 72 villainous helpers to assist in Set's murderous crime against Osiris.[6] The story of Osiris being entombed in a tree and found by Isis at the city of Byblos in Phoenicia, also related by Plutarch, is later than the one in which his parts are simply tossed around Egypt.[7] The Byblos tale may have been added by the Egyptians after 1500 BCE in order to explain the similar myth of the dying-and-rising god Adonis-Tammuz in that part of the Near East.[8] The Astrotheology of the Passion Although appearing bizarre and incomprehensible, like so many other myths, the story of Osiris's death possesses underlying astrotheological meaning that makes sense and teaches

 

[1] Diodorus relates that the pieces numbered 26. However, Murphy notes that, as the god became more popular, so too did his parts, eventually numbering 42 for each of the Egyptian nomes. This increase occurred as each priesthood wished to claim a relic for its own "tomb of Osiris," reflection of the enormous relics industry that continues to this day with countless bogus artifacts of the Christian faith. (For more, see The Christ Conspiracy, Suns of God and Who Was Jesus?)

 

[2] Budge, LEG, xlix.

 

[3] Griffiths, 9.

 

[4] In the Egyptian, the Jordan is called "Iurutana." (Cooper, AAD, 259.) This is the same term for the constellation of the river Eridanus.

 

[5] The term "passion" refers to the sufferings of the god and does not belong exclusively to the Christian faith, despite the biases and oversights of dictionaries, and the spurious claims of Christian apologists. Osiris's sufferings have been referred to as a "passion" by numerous writers for a century or more, including by Professor Franz Cumont, who related: "Since the time of the twelfth dynasty, and probably much earlier, there had been held at Abydos and elsewhere a sacred performance similar to the mysteries of our Middle Ages, in which the events of Osiris's passion and resurrection were reproduced." (Cumont, 98.)

 

[6] Gray, 114.

 

[7] Gray, 114.

 

[8] Gray, 120.

 

 

some of the important workings of the natural world. As Plutarch relates, Osiris was entombed in the ark on the 17th day of the month of Athyr, "when the sun passes through Scorpion [sic]," and in the 28th year of either his reign or his life.[1] Coincidentally, the 17th of Athyr is equivalent to the same day that the equally mythical biblical character Noah was said to have been shut up in his ark, the patriarch too having been identified as a sun god or solar hero. The notion that Osiris was 28 when he suffered his passion is also interesting, in light of the fact that Jesus was likewise said to have been around 28-30 when he began his ministry, depending on the source. Indeed, one early Christian tradition also places Christ's passion at when he was "only twenty eight, and one-quarter years of life,"[2] quite possibly in imitation of the Osiris myth. In the solar myth, the enclosure in the ark during the zodiacal sign of Scorpio (October 24- November 22) symbolizes the weakening of the sun as it approaches the winter solstice. The number 28 is likewise astrotheological and represents the days of an average or mean monthly lunation, after which the soli-lunar god Osiris is torn into 14 pieces—the number 14 signifying the days of the moon's waning per month—and then resurrected, as the moon waxes again. As Plutarch remarks, "The Egyptians have a legend that the end of Osiris's life came on the seventeenth of the month, on which day it is quite evident to the eye that the period of the full moon is over."[3] Plutarch further explains the astrotheological meaning of the Osiris myth: Some say that the years of Osiris's life, others that the years of his reign, were twenty-eight; for that is the number of the moon's illuminations, and in that number of days does she complete her cycle. The wood which they cut on the occasions called the "burials of Osiris" they fashion into a crescent-shaped coffer because of the fact that the moon, when it comes near the sun, becomes crescent-shaped and disappears from our sight. The dismemberment of Osiris into fourteen parts they refer allegorically to the days of the waning of that satellite from the time of the full moon to the new moon….[4] Regarding this tale, astronomer Dr. Edwin C. Krupp, Director of the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles, remarks: The numbers are significant. Although the moon completes its phases in 29½ days, the number 28 was used symbolically for this interval.... The 14 pieces of the body of Osiris sound like the 14 days of the waning, or "dying" moon, and on the main ceiling of the Dendera temple are inscriptions and pictorial reliefs that leave no doubt. In one panel, an eye, installed in a disk, is transported in a boat. The eye, we know, was a symbol of the sun or moon. Thoth, the ibis-headed scribe god of wisdom and knowledge, pilots the barge. Thoth was closely associated with the moon and counted the days and seasons. The text for this panel refers to the period after the full moon, and 14 gods accompany the eye in the disk.[5] In addition, the 72 "co-conspirators" in the later version of the tale likewise possess astrotheological meaning, representing the 72 dodecans, or divisions of the circle of the zodiac into 5 degrees each. Interestingly, in the gospel story Jesus is depicted with either 70 or 72 "disciples," the number 70 often symbolizing the dodecans as well. Also, the drowning of Osiris in the "river" Eridanus evidently signifies the god's passage through the

 

[1] Plutarch, ch. 13; Babbitt, 37.

 

[2] Catholic Encyclopedia, "Christmas."

 

[3] Plutarch, ch. 42; Babbitt, 103.

 

[4] Plutarch, ch. 42; Babbitt, 103. 5 Krupp, 18.

 

well-known constellation of the same name. It is likely that the Jordan river, biblical site of so many purported miracles, was named after its apparent stellar counterpart, with said "miracles" also taking place not on Earth but in the heavens. Furthermore, the subsequent avenging of Osiris's murder by his son(s) Horus also constitutes an astrotheological motif. In the myth, Horus the first son of Osiris and Isis is already alive before Typhon/Set tears Osiris's body into 14 pieces.[1] Osiris is depicted by Plutarch as later coming from "the other world" to train this Horus to battle Typhon, also called Seth. [2] At a certain point, the other, newborn Horus becomes the avenger of his father's death by killing Set. These different Horuses nevertheless symbolize the one sun in various phases of its "life." The battle between Horus and Set is mentioned in many places in Egyptian texts, in which the dynamic duo is called, among other things, the "Two Combatants" and the "Divine Pair."[3] The story of this conflict includes various details such as Horus's association with Ra in attempting to destroy Set, as well as numerous other characters such as the blacksmiths on Horus's side and the vast army of "bad guys" with Set. Some of these particulars signify astrotheological elements added as the science of astronomy became more sophisticated. For example, Horus's battle with Set depicted in the inscriptions at the relatively late site of Edfu includes him slaying Set's monsters, the crocodile and hippopotamus, which symbolize two of the "circumpolar stars" that are "washed out" or removed from sight when the sun's rays appear on the horizon.[4] With or without the details, of course, the contention between Horus and Set ultimately represents the battle of good versus evil and light versus dark. Who is Set? One of the five children of Seb, the earth-god, and Nut, the sky-goddess, Set is described in chapter 17 of the Book of the Dead/Ritual as "that god who steals souls, who laps up corruption, who lives on what is putrid, who is in charge of darkness, who is immersed in gloom, of whom those who are among the languid ones are afraid."[5] As the one "who is in charge of darkness," Set "comes to carry off the light."[6] Regarding Set's role, Lewis Spence remarks, "As the days began to shorten and the nights to lengthen it was thought that he stole the light from the sun-god."[7] Hence, Set is a thief in the night who robs Osiris/Horus of his strength and life. As the monster that prevents the sun from shining, Set also symbolizes storm clouds: This battle may likewise be found in the sky by day when storm-clouds darken the face of the sun, so that the myth of the serpent and the solar deity Re merges into the old story of the conflict between Horus and Seth. Thus the serpent becomes more and more identical with Seth, as being an additional manifestation of the wicked god who later is said to have fought against Horus in the form of other water monsters as well, such as the hippopotamus and the crocodile. This confusion of 'Apop and Seth, however, does not take place until after the Eighteenth Dynasty.[8] Prior to this identification of Set with the monster Apophis, enemy of the sun god Ra, Set was not always considered "evil" but was worshipped as a divine being, evidenced by the pharaonic choice of the name "Seti." At a certain point, however, Set is demonized:

 

[1] Plutarch, ch. 18; Babbitt, 45.

 

[2] Plutarch, ch. 41; Babbitt, 101, 121, 147.

 

[3] Renouf, 140.

 

[4] Lockyer, 151.

 

[5] Faulkner, pl 10.

 

[6] Bonwick, 133.

 

[7] Spence, AEML, 100.

 

[8] Gray, 107.

 

 

The last king bearing Seth's name belongs to the Twentieth Dynasty, about 1200 B.C. The interesting evolution of this god into a Satan is due to the influence of the Babylonian myth of Tiamat.[1] It has also been claimed that, like the monstrous Tiamat, Set himself was originally a Semitic god imported into Egypt,[2] an interesting assertion in light of the contention that Set is equivalent to Satan, the word "Satan" being related to the Hebrew or Semitic term shaytan, meaning "adversary," and later adopted into Christianity. Regarding Set/Seth, James Bonwick remarks: [French Egyptologist] Pleyte has no doubt about Set being the El or Elohim of the East, and the same as Baal. Finding that curious passage in the book of Numbers about the destruction of the sons of Seth, he says, "It is probable that the Septuagint meant by the 'Sons of Seth,' the people who rendered homage to the god Seth (Set), the same divinity who was adored in Egypt by the Palestino-Asiatic tribes."[3] Concerning the "children of Seth" at Numbers 24:17, Samuel Sharpe remarks, "Seth is an Egyptian name for Satan, and by the children of Seth, the Samaritans seem meant."[4] Moreover, Louis Gray calls Seth "the general patron of Asiatics and of warriors,"[5] and Prof. A.H. Sayce writes: Set or Sut became for the later Egyptians the impersonation of evil. He was identified with Apophis, the serpent of wickedness, against whom the sun-god wages perpetual war; and his name was erased from the monuments on which it was engraved. But all this was because Set was the god and the representative of the Asiatic invaders who had conquered Egypt, and aroused in the Egyptian mind a feeling of bitter animosity towards themselves.[6] Therefore, it would appear that the Egyptian god Set was originally one of the Semitic Elohim, the plural gods worshipped by the Israelites.[7] As we have seen, the villain in the myth revolving around the sun god Ra is named Apophis, Apop, Apap, Apep or Apepi, all variants of the same word. Like the myth of Horus versus Set, Ra battles on a daily basis the great serpent of the night sky, Apap, defeating him at dawn. Apophis is the "devourer" and the "fiend of darkness."[8] Regarding the serpent motif, Stuart states: ...It is remarkable that Satan—our evil principle—is spoken of also as the Great Serpent, and like Apop is represented as chained in the bottomless pit.[9] Another transliterated Egyptian title for the destructive and fiendish serpent is "Sata," as found in Wilson's translation of the Papyrus of Nu, which reads: I am the serpent Sata whose years are many. I die and I am born again each day. I am the serpent Sata which dwelleth in the uttermost parts of the earth. I die, and I am born again, and I renew myself, and I grow young each day.[1]

 

[1] Gray, 392.

[2] Bonwick, 130.

[3] Bonwick, 135.

[4] Sharpe, 28.

[5] Gray, 155.

[6] Sayce, 162.

[7] Cf. "The Myth of Hebrew Monotheism" in The Christ Conspiracy.

[8] Spence, 13.

[9] Stuart, 345.

 

 

In his Egyptian Hieroglyphic Dictionary, using the same transliteration Budge calls Sata the "serpent-fiend in the Tuat."[2] The Tuat or Duat is defined as "a very ancient name for the land of the dead, and of the Other World."[3] The "land of the dead" and "other world" also signify the "cave," "tomb" or "underworld" of the nightly terrain through which Osiris (or Ra) must pass daily, to be born again at sunrise as his son, Horus.[4] This journey is described in the ancient Egyptian book "Am Tuat," as summarized by Budge: When the Sun-god set in the west in the evening he was obliged to travel through the Tuat to the eastern sky, in order to rise again on this earth the following day.[5] Thus, Apophis/Sata is the same as the monster Typhon/Set battled every day by Horus. In other words, all of these names—Apap, Apep, Apepi, Apop, Apophis, Seth, Set, Sut, Sutu, Sata—represent epithets for the same god or phenomenon: Both "the Arch-Enemy of Osiris, and the personification of Evil,"[6] as well as "the Arch-fiend and great Enemy of Ra."[7] Thus, it can be truthfully stated that Set is Satan, and the battle between Jesus and Satan—Light v. Darkness—represents a formulaic rehash of the far more ancient contention between Horus and Set. Indeed, if Set is Satan, then Osiris/Horus is Jesus, as has been maintained for centuries for this and many other reasons. Like Satan, Set rebels from his divine birth. Also like Satan, who in the Old Testament is merely "the Adversary," rather than the personification of Absolute Evil that he became in the New Testament, Seth was not always considered absolutely evil. Like Yahweh, God of the Old Testament, who was the orchestrator of both good and evil, Set is represented as the "twin" of Horus and half of a dual god as a single being, Horus-Set.[8] Yet, Set is also a separate entity who becomes locked in an eternal struggle with his alter ego and enemy, Horus, and, again, at a certain point the "old thunder-god" Set became "the representative of all evil" and "a real Satan."[9] Like Satan, Set/Seth too had his devoted followers—the "sons of Seth," possibly as recorded in the Old Testament and generally thought to refer to the descendants of Adam's third son Seth. Like Adam's other son Cain, who kills his brother Abel, Seth/Set is depicted as murdering his brother Osiris. And like other characters in the Old Testament, such as Abraham and Moses, in the "patriarch" Seth we seem to have yet another instance of an ancient tribal god demoted to human status. As does Satan with Jesus (Rev. 12:1-5), Set attempts to kill Horus. Set is the "god of the desert" who battles Horus, while Jesus is tempted in the desert by Satan. Like Satan, who has a forked tail, Set too is depicted with a forked tail. In fact, Set's portrayal with bizarre ears and an anteater-like snout makes him appear creepy and demonic:

 

[1] Wilson, 73.

[2] Budge, AEHD, 640.

[3] Budge, AEHD, 871-872.

[4] Cf. Murray, LAE, 50-51: "Great and mighty is the river of the sky, flowing across the heavens and through the Duat, the world of night and of thick darkness, and on that river floats the Boat of Ra…. Slowly goes the Boat of Ra, passing through the Duat, to regions of thick darkness, of horror and dismay, where the dead have their habitations, and Apep lies in wait for the coming of Ra."

[5] Budge, AIAEL, 245.

[6] Budge, LOLM, liii.

[7] Budge, LEG, xlii.

[8] Budge, FFGAE, 375. In the Pyramid Texts and elsewhere, as another one of the gods born on the five intercalary or epagomenal days completing the 365-day year, like Set, Horus the Elder is also said to be the son of Geb or Seb—the earth god and "father of the gods"—just as Jesus was the son of Joseph, the earthly father of God.

[9] Gray, 109.

 

 

Seth was identified with an animal that had the body of an elongated jackal or greyhound; a long neck; a thin, curved snout; rectangular, upraised ears; and a stiff, forked tale. Seth was often portrayed with a human body and the head of this beast.[1] Set is the serpent of the night, the Prince of Darkness and other qualities in line with Satan, while Horus is the "sun of righteousness" and the Prince of Light, much like Christ. As we have seen and will continue to see, there are many such correspondences between the myth of Osiris/Horus and that of Jesus. In the end, the tale of Jesus versus Satan, we contend, is equally astrotheological and mythical as the prototypical epic drama of Osiris/Horus versus Set.

 

[1] World Book Encyclopedia, 321.

 

 

Set

A modern artistic rendition of Set (left), square-tipped ears and proboscis-like snout as compared to his modern-day reformulation as the Devil (Satan) or fallen angel.

In Egyptian mythology, Set, hieroglyph:, stone "" symbol determinative, aka "Seth" or "Sut" (Massey, 1907), re-written, monotheistically, via the root “s-t-n”, as the Hebrew-Christian Satan (aka devil), said to be representative of the stony or red desert land (Budge, 1904), called "Σηθ" (Plutarch, c.100), identified with the Greek god Typhon (or Typho) in later times, was, in early Egyptian dynastic times, the chief god of the south, the twin god of Horus, the god of the north, who in the Pyramid Texts helped Ra get to heaven with his "ladder", who in later times became the god of chaos or adversity, symbolized by the was scepter; later the embodiment of evil or darkness; pictured with a long, erect, and square-tipped ears and proboscis-like snout, with either a red color or night black skin, which are said to indicate the head of a fabulous camel-snout like unidentified night-prowling animal called the Oryx. [1]

Set | Five forms
Historically, in the period 3,500BC to 500AD, Set had five dominate forms, each held in the belief systems of people, changing per period as the religion changed per each recension; the first four of which Budge (1904) summarizes as follows, dates added per supreme god timeline chronology: [4]
 

“We have now seen how the god Set was the opponent first of Heru-ur [3,100BC], then of Ra [2600BC], and finally of Osiris [1100BC] and his son Horus [332BC], and that during the long period of Egyptian history his attributes changed according to the various modifications which took place in the beliefs concerning this god in the minds of the Egyptians, and that from being a power of nature, the darkness, he became the symbol and personification of both physical and moral evil.”

The fifth form of Set, in the guise of Satan, the opponent of Jesus [300AD], aka Horus described monotheistically, per Roman recension (see: recension theory).

Overview
In 1887, Heinrich Brugsch, in his Religion and Mythology of the Egyptians, described Set thusly: [3]
 

“Set was the god of the downward motion of the sun in the lower hemisphere, in a southerly direction, and for this reason he was the source of the destructive heat of summer; and since the days began to diminish after the summer solstice, it was declared that he stole the light from Horus or Ra, and he was held to be the cause of all the evil, both physical and moral, which resulted therefrom.

The light which Thoth brought with the new moon was withdrawn by Set as soon as it was possible for him to obtain power over that luminary, and he was, naturally, thought to be the cause of clouds, mist, rain, thunder and lightning, hurricanes and storms, earthquakes and eclipses, and in short of every thing which tended to reverse the ordinary course of nature and of law and order. From a moral point of view he was the personification of sin and evil.”

In 1907, Gerald Massey, in his Ancient Egypt: The Light of the World, citing Heinrich Ritter (1841), defines the Hebrew-Christian Satan as a re-write of the Egyptian Set (or Sut) as follows: [7]
 

“The Hebrew Satan was the Egyptian Sut [Set], who became the evil one of the later theology as an anthropomorphic rendering of Apap [Apep] the serpent of evil. Sut was one of the seven sons of the old ‘first mother’, the goddess of the Great Bear in the astronomical mythology [astro-theology]. He was not one of ‘the sons of god’, as there was no god extant when he was born. Sut was brought forth twin with Horus, and first born as the adversary of his brother Osiris. In a truer version of the mythos the conflict was in phenomena that were physical, not moral.”

A depiction (Ѻ) of Jesus as Roman emperor, wearing military dress, holding cross, with sun disc behind his head, and crushing the serpent representing Satan [Devil] (aka Set as Apep). "I am the way and the truth and the life" (John 14:6) reads the inscription. Ravenna, after 500.

Massey then suppositions on the mythical character to human character switch as follows, in particular stated that much of the Set vs Horus story is found in the book of Job:
 

“There are no morals in mythology, when the characters are non-human, and when the mythical heroes and monsters have been represented as human characters we need to know the mythology once more. The Bible is full of such characters, and Job is one of them. In the ritual, Sut [Set] is the adversary of Osiris, or, stilt earlier, the opponent of Horus. He undoes what the ‘good being’ does. He is the malicious destroyer; the author of disease. lie is permitted to persecute Horus or Osiris to the death. In his character of the adversary, the power of darkness, he says. " I am Sut [Set], who causeth the storms and tempests. and who goeth round the horizon of heaven, like one whose heart is veiled" (Rit, ch. 39). Which is equivalent to saying: ‘I am black-hearted’. Sut is here the prototype of Satan, who ‘goes to and fro in the earth’, and of whom it is elsewhere said, ‘Your adversary the devil walketh about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour’ (I. Peter, v. 8). So, Satan the destroyer plays the devil with the person, the possessions, the belongings of Job. who answers to the suffering Osiris in this development of the ancient drama, in which Horus or Job was no more a human personage than is Set or Satan. They can be studied in the ritual [Passion of Osiris] without disguise or falsification of character, and without a long series of disputations, lamentations, and sermons taking the place of the primitive mystery. The ‘parable’ taken up by Job is the battle of Set and Osiris in the mythical representation. Job the afflicted one is the suffering Osiris who passed into Amenta as the victim of the power of darkness, Set the tormentor, the tempter, the desolator, the destroyer. Amongst other devilries, Set flung his ordure at Horus (Rit. ch. 17); he also pierced him in the eye; but, where Osiris suffered dumbly and opened not his mouth. Job laments his lot, and takes to cursing the day of his birth and wishing that he had been addled in the egg. The character of Job is fathomlessly inferior to that of the good Osiris, called the motionless of heart.

The suffering Horus transforms in ‘in the west’ and becomes the bennu Osiris or the phoenix. Job does the same, or expects to do so, when he says: ‘I shall die in my nest, and I shall multiply my days as the phoenix’. The phoenix was the emblem of the solar god who died to resuscitate in the nest of Amenta. He enters the nest as a hawk and issues forth as a phoenix (Rit., 13, 1). When the battle with Set is over and Horus rises again triumphant over all his trials that were inflicted on him by the adversary, his property is doubled; he is crowned with the double crown as conqueror and king of the double earth. This is puerilely represented by the Lord restoring to Job two-fold of all he had before and overwhelming him with material wealth.”

In 1904, Wallis Budge, in his The Gods of the Egyptians, building on Brugsch (1887), stated that Set had two general forms, the first as darkness, the second as Apep the enemy snake of Ra; the gist of which is as follows: [4]
 

“The mythological and religious texts of all periods contain many allusions to the fight which Set waged against Horus, and more than one version of the narrative is known. In the first and simplest form the story merely records the natural opposition of Day to Night, or Night to Day, and the two Combatant gods were Heru-ur, or Horus the Elder, and Set. In its second form the two combatant gods are Ra and Set, and the chief object of the latter is to prevent Ra from appearing in the East daily. The form which Set assumed on these occasions was that of a monster serpent, and he took with him as helpers a large number of small serpents and noxious creatures of various kinds. The name of the serpent was Apep [] or Aaapef [], which is preserved in Coptic under the form [], but he was also called Rerek , and since he was identified with a long series of serpent monsters he had as many names as Ra.”
 

Budge goes on to state that Set had two more forms:
 

“In the third form of the story the combatant gods are Osiris and Set, and we have already seen how Set slew his brother and persecuted his widow and child, and how he escaped punishment because Osiris had, at the time of his death, none to avenge his cause. In the fourth form of the story the combatant gods are Horus, the son of Osiris and Isis, and Set, and the avowed intention of Horus is to slay him that slew his father Osiris.”

These latter to "forms" of Set, refer to the Heliopolis recension [see: recension theory], wherein Set is the brother of Osiris, Isis, and Nephthys, wherein, in the so-called Passion of Osiris, Set kills Osiris, and chops him up into 14 pieces (the number of stars of Orion), and scatters his pieces about the land. Isis then re-collects the pieces, reassembles them, and, with the help of the powers of the god Thoth, resurrects the dead Osiris, then has reincarnation magical sex with him in the form of a kite, become pregnant with Horus, who then avenges his father as an adult, by cutting off the head of Set.

Budge also states that this Horus defeating Set story is moral parable of the idea that good always triumphs over evil, or light always triumphs over darkness in the older Ra vs Set (Apep) sense of the matter:
 

“The fight between Horus, son of Osiris and Isis, and Set, had a very important bearing on the destinies of the dead, for to it was attached the moral idea of the victory of good over evil, and the deceased was believed to conquer Set even as Osiris had done.”

The modern version of this is explained via free energy coupling theory. [6]
 

A visual gist of how the Egyptian polytheistic model of the battle of dark vs light, in the gods of Set and Horus, morphed into the Roman monotheistic model of the battle of evil vs good, in the characters of the Devil (or Satan) vs Jesus.

Fall of Set | Satan / Devil
In the 19th dynasty (1292-1189BC), Set rose in power to become the supreme god of Egypt; Wallis Budge (pg. 251) summarizes this as follows:
 

“The cult of Set appears to have been revived under the XIXth Dynasty, for the second king thereof called himself Seti, after the name of the god, and this king caused bas-reliefs to be set up in his temples wherein Set is represented in the act of performing the coronation ceremonies. Under this Dynasty we have another king called after the name of the god, i.e. Seti II, Menephthah, but after that period the figure of Set appears in no cartouche, and his evil reputation increased.”

In the 20th dynasty (1189-1077BC), as Budge further notes, Set became demonized to such an extent that “bent statues” of him have been found:
 

“To the XXth Dynasty probably belongs the very interesting bronze figure of Set in the British Museum (No. 18,191), which was worn as a pendant, and was originally plated with gold; the god stands upright and wears the double crown of the South and the North and a uraeus. When found the figure was bent double, a position which it was made to take by violence, probably by someone who detested the god, but the body has been straightened out and it is now possible to examine the head of the Set animal, which in this specimen is finely shaped.”

In c.900BC, or "much later" than the 20th Dynasty period, as Budge puts it, a small wooden Set animal (British Museum: No. 30,460) was made, found standing on a pedestal on which is a sepulchral inscription, addressed to Set, which reads: “the great god, lord of heaven, [give me] life, strength, and health”. Here, we see Set seen as a good god, at least by some, in this period.

In c.600BC, Set began to be transliterated, via the root “s-t-n”, as Massey (1907) notes, in the Hebrew recension, in Judaism (Hebrew mythology), into the term “Satan”, meaning "adversary, one who plots against another"; later, in Greek mythology, this became synonymous with “diabolos”, aka devil. (Ѻ)

In c.520BC, Pythagoras, and or the “Pythagoreans”, as Budge (1904) puts it, looked upon Typho to have been of the rank or order of Demons, as, according to them, “he was produced in the even number fifty-six”, per generalized grouping scheme, as summarized by Plutarch (c.100AD):
 

“The power of the triangle is expressive of the nature of Pluto, Bacchus, and Mars, the properties of the square of Rhea, Venus, Ceres, Vesta, and Juno; of the dodecagon of Jupiter; so, as we are informed by Eudoxus [c.390-337BC] (Ѻ) is the figure of 56 angles expressive of the nature of Typho: as "therefore all the others above-mentioned in the Pythagorean system are looked upon as so many Genii or Demons, so in like manner must this latter be regarded by them.”

Here we see that, for whatever reasons, in the years 1200 to 500BC, Set became demonized.

Moses?
In 100AD, Plutarch, in his On Isis and Osiris, and or Sam Squire (1744), his English translator, stated the following conjectural connection between Set and Moses:
 

“Now as to those who pretend that Typho [Set] escaped out of the battle upon an Ass after a flight of seven days, and that, after he had got into a place of security, he begat two sons, Hierosolymus and Judaeus, it is obvious from the very face of the relation, that their design is to give an air of fable to [what] the Jewish history [relates] of the flight of Moses out of Egypt, and of the settlement of the Jews about Jerusalem and Judaea (Squire’s Translation).”

Wallis Budge (1904), in commentary on this, states the following:
 

“As a proof of the correctness of Plutarch’s statements may be mentioned the figure of Set, which is reproduced from a Demotic papyrus at Leyden by Signor Lanzone, and which represents the god as having the head of an ass; on his breast, which is that of a man, is inscribed the name CHθ.”

It is blurry here as to what exactly Budge proved? Possibly Squire, barring a reading of the exact translation, added in his own commentary and Budge is reading into this?
 

Above: a Horus Gilgamesh Awkward Moments: Children’s Bible (2013) rendition (Ѻ) of 2 Kings 2:24 [see also: Joshua 10:13] and the story of how Elisah issues a “curse” on 42 boys, for calling him bald, that draws two female “bears” out of the woods, who tear the boys to pieces. [5] This strange-sounding Biblical story, accordingly, i.e. according to recension theory, is a rewrite of the Set and Horus battle, in the form of two bears. The 42 boys are rewrites of the 42 gods of the judgment hall, i.e. 42 nome gods of Egypt. The character Elisah, or El-sah, is Hebrew for “god Sah”, i.e. the Orion constellation version of the god Osiris.

Two bears | Set vs Horus

See main: 2 Kings 2:24

Budge states (pg. 245) that the first time Horus and Set fought, it was in the form of men, and that the second time it was in the form of "bears". This would seem to be an astro-theology reference, to a bear-shaped constellation. The constellation of the “Great Bear” (Ѻ) is the sign (Ѻ) of Set; similar to how the Orion constellation is the sign of Osiris.

Quotes
The following are related quotes:
 

“I do not intend to do here what other scholars already have done well. Jeffrey Russell and others, e.g., have attempted to investigate cross-cultural parallels between the figure of Satan and such figures as the Egyptian god Set or the Zoroastrian evil power Ahriman. What interest me are the specific social implications of the figure of Satan.”

— Elaine Pagels (1995), The Origin of Satin [2]

References
1. (a) Budge, Wallis. (1904). The Gods of the Egyptians, Volume Two (§:15: Set, or Suti, and Nephthys, pgs. 241-60). Dover, 1969.
(b) Carus, Paul. (1900). History of the Devil (pgs. 15-28) (Ѻ). Publisher.
(c) Jordan, Michael. (1993). Encyclopedia of Gods: Over 2,500 Deities of the World (pgs. 233). Facts on File, Inc.
2. (a) Russell, Jeffrey B. (1970). The Devil: Perceptions of Evil Antiquity to Primitive Christianity. Cornell University Press, 1987.
(b) Pagels, Elaine. (1995). The Origin of Satan (pg. xviii). Vintage Books.
3. (a) Brugsch, Heinrich. (1887). Religion and Mythology of the Egyptians (Religion und Mythologie der Aegypter) (pg. 703). Publisher.
(b) Budge, Wallis. (1904). The Gods of the Egyptians, Volume Two (pg. 244). Dover, 1969.
4. Budge, Wallis. (1904). The Gods of the Egyptians, Volume Two (pgs. 244-45; Typho as #56, pgs. 252-53; four forms, pg. 254). Dover, 1969.
5. Gilgamesh, Horus and Tickheathen, Agnes. (2013). Awkward Moments Children’s Bible, Volume One (Foreword: David McAfee) (eB) (Ѻ) (Tear Those Boys to Pieces, pgs. 23-24). CreateSpace.
6. Thims, Libb. (2011). “Thermodynamic Proof that Good Always Triumphs over Evil”, Journal of Human Thermodynamics, 7: 1-4.
7. Massey, Gerald. (1907). Ancient Egypt: The Light of the World: a Work of Reclamation and Restitution in Twelve Books, Volume Two (pg. 493). T. Fisher Unwin.
8. (a) Plutarch. (100AD). On Isis and Osiris. Publisher.
(b) Squire, Sam. (1744). Plutarch's Treatise on Isis and Osiris (pg. 15ff). Cambridge.
(c) Budge, Wallis. (1904). The Gods of the Egyptians, Volume Two (pgs. 253-54). Dover, 1969.

External links
● Set (deity) – Wikipedia.

 

https://web.archive.org/web/20200205180731/http://www.eoht.info/page/Set

 

Devil

A visual of the artistic form change of "Set", the Egyptian god of evil (1700BC), a red-skin colored fallen god, who does battle each night with the sun god Ra, in the form of a serpent, to the "Devil", the Christian angel of evil, a red-skin colored fallen angel, who also appears in the form of a serpent, who does battle with the forces of good, in modern terms.

In religio-mythology, Devil (TR:18), aka Satan (Set) or Sheitan (Islam), Lucifer, Baal (Semitic), Beelzebub, among other names, refers to the deity-like personification of the force, energy, or power of evil, darkness, and or causality behind wrong-doings; the character mold of which derived from the Egyptian god Set.

Set | Fallen angel
The modern concept of the Devil, in the Abrahamic religions, is derived from the Egyptian god Set, a god typically described as "horned", with “red or reddish-brown hair or skin”, who is a fallen god. [1]

In 1879, Peter Renouf, in his Origin and Growth of Religion: as Illustrated by the Ancient Religion of Ancient Egypt, summarized Set’s fall from grace, as a leading god, as follows: [6]
 

“Set, though the antagonist of light in the myths of Ra, Osiris and Horus, is not a god of evil. He represents a physical reality, a constant and everlasting law of nature, and is as true a god as his opponents. His worship is as ancient as any. The kings of Egypt were as devoted to Set as to Horus, and derived from them the sovereignty over north and south. On some monuments one god is represented with two heads, one being that of Horus, the other that of Set.”
 

This two-head depiction (with description) is as follows: [1]

 

Renouf continues:

“The name of the great conqueror, 'Seti' [1290BC] signifies 'he that is devoted to Set.' It was not till the decline of the Empire that this deity came to be regarded as an evil demon, that his name was effaced from monuments, and other names substituted for his in the ritual.”

In 1883, Frederic Hall, in his The Pedigree of the Devil, citing Renouf, summarized the Set as fallen god turned “devil” or demon figure as follows: [6]
 

“Set was the devil of the later Egyptian mythology.”

Christianity also over-typically describes the Devil as a "fallen angel" who terrorizes the world through evil. [4] This refers to the fall of the god Set from good god to bad god after 18th dynasty Egypt; Wallis Budge (1904) summarizes as follows: [1]
 

“In the early dynastic times, it is tolerably certain that the worship of Set was widespread, and his cult seems to have flourished until the period which lies between the XII and the XVIIIth Dynasties; but about BC 1700 a change came over his fortunes, and the Egyptians began to show the greatest detestation for him. He had, of course, always been connected with evil, but it appears that the popularity of his cult suffered greatly at this period because he was associated with the occupation of Northern Egypt by the Hyksos, who identified him with certain Semitic, Syrian gods.”

Set, in other words, originally, in 1st dynasty Egypt (3,100BC), was the great god of Southern Egypt who battled Horus, the great god of Northern Egypt, for rule of the Empire. Horus, according to the famous "Passion of Osiris" one in the end and therein proclaimed the right to rule Egypt, which is why most of the early dynasty pharaohs had Hor (or Horus) as part of their name. Set, after the fall of Hyksos dynasty, which was in power in Egypt from 1650 to 1550BC (see: supreme god timeline), went from being a "chief god" to a fallen god. Then, in the course of the Hebrew recension (see: recension theory), a polytheism to monotheism religious reformation, wherein lesser gods were reshaped into the guise of either angels, demons, of fictional humans, Set went from being a "fallen god" to a "fallen angel".

Set | Red color
In 1970, Jeffery Russell, in his The Devil: Perceptions of Evil Antiquity to Primitive Christianity, stitched together connections between Set and the Devil; in particular, Russell notes that the "red color", contrary to the modern view that the red of the devil has to do with the red color of the flames of hell, originated from the death-bring "red" color of the hot dessert sand, surrounding the fertile part of Nile region, as opposed to the life-giving (crop-growing) "black" soil, called keme, brought down from the Ethiopian Mountains, each Nile flood season: [2]
 

“No deity ever becomes the principle of evil, but in one god, Seth [Set], the destructive and unharmonious element is more evident than in others. The myth of Seth as the antagonist of the sky god Hor or Horus (hor = ‘face’ or ‘sky’) is as ancient as the Pyramid Texts; the hostility between the two grows in time, and finally in the Hellenistic period [323BC-30BC], Seth has become almost entirely evil. Some scholars interpret the origin of the myth as political: Horus is a god of lower Egypt, the north, and Seth is a god of upper Egypt, the south. Others insist that Seth and Horus (or Osiris in the myths) are deities of opposite ecologies, Seth representing the dry desert and Horus or Osiris the black earth [keme] or the fertilizing Nile. Egypt is one of the few cultures in which black is not the color of evil, but the color of the fertile, life-giving alluvial plains of the delta. Red was the evil color, the hostile hue of the scorching sands. Because of Seth's association with the desert, his color most commonly is red, and red-haired or ruddy people were considered in some special way his own.”

(add)

Set | Horns
In 1978, Anthony Mercante, in his Who’s Who: in Egyptian Mythology, elaborated on Set as follows: [5]
 

“Set is sometimes portrayed with horns, which made him the ideal image for the devil in Egyptian Christianity.”

(add)

Set | Snake & Tree
In modern terms, Christianity identifies the Devil ("Satan") with the Serpent who tempted Adam and Eve to eat the forbidden fruit. [4] This refers to the characteristic of Set in the form of Apep the snake that does battle with Ra the sun god, in and around the Persia Tree [see: Christmas tree], each night. [1]

Set | Namesakes
Set assumed many names, one of the first of which was Baal; Wallis Budge (1904) summarizes this as follows: [1]
 

“In the North and South of Egypt, Set was called both Nubti and Sutekh,  and there is no doubt whatsoever that he was endowed by the peoples in the Delta with all the attributes of the Semitic god Baal, בעל, whose name appears in Egyptian under the form Bar, or Balu .”

The history of how Set subsumed Baal in namesake became the modern day namesake "devil" (or Satan) is involved; Matthew Chris, in his Modern Satanism (2009) gives a fairly cogent synopsis of this overall recension as follows: [8]
 

“Satan's ancestry is the result of an elaborate cross-breeding of traditions that has spanned millennia. Numerous faiths and folklores have contributed to his bloodline as it has passed through history, creating a figure rich in resonance and lore. Though widely regarded in the present day as a single supernatural entity, the preeminent embodiment of evil, Satan is actually a reduction or hybridization of a number of individual demons and mythical beings. The list of his progenitors, kinsmen and co-conspirators includes Lucifer, Mephistopheles, Beelzebub, Belial, Azazel, the Devil, various lesser devils, Ahriman, and even the Egyptian deity Set (Seth). This impressive gallery of seducers, liars, and destroyers gradually coalesced into the grand figure of the archfiend as he is now known, the great adversity of god and humanity.”

Set, as the antithesis of light, over the course of the last 5,000-plus years, in short, via religious recension, redaction, and synretism, became the modern religious mythical figure of the "devil", the embodiment of evil.

Other
In 2011, in the supernatural horror-thriller The Rite, staring Anthony Hopkins, the agnostic-skeptic American priest in training Michael Kovak (Colin O'Donoghue) is only able to “exorcise” the demon, using the “knowing the name” technique of the Egyptian human model, by speaking the secret name of the demon, at the end of the movie, which is Baal. (Ѻ)

Quotes
The following are related quotes:
 

“I do not intend to do here what other scholars already have done well. Jeffrey Russell [1970] and others, e.g., have attempted to investigate cross-cultural parallels between the figure of Satan [Devil] and such figures as the Egyptian god Set or the Zoroastrian evil power Ahriman. What interest me are the specific social implications of the figure of Satan.”

— Elaine Pagels (1995), The Origin of Satin [3]

References
1. Budge, Wallis. (1904). The Gods of the Egyptians, Volume Two (§:Set, pgs. 241-60; Horus-Set double head image, pg. 242-243; Apep, pg. 245; fallen angel, pg. 250; Baal, pg. 250). Dover, 1969.
2. Russell, Jeffrey B. (1970). The Devil: Perceptions of Evil Antiquity to Primitive Christianity (Seth, 13+ pgs; quote, pg. 78). Cornell University Press, 1987.
3. Pagels, Elaine. (1995). The Origin of Satan (pg. xviii). Vintage Books.
4. Leeming, David. (2005). Oxford Companion to World Mythology (Devil, 22+ pgs). Oxford University Press.
5. Mercante, Anthony S. (1978). Who’s Who in Egyptian Mythology (editor and reviser: Robert Bianchi) (pg. 144). Metro Books, 1995.
6. Renouf, Peter Le Page. (1879). Lectures on the Origin and Growth of Religion: as Illustrated by the Ancient Religion of Ancient Egypt, Hibbert Lectures (pgs. 117). Publisher.
7. Hall, Frederick T. (1883). The Pedigree of the Devil (pg. 130). Publisher.
8. Mathews, Chris. (2009). Modern Satanism: Anatomy of a Radical Subculture (Earliest Origins, pg. 2). Greenwood Publishing Group.

External links
● Devil – Wikipedia.
● Beelzebub – Wikipedia.
● Baal – Wikipedia.

 

https://web.archive.org/web/20200206204718/http://www.eoht.info/page/Devil

 

 

And what was that you said about Satan not being based on Set/Apep Berhman? 

 

 

Horus-Set Composite

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Horus Never Raised Osiris from the dead he remained in the underworld! or Osiris wasnt called Elazarus!

 

 

 

The Raising of Osiris

As remarked upon by Diodorus before the alleged advent of Jesus Christ the Egyptian son of God Horus was revered as a miricle maker and healer. Like Jesus who cures the blind man with his spit Horus heals wounds using his spittle (PT 455:850a/P 50) [4] In CT Sp 331 the "saliva and spittle" of Horus are also sought out by the deceased as his mother Hathor.[5] Indeed in CT Sp 527 the "Spittle which issued from the mouth of Re-Atum" represents the purification of the Osiris.[6] In CT 622 we discover that the spit of the Osiris is a "healing operation"[7] while in CT 818 the spitting is "prophylactic in purpose"[8] In CT 1113 the deceased as Horus says "I am the one who spits on wounds which shall heal..."[9] In the Pyramid Texts (PT 219:192b/W 152) Horus is depicted as relieving "intestinal pain"[10] as well as assorted other ailments including the disease of death. Demonstrating the remarkable ancient Horus-Jesus connection one of the old Coptic spells to remove pains of childbirth was "Jesus! Horus" or just simply "Jesus Horus!"[11] 

 

[4] Allen, T., HPT, 33; Mercer, 157; Allen, J., AEPT, 110; Faulkner, AEPT, 151

 

[5] Faulkner, AECT, I, 256

 

[6] Faulkner, AECT, II, 152

 

[7] Faulkner, AECT, II, 206

 

[8] Faulkner, AECT, III, 9

 

[9] Faulkner, AECT, III, 162

 

 

Regarding Horus's role in healing professor of Egyptology at the University of Chicago Dr. Robert K. Ritner remarks: In medical texts, the patient is almost invariably identified with the youthful Horus whose recovery from assaults by Seth and his confederates serves as a pattern for healing....Direct identification with a deity is integral to Egyptian magical recitations into coptic times and it permeates the Greco-Egyptian spells by means of the untranslated native phrase anok ("I am")....[1]

 

Dr. Ritner also states "In most spells, cures are effected by means of direct identificaton between patient and deity either completely ("I am Horus it is not I who recites who recites but the goddess Isis") or in part....[2] in fact Horus's healing function is so important that "Horus the good doctor" a title reminding one of "Jesus The Physician" was at the center of a "popular cult" as found at the site of Kom Ombo or Ombos for instance [3] Moreover a "popular innovation" of the later New Kingdom was the antivenom stela or "cippus of Horus" used well into Roman times" [4] These small pillars were inscribed with curing spells and were "brought in contact with water subsequently drunk by the patient" [5] Regarding the healing spells Dr. Ritner remarks: ...Many treatments combine "rational" and "magical" strategies "charged" by spell and rite. In most such cases the patient is equated with the youthful Horus whose cure is sanctioned by the gods[6] 

 

Also Just like Jesus Horus was esteemed for resurrecting the dead especialy his father Osiris but also others including Re and the deceased in the morterary literature with the preist serving as Horus during the ritual. In CT Sp 29 it is by a "great word" made by Horus that Osiris is resurrected and akhified [7] while at PT 301:449b-450a/W 206 Horus is depicted as "he who brings Re to life everyday He refashions the King and brings the King to life every day" [8] The story of Horus resurrecting Osiris strongly resembles the much later biblicle tale of Jesus raising the dead man Lazarus a miracle surprisingly found only in the Gospel of John a book we contend is of Egyptian origin and represents Egyptian theology in significant part designed specifically to appeal to the followers of the Egyptian religion [9] 

 

[1] Redford 198

[2] Redford 200

[3] Redford 204

[4] Redford 208

[5] Redford 208

[6] Redford 208 

[7] Faulkner AECT I 18

[8] Faulkner AEPT 90 Allen J AEPT 55 Mercer 100

[9] For more on the subject see my books the Christ Conspiracy, Suns of God and Who was Jesus?

 

The reserrection of Osiris by Horus occurs in many ancient Egyptian texts and is often the primary focus  of the deceased's bid bid for immortality in like kind. A PT 606:1683a-1685b/ M 336 for example Horus is vividly described as raising Osiris from the dead and avenging him: Stand up for me father! Stand up for me Osiris N...! It is I your son: I am Horus.

 

I have come for you that I might clean you, cleanse you, revive you, assemble for you you bones collect for you your swimming parts and assemble for you your dismebered parts. For I am Horus who saves his father...[1] 

 

The reserrection miracle of Horus is also depicted elsewere in the Pyramid texts the phrase "to stand" meaning to be resurrected and "upon his side" signifying that the individual is dead. Thus in the Egyptian texts the Horus-priest frequently tells Osiris to "Stand Up" and 

"Rise Up" as part of his renewal or reserrection to life. The deceased / Osiris is also exhorted to "live" and "Raise yourself on your side!" or 'Lift thyself on thy side" etc. In Horus in the Pyramid Texts T George Allen summarizes the resurrection account rolling into one entry the events as found in seperate utterances  demonstrating how composite myths are made: 

 

Horus causes Osiris the King to stand. [PT 364:617a-c/T 196 PT 369:640a/T 200]

 

Horus and Thoth raise Osiris (the King) (from) upon his side upon his side cause him to stand among...the two divine enneads. [PT 477:956a-

c/P 327]

 

Horus bids Osiris the king come forth (from tomb?) and awake [PT 620:1753a-b/N 11]

 

Horus comes to king parts his bandages and casts off his bonds [PT 703:2202a/N 615] [2]

 

this description of Osiris the mummy being summoned from the tomb amid his two siblings sounds very much like an episode or pericope in the New Testament of Jesus calling forth the "mummy" Lazarus from the tomb in front of his two sisters: 

 

                                 

John 11:43-44

King James Version

43 And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth.

44 And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go.

 

Like Jesus at PT 268:372a-d/W 175 Horus also purifies the dead and removes evil:

 

Horus....purifes....him in the Jackle-lake cleanses his ka in the Dewat-lake and purifies...the flesh of his bodily ka...[3]

 

After the purifications it is said (PT 419:746b/T 225] that "Horus has dispelled the evil which was on you for four days[4]

 

[1] Allen J AEPT 226 Mercer 257 Faulkner AEPT 250 

 

[2] Allen T HPT 40 Mercer 124, 127, 171, 266, 318 Allen J AEPT 80, 82, 129, 242, 303 Faulkner AEPT 119, 122, 164, 257, 306,

 

[3] Allen T HPT 43 Mercer 90 Allen J AEPT 49 Faulkner AEPT 77 again the ka is the second material body or "double" that must be purified in order to receive the immortal ba or soul

 

[4] Faulkner AEPT 38 Allen T HPT 43 Mercer 142 Allen J AEPT 86

 

Coincidentally the time of Lazurus's period in the tomb is also four days: 

 

John 11:17

King James Version

Then when Jesus came, he found that he had lain in the grave four days already.

 

 

Adding to the obvious correlations between the raising of Osiris by Horus and that of Lazarus by Jesus at the scene of the Egyptian God's reserrection appear his two sisters, deemed Merta in the book of the dead [Renouf EBD 13, 85]  precisely as Lazarus' sisters Mary and Martha were present at his ressurection in BD 37 these two sister goddesses are expressed for IsIs and Nephthys with the word Merta meaning "two eyes" as in eyewtnesses as Reneouf says "Merta is the name given to the goddess pair Isis and Nephthys" [Reneouf EBD 85 Budge (BD cxiv) transliterates this term "Merti" while Birch calles them Asps (Bunsen/Birch 192) and Faulkner (104) deems them "Songstrees Snakes" 

In chapter 37 they are concidered "Terrible Sister Serpents" who need to be warded off. Dr Allen calls them "Mrty Snakes" (Allen T BD 45)]

At Coffin Text Spell 345 the Horus-priest says to the deceased "Those who wept for Osiris will weep for you on that day of the fourth day festival [Faulkner AECT I 280 in this text the aggrieved also mourn a "six day festival" CT Sp 345)] reflecting the sisters role is and ongoing ritual that must have been fairly commonly known. In PT 357:584a-c/T 146 Osiris's sisters Isis and Nepthys protect the king as Osiris and give him to Horus to reserrect [Allen T HPT 41, Faulkner AEPT 115, Mercer 120, Allen J AEPT 73] In the gospel story Mary and Martha throw themselves upon Jesus begging him to raise there brother. After Osiris is risen his two sisters say "Our brother comes to us" (PT 606: 1696a-c / M 336)[Faulkner, AEPT 251, Mercer 259, Allen J AEPT 227] Of course Mary and Martha likewise rejoice in there brother coming back to them as well.

 

In PT 676:2008a-2009d / N  411 a "resurrection" text we find again the deceased/Osiris being called by his two sisters: "Collect thy bones arrange thy limbs shake off thy dust untie thy bandages The Tomb is open for Thee the double doors of heaven are open for thee "Hail" says Isis "(come) in peace" says Nephthys when there brother at the feast of Atum [Mercer 298 Allen J AEPT 276 Faulkner AEPT 289] While Isis and Nephthys thus partake in a feast associated with the resurrection of Osiris after Lazarus's ressurection Jesus goes to the house of Lazarus, Mary and Martha for a feast. (Jn 12:2) Furthermore while Lazarus's sister Mary is depicted as wiping Jesus feet with her hair (Jn 11:2, 12:3 Lk 7:38) In BD 17 the deceased/Osiris Is potrayed as "found with [sister Isis's] hair spread over him [Budge TBD 54, 290 "The Osiris Ani is safely guarded. He is Isis and he is found with [her] hair spread over him." Faulkner (pl. 10) translates this passage somewhat differently with the speaker in the first person "I am Isis" such that it is her hair on herself rather than the hair of Isis on the Osiris. Allen renders it: " '[I] LET MY [HAIR] DOWN OVER MY FACE IN DISORDER SO THAT MY PARTING WAS MUSSED' means when Isis was hiding; then she wiped [her] hair." (Allen T. BD, 32.)]  BD 164 refers to "the Goddess Joined unto life with flowing hair" [Budge BD (1890), 430] 

 

"The House Of Osiris in Annu was called Hat-Saru the house of the prince that is the abod of Horus when he came to raise Osiris from the tomb. It was the sanctuary  of Osiris who was attended by the two Mertae or Merti, the pair of divine sisters better known by the names of Isis and Nephthys"

 

Gerald Massey Ancient Egypt: Light Of The World Vol II (845)

 

       

The Greek name "Lazarus" or "Lazaros" equals "Eleazar" in Hebrew and per strongs (concordance) (G2976) means "whom God helps" it is a strange coincidence that the person whom Jesus ressurects happens to be named "whom God helps." and secoundly that "Eleazar" or breaking down its original components in Hebrew El-Azar looks closely resembles a combination of the semetic word for God "El" with the Egyptian name for Osiris "Ausar" interestingly there exists an ancient phonician inscription called "The Carpentras" that does indeed identify Osiris with the Semetic god "El" or Elohim calling him "Osiris Eloh"

 

Murdock WWJ 234 See Heath 92 Genesis 3:21 et al       

 

 

"El Osiris in another form is L'azarus an account of whose death and resserection occur in the gospel of John where the Lord Jesus personates the central sun which restored to life El Osiris"

 

Albert Ross Parsons New Light From The Great Pyramid (187)

 

 

In addition el or al in arabic means "the" hence "El Azar-us would be equivalent to "the Osiris" which is in fact the frequent name used to discribe the deceased yearning to be ressurected. Verifying this fact the village in Judea where the Lazarus miracle supossedly took place Bethany today is called "EL Azarieh"

 

Parsons A 190 Rousseu 15 Davies W.D. 143  

 

 

 

 

 

Egyptian Texts                                                                                                                      

 

[The Osiris]... was born in Heliopolis [Annu]...[2] (PT 307:483a/W 212) [The Osiris is] annointed with the best ointment...[3] (PT 576: 1511a/P 518) Behold this King his feet are kissed by the pure waters...[4] (PT 685: 2065a / N 519) Two sisters, Isis and Nephthys, come to thee; they

hasten to the place in which thou art.[5] (PT 593: 1630a-b / M 206) "O Osiris you have gone but you will return you have slept [but you will awake] you have died but you will live.[1] (PT 670: 1975a-b/N 348) I am...the Lord of reserrections who cometh forth from the dusk and whose birth from the House of Death.[2] (BD 64)...as the mourning-women of Osiris weep for thee.[3] (PT 667a:194b/Nt 243) Isis weeps for thee Nephthys calls for thee....[4] (PT 619:1750c-1751a/M 399) The Tomb is open for thee the double doors of the coffin are undone for thee...[5] (PT 676:2009a/N 411) Flesh of [the Osiris] rot not decay not let not thy smell be bad.[6] (PT 412:722a-b/T 228) Horus has exterminated the evil in which was in [the Osiris] in his four day term...[7] (PT 419:746b/T 225) I am Horus, Osiris N., I will not let thee sicken. Come forth, awake I will avenge thee.[1] (PT 630:1753a-b/N 11) Let them who are in their graves arise let them undo their bandages.[2] (PT 662:1878/N 388) O N., live thou shalt not die. Horus comes to thee he seperates thy bandages he casts off thy bonds.[3] (PT 703:2201c-2202a/N 615)

 

[1] Maspero PSAE xv

[2] Mercer 105 Allen J AEPT 58 Faulkner AEPT 95

[3] Mercer 238 Allen J AEPT 182 Faulkner AEPT 231

[4] Mercer 304 Allen J AEPT 291 Faulkner AEPT 295. The "waters here are the semen of Shu and the discharge from Tefnut obviously differing from the gospel story. It should be kept in mind that the contention is not that the Christian copyists reproduced the texts identically but that they borrowed what suited them according to their more stoic Jewish backround.

[5] Mercer 250-251 Allen J AEPT 217 Faulkner AEPT 244

 

 

[1] Faulkner AEPT 285 Mercer 294 Allen J AEPT 267

[2] Renouf EBD 118 Allen T BD 56 Faulkner EBD 106 Bunsen/Birch 206

[3] Mercer 290 Allen J AEPT 325 Faulkner AEPT 281

[4] Mercer 266 Allen J AEPT 235 Faulkner AEPT 257

[5] Mercer 298 Allen J AEPT 276 Faulkner AEPT 289

[6] Mercer 139 Allen J AEPT 86 Faulkner AEPT 135

[7] Mercer 143 Allen J AEPT 86 Faulkner AEPT 138         

 

[1] Mercer 266 Allen J AEPT 242 Faulkner AEPT 257

[2] Mercer 280 Allen J AEPT 272 Faulkner AEPT 272

[3] Mercer 318 Allen J AEPT 303 Faulkner AEPT 306-307

 

 

 

 

Gospel of John (KJV)

    

John 11

King James Version

11 Now a certain man was sick, named Lazarus, of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha.

2 (It was that Mary which anointed the Lord with ointment, and wiped his feet with her hair, whose brother Lazarus was sick.)

3 Therefore his sisters sent unto him, saying, Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick.

 

 

John 11:11-14

King James Version

11 These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.

12 Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well.

13 Howbeit Jesus spake of his death: but they thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep.

14 Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead.

 

John 11:25

King James Version

25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:

 

 

John 11:28

King James Version

28 And when she had so said, she went her way, and called Mary her sister secretly, saying, The Master is come, and calleth for thee.

 

 

John 11:33

King James Version

33 When Jesus therefore saw her weeping, and the Jews also weeping which came with her, he groaned in the spirit, and was troubled.

 

John 11:38-39

King James Version

38 Jesus therefore again groaning in himself cometh to the grave. It was a cave, and a stone lay upon it.

39 Jesus said, Take ye away the stone. Martha, the sister of him that was dead, saith unto him, Lord, by this time he stinketh: for he hath been dead four days.

 

 

 

John 11:43-44

King James Version

43 And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth.

44 And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go.

 

 

 

“The process of reducing the fairy-godmother's coach-and-six to the status of a one-horse cab may be seen in the Gospel according to Luke in getting rid of Osiris. The pair of sisters, Martha and Mary, appear in this Gospel, but without their brother Lazarus, and also without the resurrection. After all that has now been done towards identifying Bethany with the house in Annu [Heliopolis] and the nest of the two sisters, the two sisters with Isis and Nephthys, and the Christ with Horus, it cannot be considered far-fetched if we look upon Lazarus as a form of the Osiris that was dead and buried and raised to life again. As to the name, the Egyptian name of the Greek Osiris is Hesar, or Asar. And when we take into consideration that some of the matter came from its Egyptian source through the Aramaic and Arabic languages (witness the Arabic Gospel of the infancy) there is little difficulty, if any, in supposing that the Al (article the) has been adopted through the medium of the Arabic, or derived from the Hebrew prenominal stem אל [AL], to emphasize a thing, as in ‘the Osiris’ [the mummy], which passed into the article Al for "the" in Arabic, and was prefixed to the name of Osiris as Al-Asar, which, with the Greek "s" for suffix becomes L-azarus. The connecting link whereby Al-Asar was turned into Lazarus, the Osiris, was in all likelihood made in the Aramaic language, which had its root-relations with the Egyptian. Hieroglyphic papyri are among its monumental remains, as well as the inscription of Carpentras.”

— Gerald Massey (1907), Ancient Egypt, the Light of the Modern World, Volume Two (pgs. 264)

 

 

 

 

“The rod that is waves by Jesus at the raising of Lazarus is the symbolic scepter in the hand of Horus when he raises the Osiris. In every instance, Lazarus is a mummy made after the Egyptian fashion. It is a bandaged body that had been soaked in salt and pitch which was at times so hot that it charred the bones. Seventy days was the proper length of time required for embalming the dead body in making an Egyptian mummy. Lazarus when portrayed in the Roman catacombs comes forth from the tomb as an eviscerated, embalmed and bandaged mummy, warranted to have been made in Egypt. Now according to the Gospel narrative, there was no time for this, as Lazarus had only been dead for four days. The mummy, anyway, is non-historical; and it is the typically mummy called the Osiris, Asar in Egyptian, El-Asar in Aramaic, and Lazarus with the Greek terminal [La-Asar-us] in the Gospel assigned to John.”

— Gerald Massey (1907), Ancient Egypt, the Light of the Modern World, Volume Two (pgs. 851-52)

 

https://web.archive.org/web/20200206213122/http://www.eoht.info/page/Lazarus

 

 

Lastly for those "Obstinate heathens" clearly blinded by demonic forces who claim Horus never raised Osiris from the dead think again!

 

https://books.google.ca/boo... scroll down to page 403

 

http://highermeaning.org/Au... scroll down to "Horus Giving Life To Osiris"

 

 

 

 

"Horus was never crucified there is no records of this!" "Horus Never died I cant find anything about this so it must be a lie right?" LOL

It is important to remember here before we begin that these 3 characters in Egyptian Mythology Ra, Osiris and Horus were quite often conflated and interchangeable to the point of syncretism and indeed are frequently potrayed as 3 sepererate forms or aspects of the same Solar God and indeed as "I and the father are one" John 10:30 Osiris and his Son Horus are likewise concidered one :

 

"We have the form of Harpocrates at its rising, the child sun-god being generally represented by the figure of a hawk. When in human form, we notice the presence of a side lock of hair. The god Ra symbolises, it is said, the sun in his noontide strength; while for the time of sunset we have various names, chiefly Osiris, Tum, or Atmu, the dying sun represented by a mummy and typifying old age. The hours of the day were also personified, the twelve changes during the twelve hours being mythically connected with the sun’s daily movement across the sky"

Norman J. Lockyer The Dawn of Astronomy (24-25)

 

"…Ruling over the universe by day, the Sun was identified with Horus, the god of kingship; at sunset he was seen as Atum, the oldest of all gods. The Sun’s daily movement through the sky was viewed as a journey from birth to death, and his rebirth at dawn was made possible through Osiris, the force of new life… …In the middle of the night the Sun merged with Osiris’s body; through this union, the Sun received the power of new life while Osiris was reborn in the Sun."

Dr James P Allen The Ancient Egyptian Pyramid Texts (8)

 

Many Egyptian gods can be the sun god, especially Re, Atum, Amun, and manifestations of Horus. Even Osiris appears as the night form of the sun god in the New Kingdom. It is often not defined which particular sun god is meant in a given instance. 

Egyptologist Dr. Eric Hornung Conceptions of God in Ancient Egypt: The One and the Many (283)

 

The Sun has countless names, Ptah, Tmu, Ra, Horus, Khnemu, Sebek, Amen, etc.; and some of them, such as Osiris and Seker, are names of the Sun after he has set, or, in mythological language, has died and been buried…. All gods, as such, were absolutely equal in their might and in their divinity; but, mythologically, Osiris might be said to be slain by his brother Set, the personification of Night, who, in his turn, was overthrown by Horus (the rising sun), the heir of Osiris.

E.A. Wallis Budge A Guide to the First and Second Egyptian Rooms (2-3)

 

 

 

Re Syncretized with Osiris

 

...Osiris rose to new life in his son, Horus...

Dr. Tryggve N.D. Mettinger Riddle of the Reserrection (192)

 

"One of Horus's titles was "Son of Re" so that the pharoh like Horus himself was the son of God to whom he returned after a sojourn on Earth. The myth of Horus justifies the Sacred Kingship. Horus is Osiris reborn and Osiris's resurrection as Horus represents the possibility of any individual's succeding on the traditional heroic journey into the underworld"

David Adam Leemings Creation Myths Of The World: An Encyclopedia (405)

 

“I am the Prince in the Field, I am Osiris. I am Horus and Ra, One with Osiris.”

 Mark Van Doren An Anthology Of World Poetry (241)

 

"The Egyptians believed that after the sun god had died and entered the underworld beyond the horizon in the west, he temporarily merged with Osiris. Thus Re-Osiris was imbued with new life and was able to be reborn in the morning as Horus, the son of Osiris. This reborn sun god is therefore called Re-Horakhty, “Re-Horus-of-the-horizon”."

Jacobus Van Djik Objects for Eternity: Egyptian Antiquities from the W. Arnold Meijer Collection (184)

 

"Horus in death becomes Osiris." 

Dr. John G. Griffiths, The Origins of Osiris and His Cult (231)

 

"In some accounts Horus merges with Osiris." 

Dr. Kenneth L. Campbell, Western Civilization: A Global and Comparative Approach, Volume I (20)

 

"Osiris was the king: he reigned and died. But there was, after all, still a living king, the son Horus. But since the king was Osiris, Horus had become Osiris." 

Dr. J. Russell Major et al., Civilization in the Western World: Ancient times to 1715 (45) 

 

"The interests of Horus were common with those of almost all the gods of Egypt, but there were many deities with whom he was especially associated. Besides Set, who will be discussed separately with Horus in chapter V, the chief among them was Osiris, his father. Indeed, Horus was almost identified with Osiris, for he was regarded as Osiris re-born, and Osiris-Horus was considered a form of the rising sun." 

Dr. Samuel A.B. Mercer, The Religion of Ancient Egypt (75)

 

BECOMING THE COUNTERPART OF OSIRIS. I indeed am Osiris, I indeed am the Lord of All, I am the Radiant One, the brother of the Radiant Lady; I am Osiris, the brother of Isis. My son Horus and his mother Isis have protected me from that foe who would harm me … I am Horus on the day of his accession.

Coffin Texts, Spell 227 III, 260-63

 

Now although it may be true that Horus was never "Crucified" in the sense of being violently beaten and then graphically nailed and bled to death on a crucifix there is however a motif known as "Cruciform" where various gods are potrayed as having symbolically outstretched arms in a symbolic manner Osiris/Horus being no exception.

 

Betrayed by Typhon: The Typhon figure is also known as Set/Seth, the god of desert and darkness who betrays his brother, Osiris, and who is depicted in the Pyramid Texts as battling with Horus, who avenges his father. In later texts, Seth is said to have sent a snake or scorpion to sting and kill Horus, as on the Metternich Stela89 (c. 380-342 BCE) and other such “cippi” or magical stele.

Recounting another myth in which Horus is drowned, Diodorus (Antiquities of Egypt, 1.25.6) describes the god’s raising or resurrection by Isis, using the same term, anastasis, later employed to describe Jesus’s resurrection: Isis also discovered the elixir of immortality, and when her son Horus fell victim to the plots of the Titans and was found dead beneath the waves, she not only raised him from the dead and restored his soul, but also gave him eternal life.[90] 

The similarity of the Osiris-Set conflict with that of the Jesus-Satan battle is highlighted by historian Dr. Philip Van Ness Myers:

The god Seth, called Typhon by the Greek writers, was the Satan of later Egyptian mythology. He was the personification of the evil in the world, just as Osiris was the personification of the good.[91] 

For more on the contention between Horus and Set, see Christ in Egypt, pp. 67-78.

Horus Crucified: The “crucifixion” of Horus is misunderstood because many erroneously assume that the term denotes a direct resemblance to the crucifixion narrative of Jesus Christ. Hence, it is critical to point out that we are dealing with metaphors here, not “history,” as the “crucifixions” of both Horus and Jesus are improvable events historically.

The issue at hand is not a man being thrown to the ground and nailed to a cross, as Jesus is depicted to have been, but the portrayal of gods and goddesses in “cruciform,” whereby the divine figure appears with arms outstretched in a symbolic context. The word “crucify” comes from the Latin crucifigere, composed of cruci/crux and affigere/figere, meaning “cross” and “to fix/affix,” respectively. Thus, it does not necessarily mean to throw a living person to the ground and nail him or her to a cross, but could signify any image affixed to a cross-shape or in cruciform. This symbolic imagery of a person on a cross or in cross-shape was fairly common in the Pagan world, concerning many gods, goddesses and other figures.

First of all, the cross was a very ancient pre-Christian symbol that often designated the sun. Regarding the cross, the Catholic Encyclopedia (“Cross and the Crucifix”) states:

The sign of the cross, represented in its simplest form by a crossing of two lines at right angles, greatly antedates, in both the East and the West, the introduction of Christianity. It goes back to a very remote period of human civilization....

...It is also...a symbol of the sun...and seems to denote its daily rotation.... Cruciform objects have been found in Assyria. Shari people in Egypt wearing crucifixes around their necks. The statutes of Kings Asurnazirpal and Sansirauman, now in the British Museum, have cruciform jewels about the neck.... Cruciform earrings were found by Father Delattre in Punic tombs at Carthage.

Another symbol which has been connected with the cross is the ansated cross (ankh or crux ansata) of the ancient Egyptians.... From the earliest times also it appears among the hieroglyphic signs symbolic of life or of the living... perhaps it was originally, like the swastika, an astronomical sign. The ansated cross is found on many and various monuments of Egypt.... In

 

[90] Diodorus/Murphy, 31. See also Murdock, CIE, 388.

[91] Van Ness Myers, 38.

 

later times the Egyptian Christians (Copts), attracted by its form, and perhaps by its symbolism, adopted it as the emblem of the cross...[92]

Fortunately, many ancient artifacts survive that demonstrate the antiquity not only of the cross but also of a human figure in the shape of a cross or in cruciform.

                         

 

 

These pre-Christian or non-Christian gods on a cross were evidently what was being discussed around 150 AD/CE by Church father Justin Martyr (First Apology, 21):

 

And when we say also that the Word, who is the first-birth of God, was produced without sexual union, and that He, Jesus Christ, our Teacher, was crucified and died, and rose again, and ascended into heaven, we propound nothing different from what you believe regarding those whom you esteem sons of Jupiter.[93]

 

The “sons of Jupiter” are Greco-Roman gods, and Justin claims Christians are “propounding nothing different” than what the Pagans said about their gods. The suggestion that other gods were “crucified” by being put in a cross shape or cruciform is confirmed by early Christian writer Minucius Felix in his Octavius (29):

CHAP. XXIX—ARGUMENT: NOR IS IT MORE TRUE THAT A MAN FASTENED TO A CROSS ON ACCOUNT OF HIS CRIMES IS WORSHIPPED BY CHRISTIANS…

For in that you attribute to our religion the worship of a criminal and his cross, you wander far from the neighbourhood of the truth, in thinking either that a criminal deserved, or that any earthly being was able, to be believed God…. Crosses, moreover, we neither worship nor wish for. You, indeed, who consecrate gods of wood, adore wooden crosses perhaps as parts of your gods. For your very standards, as well as your banners, and flags of your camp, what else are they but crosses gilded and adorned? Your victorious trophies not only imitate the appearance of a simple cross, but also that of a man affixed to it.[94]

Counted among these “sons of Jupiter” depicted in cruciform may be the Greek god Prometheus, who was portrayed both in ancient writings and in pre-Christian artifacts as being bound to a cross or in cruciform. As related by the Catholic Encyclopedia:

...On an ancient vase we see Prometheus bound to a beam which serves the purpose of a cross.... In the same way the rock to which Andromeda was fastened is called crux, or cross....[95]

 

[92] Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 4, p. 517-518. [

93] Roberts, A., ANF, I, 170.

[94] Roberts, A., ANF, IV, 191.

[95] CE, vol. 4, 519.

 

                                                 

 

Regarding the Egyptian god in cruciform, Thomas W. Doane relates: Osiris, the Egyptian Saviour, was crucified in the heavens. To the Egyptian the cross was the symbol of immortality, an emblem of the Sun, and the god himself was crucified to the tree, which denoted his fructifying power. Horus was also crucified in the heavens. He was represented, like... Christ Jesus, with outstretched arms in the vault of heaven.[96]

 

 

On a side note another "Demon" has made note of this image of Horus in cruciform and tried to refute it by pointing out it is upside down as if by accident or done delibrately to fool readers   http://www.bible-apologetics.com/articles/an125.htm

 

But OOOOOPPPS!

 

As we can clearly see It was done intentionally to further emphasis a point not by accident or to fool people has he/she not "read the scriptures"....The "Obstinancy" and "Devilry" never end do they LOL......

 

This concept of Horus with outstretched arms or wings is confirmed by Egyptologist Dr. Hornung: Horus shows himself in the image of the hawk whose wings span the sky…[97]

Horus is also evidently linked with what some scholars would call his “Gnostic Counterpart”: a figure known as “Horos-Stauros,” a title in Greek meaning “Boundary-Cross,” the latter word stauros being the exact term used in the New Testament to describe Jesus’s cross. (E.g., Mt 27:32; Mk 15:30; Jn 19:19)

For more on Horus as the “Horos-Stauros” and in cruciform, see the 40-page chapter “Was Horus ‘Crucified?’” in Murdock’s Christ in Egypt and online article “Was Horus Crucified?” Osiris too, it should be noted, was identified with the cross—the Egyptian ankh, which itself looks like a person in cruciform—and depicted as a crosslike djed pillar, surrounded by his two sisters, the Merti.

 

[96] Doane, 484.

[97] Hornung, CGAE, 124.

 

                         

 

 

 

Buried for three days: In the myth, both Osiris and Horus die and are resurrected, with Horus becoming the risen Osiris. As stated in The Riddle of Resurrection by professor of Old Testament Studies at the University of Lund, Dr. Tryggve N.D. Mettinger: The death and resurrection of Osiris are the most central features of [the Khoiak/Koiak] festival.[98]

 

Dr. Mettinger also states:

 

...Osiris rose to new life in his son, Horus...[99]

 

The period between Osiris’s death and resurrection varies, depending on the myth. For example, as “the Osiris”/deceased in the Egyptian funeral texts, as well as the nightly sun, he dies and resurrects on a daily basis. The annual death-and-resurrection period, however, is commonly depicted as three days, as related by Rev. Dr. Alfred Bertholet, a theologian and professor at the University of Göttingen. In an article entitled, “The Pre-Christian Belief in the Resurrection of the Body,” published in The American Journal of Theology by the University of Chicago Press, Dr. Bertholet remarks:

 

According to the faith of later times, Osiris was three days and three nights in the waters before he was restored to life again.[100]

 

Dr. Jaime A. Ezquerra concurs: “Three days separated Christ’s death from his resurrection, reckoning inclusively, as in the case of Osiris.”

The three-day period and resurrection are recorded by Plutarch (39, 366D-E) as occurring on the 17th , 18th and 19th of the month Athyr (Hathor), until “Osiris is found.” [101] In the funerary literature (e.g., PT 670/N 348), Osiris is called forth by Horus on the fourth day.[102]

 

It is useful to reiterate here that Horus and Osiris are often interchangeable and, indeed, in his resurrection Osiris becomes Horus.

 

The theme of resurrection from the dead and “raising up” in three days is present in the Old Testament as well, at

 

[98] Mettinger, 182.

[99] Mettinger, 172.

[100] Bertholet, 5.

[101] Plutarch/Babbitt, 95-97.

[102] Murdock, CIE, 400. For more information on the “Burial for Three Days, Resurrection and Ascension,” see Christ in Egypt, 376-430.

 

Hosea 6:2:30 After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, that we may live before him. As Mettinger also says: The idea of a three-days span of time between death and return, a triduum, seems to be at hand in Hosea 6:2 in a context where the imagery ultimately draws upon Canaanite ideas of resurrection… Apart from Hosea 6:2 one should remember also Jonah 2:1…where Jonah is in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. I understand the belly of the fish as a metaphor for the Netherworld.[103]

 

In this regard, it should also be noted that where the fish’s belly is the “netherworld,” Jonah would thus be a sun god.[104] Logic tells us that the story of Jonah and the Whale could not be “history”; hence, it must be mythical, in whole or in part. But what does this patently mythical periscope mean? It is about the sun entering into the “abyss” of the “Leviathan,” i.e., the dark cave or tomb of night. Concerning this myth, Catholic scholar Dr. Botterweck states:

 

...In a sun myth the sun is swallowed up by the western part of the sea and then rises again. This myth is "historicized and re-neutralized in Jonah, as...Jonah replaces the sun and the 'great fish' plays the role of the sea." On the other hand, the period of time Jonah stayed in the belly of the fish suggests a moon myth, and calls to mind, among other things, Inanna's descent into the underworld...[105]

 

Yet, Jesus is compared to Jonah at Matthew 12:40, essentially equating him with a solar myth.

 

Moreover, it was said that Osiris’s Greek counterpart Dionysus or Bacchus “slept three nights with Proserpine [Persephone],”[106] evidently referring to the god’s journey into the underworld to visit his mother. One major astrotheological meaning of this motif is the sun’s entrance into the cave (womb) of the world at the winter solstice.

 

As will be described in a later section, the three-day death-and-resurrection theme in a number of myths is symbolic of the “death” and “return” of the sun at the winter solstice each year.

 

Resurrected: We have already seen the evidence that both Osiris and Horus were resurrected from the dead. Again, as concerns Horus’s resurrection, Diodorus remarks:

 

Isis also discovered the elixir of immortality, and when her son Horus fell victim to the plots of the Titans and was found dead beneath the waves, she not only raised him from the dead and restored his soul, but also gave him eternal life.[107]

 

Regarding the meaning of this resurrection theme, Dr. Herman te Velde, a chairman of the Department of Egyptology at the University of Groningen, states:

 

As Re [Ra] who manifests himself in the sun goes to rest in the evening and awakes from the sleep of death in the morning, so do the death and resurrection of Osiris seem to be equally inevitable and natural.[108]

 

In this regard, the pharaoh is the “living Horus,” until he dies, at which point he becomes “the Osiris,” who is then resurrected to eternal life—and as his son, Horus, the morning sun. This cycle is repeated constantly in the Egyptian texts. Indeed, concerning Osiris, James Bonwick remarks:

 

His birth, death, burial, resurrection and ascension embraced the leading points of Egyptian theology.[109]

 

Again, for more on this subject, including the meaning and location of Osiris’s resurrection, see the 54- page chapter “Burial for Three Days, Resurrection and Ascension” in Christ in Egypt. [103] Mettinger, 214. 104 See, e.g., Acharya, SOG, 460, etc.

 

[105] Botterweck, III, 138.

[106] Classical Journal, 92.

[107] Diodorus/Murphy, 31.

[108] te Velde, 81.

[109] Bonwick, 150.

 

 

 

 

....And yet still we here from "Demonic Entities" such as Lucas Kitchen ("lucasanswers") Doing Blasphemus deeds and spewing villainous propaganda! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Umm you do realize were talking about astrological allegories right? not literal people with genetalia who actually fuck each other? Also did you not read "Scripture" Coffin text SP 148? or forget about Neith the Isis of Sais? and what about those Pastors and Preists Johannes G Botterweck, Bojana Mojsov, Bob Becker, Reginald E Witt, Joseph Campbell, James Curl and all the other sources I busted my ass off citeing to defend the faith from your villainous semen? Also did you not read our Church Reverand Dimitri Meeks statement that Osiris died before he could consummate his marraige to Isis? (Thanks to Reverands Acharya S and D.N. Boswell for the info by the way.)

 

I guess we should forget all about Macrobius and Plutarch then....

 

HMMMM.....

 

 

Fig. 69: The twelve followers of Osiris are bodily resurrected by the Sungod (just as Osiris & Horus were); based on the 6th Hour of the Book of Gates as seen in the tomb of Seti I, KV17, 13th century BCE.
“He inspects a long bier, shaped like a serpent named Nehep, with twelve mummies lying on it.”- Dr. Erik Hornung.[10]
“Followers of Osiris, the sleeping ones who are in a state of weariness. Duati says to them: «O gods in the Duat, Followers of the Ruler of the West, who are stretched out on their side, lying on their biers- May your flesh rise up, may your bones be put together, may you embrace your limbs, may your flesh be united! Sweet breath for your noses, loosening for your mummy-wrappings, uncovering for your headclothes! Light be for your divine eyes, that you may see the light through them. Raise yourself from your weariness.»

 

Well you heard the villainous blashemer to our mythicst faith Horus did not raise Osiris fro-

 

              Oh Shit....

 

    

 

 

Well you heard the little fucker Horus never di-

 

 

“Isis also discovered the elixir of immortality, and when her son Horus fell victim to the plots of the Titans and was found dead beneath the waves, she not only raised him from the dead and restored his soul, but also gave him eternal life.” 

 

Diodorus Siculus Antiquities Of Egypt (31)

 

 

Also keeping in mind that Ra/Osiris/Horus are the same God...

 

 

“According to the faith of later times, Osiris was three days and three nights in the water before he was restored to life again.” 

 

Alfred Bertholet the Pre Christian Belief in the

Resurrection Of The Body (5)

 

 

“Typhon, having secretly measured Osiris’s body and having made ready a beautiful chest of corresponding size artistically ornamented, caused it to be brought into the room where the festivity was in progress. The company was much pleased at the sight of it and admired it greatly, whereupon Typhon jestingly promised to present it to the man who should find the chest to be exactly his length when he lay down in it. They all tried it in turn, but no one fitted it; then Osiris got into it and lay down, and those who were in the plot ran to it and slammed down the lid, which they fastened by nails from the outside and also by using molten lead. Then they carried the chest to the river and sent it on its way to the sea through the Tanitic Mouth. Wherefore the Egyptians even to this day name this mouth the hateful and execrable. Such is the tradition. They say also that the date on which this deed was done was the seventeenth day of Athyr, when the sun passes through Scorpion, and in the twenty-eighth year of the reign of Osiris; but some say that these are the years of his life and not of his reign.” 

(Plutarch, Isis and Osiris, 13)

 

“The story told of the shutting up of Osiris in the chest seems to mean nothing else than the vanishing and disappearance of water. Consequently they say that the disappearance of Osiris occurred in the month of Athyr, at the time when, owing to the complete cessation of the Etesian winds, the Nile recedes to its low level and the land becomes denuded. As the nights grow longer, the darkness increases, and the potency of the light is abated and subdued. Then among the gloomy rites which the priests perform, they shroud the gilded image of a cow with a black linen vestment, and display her as a sign of mourning for the goddess, inasmuch as they regard both the cow and the earth as the image of Isis; and this is kept up for four days consecutively, beginning with the seventeenth of the month. ... On the nineteenth day they go down to the sea at night-time; and the keepers of the robes and the priests bring forth the sacred chest containing a small golden coffer, into which they pour some potable water which they have taken up, and a great shout arises from the company for joy that Osiris is found. Then they knead some fertile soil with the water and mix in spices and incense of a very costly sort, and fashion therefrom a crescent-shaped figure, which they clothe and adorn, thus indicating that they regard these gods as the substance of Earth and Water.” (Plutarch, Isis and Osiris, 39).

 

So as we can see Osiris was dead for 3 days before being resurrected and couple this little tidbit together with the realization that Ra and Horus are both the same as Osiris and thus both Ra and Horus would have also been concidered "dead for three days" before "reserrecting" and

flying off to La La land! 

 

Ignoring the "Cruciform" symbolism for a moment male Egyptian rulers were believed to be incarnations of Horus and one such ruler Inaros II was "betrayed" into persian hands and was impaled to death and impalement although not being roman crucifixion is none the less one of the earliest forms of crucifixion in human history. So thus Inaros II a form of Horus was Impaled and Impalement is an early form of Crucifixion meaning Horus would have been concidered by that times standards to have been "Crucifed"  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inaros_II

 

 

Ra had a death and resurrection in the form of being swallowed by Nut/Neith "Virgin Queen of Heaven" every night and would be "reborn" every morning.

 

 

Osiris was betrayed by The Devil (Set/Apep) and was murdered before the Virgin Isis-Meri repieced him together again on the "third day"

and despite frantic attempts by demon posessed heathens to deny this fact by claiming he remained in the world of the dead and therefore couldn't be ressurected Atheist Pastor Derreck Bennet a self proclaimed "Godless Bastard" did and excellant defence of our faith on this issue:

 

 https://atheologica.wordpress.com/2016/09/06/ehrman-errs-yes-bart-there-were-dying-rising-gods/

 

https://atheologica.wordpress.com/2012/05/30/ehrman-errs-the-relevance-of-the-dying-rising-gods-to-christianity/

 

 

 

Even the "Fallen Angel Lucifer" (Carrier) our greatest enemy did a detailed rebuttle of Habermas Heathenry:

 

Osiris

Not only does Plutarch say Osiris returned to life and was recreated, exact terms for resurrection (anabiôsis and paliggenesia: On Isis and Osiris 35; see my discussion in The Empty Tomb, pp. 154-55), and also describe his physically returning to earth after his death (Plutarch, On Isis and Osiris 19), but the physical resurrection of Osiris’s corpse is explicitly described in pre-Christian pyramid inscriptions! Plutarch writes that “Osiris came to Horus from the other world and exercised and trained him for the battle,” and taught him lessons, and then “Osiris consorted with Isis after his death and she became the mother of Harpocrates.” It’s hard to get more explicit than that. Contrary to Ehrman, there is no mention of Osiris not being in his resurrected body at that point. To the contrary, every version of his myth has him revive only after Isis reassembles and reanimates his corpse. As Plutarch says, “the soul of Osiris is everlasting and imperishable, but his body Typhon oftentimes dismembers and causes to disappear, and that Isis wanders hither and yon in her search for it, and fits it together again” (On Isis and Osiris 54). And indeed, carved on the walls of the pyramids centuries before Christianity began were the declarations of the goddess Isis (or Horus, or their agents), “I have come to thee…that I may revivify thee, that I may assemble for thee thy bones, that I may collect for thee thy flesh, that I may assemble for thee thy dismembered limbs…raise thyself up, king, [as for] Osiris; thou livest!” (Pyramid Texts 1684a-1685a and 1700, = Utterance 606; cf. Utterance 670); “Raise thyself up; shake off thy dust; remove the dirt which is on thy face; loose thy bandages!” (Pyramid Texts 1363a-b, = Utterance 553); “[As for] Osiris, collect thy bones; arrange thy limbs; shake off thy dust; untie thy bandages; the tomb is open for thee; the double doors of the coffin are undone for thee; the double doors of heaven are open for thee…thy soul is in thy body…raise thyself up!” (Pyramid Texts 207b-209a and 2010b-2011a, = Utterance 676). That sure sounds like a physical resurrection of Osiris’s body to me. (As even confirmed by the most recent translation of James P. Allen, cf. pp. 190, 224-25, 272. The spells he clarifies are sung to and about the resident Pharaoh, but in the role of Osiris, receiving the same resurrection as Osiris, e.g. “there has been done for me what was done for my father Osiris on the day of tying bones together, of making functional the feet,” “do for him that which you did for his brother Osiris on the day,” etc.) Plutarch goes on to explicitly state that this resurrection on earth (set in actual earth history) in the same body he died in (reassembled and restored to life) was the popular belief, promoted in allegorical tales by the priesthood—as was also the god’s later descent to rule Hades. But the secret “true” belief taught among the initiated priesthood was that Osiris becomes incarnate, dies, and rises back to life every year in a secret cosmic battle in the sublunar heavens. So in fact, contrary to Ehrman (who evidently never actually read any of the sources on this point), Plutarch says the belief that Osiris went to Hades was false (On Isis and Osiris 78); and yet even in that “public” tale, Osiris rules in Hades in his old body of flesh, restored to life. Hence still plainly resurrected. But as Plutarch explains (On Isis and Osiris 25-27 & 54 and 58), the esoteric truth was that the god’s death and resurrection occurs in sublunar space, after each year descending and taking on a mortal body to die in; and that event definitely involved coming back to life in a new superior body, in which Osiris ascends to a higher realm to rule from above, all exactly as was said of the risen Jesus (who no more remained on earth than Osiris did). The only difference is that when importing this into Judaism, which had not a cyclical-eternal but a linear-apocalyptic conception of theological history, they converted the god’s dying-and-rising to a singular apocalyptic event. And that’s just Osiris. Clearly raised from the dead in his original, deceased body, restored to life; visiting people on earth in his risen body; and then ruling from heaven above. And that directly adjacent to Judea, amidst a major Jewish population in Alexandria, and popular across the whole empire. But as Plutarch said in On the E at Delphi 9, many religions of his day “narrate deaths and vanishings, followed by returns to life and resurrections.” Not just that one. Plutarch names Dionysus as but an example (and by other names “Zagreus, Nyctelius, and Isodaetes“). And we know for a fact this Dionysus wasn’t the only example Plutarch would have known. Plutarch only names him because he was so closely associated with Osiris, and the most famous.

 

https://www.richardcarrier.info/archives/13890

 

 

And Lastly Horus as we have seen from Diodorus of Sicily was found dead beneath the waves after Set/Typhon murdered him and Isis resurrected him and gave him eternal life.

 

 

Whatever helps you sleep at night bud.... For me personally it's PornHub but that's just a suggestion....

 

 

 

A few more Parallels before we move on it has been erroneously claimed that Geb is not the earthly father of Horus and is the father of Osiris in some accounts and that it must be a mashup of these details and also that Seb does not translate to Joseph...

 

 

He had an earthly father named Seb, which translates to Joseph

 

• In Egyptian mythology, Seb is God of the Earth and is never said to be the father of Horus.
• Seb was Osiris’ father in some accounts, so there may be some mash up of these two facts.
• Seb doesn’t translate to Joseph and is better translated as Geb.

 

This is false as even Wikipedia admits that Horus The Elder is sometimes the 5th child of Geb and Nut/Neith the Virgin Queen Of heaven instead of the child of Osiris and Isis-Meri as he is usually potrayed and again as we have seen Osiris and Horus were often interchangable to the point of syncretism with Horus being the newly reborn form of Osiris.

 

 

Jesus, Son of Joseph, and Horus, Son of Seb

Categories: Acharya S/D.M. Murdock, Stellar House Archives

by D.M. Murdock/Acharya S

Is the earthly father of Jesus, Joseph, a remake of Seb, the earth-god father of the Egyptian god Horus? In my books The Christ Conspiracy, Suns of God and Christ in Egypt, I briefly discuss the parallels between the fathers of the Judeo-Christian godman Jesus and the Egyptian god Horus. When this comparison is put into context with the rest of the numerous, detailed similarities between Christianity and the Egyptian religion – as addressed especially in Christ in Egypt – this particular point is not only noteworthy but also logical to raise.

To begin with, it is important to note that there are a number of Horuses within Egyptian mythology, the fathers of whom differ from one another. For example, Horus the Child is the son of the god Osiris and the goddess Isis. But Horus the Elder, also called Haroeris, is the brother of Osiris, both of whom are the sons of the earth god Seb, Keb or Geb. Hence, it is Horus the Elder who is the “Son of Seb,” as Jesus is “Son of Joseph.”

The mythical motif of Geb/Seb being the father of Horus is demonstrated in chapter 29A of the Egyptian Book of the Dead:

“…I am Horus, who is in hearts… I may be in the body of my father Geb and of my mother Nut….” (Faulkner, 103).

Geb/Seb is also called the “father of the gods,” as are other Egyptian gods such as Kneph/Khnum and Ptah. (Wilkinson, 62; Fallows, 416)

Moreover, while Horus’s father Seb is the earth god, Joseph is the earthly father of Jesus. This apparent correlation between Christianity and the Egyptian religion includes the observation that there is an obvious similarity between the names of the fathers, Joseph broken down into “Io-seph,” while “Seb” can be transliterated as “Sev,” essentially the same as “Seph.” In addition, both Seb and Joseph may be said to be “artificers,” “craftsmen” or “carpenters.”

The sky goddess Nut bending over the earth god Geb/Seb, with the wind/air god Shu in between holding the crosses of eternal life

Seb or Geb?

The god Seb has also been called “Keb” and “Geb,” although “Seb” was the most popularly accepted form for several decades. While some modern sources identify the “Seb” name as an “error,” others maintain it as an alternative, including Turner and Coulter’s Dictionary of Ancient Deities (p. 189). Indeed, on p. 4 of the Dictionary, “Seb” is included in a list of gods “in the Second Corridor of the Tomb of Seti.”

The identification of the god Seb can be found at least as early as the time of famed French linguist Jean-François Champollion (1790-1832), who, along with Dr. Thomas Young, was responsible for translating the Rosetta Stone and cracking open the Egyptian hieroglyphs. In 1824, Champollion published his Précis du système hiéroglyphique des anciens Égyptiens, in which he referred to “le dieu Seb ou Scheb” under an entry for the Coptic word CB or cyb, pronounced with an initial “s” sound. Champollion also refers to Seb on several other occasions.

Another early, English reference to “Seb” can be found in Dr. Samuel Birch’s Egyptian Dictionary, contained in the fifth volume of Dr. Baron Bunsen’s Egypt’s Place in Universal History (1848). On p. 212, Birch – a renowned Egyptologist of his time – translates the Egyptian Book of the Dead chapter or spell 68 as:

“The Gates of heaven open. The Gates of earth open to me. Seb has opened the bolts, he has opened the chief or the lower abode wide. The Osiris comes…. He prevails over his heart, he prevails over his hand, he prevails over the meals, over the waters, he prevails over the streams, he prevails over the pools, he prevails over everything done against him in Hades, he prevails over what he has been ordered to do upon earth. The Osiris is born like a word. He lives, then it is off the bread of Seb…” (See also Faulkner, 107)

Concerning this chapter, Gerald Massey remarks, “Half the history of the Christ on earth is contained in this passage.” (Massey, NG, II, 408.)

Furthermore, Egyptologist Sir Peter le Page-Renouf went into great depth in analyzing the name “Seb,” saying that it was, “rather, sbu,” which, according to this renowned scholar, “had from the earliest times different meanings”. (Proceedings of the Society of Biblical Archaeology, VII, 152) Renouf also says: “Seb, as the name of a goose, signifies ‘the whistler’ or ‘piper.’… sba, is a pipe, reed, or tube.” He further raises up the Latin word sib-ilu-s and the Greek siphon, confirming that the Egyptian word is seb.

In the same scholarly journal (PSBA, VII, 93), another respected Egyptologist, Dr. Edouard Naville, likewise refers to the god as “Seb.” One of the most famous Egyptologists of all time, Sir Dr. E.A. Wallis Budge, also provides in the same journal (122) a transliteration of a text that includes a reference to “Seb,” with an “s.”

This supposed “error” is repeated by European and American scholars across the board up through at least the time of Sir James George Frazer (1854-1941), who also acknowledged the transliteration as “keb.” It is difficult to imagine all of these many scholars continuing to repeat such a basic blunder for several decades with no one noticing, especially with such etymological discourses as above. If this longstanding transliteration was indeed an error, repeated by dozens or hundreds of Egyptologists for over a century, this episode – among many others – would cast serious doubt upon the “peer-review” process as an infallible guarantee of worthwhile scholarship.

The push toward this purported “new reading” of “Geb” or “Keb” apparently originated with the emininent Egyptologist Dr. Heinrich Brugsch, around 1887. However, Renouf subsequently addressed this development, insisting that “Seb” was perfectly correct. Renouf remarks:

“The fact that the name of Seb was often written Keb in the last periods of hieroglyphic writing is no new discovery.” (PSBA, IX, 83)

Renouf notes that Champollion had discussed the subject decades earlier, remarking that the “Egyptian Saturn” took the name of “Sev” or “Siv,” as well as that of “Keb” or “Kev.” Next Renouf comments, “The first point I must insist upon is that the old orthodox reading, Seb…is not an erroneous one,” and he demonstrates that the ancient Egyptian spelling of the Roman words “sebastos” and “sebasta” used the same hieroglyphs as the god’s name. (PSBA, IX, p. 83.) Renouf gives many other reasons for maintaining the “s” sound for this hieroglyphic combination, including Assyrian, Greek and Coptic inscriptions. (84) He also provides several other Egyptian inscriptions and words that clearly use the goose hieroglyph in Seb’s name as an “s” sound. Says Renouf:

Renouf concludes:

“It is not probable that any of the facts quoted will be disputed, but it is very important to show that Egyptologists have not been mistaken for the last fifty years in assigning a sibilant sound to the two signs which are used interchangeably in writing the name of the god, but that they rely upon a mass of evidence from the best time of Egyptian writing down to the latest.” (85)

He next says: “The value seb is then absolutely certain…” (88) He raises the issue of the letter “c” having both the “s” and “k” sounds, as a possible similar solution to the problem of “seb” and “keb,” which has since become standardly translitered as “geb” or “gb.” The Egyptologist then asserts that “keb” is in actuality “wrongly written.” Further on, Renouf remarks, “Geb cannot possibly be the right name of an Egyptian god.” (95)

In addition to the other Egyptian and non-Egyptian evidence cited above, if the ancient Egyptians specifically used the same hieroglyphs in the god’s name to spell out Latin words that began with the sound “seb,” the issue is settled: At some point in ancient times, the god of the earth was known as “Seb.” In this latter case concerning the Latin inscriptions, it appears that “Seb” was in currency around the time Christianity was beginning to be formulated.

Budge (GE, II, 94) says of Brugsch’s thrust to change “Seb” to “Geb” or “Keb” that “in very early times this undoubtedly seems to have been the correct form of the god’s name.” Nevertheless, Budge continues to describe the god as “seb,” this term being a name of a “peculiar species” of goose. Budge also says that Seb “plays a very important part in the Book of the Dead.”

The bird symbol in the common hieroglyphic combination for “Seb” is number G39 in what is called “Gardiner’s Sign List.” Ancient Egypt Online lists glyph G39 as a “duck” and says it is pronounced “sA.” Gardiner’s G38 – a goose – is also listed as being used in the god’s name and pronounced “gb.” The same hieroglyph with the “duck” (G39) is shown by Budge in the Egyptian Book of the Dead, chapter 82 (172). Earlier in the same spell, Budge shows G39 as “smen,” which he translates as “goose.” Egyptologist Dr. Raymond O. Faulkner translates the same hieroglyph at the beginning of spell 82 as “goose” and later when it also appears in the god’s name, he renders it “Geb.” (Faulkner, pl. 27) The fact that G39 is used in this spell would make one think that god’s name must be “Seb” and G39 a “goose,” rather than a “duck.”

In the final analysis, it is evident that the alternates for Seb are not newly known and that “Seb” is not an error but a variant that dates to antiquity and was used to describe the father of Horus.

Seb is Joseph?

The Hebrew word for Joseph is translitered as Yowceph, a fact that demonstrates the interchangeability of the letters “s” and “c.” “Yowceph” or “Joseph” is defined by Strong’s (H3130) as “Jehovah has added.” It is said to be the “future” of the primitive root “yacaph,” which means “to add.” However, if “Joseph” means “Jehovah has added,” the “Jo” or “Io,” would refer to Jehovah, Yahweh or Yah, while “seph,” “ceph,” “caph” or “saf” would be a separate term. Another example of this development would be the Hebrew word “Yehoshua,” also transliterated as “Joshua” and rendered in Greek “Jesus,” serving as a combination of the Hebrew words for God, “Yahweh,” and for “salvation.”

In Christ in Egypt, I wondered if, as the Egyptian god Set’s name is also translitered as “Seth,” “Seb” could be rendered at some point as “Sebh” or “Seph.” As we have seen, “Seb” has also been transliterated as “Sev” and “Siv,” essentially as in “Io-Sef” or “Jo-seph.” Also, “Joseph” is sometimes spelled “Josip,” “Iosip” or “Yosep,” which again reveals a possible connection to “Seb.”

Adding to this analysis of the “Seb,” “Sev” or “Seph” figure in Egyptian mythology is the moniker “Osar-seph” or “Osarsiph” as a “priest of Osiris-Seph” and, per the Jewish historian Josephus (Against Apion, I, 31; Whiston, 620), another name for Moses. According to Assyriologist Rev. Dr. A.H. Sayce, Osar-Seph is the same as Joseph, rather than Moses (The Academy, XXIV, 163). In consideration of the fact that the Talmud calls Joseph/Iosef “Serapis” (Tract Abuda Zara; Rodkinson, 86), the Egyptian god who is a combination of Osiris and the Apis bull, this conclusion appears sound.

In view of all the cultural exchange between Egypt and Canaan/Israel, including many Egyptian religious concepts and mythical motifs finding their way into the Old Testament and Judaism – as well as the sojourn of the patriarch Joseph in Egypt, according to the Bible (Gen 39:1ff) – it is logical to suggest there is a relationship between these words Seb/Sev and Joseph/Iosef. In any event, along with the apparent similarity of names, the two father-figures possess other suggestive characteristics in common, such as their occupation or role.

Seb as “Carpenter?”

Christian tradition holds that both Jesus and his father were “carpenters” (Mt 13:55, Mk 6:3). It is important to note that the Greek word in the New Testament for “carpenter,” τέκτων or tekton, means not only “carpenter” but also “builder” and “any craftsman, or workman,” including in “the art of poetry” or as a “maker of songs.” It also means “planner, contriver, plotter” as well as “an author” (Strong’s G5045). Interestingly, in modern Greek tekton means “freemason” (Collin’s Contemporary Greek Dictionary, 168, 311; Oxford Dictionary of Modern Greek, 189).

The word tekton in the Old Testament, as at Isaiah 44:12, is translated as “smith,” “blacksmith” or “ironsmith,” whereas “carpenter” is a tekton xulon, a “wood craftsman” or “wood-carver,” as at Is 44:13. At Isaiah 40:19, tekton is also used to describe a worker of precious metals, while at Is 40:20 the word is rendered “workman” or “craftsman.” The Hebrew word translated as tekton is חרש or charash, which means “craftsman, artisan, engraver, graver, artificer” (Strong’s H2796), as well as “smith,” “carpenter” and “mason.” (Gesenius’s Lexicon)

Thus, Jesus and Joseph are not necessarily “carpenters” but could be any of these other artificers as well. Indeed, in non-canonical Christian tradition Jesus was represented as a dyer of fabrics as well as a potter or clayworker and a painter. (First Infancy Gospel, XV, 6, 13; see Is 64:8) As the Lord, Christ is held to be the “Great Architect of the Universe” (Parsons, 3), the word “architect” (αρχιτέκτων) obviously related to tekton, while the Old Testament God himself is also a “potter.” (Is 64:8)

The Egyptian creator god Ptah is likewise the “Great Architect of the Universe,” called the “Master Craftsman” as well. (Smith, 36) As Egyptologist Dr. Siegfried Morenz states, in a section entitled, “The Creator-god as craftsman” (p. 161):

“Ptah…was depicted as an artisan or more precisely as a smith and metal-worker….”

Morenz also discusses the god Kneph/Khnum as the Potter, who fashions living creatures, and calls him “a craftsman.” He furthers addresses Geb as a “procreator” god (162).

Ptah is also the “Great Artificer,” who “shapes the sun- and moon-eggs on his potter’s wheel.” (Budge, GE, I, 501; Hastings, 145) Ptah thus could have been styled tekton, if described in Greek.

This master craftsman Ptah was thought to have been an egg issuing from Seb or Geb is the “Cackler,” as the hieroglyph for the god’s name is a goose. (Mackenzie, 81) As his “son” Ptah fashioned the sun-egg, it was perceived that Seb the Cackler also laid the “golden egg” of the sun each day. (PSBA, VII, 153) Hence, Ptah and Seb – both called “father of the gods” – are considered creators of the sun, traditional role of the “divine artificer,” “builder” or “carpenter.” (Hart, 129)

Indeed, the correlations between Seb/Geb and Ptah are enough to cause Egyptologist Dr. Henri Frankfort to remark:

“[In Egypt] the earth was a male god – Ptah or Geb…. The figure of Geb would seem to possess the same potentialities as that of Ptah…. [Geb] is sometimes called ‘the father of the gods,’ and it is possible that at some time and place he was worshipped as the Creator….” (Frankfort, 181)

All factors considered, it is logical to suggest a correlation between Seb and Joseph as concerns their role or occupation as artificer or tekton as well.

(For more on the “carpenter” motif as found in pre-Christian mythology, see my book Suns of God).

As demonstrated here and in my other works, the correlations between the Egyptian god Horus and Jewish godman Jesus are profound and important. These parallels include these figures’ “fathers,” Seb and Joseph, whose names are similar and whose earthly roles and tektonic occupations likewise reveal significant correspondences that indicate the Egyptian myths may have been a principal source for various aspects of the gospel story of Christ.

Bibliography

“Gardiner’s Sign List,” Ancient Egypt Online, www.ancientegyptonline.co.uk/G-birds2.html
“Gardiner’s Sign List,” en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_hieroglyphs/G
The Academy, XXIV. London: Publishing Office, 1883.
The Apocryphal New Testament. London: William Hone, 1820.
Blue Letter Bible, blueletterbible.org
Budge, E.A. Wallis. The Egyptian Book of the Dead. New York: Dover, 1967.
—The Gods of the Egyptians, I. London: Methuen & Co., 1904.
–The Gods of the Egyptians, II. London: Methuen & Co., 1904.
Bunsen, Baron. Egypt’s Place in Universal History, V. tr. Charles H. Cottrell. London: Longmans, Green and Co., 1867.
Collins Contemporary Greek Dictionary. Glasgow: Wm. Collins Sons & Co., 1978.
Fallows, Samuel. The Progressive Dictionary of the English Language. Chicago: The Progressive Publishing Company, 1885.
Faulkner, Raymond O., tr. The Egyptian Book of the Dead. San Francisco: Chronicle Books. 1998.
Frankfort, Henri. Kingship and the Gods. London: University of Chicago Press, 1978.
Hart, George. The Routledge Dictionary of Egyptian Gods and Goddesses. Abingdon: Routledge, 2005.
Hastings, James, and John A. Selbie, ed. Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics, VII. Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1912.
Mackenzie, Donald Alexander. Egyptian Myth and Legend. Gresham, 1910.
Massey, Gerald. The Natural Genesis, II. London: Williams and Norgate, 1883.
Morenz, Siegfried. Egyptian Religion. tr. Ann E. Keep. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1992.
Naville, Edouard, and W. Harry Rylands, eds. The Life-Work of Sir Peter Le Page Renouf, II. Paris: Ernest Leroux, 1903.
The Oxford Classical Dictionary of Modern Greek. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1975.
Parsons, John Usher. The Biblical Analysis or a Topical Arrangement of the Instructions of the Holy Scriptures. Boston: William Peirce, 1837.
Proceedings of the Society of Biblical Archaeology, VII. Bloomsbury: Offices of the SBA, 1885.
Proceedings of the Society of Biblical Archaeology, IX. Bloomsbury: Offices of the SBA, 1887.
Rodkinson, Michael L., tr. The New Edition of the Babylonian Talmud, IX. New York: New Talmud Publishing Company, 1903.
Smith, Mark. On the Primaeval Ocean. Denmark: Museum Tusculanum Press and The Carlsberg Papyri, 2002.
Turner, Patricia, and Charles Russell Coulter. Dictionary of Ancient Deities. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001.
Whiston, William, tr. The Complete Works of Josephus. Grand Rapids: Kregel Publications, 1981.
Wilkinson, J. Gardner. The Manner and Customs of the Ancient Egyptians, III. London: John Murray, 1878.

 

https://stellarhousepublishing.com/jesusjosephhorusseb/

 

 

Seb the husband of the sky goddess Nut and "Earthly father" of Osiris and Horus

 

 

 

 

          

 

Horus Opening Osiris's Eyes and mouth with a spear and Gaius Cassius Longinus giving a faithful peircing to the side of Julius Caesar oh I mean Jesus Christ my bad! More examples of this motif include Odin!

 

                     

 

 

now for Some "Triple Threat Triads"

 

                    

 

 

 

 

 

Amen-Ra, Mut, and Khonsu

 

 

Amun, Ra-Horakthi and Ptah

 

 

 

 

 

 

Anubis

Two renditions of Anubis, the guide of the dead in the underworld and general mortuary god of Egypt.

In religio-mythology, Anubis, Anpu (Budge, 1906) or Anup (Murdock, 2008), the former being the Greek name of the mortuary god defined originally by the hieroglyph: or, i.e. the feather + water + square symbol (followed by a "jackal"), meaning "wind, water, mountain" (Hornung, 1982), rendered as the sound ı͗npw, vocalized in Egyptian, according to the Akkadian transcription in the Amarna letters, as "Anapa" (Conder, 1894) (Ѻ), is the son of either "Set + Nephthys" or "Osiris + Nephthys" (Plutarch, 100AD), depending on version of myth (from another older point of view, he was the sun of Ra), noted for being the general anointer of the mummified Osiris prior to his resurrection (see: death and resurrection of Osiris); some versions assert he was the baptizer of Horus. [1]

Anubis | Canis Major & Minor
The Egyptians, according to Chartrand (1982), considered the Canis Minor constellation to be Anubis; which he summarizes as follows: [4]
 

“The small dog, placed in the sky for faithfulness, drinks from the Milky Way, once thought to be a river. In Egypt, he was Anubis, the jackal god. The Greeks called the whole group Prochon.”

Other sources, however, connect Anubis to Canis Major; as Normandi Ellis (2012) puts things: [5]
 

“At most underworld entrances and in many sarcophagus rooms, the black dogs Anubis and Upuaut appear. While Anubis prepares the human vessel for its entrance into the underworld, Upuaut guards the gateway and opens the way into altered states of being. These jackals appear as openers of the way as early as the First Dynasty of Egypt. The Dogon tribe of Sudan, who probably are linked to Egypt's early ancestors, have a strong connection to the star Sirius, the bright Dog Star, which appears in the constellation Canis Major. They know, for example, that there are actually two stars: Sirius A and Sirius B, which appear to circle each other. The Canis Major and Canis Minor constellations may represent Anubis and Upuaut, but the Dog Star itself, called Sothis by the Egyptians, is linked to Isis, and the hidden twin star may be linked to Nephthys.”

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Anubis / Embalming Osiris | John / Baptizing Jesus
In Egypt, when Thebes became the new religious capital, Anubis became the chief embalming god of the dead, Osiris first and foremost, then in the form of priests dressed as Anubis for dead pharaohs who wanted to be like Osiris in the afterlife:
 

“In the Theban Recension [2040-720BC] of the Book of the Dead, Anubis plays some very prominent parts, the most important of all being those which are connected with the judgment and the embalming of the deceased. Tradition declared that Anubis embalmed the body of Osiris, and that he swathed it in the linen swathings which were woven by Isis and Nephthys for their brother; and it was believed that his work was so thoroughly well performed under the direction of Horus and Isis and Nephthys, that it resisted the influences of time and decay.”

— Wallis Budge (1904), The Gods of the Egyptians, Volume Two (pg. 262)

In the Roman Recension (100-800AD), in the context of recension theory, Anubis became John, according to which the wrapping of the body of the dead Jesus is described in John 19:38-40 (see: Jesus Christ).

In 1864, English writer Charles King, in his Gnostics and their Remains, is cited by Wallis Budge (1904), has having done some interesting work on some of the “alleged connections of Anubis with Christ in the Gnostic system”. [3]

Overview
The worship of Anubis, as a god, according to Budge (1904) is older than that of Osiris cult worship, but younger than Horus worship, whose role in the Old Kingdom period was to guide the dead in the underworld, or something to this affect: [1]
 

“His worship is very ancient, and there is no doubt that even in the earliest times his cult was general in Egypt; it is probable that it is older than that of Osiris. In the text of Unas (line 70) [2500BC] he is associated with the Eye of Horus, and his duty as the guide of the dead in the Underworld on their way to Osiris was well defined, even at the remote period when this composition was written, for we read, ‘Unas standeth with the Spirits, get thee onwards, Anubis, into Amenti (the Underworld), onwards, onwards to Osiris’.”

Anubis was perceived to superintend the embalming of the kings and courtiers in the mortuary and the subsequent binding with linen bandages. His coat color, according to Michael Jordan (1993), is black in relation to the black tar that embalmers coated the mummies with. [2] It is Anubis who performs the "opening of the mouth" ceremony; hence, he seems to have an astro-theology origin.

 

Quotes
The following are related quotes:

“They relate that Isis, learning that Osiris in his love had consorted with her sister [Nephthys] through ignorance, in the belief that she was Isis, and seeing the proof of this in the garland of melilote (Ѻ) which he had left with Nephthys, sought to find the child; for the mother, immediately after its birth, had exposed it because of her fear of Typhon [Set]. And when the child had been found, after a great toil and trouble, with the help of dogs which led Isis to it, it was brought up and became her guardian and attendant, receiving the name of Anubis, and it is said to protect the gods just as dogs protect men.”

— Plutarch (100AD), On Isis and Osiris (pg. 39)

 

“Of the stars, the Egyptians think that the Dog Star [aka Sirius] [its name reflecting its prominence in Canis Major (Greater Dog)] is the star of Isis, because it is the bringer of water [the heliacal rising of Sirius marks the start of the annual 150-day Nile River flood].”

— Plutarch (100AD), On Isis and Osiris (§38) (pg. 91)

References
1. (a) Budge, Wallis. (1904). The Gods of the Egyptians, Volume Two (§16:Anpu or Anubis, pgs. 261-66). Dover, 1969.
(b) Hornung, Eric. (1982). Conceptions of God in Ancient Egypt: the One and Many (translator: John Baines) (Anubis, pg. 67). Cornell University Press, 1996.
2. Jordan, Michael. (1993). Encyclopedia of Gods: Over 2,500 Deities of the World (pg. 19). Facts on File, Inc.
3. (a) King, Charles W. (1864). Gnostic and their Remains (Anubis, 25+ pgs; esp. pgs. 230, 279). D. Nutt, 1887.
(b) Budge, Wallis. (1904). The Gods of the Egyptians, Volume Two (pg. 266). Dover, 1969.
4. Chartrand, Mark R. (1982). Skyguide: a Field Guide for Amateur Astronomers (pg. 126). Publisher, 1990.
5. Ellis, Normandi. (2012). Imagining the World into Existence: an Ancient Egyptian Manual of Consciousness (pg. #). Publisher.

External links
● Anubis – Wikipedia.

 

https://web.archive.org/web/20200206211452/http://www.eoht.info/page/Anubis

 

 

 

 

But I guess Michael Jones is right that we just fabricated that part right?

 

 

 

Christ

The hieroglyphic for Christ "krst" meaning mummy, the root meaning of the term Christ, Messiah, and or "the anointed".

In terminology, Christ, the root of Christianity (see: Christopher etymology), via the namesake Jesus Christ, from Egyptian "krst", hieroglyphic: , meaning "mummy", derived from: "kasu", hieroglyphic: , meaning “burial place”, the name of the metropolis of the 14th nome of Southern Egypt; later conflated with the Greek "anointed", meaning rub with oil (part of the mummification process), translates as "reborn mummy", all based on the Osiris myth or Osirian religion (Harper, 2004), itself being a core thread of Heliopolis creation myth.

Messiah | Etymology
In 1883, Gerald Massey, in his The Natural Genesis, Volume Two (pgs. 357-59), explained connects Messiah, anointed, and Christ as follows:
 

“The true root of the name ‘Messiah’ is the Egyptian mes, which denotes birth and rebirth. Messiah is the reborn or AEonian Iu (Eg.), Iao or Jah, — even as the month Mesore was named from the rebirth of Horus the child, which was annual. In Egypt the Repa, prince or heir-apparent, was the Messiah by name and nature, as the messiu or messui, the representative of Ra, the ever-living, who was continued by transformation into the young one, the ever-coming Messiah. The Messiah of Christology and supposed prophecy was the manifestor who was forever being reborn in time. The Messiahship was cyclic, and wholly dependent on the fulfillment of the cycles of time. The Egyptian Ra and Repa were the representatives of this manifestation in time, as personifications of the divine or solar Messiah, in the two aspects of father and son.

The Messiah, then, is the one who is reborn according to the cycle of time; but the natural genesis has to be traced beyond the symbolical aspect. The first Messiah was reborn at puberty. This was the earliest form of the anointed male. These things can only be fathomed in their fundamental phase. The anointed one did not commence from having oil poured on the head. The first male type of the prophet was the anointed by nature at puberty ; the aboriginal anointed, who preceded the oil-anointed, man-made prophet. As previously explained, the earliest mode of artificial anointing is that of Inner Africa, where the ointment was composed of red ochre mixed with grease or oil. In one of the Hottentot songs there is an allusion to the red ochre of anointing, and this is actually contrasted with the flesh-forming source. Lightning, the daughter-in-law of fire, is thus addressed: ‘Thou who hast painted thy body red like Goro,’ i.e. with ochre or red-clay, ‘Thou who dost not drop the menses’ or redden that way. The Hottentots also had a certain image or fetish-god which their women were accustomed to anoint by covering its head with a kind of red earth and buchu or sweet smelling herbs. This was their typical Messiah; and we learn from Egyptian thought and expression that anointing or coating with red ochre was a symbolical mode of refleshing. It was in this manner that Ptah refleshed the spirit for its rebirth from the womb of the underworld ; and the red earth represented the human or Adamic clay. In anointing the fetish image, the Hottentot women were imitating nature in fleshing the child for birth. Instead of calling on the saviour to come, they enacted the rebirth of the Messiah in the process of refleshing or, as it came to be called, anointing or embalming.

The Egyptians had discovered how to preserve the dead body intact with the flesh upon it, and its lineaments wearing the likeness of life; by which art they superseded the incasing or refleshing of the bones in the red ochre of the earlier stage. This embalmment of the dead body is termed "karas," and the embalmed mummy reborn by the preservative process, and placed in the tomb to await the rebirth in spirit life, is named the karast or krust [christ]  , as the mummy-type, the shebti or double, an image of rebirth. This type of immortality or continuity was the anointed, the Messiah, the Christ, who in the later application of the ointment or oil is literally the greased. Mes (Eg.), the root of Messiah, also means to anoint, to generate, as well as to give birth. The mother was the anointer with her own blood as embodier of the child. The primary anointing applied to birth. But the Messiah was the anointed at rebirth, or puberty. The virile male was the natural Messiah, the anointed of the totemic mysteries.”

(add discussion)

Christ | Etymology
In 1883, Gerald Massey, in his The Natural Genesis (pg. #), explained that Christ derives from "krst" meaning embalming or mummification as follows: [1]
 

“Christ the anointed is none other than the Osiris-karast, and that the karast mummy risen to its feet as Osiris-sahu was the prototypal Christ. Unhappily, these demonstrations cannot be made without a wearisome mass of detail. And we are bound for the bottom this time.

Budge, in his book on the mummy, tells his readers that the Egyptian word for mummy is ges, which signifies to wrap up in bandages. But he does not point out that ges or kes, to embalm the corpse or make the mummy, is a reduced or abraded form of an earlier word, karas (whence krst for the mummy). The original word written in hieroglyphics is krst, whence kas, to embalm, to bandage, to knot, to make the mummy or karast (Birch, Dictionary of the Hieroglyphics, pp. 415-416; Champollion, Grant. Egyptienne, 86). The word krs denotes the embalmment of the mummy, and the krst, as the mummy, was made in the process of preparation by purifying, anointing, and embalming. To Kara's the dead body was to embalm it, to bandage it, to make the mummy. The mummy was the Osirian Corpus Christi, prepared for burial as the laid-out dead, the karast by name.

When raised to its feet, it was the risen mummy, or sahu. The place of embalmment was likewise the krs. Thus the process of making the mummy was to karas, the place in which it was laid is the karas, and the product was the krst, whose image is the upright mummy = the risen Christ. Hence the name of the Christ, Christos in Greek, Chrestus in Latin, for the anointed, was derived, as the present writer previously suggested, from the Egyptian word krst.”
 

In 1907, Massey gave an elaboration of this. [2]

The index from Wallis Budge's The Gods of Egypt, Volume Two, wherein he gives the following equation "Osiris = Christ". [4]

In 1904, Wallis Budge, in his The Gods of Egypt, Volume Two, in the index gave the following formula "Osiris = Christ", to which he pointed to the following passage:
 

“The rapid growth and progress of Christianity in Egypt were due mainly to the fact that the new religion, which was preached there by St. Mark and his immediate followers, in all essentials so closely resembled that which was the outcome of the worship of Osiris, Isis, and Horus that popular opposition was entirely disarmed. In certain places in the south of Egypt, e.g., Philae, the worship of Osiris and Isis maintained its own until the beginning of the fifth century of our era, though this was in reality due to the support which it received from the Nubians, but, speaking generally, at this period in all other parts of Egypt Mary the Virgin and Christ had taken the places of Isis and Horus, and the "God-mother" or "mother of the god" , was no longer Isis, but Mary whom the Monophysites styled Θεοτοκος [mother of god]. ”

 

Here, of importance, we note the subtle transition in the first five centuries (0-500 ACM), the original formula "Osiris = Christ" becomes becomes "Horus = Christ" or "Osiris-Horus = Christ" which becomes "Jesus = Christ".

 

The other variants of Osiris, boxed in adjacent, are translated as follows:
 

● Osiris = Water | the phallus of Osiris eaten by a fish and submerged into the Nile (see: Baptism)
● Osiris-Apis | Osiris as the new god Serapis
● Osiris-Isis-Horus | God the father, Virgin Mary, and Jesus
● Osiris-Ra | Moses and Abraham

 

In 2014, French Egyptologist Dibombari Mbock, in his “passion of Osiris” equals “passion of Christ” explaining book The Egyptian Philosophy of Christ, translates “krs” as follows: (Ѻ)

 

The term "Krs", in this sense, means sarcophagus (sarcophage) + buried (enterrer).

 

Kasu
Massey discusses the origin of the term karas as follows:

“Karas also signifies the burial-place, and the word modifies into Kas or Chas. Kasu the "burial place" was a name of the 14th Nome in Upper Egypt. A god Kas is mentioned three or four times in the Book of the Dead, "the god Kas who is in the Tuat " (ch. 40). This was a title of the mummy Osiris in the funerary dwelling. In one passage Kas is described as the deliverer or saviour from all mortal needs. In "the chapter of raising the body" (178) it is said of the deceased that he had been hungry and thirsty (on earth), but he will never hunger or thirst any more, " for Kas delivers him" and does away with wants like these. That is, in the resurrection. Here the name of the god Osiris-Kas written at full is Osiris the Karast—the Egyptian Christ.”

The term “krst”, karas, Kas or Chas, according to Massey, derives from the name of the “burial place” of the 14th nome in Upper Egypt. The “kas”, according to the circa 1875 views of British Egyptologist Peter Renouf (1822-1897) (Ѻ), the successor to Samuel Birch, whose understudy was Wallis Budge, is described as follows: (Ѻ)
 

 

We note, by possible connection, that Osiris was cut into 14 pieces, the number 14 representative, astro-theologically, either as the half lunar cycle, in the sense of the moon being a god whose light is chopped up, or the number of the stars of the Orion constellation.

In 2008, Dorothy Murdock, in her Christ in Egypt, elaborated on some of Massey's views.

Other
Here, of note, the word "Karas", curiously, brings to mind the name "Father Karras" of the 1971 book turned film The Exorcist, by William Blatty, which is based (Ѻ) on the model of exorcisms dating back to ancient Egypt, and also has the character of Pierre Teilhard as Father Merrin.

Quotes
The following are related quotes:
 

“We do not deny that many men called Christ, may in former times, have existed in Jerusalem and elsewhere, any more than we deny that such a person or persons as Hercules once existed in Greece—but we do distinctly deny that either Christ or Hercules were gods, demi-gods, or prophets, or performed the works commonly attributed to them. Christ no more foretold the destruction of Jerusalem than did Hercules conquer the Nemean lion. Christ no more performed the miracles, Testament-makers have ascribed to him, than did Prince Hohenloe the miracles ascribed to him! To destroy the divine and prophetic character of Jesus, is to destroy all that which renders him sacred in the eyes of Christians, and at once strips his character of that gaudy plumage which dazzles the eyes of his worshippers. When this is done, it will be time enough to consider whether one or fifty Jesus Christs walked about the streets of Jerusalem eighteen hundred years ago; and really, of no more practical consequence than it would be to inquire whether certain men called Bacchus once lived in Thebes.”

— Anon German Jew (1841), The Existence of Christ Disproved (pg. 28) [3]

 

“The coffin bore the hieroglyphic equivalent for KRST. Massey connects KRST with the Greek word Christos, messiah, or Christ. He says, ‘say what you will or believe what you may, there is no other origin for the Christ the anointed than ‘Horus the Karas’ or ‘anointed son of god the father’. The mystery of the mummy is the mystery of Christ.”

— Tom Harpur (2004), The Pagan Christ (pg. 101)

See also
● Christ fable
● Christian captain parable
● Christianity
● Jesus Christ

References
1. Massey, Gerald. (1883). The Natural Genesis: Second Part of a Book of the Beginnings, Containing an Attempt to Recover and Reconstitute the Lost Origins of the Myths and Mysteries, Types and Symbols, Religion and Language, with Egypt for the Mouthpiece and Africa as the Birthplace, Volume Two (pg. 437). Williams and Norgate.
2. Massey, Gerald. (1907). Egyptian Book of the Dead and the Mysteries of Amenta (pg. 172-73); Book IV of Ancient Egypt the Light of the World (pg. 217-18). Cosmo, 2008.
3. Anon. (1841). The Existence of Christ Disproved by Irresistible Evidence, in a series of letters, from a German Jew. [30 letters] (pg. 4). Publisher.
4. Budge, Wallis. (1904). The Gods of the Egyptians, Volume Two (Osiris = Christ, pgs. 221, 416) . Dover, 1969.

External links
● Christ – Online Etymology Dictionary.

 

https://web.archive.org/web/20200212085442/http://www.eoht.info/page/christ

 

 

 

 

 

"Worship of Osiris Wennefer, the Great God who dwells in the Thinite Nome, King of Eternity, who passes millions of years in his lifetime; … All that exists is ushered in to him in his name of Face-to-whom-men-are-ushered; the Two Lands are marshaled for him as leader in this his great name of Seker; his might is far-reaching, one greatly feared in this his name of Osiris; he passes over the length of eternity in his name Wennefer. ‘Hail to you, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Ruler of Rulers …’. "

 

Papyrus of Ani, Introductory Hymn to Osiris

 

Nicolas Wyatt, Space and Time in the Religious Life of the Near East, trans. R.O. Faulkner (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 2001), (248)

 

 

Lastly a Villain against the faith KJ Ozborne attempting to discredit Acharya S's work as an Illuminati Demon Conspiracy!

This despite all of the irrefutable proof I have cited in defence of our Gospel!!!

 

 

And thats all for Osiris/Horus so you'll have to read the Zeitgeist: The Movie Companion Source Guide or get The Companion Guide to Zeitgeist part 1 or buy Christ In Egypt: The Horus Jesus connection as an alternative to find the rest or simply download Neal Boswell's "The Perrenial Gospel" I shall provide a link to at the very end of this article and read that and again a very special thanks to Neal and DM Murdock for this info. now time to "Walk like an Egyptian" to our next entry....Mithras!

 

 

 

 

Next Jesus Vs Mithras!:

 

 

 

 

Now a round of applause for "Obstinace" from the antagonist to our Mythicst Creed Michael Jones....

 

 

 

 

 

More Info: http://www.jesusneverexisted.com/Mithraism.html THX to Ken Humphries for this Info!

 

 

For starters although the Majority of Scholars argue that Mithraism was soley a Roman invention this assertion by modern scholars is simply wrong as although Franz Cumonts theory of eastern western transference is unsustainible many Scholars including Roger Beck and James R Hinnels in their investigations they replace Cumonts theories of eastern to western trasference of mithraism with sustainable ones and even many Modern Iranian Scholars like Badi Badiozamani Payam Nabarz among others who evidently know more about there countries history than the majority of western scholars have also attested to its Mithraism's Eastern Origins and Even Plutarch admited that Mithraism was imported from Persia to Rome by Sicillian Pirates Xenophon and Herodotus who lived hundreds of years before the common era also attest to the pre Christian roots of mithraism and even Justin Martyr contrary to Bart ERRRRMAAAN of the swamps strawman's In his fallacious/fallatio book Did Jebus Exist? as well as other early church fathers admited that mithraism was similar to christianity to the point that the Devil impersonated Christ BEFORE HIS BIRTH in the mysteries of Mithras 

 

So that settles it Mithraism is both Pre Christian and Persian NOT Roman in origin so lets listen to what some blasphemous fiends and sinful heathens had to say on this subject!:

 

"These clowns are also plagiarists. A lot of their page on Mithras is a copy and paste job from a paper written by a high school kid in 1993. Here is an example:From the original essay:"

 

 

http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Periods/Roman/Topics/Religion/Mithraism/David_Fingrut**.html

 

 

https://deeperwaters.wordpress.com/2014/06/24/why-mythicism-should-not-be-taken-seriously/

 

 

This widely repeated assertion — often with an agenda behind it seeking to dismiss Christianity as a hash of previous religions — is apparently not true: see M. J. Vermaseren, "The Miraculous Birth of Mithras" (Mnemosyne, 4th series, Vol. 4, pp285‑301, 1951). In brief, that author writes, pp285 f.: This is not a description of a real birth, but this manifestation of the deity as the giver of light, pouring forth his largess every morning anew and, besides, the feminine name of the mountain were apt to lead to the conception of the birth of the god from a Mother-Goddess. Yet, the idea of Mithras as a son of Ahura-Mazda, the Knowing Lord, or as born naturally from a woman, though attested by some late Armenian writers, did not become traditional. Mithras' birth remained an obscure affair: the principal thing was that he existed and helped anyone who lived in true obedience to his laws. Neither in the Western world did the authors conceive Mithras as a child procreated by a father or born from a woman or even from a virgin. Both classical literature and inscriptions declare that the god was born from a rock or a stone.The paper then goes on to give many examples of depictions of the birth of Mithras — emerging from a rock, and with few exceptions as a fully-grown young man.

 

So are these villainous heathens correct? Are we Just copying and pasting highschool papers from the 90's to prove our point? are we just making shit up to further an "agenda" against Christianity.........Uh fuck no and these are some disingenoues and quite ignorant assumptions to make about those who point these parallels out

 

First of all Vermaseren is Correct that Roman Mithraism potrays Mithra as being born from a rock and to our knowlege there are no roman cultures that openly potrayed him as being born from a goddess hence it is claimed he was "not born of a Virgin" The first Problem with Vermaserens claim is that it hinges on the ignorant mainstream (and clearly bullshit) view that Mithraism did not exist prior to its roman form and did not pre date christianity both of which I have already shown to be false and even Preistess/Nun Acharya herself in splendid defense of our Religious faith in an article on Mithra the Pagan Christ adressing these same issues and refuting this heresy essentually meaning these claims Of Mithra being soley Roman from which Vermasseren derives his conclusion are no more than Narrow minded blasphemy from the Atheistic heretics of Angra Mainyu against our Faith!

 

 

Mithra: The Pagan Christ

Categories: Stellar House Archives

by Acharya S/D.M. Murdock

(The following article is adapted from a chapter in Suns of God: Krishna, Buddha and Christ Unveiled, as well as excerpts from other articles, such as “The Origins of Christianity” and “The ZEITGEIST Sourcebook.”)

“Both Mithras and Christ were described variously as ‘the Way,’ ‘the Truth,’ ‘the Light,’ ‘the Life,’ ‘the Word,’ ‘the Son of God,’ ‘the Good Shepherd.’ The Christian litany to Jesus could easily be an allegorical litany to the sun-god. Mithras is often represented as carrying a lamb on his shoulders, just as Jesus is. Midnight services were found in both religions. The virgin mother…was easily merged with the virgin mother Mary. Petra, the sacred rock of Mithraism, became Peter, the foundation of the Christian Church.”

Gerald Berry, Religions of the World

“Mithra or Mitra is…worshipped as Itu (Mitra-Mitu-Itu) in every house of the Hindus in India. Itu (derivative of Mitu or Mitra) is considered as the Vegetation-deity. This Mithra or Mitra (Sun-God) is believed to be a Mediator between God and man, between the Sky and the Earth. It is said that Mithra or [the] Sun took birth in the Cave on December 25th. It is also the belief of the Christian world that Mithra or the Sun-God was born of [a] Virgin. He travelled far and wide. He has twelve satellites, which are taken as the Sun’s disciples…. [The Sun’s] great festivals are observed in the Winter Solstice and the Vernal Equinox—Christmas and Easter. His symbol is the Lamb….”

Swami Prajnanananda, Christ the Saviour and Christ Myth

Because of its evident relationship to Christianity, special attention needs to be paid to the Persian/Roman religion of Mithraism. The worship of the Indo-Persian god Mithra dates back centuries to millennia preceding the common era. The god is found as “Mitra” in the Indian Vedic religion, which is over 3,500 years old, by conservative estimates. When the Iranians separated from their Indian brethren, Mitra became known as “Mithra” or “Mihr,” as he is also called in Persian.

By around 1500 BCE, Mitra worship had made it to the Near East, in the Indian kingdom of the Mitanni, who at that time occupied Assyria. Mitra worship, however, was known also by that time as far west as the Hittite kingdom, only a few hundred miles east of the Mediterranean, as is evidenced by the Hittite-Mitanni tablets found at Bogaz-Köy in what is now Turkey. The gods of the Mitanni included Mitra, Varuna and Indra, all found in the Vedic texts.

Mithra as Sun God

The Indian Mitra was essentially a solar deity, representing the “friendly” aspect of the sun. So too was the Persian derivative Mithra, who was a “benevolent god” and the bestower of health, wealth and food. Mithra also seems to have been looked upon as a sort of Prometheus, for the gift of fire. (Schironi, 104) His worship purified and freed the devotee from sin and disease. Eventually, Mithra became more militant, and he is best known as a warrior.

Like so many gods, Mithra was the light and power behind the sun. In Babylon, Mithra was identified with Shamash, the sun god, and he is also Bel, the Mesopotamian and Canaanite/ Phoenician solar deity, who is likewise Marduk, the Babylonian god who represented both the planet Jupiter and the sun. According to Pseudo-Clement of Rome’s debate with Appion (Homily VI, ch. X), Mithra is also Apollo.

In time, the Persian Mithraism became infused with the more detailed astrotheology of the Babylonians and Chaldeans, and was notable for its astrology and magic; indeed, its priests or magi lent their very name to the word “magic.” Included in this astrotheological development was the re-emphasis on Mithra’s early Indian role as a sun god. As Francis Legge says in Forerunners and Rivals in Christianity:

The Vedic Mitra was originally the material sun itself, and the many hundreds of votive inscriptions left by the worshippers of Mithras to “the unconquered Sun Mithras,” to the unconquered solar divinity (numen) Mithras, to the unconquered Sun-God (deus) Mithra, and allusions in them to priests (sacerdotes), worshippers (cultores), and temples (templum) of the same deity leave no doubt open that he was in Roman times a sun-god. (Legge, II, 240)

By the Roman legionnaires, Mithra—or Mithras, as he began to be known in the Greco-Roman world—was called “the divine Sun, the Unconquered Sun.” He was said to be “Mighty in strength, mighty ruler, greatest king of gods! O Sun, lord of heaven and earth, God of Gods!” Mithra was also deemed “the mediator” between heaven and earth, a role often ascribed to the god of the sun.

An inscription by a “T. Flavius Hyginus” dating to around 80 to 100 AD/CE in Rome dedicates an altar to “Sol Invictus Mithras”—”The Unconquered Sun Mithra”—revealing the hybridization reflected in other artifacts and myths. Regarding this title, Dr. Richard L. Gordon, honorary professor of Religionsgeschichte der Antike at the University of Erfurt, Thuringen, remarks:

It is true that one…cult title…of Mithras was, or came to be, Deus Sol Invictus Mithras (but he could also be called… Deus Invictus Sol Mithras, Sol Invictus Mithras…

…Strabo, 15.3.13 (p. 732C), basing his information on a lost work, either by Posidonius (ca 135-51 BC) or by Apollodorus of Artemita (first decades of 1 cent. BC), states baldly that the Western Parthians “call the sun Mithra.” The Roman cult seems to have taken this existing association and developed it in their own special way. (Gordon, “FAQ.” (Emph. added.))

“Mithra is who the monuments proclaim him—the Unconquered Sun.”

As concerns Mithra’s identity, Mithraic scholar Dr. Roger Beck says:

Mithras…is the prime traveller, the principal actor…on the celestial stage which the tauctony [bull-slaying] defines…. He is who the monuments proclaim him—the Unconquered Sun. (Beck (2004), 274)

In an early image, Mithra is depicted as a sun disc in a chariot drawn by white horses, another solar motif that made it into the Jesus myth, in which Christ is to return on a white horse. (Rev 6:2; 19:11)

Mithra in the Roman Empire

Subsequent to the military campaign of Alexander the Great in the fourth century BCE, Mithra became the “favorite deity” of Asia Minor. Christian writers Dr. Samuel Jackson and George W. Gilmore, editors of The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge (VII, 420), remark:

It was probably at this period, 250-100 b.c., that the Mithraic system of ritual and doctrine took the form which it afterward retained. Here it came into contact with the mysteries, of which there were many varieties, among which the most notable were those of Cybele.

According to the Roman historian Plutarch (c. 46-120 AD/CE), Mithraism began to be absorbed by the Romans during Pompey’s military campaign against Cilician pirates around 70 BCE. The religion eventually migrated from Asia Minor through the soldiers, many of whom had been citizens of the region, into Rome and the far reaches of the Empire. Syrian merchants brought Mithraism to the major cities, such as Alexandria, Rome and Carthage, while captives carried it to the countryside. By the third century AD/CE Mithraism and its mysteries permeated the Roman Empire and extended from India to Scotland, with abundant monuments in numerous countries amounting to over 420 Mithraic sites so far discovered.

“By the third century AD/CE Mithraism and its mysteries permeated the Roman Empire and extended from India to Scotland.”

From a number of discoveries, including pottery, inscriptions and temples, we know that Roman Mithraism gained a significant boost and much of its shape between 80 and 120 AD/CE, when the first artifacts of this particular cultus begin to be found at Rome. It reached a peak during the second and third centuries, before largely expiring at the end of the fourth/beginning of fifth centuries. Among its members during this period were emperors, politicians and businessmen. Indeed, before its usurpation by Christianity Mithraism enjoyed the patronage of some of the most important individuals in the Roman Empire. In the fifth century, the emperor Julian, having rejected his birth-religion of Christianity, adopted Mithraism and “introduced the practise of the worship at Constantinople.” (Schaff-Herzog, VII, 423)

Modern scholarship has gone back and forth as to how much of the original Indo-Persian Mitra-Mithra cultus affected Roman Mithraism, which demonstrates a distinct development but which nonetheless follows a pattern of this earlier solar mythos and ritual. The theory of “continuity” from the Iranian to Roman Mithraism developed famously by scholar Dr. Franz Cumont in the 20th century has been largely rejected by many scholars. Yet, Plutarch himself (Life of Pompey, 24) related that followers of Mithras “continue to the present time” the “secret rites” of the Cilician pirates, “having been first instituted by them.” So too does the ancient writer Porphyry (234-c. 305 AD/CE) state that the Roman Mithraists themselves believed their religion had been founded by the Persian savior Zoroaster.

In discussing what may have been recounted by ancient writers asserted to have written many volumes about Mithraism, such as Eubulus of Palestine and “a certain Pallas,” Gordon (Journal Mithraic Studies, v. 2, 150) remarks: “Certainly Zoroaster would have figured largely; and so would the Persians and the magi.” It seems that the ancients themselves did not divorce the eastern roots of Mithraism, as exemplified also by the remarks of Dio Cassius, who related that in 66 AD/CE the king of Armenia, Tiridates, visited Rome. Cassius states that the dignitary worshipped Mithra; yet, he does not indicate any distinction between the Armenian’s religion and Roman Mithraism.

It is apparent from their testimony that ancient sources perceived Mithraism as having a Persian origin; hence, it would seem that any true picture of the development of Roman Mithraism must include the latter’s relationship to the earlier Persian cultus, as well as its Asia Minor and Armenian offshoots. Current scholarship is summarized thus by Dr. Beck (2004; 28):

Since the 1970s, scholars of western Mithraism have generally agreed that Cumont’s master narrative of east-west transfer is unsustainable; but…recent trends in the scholarship on Iranian religion, by modifying the picture of that religion prior to the birth of the western mysteries, now render a revised Cumontian scenario of east-west transfer and continuities once again viable.

In his massive anthology, Armenian and Iranian Studies, Dr. James R. Russell, professor of Armenian Studies at Harvard University, essentially proves that Roman Mithraism had its origins in not only Persian or Iranian Mithraism and Zoroastrianism but also in Armenian religion, dating back centuries before the common era.

The Many Faces of Mithra

Mainstream scholarship speaks of at least three Mithras: Mitra, the Vedic god; Mithra, the Persian deity; and Mithras, the Greco-Roman mysteries icon. However, the Persian Mithra apparently developed differently in various places, such as in Armenia, where there appeared to be emphasis on characteristics not overtly present in Roman Mithraism but found as motifs within Christianity, including the Virgin Mother Goddess. This Armenian Mithraism is evidently a continuity of the Mithraism of Asia Minor and the Near East. This development of gods taking on different forms, shapes, colors, ethnicities and other attributes according to location, era and so on is not only quite common but also the norm. Thus, we have hundreds of gods and goddesses who are in many ways interchangeable but who have adopted various differences based on geographical and environmental factors.

Mithra and Christ

Over the centuries—in fact, from the earliest Christian times—Mithraism has been compared to Christianity, revealing numerous similarities between the two faiths’ doctrines and traditions, including as concerns stories of their respective godmen. In developing this analysis, it should be kept in mind that elements from Roman, Armenian and Persian Mithraism are utilized, not as a whole ideology but as separate items that may have affected the creation of Christianity, whether directly through the mechanism of Mithraism or through another Pagan source within the Roman Empire and beyond. The evidence points to these motifs and elements being adopted into Christianity not as a whole from one source but singularly from many sources, including Mithraism.

“The evidence points to these motifs and elements being adopted into Christianity…”

Thus, the following list represents not a solidified mythos or narrative of one particular Mithra or form of the god as developed in one particular culture and era but, rather, a combination of them all for ease of reference as to any possible influences upon Christianity under the name of Mitra/Mithra/Mithras.

Mithra has the following in common with the Jesus character:

• Mithra was born on December 25th of the virgin Anahita.
• The babe was wrapped in swaddling clothes, placed in a manger and attended by shepherds.
• He was considered a great traveling teacher and master.
• He had 12 companions or “disciples.”
• He performed miracles.
• As the “great bull of the Sun,” Mithra sacrificed himself for world peace.
• He ascended to heaven.
• Mithra was viewed as the Good Shepherd, the “Way, the Truth and the Light,” the Redeemer, the Savior, the Messiah.
• Mithra is omniscient, as he “hears all, sees all, knows all: none can deceive him.”
• He was identified with both the Lion and the Lamb.
• His sacred day was Sunday, “the Lord’s Day,” hundreds of years before the appearance of Christ.
• His religion had a eucharist or “Lord’s Supper.”
• Mithra “sets his marks on the foreheads of his soldiers.”
• Mithraism emphasized baptism.

December 25th Birthday

The similarities between Mithraism and Christianity have included their chapels, the term “father” for priest, celibacy and, it is notoriously claimed, the December 25^th birthdate. Over the centuries, apologists contending that Mithraism copied Christianity nevertheless have asserted that the December 25^th birthdate was taken from Mithraism. As Sir Arthur Weigall says:

December 25^th was really the date, not of the birth of Jesus, but of the sun-god Mithra. Horus, son of Isis, however, was in very early times identified with Ra, the Egyptian sun-god, and hence with Mithra…

Mithra’s birthday on December 25th has been so widely claimed that the Catholic Encyclopedia (“Mithraism”) remarks: “The 25 December was observed as his birthday, the natalis invicti, the rebirth of the winter-sun, unconquered by the rigours of the season.”

Yet this contention of Mithra’s birthday on December 25th or the winter solstice is disputed because there is no hard archaeological or literary evidence of the Roman Mithras specifically being named as having been born at that time. Says Dr. Alvar:

There is no evidence of any kind, not even a hint, from within the cult that this, or any other winter day, was important in the Mithraic calendar. (Alvar, 410)

In analyzing the evidence, we must keep in mind all the destruction that has taken place over the past 2,000 years—including that of many Mithraic remains and texts—as well as the fact that several of these germane parallels constituted mysteries that may or may not have been recorded in the first place or the meanings of which have been obscured.

The claim about the Roman Mithras’s birth on “Christmas” is evidently based on the Calendar of Filocalus or Philocalian Calendar (c. 354 AD/CE), which mentions that December 25th represents the “Birthday of the Unconquered,” understood to refer to the sun and taken to indicate Mithras as Sol Invictus. Whether it represents Mithras’s birthday specifically or “merely” that of Emperor Aurelian’s Sol Invictus, with whom Mithras has been identified, the Calendar also lists the day—the winter solstice birth of the sun—as that of natus Christus in Betleem Iudeae: “Birth of Christ in Bethlehem Judea.”

Moreover, it would seem that there is more to this story, as Aurelian was the first to institute officially the winter solstice as the birthday of Sol Invictus (Dies Natalis Solis Invicti) in 274 AD/CE. (Halsberghe, 158) It is contended that Aurelian’s move was in response to Mithras’s popularity. (Restaud, 4) One would thus wonder why the emperor would be so motivated if Mithras had nothing whatsoever to do with the sun god’s traditional birthday—a disconnect that would be unusual for any solar deity.

Regardless of whether or not the artifacts of the Roman Mithras’s votaries reflect the attribution of the sun god’s birthday to him specifically, many in the empire did identify the mysteries icon and Sol Invictus as one, evidenced by the inscriptions of “Sol Invictus Mithras” and the many images of Mithras and the sun together, representing two sides of the same coin or each other’s alter ego. Hence, the placement of Mithras’s birth on this feast day of the sun is understandable and, despite the lack of concrete evidence at this date, quite plausibly was recognized in this manner in antiquity in the Roman Empire.

Persian Winter Festivals

In addition, it is clear that the ancient peoples from whom Mithraism sprang, long before it was Romanized, were very much involved in winter festivals so common among many other cultures globally. In this regard, discussing the Iranian month of Asiyadaya, which corresponds to November/December, Mithraic scholar Dr. Mary Boyce remarks:

…it is at this time of year that the Zoroastrian festival of Sada takes place, which is not only probably pre-Zoroastrian in origin, but may even go back to proto-Indo-European times. For Sada is a great open-air festival, of a kind celebrated widely among the Indo-European peoples, with the intention of strengthening the heavenly fire, the sun, in its winter decline and feebleness. Sun and fire being of profound significance in the Old Iranian religion, this is a festival which one would expect the Medes and Persians to have brought with them into their new lands… Sada is not, however, a feast in honour of the god of Fire, Atar, but is rather for the general strengthening of the creation of fire against the onslaught of winter. (Boyce (1982), 24-25)

This ancient Persian winter festival therefore celebrates the strengthening of the “fire” or sun in the face its winter decline, just as virtually every winter-solstice festivity is intended to do. Yet, as Dr. Boyce says, this “Zoroastrian” winter celebration is likely pre-Zoroastrian and even proto-Indo-European, which means it dates back far into the hoary mists of time, possibly tens of thousands of years ago. And one would indeed expect the Medes and Persians to bring this festival with them into their new lands, including the Near East, where they would eventually encounter Romans, who could hardly have missed this common solar motif celebrated worldwide in numerous ways.

“The Mithraists believed that this night is the night of the birth of Mithra, Persian god of light and truth.”

The same may be said as concerns another Persian or Zoroastrian winter celebration called “Yalda,” which is the festival of the Longest Night of the Year, taking place on December 20th or the day before the solstice:

Yalda has a history as long as the Mithraism religion. The Mithraists believed that this night is the night of the birth of Mithra, Persian god of light and truth. At the morning of the longest night of the year the Mithra is born from a virgin mother….

In Zoroastrian tradition, the winter solstice with the longest night of the year was an auspicious day, and included customs intended to protect people from misfortune…. The Eve of the Yalda has great significance in the Iranian calendar. It is the eve of the birth of Mithra, the Sun God, who symbolized light, goodness and strength on earth. Shab-e Yalda is a time of joy.

Yalda is a Syriac word meaning birth. Mithra-worshippers used the term “yalda” specifically with reference to the birth of Mithra. As the longest night of the year, the Eve of Yalda (Shab-e Yalda) is also a turning point, after which the days grow longer. In ancient times it symbolized the triumph of the Sun God over the powers of darkness. (“Yalda,” Wikipedia)

It is likely that this festival does indeed derive from remote antiquity, and it is evident that the ancient Persians were well aware of the winter solstice and its meaning as found in numerous other cultures: To wit, the annual “rebirth,” “renewal” or “resurrection” of the sun.

“‘Christmas’ is the birth not of the ‘son of God’ but of the sun.”

In the end the effect is the same: “Christmas” is the birth not of the “son of God” but of the sun. Indeed, there is much evidence—including many ancient monumental alignments—to demonstrate that this highly noticeable and cherished event of the winter solstice was celebrated beginning hundreds to thousands of years before the common era in numerous parts of the world. The observation was thus provably taken over by Christianity, not as biblical doctrine but as a later tradition in order to compete with the Pagan cults, a move we contend occurred with numerous other “Christian” motifs, including many that are in the New Testament.

Mithra the ‘Rock-Born’

Mithra’s genesis out of a rock, analogous to the birth in caves of a number of gods—including Jesus in the apocryphal, non-canonical texts— was followed by his adoration by shepherds, another motif that found its way into the later Christianity. Regarding the birth in caves likewise common to pre-Christian gods, and present in the early legends of Jesus, Weigall relates (50):

…the cave shown at Bethlehem as the birthplace of Jesus was actually a rock shrine in which the god Tammuz or Adonis was worshipped, as the early Christian father Jerome tells us; and its adoption as the scene of the birth of our Lord was one of those frequent instances of the taking over by Christians of a pagan sacred site. The propriety of this appropriation was increased by the fact that the worship of a god in a cave was commonplace in paganism: Apollo, Cybele, Demeter, Herakles, Hermes, Mithra and Poseidon were all adored in caves; Hermes, the Greek Logos, being actually born of Maia in a cave, and Mithra being “rock-born.”

As the “rock-born,” Mithras was called “Theos ek Petras,” or the “God from the Rock.” As Weigall also relates:

Indeed, it may be that the reason of the Vatican hill at Rome being regarded as sacred to Peter, the Christian “Rock,” was that it was already sacred to Mithra, for Mithraic remains have been found there.

Mithras was “the rock,” or Peter, and was also “double-faced,” like Janus the keyholder, likewise a prototype for the “apostle” Peter. Hence, when Jesus is made to say (in the apparent interpolation at Matthew 16:12) that the keys of the kingdom of heaven are given to “Peter” and that the Church is to be built upon “Peter,” as a representative of Rome, he is usurping the authority of Mithraism, which was precisely headquartered on what became Vatican Hill.

“Mithraic remains on Vatican Hill are found underneath the later Christian edifices, which proves the Mithra cult was there first.”

By the time the Christian hierarchy prevailed in Rome, Mithra had already been a popular cult, with pope, bishops, etc., and its doctrines were well established and widespread, reflecting a certain antiquity. Mithraic remains on Vatican Hill are found underneath the later Christian edifices, a fact that proves the Mithra cult was there first. In fact, while Mithraic ruins are abundant throughout the Roman Empire, beginning in the late first century AD/CE, “The earliest church remains, found in Dura-Europos, date only from around 230 CE.”

The Virgin Mother Anahita

Unlike various other rock- or cave-born gods, Mithra is not depicted in the Roman cultus as having been given birth by a mortal woman or a goddess; hence, it is claimed that he was not “born of a virgin.” However, a number of writers over the centuries have asserted otherwise, including several modern Persian and Armenian scholars who are apparently reflecting an ancient tradition from Near Eastern Mithraism.

“The worship of Mithra and Anahita, the virgin mother of Mithra, was well-known in the Achaemenian period.”

For example, Dr. Badi Badiozamani says that a “person” named “Mehr” or Mithra was “born of a virgin named Nahid Anahita (‘immaculate’)” and that “the worship of Mithra and Anahita, the virgin mother of Mithra, was well-known in the Achaemenian period [558-330 BCE]…” (Badiozamani, 96) Philosophy professor Dr. Mohammed Ali Amir-Moezzi states: “Dans le mithraïsme, ainsi que le mazdéisme populaire, (A)Nāhīd, mère de Mithra/Mehr, est vierge”—”In Mithraism, as in popular Mazdaism, Anahid, the mother of Mithra, is a virgin.” (Amir-Moezzi, 78-79) Comparing the rock birth with that of the virgin mother, Dr. Amir-Moezzi also says:

…il y a donc analogie entre le rocher, symbole d’incorruptibilité, qui donne naissance au dieu iranien et la mère de celui-ci, Anāhīd, éternellement vierge et jeune.

(…so there is analogy between the rock, a symbol of incorruptibility, giving birth to the Iranian god and the mother of that (same) one, Anahid, eternally virgin and young.)

In Mithraic Iconography and Ideology (78), Dr. Leroy A. Campbell calls Anahita the “great goddess of virgin purity,” and Religious History professor Dr. Claas J. Bleeker says, “In the Avestan religion she is the typical virgin.” (Bleeker (1963), 100)

One modern writer (“Mithraism and Christianity”) portrays the Mithra myth thus:

According to Persian mythology, Mithras was born of a virgin given the title “Mother of God.”

The Parthian princes of Armenia were all priests of Mithras, and an entire district of this land was dedicated to the Virgin Mother Anahita. Many Mithraeums, or Mithraic temples, were built in Armenia, which remained one of the last strongholds of Mithraism. The largest near-eastern Mithraeum was built in western Persia at Kangavar, dedicated to “Anahita, the Immaculate Virgin Mother of the Lord Mithras.”

Anahita, also known as “Anaitis”—whose very name means “Pure” and “Untainted” and who was equated in antiquity with the virgin goddess Artemis—is certainly an Indo-Iranian goddess of some antiquity, dating back at least to the first half of the first millennium prior to the common era and enjoying “widespread popularity” around Asia Minor. Indeed, Anahita has been called “the best known divinity of the Persians” in Asia Minor. (de Jong, 268)

Moreover, concerning Mithra Schaff-Herzog says, “The Achaemenidae worshiped him as making the great triad with Ahura and Anahita.” Ostensibly, this “triad” was the same as God the Father, the Virgin and Jesus, which would tend to confirm the assertion that Anahita was Mithra’s virgin mother. That Anahita was closely associated with Mithra at least five centuries before the common era is evident from the equation made by Herodotus (1.131) in naming “Mitra” as the Persian counterpart of the Near and Middle Eastern goddesses Alilat and Mylitta. (de Jong, 269-270)

Moreover, Mithra’s prototype, the Indian Mitra, was likewise born of a female, Aditi, the “mother of the gods,” the inviolable or virgin dawn. Hence, we would expect an earlier form of Mithra also to possess this virgin-mother motif, which seems to have been lost or deliberately severed in the all-male Roman Mithraism.

Well known to scholars, the pre-Christian divine birth and virgin mother motifs are documented in the archaeological and literary records, as verified by Dr. Marguerite Rigoglioso in The Cult of the Divine Birth in Ancient Greece and Virgin Mother Goddesses of Antiquity.

For more information, see:

Mithra and the Twelve

The theme of the teaching god and “the Twelve” is found within Mithraism, as Mithra is depicted as surrounded by the 12 zodiac signs on a number of monuments and in the writings of Porphyry (4.16), for one. These 12 signs are sometimes portrayed as humans and, as they have been in the case of numerous sun gods, could be called Mithra’s 12 “companions” or “disciples.”

Regarding the Twelve, John M. Robertson says:

On Mithraic monuments we find representations of twelve episodes, probably corresponding to the twelve labors in the stories of Heracles, Samson and other Sun-heroes, and probably also connected with initiation.

The comparison of this common motif with Jesus and the 12 has been made on many occasions, including in an extensive study entitled, “Mithras and Christ: some iconographical similarities,” by Professor A. Deman in Mithraic Studies.

Early Church Fathers on Mithraism

Mithraism was so popular in the Roman Empire and so similar in important aspects to Christianity that several Church fathers were compelled to address it, disparagingly of course. These fathers included Justin Martyr, Tertullian, Julius Firmicus Maternus and Augustine, all of whom attributed these striking correspondences to the prescient devil. In other words, anticipating Christ, the devil set about to fool the Pagans by imitating the coming messiah. In reality, the testimony of these Church fathers confirms that these various motifs, characteristics, traditions and myths predated Christianity.

“Christianity took a leaf out of the devil’s book when it fixed the birth of the Saviour on the twenty-fifth of December.”

Concerning this “devil did it” argument, in The Worship of Nature Sir James G. Frazer remarks:

If the Mithraic mysteries were indeed a Satanic copy of a divine original, we are driven to conclude that Christianity took a leaf out of the devil’s book when it fixed the birth of the Saviour on the twenty-fifth of December; for there can be no doubt that the day in question was celebrated as the birthday of the Sun by the heathen before the Church, by an afterthought, arbitrarily transferred the Nativity of its Founder from the sixth of January to the twenty-fifth of December.

Regarding the various similarities between Mithra and Christ, as well as the defenses of the Church fathers, the author of The Existence of Christ Disproved remarks:

Augustine, Firmicus, Justin, Tertullian, and others, having perceived the exact resemblance between the religion of Christ and the religion of Mithra, did, with an impertinence only to be equalled by its outrageous absurdity, insist that the devil, jealous and malignant, induced the Persians to establish a religion the exact image of Christianity that was to be—for these worthy saints and sinners of the church could not deny that the worship of Mithra preceded that of Christ—so that, to get out of the ditch, they summoned the devil to their aid, and with the most astonishing assurance, thus accounted for the striking similarity between the Persian and the Christian religion, the worship of Mithra and the worship of Christ; a mode of getting rid of a difficulty that is at once so stupid and absurd, that it would be almost equally stupid and absurd seriously to refute it.

“It is good practice to steer clear of all information provided by Christian writers: they are not ‘sources,’ they are violent apologists.”

In response to a question about Tertullian’s discussion of the purported Mithraic forehead mark,  Dr. Richard Gordon says:

In general, in studying Mithras, and the other Greco-oriental mystery cults, it is good practice to steer clear of all information provided by Christian writers: they are not “sources,” they are violent apologists, and one does best not to believe a word they say, however tempting it is to supplement our ignorance with such stuff. (Gordon, “FAQ”)

He also cautions about speculation concerning Mithraism and states that “there is practically no limit to the fantasies of scholars,” an interesting admission about the hallowed halls of academia.

Priority: Mithraism or Christianity?

It is obvious from the remarks of the Church fathers and from the literary and archaeological record that Mithraism in some form preceded Christianity by centuries. The fact is that there is no Christian archaeological evidence earlier than the earliest Roman Mithraic archaeological evidence and that the preponderance of evidence points to Christianity being formulated during the second century, not based on a “historical” personage of the early first century. As one important example, the canonical gospels as we have them do not show up clearly in the literary record until the end of the second century.

Mithra’s pre-Christian roots are attested in the Vedic and Avestan texts, as well as by historians such as Herodotus (1.131) and Xenophon (Cyrop. viii. 5, 53 and c. iv. 24), among others. Nor is it likely that the Roman Mithras is not essentially the same as the Indian sun god Mitra and the Persian, Armenian and Phrygian Mithra in his major attributes, as well as some of his most pertinent rites.

Moreover, it is erroneously asserted that because Mithraism was a “mystery cult” it did not leave any written record. In reality, much evidence of Mithra worship has been destroyed, including not only monuments, iconography and other artifacts, but also numerous books by ancient authors. The existence of written evidence is indicated by the Egyptian cloth “manuscript” from the first century BCE called, “Mummy Funerary Inscription of the Priest of Mithras, Ornouphios, Son fo Artemis” or MS 247.

As previously noted, two of the ancient writers on Mithraism are Pallas, and Eubulus, the latter of whom, according to Jerome (Against Jovinianus, 2.14; Schaff 397), “wrote the history of Mithras in many volumes.” Discussing Eubulus and Pallas, Porphyry too related that there were “several elaborate treatises setting forth the religion of Mithra.” The writings of the early Church fathers themselves provide much evidence as to what Mithraism was all about, as do the archaeological artifacts stretching from India to Scotland.

These many written volumes doubtlessly contained much interesting information that was damaging to Christianity, such as the important correspondences between the “lives” of Mithra and Jesus, as well as identical symbols such as the cross, and rites such as baptism and the eucharist. In fact, Mithraism was so similar to Christianity that it gave fits to the early Church fathers, as it does to this day to apologists, who attempt both to deny the similarities and yet to claim that these (non-existent) correspondences were plagiarized by Mithraism from Christianity.

“Regardless of attempts to make Mithraism the plagiarist of Christianity, the fact will remain that Mithraism was first.”

Nevertheless, the god Mithra was revered for centuries prior to the Christian era, and the germane elements of Mithraism are known to have preceded Christianity by hundreds to thousands of years. Thus, regardless of attempts to make Mithraism the plagiarist of Christianity, the fact will remain that Mithraism was first, well established in the West decades before Christianity had any significant influence.

For more information and citations, see The Christ Conspiracy, Suns of God, “Origins of Christianity,” “The ZEITGEIST Sourcebook” and The Christ Myth Anthology. See also the “Mithra: Pagan Christ” forum discussion.

Bibliography

“Chronography of 354,” en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calendar_of_Filocalus
“Mithraic Mysteries,” en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mithraic_mysteries
“Mithraism,” www.catholic.org/encyclopedia/view.php?id=8042
“Mithraism and Christianity,” meta-religion.com/World_Religions/Ancient_religions/Mesopotamia/Mithraism/ mithraism_and_christianity_i.htm
“Mithras in Comparison With Other Belief Systems,” en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mithras_in_Comparison_With_Other_Belief_Systems
“Mitra,” en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitra
“Yalda,” en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yalda
Alvar, Jaime, and R.L. Gordon. Romanising Oriental Gods: Myth, Salvation and Ethics in the Cults of Cybele, Isis and Mithras. Leiden/Boston: Brill, 2008.
Amir-Moezzi, Mohammed Ali. La religion discrète: croyances et pratiques spirituelles dans l’islam shi’ite. Paris: Libr. Philosophique Vrin, 2006.
Anonymous. The Existence of Christ Disproved. Private Printing by “A German Jew,” 1840.
Badiozamani, Badi. Iran and America: Rekindling a Lost Love. California: East-West Understanding Press, 2005.
Beck, Roger. Beck on Mithraism. England/Vermont: Ashgate Pub., 2004.
Berry, Gerald. Religions of the World. New York: Barnes & Noble, 1955.
Bleeker, Claas J. The Sacred Bridge: Researches into the Nature and Structure of Religion. Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1963.
Boyce, Mary. “Mithraism: Mithra Khsathrapati and his brother Ahura.” www.iranchamber.com/religions/articles/mithra_khsathrapati_ahura.php
—A History of Zoroastrianism, II. Leiden/Köln: E.J. Brill, 1982.
Campbell, LeRoy A. Mithraic Iconography and Ideology. Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1968.
de Jong, Albert. Traditions of the Magi: Zoroastrianism in Greek and Latin Literature. Leiden/New York: Brill, 1997.
Forbes, Bruce David. Christmas: A Candid History. Berkeley/London: University of California Press, 2007.
Frazer, James G. The Worship of Nature, I. London: Macmillan, 1926.
Gordon, Richard L. “FAQ.” Electronic Journal of Mithraic Studies, www.hums.canterbury.ac.nz/clas/ejms/faq.htm
—”The date and significance of CIMRM 593 (British Museum, Townley Collection).” Journal of Mithraic Studies, II: 148-174). hums.canterbury.ac.nz/clas/ejms/out_of_print/JMSv2n2/ JMSv2n2Gordon.pdf
Halsberghe, Gaston H. The Cult of Sol Invictus. Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1972.
Hinnells, John R., ed. Mithraic Studies: Proceedings of the First International Congress of Mithraic Studies. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1975.
Kosso, Cynthia, and Anne Scott. The Nature and Function of Water, Baths, Bathing and Hygiene from Antiquity through the Renaissance. Leiden/Boston: Brill, 2009.
Lundy, John P. Monumental Christianity. New York: J.W. Bouton, 1876.
Molnar, Michael R. The Star of Bethlehem: The Legacy of the Magi. New Jersey: Rutgers University Press, 1999.
The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia, VII. eds. Samuel M. Jackson and George William Gilmore. New York/London: Funk and Wagnalls Company, 1910.
Plutarch. “Life of Pompey.” The Parallel Lives by Plutarch, V. Loeb, 1917; penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/ Pompey*.html#24
Porphyry. Selects Works of Porphyry. London: T. Rodd, 1823.
Prajnanananda, Swami. Christ the Saviour and Christ Myth. Calcutta: Ramakrishna Vedanta Math, 1984.
Restaud, Penne L. Christmas in America: A History. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1995.
Robert, Alexander, and James Donaldson, eds. Ante-Nicene Christian Library, XVIII: The Clementine Homilies. Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1870.
Robertson, John M. Pagan Christs. Dorset, 1966.
Russell, James R. Armenian and Iranian Studies. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2004.
Schaff, Philip, and Henry Wace. A Select Library of Nicene and Post-Nicene Father of the Christian Church, VI. New York: The Christian Literature Company, 1893.
Schironi, Francesca, and Arthus S. Hunt. From Alexandria to Babylon: Near Eastern Languages and Hellenistic Erudition in the Oxyrhynchus Glossary. Berlin/New York: Walter de Gruyter, 2009.
Srinivasan, Doris. On the Cusp of an Era: Art in the Pre-Kusana World. Leiden/Boston: Brill, 2007.
Weigall, Arthur. The Paganism in Our Christianity. London: Thames & Hudson, 1923.

 

https://stellarhousepublishing.com/mithra/

 

the Second problem with his assertion as we shall see in a bit however is that not a few modern Iranian Scholars and even Badi Badiozamani a modern Iranian politician have asserted otherwise clearly reflecting Pre Christian Armenean tradition in their claims of Mithra Being born of Anahita his Immaculate Virgin Mother so yes Mithra Is Born from a rock Vermaseren is correct but in pre Christian tradition he was born of a virgin mother so as far as Im concerned the only ones with and agenda are biased Xtian heathens and there slanderous accusations of pious believers copying young boys work and fakestream New Testament "Scholarship" as well as whoever wrote the thayer article.

 

 

 

 

 

"The Persian Counterpart of the Virginal-Wanton-motherly- warrior goddess Anahita" 

 

Dr Raphael Patai The Hebrew Goddess  (137)

 

 

"The basic belief in a virgin born saviour of the world must have become widely known throughout the near east in the achamenid period I.e. from the 6th century BC onward when almost all the mediteranian lands were under persian rule and it appears to have exerted some influence on Judeo-Christian thought"   

 

Astvat Ereta: The Avestan name for the Soasyant The Future Saviour of Zoroastrianism 

 

 

"According to some sources Mithras partner and Virgin mother is the angel goddess Anahita"

 

Dr Payam Nabarz the Mysteries of Mithras The Pagan belief That Shaped The Christian World

 

 

"in Mithraism as in popular Mazdaism Anahid the mother of Mithra is a virgin"

 

Mohammad Ali Amir Moezzi (78)

 

 

 

“In as much as this person Mehr (Mithra) was born of a virgin named Nahid Anahita (Immaculate) and in as much as the worship of Mithra and Anahita the virgin mother of Mithra was well known in the Achaemenian Period it is not yet clear weather the religion adopted by the Parthians and accepted in many parts of the world was a revival of the old Mithra worship (about 4,000 years ago) or was caused by a religious leader named Mithra.”

 

Badi Badiozamani Iran: Rekindling A Lost Love (96)

 

 

Moreover as we dicussed earlier:  “As Mithraism moved westward it proved a fertile ground for the addition of mystic meaning. Practically all the symbolism of Osiris was added to the Mithraic cultus even to the fact that Isis became the virgin mother of Mithras.” -Religions Of The World by Gerald L. Berry (56)

 

 

It is important to note that Dionysus (Osiris) and Isis were the parents of Apollo/Apollyon  and Artemis/Diana in some egyptian cultures as related by the Greek Historian Herodotus and of course Apollo was Syncretized with Mithras during the establishment of Roman Mithraism furthermore Apollon who was identifed with Mithras was concidered the same as Horus son of the Virgin Isis so in other words Horus=Apollo=Mithras and Horus who is the same as Apollo and Mithras is the son of Isis therefore validating the quote by Berry.

 

 

 

Further Validation of this info comes from the fact that Isis-Hathor, Aphrodite/Venus, Inanna/Ishtar and Athena/Minerva were Syncretized with Anahita in the Interpretatio Graeco/Romana thus meaning Isis, Hathor, Aphrodite, Ishtar and Athena (Neith) are all the same as Anahita Immaculate Virgin Mother of Mithras which by extension makes all of these goddesses Virgin Mothers of Mithras to (at least from a mythological standpoint). Primary sources and citations for these Identifications can be found In the Was Mithras Born of A Virgin Mother? PDF:  https://www.amazon.ca/Was-Mithra-Born-Virgin-Mother-ebook/dp/B004L2LKJI

 

Even Ignoring all of that Mithras Rock Birth was a Virgin Birth to Mother Earth (Gaia) who was as Margerite Rigoglioso and other scholars have noted was a parthenogenic goddess who gave Virgin Birth to Uranus, Pontus and the Nymphs and then only afterwards married her son Uranus and gave birth to the 12 Titans but even then spontaneously generated a scorpion (Constellation Scorpio) through Sexless Conception to attack Orion.

 

 

 

Sing the glories of the holy gods to whom death never comes,
the gods born of Gaia and starry Ouranos, …
Chaos was born first and after it came Gaia
the broad-breasted, the firm seat of all
the immortals who hold the peaks of snowy Olympos, …
Gaia now first gave birth to starry Ouranos,
her match in size, to encompass all of her,
and be the firm seat of all the blessed gods.
She gave birth to the tall mountains, enchanting haunts
of the divine nymphs who dwell in the woodlands;
and then she bore Pontos, the barren sea with its raging swell.
All these she bore without mating in sweet love. 

 

Hesiod, Theogony, in Hesiod: Theogony, Works and Days, Shield, trans. A.N. Athanassakis (Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1983-2004), xii, (14).

 

 

 

"His Theogony describes the transition of power from female to male: from Gaia who gives virgin birth to her husband, to her grandson Zeus who gives solo birth to Athena."

 

Dr. Diane Rayor, Sappho’s Lyre: Archaic Lyric and Women Poets of Ancient Greece (17) 

 

 

 

"Gaia will continue to reproduce by parthenogenesis."

 

Dr. Elizabeth Pender, in Plato and Hesiod  (230)

 

 

 

 

 

Lastly on the subject of Mithras Virgin Birth we shall be looking at D.N. Boswell's "The Perennial Gospel"  (PP 862-875) (EEEEEW he said PP lol!)

 

Being a solar deity, Mithras eventually became syncretic with the Orphic primeval luminary god Phanes Protogonus (First-Born).

 

We can discern the influence of Orphic speculation in a Greek inscription from one of the numerous mithraea in Rome, on a statue-base dedicated Διί Ηλίω Μίθρᾳ Φάνητι, that is to Deus Sol Mithras Phanes. Phanes is the embodiment of unlimited light, an Orphic deity who emerged from the cosmic egg. There is also literary evidence for the syncretism of Mithras with Phanes. In this community, therefore, Mithras’ identification with the sun-god grounded an allusion to the Orphic-Platonic ideas current among the intellectual élites. Mithras-Phanes is also known to us in iconographic form: a relief from Vercovicum (Housesteads) on Hadrian’s Wall shows Mithras emerging from the cosmic egg, which is represented both as such and by the shape of the zodiacal ring. Both complex and straightforward notions thus find a place next to one another in the cult-myths about Mithras’ birth, and are partially interwoven- a point that could be made about any ancient cult. In the case of the birth, some elements are invariable, but variants, regional or local idiosyncrasies, are admissible as well.

 

Dr. Manfred Clauss, The Roman Cult of Mithras: The God and His Mysteries 2307

 

 

The youthful Apolline statue from the Mithraeum of Merida closely resembles the god of the syncretistic relief in the Galleria Estense in Modena which apparently represents the egg-born Orphic god Phanes in his equation with Mithras. This equation is assured by an inscription from Rome (CIMRM 475) and by the close resemblance of the relief from Modena to the one found at Borcovicium-Housesteads which shows Mithras himself.

 

Dr. Hubertus von Gall, in Études Mithriaques 2308

 

We can also prove a direct connection between Mithraism and Orphism. In Rome at the foot of the Aventine three Greek inscriptions were discovered, of which the first two were dedicated ‘to the god Helios Mithras’, the third ‘to the god Helios Mithras Phanes’. In this inscription, the Orphic god Phanes is clearly identified with Mithras. Further, in a British Mithras sanctuary

 

2307 Clauss and Van Essen (1990-2001), 70. (Emph. added.)

 

2308 Hubertus von Gall, “The Lion-Headed and the Human-Headed God in the Mithraic Mysteries,” in Études Mithriaques, ed. J. Duchesne-Guillemin (Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1978), 522-23. (Emph. added.)

 

Manfred Clauss, The Roman Cult of Mithras: The God and His Mysteries, trans. R.L. Gordon (New York: Routledge, 1990-2001), 157. 863 (Borcovicium, Chapel Hill) a portrayal of Phanes (or Mithras) was discovered showing him just emerging out of the divided egg shell. Dr. Bartel L. van der Waerden, Science Awakening II: The Birth of Astronomy 2309

 

2310 based on a marble statue, Roman Imperial Era, currently at the National Museum of Roman Art in Mérida.

 

 

2309 Bartel L. van der Waerden, Science Awakening II: The Birth of Astronomy (Leiden: Noordhoff International Publishing, 1974), 176. (Emph. added.) 2310 Reinhold Merkelbach, Mithras: Ein persisch-römischer Mysterienkult (Weinheim: Beltz Athenäum Verlag 1984-94), 327.

 

2310 Reinhold Merkelbach, Mithras: Ein persisch-römischer Mysterienkult (Weinheim: Beltz Athenäum Verlag 1984-94), 327.

 

As the previous scholars noted, Mithras is most closely assimilated to Phanes during the birth motif. This establishes several parallels to much older myths & legends already mentioned in this work. For starters, there is the archetype of being born out of heavenly fire/lightning, such as that seen in the premature birth of Dionysus and the conception of Osiris. In a picture surrounding the niche of the Mithraeum at DuraEuropos flames are shooting from the rock and even from the Phrygian cap of Mithras, who holds in either upraised hand a torch. … Compare the flames shooting out from the egg-halfs on the relief showing the birth of Mithras-Phanes at Modena.

 

Dr. Maarten J. Vermaseren, in Mnemosyne 2311

 

2311 Maarten J. Vermaseren, “The Miraculous Birth of Mithras,” Mnemosyne: A Journal of Classical Studies, Fourth Series 4, no. 3/4 (1951): 287, n.10.

 

The assimilation with Phanes also gives Mithras a virgin birth. Recall from pp.65-66 & n.164-65 that it is a scientific fact that snakes are capable of parthenogenesis. Serpentine virgin births have been observed both in captivity and in the wild, therefore the motif has been incorporated into various myths down through the ages. Evidently, the birth of Mithras-Phanes was one such myth. At the beginning of time, Time itself—Chronos—manifested in the form of a monstrous androgynous serpent in a bottomless chasm of primordial aether.2312 Since this was at the beginning of creation, the serpent was all alone in the aether, therefore by default it procreated parthenogenetically. Hence

 

2312 Gabriela Bijovsky, “AION: A Cosmic Allegory on a Coin from Tyre?” Israel Numismatic Research 2 (2007): 145 n.5, 146. 

 

the off-spring was also called Protogonus- the First-Born god within time.

 

Of this Chronos, the ageless one, whose counsels never perish, was born the Aither and a great yawning gulf on this side and on that: and there was no limit to it, no bottom nor foundation. (All things were in confusion) throughout the misty darkness. Then great Chronos fashioned in the divine Aither a silvery egg. And it moved without slackening in a vast circle. And it began to move in a wondrous circle. And at the birth of Phanes the misty gulf below and the windless Aither were rent. First-born, Phaethon, son of lofty Aither. Whom they call Phanes … because he first appeared in the Aither. With four eyes looking this way and that. With golden wings moving this way and that. Uttering the voice of a bull and of a glaring lion.

 

Orphic Rhapsodic Theogony Fr. 66-79 (1st cen. BCE2313) 2314

 

According to the second version of the Orphic theogony, Chronos first produced Ether and Chaos. Then, within Ether, he “fabricated” (eteukse) a silver-plated egg. The use of the verb teukhō suggests, not the sexual act, but a craftsmanlike activity, more precisely that of a metalworker, for the egg is described as silver-plated.

 

Dr. Luc Brisson, Sexual Ambivalence: Androgyny and Hermaphroditism in Graeco-Roman Antiquity 2315

 

The rock out of which Mithras is born is often shown entwined by a snake, a detail which unmistakably evokes the famous Orphic motif of the snake-entwined cosmic egg out of

 

2313 Alberto Bernabé, “The Gods in Later Orphism,” in The Gods of Ancient Greece: Identities and Transformations, eds. J.N. Bremmer, A. Erskine (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2010), 423. Robert McGahey, The Orphic Moment: Shaman to Poet-Thinker in Plato, Nietzsche, and Mallarme (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1994), 21. Martin L. West, The Orphic Poems (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1983), 251.

 

2314 William K.C. Guthrie, Orpheus and Greek Religion: A Study of the Orphic Movement (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1952-93), 137. (Emph. added.)

 

2315 Luc Brisson, Sexual Ambivalence: Androgyny and Hermaphroditism in Graeco-Roman Antiquity (Berkeley: University of California, 1997-2002), 90. (Emph. added.)

 

 

which the cosmos was formed when the god Phanes emerged from it at the beginning of time.

 

Dr. David Ulanssey, in Studies in Mithraism 2316

 

 

The god of Time is to be considered as the Father of Mithras himself. Mithras is another god of Eternal Time.

 

Dr. Maarten J. Vermaseren, in Numen 2317

 

As Phanes, Mithras was virgin born from the primeval serpent of Time when it created a silver-stone egg out of primordial aether, from which Mithras emerged in all his blazing glory. This is very similar to the myth regarding so-called “snake-stones” or “adder-stones.” In ancient times these were thought to be parthenogenetic “wind-eggs” like those produced by birds (see pp.198-201, 615-20), except these stone eggs were believed to have been formed by the hardened saliva & sweat of serpents. Because of their unconventional asexual production, they were thought to have supernatural properties.

 

There is, moreover, a kind of egg which is very famous in the Gauls, but not mentioned by the Greeks. Snakes intertwined in great numbers in a studied embrace make these round objects with the saliva from their jaws and the foam from their bodies. It is called a “wind egg.” The Druids say that it is tossed aloft by the snakes’ hisses, and that it ought to be caught in a military cloak before it can touch the earth. … I indeed have seen this egg, which was like a round apple of medium size, and remarkable for its hard covering pitted with many gristly cup-hollows, as it were, like those on the tentacles of an octopus. The Druids praise it highly as the giver of victory in the law-courts and of easy access to potentates.

 

Pliny, Natural History 29.9.52 (1st cen. CE) 2318

 

That description certainly sounds like a stone, exactly like the stone eggs which Mithras is depicted emerging from at his birth, and is of course also surrounded by the serpent Chronos. No doubt this belief about the origin of adder-stones had some correlation to the birth legend of Phanes/Mithras. Just as earthly serpents can produce both fertile eggs

 

2316 David Ulansey, “Mithras and the Hypercosmic Sun,” in Studies in Mithraism, ed. J. Hinnells (Rome: “L’Erma” di Brettschneider, 1994), 264.

 

2317 Maarten J. Vermaseren, “The New Mithraic Temple in London,” Numen: International Review for the History of Religions 2, no. 1/2 (1955): 144.

 

2318 Pliny, in Rackham (1963), 217-19. and stone eggs parthenogenetically, so also the primeval serpent produced the stone egg of Mithras-Phanes parthenogenetically. Mithras had a virgin birth.

 

This virgin birth involving stones & serpents is reminiscent of a few other parthenogenetic births covered earlier in this work. There is the virgin birth of Erichthonius to the virgin Athena—who was surrogated by the earth—and emerged in the form of a serpent.2319 In fact, at least one ancient heathen apologist, Jerome of Stridon, noticed the similarity and explicitly likened the birth of Erichthonius to that of Mithras, as both apparently emerged from stone.2320 There is also the parthenogenetic birth of the serpent Python to the titan Gaia.2321 This birth of Mithras likewise has some conspicuous parallels to the birth of Lord Re-Atum from the virgin mother Neith.2322 Recall how He was born in hypostasis as the primeval Kematef serpent,2323 thus the serpentine parallel is there. And just as Chronos created the stone egg of Mithras-Phanes out of the primordial aether, so also the virgin Neith created the pyramidion Benben stone egg2324 out of the primordial Nun to birth Re-Atum. Both of these deities were portrayed as having been the First-Born gods of all creation.2325 Also, Osiris was conflated with both of them, with Mithras through cultural syncretism, and with Re quite literally, physically, when they merge every night to become Osiris-Re.2326 Osiris also happened to have been born of a virgin like Mithras and Re, as shown in chapter 3. So like Lord Amen-Re, Mithras-Phanes was regarded as a primeval deity of light. From the egg out of which he hatched, the top half evolved into the stellar heaven and the bottom half into the earth.2327 Recall from p.48 how at the very beginning of time, before incarnating as Re, the Lord God Amen manifested hypostatically in the likeness of a bull in order to issue forth from His belly the living waters of the primordial Nun. Well it appears that in a similar manner, in the primeval age at the dawn of creation within the Mithraic mythos, there was a cosmic entity

 

2319 See pp.57-65.

2320 Jerome, Against Jovinian 1.7.

2321 See pp.66-67.

2322 See pp.49-55.

2323 See pp.56-57.

2324 See pp.106-09.

2325 See p.51.

2326 See p.124-30.

2327 Orphic Theogonies Fr. 57, in Athenagoras, Embassy, trans. J.H. Crehan (New York: Paulist Press, 1956), 18.4-5.

 

 

Mithra’s birthday on December 25th is so well known that even the Catholic Encyclopedia (“Mithraism”) must admit it: “The 25 December was observed as his birthday, the natalis invicti, the rebirth of the wintersun, unconquered by the rigours of the season.” Catholic Encyclopedia X 404 https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/10402a.htm

 

The earliest church commemorated it at various times from September to March, until in 354 A.D. Pope Julius I assimilated the festival with that of the birth of Mithra (December 25), in order to facilitate the more complete Christianization of the empire. Thomas Thorburn (33)

 

 

To those Antichrists who say the 12 Disiples aren't parallel to the 12 houses think again! According to the New Testament Jesus Picked his 12 Apostles based on the 12 tribes of Israel which both the Forgery boy Flavius Josephus and Philo of Alexandria equated with the 12 Zodiacal Houses  

 

 

Very simply, “the Twelve” are the signs of the zodiac, metaphorically introduced in the mysteries, and this motif is likely the source of Jesus’s 12. During the very era when Christ had supposedly walked the earth, two prominent Jewish writers, Philo (c. 20 BCE-c. 50 AD/CE) and Josephus (37-c. 100 AD/CE), explained that the 12 Jewish tribes were symbolic of the signs of the zodiac. In Christ in Egypt, Murdock writes: As Josephus says (Antiquities, 3.8): “And for the twelve stones [of Exodus 39:9-14], whether we understand by them the months, or whether we understand the like number of the signs of that circle which the Greeks call the zodiac, we shall not be mistaken in their meaning.” (Josephus/Whiston, 75.) Earlier than Josephus, Philo (“On the Life of Moses,” 12) had made the same comments regarding Moses: “Then the twelve stones on the breast, which are not like one another in colour, and which are divided into four rows of three stones in each, what else can they be emblems of, except of the circle of the zodiac?” (Philo/Yonge, 99.)186 Philo wrote before Christ had supposedly started his ministry, yet he never heard of him. In the meantime, he had heard of the 12 tribes representing the zodiacal signs, and we subsequently read the suggestion in the gospel (Mt 19:28) that Jesus allegedly picked his disciples based on the tribes, which were in turn, according to Philo and Josephus, equated with the zodiacal 12. (for more info read Murdock, CIE, 261-262.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Concerning the Twelve within Mithraism, Murdock says: Mithra surrounded by the 12 “companions” is a motif found on many Mithraic remains and representing the 12 signs of the zodiac. The comparison of this common motif with Jesus and the 12 has been made on many occasions, including in an extensive study entitled, “Mithras and Christ: some iconographical similarities,” by Professor A. Deman in the same volume of Mithraic Studies Murdock, RZC, 20.

 

The point here is not whether or not these companions are depicted as interacting in the same manner as the disciples of Jesus but that the theme of the god or godman with the 12 surrounding him is common enough—and with very popular deities in the same region—to have served as a precedent for the Christian Twelve with Christ at their center. It surely would have struck any intelligent and half-way educated member of the Roman Empire as very odd when Christians attempted to tell their supernatural tales of a Jewish godman with 12 companions, in consideration of the fact that there were already so many of these saviors in variety of cultures.

 

 

Regarding Mithra’s miracles, Mithraic Studies editor John R. Hinnells states: ...the side panels of many Mithraic reliefs and paintings are interpreted as representations of the primeval life of the god, in which he performed miracles, experience various adventures, and celebrated an archetypal communion meal before he ascended to heaven. Hinnells 291.

 

In the Roman Empire, Mithraism became the cult of the undertakers guild. Hence, there was a focus on death and the afterlife, experienced in myth and ritual. In discussing the death-oriented Mithraic rituals, professor of New Testament and Early Christian Literature at the University of Chicago Rev. Dr. Harold R. Willoughby cites Church father Tertullian and remarks: A simulation of death in the Mithraic mysteries…is perfectly intelligible. Death was the logical preliminary to a renewal of life; hence the pretence of death by the neophyte was a perfectly natural antecedent to the regenerative experiences of baptism and sacramental communion that followed in the Mithraic ritual. That this was precisely the interpretation put upon this bit of liturgical fiction is clearly suggested by a passage in Tertullian. In discussing the Mithraic rites of baptism and communion, the Christian lawyer affirmed: “Mithra there brings in the symbol of a resurrection.” This striking use of the phrase imago resurrection is doubly significant. It proves that a simulation of death was an integral part of Mithraic ritual, and also that it was but antecedent to an experience of regeneration. Willoughby, 110-111.

 

"Dupuis tells us that Mithra was put to death by crucifixion, and rose again on the 25th of March. In the Persian Mysteries the body of a young man, apparently dead, was exhibited, which was feigned to be restored to life. By his sufferings he was believed to have worked their salvation, and on this account he was called their Saviour. His priests watched his tomb to the midnight of the vigil of the 25th of March, with loud cries, and in darkness; when all at once the light burst forth from all parts, the priest cried, Rejoice, O sacred initiated, your God is risen. His death, his pains, and sufferings have worked your salvation." JP Lundy Monumental Christianity (168)

 

 

"On Black Friday (cf. Good Friday) the taurobolium, or bull-slaying, was represented. At this festival, the sacrament often comprised blood drinking. Mithras, worn out by the battle was symbolically represented by a stone image lain on a bier as a corpse. He was mourned for in liturgy, and placed in a sacred rock tomb called “Petra,” from which he was removed after three days in a great festival of rejoicing." Religions Of The World by Gerald L. Berry (57)

 

 

 

"...for centuries Mihragān...was celebrated in the spring. For many generations, therefore, Mithra’s feast was observed at a time traditionally associated with the Zoroastrian feast of the resurrection." Hinnells, I, 108.

 

 “The Zoroastrian theologians are indeed recorded as saying...that as an autumn feast Mihragān was a symbol of resurrection and the end of the world...Hinnells, I, 114.

 

 

 

John R Hinnels quoting Mary Boyce

 

 

 

 

Among other titles, Mithra was said to be, “Mighty in strength, mighty rulers, greatest king of gods! O Sun, lord of heaven and earth, God of Gods!”194 He was also called “the mediator.” Mithra shared many such epithets with Christ, as Berry demonstrates: Both Mithras and Christ were described variously as “the way,” “the truth,” “the light,” “the life,” “the word,” “the son of god,” “the good shepherd...” In this same regard, Iranian scholar Dr. Payam Nabarz states, “Mithras is described as the lord of wide pastures, the lord of truth and contracts.” And Dr. Marvin Meyers, a professor of Religious Studies at Chapman College, says: Already among the ancient Indo-Iranian peoples, Mithras was known as a god of light, truth, and integrity.... The Avesta calls Mithra “the lord of wide pastures”...

 

 

Legge, II, 266.  

De Jong, 172.  

Berry, 57.  

Nabarz, 25.  

Meyer, 199.

 

The Mithraic sacred day being Sunday represents a well-known tradition. As the Catholic Encyclopedia states, “Sunday was kept holy in honour of Mithra…” Berry concurs: Since Mithras was a sun-god, Sunday was automatically sacred to him—the “Lords Day”—long before Christ. Dr. Ezquerra also states, “Some say the Lord’s Day was celebrated on Sunday because that was the Dies Solis, the day of the Sun, which in turn had something to do with Mithraism.” Concerning Mithraism and Christianity, the Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia summarizes: The birth of Mithra and of Christ were celebrated on the same day; tradition placed the birth of both in a cave; both regarded Sunday as sacred; in both the central figure was a mediator (mesitēs) who was one of a triad or trinity; in both there was a sacrifice for the benefit of the race... If tradition in India is an indication, this celebration of Mithra’s sacred time on Sunday possibly dates back to Vedic ages, 3,000 or more years ago, with his Indian counterpart Mitra being celebrated into modern times on this day as well: “...the deity is invoked every Sunday under the name of Mitra in a small pitcher placed on a small earthen platform...”

 

Berry, 57.  

Ezquerra, 409.  

Jackson, S., VII, 419.  

Gonda, 131

 

 

 

So as we can see Religion For Breakfast, Inspiring Philososphy, Mike Winger, Steven Bancarz, Frank Turek (Taurus), The Sinful Heathen who accused us of Plagerism and the AntiChrist/Servant Of Mainyu who wrote the Thayer article are *Ahem*

 

 

 

Next: Jesus Vs Dionysus!

 

 

Antinous as Dionysus-Osiris

 

 

Dionysus/Bacchus (Osiris) and his sometimes consort Aphrodite/Venus (Isis-Hathor)

 

 

 

 

 

More Uninspiring Blashemeys to refute *Sigh:

 

 

 

Now lets see what other "Obstinant Heathens" have to say against the faith of our LAWD!!! 

 

 

 

Well you heard It YOUSELVES!!! The Blasphemers against Osiris-Dionysus as our Lord have officially disproved our faith!!!! Oh wait except these "Wicked Devils" have not destroyed us YET!!! let us fact check these sinners and prove who the TRUE GOD really IS!!!! In all seriousness lets begin and see if there right!

 

Greatraven

8 MONTHS AGO

Um... Romulus and Remus had a father, the god Mars. Their mother was a vestal virgin, yes, but there was no parthenogenesis involved. Dionysus was the son of Zeus. His mother Semele was not a virgin; Hera, disguised as a neighbour, talked her into demanding to see who he really was, then refusing him further access to her bed. Jason has a father too, King Aeson. There is a long list of possible mothers. Recommended: Robert Graves’ book The Greek Myths.

 

No doubt there are plenty of virgin birth stories, but those are not among them, I’m afraid.

https://www.smh.com.au/national/there-s-nothing-new-about-virgin-births-just-ask-plato-20191225-p53mui.html#comments
 

 

Here is my response to this "Paganism"

 

I disagree while It is true they had a father Mars but in the first place we are discussing Mythology and these contradictions such as being a vestal virgin and yet also being impregnated with two divine children happen all the time in ancient myth as already covered earlier.

 

“If our Christ-cultists say that their Jesus Christ was born miraculously from a virgin who had known no men, likewise the pagans had already said that Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome, were miraculously born of a vestal virgin named Ilia, Sylvia, or Rhea Sylvia. They had already said that Mars, Vulcan, Argus, and others were born of Juno, who had no knowledge of men.”

— Jean Meslier (1729), The Testament (pg. 129)

https://web.archive.org/web/20200303073355/http://www.eoht.info/page/Virgin+birth

 

While Semele may not have been referred to as a Virgin in ancient texts she is considered to be a Virgin mother by many scholars such as Edmund Ronald Leach, Marguerite Rigoglioso, Edward Carpenter and Joseph Campbell Just to name a few and in one myth Semele is  impregnated with Dionysus through a flash of lightning as related in Euripedes "The Bacchae"  and in another through drinking Bacchus’s severed heart in the form of a potion (Hyginus Fabulae 167) both rather obvious Virgin Births that debunk these "heathens" first point. Also on a side note speaking of Robert Graves Even the Randy Zeus according to Graves and Margerite Rigoglioso was a Virgin Father who gave birth parthenogenically.

 

 

"Dionysus, son of Zeus, is born of a mortal virgin, Semele, who later became immortalized through the intervention of her divine son; Jesus, son of God, is born of a mortal virgin, Mary… such stories can be duplicated over and over again." Edmund Ronald Leach Hugh Jones 108

 

"While the maiden goddess sat there, peacefully weaving a mantle on which there was to be a representation of the universe, her mother contrived that Zeus should learn of her presence; he approached her in the form of an immense snake. And the virgin conceived the ever-dying, everliving god of bread and wine, Dionysus, who was born and nurtured in that cave, torn to death as a babe and resurrected..." Campbell, MG, 27.

 

 

“Semele was also likely a holy parthenos by virtue of the fact that she gave birth to Dionysus via her union with Zeus (Hesiod, Theogony 940) Margerite Rigoglioso The Cult of the Divine Birth in Ancient Greece (95)

 

"Dionysus, like other Sun or Nature deities, was born of a Virgin (Semele or Demeter) untainted by any earthly husband" Edward Carpanter Pagan and Christisn Creeds (65)

 

So there you have it Semele is a Virgin Mother of Dionysus/Osiris but were not done yet however.... As we have seen from Anne Baring, Arthur Maurice Canney, William Sheperd Walsh and other sources Demeter herself the Greek Equivelent of Isis was a Virgin Mother couple this with her role as mother of Persephone and the fact that Zeus-Ammon and Demeter are the parents of Iacchus/Dionysus in the Elusinian Mysteries and thus Demeter by union of Jupiter/Amen Ra is the Virgin mother of both Persephone and Dionysus in some myths. 

 

Furthermore Dionysus in the religion of Orphism was potrayed as being the son of Zeus and Persephone/Kore who as we have noted from Joseph Campbell is styled a "Virgin Goddess" who gave birth to the year God Aion who was quite often equted with Dionysus and Kore as we have seen much much earlier was a "hellinzed transformation of Isis" also Plutarch equated Serapis with Pluto and Persephone as Isis   

 

 

Persephone as Isis (Isis-Persephone) Heraklion Museum

 

 

Also Demeter and Persephone were Joint goddesses and Kore was merely an extension of her mother meaning the 2 goddesses are more or less the same meaning that If Isis is Equivalent to Demeter as per Herodotus and other ancient authors than Isis is also identicle to Persephone to.

 

                      

 

 

 

                       

 

 

 

 

More over here is what Epiphaneus the Early Church Father had to say on this matter:

 

"On this day, i.e. on the eighth day before the Calends of January, the Greeks...celebrate a feast that the Romans call Saturnalia, the Egyptians Cronia and the Alexandrines Cicellia. The reason is that the eighth day before the Calends of January forms a dividing-line, for on it occurs the solstice; the day begins to lengthen again and the sun shines longer and with increasing strength until the eighth day before the Ides of January, viz., until the day of Christ’s nativity... The principal of [the] feasts is that which takes place in the so-called Koreion in Alexandria, this Koreion being a mighty temple in the district sacred to Kore. Throughout the whole night the people keep themselves awake here by singing certain hymns and by means of the flute-playing which accompanies the songs they sing to the image of their god. When they have ended these nocturnal celebrations, then at morning cock-crow they descend, carrying torches, into a sort of chapel which is below ground and thence they carry up a wooden image of one lying naked upon a bier. This image has upon its forehead a golden cross and two more such seals in the form of crosses one on each hand... If anyone asks them what manner of mysteries these might be, they reply, saying: “Today at this hour Kore, that is the virgin, has given birth to Aion.” Such things also occur in Petra... The hymns they sing are in the Arabic tongue and are in praise of a virgin whom they call “Chaamu” which is the same as Kore or Parthenos, and in praise of her child “Dusares” which means “Only son of the ruler of all.” The same thing happens on this same night in Alexandria, in Petra and also in the city of Elusa" Hugo Rahner Greek Myth and Christian Mystery (137-38)  For a lengthy discussion of this important passage in Epiphanius, which was edited out of the Migne edition, see Murdock, CIE, 84-88.

 

Parthenos being the greek word for Virgin!

 

"This date is not derived from the New Testament which is silent on this matter it my have been chosen in concious opposition to a celebration held in Alexandria on the night of January 5th and the morning of January 6 in honor of the birth of the god Aeon from the Virgin Goddess Kore" Opening the Bible essays by Howard H Charles (129)

 

 

 

As a title "Parthenos" was apropriate to Demeter and Persephone Donald White (183)

 

Margerite Rigoglioso has an entire chapter about Demeter and Persephone In Virgin Mother Goddesses of Antiquity called  Demeter and Persephone: Double Goddesses of Parthenogenesis (99-191)

 

Finally when one conciders the fact that A) Vulcan and Minerva a goddess whose virginity was so well known she had a temple called "Parthenon" built in her honor are parents of Apollo in the earliest greek cultures as related by Cicero in On The Nature Of The Gods Book III and the fact that Arnobius an early Christian writer and Macrobius a latin writer both Noted Dionysus equation to Apollo/Helios the Graeco Roman Sun God further proving Dionysus/Bacchus's Solar Nature  

 

" in Seven Books Against the Heathen (3.33), early Christian writer Arnobius (284-305) remarks that the Pagans “maintain that Bacchus, Apollo, the Sun, are one deity” and “the sun is also Bacchus and Apollo.” "

 

"But given the earlier proof that Apollo and the sun are the same and the subsequent demonstration that Father Liber is the same as Apollo there can be no doubt but that the sun and father Liber must be considered aspects of the same godhead they observe the holy mysteries in the rites by calling by calling the sun Apollo when it is in the upper (that is daytime) hemisphere when it is in the lower (that is night-time) hemisphere it is considered Dionysus who is Liber" Macrobius/Kaster 1.249

 

and when one also notes the fact that as we discussed earlier Neith is the Virgin Mother of Osiris and Neith was Identified with Athena/Minerva and Osiris with Dionysus/Bacchus it is for these reasons that mythologicaly speaking Athena can be considered by union of Hepheastus the Virgin Mother of Dionysus/Bacchus

 

Also Athena according to Raphals was a Sea Goddess and this would have earned her the latin epithet of Mare

 Lisa Raphals Knowing Words: Wisdom and Cunning in the Classical Traditions of China and Greece, Cornell University Press, 1992. (217)

 

Thus would have been concidered born of the virgin "Mare-y" (Mary) in some myths

 

Also because of the fact that Demeter and Persephone were identified with Isis who inturn was equated with Venus and the fact that Hathor was the Virgin Mother of Osiris and of course Hathor=Aphrodite/Venus and Osiris=Dionysus/Bacchus It would therefore mean mythologically speaking Aphrodite would have been the Virgin Mother of Dionysus in some myths and she also had the epithet Mare to so yet another "Mary" Dionysus would have been born of...

 

 So in any event he is born of the union of a God (Zeus/Juptier or Hephestus/Vulcan) and a Virgin Mother (Semele, Demeter/Ceres, Persephone/Kore, Aphrodite/Venus or Athena/Minerva) so checkmate Villain to the one true Faith!

 

Here is what my online freind  Reverand D.N Boswell had to say about Athena in "The Perrenial Gospel" (PP 60-65) (EWWW He said PP Again! lolz) 

 

May that life-giving serpent of God be exalted and lifted up: that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. Since Neith is the Holy Mother of God, Amen-Re, she is by default the mother of His hypostases as well. Thus by extension Neith was the virgin mother of a divine serpent. In the Greek mythology of Athena, there existed a version in which she was the mother of Ericthonius, sometimes called Erechtheus. This myth is referenced to at least as far back as Homer (8th cen. BCE).149 The two most detailed accounts include the version preserved in the work known as “The Library of Apollodorus” (1st cen. CE150), 3.14.6, as well as the version of Euripides (5th cen. BCE151), as preserved by Hyginus in Astronomica 2.13, and alluded to in Euripides’ own work Ion, 1.20-26, 268-74, 999-1009, & 1428-29. Based on those accounts, the story goes that Hephaistos/Vulcan attempted to rape Athena, but in an effort to preserve her virginity, she fought him off, and he ejaculated on her thigh. She wiped away the seed and buried it in the earth. Apparently, the mingling of her skin flakes with the seed of Hephaistos gave rise to Ericthonius, who sprang forth out of the earth. Because he came forth from the earth, some versions depict the earth goddess, Gaia, acting as Athena’s surrogate, returning Ericthonius back to his true mother as soon as he is born.152 In other versions, he arises

 

149 Homer, The Iliad, trans. Ian Johnston (Arlington: Richer Resources Publications, 2006-07), 45. “Athens, land of proud Erectheus, whom Athena raised, after he was born out of the harvest land.”

 

150 Michael Simpson, Gods & Heroes of the Greeks: The Library of Apollodorus Translated with Introduction and Notes (Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 1976), 1. Luke Roman, Monica Roman, Encyclopedia of Greek and Roman Mythology (New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2010), 301. Wendy Cotter, Miracles in Graeco-Roman Antiquity: A Sourcebook (New York: Taylor & Francis, 1999-2003), 13, 26.

 

151 Giannis Stamatellos, Introduction to Presocratics: A Thematic Approach to Early Greek Philosophy with Key Readings (Oxford: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2012), 119.

 

152 Larissa Bonfante, “Nursing Mothers in Classical Art,” in Naked Truths: Women, Sexuality, and Gender in Classical Art and Archaeology, eds. A.O. Kolowski-Ostrow and C.L. Lyons (London: Taylor & Francis, 1997-2004), 189 n.4. 61

 

directly from out of the soil in the form of a serpent (Fig. 9), thus serving as somewhat of a parallel to Neith’s virgin motherhood of Amen-Re and his hypostasis as the Kematef serpent. This can be seen in the statue known as Athéna à la ciste, located in the Louvre Museum in Paris, France (Fig. 10). It is a Roman replica of a late 5th century BCE Greek original, in the style of the artist Cephisodotus. The statue depicts Athena standing upright, while holding in her left arm a basket, or ciste, which contains an infant serpent. The basket along with the state of infancy makes the identity obvious—the serpent here is Erichthonius, as the museum affirms.153 The serpent form of the son of Athena is also verified by the giant statue once located at the Parthenon commonly referred to as the Athena Parthenos. The original was sculpted by the famous artist Pheidias in around 438 BCE.154 While this work is no longer extant, its general appearance has been preserved through descriptions in texts and replications on coins, plates, statues, and other works. It depicts Athena in warrior mode, clad in armor, with shield and spear, accompanied by her serpent child. Among the earliest examples of such a replica is a terracotta disk (Fig. 11), dated to around 400-375 BCE.155 As Dr. Jeffrey M. Hurwit describes it:

 

Camp, 1996, announced the discovery in the Agora of an early fourth-century terracotta token or disk with a small version of the Athena Parthenos in relief. This image – one of the earliest extant representations of the statue – shows the Athena without a

 

Liz Locke, Eurydice’s Body: Feminist Reflections of the Orphic Descent Myth in Philosophy and Film (Bloomington: Indiana University, 2000), 126.

 

153 Musée du Louvre, “Athéna à la ciste,” http://cartelfr.louvre.fr/cartelfr/visite?srv=car_not&idNotice=847 (accessed October 14, 2012). Pierre Brûlé, La fille d’Athènes: La religion des filles à Athènes à l’époque classique (Paris: Mythes, cultes et société, 1987), 69-70.

 

154 Jenifer Neils, “Phidias,” in The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Greece and Rome Vol. 4, eds. M. Gagarin and E. Fantham (New York: Oxford University Press, 2010), 242.

 

155 John M. Camp, The Archaeology of Athens (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2001), 80. 62

 

supporting column beneath the outstretched right hand; instead, the snake appears there.156 Another early depiction of the Athena Parthenos can be seen in Figure 12. It illustrates a proxeny decree in honor of Philiskos Lykou of Sestos, is currently at the National Archaeological Museum of Athens, and dated to around 354 BCE.157 Although significantly damaged, the serpent can still be seen behind the shield of Athena, beneath her left arm where she is holding a figure of Nike, Athena herself being positioned in the center of the scene.

158 A more detailed replica of Pheidias’ statue is also to be found at the aforementioned museum. It is known as the Varvakeion Athena and it is a Roman reproduction dated to the 2nd century CE,159 illustrated in Fig. 13. Once again, the serpent can be seen located behind the shield. The identity of Pheidias’ serpent was preserved by Pausanias, and it was indeed explicitly known to be that of her son, Ericthonius: As you enter the temple that they name the Parthenon, … The statue of Athena is upright, with a tunic reaching to the feet, and on her breast the head of Medusa is worked in ivory. She holds a statue of Victory about four cubits high, and in the other hand a spear; at her feet lies a shield and near the spear is a serpent. This serpent would be Erichthonius. 160 While the means by which Athena produced Ericthonius might at first glance seem slightly convoluted when reading accounts of it, the fact that this ancient myth was indeed understood to be a virgin birth by a celibate goddess is affirmed by the 1st century sage, Apollonius of Tyana.

 

156 Jeffrey M. Hurwit, The Athenian Acropolis: History, Mythology, and Archaeology from the Neolithic Era to the Present (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999), 330 n.78.

 

157 Carol L. Lawton, “Athenian anti-Macedonian sentiment and democratic ideology in Attic document reliefs in the second half of the fourth century B.C.,” in The Macedonians in Athens: 322-229 B.C., eds. O. Palagia and S.V. Tracy, (Oxford: Oxbow Books, 2003), 119.

 

158 Hurwit (1999), 53, 330 n.78. 159 John Freely, Strolling Through Athens: Fourteen Unforgettable Walks Through Europe’s Oldest City (London: I.B. Tauris & Co. Ltd, 1991-2004), 290.

 

160 Pausanias, Description of Greece: Books 1-2, trans. W.H.S. Jones (London: William Heinemann Ltd., and Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1918-92), 123-25. (Emph. added.) 63 Fig. 10: Athéna à la ciste, on her left bosom can be seen her infant son Erichthonios, again in serpent form. Fig. 11 64 Fig. 12 Fig. 13 65 According to his disciple Damis,161 as later preserved by Philostratus, the following conversation occurred while Apollonius was in prison:

 

Another man said that he was under indictment because when sacrificing in Tarentum, where he was a magistrate, he had not added to the public prayers the fact that Domitian was the son of Athena. “You,” said Apollonius, “thought that Athena could not have children as a perpetual virgin, but you seem to have forgotten that this goddess once gave birth to a snake for the Athenians.” 162

 

So not only was Athena considered a virgin mother of a divine serpent as early as the 5th century BCE, but even during the 1st century CE there was a belief that she also gave virgin birth to human kings as well. Also, in his letter to Sais, this same Apollonius affirmed that Athena was identical to Neith:

 

To the people of Sais: You are descendants of the Athenians, so Plato says in the Timaeus. They however banish from Attica the goddess whom they share with you, called Neith by you and Athena by them.163

 

Thus, by extension, he affirmed that Neith was indeed a virgin mother, the very same whom he claimed had borne a serpent child. The association between serpents, parthenogenesis, and divine birth is a recurring theme in mythology, several examples of which will come up again throughout this book. One possible origin for this serpentine connection to virgin birth is nature itself. In fact, just recently the scientific journal Biology Letters, of The Royal Society, published a paper affirming the occurrence of facultative parthenogenesis in snakes in the wild. 164 Of course, this had already been observed among snakes

 

161 Philostratus, Apollonius of Tyana, Volume II: Life of Apollonius of Tyana, Books 5-8, ed. and trans. Christopher P. Jones (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 2005), 261.

 

162 Ibid. 269-271. (Emph. added.)

 

163 Apollonius of Tyana, Apollonius of Tyana, Volume III: Letters of Apollonius, Ancient Testimonia, Eusebius’ Reply to Hierocles, ed. and trans. Christopher P. Jones (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 2006), 65.

 

164 Warren Booth et al., “Facultative Parthenogenesis Discovered in Wild Vertebrates,” Biology Letters 8, no. 6 (2012): 983-5.

 

 

 

t is wise at this point to recall that in the ancient world many gods were confounded and compounded, deliberately or otherwise. Some were even considered interchangeable, such as Osiris, Horus and Ra. In this regard, Plutarch (35, 364E) states, “Osiris is identical with Dionysus.” Thus, Zeus’s son Dionysus or Bacchus was considered the Greek rendition of Osiris: Dionysus became the universal savior-god of the ancient world. And there has never been another like unto him: the first to whom his attributes were accredited, we call Osiris: with the death of paganism, his central characteristics were assumed by Jesus Christ. Dionysus is likewise identified with the god Aion and also referred to as “Zeus Sabazius” in other traditions. Hence, we would expect him to share in at least some of all these gods’ attributes.

 

 Plutarch/Babbitt, 85.

 Larson, 82.

 Graves, R., WG, 335.

 

 

As with Jesus, December 25th and January 6th are both traditional birth dates related to Dionysus and simply represent the period of the winter solstice. Concerning these dates, Murdock remarks: The winter-solstice date of the Greek sun and wine god Dionysus was originally recognized in early January but was eventually placed on December 25th, as related by Macrobius. Regardless, the effect is the same: The winter sun god is born around this time, when the [shortest day of the year] begins to become longer….Murdock, The 2010 Astrotheology Calendar, 44.

 

Murdock also says: The birthday of Dionysus can be listed on both the 5th and 6th of January, while the god Aion who is born on January 6th is called by Joseph Campbell a “syncretistic personification of Osiris.” Dionysus was likewise identified with both Aion and Osiris in ancient times. In antiquity too, Jesus Christ’s nativity was also placed on the 6th or 7th of January, when it remains celebrated in some factions of the Orthodox Church, such as Armenia, as well as the Coptic Church. Concerning these dates, Christian theologian Dr. Hugo Rahner remarks: As to the dates, Norden has shown that the change from January 6 to December 25 can be explained as the result of the reform introduced by the more accurate Julian calendar into the ancient Egyptian calculation which had fixed January 6 as the date of the winter solstice. It thus appears that in ancient times these dates of January 5, 6 and 7 represented the winter solstice, which is fitting for sun gods. Indeed, Macrobius later places Dionysus’s birth on December 25th, again appropriate for a sun god. Murdock, 2AC, 36.

 

Jesuit theologian Dr. Rahner further states: ...in the Hellenistic East, and with Alexandria evidently taking the lead, a mystery was enacted that concerned the birth of Aion by a virgin and that this mystery took place on the night leading to January 6. It is quite immaterial whether the object of the cult in question was really Dionysus Aion or some other deity. Epiphanius, quoting other ancient writers, tells us elsewhere that the birthday of Dionysus was celebrated on January 5 and 6, though in the present instance it may well have been that of Osiris or Harpocrates-Horus. It matters very little, since the tendency in these late Hellenistic days was for the identities of gods, all of whom were beginning to take on the character of a solar deity, to become merged with one another. We know that Aion was at this time beginning to be regarded as identical with Helios and Helios with Dionysus… Greek Myth and Christian Mystery (139)

 

 

 

 

 

The miracles of Dionysus are legendary, as is his role as the god of wine, echoed in the later Christian story of Jesus multiplying the jars of wine at the wedding feast of Cana (Jn 2:1-9). Concerning this miracle, biblical scholar Dr. A.J. Mattill remarks: This story is really the Christian counterpart to the pagan legends of Dionysus, the Greek god of wine, who at his annual festival in his temple of Elis filled three empty kettles with wine—no water needed! And on the fifth of January wine instead of water gushed from his temple at Andros. If we believe Jesus’ miracle, why should we not believe Dionysus’s? Tim Leedom The Book Your Church doesn't want you to read (125)

 

As the god of the vine, Dionysus is depicted in ancient texts as traveling around teaching agriculture, as well as doing various miracles, such as in Homer’s The Iliad, dating to the 9th century BCE, and in The Bacchae of Euripides, the famous Greek playwright who lived around 480 to 406 BCE. In addition, Dionysus’s miracle of changing water to wine is also recounted in pre-Christian times by Diodorus (Library of History, 3.66.3). DM Murdock The Real Zeitgeist Challange (18)

 

 

In Bible Myths and Their Parallels in Other Religions, Doane asserts, “Bacchus, the offspring of Jupiter and Semele was called the ‘Savior,’ ...he was called the ‘Only Begotten Son Thomas Doane (193) The title of “savior” or Soter was applied to many Greek and other gods prior to the Christian era. (It should be noted that what is deemed the “Christian era” is not the same as the “common era,” because there are to this day places where Christianity has not been heard of; hence, they remain pre-Christian.)

 

Regarding Dionysus’s many divine epithets, Murdock states:

In an Orphic hymn, Phanes-Dionysus is styled by the Greek title Protogonos or “first-born” of Zeus, also translated at times as “only-begotten son,” although the term Monogenes would be more appropriately rendered as the latter. 

 

As concerns the epithet “King of Kings,” noted anthropologist Sir James G. Frazer tells us that the Neoplatonist Proclus (5th cent. AD/CE) related: Dionysus was the last king of the gods appointed by Zeus. For his father set him on the kingly throne, and placed in his hand the scepter, and made him king of all the gods of the world. In the case of Dionysus/Bacchus being labeled the “Alpha and Omega,” here is one instance where not knowing foreign languages would make the sources difficult to access, as we are told in French by Rev. Isaac de Beausobre that there is an ancient inscription in which Dionysus/Bacchus says, “I am the Alpha and Omega" Histoire critique de Manichée et du manichéisme, Volume 2 (56) 

 

https://books.google.ca/books?id=2ycVAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA56&dq="c'est+moi,+qui+vous+conserve"+beausobre&hl=en&sa=X&ei=2lfuU-DXMI_5oASwmYHwAg&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q="je fuis alpha"&f=false

 

 

The title “King of Kings” and other epithets may reflect Dionysus’s kinship with Osiris: During the late 18th to early 19th dynasties (c. 1300 BCE), Osiris’s epithets included, “the king of eternity, the lord of everlastingness, who traverseth millions of years in the duration of his life, the firstborn son of the womb of Nut, begotten of Seb, the prince of gods and men, the god of gods, the king of kings, the lord of lords, the prince of princes, the governor of the world whose existence is for everlasting.

 

Budge, EBD (1967), liii.

 

While it is true that Dionysus didn't have 12 disiples he was part of the 12 Olympians "None of the earlier emperors seems to have associated himself directly with the Twelve Gods . ... B . C . , but the exposition of the complete system relating the Olympians to the months and the zodiac belongs to the first century after Christ"  Charlotte R Long 12 Gods of ancient Greece and Rome (274)

 

The number 12 is made up of the sphere of the fixed stars , the seven known planets ( including sun and moon ) , three regions or zones of aether , air ... seen here an allusion to the twelve signs of the Zodiac , or rather to the twelve deities guarding4 or inhabiting them . ... whom Plato may have known as early as the date of the Phaedrus , identified these deities with the twelve Olympians ; and there is ... Plato: Phaedrus - Page 74 Plato, ‎R. Hackforth - 1972

 

.

The Key of Destiny - Page 42

 

Harriette A. Curtiss, ‎F. Homer Curtiss - 1996

 

Nothing could more plainly indicate that the ancient Egyptians possessed a knowledge of the zodiac and planetary influences in ... The fundamental idea of number 12 relating to the Manifestation of the Trinity within a cycle of expression ( manvantara ) ... Thus , not only are there the 12 sons of Jacob who founded the 12 tribes of Israel , but there are 12 princes of Ishmael ; 3 the 12 Olympian deities ; the 12 ...

 

So in other words the 12 Olympians are parallel to the twelve houses of the Zodiac and to those who say the 12 Disiples aren't parallel to the 12 houses think again!

 

According to the New Testament Jesus Picked his 12 Apostles based on the 12 tribes of Israel which both the Forgery boy Flavius Josephus and Philo of Alexandria equated with the 12 Zodiacal Houses  

 

 

Very simply, “the Twelve” are the signs of the zodiac, metaphorically introduced in the mysteries, and this motif is likely the source of Jesus’s 12. During the very era when Christ had supposedly walked the earth, two prominent Jewish writers, Philo (c. 20 BCE-c. 50 AD/CE) and Josephus (37-c. 100 AD/CE), explained that the 12 Jewish tribes were symbolic of the signs of the zodiac. In Christ in Egypt, Murdock writes: As Josephus says (Antiquities, 3.8): “And for the twelve stones [of Exodus 39:9-14], whether we understand by them the months, or whether we understand the like number of the signs of that circle which the Greeks call the zodiac, we shall not be mistaken in their meaning.” (Josephus/Whiston, 75.) Earlier than Josephus, Philo (“On the Life of Moses,” 12) had made the same comments regarding Moses: “Then the twelve stones on the breast, which are not like one another in colour, and which are divided into four rows of three stones in each, what else can they be emblems of, except of the circle of the zodiac?” (Philo/Yonge, 99.)186 Philo wrote before Christ had supposedly started his ministry, yet he never heard of him. In the meantime, he had heard of the 12 tribes representing the zodiacal signs, and we subsequently read the suggestion in the gospel (Mt 19:28) that Jesus allegedly picked his disciples based on the tribes, which were in turn, according to Philo and Josephus, equated with the zodiacal 12. (for more info read Murdock, CIE, 261-262.)

 

Thus the 12 Disiples/Apostles are also parallel to the 12 houses of the Zodiac there for Dionysus/Iacchus being part of the 12 Olympians is parallel to Jesus having 12 followers so I guess our Villainous fornicator and villain of the faith will have to repent to Osiris/Dionysus or face an Egyptian lake of fire FOREVER!!!! 

 

 

 

 

According to Wikipedia "The 1995 edition of the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia says that the Egyptian lake of fire is too remote to be relevant to the use of "lake of fire" in the Book of Revelation." 

 

So in other words an encylopedia says that its too remote to be a parallel and that therefore that must magically make it too remote to form a parallel (*Facepalm)

 

 

For more Info in regards to the 12 concerning Ra/Osiris/Horus and Dionysus/Bacchus I shall refere you to Christ In Egypt and The Perrenial Gospel by Murdock and Boswell respectively.

 

In regards to Dionysus or Bacchus's Crucifixion there has been quite the Controversy mainly because an object presented in the film The Orpheus Bakkikos has been biasedly assailed as a forgery by "Nostalgia Critics" here is what it looks like:

 

 

 

 

Luckily Acharya S In her Pre Christian God on A Cross PDF: https://stellarhousepublishing.com/product/a-pre-christian-god-on-a-cross/

 

and Francesco Carotta the author of Jesus was Caeser: on the Julian Origins of Christianity An investigative Report in a pdf he wrote:

https://www.carotta.de/subseite/texte/articula/Orpheos_Bakkikos_en.pdf 

 

both soundly debunked the forgery claims. 

 

 

 

However Carrottas work and the parallels between Julius Caeser and Jesus Christ  we shall discuss much much later....

 

 

 

 

 

 

And All though it is true that the Orpheus Bakkikos Gem was created 2-300 years after Christianity began it is evidently Post Christian continuation of an evidently Pre Christian Tradition as there many Images of Bacchus that potray him as being affixed to or hanging on a post or tree as we shall see from various vases dated back to 600-300 BCE:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Moreover it Is Important to Note Dionysus Connection to Osiris who was also potrayed in Cruciform as the Djed Pillar

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

'The third factor contributing to the crucifixion story is again pagan mythology. The theme of a divine or semi-divine being sacrificed against a tree, pole or cross, and then being resurrected, is very common in pagan mythology. It was found in the mythologies of all western civilizations stretching from as far west as Ireland and as far east as India. In particular it is found in the mythologies of Osiris and Attis, both of whom were often identified with Tammuz. Osiris landed up with his arms stretched out on a tree like Jesus on the cross. This tree was sometimes shown as a pole with outstretched arms - the same shape as the Christian cross. In the worship of Serapis (a composite of Osiris and Apis) the cross was a religious symbol. Indeed, the Christian "Latin cross" symbol seems to be based directly on the cross symbol of Osiris and Serapis. The Romans never used this traditional Christian cross for crucifixions, they used crosses shaped either like an X or a T. The hieroglyph of a cross on a hill was associated with Osiris. This heiroglyph stood for the "Good One," in Greek "Chrestos," a name applied to Osiris and other pagan gods. The confusion of this name with "Christos" (Messiah, Christ) strengthened the confusion between Jesus and the pagan gods.'

 

ben yehoshua hayyim The Myth Of the Historical Jesus

 

 

36 1 Not only the Nile, but every form of moisture205 they call simply the effusion of Osiris; and in their holy rites the water jar in honour of the god heads the procession.206 And by the picture of a rush they represent a king and the southern region of the world,207 and the rush is interpreted to mean the watering and fructifying of all things, and in its nature it seems to bear some resemblance to the generative member. Moreover, when they celebrate the festival of the Pamylia which, as has been said,208 is of a phallic member, they expose and carry about a statue of which the male member is triple;209 for the god is the Source, and every source, by its fecundity, multiplies what proceeds from it; and for "many times" we have a habit of saying "thrice," Cas, for example, "thrice happy,"210 and

Bonds, even thrice as many, unnumbered,211

 

unless, indeed, the word "triple" is used by the early writers in its strict meaning; for the nature of moisture, being the source and origin of all things, created out of itself three primal material substances, Earth, Air and Fire. In fact, the tale that is annexed to the legend to the effect that Typhon cast the male member of Osiris into the river, and Isis could not find it, but constructed and shaped a replica of it, and ordained that it should be honoured and borne in processions,212 plainly comes round to this doctrine, that the creative and germinal power of the god, at the very first, acquired moisture as its substance, and through moisture combined with whatever was by nature capable of participating in generation.

DThere is another tale current among the Egyptians that Apopis, brother of the Sun, made war upon Zeus, and that because Osiris espoused Zeus's cause and helped him to overthrow his enemy, Zeus adopted Osiris as his son and gave him the name of Dionysus. It may be demonstrated that the legend contained in this tale has some approximation to truth so far as  p91 Nature is concerned; for the Egyptians apply the name "Zeus" to the wind,213 and whatever is dry or fiery is antagonistic to this. This is not the Sun, but it has some kinship with the Sun; and the moisture, Eby doing away with the excess of dryness, increases and strengthens the exhalations by which the wind is fostered and made vigorous.

 

http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Moralia/Isis_and_Osiris*/B.html#ref230

 

 

 

 

So in other words Dionysus as Osiris did battle with "The Wicked Serpent Apep" along side Zeus/Jupiter

 

 

 

For More Info Read Christ In Egypt the Horus-Jesus Connection and Neal Boswell's Perennial Gospel For more Info about this subject of Crucifixion and Cruciform but regardless Dionysus Was Definately hung on a post or affixed to a tree prior to Christianity and both qualify as meanings or forms of "crucifixion" and so another "Heathen" bites the dust!

 

 

Finally Dionysus or Bacchus has 3 death and ressurection tales the first of which is that as was stated from Hyginus Fabulae he was torn to pieces and through a virgin birth or virgin ressurection Semele drinks his heart and he reborn in his mothers womb the second version is that after being killed by the Titans he was repieced together again either by his Virgin Mother Demeter/Ceres or by Rhea/Ops similar to the most popular ressurection tale surronding Osiris of being put back together again by Isis after being betrayed and murdered by Typhon/Seth the final one Is When Bacchus decends to the underworld to save his deceased wife Ariadne and Virgin Mother Semele before acending to Mt Olympus (Heaven) and according to The Classical Journal, Volume 29 Bacchus Slept with Proserpine for 3 days thus would have remained in the world of the damned for a three day period before acending to heaven. Makes sense considering Plutarch and Alfred Bertholet's Accounts of Osiris being dead for 3 days before ressurecting and how Dionysus Is merely the Grecian Osiris.

 

https://stellarhousepublishing.com/dionysus/

 

So as we can see these critics have evidently never did there resarch so why should we take there word for it when it comes to weather anything in ZG was wrong?

 

 

Next Up BUDDAH BUDDAH BUDDAHH!!!

 

 

Uh Oh here comes IP and his "Paganism!"

 

 

Buddha 

 

 

Although most people think of Buddha as being one person who lived around 500 BCE, the character commonly portrayed as Buddha can also be demonstrated to be a compilation of godmen, legends and sayings of various holy men both preceding and succeeding the period attributed to the Buddha (Gautama/ Gotama), as was demonstrated by Robertson: . . . Gotama was only one of a long series of Buddhas who arise at intervals and who all teach the same doctrine. The names of twenty-four of such Buddhas who appeared before Gotama have been recorded. . . . It was held that after the death of each Buddha, his religion flourishes for a time and then decays. After it is forgotten, a new Buddha emerges and preaches the lost Dhamma, or Truth. . . . It seems quite probable in the light of these facts that any number of teachings attributed to “the Buddha” may have been in existence either before or at the time when Gotama was believed to have lived. . . . The name Gotama is a common one; it is also full of mythological associations. There was admittedly another Gotama known to the early Buddhists, who founded an order. So what proof is there that the sayings and doings of different Gotamas may not have been ascribed to one person? . . .ccxlix 

 

Because of this non-historicity and of the following characteristics of the Buddha myth, which are not widely known but which have their hoary roots in the mists of time, we can safely assume that Buddha is yet another personification of the ancient, universal mythos being revealed herein. The Buddha character has the following in common with the Christ figure:

 

• Buddha was born on December 25thccl of the virgin Maya, and his birth was attended by a “Star of Announcement,”ccli wise men cclii and angels singing heavenly songs.ccliii 

 

• At his birth, he was pronounced ruler of the world and presented with “costly jewels and precious substances.”ccliv 

 

• His life was threatened by a king “who was advised to destroy the child, as he was liable to overthrow him.”cclv 

 

• Buddha was of royal lineage. 

 

• He taught in the temple at 12.cclvi 

 

• He crushed a serpent’s head (as was traditionally said of Jesus) and was tempted by Mara, the “Evil One,” when fasting. 

 

• Buddha was baptized in water, with the “Spirit of God” or “Holy Ghost” present.cclvii 

 

• He performed miracles and wonders, healed the sick, fed 500 men from a “small basket of cakes,” and walked on water. cclviii 

 

• Buddha abolished idolatry, was a “sower of the word,” and preached “the establishment of a kingdom of righteousness.”cclix 

 

• His followers were obliged to take vows of poverty and to renounce the world.cclx 

 

• He was transfigured on a mount, when it was said that his face “shone as the brightness of the sun and moon.”cclxi 

 

• In some traditions, he died on a cross.cclxii 

• He was resurrected, as his coverings were unrolled from his body and his tomb was opened by supernatural powers.cclxiii 

 

• Buddha ascended bodily to Nirvana or “heaven.” 

 

• He was called “Lord,” “Master,” the “Light of the World,” “God of Gods,” “Father of the World,” “Almighty and All-knowing Ruler,” “Redeemer of All,” “Holy One,” the “Author of Happiness,” “Possessor of All,” the “Omnipotent,” the “Supreme Being,” the “Eternal One.”cclxiv 

 

• He was considered the “Sin Bearer,” “Good Shepherd,” cclxv the “Carpenter,”cclxvi the “Infinite and Everlasting,”cclxvii and the “Alpha and Omega.”cclxviii 

 

• He came to fulfill, not destroy, the law.cclxix 

 

• Buddha is to return “in the latter days” to restore order and to judge the dead.”cclxx 

 

In addition to the characteristics of the “teaching/savior god” as outlined above, the Buddhistic influence in Christianity includes: Renouncing the world and its riches, including sex and family; the brotherhood of man; the virtue of charity and turning the cheek; and conversion. That Buddhism preceded Christianity is undeniable, as is its influence in the world long prior to the beginning of the Christian era. As Walker relates: Established 500 years before Christianity and widely publicized throughout the Middle East, Buddhism exerted more influence on early Christianity than church fathers liked to admit, since they viewed Oriental religions in general as devil worship. . . . Stories of the Buddha and his many incarnations circulated incessantly throughout the ancient world, especially since Buddhist monks traveled to Egypt, Greece, and Asia Minor four centuries before Christ, to spread their doctrines. . . . Many scholars have pointed out that the basic tenets of Christianity were basic tenets of Buddhism first; but it is also true that the ceremonies and trappings of both religions were more similar than either has wanted to acknowledge.cclxxi As to Buddhistic influence in the specific area where the Christ drama purportedly took place, Larson states: Buddhist missionaries penetrated every portion of the then known world, including Greece, Egypt, Baktria, Asia Minor, and the Second Persian Empire. Palestine must have been permeated by Buddhist ideology during the first century. . . . The literature of India proves that Jesus drew heavily upon Buddhism, directly or indirectly, to obtain not simply the content of His ethics, but the very form in which it was delivered. Both Gautama and Jesus found parable effective.cclxxii Indeed, it seems that a number of Jesus’s parables were direct lifts from Buddhism; for example, that of the prodigal son.cclxxiii The existence of Buddhism in the Middle East during the Christian era is acknowledged by Christian apologists themselves such as Cyril and Clement of Alexandria, who said the Samaneans or Buddhists were priests of Persia.cclxxiv Furthermore, a number of scholars have pushed back the origins of Buddhism many thousands of years prior to the alleged advent of Gautama Buddha. Albert Churchward also traces the Buddha myth originally to Egypt: The first Buddha was called Hermias, and can be traced back to Set of the Egyptians; he originated in the Stellar Cult. Later, however, the Solar Cult was carried to India, and the Buddha is there the representative of Ptah of the Egyptians. . . . . Sakya-Muni or Gautama, whose life and history were evolved from the pre-extant mythos, the true Buddha, . . . could become no more historical than the Christ of the gnosis. If Buddhism could but explicate its own origins, it would become apparent that it is both natural and scientific, i.e. the old Stellar Cult of Egypt. But the blind attempt to make the Buddha historical in one person will place it ultimately at the bottom of a dark hole.cclxxv Higgins also evinced that true “Buddhism” is much more ancient than the legends of the Buddha, since in ancient Indian temples long predating the era of “Gautama” are depictions of the Buddha as a black man, not only in color but in feature.cclxxvi In Higgins’s opinion, Buddhism has been the most widespread religion on the planet, also found in England, where it was the religion of the Druids. He also states that the “Hermes of Egypt, or Buddha, was well known to the ancient Canaanites,” i.e., the people who preceded and in large part became the Israelites. Therefore, Buddhism was no doubt an early influence on Hebrew thought and religion. 

 

ccl. Thomas Doane Bible Myths And Their Parallels In Other Religions (363) 

 

ccli. Albert Churchward The Origin and Evolution of Religion (334) 

 

cclii. Thomas Doane Bible Myths and There Parallels In Other Religions, (290) 

 

ccliii. Martin A Larson Story Of Christmas Origins (136) 

 

Thomas Doane Bible Myths and There Parallels In Other Religions (147), (290) 

 

ccliv. Thomas Doane Bible Myths and There Parallels In Other Religions (290) 

 

cclv.Thomas Doane Bible Myths And There Parallels In Other Religions (168). 

 

cclvi.Thomas Doane Bible Myths And There Parallels In Other Religions(291) 

 

cclvii.Thomas Doane Bible Myths And There Parallels In Other Religions(292) 

 

cclviii. GRS Mead, Gospels And Gospels  (133) 

 

cclix. GRS Mead, Gospels and Gospels (133) 

 

cclx Thomas Doane Bible Myths And There Parallels In Other Religions (294) 

 

cclxi. Thomas Doane Bible Myths And There Parallels In Other Religions(292) 

 

cclxii. Albert Pike Morals and Dogma of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry (290) Godfrey Higgins Anacalypsis

Volume I (159), (444) 

 

cclxiii.Thomas Doane Bible Myths And There Parallels In Other Religions(293) 

 

cclxiv.Thomas Doane Bible Myths And There Parallels In Other Religions(116) 

 

cclxv. Helena Blavatsky, Isis Unveiled Volume II (209), (537-538) 

 

cclxvi. Gerald Massey, The Historical Jesus And The Mythical Christ (150) 

 

cclxvii. GRS Mead, (134). 

 

cclxviii. Thomas Doane Bible Myths And There Parallels In Other Religions (292) 

 

cclxix. Thomas Doane Bible Myths And There Parallels In Other Religions (294) 

 

cclxx. Thomas Doane Bible Myths And There Parallels In Other Religions (293) 

 

cclxxi. Barbara Walker Woman’s Encyclopedia Of Myths and Secrets, (123) 

 

cclxxii. Martin A Larson Story Of Christmas Origins (142-8) 

 

cclxxiii. Martin A Larson The Story Of Christmas Origins (149) 

 

cclxxiv. Godfrey Higgins Anacalypsis Volume 1 (163) 

 

cclxxv. Albert Churchward The Origins And Evolution Of Religion (331) (339) 

 

cclxxvi. Godfrey Higgins Anacalypsis Volume 1 (161) 

 

 

 

Trade between India and above all the Near East but also Greece, flourished even at the time of Alexander the Great. There was also missionary activity, and Buddhism was well-known in Rome as early as in the second century BCE. Although you should not push the parallels between the lives of Jesus and Buddha too far, it is plausible that people in the West were familiar with many of the Buddhist legends at the dawn of Christianity.[170] The similarities between the lives of these sons of God lead us to one important conclusion, namely that many of the tales are well-known myths, universal to all cultures.

The legends of the Buddha’s life were first recorded in the Pali language and the Sanskrit language and were early translated into Chinese, Tibetan and other languages. Indian writings are very difficult to date. The Indians themselves have never cared much for dating their literary works. Most often, the texts are anonymous, and even when we know who authored them, we seldom know exactly when that person lived.

In the following summary of Buddha’s life, I have used texts that are earlier and some that are later than the Gospels. The first of the three parts of the extensive Pali Tipitaka is Vinayapitaka. It contains seven books, including Mahâvagga and Cullavagga. The second part of the Tipitaka is Suttapitaka, containing five Nikâyas (collections), out of which I used four, Digha-, Majjhima-, Samyutta-, and Anguttara-Nikâya. All of these antedate Christianity. The Mahâyânasûtras are of later date. Saddharmapundarîkasûtra (the Lotussûtra) is written some time between 100 BCE and 100 CE. Vimalakîrtinirdeshasûtra seems to have been written some time before the middle of the second century CE. The Lalitavistârasûtra was probably written in the third century CE.

Other scriptures: The Buddhacharita probably dates from the beginning of the second century CE. The Jâtaka and the Nidânakathâ (a Buddha legend that constitutes the introduction to the big Jâtaka Commentary) were all probably written in the third or fourth century CE. However, you must always remember that every text, every statement, probably existed as common cultural traditions long before they were put down into writing. Generally speaking, ancient Indian literature does not consist of any new individual innovative literature. All texts are founded upon older material, sometimes upon manuscripts that are no longer extant and, not least, upon very old oral traditions.

One can therefore assert that the scriptures have a prehistory, where materials were collected and at some stage were recorded and eventually achieved authority. With these reservations, I shall compare some of the Gospel stories with what can be found in ancient Indian literature.

The birth the Buddha.[171] The most famous Buddha is known as Siddhârtha Gautama.[172] He is supposed to have lived some time in the period from late seventh century BCE to early third century BCE. Like Jesus he dwelt as a spiritual being in heaven before his arrival on earth. He incarnated voluntarily in order to save the world. His mother was Queen Mâyâ who was later regarded as a virgin. She was believed to have been impregnated by a divine being in the shape of a white elephant who entered her through her right side.[173] Buddha’s birth can therefore be considered a virgin birth, as Mâyâ’s husband Suddhodana, like Joseph, was only stepfather and not the real father of Buddha. Mâyâ also had no sensual thoughts of men, was inaccessible to them and lived as a virgin for thirty-two months.[174] Jerome (c. 347-420 CE) says that Buddha “had his birth through the side of a virgin”.[175] Consequently, the Buddha was regarded as the Son of God (devaputra).

The Buddha child is born while his mother is making a journey to visit her parents.[176] At Buddha’s birth, angels (devas) or gods announces to Queen Mâyâ that she has given birth to a mighty and powerful son.[177] The Buddha child radiates a dazzling light and receives homage from heaven.[178] Wise men recognize in him the signs of a god or superman (mahâpurisa). He is seen as a World Saviour who saves people from suffering and he is sought after in wide areas and receives veneration.[179]

Buddha’s childhood. Buddha is a prince of a royal family. Jesus, although not of a royal family, still is descended from King David. As a little boy, the Buddha is revered in the palace by an old wise man named Asita. Also Jesus was revered in the temple by a wise man, a righteous and devout man by the name of Simeon.

 

Luke 2:25 - 34 Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout… and the Holy Spirit was upon him. It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts… Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised, you now dismiss your servant in peace. For my eyes have seen your salvation, which you have prepared in the sight of all people, a light for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.” … “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel …

Suttanipata 689ff The longhaired sage looked at the baby and with great joy he picked him up… a man who now, filled with delight, raised his voice to say these words: ‘there is nothing to compare with this: this is the ultimate, this is the perfect man!’ Just then the hermit remembered that he was going to die quite soon – and he felt so sad at this that he began to cry… This prince will come to the fulfilment of perfect enlightenment. The religious life will be fully expounded. He, seeing the utmost purity, will set rolling the Wheel of Dhamma through sympathy for the welfare of many. His holy life will spread far and wide.”

 

The story of twelve-year-old Jesus is told in Luke 2:41ff. His parents lose him on a journey and later find him in the temple courts, teaching the teachers. Even as a young boy Siddhârtha is very wise. He is revered in the temple,[180] and at school he proves to master all spoken and written languages.[181] When travelling in company with adults, they lose him, and when they finally find him, he is in deep meditation.[182]

The baptism and the temptation. Also Jesus’ baptism in the river Jordan and his temptation in the wilderness have their direct parallels. Siddhârtha bathes in the river Nairañjana, and then sits down under a tree and experiences an inner awakening that causes “the dwellers in heaven [to] burst into unequalled joy”.[183] When Jesus had been baptized, he went up immediately from the water, and ...

 

... opened to him were the heavens, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and coming upon him, and lo, a voice out of the heavens, saying, `This is My Son -- the Beloved, in whom I did delight.’ (Matthew 3:16-17 YLT)

 

After the baptism, Jesus fasts for forty days in the wilderness and is afterwards tempted by the devil. Following a forty-nine days long fast,[184] also Siddhârtha is tempted in his solitude by Mâra, the Evil One, who promises to make him a world emperor, if he renounces becoming a world saviour.[185] Just as Jesus, the Buddha resists the temptation, and he is praised as a conqueror by gods and animals, just as angels came and attended Jesus.[186]

Buddha’s disciples. When Siddhârtha begins his mission, he is like Jesus about 30 years old.[187] He has many disciples, but according to later visual art, the principal disciples are twelve.[188] Siddhârtha’s two first lay disciples are brothers (Tapussa and Bhallika), and they come to him when he is sitting under the Rajâyatana tree, having recently moved from the bo tree (a fig-tree, Ficus religiosa — a Buddhist symbol), where he attained Enlightenment (Bodhi).[189] In addition, Jesus first two disciples, Simon Peter and Andrew, are brothers (Mark 1:16-18). Moreover, according to John 1:48, Jesus finds his disciple Nathanael under a fig tree. Buddha also has a pair of noble principal disciples, Shâriputra (Pali: Sâriputta) and Maudgalyâyana (Pali: Moggallâna), where Shâriputra like Simon Peter is the chief disciple (aggasâvaka) who will succeed Buddha when he is gone.[190] Buddha — like Jesus — also has a most beloved disciple. He is called Ânanda.[191]

Just as John the Baptist sends out two of his disciples to ask whether Jesus is the awaited Messiah, Pokkharasati sends out Ambattha to learn whether Sâkyamuni really is the promised Buddha.[192] Both Buddha and Jesus are transfigured in the sight of their disciples, so that their bodies radiate a dazzling light.[193] Moreover, like Jesus, Buddha sends out his disciples into the world to preach his message.[194]

The teaching of Buddha. Buddha, as well as Jesus, teaches that you shall primarily consider your own life rather than blame others. They both preach by means of parables. They use a language of rich imagery, such as light and darkness, sun and rain, fertility and infertility.

 

Buddha “Consider others as yourself.”  (Dhammapada 10:1) “Overcome anger by love, overcome evil by good”. (Dhammapada 1:5 and 17:3)   “If anyone would strike you with his hand, with a stick or cut you with a knife, you should restrain yourself and say no evil.” (Majjhimanikâya 21:6) “The faults of others are easier to see than one’s own” (Udânavarga 27:1)   “Even as the great cloud, Kâsyapa, after expanding over the whole universe, pours out the same water … As the light of the sun and moon, Kâsyapa, shines upon all the world, upon the virtuous and the wicked, upon high and low … as their beams are sent down upon everything equally, without inequality (partiality); so, too, Kâsyapa, the intellectual light of the knowledge of the omniscient, the Tathâgatas, the Arhats, the preaching of the true law proceeds equally in respect to all beings in the five states of existence…” (Saddharma-pundarika 5)

Jesus “… love your neighbour as yourself”  (Matthew 19:19) “But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you …” (Matthew 5:44) “But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also.” (Matthew 5:39)   “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in someone else’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?” (Matthew 7:3) “… that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” (Matthew 5:45)

 

The miracles. The Buddha possesses great powers and works miracles. He knows the thoughts and deeds of others in beforehand.[195] He heals the sick, makes the blind see again, makes the deaf hear, the lame and the paralytic well again, restores reason to the deranged,[196] and expels evil spirits.[197] When Jesus feeds five thousand men with only five loaves and two fishes and there nevertheless is twelve basketfuls of broken pieces of bread and fish left (Mark 6:30ff), Buddha, together with his disciple Maudgalyâyana (Moggallâna) feeds five hundred monks with bread baked from dough for one bread only. And despite the fact that everyone eats until they are full, equally many breads remain.[198] Like Jesus, Heracles and others,[199] also the Buddha walks on water.[200] He can appear and disappear at will, and walk through walls.[201] He even stills storms and makes a flood cease.[202]

Also his disciples work similar miracles. A chosen disciple named Sâriputta walks on the river Aciravati in an ecstasy of faith, and all the time he thinks of the Buddha. But when he sees the waves, he for a moment looses his faith and begins to sink. However, by an act of will he regains his former faith and continues the walk to the other side of the river.[203]

According to Mark, Matthew and Luke, Jesus’ favourite disciple Peter walks on water (Matthew 14:22-33). Peter does this by order of Jesus, after Jesus inspired him with courage. But when Peter sees the wind, he is afraid and begins to sink, whereupon Jesus helps him up and accuses him of having little faith.

Luke tells about a woman who praises the mother of Jesus, saying: “Blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed you” (11:27). In Nidânakathâ, a noble virgin, when seeing The Buddha, burst forth: “Full happy now that mother is … who owns this lord so glorious!” However, neither the Buddha nor Jesus pays regard to the real purpose of such glorification. Instead they give it a deeper religious interpretation.[204]

In Mark (12:41-44) and Luke (21:1-4) there is a story of a poor widow, who comes to the temple and as a gift offers two mites (very small coins). Jesus honours her in front of the disciples, as she donated more than all the other, who gave out of their wealth, while she gave all she had to live on. This tale is also documented by Ashvaghosha, an Indian writer who is believed to have lived at the beginning of the second century CE, that is, approximately at the same time as the Gospels were written. Evidently, the same tradition (legend) was known in both India and the Mediterranean area.

Ashvaghosha tells us about a poor widow (or poor unmarried woman), who comes to a religious assembly. She sees that the others give precious gifts, while she has nothing to give. However, she remembers that she found earlier two small coins in a dungheap and donates them to the community with pleasure. Then the high priest honours her in front of the other priests. He disregards the rich gifts of others, and the woman realizes that he is right, since what she has done is as difficult as it is for a rich man to give away all that he has.[205]

Buddha’s mission and death. In his teaching, the Buddha is opposed traditional rigid laws, rebukes intolerance, dogmatism, ritualism, and priestly hypocrisy. He censors the unquestioning adherence to the Vedas and criticizes the bloody sacrifices of the Brahmins.[206]

Voluntarily he leads a life of utmost simplicity as a beggar – a life of renunciation – and mixes mostly with the lowly in society.[207] He accepts an invitation to eat in the house of a prostitute, for which he is criticized by the prominent people of the town.[208] He is called the Seer (prophet), the Master, the Blessed One, the Enlightened One, the Lord and “the Awakened One”[209] and he calls himself Tathâgata (Sanskrit and Pali: “The One thus-come [to Truth]”. Peter’s threefold denial of his Master Jesus, has its equivalent in Buddha’s favourite disciple Ânanda’s threefold failure to ask the Buddha to stay on for the rest of the aeon.[210] The Buddha also has an enemy, his wicked cousin and once his disciple, a traitor by the name of Devadatta. He makes three attempts at the Buddha’s life but fails every time. Just like Judas Iscariot, he meets a deplorable end, as he is swallowed by the earth and goes to hell, boiling for an eon.[211] Jesus converted a robber on the cross. The Buddha turns a robber (Angulimâla) from his evil ways and makes him his devotee.[212]

The Buddha eats a last meal,[213] dies, and attains (pari)nirvâna. His death is presaged by a solar eclipse,[214] a great earthquake and a thunderstorm:

 

And when the Blessed One had passed away, simultaneously with his Parinibbana there came a tremendous earthquake, dreadful and astounding, and the thunders rolled across the heavens. (Suttapitaka, Dîghanikâya [Mahâparinibbânasutta], 16:6:12; also 16:3:10)

 

Buddha is said, in a probably post-Christian scripture, to have risen after his death, and opened the coffin and spoken to his mother who came to visit him from “heaven”.[215]

 

The crucified Buddha. A probably pre-Christian and rather unnoticed text in Sanskrit is “The Story of Gautama, the Progenitor of Ikshvâku”, which is found in Sanghabhedavastu.[216] Here we find a remarkable parallel to the crucifixion scene of the Gospels.

Gautama abandons his life as heir to the kingdom and turns to the ascetic hermit Krishnadvaipâyana who like John the Baptist subsists only on what wild nature produces, in this case fruits, roots and water. Just as Jesus, Gautama thinks that his teacher’s life is too ascetic, and he seeks a less ascetic life, a sort of middle course.

A harlot is murdered and Gautama is innocently accused of the murder. He is brought before the king who is persuaded by the crowd of his guilt and sentences Gautama to death by crucifixion (literally: to be put “on a stake”). In the Gospels, Governor Pilate is persuaded by the crowd and crucifies (stauroo) the wrongfully convicted Jesus.

They announce Gautama’s crime and sentence, a parallel to the inscription at Jesus’ cross.[217] Then they put a garland of oleanders around Gautama’s neck, just as they put a crown of thorns on Jesus’ head. Gautama is driven out of the city through the southern city-gate and he is fixed “on a stake while still alive”. We are told that Gautama “has been pierced”, so that his “joints have been loosened” and that he is suffering from “severe pains” but that his mind is not injured.

Gautama’s ascetic teacher Krishnadvaipâyana is worried about Gautama who has not had time to engender any offspring, a fact that probably will give him bad karma. He therefore persuades Gautama, while still hanging on the stake, to produce two drops of semen which mixed with blood falls to the ground and are transformed into two eggs. These eggs crack in the sun and two princes are born. Gautama dies as the sun rises, but resurrects indirectly in his offspring. His teacher sees the eggshells near the stake and realizes that the two boys (princes) must be the sons of Gautama. Each of the princes in succession is made an “anointed king”. To be anointed king is the exact meaning of the Hebrew word Messiah (the anointed).

Moreover, in the place where they crucified Gautama lie the crushed eggshells. These eggshells are called kapâlâni in Sanskrit, the word kapâla (kapâlâni in the plural) meaning eggshell as well as skull or cranium. Jesus was executed on Golgotha (In English Calvary; in Aramaic Gulgolta) which means “the skull”. The place is also referred to as “place of a skull” and possibly the hill resembled a cranium.

 

 

[170] Robert M. Price, The Incredible Shrinking Son of Man, p. 62.

 

 

[171] The part concerning Buddha is mainly relying upon Hellmut v. Schweinitz, Buddhismus und Christentum, (München 1955), Bengt Lidforss, Kristendomen förr och nu: en populärvetenskaplig framställning, (Malmö 1923), G. A van den Bergh van Eysinga, Indische Einflüsse auf evangelische Erzählungen, (Göttingen 1904), Marcus Borg, Jesus and Buddha; the parallel sayings. (Berkeley, California 1997). Also from the Internet: “Christmyth: Buddha, Jesus Christ, A Copied Myth from Buddha?“ and “CHAPTER 11.0: BUDDHIST FAITH“.

 

[172] “Siddhârtha” means “he who has attained his goals”.

 

[173] “At such a time the Bodhisattva, the eldest in the three regions, and adored of creation, seeing that the proper season had arrived, that the moon was on the 15th day of its age and in perfect fullness, renounced the mansion of Tushita [a heaven of the joyful devas], and, calling to mind the tradition, entered in the form of an elephant, of a yellowish white colour, having six tusks, crimson veins, golden teeth and perfect members, the womb of his mother who had been purified by the rite of Poshadha. Entering the womb of the mother, he occupied the right side, and lay on that side, never turning to the left. Máyá Deví, sleeping peacefully on an excellent bed, dreamt a dream [which she described thus]: ‘A noble elephant, white as silver or snow, having six tusks, well proportioned trunk and feet, blood-red veins, adamantine firmness of joints, and easy pace, has entered my belly.” (Lalitavistâra 6)

“Having brought concord to the Sangha, he rejoices for an aeon in heaven.” (Itivuttaka 19)

 

[174] “Venerable sir I have heard these words from the Blessed One himself and you acknowledged them. ‘ânanda, from the day the one aspiring enlightenment, descended to the mother’s womb, sensual desires about men did not arise in the mind of his mother. She had risen above attachment to thoughts of any man’” (Majjhimanikâya, 123:10)

 

”She [Mâyâ] is of tender years, endowed with beauty and youth, yet childless … faithful to her marriage wow, free from thoughts of men other than her husband. … She alone is worthy of becoming the mother of the Bodhisattva. … Neither tinged by passion, nor tainted by fault … She abided in penances like a hermit, always performing penances along with her consort. Having obtained the sanction of the king, she had not entertained carnal wishes for thirty-two months. … There was not a god, nor a demon, nor a mortal, who could cast his glance at her with a carnal desire” (Lalitavistâra, 3)

 

[175] “To come to the Gymnosophists of india, the opinion is authoritatively handed down that Budda, the founder of their religion, had his birth through the side of a  virgin.” 

(Jerome, Against Jovinianus, 1:42).

 

[176] “So also queen Mahâ-Mâyâ carried the Future Buddha in her womb, as it were oil in a vessel, for ten months; and being then far gone with child, she grew desirous of going home to her relatives, and said to king Suddhodana,—‘Sire, I should like to visit my kinsfolk in their city Devadaha.’ ‘So be it,’ said the king … he sent her away in great pomp. Now between the two cities, and belonging to the inhabitants of both, there was a pleasure-grove of sal-trees, called Lumbini Grove … So her delivery took place while she was standing up, and keeping fast hold of the sal-tree branch. At that very moment came four pure-minded Mahâ-Brahma angels bearing a golden net, and, receiving the Future Buddha on this golden net, they placed him before his mother and said,— ‘Rejoice, O Queen! A mighty son has been born to you.’” (Jâtaka 1:47:21, Nidânakathâ)

 

“That beautiful chariot was set off, by the king’s orders … Máyádeví proceeded forth attended by her suite. … having entered the [Lumbiní] park and descended from her chariot … came near the waved-leaved fig tree … extending her right hand … held a branch … the Bodhisattva … forth from the right side of his mother, he issued, with full memory, knowing everything, and undefiled by any uterine dirt, such as usually attaches to others.” (Lalitavistâra 7)

 

[177] “Venerable sir I have heard these words from the Blessed One himself and you acknowledged them. ‘ânanda, when the one aspiring enlightenment, was born in this world, before he placed a foot on earth, four gods accept him and placing him in front of the mother said, queen be happy, you have given birth to a powerful son.’ … ‘and men, Màras, Brahmàs, recluses and brahmins there arose an immeasurable effulgence transcending the splendour of the gods. Even the dark uncoveredrecesses between the world systems where the resplendent moon and sun do not shine there arose an immeasurable effulgence transcending the splendour of the gods. Beings born there saw each other on account of that effulgence and knew that there were other beings born there. The ten thousandfold world system shivered and trembled on account of that immeasurable effulgence transccending the splendour of the gods’” 

(Majjhimanikâya, 123, [Acchariyabbhuttasutta])

 

[178] “They took the hermit and showed him the newborn prince. He was shining, glowing and beautiful. It was like seeing molten gold in the hands of a master craftsman as he takes it out of the furnace. To see the prince was to see brightness – the brightness of the flames of a fire; the brightness of the constellations crossing the night sky; the brightness and clarity of the autumn sun shining on a cloudless day. It was a sight that filled the hermit with joy, and he experienced great delight. In the sky above, invisible beings were holding up a vast canopy. From its center stretched over a thousand spokes.” (Suttanipata, 686–88 [Nalakasutta]; quoted in Borg, p. 219 and in BUDDHIST FAITH).

“It is the rule, monks, that when a Bodhisattva descends from the Tushita heaven into his mother’s womb, there appears in this world with its devas, Maras and Brahmas, its ascetics and Brahmins, princes and people an immeasurable, splendid light surpassing the glory of the most powerful devas. And whatever dark spaces lay beyond the worlds end, chaotic, blind and black, such that they are not even reached by the mighty rays of sun and moon, are yet illumined by this immeasurable splendid light surpassing the glory of the most powerful devas.” (Dîghanikâya 14, Mahâpadânasutta)

 

[179] “At that time there was among the assembly a great Brahma king named Great Compassion who on behalf of the multitude of Brahma kings, spoke in verse form, saying: What cause is in operation that such a sign should be manifest? Our palaces display a brilliance never known before. Is it because of the birth of some heavenly being of great virtue, or because the Buddha has appeared in the world? We have never seen such a sign and with a single mind we seek the reason. Though we must travel a thousand, ten thousand a million lands, together we will search out the cause of this light. Likely it is because a Buddha has appeared in the world to save living beings in their suffering.” (Saddharmapundarîkasûtra, chapter 7)

 

[180] “Thus did king Suddhodana, amidst a mighty host of kings, with royal magnificence and kingly majesty, take the Prince to the temple, and enter it. Now, when the Bodhisattva set his right foot on the floor of that temple, all the inert images of the Devas … rose from their respective places, and fell at the feet of the Bodhisattva. Thereupon, men and gods by hundreds of thousands burst into derisive laughter … Celestial flowers fell in showers … And the gods whose images were in the temple made manifest their respective shapes, and recited these Gathas: ‘Never does the great mountain Meru, the king of mountains, salute a mustard seed … How can then the great master of merit, one born in the race of knowledge and virtue, salute the Devas?” (Lalitavistâra 

 

[181] ”Then, Bhikshus, when the Prince had duly grown up, he was taken to the writing school under a hundred thousand auspicious arrangements. … Then he entered the school. Now Vis’uámitra, the school master, feeling the beauty and glory of the Bodhisattva to be insufferable, fell prostrate on the ground. … [A Devaputra:] ‘Whatever S’ástras are currentin the regions of the Devas, all figures and writings and calculations, all roots, all arts in their immensity current on earth, were learnt by him many millions of ages (kalpas) ago.’ Now Bodhisattva, taking up a tablet … thus addressed the tutor Vis’vámitra: ‘which is the writing, sir, which you wish to teach me? (1) Is it the … [he names sixty-four kinds of writing] Out of these sixty-four kinds, which is it, sir, that you wish to teach me? The schoolmaster Vis’vámitra … ‘On coming to the school he has learned writings of which I do not know even the names. … how can I teach him who has already acquired every style of writings” (Lalitavistâra 10)

 

[182] “On one occasion he went, along with other boys, sons of ministers, to visit an agricultural village. After seeing the agricultural works he entered a garden. There, rambling around, alone without a second, he beheld a pleasant, nice-looking Jambu tree. He sat under its shadow. When he was seated his mind was absorbed into one point … King Suddhodana, who was never at ease in the absence of, and without seeing, the Bodhisattva, enquired ‘where is the prince gone? I do not see him here.’ Then a large party went forth in search of the Prince. A minister saw the Prince seated on a couch under the Jambu tree, and engaged in contemplation.” (Lalitavistâra 11)

Or quoted in Borg, p.225 and in BUDDHIST FAITH: “Meanwhile, the King, having noticed that the Bodhisattva was missing, inquired concerning his absence, asking: ‘Where has the young prince gone? I do not see him anywhere.’ So a great crowd of people spread out in all directions to look for the prince. Shortly, one of the King’s advisors caught sight of the Bodhisattva in the shade of the jambu tree, seated with his legs crossed, deep in meditation.”

 

[183] “And having bathed, thin as he was, slowly came up the bank of the Nairañganâ … he himself became capable of gaining the highest knowledge, all his six senses being now satisfied. The seer, having his body now fully robust, together with his glorious fame, one beauty and one majesty being equally spread in both, shone like the ocean and the moon… Accompanied only by his own resolve, having fixed his mind on the attainment of perfect knowledge, he went to the root of an Asvattha tree [Ficus religiosa or pipul tree], where the surface of the ground was covered with young grass. Then Kâla, the best of serpents, whose majesty was like the lord of elephants, having been awakened by the unparalleled sound of his feet, uttered this praise of the great sage, being sure that he was on the point of attaining perfect knowledge … he, having made his resolution, sat down to obtain perfect knowledge at the foot of the great holy tree … Then the dwellers in heaven burst into unequalled joy; the herds of beasts and the birds uttered no cry; the trees moved by the wind made no sound, when the holy one took his seat firm in his resolve.” (Ashvaghosha, Buddhacharita 12:105–118).A similar tale is found in Lalitavistâra, 18.

 

[184] „Dies war nämlich für ihn, während er nach Erlangung der Buddhawürde siebenmal sieben Tage in der Erleuchtungsfläche verweilte, für neunundvierzig Tage seine Nahrung; so lange Zeit hindurch gab es für ihn keine andere Speise noch ein Bad noch Abwaschen des Gesichts noch eine Pflege des Körpers, sondern im Glück der Ekstase, im Glück des Weges und im Glück der Frucht lebte er nur.“ (Nidânakathâ §B2.8 [Der Tag der Erleuchtung]), or …“And he took no further nourishment until the end of the seven weeks, or forty-nine days, which he spent on the throne of wisdom after he had become a Buddha. During all that time he had no other nourishment; he neither bathed, nor rinsed his mouth, nor did he ease himself; but was wholly taken up by the delights of the Trances, of the Paths, and of the Fruits. (Buddhist Writings, The Attainment of Buddhaship, Translated from the Introduction to the jâtaka, i. 685).

 

[185] “Then the Lord sat cross-legged in one posture for seven days at the foot of the tree of awakening, experiencing the bliss of freedom.” 

(Vinayapitaka, Mahâvagga, 1:1:1; quoted in Borg, p. 227 and in BUDDHIST FAITH) Or …“At that time the blessed Buddha dwelt at Uruvelâ, on the bank of the river Nerañgarâ at the foot of the Bodhi tree (tree of wisdom), just after he had become Sambuddha. And the blessed Buddha sat cross-legged at the foot of the Bodhi tree uninterruptedly during seven days, enjoying the bliss of emancipation.” (Vinayapitaka, Mahâvagga, 1:1:1)

 

“I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying among the Kosalans in a wilderness hut in a Himalayan district. Then, as he was alone in seclusion, this train of thought arose in his awareness: ‘Is it possible to exercise rulership without killing or causing others to kill, without confiscating or causing others to confiscate, without sorrowing or causing others sorrow — righteously?’ Then Mara, the Evil One, knowing with his awareness the train of thought in the Blessed One’s awareness, went to him and on arrival said to him: ‘Exercise rulership, Blessed One! Exercise rulership, O One Well-gone! — without killing or causing others to kill, without confiscating or causing others to confiscate, without sorrowing or causing others sorrow — righteously!’ … ”Lord, the Blessed One has developed the four bases of power, pursued them, handed them the reins and taken them as a basis, given them a grounding, steadied them, consolidated them, and undertaken them well. If he wanted to, he could resolve on the Himalayas, king of mountains, as gold, and it would become a mountain of gold.’ [The Buddha:] The entirety of a mountain of gold, of solid bullion: even twice that wouldn’t suffice for one person. Knowing this, live evenly, in tune with the contemplative life. When you see stress, and from where it comes, how can you incline to sensual pleasures? Knowing acquisition to be a bond in the world, train for its subduing. Then Mara the Evil One — sad & dejected at realizing, ‘The Blessed One knows me; the One Well-gone knows me’ — vanished right there.” (Samyuttanikâya, 4:20, [IV Mârasamyutta, Rajjasutta])

 

“During the six years that the Bodhisattva practiced austerities, the demon followed behind him step by step, seeking an opportunity to harm him. But he found no opportunity whatsoever and went away discouraged and discontent.” (Lalitavistâra, 18; quoted in Borg, p. 103 and in Jesus Tempted Thrice)

 

[186] “When the great sage, sprung from a line of royal sages, sat down there with his soul fully resolved to obtain the highest knowledge, the whole world rejoiced; but Mara, the enemy of the good law, was afraid. … The less the saint feared the frightful hosts of that multitude, the more did Mara, the enemy of the righteous, continue his attacks in grief and anger. Then some being of invisible shape, but of preeminent glory, standing in the heavens--beholding Mara thus malevolent against the seer--addressed him in a loud voice, unruffled by enmity: ‘Take not on thyself, O Mara, this vain fatigue--throw aside thy malevolence and retire to peace; this sage cannot be shaken by thee any more than the mighty mountain Meru by the wind. … Having listened to his words, and having seen the unshaken firmness of the great saint, Mara departed dispirited and broken in purpose with those very arrows by which, Oh world, thou art smitten in thy heart. … When the flower-armed god thus fled away vanquished with his hostile forces and the passionless sage remained victorious, having conquered all the power of darkness, the heavens shone out with the moon like a maiden with a smile, and a sweet-smelling shower of flowers fell down wet with dew. When the wicked one thus fled vanquished, the different regions of the sky grew clear, the moon shone forth, showers of flowers fell down from the sky upon the earth, and the night gleamed out like a spotless maiden.” (Ashvaghosha, Buddhacharita 13) Also Lalitavistâra 18. Compare this to the temptation of Jesus: “Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.” (Matthew 4:11, NIV)

 

[187] According to traditional accounts, he spent his first twenty-nine years living a family life as a prince, before he went on his mission.

[188] The twelve disciples are said to have been Ânanda, Aniruddha, Devadatta, xkashyapa, Mahakatyayana, Maudgalyayana, Nadikashyapa, Purna, Rahula, Shariputra, Sudhuti, Uruvilvakashyapa

[189] “The elder brother was named Tapussa; the younger, Bhallika. … It was at that time Gotama Buddha had won Perfect Enlightenment, had passed seven times seven days of abiding in the attainment of Cessation, and was about to enter into the eighth seven-days period of abiding in the attainment of Cessation at the foot of a ’Linlun’ tree, (the Sapium baccatum). The two brothers put their alms-food into the Buddha’s alms-bowl. (The Buddha ate the food.) After the Buddha finished eating it the brothers offered water for drinking and washing. Then they made obeisance to the Buddha and sat in a suitable place. The Buddha gave them a discourse at the end of which both the two brothers were established in the ’Two Refuges’ (The story of the establishment of the two brothers in the Two Refuges (dve vacika saranagamana) has been described in the Great Chronicle, Volume Two.) … On another occasion when the Buddha was residing at the Jetavana monastery and conferred titles of distinction on lay disciples accordingly to their merit, he declared ‘Bhikkhus, among my lay disciples who have taken refuge earliest in the Buddha and the Dhamma the merchant brothers Tapussa and Bhallika are the foremost.’” (Summarized in The Story of the Brothers Tapussa and Bhallika).

 

The “story of the brothers Tapussa and Bhallika [are] based on the Commentary on the Anguttaranikâya and the Commentary on the Theragatha, the Ekaka nipata.” The Commentary on the Anguttaranikâya is called Manorathapurani, and it was composed by Buddhaghosa, an Indian commentator and scholar living in the fifth century CE.

 

[190] “I myself now have the pair of noble disciples Shariputra and Moggallana.” (Dîghanikâya 14, Mahâpadânasutta)

 

“Bhikkhus, I do not know of any other person who could follow up the teaching proclaimed by the Thus Gone One other than Sàriputta. Bhikkhus, Sàriputta follows up the teaching proclaimed by me.” (Anguttaranikâya, 1:13, Ekapuggalavagga)

“The Blessed One said: Sela, this incomparable wheel of righteousness rolled by me, will be rolled afterwards by Sàriputta, born after the Thus Gone One.” (Majjhimanikâya, 92:557)

[191] “he has a pair of noble disciples, Shariputra and Moggallana; he has one assemblies of Disciples, one thousand, two hundred and fifty monks, who are all Arahants; his chief personal attendant is Ánanda”. (Dîghanikâya 14, Mahâpadânasutta)

 

[192] “And Pokkharasati said to Ambattha, ‘Ambattha, my son, the ascetic Gotama … is staying in the dense jungle of Icchanankala. And concerning that Blessed Lord a good report has been spread about, ‘This Blessed Lord is an Arahant, a fully enlightened Buddha, perfected in knowledge and conduct, a well-farer, knower of the worlds, unequalled trainer of men to be tamed, teacher of gods and humans, a Buddha, a Blessed Lord.’ Now you go to see the ascetic Gotama and find out whether this report is correct or not, and whether the Reverend Gotama is as they say or not.” (Dîghanikâya 3:1:4, [Ambatthasutta]; Compare to Luke 7:19).

 

[193] “But when the set of robes was arranged upon the body of the Blessed One, it became as though faded, and its splendor dimmed. And the Venerable Ananda said to the Blessed One: ‘Marvellous it is, O Lord, most wonderful indeed it is, how clear and radiant the skin of the Tathagata appears! This set of golden-hued robes, burnished and ready for wear, Lord, now that it is arranged upon the body of the Blessed One seems to have become faded, its splendor dimmed.’” (Dîghanikâya, 16:4:37-38)

 

[194] “Go ye now, O Bhikkhus, and wander, for the gain of the many, for the welfare of the many, out of compassion for the world, for the good, for the gain, and for the welfare of gods and men, Let not two of you go the same way, Preach, O Bhikkhus, the doctrine which is glorious in the beginning, glorious in the middle, glorious at the end, in the spirit and in the letter; proclaim a consummate, perfect, and pure life of holiness. There are beings whose mental eyes are covered by scarcely any dust, but if the doctrine is not preached to them, they cannot attain salvation.” (Vinayapitaka, Mahâvagga 1:11:1).

 

“Having spoken thus, that Brahma made obeisance to the Lord Buddha, and passing by to his right, vanished there and then. So the Lord Buddha Vipassi, emerging from the seclusion of his Rest Period told the Monks what had occurred. ‘I allow you, monks, to wander abroad for the good of the many, for the welfare and happiness of Devas and Humans. Do not go two together monks, but teach the Dhamma that is lovely in the beginning, lovely in its middle, and lovely in its ending, both in the letter and in the spirit and display the holy life fully complete and perfect.” (Dîghanikâya 14, Mahâpadânasutta)

 

[195] “Then, the Licchavi Vimalakirti thought to himself, ‘I am sick, lying on my bed in pain, yet the Tathágata, the saint, the perfectly accomplished Buddha, does not consider or take pity upon me, and sends no one to inquire after my illness.’ The Lord knew this thought in the mind of Vimalakirti and said to the venerable Shariputra, ‘Shariputra, go to inquire after the illness of the Licchavi Vimalakirti.’” (Vimalakîrtinirdesha, 3).

 

[196] “As soon as the Bodhisattva was born, […] the sick were cured; the hungry and thirsty were no longer oppressed by hunger and thirst. Those maddened by drink lost their obsessions. The mad recovered their senses, the blind regained their sight, and the deaf once more could hear. The halt and the lame obtained perfect limbs, the poor gained riches, and prisoners were delivered from their bonds.” (Lalitavistâra, 7; quoted in Borg, p. 163 and in BUDDHIST FAITH)

“During the short aeons of maladies, they [the true bodhisattvas] become the best holy medicine; they make beings well and happy, and bring about their liberation. During the short aeons of famine, they become food and drink. Having first alleviated thirst and hunger, they teach the Dharma to living beings.” (Vimalakîrtinirdesha, 8).

“At that time the Venerable Maha Kassapa who was living in the Pipphali Cave, was afflicted with a disease, was suffering therefrom, and was gravely ill. ... Thus seated the Blessed One spoke to the Venerable Maha Kassapa: ... Thus said the Buddha, and the Venerable Maha Kassapa glad at heart approved the utterances of the Buddha. Thereupon the Venerable Kassapa recovered from that affliction, and that affliction, of the Venerable Kassapa disappeared.” (Samyuttanikâya, 46:14 [Gilanasutta])

 

[197] Buddha said: “If by giving up small pleasures great happiness is to be found, the wise should give up small pleasures seeing (the prospect of) great happiness.” 

(Dhammapada, verse 290) According to the Dhammapada Commentary written by Buddhaghosa in the fifth century CE, the Buddha “uttered Verse (290) of this book, with reference to the power and glory of the Buddha as witnessed by many people on his visit to Vesali.” A summary of the Commentary:“Once, a famine broke out in Vesali. It began with a serious drought. Because of drought, there was almost a total failure of crops and many people died of starvation. This was followed by an epidemic of diseases and as people could hardly cope with the disposal of the corpses there was a lot of stench in the air. This stench attracted the ogres. The people of Vesali were facing the dangers of destruction by famine, disease and also by the ogres. In their grief and sorrow they tried to look for a refuge. They thought of going for help from various sources but finally, they decided to invite the Buddha. … The Buddha knew that this visit would be of much benefit to many people, so he consented to go to Vesali. … As soon as the Buddha reached the other bank of the river heavy rains fell in torrents, thus cleansing up Vesali. The Buddha was put up in the rest-house which was specially prepared for him in the central part of the city. Sakka, king of the devas, came with his followers to pay obeisance to the Buddha, and the ogres fled. That same evening the Buddha delivered the Ratana Sutta and asked the Venerable Ananda to go round between the threefold walls of the city with the Licchavi princes and recite it. The Venerable Ananda did as he was told. As the protective verses (parittas) were being recited, many of those who were sick recovered and followed the Venerable Ananda to the presence of the Buddha. The Buddha delivered the same Sutta and repeated it for seven days. At the end of the seven days, everything was back to normal in Vesali.”

 

So, the Buddha “delivered the Ratana Sutta” “at Vesāli, on the occasion of the Buddha’s visit there at the invitation of the Licchavis, who begged him to rid the city of the various dangers which had fallen upon it. According to the Commentaries (SNA.i.278ff.; DhA.iii.436ff.; KhpA.164f), the Buddha first taught the sutta to Ananda and asked him to go round the city, accompanied by the Licchavi princes, reciting the sutta and sprinkling water from the Buddha’s bowl. Immediately all the evil spirits fled from the city and the people recovered from their diseases.” (Ratanasutta)

 

[198] “Now in the early morning, the Master had said to the Elder Great Moggallāna,--‘Moggallāna, this Miser Millionaire in the town of Jagghery near Rājagaha, wanting to eat cakes himself, is so afraid of letting others know, that he is having them cooked for him right up on the seventh story. Go thither; convert the man to self-denial, and by transcendental power transport husband and wife, cakes, milk, ghee and all, here to Jetavana. This day I and the five hundred Brethren will stay at home, and I will make the cakes furnish them with a meal.’ Obedient to the Master’s bidding, the Elder by supernatural power passed to the town of Jagghery, and rested in mid-air before the chamber-window, duly clad in his under and outer cloths, bright as a jewelled image. The unexpected sight of the Elder made the Lord High Treasurer quake with fear…. So he said to his wife, ‘My dear, cook one little cake and give it to the sage to get rid of him.’ So she mixed quite a little dough in a crock. But the dough swelled and swelled till it filled the whole crock, and grew to be a great big cake! ‘What a lot you must have used!’ exclaimed the Treasurer at the sight. And he himself with the tip of a spoon took a very little of the dough, and put that in the oven to bake. But that tiny piece of dough grew larger than the first lump; and, one after another, every piece of dough he took became ever so big! Then he lost heart and said to his wife, ‘You give him a cake, dear.’ But, as soon as she took one cake from the basket, at once all the other cakes stuck fast to it … ‘Lord High Treasurer,’ said the Elder, ‘the All-Wise Buddha with five hundred Brethren sits in the monastery waiting a meal of cakes. If such be your good pleasure, I would ask you to bring your wife and the cakes with you, and let us be going to the Master.’ … Then husband and wife came before the Master and said meal-time had come … Then the Lord High Treasurer poured the Water of Donation over the hands of the Brotherhood with the Buddha at its head, whilst his wife placed a cake in the alms-bowl of the Blessed One. Of this he took what sufficed to support life, as also did the five hundred Brethren. Next the Treasurer went round offering milk mixed with ghee and hooey and jagghery; and the Master and the Brotherhood brought their meal to a close. Lastly the Treasurer and his wife ate their fill, but still there seemed no end to the cakes. Even when all the Brethren and the scrap-eaters through-out the monastery had all had a share, still there was no sign of the end approaching. So they told the Master, saying, ‘Sir, the supply of cakes grows no smaller.’ ‘Then throw them down by the great gate of the monastery.’ So they threw them away in a cave not far from the gateway; and to this day a spot called ’The Crock-Cake,’ is shown at the extremity of that cave.” (Jâtaka 78) Also in The Dhammapada Commentary of Pupphavagga, verse 49, written by Buddhaghosa in the fifth century CE.

 

[199] Lucian tells us:“I saw him” soar through the air in broad daylight and walk on water …” (Lucian, The Lover of Lies, 13; quoted in Pagan Origins of the Christ Myth)

“… we came in sight of many men running over the sea, like us in every way, both in shape and in size, except only their feet, which were of cork: that is why they were called Corkfeet, if I am not mistaken.” (Lucian, A true Story, 2:4).

 

[200] “He walks upon the water without parting it, as if on solid ground.” (Anguttaranikâya 3:60, quoted in Borg, p. 149 and in BUDDHIST FAITH; also Ashvaghosha, Saundarananda, 3:23). He walks across the river Ganges (Mahâvastu 3:328:6, Lalitavistâra 528)

 

 

“When he arrived at the city Sârathi, the citizens volunteered to be charioteers in his service; thence he came to the Ganges, and he bade the ferryman cross. ‘Good man, convey me across the Ganges, may the seven blessings be thine.’ ‘I carry no one across unless he pays the fee.’ ‘I have nothing, what shall I give?’ So saying he went through the sky like the king of birds; and from that time Bimbisara abolished the ferry-fee for all ascetics.” (Ashvaghosha, Buddhacharita, 15:98-100)

 

[201] “He appears. He vanishes. He goes unimpeded through walls, ramparts, & mountains as if through space. He dives in and out of the earth as if it were water. He walks on water without sinking as if it were dry land. Sitting cross-legged he flies through the air like a winged bird. With his hand he touches and strokes even the sun & moon, so mighty & powerful. He exercises influence with his body even as far as the Brahma worlds.” (Anguttaranikâya, 3:60 [Sangaravasutta]. Also Dîghanikâya, 11, Kevattasutta, Anguttaranikâya, 3:100 [“Pansadhovakasutta” and “Nimittasutta”], Majjhimanikâya 1:6:14 [Akankheyyasutta])

 

[202] “Now at that time a great rain fell, and a great flood resulted. Then the Lord (Buddha) made the water recede all around, and he paced up and down in the middle on dust-covered ground.” (Vinayapitaka, Mahâvagga, 1:20:16; quoted in Borg, p. 151). Or …“At that time a great rain fell out of season; and a great inundation arose. The place where the Blessed One lived was covered with water. Then the Blessed One thought: ‘What if I were to cause the water to recede round about, and if I were to walk up and down in the midst of the water on a dust-covered spot.’ And the Blessed One caused the water to recede round about, and he walked up and down in the midst of the water on a dust-covered spot.” (Vinayapitaka, Mahâvagga, 1:20:16)

 

[203] “This story the Master told whilst staying in Jetavana, about a believing layman. This was a faithful, pious soul, an elect disciple. One evening, on his way to Jetavana, he came to the hank of the river Aciravatī, when the ferrymen had pulled up their boat on the shore in order to attend service; as no boat could be seen at the landing-stage, and our friend’s mind being full of delightful thoughts of the Buddha, he walked into the river. His feet did not sink below the water. He got as far as mid-river walking as though he were on dry land; but there he noticed the waves. Then his ecstasy subsided, and his feet began to sink. Again he strung himself up to high tension, and walked on over the water. So he arrived at Jetavana, greeted the Master, and took a seat on one side.” (Sîlanisamsajâtaka, 190)

 

[204] From the Nidânakathâ; according to G. A van den Bergh van Eysinga, Indische Einflüsse auf evangelische Erzählungen, p.41-42 and Bengt Lidforss, Kristendomen förr och nu: en populärvetenskaplig framställning, p. 49.“But the Future Buddha in his splendid chariot entered the city with a pomp and magnificence of glory that enraptured all minds. At the same moment Kisâ Gotamî, a virgin of the warrior caste, ascended to the roof of her palace, and beheld tile beauty and majesty of the Future Buddha, as he circumambulated the city; and in her pleasure and satisfaction at the sight, she burst forth into this song of joy:-- ‘Full happy now that mother is, Full happy now that father is, Full happy now that woman is, Who owns this lord so glorious!’ On hearing this, the Future Buddha thought, ‘In beholding a handsome figure the heart of a mother attains Nirvana, the heart of a father attains Nirvana, the heart of a wife attains Nirvana. This is what she says. But wherein does Nirvana consist? ”And to him, whose mind was already averse to passion, the answer came: ”When the fire of lust is extinct, that is Nirvana; when the fires of hatred and infatuation are extinct, that is Nirvana; when pride, false belief, and all other passions and torments are extinct, that is Nirvana. She has taught me a good lesson. Certainly, Nirvana is what I am looking for. It behooves me this very day to quit the household life, and to retire from the world in quest of Nirvana. I will send this lady a teacher’s fee.” And loosening from his neck a pearl necklace worth a hundred thousand pieces of money, he sent it to Kisâ Gotamî. And great was her satisfaction at this, for she thought, ”Prince Siddhattha has fallen in love with me, and has sent me a present.” (Jâtaka, Nidânakathâ, 271)

 

[205] Samuel Beal, Buddhist Literature in China, p. 170–2, refer to Ashvaghosha, Ta-chwang-yan-king-lun, sermon 21, a Chinese translation of Mahâlamkarasûtra Shastra (Book of Great Glory).

“There was once a widow who was very destitute, and having gone to the mountain she beheld hermits holding a religious assembly. Then the woman was filled with joy, and uttering praises, said, ‘It is well, holy priests! but while others give precious things such as the ocean caves produce, I have nothing to offer.’ Having spoken thus and having searched herself in vain for something to give, she recollected that some time before she had found in a dungheap two coppers, so taking these she offered them forthwith as a gift to the priesthood in charity. The superior of the priests, a saint who could read the hearts of men, disregarding the rich gifts of others and beholding the deep faith dwelling in the heart of this poor widow, and wishing the priesthood to esteem rightly her religious merit, burst forth with full voice in a canto. He raised his right hand and said, ‘Reverend priests attend!’ and then he proceeded: ‘The coppers of this poor widow to all purpose are more worth than all the treasures of the oceans and the wealth of the broad earth. As an act of pure devotion she has done a pious deed; she has attained salvation, being free from selfish greed.’ The woman was mightily strengthened in her mind by this thought, and said, ‘It is even as the Teacher says: what I have done is as much as if a rich man were to give up all his wealth.’” (The Gospel of Buddha, Compiled from ancient records by Paul Carus, The Widow’s Two Mites)

[206] “‘And Kutadanta planned a great sacrifice: seven hundred bulls, seven hundred bullocks, seven hundred heifers, seven hundred he-goats and seven hundred rams were all tied up to the sacrificial posts. … Then Kutadanta thought: ‘I have heard that the ascetic Gotama understands how to conduct successfully the triple sacrifice with its sixteen requisites. … ‘In this sacrifice, Brahmin, no bulls were slain, no goats or sheep, no cocks and pigs, nor were various living beings subjected to slaughter, … The sacrifice was carried out with ghee, oil, butter, curds, honey and molasses. … ‘But, Reverend Gotama, is there any sacrifice that is more profitable than these four?’ ‘There is, Brahmin.’ ‘What is it, Reverend Gotama?’ ‘Brahmin, if anyone with a pure heart undertakes the precepts - to refrain from taking life, from taking what is not given, from sexual immorality, from lying speech and from taking strong drink and sloth-producing drugs - that constitutes a sacrifice more profitable than any of these four.’ … And, Reverend Gotama, I set free the seven hundred bulls, seven hundred bullocks, seven hundred heifers, seven hundred he-goats and seven hundred rams.” (Dîghanikâya 5, Kutadantasutta)

 

[207] He helps lepers: “Then the Blessed One, having encompassed the awareness of the entire assembly with his awareness, asked himself, ‘Now who here is capable of understanding the Dhamma?’ He saw Suppabuddha the leper sitting in the assembly, and on seeing him the thought occurred to him, ‘This person here is capable of understanding the Dhamma.’” (Suttapitaka, Khuddakanikâya, Udâna, 5:3 [Kutthisutta])He helps outcasts: “In a lowly family I was born, poor, with next to no food. … People found me disgusting, despised me, disparaged me. … Then I saw the One Self-awakened, arrayed with a squadron of monks … I approached him to do reverence. He — the supreme man — stood still out of sympathy just for me. … The compassionate Teacher, sympathetic to all the world, said: ‘Come, monk.’ That was my formal Acceptance.” 

(Suttapitaka, Khuddakanikâya, Theragatha, Thag 12:2, [Sunita the Outcaste])

 

[208] “Then the courtezan Ambapâlî, when she understood that the Blessed One had accepted her invitation, rose from her seat, respectfully saluted the Blessed One, and, passing round him with her right side towards him, went away. … Then the Likkhavis snapped their fingers (exclaiming), ‘We are outdone by this woman! we are out-reached by this woman!’ … ‘I have promised, O Likkhavis, to dine to-morrow with Ambapâlî the courtezan.’ … Sitting near him the courtezan Ambapâlî said to the Blessed One: ‘I give up this Ambapâlî grove, Lord, to the fraternity of Bhikkhus with the Buddha at its head.’ The Blessed One accepted the Ârâma. Then the Blessed One, after having taught, incited, animated, and gladdened the courtezan Ambapâlî by religious discourse, rose from his seat and went to the Mahâvana.” (Vinayapitaka, Mahâvagga 6:30).

“Then the Blessed One proceeded with a great number of brethren to Vesali, and he stayed at the grove of the courtesan Ambapali. … When the courtesan Ambapali heard that the Blessed One was staying in her mango grove, she was exceedingly glad and went in a carriage as far as the ground was passable for carriages. There she alighted and thence proceeding to the place where the Blessed One was, she took her seat respectfully at his feet on one side. … Then she rose and said to the Blessed One: “Will the Blessed One do me the honour of taking his meal, together with the brethren, at my house tomorrow?” And the Blessed One gave, by silence, his consent. … Then the Licchavi, expressing their approval of the words of the Blessed One, arose from their seats and bowed down before the Blessed One, and, keeping him on their right hand as they passed him, they departed thence; but when they came home, they cast up their hands, saying: ‘A worldly woman has outdone us; we have been left behind by a frivolous girl!’” (THE COURTESAN AMBAPALI; also Mahâparinibbânasutta 2:16ff)

 

[209] Buddha actually means “the awaken one”. At many places in the New Testament, alertness and watchfulness is encouraged: Matthew 24:42, 44, 25:13; Mark 13:33–37; Luke 12:35–40, 21:36; Ephesians 5:14; Rome 13:11; Colossians 4:2; 1 Thessalonians 5:6.

 

[210] “And the Blessed One said: ‘Whosoever, Ananda, has developed, practiced, employed, strengthened, maintained, scrutinized, and brought to perfection the four constituents of psychic power could, if he so desired, remain throughout a world-period or until the end of it. The Tathagata, Ananda, has done so. Therefore the Tathagata could, if he so desired, remain throughout a world-period or until the end of it.’ But the Venerable Ananda was unable to grasp the plain suggestion, the significant prompting, given by the Blessed One. As though his mind was influenced by Mara, he did not beseech the Blessed One: ‘May the Blessed One remain, O Lord!. May the Happy One remain, O Lord, throughout the world-period, for the welfare and happiness of the multitude, out of compassion for the world, for the benefit, well being, and happiness of gods and men!’ And when for a second and a third time the Blessed One repeated his words, the Venerable Ananda remained silent. Then the Blessed One said to the Venerable Ananda: ‘Go now, Ananda, and do as seems fit to you.’ ... At these words the Venerable Ananda spoke to the Blessed One, saying: ‘May the Blessed One remain, O Lord! May the Happy One remain, O Lord, throughout the world-period, for the welfare and happiness of the multitude, out of compassion for the world, for the benefit, well being, and happiness of gods and men!’ And the Blessed One answered, saying: ‘Enough, Ananda. Do not entreat the Tathagata, for the time is past, Ananda, for such an entreaty.’ ... ‘But you, Ananda, were unable to grasp the plain suggestion, the significant prompting given you by the Tathagata, and you did not entreat the Tathagata to remain. For if you had done so, Ananda, twice the Tathagata might have declined, but the third time he would have consented. Therefore, Ananda, the fault is yours; herein you have failed.” (Dîghanikâya, 16:3 [Mahâparinibbânasutta]).

 

[211] Many Jâtakas depicts the story of Devadatta’s hatred of the Buddha and of his wickedness. So also Vinayapitaka, Culavagga, 7:3 and 7:4. Also:

“When Devadatta and his party reached the pond in the Jetavana monastery compound the carriers put down the couch on the bank of the pond and went to take a bath. Devadatta also rose from his couch and placed both his feet on the ground. Immediately, his feet sank into the earth and he was gradually swallowed up, Devadatta did not have the opportunity to see the Buddha because of the wicked deeds he had done to the Buddha. After his death, he was reborn in Avici Niraya, a place of intense and continuous torment.” (Dhammapada, [1 Yamakavagga], verse 17 [Devadatta Vatthu])

 

“But if the contemplative Gotama, thus asked, answers, ‘The Tathagata would not say words that are unendearing & disagreeable to others,’ then you should say, ‘Then how, lord, did you say of Devadatta that ‘Devadatta is headed for destitution, Devadatta is headed for hell, Devadatta will boil for an eon, Devadatta is incurable’?” (Majjhimanikâya, 58 [Abhayasutta])

 

“But Devadatta, mad with rage, because he was ensnared by his own wickedness, At first by power miraculous able to fly, now fallen, dwells in lowest hell”.

 (The Fo-Sho-Hing-Tsan-King, 1733-34).

 

[212] “The Buddha performed a feat of such supernormal power that the bandit addressed him thus: … ‘I will indeed renounce evil forever.’ So saying, the bandit took his swords and weapons and flung them in a gaping pit. Then the bandit worshipped at his feet and uttered this exclamation … ‘Who once did live in negligence and then is negligent no more, he illuminates the world like the moon freed from a cloud.’” (Majjhimanikâya, 86:5,6,18, [Angulimâlasutta] quoted in Borg, p. 109 and in BUDDHIST FAITH). Or …

“Then the Blessed One willed a feat of psychic power such that Angulimala, though running with all his might, could not catch up with the Blessed One walking at normal pace. … So Angulimala the bandit addressed this verse to the Blessed One: … ‘I will go about having abandoned evil.’ So saying, the bandit hurled his sword & weapons over a cliff into a chasm, a pit. Then the bandit paid homage to the feet of the One Well-gone, and right there requested the Going-forth.” (Majjhimanikâya, 86)

[213] “At this time a certain householder’s son whose name was Kunda, invited Buddha to his house, and there he gave him, as an offering, his very last repast.” (Ashvaghosha, Boddhisattva: The Fo-sho-hing-tsan-king: a life of Buddha, Varga 25, Parinirvâna, 1946-47).

[214] “Leaving the state of Samâdhi, his soul without a resting-place (a house to lodge in), forthwith he reached Nirvâna. And then, as Buddha died, the great earth quaked throughout. In space, on every hand, was fire like rain (it rained fire), no fuel, self-consuming. And so from out the earth great flames arose on every side (the eight points of the earth), Thus up to the heavenly mansions flames burst forth; the crash of thunder shook the heavens and earth, rolling along the mountains and the valleys, Even as when the Devas and Asuras fight with sound of drums and mutual conflict. A wind tempestuous from the four bounds of earth arose--whilst from the crags and hills, dust and ashes fell like rain. The sun and moon withdrew their shining; the peaceful streams on every side were torrent-swollen; the sturdy forests shook like aspen leaves, whilst flowers and leaves untimely fell around, like scattered rain.” (Ashvaghosha, Boddhisattva: The Fo-sho-hing-tsan-king: a life of Buddha, Varga 26, Mahâparinirvâna, 2104-2108).

[215] In the Mahâmâyâsûtra it says that “Maya descended from the Heaven of the Thirty-three Gods. Wishing to view the body for the last time, she approached the coffin. At that moment it opened, a thousand luminous Buddhas, emanations of Shakyamuni, appeared, and mother and son were reunited.” (Soka Gakkai Dictionary of Buddhism). The scripture tells us that while “Maya was crying and clutching his bowl and cane to her breast, Sakyamuni, by his divine power, opened the coffin, rose up and told her of the transiency of life. Then he lay down again in the coffin and closed the cover over himself.” (Kyoto National Museum, Buddhist Paintings “Shaka (Sakyamuni) Rising from the Gold Coffin“). The painting of Sakyamuni Rising from the Gold Coffin, is from the 11th Century CE.

The Mahâmâyâsûtra (or Mâyâsûtra) was translated from Sanskrit to Chinese during the Ch’i dynasty (479-502 CE). The text alludes to events in c. 200 CE, and so the original must have been written some time between c. 200 and 500 CE. (Soka Gakkai Dictionary of Buddhism).

[216] “The Story of Gautama, the Progenitor of Ikshvâku“ is found in Sanghabhedavastu, which is the 17th and Last Section of the Vinaya of the Mulasarvastivadin. Translation from Sanskrit by Lars Adelskogh. “The Gilgit Manuscript of the Sanghabhedavastu, Being the 17th and Last Section of the Vinaya of the Mûlasarvâstivâdin”, Part I. Edited by Raniero Gnoli with the Assistance of T. Venkatacharya. Roma, Istituto italiano per il medio ed estremo oriente 1977.”

 

In an e-mail answer to my question concerning the date of the Sanghabhedavastu, Dr. Burkhard Scherer (Department of Theology and Religious Studies, Canterbury Christ Church University, U.K.) says:“The Buddhist Gilgit manuscripts are 6/7th century copies of Buddhist texts mainly Buddhist Hybrid or Mixed Sanskrit. They contain among others the vinaya of the Mulasarvastivadins (Vin.Msv), containing a chronological Buddha biography. Sanghabhedavastu (SBV) is the second part of the Vin.Msv. The Msv-school is a relatively late attested sub-school (independent: Frauwallner) of the Sarvastivadins (Sv), a sect of the third century Before Common Era (BCE). The Vin.Msv is thought to be for the largest part identical to that of the Sv; however the Buddhabiography is most commonly dated as a later insertion into the first century Common Era (CE), see Lamotte, Revue d”Hist. des religions, 1948; Klimkeit passim). However, the hagiographical motifs within the Vin.Msv./SBV most certainly predate the first century CE. In some cases, iconographical material attests pre-Christian existence of motifs of the Buddha legend.

Summary
Stories - predate Christianity
Stories written down in SBV - around first Century CE
part of the Vin.Msv - ca. 300CE
Gilgit Manuscripts - 6/7th Century CE”

 

[217] INRI, “Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum” (Jesus of Nazareth, king of the Jews).

”Pilate had a notice prepared and fastened to the cross. It read: JESUS OF NAZARETH, THE KING OF THE JEWS. Many of the Jews read this sign, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city, and the sign was written in Aramaic, Latin and Greek.” (John 19:19-20).

 

 

 

Thanks to Roger Viklund: http://www.jesusgranskad.se/jesus_parallels.htm

 

 

Next Character Qetzalcoatl!!!

 

 

 

 

Quetzalcoatl of Mexico 

Modern scientific orthodoxy allows neither for the date provided by Graves, i.e., that the Mexican Quetzalcoatl originated in the 6th century BCE, nor for preColumbian contact between the “Old” and “New” Worlds. 

 

The evidence, however, reveals that the mythos was indeed in Mexico long before the Christian era, suggesting such contact between the Worlds. 

 

In fact, tradition holds that the ancient Phoenicians, expert navigators, knew about the “lost land” to the West. 

 

One would therefore not be surprised to discover that the stories of the New World were contained in ancient libraries prior to the Christian era, such as at Alexandria, as was averred by Graves.cccxxx 

 

However it got there, there can be no doubt as to the tremendous similarity between the Mexican religion and Catholicism. As Doane remarks: For ages before the landing of Columbus on its shores, the inhabitants of ancient Mexico worshiped a “Saviour”—as they called him—(Quetzalcoatle) who was born of a pure virgin.

 

 A messenger from heaven announced to his mother that she should bear a son without connection with man. Lord Kingsborough tells us that the annunciation of the virgin Sochiquetzal, mother of Quetzalcoatle—who was styled the “Queen of Heaven”—was the subject of a Mexican hieroglyph.cccxxxi 

 

Quetzalcoatl was also designated the morning star, was tempted and fasted for 40 days, and was consumed in a eucharist using a proxy, named after Quetzalcoatl. 

 

As Walker says: This devoured Savior, closely watched by his ten or twelve guards, embodied the god Quetzalcoatl, who was born of a virgin, slain in atonement for primal sin, and whose Second Coming was confidently expected. He was often represented as a trinity signified by three crosses, a large one between the smaller ones. 

 

Father Acosta naively said, “It is strange that the devil after his manner hath brought a Trinity into idolatry.” His church found it all too familiar, and long kept his book as one of its secrets.cccxxxii 

The Mexicans revered the cross and baptized their children in a ritual of regeneration and rebirth long before the Christian contact.cccxxxiii In one of the few existing Codices is an image of the Mexican savior bending under the weight of a burdensome cross, in exactly the same manner in which Jesus is depicted. 

 

The Mexican crucifix depicted a man with nail holes in feet and hands, the Mexican Christ and redeemer who died for man’s sins. In one crucifix image, this Savior was covered with suns.cccxxxiv 

 

Furthermore, the Mexicans had monasteries and nunneries, and called their high priests Papes. cccxxxv The Mexican savior and rituals were so disturbingly similar 

to the Christianity of the conquering Spaniards that Cortes was forced to use the standard, specious complaint that “the Devil had positively taught to the Mexicans the same things which God had taught to Christendom.”cccxxxvi 

 

The Spaniards were also compelled to destroy as much of the evidence as was possible, burning books and defacing and wrecking temples, monuments and other artifacts. 

 

cccxxx. Kersey Graves World’s Sixteen Crucified Saviors. 

 

cccxxxi.   Thomas Doane Bible Myths And Their Parallels 

                In Other Religions, (129). 

 

cccxxxii. Barbara Walker Women’s Encyclopedia Of Myths                

Secrets (47) 

 

cccxxxiii. Godfrey Higgins Anacalypsis Volume II (30-31) 

 

cccxxxiv. Thomas Doane Bible Myths And Their Parallels 

                In Other Religions (200) 

 

cccxxxv. Thomas Doane Bible Myths And Their Parallels 

                In Other Religions (404) 

 

 

cccxxxvi. Edward Carpenter Pagan and Christian Creeds (25) 

 

 

 

Our Lord and Savior Quetzalcoatl born of a virgin and crucified!

Categories: Acharya S/D.M. Murdock|Tags: america, aztecs, christ, christianity, jesus, kukulkan, mayans, mexicans, quetzalcoatl, quetzalcoatle, religion

One of the gods I highlighted in my book The Christ Conspiracy, and even more so in my book Suns of God, is the Mesoamerican deity Kukulkan or Quetzalcoatl. In Christ Con, I included the fact that mainstream scholarship does not allow for contact between the “Old” and “New” Worlds, but I suggested that the presence of the “mythos” or mythical archetype in Mexico centuries before “first contact” would serve as an indication that there was pre-Columbian contact.

However, there exists no hard scientific evidence of any kind of real contact, such as invasive species, disease or DNA markers, so the core shared traditions may predate the first migrations of peoples into the Americas, possibly traceable to back to Africa or points in between. Some of these parallels may also emanate from observations of globally detectable natural phenomena directly from a local perspective.

After making the above disclaimer, I commented: “However it got there, there can be no doubt as to the tremendous similarity between the Mexican religion and Catholicism.” In both books, I quoted and cited the abundant scholarship reflecting what the conquistadors/Jesuits themselves had recounted, common knowledge among modern comparative religion and Mesoamerican scholars. Indeed, these correspondences were so commonly recognized that many natives reportedly converted to Christianity with relatively little effort because of the similarities between their religion and that of the Christians.

As American anthropologist Dr. C. Scott Littleton (1933-2010) remarks:

The speed with which many Mesoamerican people converted to Christianity had much to do with Quetzalcoatl. Some people converted because they identified Cortes with their god; they believed the new rituals the Spanish missionaries introduced were another version of practices used to worship Quetzalcoatl. This process was aided by a resemblance between the Spanish missionaries and the Aztec priests of Tenochtitlan, both of whom wore long black coats. Other people converted because they identified Christ with Quetzalcoatl. Both figures had a message of peace; in addition, the myth of Quetzalcoatl’s descent into the underworld to find bones for a future human race, and the use of his own blood to bring the bones to life, had parallels in the story of Christ’s crucifixion, death and resurrection. (Littleton, Gods, Goddesses and Mythology, v. 11. New York: Marshall Cavendish, 2005; p. 1203.)

I continue to explore how this phenomenon has come to be and to raise this issue of the Mesoamerican correspondences to Christianity, which I included in my 2012 Astrotheology Calendar (2):

Like Christ, Quetzalcoatl is born of a virgin, the goddess Coatlique, and is a great teacher of civilization. Also like Jesus, Quetzalcoatl strikes down the Prince of Darkness and Evil (Tezcatlipoca), who attempts to deceive mankind. The Aztec godman descends into the underworld, where he “gathers the bones of the human beings of the previous epochs,” while, in the apocryphal text [The Gospel of Nicodemus], Christ resurrects several kings and prophets of previous epochs out of the underworld. Quetzalcoatl’s blood is used to convey life to the humans whose bones he saved, while Christ’s blood delivers eternal life and saves humans from death.

 

Quetzalcoatl became the “second sun,” while Jesus is the “sun of righteousness” arising with healing on his wings. (Mal 4:3) Both Christ and Quetzalcoatl are identified with the morning star. Quetzalcoatl also represents one of the four cardinal points, one of four “brothers,” while Christ has four brothers (Mt 13:55).

 

Both figures are depicted as light-skinned and bearded, and it is claimed of both that they will return to vanquish their enemies. Jesus came with a sword and threatened to bring chaos to the earth, while Quetzalcoatl  “caused a rain of fire to devastate the earth, drying up all the rivers and destroying man…” Quetzalcoatl’s acts are also similar to several of the Jewish god Yahweh’s in Genesis, for example.

Also like Jesus, who identifies himself (Jn 3:14-15) with the serpent Moses raised up at Numbers 21:0, Quetzalcoatl and Kukulkan are identified with the serpent, a relationship dramatically reflected at Kukulkan’s temple at Chichen Itza.

These contentions are all cited using modern research such as can be found in National Geographic Essential Visual History of World Mythology (391), articles on Wiki, which have been vetted for accuracy, and primary sources wherever possible. There are many more such correspondences, in fact, that can be verified in the same manner, validating the scholarship of older sources such as in my books Christ Con and Suns of God.

 

Virgin Birth?

As concerns the virgin birth, it is clear that such a concept was understood to have been applied to a “priest-king” named Quetzalcoatl. Based on the abundantly pervasive concept of the virgin birth found elsewhere, as well as the fact that kings, priests and other “authorities” have frequently been identified with or as gods, it is logical to suggest that the attribute attached to the supposed “king” Quetzalcoatl was also that of the god.In his book Living Myths: How Myth Gives Meaning to Human Experience, under the entry “The Story of Quetzalcoatl: The Hero Becomes a God,” classical scholar J.F. Bierlein summarizes this issue:

Quetzalcoatl was many things: (1) a historical personage – a great priest-king and religious reformer who lived in approximately the tenth century A.D….; (2) a god of the winds, the sun, and the planet Venus; (3) the cultural hero and expected “messiah” of the pre-Columbian Mexicans; and (4) a god-hero who served as patron of the arts, writing and the cultivation of maize. These identities became fused together over time.

Concerning the birth of this composite figure, Bierlein further states:

There are several stories regarding the birth of Quetzalcoatl. One version has him born of a virgin named Chimalman, to whom the supreme god, Onteotl (the Great Father-Mother) appeared in a dream. Onteotl showed his/her face to Chimalman and her two sisters. The two sisters died instantly from the gaze, but Chimalman, pure of heart, survived and conceived a son, Quetzalcoatl. In another version, the virgin Chimalman swallows a sacred piece of jade and conceives Quetzalcoatl.

A third story of Quetzalcoatl’s birth is directly tied to his identify as a deity of the sun and planet Venus. In this story, Quetzalcoatl is the son of a mother who already has four thousand children who have left her and now form the stars of the Milky Way. This mother was saddened to be alone and have her children so far from her bosom. She began to weep from longing. Onteotl took pity on her in her loneliness and caused a feather of the sacred quetzal bird to drift…

 

Some of the pertinent information concerning Quetzalcoatl’s virgin birth can be found in the Codices Telleriano-Remensis and Vaticanus A, folio 27v, from a Spanish commentator, Pedro de los Rios.Once more, many of these commonalities between Christ and Quetzalcoatl were remarked upon by the first non-native chroniclers, not a few of whom were so mortified to find basically their entire religion among the “savages” that they felt the need to destroy thousands of Mesoamerican writings and artifacts. Again, for those who are interested in this fascinating information, I raise this issue because it exists and is part of the comparative religion I wish to share. And again, for my Christ Con revision, I will discuss the reasons behind these astonishingly detailed correspondences. One of these reasons, I have suggested repeatedly, is because these mythical motifs represent astronomical and natural phenomena observable globally, but some of the intricate details may serve as evidence of some type of post-Beringian and pre-Columbian contact between the Old and New Worlds.

 

https://stellarhousepublishing.com/our-lord-and-savior-quetzalcoatl/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next Herakles or as all the sinful plebs and conservatives of the west will know him as Hercules!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Hercules the son of Zeus was called "The Saviour" The words "Hercules The Saviour" were engraven on ancient coins and monuments He

was called "The Only Begotten" and the "Universal Word" He was reabsorbed into God He was said by Ovid to be "self produced" the Generator and ruler of all things and the father of time"

 

Thomas Doane Bible Myths and There Parallels In Other Religions (193)

 

 

 

 

Alcmene

 

"Power of the Moon" Virgin mother of the solar Savior Hercules she was the greek form of the Hebrew word almah "moon woman" who mothered sacred kings in the jerusalem cult and whose title was bestowed upon the Virgin Mary Parallels between the earlier myths of Alcmena and the later myths of Mary are too numerous to be coincedental Alcmene's husband refrained from sexual relations until her god-begotten child was born the couple went on a journey so that the child has a birth place which is not his parents home Hercules also grew up to die a sacrificial death after which he visited the underworld and harrowed it then rose to heaven to be assimilated to his divine father to marry the goddesses virgin aspect all over again to beget himself anew"  

 

Barbara Walker Womens Encyclopedia of Women's Secrets (22)

 

 

 

 

Heracles

Greek Saviour the earthly incarnation of either Zeus or Apollo the sun born of the moon-virgin Alcmene ("Power of the Moon") who's consort didn't lie with her until her divine chiled was born. His name meant "Glory of Hera" and he was nursed by the Great Goddess herself on the same milk that spurted from her breasts to form the milky way. His Twelve Labors symbolized the sun’s passage through the twelve houses of the zodiac . . . After his course was finished, he was clothed in the scarlet robe of the sacred king and killed, to be resurrected as his own divine father, to ascend to heaven . . . The influence of Heracles’s cult on early Christianity can hardly be overestimated. St. Paul’s home town of Tarsus regularly reenacted the sacred drama of Heracles’s death by fire, which is why Paul assumed there was great saving virtue in giving one’s body to be burned, like the Heracles-martyrs (1 Corinthians 13:3). Heracles was called Prince of Peace, Sun of Righteousness, Light of the World. He was the same sun greeted daily by the Persians and Essenes with the ritual phrase, “He is risen.” The same formula announced Jesus’s return from the underworld (Mark 16:6). He was sacrificed at the spring equinox (Easter), the New Year festival by the old reckoning. He was born at the winter solstice (Christmas), when the sun reaches his nadir and the constellation of the Virgin rises in the east. As Albert the Great put it centuries later, “The sign of the celestial virgin rises above the horizon, at the moment we find fixed for the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

 

Barbera Walker Women's Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets (393-394)

 

 

Heracles has a mortal stepfather named Amphitryon. But like Joseph (Matthew 2:4ff), Amphitryon does not have sexual intercourse with his wife until the divine conception has taken place and she still is a virgin

 

“Wishing to avenge his sons’ death, Electryon purposed to make war on the Teleboans, but first he committed the kingdom to Amphitryon along with his daughter Alcmena, binding him by oath to keep her a virgin until his return. ... Amphitryon went with Alcmena and Licymnius to Thebes and was purified by Creon and gave his sister Perimede to Licymnius. And as Alcmena said she would marry him when he had avenged her brothers’ death, Amphitryon engaged to do so, and undertook an expedition against the Teleboans, and invited Creon to assist him. Creon said he would join in the expedition if Amphitryon would first rid the Cadmea of the vixen; for a brute of a vixen was ravaging the Cadmea. ... But before Amphitryon reached Thebes, Zeus came by night and prolonging the one night threefold he assumed the likeness of Amphitryon and bedded with Alcmena and related what had happened concerning the Teleboans. But when Amphitryon arrived and saw that he was not welcomed by his wife, he inquired the cause; and when she told him that he had come the night before and slept with her, he learned from Tiresias how Zeus had enjoyed her. And Alcmena bore two sons, to wit, Hercules, whom she had by Zeus and who was the elder by one night, and Iphicles, whom she had by Amphitryon.” (Pseudo-Apollodorus, The Library, 2:4:6-8).

 

 

So as we can see Herakles was born of a "Moon-Virgin" (Alcmena) who refrained from having sex with her husband Amphitryon until the Sun/Son of Zeus/Apollo (Hercules) was born!

 

Interestingly Hercules has 2 Virgin Mothers Alkmene being the obvious first and Hera/Juno who we discussed much earlier was the second:

 

 

“Hera was indigionous and had a matrilinear system; she reigned alone at Argos at Samos her temple at Olympia is distinct from and far earlier than that of Zeus. Her first husband, or rather consort, was Herakles.”

 

Jane Ellen Harrison Epilegomena to the study of Greek religion; and Themis; a study of the social origins of Greek religion. (491)

 

 

 

“Hercules has two mothers, the benevolent Alcmene and pursuing Hera (Lamia) from whose breast he has absorbed immortality.”

 

Carl Jung Psychology of the unconscious (539)

 

 

So as is the case with Attis and Cybele, Mithra and Anahita and Tammuz and Ishtar (See Was Mithra born of a Virgin Mother? PDF mentioned earlier "Cybele and Nana" for more information and primary sources) Hercules was both the Virgin born son of Hera and also at the same time was also Hera's husband continuing Asia Minor Tradition.

 

Heracles’ mortal parents make a trip from their hometown Mycenae to Thebes where Zeus makes Alcmene pregnant and she gives birth to Heracles.It was commonly held that virgin sons were born during flights or travels, and that was the case when Isis gave birth to Horus.

 

“When Electryon reigned over Mycenae … Wishing to avenge his sons’ death, Electryon purposed to make war on the Teleboans, but first he committed the kingdom to Amphitryon along with his daughter Alcmena, binding him by oath to keep her a virgin until his return.” (Pseudo-Apollodorus, The Library, 2:4:6).

 

 

“Even Zeus, who they say is the greatest of the gods and men, was blinded by her, when Hera, a mere female, with her cunning tactics, deceived him that very day Alcmene was to give birth to mighty Hercules, in Thebes, city with the splendid walls.” (Homer, The Iliad, 19:93-99 [Loeb]). Another translation of The Iliad by Ian Johnston.

 

“Aset/Isis appears textually earliest within the Pyramid Texts. … Khemmis, referred to in the Pyramid Texts as the place where Isis fled to bear Horus, the son of Osiris, was in the Delta. Also known as Akhmim, Isis hid there with Her son until he grew old enough to put forth his claim to the Kingship as heir to His father Osiris/Wesir.”: “The Great One has fallen in Nedit, the throne is released by its occupant (?). She who is in Iseion raises you, the god is released. Heru [Horus] comes forth from Chemmis; Pe attends on Heru and he is purified there. Heru comes pure that he may protect his father…..” (Pyramid text, Utt. 701, sect 2188-2195, Aset in the Earliest Ancient Texts). 

 

”O you plebs, look on me, the son of Isis; I was conceived in Pe and born in Chemmis;...” (Spell 286, Excerpts of Coffin Texts Referencing Aset/Isis).

 

 

Jesus Christs 12 Disciples are Parallel to the 12 Houses Of the Zodiac as we have already seen from Philo of Alexandria and Flavius Josephus and Herakles/Hercules 12 Labours are also parallel to the Zodiacal 12 

 

"The Phonecians had a tradition that Hercules was the god Sun that magnificent star which vivifies all nature which engenders the year composed of twelve months figured by the twelve works called the twelve works of Hercules. We are informed by Porphyry That Hercules was a personification of the Sun and that the fable of the twelve works merely expressed and did convey the idea to the learned of the aparant march of that star through the 12 signs of the Zodiac Hesiod informs us that the Zodiac in which the Sun achieves his annual course is the veritable career run through Hercules in the fable of the twelve works and that by his marriage with Hebe goddess of youth that he espouses after finishing his career we are to understand the year which renews itself at the end of each revolution"

 

The Existence of Christ Disproved by a series of irresistable evidence in a series of letters From a German Jew (86)   

 

So as we can clearly see Hercules 12 Labours are parallel to Jesus 12 Apostles

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the New Testament in the book of Revalations The Archangel Michael does battle against Azazel/Devil who takes the form of a 7 headed dragon with 10 crowns which is parallel to Herakles battle against the 9 headed Dragon or "Wicked Sepent" known as The Lernean Hydra

 

 

Revelation 12:7-10

King James Version

7 And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,

8 And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.

9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

10 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The god Hermes shows Heracles the realms of the king and the tyrant from a high mountain. Jesus also meets this fate, when the Devil shows him the glory of the kingdoms of the earth from a high mountain, and promises that he can rule them all (Matthew 4:8).

 

The father of Heracles [Zeus] is worried about the temptations that might “entice a youth of fine natural qualities [i.e. Heracles] away from his true nature and his principles even against his will.” He therefore sent his messenger god Hermes to Heracles and Hermes “led him over a secret path untrodden of man till he came to a conspicuous and very lofty mountain-peak whose sides were dreadfully steep.” But there are actually two peaks, “rising from a single base”. “The one of them bore the name Peak Royal and was sacred to Zeus the king; the other, peak Tyrannous, was named after the giant Typhon.” Only one path leads to Peak Royal, and it is “safe and broad”. On that peak, which was much higher sat Lady Royalty together with some other people, and they represented Justice, Civic Order, Peace and Law. The path to the peak of Tyranny “was narrow, crooked and difficult” to walk. But in fact the mountain peak was “undermined on every side and tunnelled” and there were many “unseen and hidden corridors”, which according to Chrysostom, no doubt led “up to the very throne, and that all the passages and bypaths were smeared with blood and strewn with corpses.” On that throne, which was “far loftier and more splendid”, sat Tyranny. At her side, she had “Cruelty, Insolence, Lawlessness and Faction”. Also “Flattery was there”. Hermes then “asked him which of the two scenes pleased him and which of the two women.” And Heracles said that he would gladly thrust Tyranny “down from this peak and put an end to her”. “Hermes commended Heracles for this utterance and repeated it to Zeus, who entrusted him [Heracles] with the kingship of all mankind as he considered him equal to the trust.” (My summary of Dio Chrysostom [c. 40–c. 120 CE], Orations, 1:64-84 [Loeb], Compare this to Matthew 4:8-11).

 

Hercules is called the savior (Jesus = Soter/Savior)  

 

“And so wherever Heracles discovered a tyranny and a tyrant, he chastised and destroyed them, among Greeks and barbarians alike; but wherever he found a kingdom and a king, he would give honour and protection.’ This, she maintained, was what made him Deliverer [Greek: σοτηερα, soter; Saviour, Deliverer, Preserver] of the earth and of the human race, not the fact that he defended them from the savage beasts­—for how little damage could a lion or a wild bear inflict?—nay, it was the fact that he chastised savage and wicked men, and crushed and destroyed the power of overweening tyrants. And even to this day Heracles continues this work and you have in him a helper and protector of your government as long as it is vouchsafed you to reign.” (Dio Chrysostom [c. 45-120 CE], Orationes, 1:84 [Loeb]).

 

 

 

According to the Roman Emperor Julian and the Stoic Philosopher Seneca Hercu-Jesus like his Christianization walked on water! 

 

“I do not think it was really a cup, but my belief is that he himself walked on the sea as though it were dry land. For what was impossible to Heracles?” 

(Emperor Julian [331 or 332-363 CE], Orations, 7:219 D [Loeb]).

 

Hercules Crossed the Seas on Foot" (Seneca, Hercules Furens 322-324)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Herakles raised a lovely princess named Alcestis from the dead Apollonius (Paul) style! 

 

“… at once woke up the maiden from her seeming death; and the girl spoke out loud and returned to her father’s house, just as Alcestis did when she was brought back to life by Hercules.” (Philostratus [c. 170–c. 245 CE], The Life of Apollonius of Tyana, 4:45).

 

His greatest acomplishment is to overcome death and his own death leads to eternal life!

 

Enter HERCULES just returned from the lower world: … “The chaos of everlasting night, and something worse than night, and the grim gods and the fates – all these I saw and, having flouted death, I have come back. What else remains? I have seen and revealed the lower world. If aught is left to do, give it to me, O Juno; too long already dost thou let my hands lie idle. What dost thou bid me conquer? But why do hostile soldiers guard the shrine and dreadful arms beset the sacred portal?” (Seneca, [ca 4 fvt-65 vt], Hercules Furens, 610-617).

“Thereafter he obtained immortality” (Pseudo-Apollodorus, The Library, 2:7:7). 

 

“This is the origin of Hercules ... And these benefactors were duly deemed divine, as being both supremely good and immortal, because their souls survived and enjoyed eternal life.” (Cicero, De Natura Deorum, 2:24; quoted in THEOI PROJECT, Apotheothenai, deified men & women) 

 

“… he should receive the gift of immortality.” (Diodorus Siculus, Library of History, 4:10:7 [Loeb]).

 

Hercules 2nd Wife Deinara poisons and kills the dumb brute/barbarian by mistake and like Judas Iscariott (Brutus) kills herself out of remorse by hanging

 

“... but Deianeira was so stricken by the magnitude of Heracles’ misfortune that, being consious of the error, she ended her life by hanging herself” 

(Diodorus Siculus [c. 90–22 BCE), Library of History, 4:38:3 [Loeb]).

 

“From him Deianira learned about Iole, and fearing that Hercules might love that damsel more than herself, she supposed that the spilt blood of Nessus was in truth a love-charm, and with it she smeared the tunic. So Hercules put it on and proceeded to offer sacrifice. But no sooner was the tunic warmed than the poison of the hydra began to corrode his skin; and on that he lifted Lichas by the feet, hurled him down from the headland, and tore off the tunic, which clung to his body, so that his flesh was torn away with it. In such a sad plight he was carried on shipboard to Trachis: and Deianira, on learning what had happened, hanged herself.” (Pseudo-Apollodorus, The Library, 2:7:7).

 

Deianira: “The death alone shall be a place of refuge (actually: port) for my worries. I am calling the flaming wheel of the brilliant Phoebus and the Gods as my witnesses: Hercules still on earth, I am leaving dying.” Or: “DEIANIRA: The only haven granted my troubles will be death. Witness bright Phoebus’ fiery chariot, witness the gods above: in going to my death I leave Hercules still here on earth.” (Seneca, Hercules Oetaeus, 1020-24 [Loeb]).

 

Melqart/Hercules was killed and ressurected in 2 ways in one myth he is killed by the hundred headed Typhon (Devil of Greek mythology) and resurrected by his Nephew Ioalus with the aid of a quail and Sophocles and Diodorus record another tale where he is burned to death on Mount Oeta parallel to Jesus dying on a hill 

and then acends to Heaven (Olympus) in a newly ressurected form:

 

“And Eudoxus the Cnidian, in the first book of his Description of the Circuit of the Earth, says that the Phoenicians sacrifice quails to Hercules, because Hercules, the son of Asteria and Jupiter, when on his way toward Libya, was slain by Typhon and restored to life by Iolaus …” (Athenaeus, Deipnosophistae [The Banquet of the Learned at Dinner], 9:392 [c. 200 CE]. He refers to his source Eudoxus of Cnidus, who lived c. 408–c. 355 BCE).

 

Iolaus resuscitated Heracles by burning a quail, “and because of the smoke, Heracles returned to life”. (Mettinger, p. 106). He refers to Zenobius, Centuria Sexta, 5:56.

 

 

“Heracles: Good, then do you know the summit of Oeta, Zeus’s sacred mountain? Hyllus: I know it. I have often stood on that height to sacrifice. Heracles: Then, you must carry my body there after raising it up in your own hands, aided by as many of our friends as you require; and when you have cut many a branch from the deep-rooted oak and chopped down many a sturdy wild-olive, you must lay my body on them and with a flaming pine-torch burn it.” (Sophocles [c. 496–406 BCE], The Trachiniae, 1191-1198).

 

“And immediately lightning also fell from the heavens and the pyre was wholly consumed. After this, when the companions of Iolaüs came to gather up the bones of Heracles and found not a single bone anywhere, they assumed that, in accordance with the words of the oracle, he had passed from among men into the company of the gods.” 

(Diodorus Siculus [c. 90–22 BCE), Library of History, 4:38:4-5 [Loeb]).

 

Here is what Share and Carre had to say

 

Hercules

Melqart is another of the most ancient of resurrected deities, akin to Baal in both his origins and possible future co-option into later Hellenistic mystery cults. His legend became fused with that of Hercules. Centuries before Christianity, and attested by authors of the Roman period, Eudoxus of Cnidus wrote that Hercules was “killed by Typhon, but Iolaus brought a quail to him, and having put it close to him,” and ritually burning it, “he smelt it and came to life again” (Athenaeus, The Dinnersages 9.392d-e; see Mettinger, p. 86). And Josephus attests to ongoing celebrations of “Resurrecting Hercules” (tou Hrakleous egersin: in Jewish Antiquities 8.146; mistranslated in Whiston: see Mettinger, pp. 88-89). In both accounts, this is explicitly said to be a story of the Tyrian Hercules, which we know meant Melqart, whose base of worship was at Tyre.

Diodorus tells another story of Hercules killed by fire—dying of poison, he is burned on a pyre. Because his bones then vanished when Iolaus tried to collect them, the story goes, it was concluded Hercules was resurrected and ascended to heaven (Diodorus, Library of History 4.38.5). The supposition of resurrection upon the vanishing of a corpse was not only a common motif in antiquity, it is essentially the story told of Jesus (for a full study of this mytheme in antiquity see Richard Miller’s 2017 book Resurrection and Reception in Early Christianity; and Ava Chitwood’s 2004 book Death by Philosophy). The addition of appearance narratives to seal the deal, also accompanies many of these tales (Romulus, for example). And there may have been such for Hercules. But in any event, it was clearly believed he had died, and been raised from the dead, and then ascended to heaven with divine power. Just like Jesus.

Mettinger finds a slew of pre-Hellenistic evidence referring to the “raisers of Melqart” and to Melqart as “the risen” and his ceremony as “the rising” (pp. 90-97). That I find ambiguous by itself, but it is more telling in context. As the remaining evidence for a resurrected Tyrian Hercules, the Hellenistic Melqart, remains conclusive. Perhaps the best evidence for Meqart is a votive object actually depicting the death, burial, mourning-of, and resurrection of Melqart (Mettinger, pp. 98-100; indeed, a three day sequence is here again implied: p. 102). As the second century wit Lucian observed, the popular belief is that upon death “all bodily things…a man strips off and abandons before he mounts up, like Heracles burning on Mount Oeta before deification; he too cast off whatever of the human he had from his mother, and soared up to the Gods with his divine part pure and unalloyed, sifted by the fire” (Lucian, Hermotimus 7; see scholarship in Not the Impossible Faith, p. 121, n. 13). Thus again, though his “resurrection” is portrayed as a direct ascent to heaven, nevertheless he died, was dead, and then cast off his corpse, and rose back to life, ascending, in his superior divine body, after its mortal material was burned away on the pyre.

 

https://www.richardcarrier.info/archives/13890

 

In one of the most astonishing Parallels between these two Seneca in his play Hercules Oetus records a Darkness in the Sky and a Massive earthquake occur upon Hercules death!

 

Matthew 27:45-53

King James Version

45 Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour.

46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?

47 Some of them that stood there, when they heard that, said, This man calleth for Elias.

48 And straightway one of them ran, and took a spunge, and filled it with vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink.

49 The rest said, Let be, let us see whether Elias will come to save him.

50 Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost.

51 And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;

52 And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose,

53 And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.

 

Hercules: “Bright Titan, turn around your panting horses, release the night! Let the world lose this day of my death, let heaven be roiled with black clouds: block my stepmother’s view! Now, father, blind chaos should be restored; both poles should be smashed, the firmament shattered from end to end. Why spare the stars? You are losing Hercules, father. Now, Jupiter, look to every quarter of heaven, lest some Gyges hurl Thessalian peaks, and Othrys prove a light weight for Enceladus. … My death, father, will put the entire realm of the sky at risk for you. Before you are completely despoiled of the heavens, hide me, father, in the utter ruin of the cosmos, smash the sky that you are losing.” (Seneca, Hercules Oetaeus, 1131-50 [Loeb]).

 

 

One of Jesus most famous moments is when he tells his virgin mother Mary not to cry and that he is going to heaven. and right before death says is

"It Is Finished' both of which were said of Hercules:

 

“iam parce, mater, questibus”: „laß nunmehr ab von deinen Klagen, Mutter!” “Refrain now from lamenting, mother”. (Seneca, Hercules Oetaeus, 1965 [Loeb]).

 

 

“Me iam decet subire caelestem plagam”: „Ich muß nunmehr in himmlische Gefilde eingehen”. “Now I must ascend to the heavenly regions”. (Seneca, Hercules Oetaeus, 1975 [Loeb]).

 

 

“Habet, peractum est, fata se nostra explicant”, or “Bene est, peractum est, fata se nostra explicant”. “It is death (enough), it is completed, my (our) fate unfolds itself.” 

(Seneca, Hercules Oetaeus, 1472 [Loeb]); “Jesus said, ‘It is finished.’” (John 19:30).

 

The rest of the parallels you can find here: http://www.jesusgranskad.se/jesus_parallels.htm 

Again a special thanks to Roger Viklund for most of this info.

 

So If I had to choose between worshiping a virgin born killed and ressurected saviour who is little more than a crucified Jew or one who has huge ass mucsels nice abs and a club with a lionskin headress....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NEXT!! Asclepius or Ass Clipius as i like to call him lol!

 

 

                   

 

 

Uh Oh! Looks like IP's (TP's) Corpse is back to haunt us with more "Paganism!" 

 

 

 

Asclepius

According to Greek mythology, Asclepius is the father of medicine. He could cure people from their diseases and even raise them from the dead. For doing this Zeus put him to death. However, Asclepius rose from Hades (the kingdom of the dead)[39] and was made a god and immortal.[40]

On an inscription found in Epidaurus and dating from the early third century BCE, a certain Isyllus writes that Asclepius’ mother, the [mortal] woman Aegla – who [because of her beauty] also is called Coronis – was deflowered by the god Apollo. The outcome of their brief intercourse was Asclepius, and Coronis gave birth in Apollo’s sacred temple.[41] According to Pindar, princess Coronis, while probably still a virgin, has a love affair with the god Apollo and becomes pregnant with the god’s child. Still Coronis lives together with her lover Ischys, an ordinary mortal man.[42] Accordingly, also Asclepius is a son of God. Pausanias, writing in the second century, says that Coronis gave birth to Asclepius when travelling to Epidaurus. Dazzling light encompassed the child and warned a shepherd, who was the first to arrive on the spot, not to touch him.[43]

The cult of Asclepius existed in Greece as early as in the sixth century BCE, and it spread considerably during the following two centuries. People made pilgrimages to the temples of Asclepius, which were a kind of health resources of the Antiquity. In the beginning, Asclepius was considered only a healer and a saviour god, but as time went by, he was to be considered Lord,[44] God of light, rescuer, helper and universal saviour, just like Jesus.[45]

It is uncertain whether or not Asclepius was seen as a god who was dying and rising from the dead. He was closely connected to the Phoenician healing god Eshmun, however, and the two were believed by the Greeks to be the same god. Eshmun was a vegetation god, and like Attis he is mutilated to be restored later. This does not necessarily mean that Eshmun was a dying god, but he was probably still considered a dying god, since the memory of a cult place named “The Tomb of Eshmun” seems to have been preserved in a place-name.[46] Moreover, according to the Iranian scientist and historian al-Biruni, who wrote in the beginning of the eleventh century CE, the Greek physician Galen, living at the end of the second century CE, wrote “that Asclepius was raised to the angels in a column of fire, the like of which is also related with regard to Dionysus, Heracles, and others”.[47] It is therefore possible, but far from certain, that people thought also of Asclepius as of a god who died and later rose from the dead.

The many miracles the Gospels claim that Jesus carried out are but copies of Asclepius’ miracles. Asclepius

wrought numerous healing miracles by touching the sick. Sometimes he did this by reaching out his hand, sometimes by putting his hand on the sick person, or pressing his finger into the diseased body part.[48] Sometimes, the sick person had to believe in order to be healed.[49] This was also the case when Jesus healed the sick.[50]

According to inscriptions from Epidaurus and other testimonials (among others that of Justin Martyr), Asclepius healed people who suffered from diseases of all kinds, the paralytics,[51] the dumb[52] and the blind.[53] He could heal people at distance as well. After he had healed the sick people, they went away carrying their beds. Asclepius healed the old as well as the young, the poor as well as the rich, women as well as men, slaves as well as freemen and friends as well as enemies.[54]

Moreover, Asclepius raised people from the dead.[55] This is also confirmed by the early church father Justin Martyr (c. 150 CE), who writes:

 

And when he [the devil] brings forward Aesculapius as the raiser of the dead and healer of all diseases, may I not say that in this matter likewise he has imitated the prophecies about Christ? (Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho the Jew, 69).

 

In the tales told about the five (or possibly six) people Asclepius called back to life,[56] we find many details that correspond with what the Gospels tell us about the three times Jesus did the same.[57] For example, many witnesses were present, non-believers assumed that the ones raised to life were only apparently dead; the ones raised to life were given something to eat, and so on.[58]

It must have been embarrassing for the early Christians to realize that every miracle they claimed that Jesus had performed had already been wrought by Asclepius, and besides even more magnificently. The soul of Asclepius, like that of Heracles, “survived and enjoyed eternal life”.[59]

 

[39] THOSE WHO, BY PERMISSION OF THE PARCAE, RETURNED FROM THE LOWER WORLD “Asclepius, son of Apollo and Coronis.” (Gaius Julius Hyginus [c. 64 BC-17 AD], Fabulae, 251). Possibly written by some unknown author in the second century CE.

 

[40] “Hippolytus’ wounded body was carried along, till he gave up his spirit, to Diana’s great anger. ‘There’s no need for grief,’ said Aesculapius: I’ll restore the pious youth to life, free of wounds, and sad fate will yield to my skill.’ Quickly he took medicines from an ivory casket ... he touched his breast three times, three times spoke words of healing: the youth lifted his head from the ground. Hippolytus hid in his own sacred grove, in the depths of Diana’s woods: he is Virbius [The reborn, that is immortal, Hippolytus was in Roman mythology called Virbius] of the Arician Lake... Phoebus, you complained: but Aesculapius is a god ...” (Ovid [43 BCE-c. 18 CE], Fasti, 6:735). MORTALS WHO WERE MADE IMMORTAL “Asclepius, son of Apollo and Coronis”. (Hyginus, Fabulae, 224).

 

[41] Ian Rutherford, The Paian: A Survey of the Genre, p. 41.

 

[42] “His [Asclepius’] mother [Coronis], the daughter of Phlegyas with his fine horses, before she could bring him to term with the help of Eleithuia who attends on childbirth, was stricken by the golden arrows of Artemis in her bedroom and descended to the house of Hades, by the skills of Apollo. The anger of the children of Zeus is not in vain. But she made light of Apollo, in the error of her mind, and consented to another marriage without her father’s knowledge, although she had before lain with Phoebus [a byname for the god Apollo] of the unshorn hair, and was bearing within her the pure seed of the god … Such was the strong infatuation that the spirit of lovely-robed Coronis had caught. For she lay in the bed of a stranger who came from Arcadia; but she did not elude the watcher... Knowing even then of her sleeping with Ischys, son of Elatus, and of her lawless deceit, he sent his sister, raging with irresistible force ...” (Pindar [c. 518–438 BCE], Pythian Odes 3:8-34).

 

“But some affirm that Aesculapius was not a son of Arsinoe, daughter of Leucippus, but that he was a son of Coronis, daughter of Phlegyas in Thessaly. And they say that Apollo loved her and at once consorted with her, but that she, against her father’s judgment, preferred and cohabited with Ischys, brother of Caeneus.” 

(Pseudo-Apollodorus [first-second century CE], The Library, 3:10:3).

 

“When Apollo had made Coronis, daughter of Phlegyas, pregnant, he put a crow in guard, so that no one should violate her. But Ischys, son of Elatus, lay with her, and because of this he was killed by the thunderbolt of Zeus.” (Hyginus [c. 64 BC-17 AD], Fabulae 202).

 

[43] “When he [Coronis’ father Phlegyas] went to the Peloponnesus, he was accompanied by his daughter, who all along had kept hidden from her father that she was with child by Apollo. In the country of the Epidaurians she bore a son, and exposed him on the mountain called Nipple at the present day, but then named Myrtium. As the child lay exposed he was given milk by one of the goats that pastured about the mountain, and was guarded by the watch-dog of the herd. And when Aresthanas (for this was the herdsman’s name) discovered that the tale of the goats was not full, and that the watch-dog also was absent from the herd, he left, they say, no stone unturned, and on finding the child desired to take him up. As he drew near he saw lightning that flashed from the child, and, thinking that it was something divine, as in fact it was, he turned away. Presently it was reported over every land and sea that Asclepius was discovering everything he wished to heal the sick, and that he was raising dead men to life.” (Pausanias [second century CE], Graeciae Descriptio, Description of Greece, 2:26:3–5).

[44] “I begin to sing of Asklepios, son of Apollon and healer of sicknesses. In the Dotian plain fair Koronis, daughter of King Phlegyas, bare him, a great joy to men, a soother of cruel pangs. and so hail to you, lord: in my song I make my prayer to thee!” (Homeric Hymn 16 to Asklepios; quoted in THEOI PROJECT, Asklepios).

[45] “The god [Apollon] can not only save life but is also the begetter of Asklepios, man’s saviour and champion against diseases.” (Aelian, On Animals, 10:49; quoted in THEOI PROJECT, Asklepios).

“To Asklepios, Fumigation from Manna. Great Asklepios, skilled to heal mankind, all-ruling Paian, and physician kind; whose arts medicinal can alone assuage diseases dire, and stop their dreadful rage. Strong, lenient God, regard my suppliant prayer, bring gentle health, adorned with lovely hair; convey the means of mitigating pain, and raging deadly pestilence restrain. O power all-flourishing, abundant, bright, Apollon’s honoured offspring, God of light; husband of blameless Hygeia (Health), the constant foe of dread disease, the minister of woe: come, blessed saviour, human health defend, and to the mortal life afford a prosperous end.” (Orphic Hymn 67 to Asclepius; quoted in THEOI PROJECT, Asklepios).

Also Aelius Aristides [117–180 CE], Discorsi Sacri, Sacred Discourses,1:2, 4:4.

 

[46] Tryggve N. D. Mettinger, The Riddle of Resurrection, p. 157, 159, 165.

 

[47] Tryggve N. D. Mettinger, The Riddle of Resurrection, p. 160.

“Galenus says in his commentary to the apothegms of Hippocrates: ‘It is generally known that Asclepius was raised to the angels in a column of fire, the like of which is also related with regard to Dionysos, Heracles, and others, who laboured for the benefit of mankind. People say that God did thus with them in order to destroy the mortal and earthly part of them by the fire, and afterwards to attract to himself the immortal part of them, and to raise their souls to heaven.’” (al-Biruni, India, p. 168).

 

[48] “‘I’ll restore the pious youth to life, unwounded, and the grisly fates will yield to my art.’ At once he takes some herbs from an ivory box. They worked before on the ghost of Gluacus, when an augur resorted to herbs he’d noticed, and a serpent used the help of a serpent. He daubed his breast three times, thrice spoke healing words. The youth raised his drooping head from the ground.” (Ovid, Fasti, 6:735; quoted in THEOI PROJECT, Asklepios).

 

[49] Carl Schneider, Geistesgeschichte des antiken Christentums, book 1, p. 55; refers to inscriptions from Epidaurus, “Rudolf Herzog, Die Wunderheilungen von Epidauros”.

 

[50] Luke 8:44, Mark 5:27f, 7:33 Matthew 9:18–20.

 

 

[51] “A man whose fingers, all but one, were paralyzed. He came to the god looking for help, but when he read the tablets set up in the temple he gave no credence to the healings and made fun of the inscriptions. But as he slept, he had the following dream. It seemed to him that he was playing dice in the temple and was about to make a throw. The god appeared to him, and spring upon his hand and stretched out his fingers. Then he got up and, still in his dream, the man clenched his fist and opened it, stretching out one finger after another. After he had stretched them all out, the god asked him if he still refused to believe what the inscriptions related, and he said ‘No.’ ‘Well then,’ answered the god, ‘since you formerly refused to believe what is not unbelievable, you shall henceforth be known as ‘the Doubter.’ When it was day, he came out cured.” (Epidaurus Tablet 3, trans. F.C. Grant, Hellenistic Religions, 56-57).

 

[52] “A Dumb Boy He came to the sanctuary seeking to recover his voice. As he was presenting his first offering and performing the usual ceremony, the acolyte who bears the fire (for the sacrifice) to the god turned and said to the father of the boy, ‘Will you promise, if you get your wish, between now and the end of the year to bring the offering you owe as a fee for the healing?’ At once the boy cried to out, ‘I promise!’ The father said it again and was made whole from that moment.” (Epidaurus Tablet 5, trans. F.C. Grant, Hellenistic Religions, 56-57).

 

[53] “Ambrosia from Athens, who was blind in one eye. She came to the god seeking help, but as she went about the temple she mocked at the many records of cures; ‘It is unbelievable and impossible that the lame and the blind can be made whole by merely dreaming!’ But in her sleep she had a dream. It seemed to her that the god came up and promised to make her whole; only in return she must present a gift offering in the temple- a silver pig, in memory of her stupidity. After saying this he cut open her defective eye and poured some drug. And when it was dry, she went forth cured.” (Epidaurus Tablet 4, trans. F.C. Grant, Hellenistic Religions, 56-57).Karlheinz Deschner, Abermals krähte der Hahn, p. 69.

 

“Asclepius, that gentle craftsman who drove pain from the limbs that he healed, that hero who cured all types of diseases. … And those who came to him afflicted with congenital sores, or with their limbs wounded by gray bronze or by a far-hurled stone, or with their bodies wasting away from summer’s fire or winter’s cold, he released and delivered all of them from their different pains, tending some of them with gentle incantations, others with soothing potions, or by wrapping remedies all around their limbs, and others he set right with surgery.” (Pindar, Pythian Odes, 3:6-53).

“Presently it was reported over every land and sea that Asclepius was discovering everything he wished to heal the sick, and that he was raising dead men to life.” (Pausanias, Graeciae Descriptio, Description of Greece, 2:26:5).

 

[54] Carl Schneider, Geistesgeschichte des antiken Christentums, book 1, p. 56; refers to inscriptions from Epidaurus, “Rudolf Herzog, Die Wunderheilungen von Epidauros”, Epidaurus tablets nr. 21, 25 and 35.

 

[55] “Stesichorus in his Eriphyle says that he [Asklepios] raised from the dead some of those who fell at Thebes.” (Greek Lyric III Stesichorus, Frag 194; quoted in Greek Mythology: ASKLEPIOS God of Medicine).

 

“Asklepios healed many sick whose lives had been despaired of, and for this reason it was believed that he had brought back to life many who had died.” (Diodorus Siculus [c. 90–21 BCE], Library of History, 4:71:1 [Loeb]).

“And having become a surgeon, and carried the art to a great pitch, he not only prevented some from dying, but even raised up the dead”. (Pseudo-Apollodorus, The Library 3:10:3).

“Gold shining in his [Asclepius’] hand turned even that man, for a handsome price, to bring back from death a man who was already caught.” (Pindar, Pythian Odes 3:55-56)

 

[56] The five (or possibly six) people are Capaneus, son of Hipponous; Glaucus, son of king Minos of Crete (and perhaps Androgeon, also son of Minos); Hippolytus, son of king Theseus of Athen; Lykourgos, son of Pronax; and finally King Tyndareus of Sparta.

“It is said Asklepios was enticed by gold to raise up the dead Hippolytos; others say he raised Tyndareus, others Kapaneus, others Glaukos, the Orphics Hymenaios, while Stesichorus speaks of Kapaneus and Lykourgos.” (Greek Lyric III Stesichorus [seventh or sixth c. BCE], Frag 147; quoted in Greek Mythology: ASKLEPIOS God of Medicine).

“Zeus killed Asklepios with his thunderbolt, according to the author of the Naupactica and Telestes in his Asklepios and Kinesias the lyric poet, because he raised Hippolytos from the dead at Artemis’ request; according to Stesikhoros in his Eriphyle, it was because he raised Kapaneos and Lykourgos.” (Greek Lyric V Cinesias, Frag 774, from Philodemus [first c. BCE], On Piety; quoted in Greek Mythology: ASKLEPIOS God of Medicine).

 

“… that when Hippolytos was killed, owing to the curses of Theseus, Asklepios raised him from the dead”. (Pausanias [second c. CE], Graeciae Descriptio, Description of Greece, 2:27:4)

“Aesculapius, son of Apollo, is said to have restored life either to Glaucus, son of Minos, or to Hippolytus, and Jupiter because of this struck him with a thunderbolt.” (Hyginus, Fabulae 49).

“For when Aesculapius was among men, he so fare excelled the rest in the art of medicine that it wasn’t enough for him to have healed men’s diseases unless he could also bring back the dead to life. He is said most recently, according to Eratosthenes to have restored to life Hippolytus who had been killed by the injustice of his stepmother and the ignorance of his father. Some have said that by his skill Glaucus, son of Minos, lived again.” (Hyginus, Astronomica, 2:14).

 

“… the god of Epidaurus [Asklepios] by his Cretan herbs restored the lifeless Androgeon to his father’s [Minos of Krete’s] hearth.” 

(Propertius, Elegies 2:1; quoted in Greek Mythology: ASKLEPIOS God of Medicine).

 

[57] Mark 5:35ff, Matthew 9:18ff, Luke 8:49ff, 7:11ff, John 11:1ff.

 

[58] Carl Schneider, Geistesgeschichte des antiken Christentums, book 1, p. 56; refers to inscriptions from Epidaurus, “Rudolf Herzog, Die Wunderheilungen von Epidauros”.

Lucius Apuleius tells us in Florida 19 (second Century CE) how Asclepius (Actually, he writes Asclepiades and we cannot be certain who he had in mind) rose a man from the dead, a story very similar to the one where Jesus raises Jairus’ daughter (Mark 5:35-43):

“The famous Asclepiades, who ranks among the greatest of doctors, indeed, if you except Hippocrates, as the very greatest, was the first to discover the use of wine as a remedy. It requires, however, to be administered at the proper moment, and it was in the discovery of the right moment that he showed especial skill, noting most carefully the slightest symptom of disorder or undue rapidity of the pulse. It chanced that once, when he was returning to town from his country house, he observed an enormous funeral procession in the suburbs of the city. A huge multitude of men who had come out to perform the last honours stood round about the bier, all of them plunged in deep sorrow and wearing worn and ragged apparel. He asked whom they were burying, but no one replied; so he went nearer to satisfy his curiosity and to see who it might be that was dead, or, it may be, in the hope to make some discovery in the interests of his profession. Be this as it may, he certainly snatched the man from the jaws of death as he lay there on the verge of burial. The poor fellow’s limbs were already covered with spices, his mouth filled with sweet-smelling unguent. He had been anointed and was all ready for the pyre. But Asclepiades looked upon him, took careful note of certain signs, handled his body again and again, and perceived that the life was still in him, though scarcely to be detected. Straightway he cried out ‘He lives Throw down your torches, take away your fire, demolish the pyre, take back the funeral feast and spread it on his board at home’. While he spoke, a murmur arose: some said that they must take the doctor’s word, others mocked at the physician’s skill. At last, in spite of the opposition offered even by his relations, perhaps because they had already entered into possession of the dead man’s property, perhaps because they did not yet believe his words, Asclepiades persuaded them to put off the burial for a brief space. Having thus rescued him from the hands of the undertaker, he carried the man home, as it were from the very mouth of hell, and straightway revived the spirit within him, and by means of certain drugs called forth the life that still lay hidden in the secret places of the body ...” 

(Lucius Apuleius, Florida 19).

 

[59] “Human experience moreover and general custom have made it a practise to confer the deification of renown and gratitude upon distinguished benefactors. This is the origin of Hercules [Herakles], of Castor and Pollux [the Dioskouroi], of Aesculapius [Asklepios] ... And these benefactors were duly deemed divine, as being both supremely good and immortal, because their souls survived and enjoyed eternal life.” (Cicero, De Natura Deorum, 2:24; quoted in THEOI PROJECT, Apotheothenai, deified men & women).

 

 

Asclepius

Asclepius was also a popular resurrected god. Christian apologists want to try and deny this by saying Asclepius merely, like Caesar, “rose to heaven” like a ghost upon his death. But that isn’t what ancient worshipers said. Celsus reported that “a great many Greeks and Barbarians claim they have frequently seen, and still see, no mere phantom, but Asclepius himself” (Origen, Against Celsus 3.24). Asclepius was killed by lightning strike and buried (Hesiod, Fragments 125; Euripides, Alcestis 1-7; Cicero, On the Nature of the Gods 3.22.57; Origen, Against Celsus 3.23). He was then restored from death to become a living god. As Ovid says, “by a god [he was] turned into a bloodless corpse, and then from a corpse became a god, twice renewing [his] fate” (Metamorphoses 2.647-648). That this was regarded a resurrection is fully confirmed by the narrative. Zeus killed Asclepius for resurrecting the dead, but when the slain’s father Apollo complained, Zeus relented and restored Asclepius back to life, this time as an immortal god. Ovid thus remarks that “Zeus did for [his son’s] sake that which he forbade be done” (Fasti 6.761); in other words, Zeus forbade raising the dead, but made an exception for Asclepius. It is thus understood that Zeus rose Asclepius from the dead. He had been a corpse. So he would have remained. But by a miracle of God, now he was alive, eternal and immortal, supernaturally powerful. Just like Jesus.

 

 

Roger Viklund: http://www.jesusgranskad.se/jesus_parallels.htm

 

 

The Villainous "Demon Possessed" "Pagan" Carrier/Errior: https://www.richardcarrier.info/archives/13890

 

 

 

And here is what the "Godless Bastard" Dereck Bennett said in defence of our faith!: (Concerning Asclipius, Heracles and Romulus)

 

 

Asclepius, Heracles, and Romulus

The Greek physician Asclepius healed the lame, the blind, and the paralytic, and raised the dead (First Apology, 22:6). Zeus struck Asclepius down for bringing forth too many resurrectees, but later raised him from the dead to become an immortal god (Autol. 1.13; Dial. Mort. 13.1).

The second-century Christian apologist Theophilus of Antioch affirms that Asclepius “was raised” [using the same Greek word as that used] for the resurrection of Jesus in Matt. 16:21; Mark 14:28; Luke 24:6 [etc.] … Out of mercy, says Lucian, Zeus raised Asclepius not just to a normal human life, but made him participate in immortality … Justin Martyr apparently understands Asclepius’ resurrection to involve a simultaneous ascent to heaven… [12]

The Rod of Asclepius is, to this day, a universal symbol of medicine and healthcare.

 

Heracles (variously known as Hercules) suffered and died upon a funerary pyre, after which he was bodily raised to heaven, leaving not a trace of his mortal remains behind. In the 1st century play Hercules Oetaeus, Hercules appears to his weeping mother Alcmene following his death and apotheosis. He tells her to refrain from mourning, that he has been “granted [his] place in heaven” among the gods (1940-43; cf. John 20:11-15).

A series of Attic and Apulian vases appearing from about 420 BCE show Heracles being bodily carried away to Olympus from his pyre … That Heracles was actually bodily removed from his pyre is also suggested by Diodorus of Sicily, who has Heracles’ companions search for the bones of the hero after his cremation–to no avail (Bibl. Hist. 4.38.5). Heracles’ body is gone, because it has ascended to the divine realm, leaving no remainder (cf. Jesus’ empty tomb). [13]

The Ascension of Heracles

 

After Romulus, first king of Rome, was raised from the dead to become the god Quirinus, he appeared before Proculus to deliver a great commission: “Go, and declare to the Romans the will of heaven that my Rome shall be the capital of the world” (Livy, Hist. 1.16.2-8; cf. Mt. 28:16-20).

Romulus departed from this mortal life and was transformed into an immortal, transcendent being. His metamorphosis was simultaneously an ascent to heaven … Ancient authors agree … that Romulus’ body did disappear. The mortal remains, for those who believed in his ascent, were taken up and transformed for celestial life. On this point, Tertullian explicitly compares Romulus and Jesus: both were “encompassed with a cloud and taken up to heaven” (Apol. 21.23; cf. Acts 1:9-11). For Tertullian’s comparison to work, Romulus must have been taken up bodily, like Jesus. [14]

 

 

[12] M. David Litwa, Iesus Deus: The Early Christian Depiction of Jesus as a Mediterranean God, (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014), 156-57.
[13] Ibid., p. 159.
[14] Ibid., p. 164.

 

https://atheologica.wordpress.com/2016/09/06/ehrman-errs-yes-bart-there-were-dying-rising-gods/

 

 

*Sigh you know drill by now...:

 

 

                             

 

 

Serapis of Egypt 

 

Another god whose story was very similar to that of Christ, the evidence of which was also destroyed, was the Egyptian god Serapis or Sarapis, who was called the “Good Shepherd” and considered a healer. 

 

Walker says of Sarapis: Syncretic god worshipped as a supreme deity in Egypt to the end of the 4th century A.D. The highly popular cult of Sarapis used many trappings that were later adopted by Christians: chants, lights, bells, vestments, processions, music. 

 

Sarapis represented a final transformation of the savior Osiris into a monotheistic figure, virtually identical to the Christian god. . . . This Ptolemaic god was a combination of Osiris and Apis. . . As Christ was a sacrificial lamb, so Sarapis was a sacrificial bull as well as god in human form. 

 

He was annually sacrificed in atonement for the sins of Egypt. . . .cccxxxvii 

 

As we have seen, the image of Serapis, which once stood tall in the Serapion/Serapeum at Alexandria, was adopted by the later Christians as the image of Jesus, and the cult of Serapis was considered that of the original Christians. As Albert Churchward states: The Catacombs of Rome are crowded with illustrations that were reproduced as Egypto-gnostic tenets, doctrines, and dogmas which had served to Persian, Greek, Roman, and Jew as evidence of the non-historic origins of Christianity. 

 

In the transition from the old Egyptian religion to the new Cult of Christianity there was no factor of profounder importance than the worship of Serapis. 

 

As the Emperor Hadrian relates, in his letter to Servianus, “Those who worship Serapis are likewise Christians: even those who style themselves the Bishops of Christ are devoted to Serapis.”cccxxxviii 

 

cccxxxvii. Barbera Walker, Woman’s Encyclopedia for Myths and Secrets (893). 

 

cccxxxviii. Albert Churchward The Origins And Evolution Of Religion (367)

 

For more information regarding the Authentisity of Hadrian letter as well as IP's strawman arguement of "all men in the ancient world had beards therefore all men by this logic must be a copy of Serapis" please read Christ Conspiracy  by D.M Murdock also I shall make in article in the future adressing these issues.

 

https://lost-history.com/serapis.php

 

http://stephanhuller.blogspot.com/2009/09/opening-words-of-tertullian-against.html

 

https://www.jesusneverexisted.com/syncretism.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Twice the "Paganism" double the "Exorcism"

 

 

 

 

 

 

                   

 

 

 

                    

 

Tammuz/Adonis

 

 

“It is outside the laws of probability that by chance so many of the virgin mothers bear the same name Mary or the equivalent namely: Hermes or Mercury born of the virgin Myrrah (Mary) Bacchus born of the virgin Myrrah (Mary) and Adonis born of the virgin Myrrah (Mary)”  

 

Anthony J Fisichella One Solitary Life: Book III - the Christ Epoch (118)

 

 

"-Cybele, Aphrodite, Demeter, Astarte, Isis, Hathor, Inanna and Ishtar. Like them she (Mary) is both Virgin and Mother and like many of them she gives birth to a half-human half-divine child who dies and is reborn"

 

Anne Baring and Jules Cashford The Myth of the Goddess: Evolution Of An Image (548)

 

 

"The god Tammuz, worshipped by pagans in northern Israel, was said to have been born to the virgin Myrrha. The name "Myrrha" superficially resembles "Mary/Miriam" and it is possible that this particular virgin birth story influenced the Mary story more than the others. Like Jesus, Tammuz was always called Adon, meaning "Lord." (The character Adonis in Greek mythology is based on Tammuz.)"

 

ben yehoshua Hayyim The Myth of The Historical Veracity of Jesus

 

 

 

"In the holy marriage Inanna is the sister, the wife, or the bride of Tammuz. She can also function as his mother. Moreover she is represented as a virgin. She is the Virgin-Mother i.e. the goddess who brings forth life spontanously out of herself." 

 

Claas Jouco Bleeker: The Sacred Bridge: Researches into the Nature and Structure of Religion. (92)

 

 

Bethlehem 

 

As was admitted by the early Christian doctor Jerome, the “little town of Bethlehem” was a sacred grove devoted to the Syrian solar-fertility-savior god Adonis (Tammuz), who was born hundreds of years before the Christian era in the same cave later held to be that of the birthplace of Jesus. 

 

Like Jesus, Adonis was born on December 25thdxvi of the Virgin Myrrha, who was: . . . a temple-woman or hierodule, identified with Mary by early Christians, who called Jesus’s mother Myrrh of the Sea. . . . Syrian Adonis died at Easter time. . . Adonis died and rose again in periodic cycles, like all gods of vegetation and fertility. 

 

He was also identified with the sun that died and rose again in heaven.dxvii 

 

As noted, Adonis/Tammuz was a favorite Semitic and Hebrew god, and each year during his passion in Jerusalem, women “wailed for the dead savior Tammuz in the temple of Jerusalem, where Ishtar was worshipped as Mari, Queen of Heaven (Ezekiel 8:14).”dxviii At this time, Adonis/Tammuz wore a “crown of thorns” made of myrrh. Walker relates of Tammuz: The Christos or sacred king annually sacrificed in the temple at Jerusalem . . . the Romans called Tammuz the chief god of the Jews. . . . A month of the Jewish calendar is still named after Tammuz . . . Tammuz was imported from Babylon by the Jews, but he was even older than Babylon. 

 

He began as the Sumerian savior-god Dumuzi, or Damu, “only-begotten Son,” or “Son of the Blood.” He fertilized the earth with his blood at the time of his death, and was called Healer, Savior, Heavenly Shepherd.

 

 He tended the flocks of stars, which were considered souls of the dead in heaven. 

 

Each year on the Day of Atonement he was sacrificed in the form of a lamb . . . Though Tammuz occupied the central position in the sacred drama at Jerusalem, the New Testament transformed him into a mere apostle of the new dying god, under the Greek form of his name, Thomas.dxix 

 

As a fertility god, Adonis/Tammuz was representative of “the spirit of the corn,” and “Bethlehem” means, the “House of Bread,” “House of Corn,” or “house of bread- corn, grain or wheat.”dxx 

 

This motif is passed down in the Christian myth when Jesus, like his predecessor Horus, says, “I am the bread of life” (Jn. 6:48). Like so many other places in Israel, Bethlehem was first situated in the mythos and then given location on Earth.

 

The gods Wittoba and Adonis were also crucified and “sidewounded” saviors.dlxxviii 

 

 

dxvi. Thomas Doane Bible Myths And There Parallels In Other Religions (364) 

 

dxvii. Barbera Walker Woman’s Encyclopedia Of Myths And Secrets (10) 

 

dxviii. Barbera Walker Woman’s Encyclopedia of Myths and Legends (1026) 

 

dxix.  Barbera Walker Woman’s Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets (970-1) 

 

Dxx. Gerald Massey, Historical Jesus And The Mythical Christ (27)

 

dlxxviii Thomas Doan Bible Myths and There Parallels In Other Religions (185) (218) 

 

 

 

 

 

"The crucified Iao (“Divine Love” personified) is the crucified Adonis, or Tammuz (the Jewish Adonai), the Sun, who was put to death by the wild boar of Aries–one of the twelve signs of the zodiac. The crucifixion of “Divine Love” is often found among the Greeks. Hera or Juno, according to the Iliad, was bound with fetters and suspended in space, between heaven and earth. Ixion, Prometheus, and Apollo of Miletus were all crucified."

 

Sarah Titcomb Aryan Sun Myths: The Origins of Religions (132)

 

 

 

 

Adonis

The Sumerian Dumuzi (in Syria Tammuz) and the Canaanite god Baal are two examples of vegetation gods. In the Sumerian Inanna’s Descent to the Nether World, we are told about the siblings Geshtinanna and Dumuzi who take it in turns to spend one half of the year in the Nether World and the other half on earth. Each winter, when drought killed vegetation, Dumuzi died. And when vegetation returned in spring, he was regarded as having been born anew.

The god Adon was worshiped in Phoenicia (present Mediterranean coast of Lebanon and Syria).[9] In Greece, he went by the name Adonis. This is probably the same god as Dumuzi and Tammuz.[10] His life and death is depicted in two different tales. According to the one, a pre-Christian story, Adonis is killed by a boar during hunting. Aphrodite finds the dying Adonis and bursts out in grief: “every year an imitation of your death will complete a re-enactment of my mourning.”[11]

According to the other tale, Adonis is born of Smyrna, who after she is turned into a tree is also called Myrrha. One of the oldest types of worship is that of trees. One example is Dionysus, who often was depicted as hung on a tree or of being the tree. Being hung on wood or on a tree is to be equated with being affixed to a cross. Actually, there is no word in Greek for crucifixion. In the New Testament, Jesus is either said to have been impaled (Greek: stauros = an upright pale, stake or pole; the verb stauroo = to affix to a stauros) or to have been hung on wood (Greek: xylon = a piece of wood, or timber). The Greek word stauros has no connotation of crossbeam. The idea that Jesus was nailed to a cross and not to a stake is a mere assumption from our belief that the Romans at the time used two-beamed “crosses”. However, this is never explicitly said in the New Testament. Consequently, there is no difference between the Christian and the pagan conception, as they are expressed in the writings.

The Greek goddess of love, Aphrodite, puts the new-born Adonis in a chest, takes him to the queen of the underworld, Persephone, and asks her to take care of the child for a while. But when Persephone sees how beautiful Adonis is, she refuses to give him back to Aphrodite. The drama ends with Zeus having to mediate and he decides that Adonis will spend winter in the underworld with Persephone and summer on earth, among the living, along with Aphrodite. The rest of the time he may stay where he wants, and he chooses the light and the warmth above. Each winter Adonis is forced to descend to Persephone in the Kingdom of the dead and each spring, as vegetation returns, he is born anew as he ascends from the Kingdom of the Dead. Afterwards, he is killed by a boar.[12]

This story is approximately contemporary with the Gospels, but it is based upon the Greek poet Panyassis,[13] who wrote in the early fifth century BCE, and we know that the myth is old since it is reproduced in an image on a mirror found in Orbetello; a mirror dated back to the third century BCE or earlier.[14]

Almost all testimonies of Adonis come from classical sources, which are often late. In the Greek version of the myth, there is no resurrection. Adonis, who has ordinary mortal parents, dies in a hunting accident and he is buried. In annual funeral festivals in Athens and probably also in other places in Greece, his death was mourned. Very early sources report how the women pounded their chests in despair.[15] The cultic celebration took place during the dry period when vegetation died (the later part of July) and there was possibly a celebration in spring as well.

But Adonis has his abode in the eastern Mediterranean area. Unfortunately, there are no unambiguous sources from this area. The name Adonis contains the West Semitic word Adon, which means “Lord”, the same word the Jews used and still use for their God. Remains in Byblos from the 10th century BCE and an allusion in one of the Amarna letters (nr. 84) from the 14th century BCE, might indicate that Adonis was seen as a god who rose from the dead.[16] This seems plausible also since Adonis is so closely connected with vegetation. The Greek poet Theocritus, who flourished during the first half of the third century BCE, identifies Adonis with the grains of corn and says that Adonis spends six months inside the earth along with Persephone and six months on earth with Aphrodite.[17] But Adonis is above all a god who was linked to barrenness and death.

According to Origen, the Greek Adonis was the same god as Tammuz of the Jews and the Syrians. He claims that...

 

... they say that for a long time certain rites of initiation are conducted: first, that they weep for him, since he has died; second, that they rejoice for him because he has risen from the dead. (Origen, Comments on Ezekiel, 8:12; quoted by Richard Carrier)

 

Porphyry (c. 233-309 CE) says that Adonis is a symbol of the harvest of ripe fruit.[18] In the East, the cultic celebration seems to have taken place in July. Also the celebration of Dumuzi took place in July. We find the oldest unambiguous proof of the resurrection of Adonis in De Syria dea, written in the second century CE, possibly by Lucian. There it says that the cult participants...

 

... in memory of that misfortune [Adonis’ death] every year they beat their breasts and mourn and perform the ceremonies, making solemn lamentations throughout the country. And when the breast-beating and weeping is at end, first they make offerings to Adon as if to a dead person; and then, on the next day, they proclaim that he is alive and fetch him forth into the air, and shave their heads as the Egyptians do when Apis dies. (Lucian of Samosata [c. 120-185 CE], De Syria dea, 6)

 

According to this report, Adonis’ resurrection was celebrated annually. The symbolic resurrection seems to have occurred on the second day. But Tryggve Mettinger, like previously Wolf Wilhelm Graf von Baudissin, interprets De Syria dea 6 in such a way, that the third day was possibly intended.[19]

Therefore, it may be regarded as an established fact that in the East, the followers of the cult of Adonis asserted that their god had resurrected from the dead and that everything indicates that this conception is pre-Christian.

 

 

[9] In dealing with Adonis, I have consulted Tryggve N. D. Mettinger, The Riddle of Resurrection: ”Dying and Rising Gods” in the Ancient Near East, (Stockholm 2001), p. 113–154.

 

[10] Origen in Selecta in Ezechielem, 8:12 and Jerome in Explan. in Ezech, 3:8:14 claim that Tammuz and Adonis are the same god. (Mettinger, p. 129)

 

[11] “Immediately the fierce boar dislodged the blood-stained spear, with its crooked snout, and chased the youth, who was scared and running hard. It sank its tusk into his groin, and flung him, dying, on the yellow sand. .. When, from the heights, she saw the lifeless body, lying in its own blood, she leapt down, tearing her clothes, and tearing at her hair, as well, and beat at her breasts with fierce hands, complaining to the fates. ‘And yet not everything is in your power’ she said. ‘Adonis, there shall be an everlasting token of my grief, and every year an imitation of your death will complete a re-enactment of my mourning. But your blood will be changed into a flower.” (Ovid [43 BCE–18 CE], Metamorphoses, 10:708ff [written in 1 CE])

 

[12] “And Adonis, while still a boy, was wounded and killed in hunting by a boar through the anger of Artemis. Hesiod, however, affirms that he was a son of Phoenix and Alphesiboea; and Panyasis says that he was a son of Thias, king of Assyria, who had a daughter Smyrna. In consequence of the wrath of Aphrodite, for she did not honor the goddess, this Smyrna conceived a passion for her father, and with the complicity of her nurse she shared her father’s bed without his knowledge for twelve nights. But when he was aware of it, he drew his sword and pursued her, and being overtaken she prayed to the gods that she might be invisible; so the gods in compassion turned her into the tree which they call smyrna (myrrh). Ten months afterwards the tree burst and Adonis, as he is called, was born, whom for the sake of his beauty, while he was still an infant, Aphrodite hid in a chest unknown to the gods and entrusted to Persephone. But when Persephone beheld him, she would not give him back. The case being tried before Zeus, the year was divided into three parts, and the god ordained that Adonis should stay by himself for one part of the year, with Persephone for one part, and with Aphrodite for the remainder. However Adonis made over to Aphrodite his own share in addition; but afterwards in hunting he was gored and killed by a boar.” (Pseudo-Apollodorus, The Library, 3:14:4) The writer is said to be Apollodorus and he was previously thought to be Apollodorus of Athens, who was born around 180 BCE. But modern scholarship believes Bibliotheca was written by an unknown author in the first–second century CE.

 

[13] “... and Panyasis says that he was a son of Thias, king of Assyria, who had a daughter Smyrna.” (Pseudo-Apollodorus, The Library, 3:14:4)

 

[14] Tryggve N. D. Mettinger, The Riddle of Resurrection, p. 119-120.

 

[15] In the sixth century BCE, the Greek female poet Sappho speaks of the mourning women (fragment 140a). So does also Aristophanes in the year 411 BCE (Lysistrata 387–396). Ovid (43 BCE–18 CE) “refers to an annual celebration in memory of Adonis’ death”. Plutarch in Alkibiades 18:2–3, describes the mourning of Adonis in the fifth century BCE. (Mettinger, p. 116-117)

 

[16] Tryggve N. D. Mettinger, The Riddle of Resurrection, p. 115, 126, 137-146, 148.

 

[17] Tryggve N. D. Mettinger, The Riddle of Resurrection, p. 131; refers to “Scholia in Theocritum III, 48 (Wendel 1914: 131)”.

“Ah, and himself - Adonis - how beautiful to behold he lies on his silver couch, with the first down on his cheeks, the thrice-beloved Adonis, - Adonis beloved even among the dead. ... O Aphrodite, that playest with gold, lo, from the stream eternal of Acheron they have brought back to thee Adonis - even in the twelfth month they have brought him, the dainty-footed Hours. ... Before him lie all ripe fruits that the tall trees’ branches bear, and the delicate gardens, arrayed in baskets of silver, and the golden vessels are full of incense of Syria. And all the dainty cakes that women fashion in the kneading-tray, mingling blossoms manifold with the white wheaten flour, all that is wrought of honey sweet, and in soft olive oil, all cakes fashioned in the semblance of things that fly, and of things that creep, lo, here they are set before him. ... But lo, in the morning we will all of us gather with the dew, and carry him forth among the waves that break upon the beach, and with locks unloosed, and ungirt raiment falling to the ankles, and bosoms bare will we begin our shrill sweet song. ... Thou only, dear Adonis, so men tell, thou only of the demigods dost visit both this world and the stream of Acheron. ... Be gracious now, dear Adonis, and propitious even in the coming year. Dear to us has thine advent been, Adonis, and dear shall it be when thou comest again. ... Farewell, beloved Adonis, may you find us glad at your next coming!” (Theocritus, Idyls 15. “It describes the visit paid by two Syracusan women residing in Alexandria, to the festival of the resurrection of Adonis.”)

 

[18] “Attis, too, and Adonis are related to the analogy of fruits. Attis is the symbol of the blossoms which appear early in the spring, and fall off before the complete fertilization; whence they further attributed castration to him, from the fruits not having attained to seminal perfection: but Adonis was the symbol of the cutting of the perfect fruits.” 

(Porphyry, On Images, fragment 7)

 

[19] Tryggve N. D. Mettinger, The Riddle of Resurrection, p. 215.

 

Adonis

Adonis was the title of at least one if not several resurrected saviors by the time Christianity began, sometimes equated with Tammuz, or possibly only confused with Tammuz, but either way certainly a resurrected god. Tryggve Mettinger’s detailed study The Riddle of Resurrection: “Dying and Rising Gods” in the Ancient Near East (2001) includes discussion of the pre-Christian manuscript of a private letter in which a man likens his ability to survive several deadly uprisings to Tammuz’s ability to always return from the dead (p. 201), which would certainly suggest Tammuz had by then become the center of his own resurrection cult. This is the same god for whose death even women in Jerusalem mourned (Ezekiel 8:14-15). There is no evidence he remained dead; that letter alone attests it was commonly known he returned to life.

In the 3rd century A.D. the Christian scholar Origen says in his Comments on Ezekiel (explaining the very same passage) that Tammuz was still worshiped in his own day under the title of Adonis, and as such “certain rites of initiation are conducted” for him, “first, that they weep for him, since he has died; second, that they rejoice for him because he has risen from the dead” (apo nekrôn anastanti). This is confirmed a century later by Jerome (Commentary on Ezekiel 3.8.14). Recent pre-Christian finds attest that indeed a period of rejoicing followed mourning the death of Tammuz, which matches Origen’s description (see Benjamin Foster’s discussion of this new evidence in “Descent of Ishtar to the Netherworld,” Before the Muses: An Anthology of Akkadian Literature [3rd ed., 2005], pp. 498-505). And we have this similarly described by a pagan author (either Lucian or someone else of the second century A.D.), who describes national ceremonies of mourning for Adonis’s death that are followed the next day by celebrations of his returning to life and ascending into outer space. Killed by a beast, he becomes “a dead person,” then he is buried and mourned, and the next day “they proclaim he lives” and he ascends (On the Syrian Goddess 6-8).

It’s far more likely the resurrection of this Adonis had been celebrated long before Christianity began than that it would be a recent innovation. Surely Origen would have known if it were, and made obvious sport of the fact. It would likewise be incredible that even at this early stage major pagan cults celebrated by entire nations would have fundamentally changed their entire religion in emulation of Christianity, which was a little known, wholly uninfluential cult that was rarely liked even when anyone had heard of it. This conclusion is pretty solid when combined with the pre-Christian evidence linking Tammuz to the same returning to life; and other evidence, such as the pre-Christian poem of Theocritus (Idyll 15), which discusses an Adonis celebration in Egypt, in which the death of Adonis is mourned, but then anticipates his return, concluding, “Goodbye, Adonis darling; and I only trust you may find us all thriving when you come next year!”

 

 

Roger Viklund: http://www.jesusgranskad.se/jesus_parallels.htm

 

And The Heathen against our faith Carrier: https://www.richardcarrier.info/archives/13890

 

 

 

    

 

 

 

 

              

 

Myrrah the Virgin mother Adonis (Tammuz) in "Cruciform"

 

https://lost-history.com/dumuzi.php

 

https://lost-history.com/adonis.php

 

https://www.ancient-origins.net/history-famous-people/tammuz-and-jesus-more-distant-connection-009567

 

There is some "heathenry" in the ancient origins article particularly the claims about "differences" but they don't really do anything to discredit the parallels as the differences are

merely cultural.

 

 

Lastly Inanna/Ishtar who was also in some myths the Virgin Mother of Tammuz/Adonis:

 

                          

 

 

 

 

Inanna

Inanna is the earliest known resurrected god. For her, a clear-cut death-and-resurrection tale exists on clay tablets inscribed in Sumeria over a thousand years before Christianity, plainly describing her humiliation, trial, execution, and crucifixion, and her resurrection three days later. After she is stripped naked and judgment is pronounced against her, Inanna is “turned into a corpse” and “the corpse was hung from a nail” and “after three days and three nights” her assistants ask for her corpse and resurrect her (by feeding her the “water” and “food” of life), and “Inanna arose” according to what had been her plan all along, because she knew her father “would surely bring me back to life,” exactly as transpires in the story (quotations are from the tablets, adapting the translation of Samuel Noah Kramer in History Begins at Sumer). This cult continued to be practiced into the Christian period, Tyre being a major center of her worship. By then, there is some evidence her resurrection tale was shifted to her consort Tammuz, one of several resurrected deities the Greeks called Adonis.

 

 

https://www.richardcarrier.info/archives/13890

 

 

 

*Sigh the Paganism never dies sadly:

 

 

 

 

https://inspiringphilosophy.wordpress.com/2018/08/31/godless-engineer-explains-how-jesus-and-inanna-are-perfectly-vaguely-the-same/

 

Before we move foward and look in to the lack of evidence for Jesus existance lets look at parallels between Jesus and various OT Characters:

 

Joseph (Genesis)

 

 

Joseph and Jesus comparisons 

 

 Both were the favorite sons of a wealthy father. Gen 37:3 Mt 3:17 Both were shepherds of their father’s sheep. Gen 37:2 Jn 10:11-14 Both were taken into Egypt to avoid being killed. Gen 37:28 Mt 2:13 Both became servants. Gen 39:4 Phil 2:7 Both began their work at the age of 30 years old. Gen 41:46 Lk 3:23 Both were filled with the Spirit of God. Gen 41:38 Lk 4:1 Both returned good for evil. Gen 50:20 Mt 5:44 Both were humble and unspoiled by wealth. Gen 45:7-8 Jn 13:12 Both were taught by God. Gen 41:16 Jn 5:19 Both loved people freely. Gen 45:15 Jn 13:34 Both gained the confidence of others quickly. Gen 39:3 Mt 8:8 Both gave bread to hungry people who came to them. Gen 41:57 Mk 6:41 Both resisted the most difficult temptations. Gen 39:8-9 Heb 4:15 Both were given visions of the future. Gen 37:6 Mt 24:3 Both tested people to reveal their true nature. Gen 42:25 Mk 11:30 Both were hated for their teachings. Gen 37:8 Jn 7:7 Both were sold for the price of a slave. Gen 37:28 Mt 26:15 Both were falsely accused. Gen 39:14 Mk 14:56 Both were silent before their accusers. Gen 39:20 Mk 15:4 Both were condemned between two prisoners. Gen 40:2-3 Lk 23:32 Both arose into a new life. Gen 41:41 Mk 16:6 Both were not recognized by their own brethren. Gen 42.8 Lk 24:37 Both returned to their father. Gen 46:29 Mk 16:19 Both became royalty. Gen 45:8 Rev 19:16

 

 

Elisha and Elisha:

 

The Miracles of Jesus

The Jesus character possesses a power which Paul is unaware of but the gospel writers bring out into the light. That is Jesus’ ability to perform miracles. The entire story in the Gospel of Mark is constructed on the miracles, and this to such an extent that the story does not keep together if the miracles are eliminated. According to the gospels, Jesus cures the sick, the deaf, the blind, the lame and the mute. He performs exactly what the coming Messiah in Isaiah is predicted to accomplish:

 

Then will the eyes of the blind be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped. Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy. (Isaiah 35:5-6, NIV)

 

Jesus also expels daemons, turns waters into wine, produces food by magic, calms storms and walks on water. He even resurrects people from the dead.

The models existed in the prophets Elijah and Elisha already. Like Jesus, Elijah spends forty days and forty nights without any food in the desert (1 Kings 19:4-8). Elijah feeds for a long time an entire family with only a handful of flour and a little oil (1 King 17:10-16). Elisha satisfies one hundred men with twenty loaves of barley bread, along with some heads of new grain, and nevertheless there is food left (2 Kings 4:42-44). They both raise people from the dead (1 Kings 17:17-23, 2 Kings 4:17-37). Elisha cures people of their leprosy (2 Kings 5:6-14) and turns bad water into fresh and wholesome (2 Kings 2:19-22). Elijah, while still alive, is taken up into heaven in a whirlwind (2 Kings 2:11).

In the Gospel of John, Jesus performs only seven miracles, which are called signs. Each miracle is founded upon the previous. The raising of Lazarus from the dead (John 11:1-44), the holy seventh sign, constitutes the climax and is the promise of Jesus’ own resurrection to come.

The content of the miracle-stories clearly bear the stamp of conceptions generally held at the times. Jesus simply worked such miracles as the people of the time though that prophets were able to perform. Today, a divine character of that kind would not need to expel daemons. And as it turns out, there actually are parallels in contemporary literature to every miracle Jesus is said to have performed.

 

Roger Viklund: http://www.jesusgranskad.se/jesus_parallels.htm

 

 

 

 

 

         

 

 

 

 

 

Here is an excerpt from Caesars Messiah concerning this issue:

 

 In the popular mind, and in the minds of most scholars, the origin of Christianity is clear: The religion began as a movement of the lower-class followers of a radical Jewish teacher during the first century C.E. For a number of reasons, however, I did not share this certainty. There were many gods worshiped during Jesus' era that are now seen as fictitious, and no archeological evidence of his existence has ever been found. What contributed most to my skepticism was that at the exact time when the followers of Jesus were purportedly organizing themselves into a religion that urged its members to "turn the other cheek" and to "give to Caesar what is Caesar's," another Judean sect was waging a religious war against the Romans. This sect, the Sicarii, also believed in the coming of a Messiah, but not one who advocated peace. They sought a Messiah who would lead them militarily. It seemed implausible that two diametrically opposite forms of messianic Judaism would have emerged from Judea at the same time. This is why the Dead Sea Scrolls were of such interest to me, and I began what turned into a decade-long study of them. Like so many others, I was hoping to learn something of Christianity's origins in the 2,000-year-old documents found at Qumran. I also began studying the other two major works from this era, the New Testament and War of the Jews by Flavius Josephus, an adopted member of the imperial family; I hoped to determine how the Scrolls related to them. While reading these two works side by side, I noticed a connection between them. Certain events from the ministry of Jesus seem to closely parallel episodes from the military campaign of the Roman emperor Titus Flavius as he attempted to gain control of the rebellious Jews in Judea. My efforts to understand this relationship led me to uncover the amazing secret that is the subject of this book: This imperial family, the Flavians, created Christianity, and, even more incredibly, they incorporated a skillful satire of the Jews in the Gospels and War of the Jews to inform posterity of this fact. The Flavian dynasty lasted from 69 to 96 C.E., the period when most scholars believe the Gospels were written. It consisted of three Caesars: Vespasian and his two sons, Titus and Domitian. Flavius Josephus, the adopted member of the family who wrote War of the Jews, was their official historian. The satire they created is difficult to see. If it were otherwise, it would not have remained unnoticed for two millennia. However, as readers may judge for themselves, the path that the Flavians left for us is a clear one. All that is really needed to walk down it is an open mind. But why then has the satirical relationship between Jesus and Titus not been noticed before? This question is especially apt in light of the fact that the works that reveal their satire—the New Testament and the histories of Josephus—are perhaps the most scrutinized books in literature. The only explanation I can offer is that viewing the Gospels as satire—that is, as a literary composition (as opposed to a history) in which human folly is held up to ridicule—requires the reader to contradict a deeply ingrained belief. Once Jesus was universally established as a world-historical individual, any other possibility became, evidentially, invisible. The more we believed in Jesus as a world-historical figure, the less we were able to understand him in any other way. To understand why the Flavians decided to create Christianity, one needs to understand the political conditions that the family faced in Judea in 74 C.E., following their defeat of the Sicarii, a movement of messianic Jews. The process that ultimately led to the Flavians' control over Judea was part of a broader and longer struggle, that between Judaism and Hellenism. Judaism, which was based upon monotheism  and faith, was simply incompatible with Hellenism, the Greek culture that promoted polytheism and rationalism. Hellenism spread into Judea after Alexander the Great conquered the area, in 333 B.C.E. Alexander and his successors established cities throughout their empire to act as centers of commerce and administration. They set up more than 30 Greek cities within Judea itself. The people of Judea, in spite of their historical resistance to outside influences, began to incorporate certain traits of the Greek ruling class into their culture. Many Semites found it desirable, if not necessary, to speak Greek. Wealthy Jews sought a Greek education for their young men. Gymnasia introduced Jewish students to Greek myths, sports, music, and arts. The Seleucids, descendants of Seleucus, the commander of Alexander's elite guard, gained control over the region from the Ptolemies, the descendants of another of Alexander's generals, in 200 B.C.E. When Antiochus IV (or as he preferred, Epiphanes—that is, god manifest) became the Seleucid ruler in 169 B.C.E., he began Judea's nightmare. Antiochus was openly contemptuous of Judaism and wanted to modernize Jewish religion and culture. He installed high priests who were supportive of his policies. When a rebellion against Hellenization broke out, in 168 B.C.E., Antiochus ordered his army to attack Jerusalem. Second Maccabees records the number of Jews slain in the battle as 40,000, with another 40,000 taken captive and enslaved. Antiochus emptied the temple of its treasury, violated the holy of holies, and intensified his policy of Hellenization. He ordered the observances of the Hebrew cult be replaced with Hellenistic worship. He banned circumcision and sacrifice, instituted a monthly observance of his birthday, and placed a statue of Zeus on the Temple Mount. In 167 B.C.E., the Maccabees, a family of religiously zealous Jews, led a revolution against Antiochus' imposition of Hellenistic customs and religions. They sought to restore to power the religion that they believed was mandated by God in his holy land. The Maccabees compelled the inhabitants of the cities they conquered to convert to Judaism. Males either permitted themselves to be circum cised or were slain. After a 20-year struggle, the Maccabees eventually prevailed against the Seleucids. To quote 1 Maccabees, "the yoke of the Gentiles was removed from Israel" (13:41). Though the Maccabees went on to rule Israel for more than 100 years, their kingdom was never secure. The Seleucid threat to the region was replaced by an even greater one from Rome. Roman expansionism and Hellenistic culture constantly threatened to engulf the religious state that the Maccabees had established. In 65 B.C.E., a civil war broke out between two Maccabean rivals for the throne. It was at this time that Antipater the Edomite, the wily father of Herod, appeared on the scene. Antipater helped bring about a Roman intervention in the civil war, and when Pompey sent his legate Scaurus into Judea with a Roman army, it marked the beginning of the end of the Maccabean religious state. For the next 30 years (65-37 B.C.E.), Judea suffered through one war after another. In 40 B.C.E., the last Maccabean ruler, Mattathias Antigonus, seized control of the country. By this time, however, the Herodian family was firmly established as Rome's surrogate in the region and, with Roman support, defeated Mattathias' army and gained control of Judea. Following the destruction of the Maccabean state, the Sicarii, a new movement against Roman and Herodian control, emerged. This was a movement of lower-class Jews, originally called Zealots, who continued the Maccabees' religious struggle against the control of Judea by outsiders and sought to restore "Eretz Israel." The efforts of the Sicarii reached a climax in 66 C.E. when they succeeded in driving the Roman forces from the country. The Emperor Nero ordered Vespasian to enter Judea with a large army and end the revolt. The violent struggle that ensued left the country devastated and concluded when Rome captured Masada in 73 C.E. In the midst of the Judean war, forces loyal to the Flavian family in Rome revolted against the last of the Julio-Claudian emperors, Vitellius, and seized the capital. Vespasian returned to Rome to be proclaimed emperor, leaving his son Titus in Judea to finish off the rebels. Following the war, the Flavians shared control over this region between Egypt and Syria with two families of powerful Hellenized Jews: the Herods and the Alexanders. These three families shared a common financial interest in preventing any future revolts. They also shared a long-standing and intricate personal relationship that can be traced to the household of Antonia, the mother of the Emperor Claudius. Antonia employed Julius Alexander Lysimarchus, the abalarch, or ruler, of the Jews of Alexandria, as her financial steward in around 45 C.E. Julius was the elder brother of the famous Jewish philosopher Philo Judeaus, the leading intellectual figure of Hellenistic Judaism. Philo's writings attempted to merge Judaism with Platonic philosophy. Scholars believe that his work provided the authors of the Gospels with some of their religious and philosophical perspective. Antonia's private secretary, Caenis, was also the long-term mistress of Vespasian. Julius Alexander Lysimarchus and Vespasian would therefore have known one another through their shared connection with the household of Antonia. Julius had two sons. The elder, Marcus, married Herod's niece Bernice as a teenager, creating a bond between the Alexanders and the Herods, the Roman-sponsored ruling family of Judea. Marcus died young and Bernice eventually became the mistress of Vespasian's son Titus. Bernice thereby connected the Flavians and the Alexanders, the family of her first husband, to her family, the Herods. Julius' younger son, Tiberius Alexander, was another important link between the families. He inherited his father's entire estate after the death of his brother Marcus, making him one of the richest men in the world. He renounced Judaism and assisted the Flavians with their war against the Jews, contributing both money and troops, as did the Herodian family. Tiberius was the first to publicly declare his allegiance to Vespasian as emperor and thereby helped begin the Flavian dynasty. When Vespasian returned to Rome to assume the mantle of emperor, he left Tiberius behind to assist his son Titus with the destruction of Jerusalem. Though the three families had been able to put down the revolt, they still faced a potential threat. Many Jews continued to believe that God would send a Messiah, a son of David, who would lead them against the enemies of Judea. Flavius Josephus records that what had "most elevated" the Sicarii to fight against Rome was their  belief that God would send a Messiah to Israel who would lead his faithful to military victory. Though the Flavians, Herods, and Alexanders had ended the Jewish revolt, the families had not destroyed the messianic religion of the Jewish rebels. The families needed to find a way to prevent the Zealots from inspiring future uprisings through their belief in a coming warrior Messiah. Then someone from within this circle had an inspiration, one that changed history. The way to tame messianic Judaism would be to simply transform it into a religion that would cooperate with the Roman Empire. To achieve this goal would require a new type of messianic literature. Thus, what we know as the Christian Gospels were created. In a convergence unique in history, the Flavians, Herods, and Alexanders brought together the elements necessary for the creation and implementation of Christianity. They had the financial motivation to replace the militaristic religion of the Sicarii, the expertise in Judaism and philosophy necessary to create the Gospels, and the knowledge and bureaucracy required to implement a religion (the Flavians created and maintained a number of religions other than Christianity). Moreover, these families were the absolute rulers over the territories where the first Christian congregations began. To produce the Gospels required a deep understanding of Judaic literature. The Gospels would not simply replace the literature of the old religion, but would be written in such a way as to demonstrate that Christianity was the fulfillment of the prophecies of Judaism and had therefore grown directly from it. To achieve these effects, the Flavian intellectuals made use of a technique used throughout Judaic literature—typology. In its most basic sense typology is simply the use of prior events to provide form and context for subsequent ones. If one sits for a painting, for example, he or she is the "type" of the painting, the thing it was based upon. Typology is used throughout Judaic literature as a way of transferring information and meaning from one story to another. For example, the Book of Esther uses type scenes from the story of Joseph in the Book of Genesis, so that the alert reader will understand that Esther and Mordecai are repeating the role of Joseph as an agent of God. JOSEPH Rises to high position in the Egyptian government through his beauty and wisdom Josephs good deed (interpreting the butler's dream) is forgotten for a long time A character refuses to listen— "she spoke to Joseph every day but he refused to listen" (Gen 38:10) Pharaoh's chief servant is hanged Joseph reveals his identity to Pharaoh after a feast ESTHER/MORDECAI Esther rises to high position in the Persian government through her beauty and wisdom Mordecai's good deed (saving the king's life) is forgotten for a long time Character refuses to listen— "they told him every day but he refused to listen" (Est. 3:4) The king's chief servant is hanged Esther reveals her identity to the king after a feast The authors of the Gospels used typology to create the impression that events from the lives of prior Hebrew prophets were types of events from Jesus' life. In doing so, they were trying to convince their readers that their story of Jesus was a continuation of the divine relationship that existed between the Hebrew prophets and God. At the very beginning of the Gospels, the authors created a crystal-clear typological relationship between Jesus and Moses. The authors placed this sequence at the beginning of their work to show the reader how the real meaning of the New Testament will be revealed. The sequence begins in Matthew 2:13, where Joseph is described as bringing Jesus, who represents the "new Israel," down to Egypt. This event parallels Genesis 45-50, where a previous Joseph brought the "old Israel" down to Egypt. The authors of the Gospels associated their Joseph with the prior one by means of more than just a shared name and a journey to Egypt. The New Testament Joseph is described, like his counterpart in the Hebrew Bible, as a dreamer of dreams and as having encounters with a star and wise men. Both stories regarding the journey of a Joseph to Egypt are immediately followed by a description of a massacre of innocents. The stories concerning the massacre of innocents are not exactly parallel. Jesus is not, for example, saved by being put in a boat on the river Jordan and then by being adopted by Herod's daughter. The typology used within Judaic literature does not require verbatim quotations or descriptions; rather, the author takes only enough information from the event that is being used as the type to allow the reader to recognize that the prior event relates to the one being described. In this case, each massacre of the innocents' story depicts young children being slaughtered by a fearful tyrant, but the future savior of Israel being saved. The authors of the New Testament then continue mirroring Exodus by having an angel tell Joseph, "They are dead which sought the young child's life" (Matt. 2:20). This statement is a clear parallel to the statement made to Moses, the first savior of Israel, in Exodus 12: "All the men are dead which sought thy life." The parallels then continue with Jesus receiving a baptism (Matt. 3:13), which mirrors the baptism of the Israelites described in Exodus 14. Next, Jesus spends 40 days in the desert, which parallels the 40 years the Israelites spend in the wilderness. Both sojourns in the desert involve three sets of temptations. In Exodus, it is God who is tempted; in the Gospels, it is Jesus, the son of God. In Exodus, it is the Israelites who tempt God. They first tempt him by asking for bread, at which time they learn that "man does not live by bread alone" (Ex. 16). The second time is at Massah, where they are told to not "tempt the Lord" (Ex. 17). On the third occasion, when they make the golden calf at Mount Sinai (Ex. 32), they learn to "fear the Lord thy God and serve only him." Jesus' three temptations are by the devil and are a mirror of God's temptations by the Israelites, as his responses show. To his first temptation (Matt. 4:4) he replies, "Man shall not live by bread alone." To the second (Matt. 4:7) he replies, "Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God." And to the third (Matt. 4:10) he replies, "Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and only him shalt thou serve." Though the parallels between Jesus and Moses are typological and not verbatim, the sequence in which these events occur is. This is surely no accident but proof that Moses, the first savior of Israel, is used as a type for Jesus, the second savior of Israel.

OLD TESTAMENT MATTHEW Gen. 45-50 Joseph takes old Israel 2:13 Joseph brings new Israel down to Egypt down to Egypt Ex. 1 Pharaoh massacres boys 2:16 Herod massacres boys Ex. 4 "All the men are dead ..." 2:20 "They are dead ..." Ex. 12 From Egypt to Israel 2:21 From Egypt to Israel Ex. 14 Passing through water (baptism)3:13 Baptism Ex. 16 Tempted by bread 4:4 Tempted by bread Ex. 17 Do not tempt God 4:7 Do not tempt God Ex. 32 Worship only God 4:10 Worship only God The typological sequence in Matthew that establishes Jesus as the new savior of Israel is well known to scholars. What has not been widely recognized is that the story also reveals the political perspective of the authors of the New Testament. In the Hebrew Bible it is the Israelites who tempt God, but notice that the devil takes their place in the parallel New Testament story. This equating of the Israelites with the devil is consistent with what the Flavians thought of the messianic Jews, that they were demons. Moreover, the parallel sequences demonstrate that the Gospels were designed to be read intertextually, that is, in direct relationship to the other books of the Bible. This is the only way that literature based on types can be understood. In other words, as the example concerning Jesus' infancy illustrates, to understand the Gospels' meaning a reader must recognize that the concepts, sequences, and locations in Matthew are parallel to the concepts, sequences, and locations in Genesis and Exodus, where their context has already been established. By using scenes from Judaic literature as types for events in Jesus' ministry, the authors hoped to convince their readers that the Gospels were a continuation of the Hebrew literature that had inspired the Sicarii to revolt and that, therefore, Jesus was the Messiah whom the rebels were hoping God would send them. In this way, they would strip messianic Judaism of its power to spawn insurrections, since the Messiah was no longer coming but had already come. Further, the Messiah was not the xenophobic military leader that the Sicarii were expecting, but rather a multiculturist who urged his followers to "turn the other cheek." If the Gospels achieved only the replacement of the militaristic messianic movement with a pacifistic one, they would have been one of the most successful pieces of propaganda in history. But the authors wanted even more. They wanted not merely to pacify the religious warriors of Judea but to make them worship Caesar as a god. And they wanted to inform posterity that they had done so. The populations of the Roman provinces were permitted to worship in any way they wished, with one exception; they had to allow Caesar to be worshiped in their temples. This was incompatible with monotheistic Judaism. At the end of the 66-73 C.E. war Flavius Josephus recorded that no matter how Titus tortured the Sicarii, they refused to call him "Lord." To circumvent the Jews' religious stubbornness, the Flavians therefore created a religion that worshiped Caesar without its followers knowing it. To achieve this, they used the same typological method they had used to link Jesus to Moses, creating parallel concepts, sequences, and locations. They created Jesus' entire ministry as a "type" of the military campaign of Titus. In other words, events from Jesus' ministry parallel events from Titus' campaign. To prove that these typological scenes were not accidental, the authors placed them in the same sequence and in the same locations in the Gospels as they had occurred in Titus' campaign. The parallel scenes were designed to create another story line than the one that appears on the surface. This typological story line reveals that the Jesus who interacted with the disciples following the crucifixion, the actual Jesus that Christians have unwittingly worshiped for 2,000 years, was Titus Flavius. The discovery of the Flavian invention of Christianity creates a new understanding of the entire first century C.E. Such a revelation is disorienting, and the reader will find the following points useful in understanding the new history that this work presents. • Christianity did not originate among the lower classes in Judea. It was a creation of a Roman imperial family, the Flavians. I • The Gospels were not written by the followers of a Jewish Messiah but by the intellectual circle surrounding the three Flavian emperors: Vespasian and his two sons, Titus and Domitian. • The Gospels were written following the 66-73 C.E. war between the Romans and the Jews, and many of the events of Jesus' ministry are satirical depictions of events from that war. • The purpose of Christianity was supersession. It was designed to replace the nationalistic and militaristic messianic movement in Judea with a religion that was pacifistic and would accept Roman rule. I developed these findings over the past few years, but delayed publishing them for a number of reasons. Though I am no longer a Christian, I see Christianity, on the whole, as valuable to society. I certainly did not wish to publish a work that might cause it substantial damage. Further, I was aware that the nature of the discoveries might have some negative effect even on some non-Christians. I did not want to contribute to the cynicism of our age. At the same time, I knew that this information would be valuable to many. Eventually, my concern about not disclosing these findings simply overcame my fear of the possible impact. So, after 2,000 years of misunderstanding, a new meaning of the Gospels is revealed within this work. By turning this page, readers will enter a new world. I do not know if it is a better world. I only know that I believe it is a truer one.

 

 

In what ways was Moses similar to Jesus?

The life of Moses in many ways parallels the life of Jesus. The role Moses plays in delivering the Israelites from the Egyptians and leading them to the Promised Land God had prepared for them foreshadows Jesus bringing salvation to humanity. In fact, Moses told the Israelites, "The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers—it is to him you shall listen" (Deuteronomy 18:15). This promised Prophet is Messiah—Jesus fulfills that promise. Here are some of the similarities in their stories.

Moses and Jesus were both born during times when God's people were being oppressed. Moses was born when the Hebrews were slaves in Egypt and Jesus was born when Israel was under Roman rule. They both were hidden as babies because the leaders of the time wanted them dead. Pharaoh ordered all Hebrew males to be murdered to control the growth of the population. When he was three months old, Moses' mother put him in a basket along the Nile river where he was found and adopted by a daughter of Pharaoh (Exodus 2). King Herod feared the prophecies of Jesus' birth and ordered all boys under two be killed in Bethlehem. Jesus' parents fled to Egypt until Herod had died (Matthew 2). Moses was adopted from a slave family into a royal family. Jesus is the Son of the Most High (Luke 1:32); He is King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 19:16). Yet He took on human flesh and became the adopted son of Joseph (Philippians 2:5–11).

Before beginning their ministry, both Moses and Jesus had a supernatural moment in which God prepared them to go forth. Moses met God at the burning bush and, after some convincing, was filled with God's Word and the power to perform miracles (Exodus 3—4). God said to him, "Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt" (Exodus 3:10). Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist and, "behold, the heavens were opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, 'This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased'" (Matthew 3:16–17). Moses spent forty years in the land of Midian maturing in his faith, forty days and nights on Mount Sinai receiving the Law and fasting, forty days and forty nights fasting and interceding for the Israelites at other times (Deuteronomy 9), and forty years in the wilderness waiting for the Israelites to be able to enter the Promised Land. Jesus spent forty days and nights fasting in the desert resisting the temptation of the Devil (Matthew 4:1–11). Moses worked as a shepherd of livestock in Midian (Exodus 3:1) and Jesus came to be a shepherd of men (John 10:1–18).

During their ministries both Moses and Jesus were leaders. Moses went down to Egypt to lead the people out of the bondage of slavery and into the Promised Land. He acted as a mediator in establishing the old covenant between God and the nation of Israel (Deuteronomy 30:15–18). He was a prophet who spoke God's Word to the people and performed miracles. Moses interceded on their behalf and prayed for them (Exodus 32; Numbers 11:2; 12:13; 21:7). He taught them the Law and acted as a judge. The covenant God gave Moses included the sacrificial rituals and the symbolic role of blood. Moses oversaw the construction of the tabernacle as a place for God to dwell among His people and be worshipped. Moses served his people and was known as meek (Numbers 12:3).

Jesus came down to earth to save humanity from sin and bring people to everlasting salvation and relationship with God. He established the new covenant, sacrificing His life on the cross so that we might receive forgiveness for our sins (Jeremiah 31:33; Luke 22:20). Jesus fulfilled the words of the prophets and performed miracles. He is our advocate before God that we might be forgiven (1 Timothy 2:5; 1 John 2:1; Ephesians 1:7–10). Jesus fulfilled the Law (Matthew 5:17) and will be the Judge on the final judgement day (Matthew 25:31–46). Jesus was the final sacrifice and His blood overcame death (Hebrews 10:1–18). Jesus gives us direct access to God (Hebrews 4:14–16; 10:19–23; Matthew 27:50–51). Jesus promised the indwelling Holy Spirit to all who put their faith in Him (John 16:7–15; Ephesians 1:13–14). He was authoritative in His teaching and powerful in His miracles. He rebuked the self-righteous leaders of the people (Matthew 23). Jesus welcomed little children and the outcast. He came as a servant who would "give his life as a ransom for many" (Matthew 20:28) and was known as meek (Matthew 11:29).

Moses parted the Red Sea (Exodus 14) and Jesus calmed the Sea of Galilee (Mark 4:35–41) and even walked on it (Mark 6:45–52). Moses offered water to Jethro's daughters (Exodus 2) and Jesus offered water to the Samaritan woman (John 4). Moses fed the Israelites through the miracle of manna and quail (Exodus 16:35) and Jesus fed the 5,000 and the 4,000 by dividing loaves of bread and fish (Mark 6:30–44; 8:1–10). God gave Moses the Law on Mount Sinai; Jesus promised to fulfill that Law (Matthew 5:17). In the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5—7) Jesus gave a new law, expanding on the true essence of the Mosaic Law and addressing the importance of one's heart being right with God. John 1:17 says, "For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ." Jesus later told His disciples, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another" (John 13:34–35).

Both Moses and Jesus were close to God. Moses talked face to face with God and had to cover his face after because it was illuminated (Exodus 33:7–11; 34:29). Jesus is the Son of God and part of the Trinity. While on earth He experienced the transfiguration and His face shone brightly (Luke 9:28–36). Moses also appeared at the transfiguration. Moses initiated the Passover tradition so that the Israelites might remember how God delivered them from the Egyptians (Exodus 12). At a Passover meal Jesus instituted communion so that His followers would remember how His sacrifice saved them from their sins (Matthew 17:26–29).

Both Moses and Jesus came to save their people and were rejected by some of those very people. The Israelites grumbled against Moses in the wilderness on multiple occasions (Exodus 15:22–25; 16:2–12; 17:2–7). While Moses was on Mount Sinai the Israelites returned to their idol worship (Exodus 32). Jesus was rejected by the majority of the religious leaders as well as some in His hometown (Luke 4:16–30). When Jesus spoke about being the bread of life, many who had been following Him left (John 6:22–71). Judas, one of the twelve disciples, betrayed Him (Mark 14:10–11). Peter, who had witnessed the transfiguration and often professed his allegiance to Jesus (John 6:68–69; Matthew 16:13–20; Luke 22:31–34), denied knowing Him (John 18:15–18, 25–27). All the disciples fled when Jesus was arrested before the crucifixion (Mark 14:50).

The countless comparisons demonstrating the connection between Moses and Jesus is no coincidence. Moses was a savior of the Israelites intended to foreshadow the only true Savior—Jesus Christ. Moses led the Israelites out of slavery and to the Promised Land. Moses himself was not permitted to enter the Promised Land due to sin, though God showed him the land and buried Moses Himself (Deuteronomy 34). Jesus, on the other hand, frees us from the bondage of sin and makes a way for us to heaven. He will one day return to take us to dwell with Him forever (John 14:1–3; Acts 1:6–11; Philippians 3:20). After describing many faithful men and women, the writer of Hebrews says, "And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect" (Hebrews 11:39–40). God's ultimate promise of salvation is made complete in Jesus Christ, and it will be fully realized when He returns (2 Peter 3:8–9; Revelation 19—22).

While there are numerous similarities between Moses and Jesus, there is one major difference: Moses was only human. Due to his faith in God he did many amazing things, but ultimately, he was still a sinner in need of forgiveness. Jesus, on the other hand, is both human and God. He lived a perfect life and defeated sin. It is through faith in Him that we can be forgiven and receive salvation. Let us not make the mistake of putting Moses on a pedestal, but rather look to the one he was pointing us to all along—Jesus Christ.

 

https://www.compellingtruth.org/Moses-and-Jesus.html

 

SIMILARITIES BETWEEN JESUS & MOSES

 

The more I read the Bible, the more I see that it is not just a book of many different stories, but how it is a book of many stories that ultimately tell one story.

 

Many of us see the Bible as a composition of ancient, heroic, moral stories that inspire and teach us. But is there a way that any of these stories go together? Is there a thread of commonality? I’m not talking about some bizarre conspiracy theory like how all Pixar movies take place in the same galaxy (if you haven’t heard of this theory, it’s actually pretty cool, but that’s beyond the point).

However, Jesus himself is actually the one who first explicitly suggested such a ‘connection’ between all the stories in the Bible—and interestingly enough, he claimed that every story was ultimately about himself. In the gospel of Luke, he says to his disciples, “everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled;” and “beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to [his disciples] in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself” (24:44, 27). Certainly, Jesus gives us the right glasses for correctly reading and interpreting the Scriptures.

The Bible, then, is not a book primarily about many stories, but a book ultimately about many smaller stories all telling the same, greater story. Jesus says all these stories ultimately point to himself, are fulfilled in himself, and find their greater meaning in his greater story. In other words, all other stories in the Bible are parts of the conflict and plot in the greater story of Jesus, in which the fulfillment of their story ultimately happens in his. In fact, his story is not just the fulfillment of these other stories; he is the fulfillment of these other stories. Because all the stories of the Old Testament point to, foreshadow, and find their ultimate fulfillment in Jesus, this also means that these stories will have figures, events, traditions, symbols etc. that will foreshadow Jesus Christ in more or less obvious ways. In this blog, I wanted to specifically focus on how the great Old Testament character, Moses, points to, foreshadows, and prefigures Jesus in many ways. Here’s a number of parallels I could think of, though, I am sure there are more. Check it out:

During the time of Moses, Pharaoh ordered a mass killing of every Hebrew baby under the age of 2 years old. During the time of Jesus, King Herod ordered a mass killing of every Hebrew baby under the age of 2 years old.

Moses came up out of Egypt to redeem his people. Jesus, though born in Bethlehem, at a young age fled with his family to Egypt and stayed there during his youth to avoid Herod’s persecution. And Jesus, too, like Moses, came up out of Egypt to redeem the world.

Moses was born without shelter, laid into a straw-thatched basket, floated down a river, and was picked up by Egyptian royalty. Jesus too was born without shelter, laid into a straw-filled stable, and was visited by Herodian royalty.

Moses grew up in the palace of Pharaoh, the highest place of esteem in his culture. Jesus grew up in the synagogues of Jerusalem, the highest place of esteem in his culture.

Moses was a Hebrew Levite. Jesus too was a Hebrew Levite.

Moses brought the Israelites out of slavery to Egypt. Jesus brought the Israelites and the world out of slavery to sin and death.

Moses received the 10 commandments from God on Mount Sinai. Jesus reinterpreted the 10 commandments from God in his Sermon on the Mount.

Moses carried the law and pointed to the gospel. Jesus fulfilled the law and IS the gospel.

The Israelites experienced 400 dark years of bondage to Egypt until Moses was born and came to rescue them. The nation of Israel experienced 400 dark years of silence from God until Jesus was born and came to save them.

Moses went through the wilderness and was doubtful to God before he began his ministry to redeem the Israelites. Jesus went through the wilderness and was tempted by Satan before he began his ministry to redeem the world.

Moses was royalty in Egypt, but left his position of power to serve and save an enslaved people. Jesus was royalty in Heaven, but left his position of power to serve and save an enslaved world.

Moses was inconceivably both royalty and slave at the same time, being a prince but also a Hebrew. Jesus is inconceivably both God and man at the same time, being the transcendent Son of God but also a descendent Son of Man.

God spoke to Moses through a bush that was on fire, but it was not consumed. Similarly, God speaks to us through Jesus’ body on a tree that took the fire of God’s wrath, but he was not consumed.

Moses parted the Red Sea. Jesus calmed the Sea of Galilee.

Moses chose 12 spies and sent them into the Promise Land. Jesus chose 12 disciples and sent them to proclaim the truer and better Promise Land, one not of earthly geography under God but one of spiritual restoration with God.

Moses pleaded that God would feed the thousands of Israelites so they wouldn’t die in the desert; God answered his prayer and miraculously provided more manna and quail from the heavens than they could possibly eat. In fact, there were loads upon loads of leftovers. Jesus pleaded that God would feed the thousands of followers so they wouldn’t starve in the countryside; God answered his prayer and Jesus miraculously provided more bread and fish than they could possibly eat. In fact, there were baskets upon baskets of leftovers.

God’s covenant was first given to Moses. God’s covenant is finalized in Jesus.

Moses is the author of the law. Jesus is the author of our faith.

Moses was the first mediator. Jesus is the final mediator.

Moses carried around the Ark of the Covenant and the makeshift tabernacle, which contained the presence of God. Jesus IS the presence of God, not limited to four walls or holy places.

Moses held up a pole with a snake on it, and everyone who looked upon it would be saved from their deadly snakebites. Similarly, Jesus was held up on cross, and everyone who looks upon it will be saved from sin, the Serpent’s sting of death.

Moses first initiated the Passover Lamb to absorb the wrath of God. Jesus is the final and ultimate Passover Lamb who fully absorbed the wrath of God for sin once and for all. The Passover Lamb of Moses was simply a shadow of the coming Passover Lamb of Christ.

Moses turned water into blood. Jesus turned water into wine.

Moses appropriated the law. Jesus accomplished the law.

Moses did not marry a full Jew, but actually a non-Jew who became grafted into the heritage of Israel. Jesus will marry the church, which is not fully Jews, but actually non-Jews as well, who became grafted into the saving heritage of Israel.

Moses led his people to the Promised Land, but not into it. Jesus leads his people to the better Promised Land—reconciliation with God—and will one day usher us into the eternal, ultimate Promised Land—heaven.

While the Israelites were dying of thirst in the desert, Moses struck a rock, and from the blow, it spewed water to quench their thirst. Similarly, while we are dying of spiritual thirst in the desert of spiritual alienation from God, God struck a better Rock for our sins, Jesus, and from the blow, it spews Living Water to quench our thirst of spiritual alienation from God.

And I am sure that there are more parallels. The point is, you can’t make this up. And this is exactly why I believe it is true. All of history is a book upon which God writes a story of unparalleled brilliance about his unparalleled glory to tell the greatest story ever told. Jesus is the centerpiece of all reality and it made God glad to glorify his Son in this way. If anything, Moses—as great as he is—is merely a sign, a pointer, and a shadow of the truer and greater Moses, JESUS. __________ Here are some more examples, though some are more far-fetched… http://www.confidentfaith.net/moses-and-jesus-devine-similarities

http://www.austingentry.com/similarities-between-moses-jesus/

 

 

 

Pliny The Younger: Many Scholars including Semler, Aub, Havet, Hochart, Bruno Bauer and Edwin Johnson have had Solid reasons to doubt the Authenticity of this "letter" but even if it were genuine it is worthless either way as it makes no mention of a "Jesus of Nazareth" and Christ is a title not a name that means messiah, anointed one or even false king or pretender to the throne and there are Christ cults that go back as far as 300 BC he also would have gotten his information from Christians thus is not an independent source as Ehrman claims nor is this source an Contemperary Eyewitness account either. Furthermore according to Hadrian and Suetonius the Syncretic cult god Serapis was called Christ and his followers Christians and Pliny worked near by were Serapis was commonly worshipped and thus would most likely have been interrogating Serapis Christians.

 

Suetonious: His source says nothing and is essentially just recording an asshole named Cresto fucking shit up in Rome and Jesus was never in rome so this couldnt be Jesus. There have also been debates about this sources authenticity as well.

 

Tacitus: The Annals Is a Forgery of Tacitus' works reasons being:

 

1. Tacitus himself knows nothing of Christ or Christians in any of his other writings

 

2 Clement of Alexandria who's whole Job was to scour the writings of pagan authors to find anything that would validify Christianity dosen't mention this passage

 

3 Tertullian who was familliar with Tacitus' writings and quotes his works extensively makes no mention of it either

 

4 there is no mention of the Annals even existing until the 15th century hundreds of years after he (Tacitus) died

 

5 Origen in his works admit that very few christians had been persecuted for there faith and that they were easily numbered contradicting Tacitus' supposed claims of a mass martyrdom of Christians

 

6 Nero wasn't even in rome around the time the fire supossedly happened

 

7 there is no evidence outside of the Annals that such a fire or mass persecution ever took place and you'd think if rome had been set ablaze that all historians would have recorded it but not a single one save only for supposedly Tacitus and not even the early church fathers allude towards a fire in relation to the crimes of Nero

 

Lastly All images depicting Nero burning Rome potray him as holding a violin which didn't even exist until the 11th century implying this is yet another fabricated persecution story by the early church.

 

Lucian Of Samosata: Not a historian not an eyewitness and most likely would have just derived his info from Christians of his time and he lived almost a hundred years after Jesus supposed death and thus is too late to be relevant to the question of weather Jesus existed or not.

 

Mars Bar Serapion/Serapis:

 

 

 

This source isnt in refrence to Jesus but is just a philosophical tale he told to his son while he was in prison with historical inaccuracies concerning socrates and could very well have been written 100-200 years after jesus supposedly died.

 

Thallas and Phlegon: source dealing with that cause Im tired at the moment lol: http://www.jesusneverexisted.com/josephus-etal.html#dennis

 

Celsus: again too late to the party and based his claims off of jewish hearsay

 

Talmud: It's important to note that Yeshua and Maryam were common names around that time and the Jeeezuz put to death here and boiling in shit is in a way entirely different from the gospels and cannot be considered the Gospel Jesus also this passage was not written until 200 AD ‾\_(ツ)_/‾

 

Josephus: This passage was investigated by D.M Murdock and Paul Hopper both of whom proved with evidence from his own writings as well as the works of other scholars that it is a complete fabrication not a partial one but even if it were wholly authentic or partly forged it is not an eyewitness acount and would be little more than third hand hearsay and regurgitation of common christian beliefs of the 2nd century around the time Josephus wrote his antiquities of the Jews. Even Ehrman himself rejects this source as laid out in Did Jesus Exist?

 

 

I'm sorry but there really appears to be no credible proof Jesus ever existed in the first place.

 

Common arguements used against the notion he was neer mentioned in the first century are thatJeezus wasnt well known and was an obscure peasent who was not widely known but this is dumb because if he was obscure to the point that no historian cared to record him than how is it possible anyone would have known or cared enough to follow a religion centered around him in the first place?

 

Also why was Jesus noteable if he did not draw in multitudes across the reigion why was he remembered centeries after his death from all the others who shared his name if he did not raise people himself included from the dead. this Idea that he was popluar enough to have gained a cult following that lasted centeries after he died even up until this day and yet wasnt well known enough to have made it into the historical record is laughably contradictory.

 

There is also the claim that all records of his existence were lost however this is no less absurd than the last contradiction "Jerusalem was the center of education recordings of the Jewish people, and the Romans kept many records, and even the gospels mention that scribes followed jesus – and some of those scribes had connections with the high priests. We have records of dozens of other named messiah-like figures, but never once is jesus mentioned." Godless Wolf

 

So there you have it Ive read Ehrmans work and he is bright when it comes to alot of things but rather dumb when it comes to others also the gospels derive there information from each other thus are not independent sources for Jesus existence.

 

 

 

Bart Ehrman caught in lies and libel?

Categories: Acharya S/D.M. Murdock|Tags: abrahamic religion, Acharya S, bart ehrman, christianity, d.m. murdock, mythicism, phallic, religion, vatican

In Did Jesus Exist? (p. 24), New Testament scholar Bart Ehrman quotes my book The Christ Conspiracy and refers to an image of a bronze sculpture of a cock, commenting in brackets (except for my “sic”):

“’Peter’ is not only ‘the rock’ but also ‘the cock’ or penis, as the word is used as slang to this day.” Here Acharya shows (her own?) hand drawing of a man with a rooster head but with a large erect penis instead of a nose, with this description: “Bronze sculpture hidden in the Vatican treasure [sic] of the Cock, symbol of St. Peter” (295). [There is no penis-nosed statue of Peter the cock in the Vatican or anywhere else except in books like this, which love to make things up.]

The quote from my book is on p. 168, while the image in question is on p. 295b. The two are not related, except that I say the cock/rooster – not the statue – is a symbol of St. Peter, explaining the “awkward” wording of the phallic image’s caption, which I deliberately did that way for just such emphasis: “Bronze sculpture hidden in the Vatican treasury of the Cock, symbol of St. Peter“

Along with many other indications throughout his book, Ehrman’s conflation of the quote on p. 168 with the image on p. 295b suggests he did not even read my book but evidently farmed it out and the other works he is critiquing to assistants.

Because Ehrman apparently didn’t read my book, he also didn’t notice the citation of Barbara G. Walker’s Woman’s Dictionary of Sacred Symbols and Objects, where the sculpture image came from, suggesting erroneously instead that I drew it myself.

Ehrman obviously didn’t know that the “priapus gallinaceus” is an entire genre or that this bronze statue was in the Vatican. After being shown the evidence, he later stated the statue does exist and is in the Vatican (below), but he disingenuously pretends that his original, inaccurate reference to it being “of Peter” means he didn’t err in saying it didn’t exist:

Again, I never said the statue was of Peter, despite the fact that in other parts of the book (pp. 168-169 and 285) I do discuss the “peter” and “cock” symbolism, the latter in a chapter called “The Bible, Sex and Drugs.” I also include on p. 169 in a section about Peter and the phallic meaning of his name in a quote from Barbara Walker (Woman’s Encyclopedia of Myths and Secrets, 79) concerning the bronze sculpture:

The cock was another totemic “peter” sometimes viewed as the god’s alter ego. Vatican authorities preserved a bronze image of a cock with an oversize penis on a man’s body, the pedestal inscribed “The Savior of the World.” The cock was also a solar symbol.

While the “cock/peter” is associated in this paragraph with the sculpture, it is clear from the word “preserved” that Walker means it is a pre-Christian artifact, one of the priapus genre, as discussed in my article “The phallic ‘Savior of the World’ at the Vatican revisited.” Hence, neither of us has identified or equated this priapus gallinaceus in question as a “statue of Peter,” as Ehrman erroneously asserts. In addition to its other features, a remarkable aspect of the statue is its inscription “Savior of the World,” of interest to us because it does not refer to Jesus or other Christian figure but indicates a pre-Christian salvation cult using the same language employed also to describe Christ.

Instead of apologizing for his errors and misrepresentations, Ehrman thus deflects and mocks me further, even though it is he who did not know about the priapus gallinaceus, such that he himself thus is not a “scholar of antiquity.”

Despite his unprofessional antics, Ehrman clearly defamed me by claiming that the statue did not exist, that it wasn’t in the Vatican and that I “made it up.” Thus, his comments in DJE are FALSE and libelous.

Moreover, as demonstrated in dozens of pages of my criticisms, several other of Ehrman’s remarks in DJE about my work are also false, as are many of his comments concerning the works of other mythicists, likewise rebutted in some 80 different essays. A number of these essays are included in the rebuttal book edited by Frank Zindler and Robert M. Price, Bart Ehrman and the Quest of the Historical Jesus of Nazareth.

 

Ba

rt Ehrman needs to retract his falsehoods and apologize, or his book needs to be pulped.

 

 

 

https://stellarhousepublishing.com/bart-ehrman-caught-in-lies-and-libel/

 

 

Bart Ehrman errs again – this time about virgin births

Categories: Acharya S/D.M. Murdock|Tags: astrolatry, astrology, astrotheology, bart ehrman, christianity, mythicism, rigoglioso, virgin births, virgin mothers

 

In a blog from December 2014, New Testament scholar and ex-evangelical Christian Bart Ehrman tries his hand at comparative religion and mythology, which is clearly not his forté. Indeed, Ehrman demonstrates abundantly his non-expertise in the subject by making blatantly false claims, so we must wonder why he is pretending to be an expert?

After a few paragraphs purporting to be pertinent to the subject of ancient “virgin births,” Ehrman forces the reader to join his blog through payment, so I can only comment on the public excerpts below, including in the comments section. However, even this selection will suffice to demonstrate his blunders.

Miraculous (Not Virgin) Births in Ancient Pagan Texts

In my previous post I pointed out that there do not appear to be any instances in the other religions of antiquity of a virgin birth – where a woman gives birth without having sex. In this post I’ll lay out the more typical view of how a “son of God” came into the world. It very much does involve sex. Most of the post will deal with one (very funn [sic]) story in particular which is emblematic of the rest. For this post I will quote a section from my recent book, How Jesus Became God.

Ehrman’s previous post is apparently one in which he discusses the Greek figures of Dionysus, Hercules and Asclepius, but, of course, the article is for members only, so I can only comment that, if he didn’t find Dionysus’s virgin-mother myth, he is revealing once again his non-expertise. Using his typical methods as demonstrated in his libelous book Did Jesus Exist?, Ehrman apparently could not even be bothered to do a search of the internet, where he would have encountered my article with the citations concerning the Dionysian virgin birth.

Zeus the Virgin

Ehrman goes on to relate a largely irrelevant story about the ancient sage Apollonius of Tyana and to discuss the Greek god Zeus, obviously to focus on the sexual nature of the latter’s dalliances and assorted tales of impregnation of mortal women. He then emphasizes the tale of Alexander the Great’s miraculous birth, again misdirecting the conversation towards stories that include what seems to be sexual activity. His conclusion, therefore, is that all such stories involve sex and, while miraculous, cannot be deemed “virgin births.”

Here Ehrman reveals a near-total lack of comprehension of ancient myth, in which gods and goddesses were considered “virgin” – or parthenos in the Greek – regardless of various sex acts or manner of impregnation. Even the randy Zeus himself – about whom Ehrman makes much – is deemed parthenos or “virgin!”

“Even the randy Zeus himself – about whom Ehrman makes much – is deemed parthenos or ‘virgin!'”

As mythologist Robert Graves says, “Thus the Orphic hymn celebrates Zeus as both Father and Eternal Virgin.” (Graves, The White Goddess, 361) Virgin-mother/birth expert Dr. Marguerite Rigoglioso also discusses Zeus as virgin creator, as in Orphic fragment 167:

Zeus’s parthenogenetic capacity is expressed here in the idea that all existence was “created anew” in the moment of his ingesting of the older god [Phanes]. (Rigoglioso, Virgin Mother Goddess of Antiquity, 46)

Because he is not an expert, Ehrman is oblivious to this parthenos genre, as he was ignorant of the phallic priapus gallinaceus genre I briefly discussed in my book The Christ Conspiracy, which Ehrman pretended to review but did not even read.

Virgin Mother Goddesses of Antiquity

Ehrman is oblivious also to the in-depth studies of the pre-Christian virgin birth by scholars such as Dr. Rigoglioso. Further illustrating this fact, in the comments section of Ehrman’s article, a reader asks:

Your point that that there do not appear to be any instances in the other religions of antiquity of a virgin birth and that many people have claimed the opposite is born out by a tract from the FFRF [Freedom from Religion Foundation] (which I generally support), written by Kenneth F. Taubert, Sr. The tract, called a non-tract by FFRF, includes the following examples of gods claimed to be born of a virgin: Mithra, Attis, Buddha, Krishna, Quexalcote, Horus, Adonis, Quirinus, and Indra.

Can you comment on any of these?

Again, not knowing ancient mythology to any significant degree, Ehrman simply and erroneously answers:

None of these was born of a virgin.

Ehrman is ignorant of the Persian myth surrounding Mithra’s birth to the virgin goddess Anahita. He knows nothing of 

Attis’s virgin mother, Nana, or the Buddha’s birth through the side of his mother, explicitly called a “virgin” by Church father Jerome (Adversus Jovinianum 1.42

Among the Gymnosophists of India, the belief has been handed down from generation to generation as authentic that a virgin gave birth to Buddha, the founder of their religion, out of her side.

Apud Gimnosophistas Indie, quasi per manus huius opinionis auctoritas traditur quod Buddam, principem dogmatis eorum, e latere suo virgo generarit.

Ehrman also does not know the controversy concerning Krishna’s “chaste” mother, Devaki, and he likely didn’t know of the Mexican god Quetzalcoatl, whose virgin mother was Coatlicue. Nor does he have any idea about the virgin-mother status of the mother of Horus, Isis:

There are many  more pre-Christian virgin mothers, including

 

the Canaanite goddess Anat, wife of El who gave birth to twin sons of God in myths dating back over 3,000 years.

 

As Rigoglioso thoroughly demonstrates in Virgin Mother Goddesses, other ancient parthenogenetic female creators include:

• Chaos, Nyx and Ge/Gaia
• Athena/Neith/Metis
• Artemis
• Hera
• Demeter and Persephone/Kore
• Gnostic Sophia

Parthenogenetic Creator Deity

This very common pre-Christian theme of a virgin mother/birth is based significantly on the idea of parthenogenesis or creation from a goddess without consort. As Rigoglioso (15) remarks:

…a Virgin Mother [is one] who produced life from within herself without a male consort.

In this regard, Rigoglioso (29-30) analyzes especially the role of the Egyptian goddess Neith, precursor of Isis:

As a divinity of the First Principle, Neith was an autogenetic goddess who, in the ultimate mystery, created herself out of her own being. Budge notes…that an inscription on a statue of Utchat-Heru, a high priest of Neith, relates that she “was the first to give birth to anything, and that she had done so when nothing else had been born, and that she had herself never been born.” We see her autogenetic aspect echoed in both Egyptian and Greek texts. Plutarch…refers to an inscription on her statue in Sais…: “I am everything that has been, and that is, and that shall be, and no one has ever lifted my garment (peplos).”… That in the above-noted Saitic inscription Neith’s “garment” remained perpetually “unlifted” is also a sexual reference… The inscription therefore communicates that Neith never engaged in any kind of sexual union; that is, she was eternally a virgin. Yet, as the primordial Being, she was also generative. Thus, in Neith we have one of the earliest appearances of the archetype of the Virgin Mother, the Holy Parthenos, in her original, unadulterated form.

“Neith never engaged in any kind of sexual union; that is, she was eternally a virgin. Yet, as the primordial Being, she was also generative. Thus, in Neith we have one of the earliest appearances of the archetype of the Virgin Mother, the Holy Parthenos, in her original, unadulterated form.”

The worship of Neith, a sometime mother of the solar deity Horus, is traceable to around 7,000 years ago, according to Dr. Wim van Binsbergen, chairman of the Foundations of Intercultural Philosophy at Erasmus University, who calls her an example of “female parthenogenetic cosmogenesis.” (van Binsbergen, 35)

Other reasons for this pre-Christian motif of the virgin mother include the daily “birth” of the sun from the dawn goddess, as found in Greek and Indian myth, for example. The constellation of Virgo was yet another source of virgin-mother myths.

As we can see, Ehrman’s statements are erroneous and reveal he is not an expert. It is unfortunate that he is misleading people who clearly trust his word without questioning and who also apparently do not know about the numerous fallacious and calumnious remarks he included in Did Jesus Exist?

Ancient Astral Religion

Further displaying his lack of knowledge about ancient mythology, Ehrman also says in the comments of his article:

[T]he Gospels show no interest in astrology. (Though some interpreters read astrology *into* the Gospels; they can’t, though, read it *from* the Gospels)…

This fallacious claim is based on a literal reading that refuses to acknowledge or is ignorant of the mythology behind the gospel story. Contrary to this contention, there is astrology, astral mythology or astrotheology in the New Testament, not the least of which can be discerned in various of Jesus’s supposed deeds and words. Christ’s solar nature is abundantly represented both within the gospel story and in commentary by ancient Christian authorities, as can be seen in my video below:

 

There is much more information regarding Christ’s solar nature in my ebook Jesus as the Sun throughout History. Another pertinent example occurs in the mysterious interaction in the New Testament between Christ and John the Baptist, explained in my articles “Christianity and the summer solstice” and “New research exposes hidden relationship between Jesus and John the Baptist,” which show

that Jesus is the winter-summer solstice sun, while John is the summer-to-winter sun.

The bottom line is that Bart Ehrman is not a mythologist and not an expert on comparative religion or Jesus mythicism, and he should not be pretending to be one or promoted as one. Such perpetuation of ignorance is frankly an embarrassment to the freethought community.

FFRF

Moreover, it is odd that the Freedom From Religion Foundation (“FFRF”) would host Ehrman, as in the video below, because his dismissals of the pre-Christian virgin-birth motif and solar Christ refute what they themselves have publicized in the past, as in this article (April 7, 2004):

Note also that when the FFRF says “Jesus Christ is a fable,” they are essentially relating Jesus mythicism or the idea that Jesus is a mythical figure, a field with a massive body of literature that Ehrman not only hasn’t studied but also disparages, remarking:

I think that atheists have done themselves a disservice by jumping on the bandwagon of mythicism because, frankly, it makes you look foolish to the outside world.

Hence, according to Ehrman, the FFRF is passing along false information and adheres to a foolish viewpoint; yet, they endorse his work and present him as a public speaker.

It would be refreshing if, instead of promoting people with erroneous information, organizations interested in religious origins and comparative mythology would publicize the fascinating material I bring to light, so that it, rather than the errors, would gain more currency. I have little doubt, however, that such errors will continue to be circulated simply because they come from a recognized “person of authority,” due to rampant and fallacious credentialism.

https://stellarhousepublishing.com/bart-ehrman-errs-again-this-time-about-virgin-births/

 

Pliny, Tacitus and Suetonius: No Proof of Jesus

Categories: Stellar House Archives

by D.M. Murdock/Acharya S

Excerpted from:

Suns of God: Krishna, Buddha and Christ Unveiled

Like those of the Jewish writer Josephus, the works of the ancient historians Pliny, Suetonius and Tacitus do not provide proof that Jesus Christ ever existed as a “historical” character.

Pliny the Younger, Roman Official and Historian (62-113 CE)

In addition to the palpably bogus passage in the Antiquities of the Jews by Josephus called the “Testimonium Flavianum” is another of the pitiful “references” dutifully trotted out by apologists to prove the existence of Jesus Christ: To wit, a short passage in the works of the Roman historian Pliny the Younger. While proconsul of Bithynia, a province in the northwest of Asia Minor, Pliny purportedly wrote a letter in 110 CE to the Emperor Trajan requesting his assistance in determining the proper punishment for “Christiani” who were causing trouble and would not renounce “Christo” as their god or bow down to the image of the Emperor. These recalcitrant Christiani, according to the Pliny letter, met “together before daylight” and sang “hymns with responses to Christ as a god,” binding themselves “by a solemn institution, not to any wrong act.” Regarding this letter, Rev. Robert Taylor remarks:

If this letter be genuine, these nocturnal meetings were what no prudent government could allow; they fully justify the charges of Caecilius in Minutius Felix, of Celsus in Origen, and of Lucian, that the primitive Christians were a skulking, light-shunning, secret, mystical, freemasonry sort of confederation, against the general welfare and peace of society.

Taylor also comments that, at the time this letter was purportedly written, “Christians” were considered to be followers of the Greco-Egyptian god Serapis and that “the name of Christ [was] common to the whole rabblement of gods, kings, and priests.” Writing around 134 CE, Hadrian purportedly stated:

“The worshippers of Serapis are Christians, and those are devoted to the God Serapis, who call themselves the bishops of Christ. There is no ruler of a Jewish synagogue, no Samaritan, no Presbyter of the Christians, who is not either an astrologer, a soothsayer, or a minister to obscene pleasures. The very Patriarch himself, should he come into Egypt, would be required by some to worship Serapis, and by others to worship Christ. They have, however, but one God, and it is one and the self-same whom Christians, Jews and Gentiles alike adore, i.e., money.”

It is thus possible that the “Christos” or “Anointed” god Pliny’s “Christiani” were following was Serapis himself, the syncretic deity created by the priesthood in the third century BCE. In any case, this god “Christos” was not a man who had been crucified in Judea.

Moreover, like his earlier incarnation Osiris, Serapis—both popular gods in the Roman Empire—was called not only Christos but also “Chrestos,” centuries before the common era. Indeed, Osiris was styled “Chrestos,” centuries before his Jewish copycat Jesus was ever conceived….

In any event, the value of the Pliny letter as “evidence” of Christ’s existence is worthless, as it makes no mention of “Jesus of Nazareth,” nor does it refer to any event in his purported life. There is not even a clue in it that such a man existed. As Taylor remarks, “We have the name of Christ, and nothing else but the name, where the name of Apollo or Bacchus would have filled up the sense quite as well.” Taylor then casts doubt on the authenticity of the letter as a whole, recounting the work of German critics, who “have maintained that this celebrated letter is another instance to be added to the long list of Christian forgeries…” One of these German luminaries, Dr. Semler of Leipsic provided “nine arguments against its authenticity…” He also notes that the Pliny epistle is quite similar to that allegedly written by “Tiberianus, Governor of Syria” to Trajan, which has been universally denounced as a forgery.

Also, like the Testimonium Flavianum, Pliny’s letter is not quoted by any early Church father, including Justin Martyr. Tertullian briefly mentions its existence, noting that it refers to terrible persecutions of Christians. However, the actual text used today comes from a version by a Christian monk in the 15^th century, Iucundus of Verona, whose composition apparently was based on Tertullian’s assertions. Concurring that the Pliny letter is suspicious, Drews terms “doubtful” Tertullian’s “supposed reference to it.” Drews then names several authorities who likewise doubted its authenticity, “either as a whole or in material points,” including Semler, Aub, Havet, Hochart, Bruno Bauer and Edwin Johnson. Citing the work of Hochart specifically, Drews pronounces Pliny’s letter “in all probability” a “later Christian forgery.” Even if it is genuine, Pliny’s letter is useless in determining any “historical” Jesus.

Tacitus, Roman Politician and Historian, (c. 56-120 CE)

Turning next to another stalwart in the anemic apologist arsenal, Tacitus, sufficient reason is uncovered to doubt this Roman author’s value in proving an “historical” Jesus. In his Annals, supposedly written around 107 CE, Tacitus purportedly related that the Emperor Nero (37-68) blamed the burning of Rome during his reign on “those people who were abhorred for their crimes and commonly called Christians.” Since the fire evidently broke out in the poor quarter where fanatic, agitating Messianic Jews allegedly jumped for joy, thinking the conflagration represented the eschatological development that would bring about the Messianic reign, it would not be unreasonable for authorities to blame the fire on them. However, it is clear that these Messianic Jews were not (yet) called “Christiani.” In support of this contention, Nero’s famed minister, Seneca (5?-65), whose writings evidently provided much fuel for the incipient Christian ideology, has not a word about these “most-hated” sectarians.

…the Tacitean passage next states that these fire-setting agitators were followers of “Christus” (Christos), who, in the reign of Tiberius, “was put to death as a criminal by the procurator Pontius Pilate.” The passage also recounts that the Christians, who constituted a “vast multitude at Rome,” were then sought after and executed in ghastly manners, including by crucifixion. However, the date that a “vast multitude” of Christians was discovered and executed would be around 64 CE, and it is evident that there was no “vast multitude” of Christians at Rome by this time, as there were not even a multitude of them in Judea. Oddly, this brief mention of Christians is all there is in the voluminous works of Tacitus regarding this extraordinary movement, which allegedly possessed such power as to be able to burn Rome. Also, the Neronian persecution of Christians is unrecorded by any other historian of the day and supposedly took place at the very time when Paul was purportedly freely preaching at Rome (Acts 28:30-31), facts that cast strong doubt on whether or not it actually happened. Drews concludes that the Neronian persecution is likely “nothing but the product of a Christian’s imagination in the fifth century.” Eusebius, in discussing this persecution, does not avail himself of the Tacitean passage, which he surely would have done had it existed at the time. Eusebius’s discussion is very short, indicating he was lacking source material; the passage in Tacitus would have provided him a very valuable resource.

Even conservative writers such as James Still have problems with the authenticity of the Tacitus passage: For one, Tacitus was an imperial writer, and no imperial document would ever refer to Jesus as “Christ.” Also, Pilate was not a “procurator” but a prefect, which Tacitus would have known. Nevertheless, not willing to throw out the entire passage, some researchers have concluded that Tacitus “was merely repeating a story told to him by contemporary Christians.”

Based on these and other facts, several scholars have argued that, even if the Annals themselves were genuine, the passage regarding Jesus was spurious. One of these authorities was Rev. Taylor, who suspected the passage to be a forgery because it too is not quoted by any of the Christian fathers, including Tertullian, who read and quoted Tacitus extensively. Nor did Clement of Alexandria notice this passage in any of Tacitus’s works, even though one of this Church father’s main missions was to scour the works of Pagan writers in order to find validity for Christianity. As noted, the Church historian Eusebius, who likely forged the Testimonium Flavianum, does not relate this Tacitus passage in his abundant writings. Indeed, no mention is made of this passage in any known text prior to the 15^th century.

The tone and style of the passage are unlike the writing of Tacitus, and the text “bears a character of exaggeration, and trenches on the laws of rational probability, which the writings of Tacitus are rarely found to do.” Taylor further remarks upon the absence in any of Tacitus’s other writings of “the least allusion to Christ or Christians.” In his well-known Histories, for example, Tacitus never refers to Christ, Christianity or Christians. Furthermore, even the Annals themselves have come under suspicion, as they themselves had never been mentioned by any ancient author….

In any event, even if the Annals were genuine, the pertinent passage itself could easily be an interpolation, based on the abundant precedents and on the fact that the only manuscript was in the possession of one person, de Spire. In reality, “none of the works of Tacitus have come down to us without interpolations.”

Regarding Christian desperation for evidence of the existence of Christ, Dupuis comments that true believers are “reduced to look, nearly a hundred years after, for a passage in Tacitus” that does not even provide information other than “the etymology of the word Christian,” or they are compelled “to interpolate, by pious fraud, a passage in Josephus.” Neither passage, Dupuis concludes, is sufficient to establish the existence of such a remarkable legislator and philosopher, much less a “notorious impostor.”

It is evident that Tacitus’s remark is nothing more than what is said in the Apostle’s Creed—to have the authenticity of the mighty Christian religion rest upon this Pagan author’s scanty and likely forged comment is preposterous. Even if the passage in Tacitus were genuine, it would be too late and is not from an eyewitness, such that it is valueless in establishing an “historical” Jesus, representing merely a recital of decades-old Christian tradition.

Suetonius, Roman Historian (c. 69-c. 122 CE)

Moving through the standard list of defenses, we come to the Roman historian Suetonius. The passage in Suetonius’s Life of Claudius, dating to around 110 CE, states that the emperor Claudius “drove the Jews out of Rome, who at the suggestion of Chrestus were constantly rioting.” The passage in Latin is as follows:

Claudius Judaeos impulsore Chresto assidue tumultuantes Roma expulit.

We see that the reference is to “Chresto,” not “Christo.” In any case, Claudius reigned from 41-54, while Christ was purported to have been crucified around 30, so the great Jewish sage could not have been in Rome personally at that time. Even such an eager believer and mesmerized apologist as Shirley Jackson Case must admit that Christ himself couldn’t have been at Rome then, that the “natural meaning” of the remark is that “a disturbance was caused by a Jew named Chrestus” living in Rome at the time, and that Suetonius’s “references to Christianity itself are very obscure.”

It is possible that these diasporic Jews—a mixture of Hebrew, Jewish, Samaritan and Pagan descent—revered their god under the epithet of “Chresto.” Or, as Eisenman suggests, the incident may record Jews agitating over the appointment of Herod Agrippa I as king of Judea by his friend Claudius in 41 CE. In this regard, Agrippa I is called “chrestos” by Josephus.

In his Life of Nero, Suetonius refers to “Christiani,” whom he calls “a race of men of a new and villainous, wicked or magical superstition,” who “were visited with punishment.” This passage, although establishing that there were people called “Christiani” who were a fairly recent cult in Suetonius’s time, obviously does not serve as evidence that Jesus Christ ever existed.

Regarding these “references,” if they were genuine they would no more prove the existence of Jesus Christ than do writings about other gods prove their existence. In other words, by this same argument we could provide many “references” from ancient writers that the numerous Pagan gods also existed as “real people.” In this case, Jesus would be merely a johnny-come-lately in a long line of “historical” godmen.

In the final analysis there is no evidence that the biblical character called “Jesus Christ” ever existed. As Nicholas Carter concludes in The Christ Myth: “No sculptures, no drawings, no markings in stone, nothing written in his own hand; and no letters, no commentaries, indeed no authentic documents written by his Jewish and Gentile contemporaries, Justice of Tiberius, Philo, Josephus, Seneca, Petronius Arbiter, Pliny the Elder, et al., to lend credence to his historicity.”

For more information, including citations, see Suns of God: Krishna, Buddha and Christ Unveiled. See also Who Was Jesus? Fingerprints of The Christ.

 

https://stellarhousepublishing.com/pliny/

 

 

 

Lastly it would appear that Jesus Christ is a religious syncretism of many historical figures as we shall soon see: 

 

Alexander the Great:

 

    

 

 

 

1. Had a Virgin birth to Olympias after she was struck by Jupiters lightning strike

 

2. Was said to be the Son of God (Zeus/Juptier) and a mortal woman (Olympias) 

 

3. He had a mortal "Earthly Father" King Phillip II of Macedon

 

4. He was Deified and worshipped as God

 

5. Was known as "King of Kings"

 

6. He died at age 33 or close to that age just as Jesus Christ was also said to die at age 33

 

7. He walked on water "And if at least I have to walk some path through the sea, I will get a foothold." (Menandros, fragment 924 K)

 

8. The most well known war he fought in was the battle of "Issus" (Jesus) which happened on 333 BC 

 

9. His father was said to be the God Zeus-Ammon the Grecian equivalent of Amen Ra thus meaning Amen metaphoricaly is speaking attached to him

 

10. He wore a lionskin over his head symbolizing the constellation Leo parallel to Jesus Lion of Judah

 

11. He was belived by many of his followers to acend to the company of the gods and many worshipers reported seeing him after he died.

 

 

Here is a strange vid that Claims Alexander The Christ is both Jesus and yet also Satan? which I derived some of this info from as well as some articles as primary sources:

 

 

 

 

https://africaunlimited.com/was-jesus-christ-really-alexander-the-great/

 

https://www.ancient-origins.net/history-famous-people/surprising-links-between-alexander-great-and-christianity-005814

 

https://tonylouis.wordpress.com/2013/05/14/alexander-the-great-and-the-crucifixion-of-jesus/

 

http://www.biblenews1.com/astrology/acharts/alexander.html

 

 

 

Titus Flavius:

 

 

 

 

 

 

More Caesars Messiah excerpts:

 

*Editors note This segment was copied and pasted from the first three chapters of Josepha Atwills Caser's Messiah book (Thanks to Mr.Atwill for this Info) however alot of page numbers and chapter indexes got scrambled in so just keep that in mind while reading. so just expect alot of "Caesers Messiah" to keep popping up

 

Fishers of Men: Men Who Were Caught Like Fish To begin to explain the relationship between Jesus' ministry and Titus' campaign that my analysis indicates is a satire, I point to the following passages. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus is described at the onset of his ministry asking Simon and Andrew and the "sons of Zeb'edee" to "follow me" and to become "fishers of men." From that time Jesus began to preach. "Repent," He said, "for the Kingdom of the Heavens is now close at hand." And walking along the shore of the Lake of Galilee He saw two brothers—Simon called Peter and his brother Andrewthrowing a drag-net into the Lake; for they were fishers. And He said to them, "Come and follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." Matt. 4:18-19 The same story is represented in the Gospel of Luke as follows: While the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennes'aret. And so also were James and John, sons of Zeb'edee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid; henceforth you will be catching men." Luke 5:9-10 In another passage from the New Testament, Jesus foresees that cities on Gennesareth Lake (better known as the Sea of Galilee) will face tribulation for their wickedness. 38 Fishers of Men: Men Who Were Caught Like Fish 39 Woe to you Chorazain! Woe to you Bethsaida! And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades. Matt. 11:23 In War of the Jews, Josephus describes a sea battle where the Romans caught Jews like fish. The battle occurred at Gennesareth, where Titus attacked a band of Jewish rebels led by a leader named Jesus. This lake is called by the people of the country the Lake of Gennesareth . . . they had a great number of ships . . . and they were so fitted up, that they might undertake a Seafight. But as the Romans were building a wall about their camp, Jesus and his party . . . made a sally upon them. . . . Sometimes the Romans leaped into their ships, with swords in their hands, and slew them; but when some of them met the vessels, the Romans caught them by the middle, and destroyed at once their ships and themselves who were taken in them. And for such as were drowning in the sea, if they lifted their heads up above the water, they were either killed by darts, or caught by the vessels; but if, in the desperate case they were in, they attempted to swim to their enemies, the Romans cut off either their heads or their hands . . .39 A first-century peasant who heard Jesus' doomsday prophecy, which describes what would become of the inhabitants of the cities on Gennesareth Lake, and also heard the passage above from War of the Jews, which describes their destruction, would have understood the juxtaposition as evidence of Christ's divinity. What Jesus had prophesied, Josephus recorded as having come to pass. But an uneducated peasant could not have understood that there was another "prophecy" that came to pass within the passages above. I am referring to Christ's exhortation to become "fishers"or "catchers" of men, while standing on the spot where Jews would be caught like fish during the coming war with Rome. However, any patricians who knew the details of the sea battle at Gennesareth would have seen the irony in a Messiah who was  named "Savior" inventing the phrase "fishers of men" while standing on the beach where the Jews were caught like fish. The grim comedy is self-evident. These two "fulfilled" prophecies exemplify the two levels on which the New Testament can be understood. Jesus' prophecy regarding the destruction of Chorazain and Capernaum is completely straightforward and meant to be understood literally. The other "fulfilled" prophecy that of Jesus' prediction that his followers would become fishers for men, is not so straightforward. It could be understood only by someone who, like the residents of the Flavian court, had knowledge of the details of the sea battle between the Romans and the Jewish fishermen at Gennesareth. Only such individuals could have seen the prophetic irony in Jesus using the expression while standing on the very beach where the Jews would later be caught like fish. If the authors of the Gospels were being less than transparent when they referred to the Jewish rebels as fish, they were at least using a metaphor common in the first century. For example, Rabban (chief Rabbi) Gamaliel spoke of his disciples through a parable in which they were compared to four different kinds of fish—an unclean fish, a clean fish, a fish from the river Jordan, and a fish from the sea. Roman authors also used the metaphor. Juvenal, a contemporary Roman poet, specifically compares fugitive slaves and informers to fish.40 The structure of the comedy is important. Jesus speaks of "catching men" in a seemingly symbolic sense. Josephus then records that Jesus was indeed a "true" prophet. His vision of "catching men" at Gennesareth did come to pass, the joke being that it came to pass literally, and not in the symbolic manner that Jesus seemed to have meant with the phrase. This is the most common structure of the humor created by reading the New Testament in conjunction with War of the Jews. If the New Testament and War of the Jews engage in an interactive comedy regarding "fishing" for men at Gennesareth, they also work to create another "fish" joke. As mentioned above, in Matthew 11:23 Jesus predicted "woe" for "Chorazain." Fishers of Men: Men Who Were Caught Like Fish 41 Scholars have always presumed that Jesus was referring to a Galilean fishing village. Josephus, however, gave a different definition of the word "Chorazain." The country also that lies over against this lake hath the same name of Gennesareth . . . Some have thought it to be a vein of the Nile, because it produces the Coracin fish as well as the lake does which is near to Alexandria.41 So, while at the Sea of Galilee Jesus predicted woe for the Chorazain, and said that henceforth his disciples would follow him and become fishers for men. Titus' experience was strangely parallel to Jesus' prophecies in that he literally brought woe for the Chorazainians and his soldiers literally followed him and became "fishers of men." That is, they fished for the inhabitants of the village named for the Coracin fish. If the irony of juxtaposing the onset of Jesus' ministry and Titus' campaign was created deliberately, it apparently stemmed from the fact that Titus saw the humor in his "fishing" for the Chorazainians as they attempted to swim to safety. The previous examples, in and of themselves, are not convincing evidence that there is a deliberate parallel between Jesus' ministry and Titus' campaign. It is, after all, quite possible that it was just an unfortunate coincidence that Jesus chose the beach at Gennesareth as the spot where he described his future ministry as fishing for men. I present this example of the two levels of interpretation that are possible while reading the New Testament in conjunction with War of the Jews, because it occurs near the beginning of both Jesus' and Titus' narratives. I show below that the sequence of events that take place in the New Testament and War of the Jews have a meaning not heretofore understood. However, the parallels that exist between the experiences of Jesus and Titus at Gennesareth are not limited to catching men. The first part of Jesus' statement is "Follow me" and "Do not be afraid." When one reads the passage from Josephus in which the Jews were "caught" it is also recorded that the soldiers who did the "catching" were told not to be afraid and indeed "followed" someone. As the next excerpts show, the person being followed was Titus, who told his troops not to be afraid. 42 CAESAR'S MESSIAH "For you know very well that I go into danger first, and make the first attack upon the enemy. Do not you therefore desert me, but persuade yourselves that God will be assisting to my onset."42 And now Titus made his own horse march first against the enemy.43 As soon as ever Titus had said this he leaped upon his horse and rode apace down to the lake; by which lake he marched and entered the city the first of them all, as did the others soon after him.44 Thus, Josephus pointed out three times that Titus was the first into battle. And again, the Roman soldiers who would do the "fishing" literally followed Titus, creating another conceptual parallel with Jesus. In fact, the New Testament passage above, in which Jesus asks his disciples "follow me," and the passage from Josephus in which Titus asks his troops to follow, so that they can become fishers of men, have a number of other parallels. Like Jesus, Titus had been sent by his father. So he sent away his son Titus to Casarea, that he might bring the army that lay there to Scythopolis.45 While it is hardly unusual to follow a leader into battle or to have been sent by one's father, Titus, again like Jesus at Gennesareth, is in a sense beginning his ministry there. He states that the battle is to be his "onset." "Do not you therefore desert me, but persuade yourselves that God will be assisting to my onset."46 The Greek word that Josephus uses here, horme means "onset" in English, that is, either an assault or a starting point. From Titus' perspective the moment can be seen as a starting point because it is his first battle in Galilee entirely under his command. To summarize, though there were thousands of other possible locations, both Jesus and Titus can be said to have had the onset of their narratives at Gennesareth, and in a manner that involved fishing for men—parallels that are unusual enough to at least permit Fishers of Men: Men Who Were Caught Like Fish 43 TITUS AND JESUS COMPARED: AT THE "SEA" OF GALILEE TITUS JESUS Start of a campaign (War 3, 10, 2) describes this battle as the "onset" of his sole command of the army this is the start of the ministry of Jesus Sent by his father "he sent away his son Titus to Caesarea" (War 3, 9, 7) sent by his father in heaven His followers followed "entered the city the first of them all, and the others soon after him" (War 3, 10,5) "brought their boat to shore and followed him" (Luke 5:10) Reassures troops not to be afraid "you know very well that I go into danger first, do not therefore desert me" (War 3, 10, 2) "Do not be afraid" (Luke 5:10) Reference to Chorazain "it produces the Coracin fish" (War 3, 10,8) "Woe to you Chorazain" (prophecy in Matt. 11:23) Presence of a Jesus Jesus is the leader of the rebels at the Sea of another Jesus is the leader of disciples at Galilee the Sea of Galilee Fishing for men the Jews fall out of their boats "such as were drowning in the sea . . . attempted to swim to their enemies, the Romans cut off either their heads or their hands" (War 3, 10, 8, clause 527) "I will make you fishers of men" (Matt. 4:19)  questioning whether they were the product of coincidence. Further, the parallels are of the same nature as the typological relationship shown above between Jesus and Moses. The connections between Jesus and Titus are made up of parallel concepts, locations, and sequences. Moreover, these parallels must be viewed in conjunction with the historical parallels between Jesus and Titus. Jesus predicted that a Son of Man would come to Judea before the generation that crucified him had passed away, encircle Jerusalem with a wall, and then destroy the temple, not leaving one stone atop another. Titus was the only individual in history that could be said to have fulfilled Jesus' prophecies concerning the Son of Man. He came to Jerusalem before the generation that crucified Christ had passed away, encircled Jerusalem with a wall, and had the temple demolished. The overlaps between Jesus' prophecies and Titus' accomplishments make the "fishers of men" parallel more difficult to accept as random. And this is just the beginning of the uncanny parallels between the two men who called themselves the "son of God" and whose "ministries" began in Galilee and end in Jerusalem. (See chart on page 43.) CHAPTER 3 The Son of Mary Who Was a Passover Sacrifice To understand the parallels between Jesus' ministry and Titus' campaign it was necessary to make a series of discoveries, each new insight providing the capacity to make the next. This process began when I came across the following passage in War of the Jews and concluded that the parallels between the "son of Mary" described in it and the "son of Mary" in the Gospels were too precise to have been the product of circumstance. While readers can judge this claim for themselves, it should be noted that Josephus wrote during an age in which allegory was regarded as a science. Educated readers were expected to be able to understand another meaning within religious and historical literature. The Apostle Paul, for example, stated that passages from the Hebrew Scriptures were allegories that looked forward to Christ's birth. I believe that in the following passage Josephus is using allegory to reveal something else about Jesus. The passage begins with Josephus speaking in the first person. He describes the difficulty he is having in writing about an exceptionally grisly event caused by the famine that occurred during the Roman siege of Jerusalem. But why do I describe the shameless impudence that the famine brought on men in their eating inanimate things, while I am going to relate a matter of fact, the like to which no history relates? It is horrible to speak of it, and incredible when heard. I had indeed willingly omitted this calamity of ours, that I might not seem to deliver what is so porten45  tous to posterity, but that I have innumerable witnesses to it in my own age . . .47 He then describes the event: There was a certain woman that dwelt beyond Jordan, her name was Mary; her father was Eleazar, of the village Bethezob, which signifies the house of Hyssop. She was eminent for her family and her wealth, and had fled away to Jerusalem with the rest of the multitude, and was with them besieged therein at this time. The other effects of this woman had been already seized upon, such I mean as she had brought with her out of Perea, and removed to the city. What she had treasured up besides, as also what food she had contrived to save, had been also carried off by the rapacious guards, who came every day running into her house for that purpose. This put the poor woman into a very great passion, and by the frequent reproaches and imprecations she cast at these rapacious villains, she had provoked them to anger against her; but none of them, either out of the indignation she had raised against herself, or out of commiseration of her case, would take away her life; and if she found any food, she perceived her labors were for others, and not for herself; and it was now become impossible for her any way to find any more food, while the famine pierced through her very bowels and marrow, when also her passion was fired to a degree beyond the famine itself; nor did she consult with any thing but with her passion and the necessity she was in. She then attempted a most unnatural thing; and snatching up her son, who was a child sucking at her breast, she said, "O thou miserable infant! for whom shall I preserve thee in this war, this famine, and this sedition? As to the war with the Romans, if they preserve our lives, we must be slaves. This famine also will destroy us, even before that slavery comes upon us. Yet are these seditious rogues more terrible than both the other. Come on; be thou my food, and be thou a fury to these seditious varlets, and a by-word to the world, which is all that is now wanting to complete the calamities of us Jews. The Son of Mary Who Was a Passover Sacrifice 47 As soon as she had said this, she slew her son, and then roasted him, and ate the one half of him, and kept the other half by her concealed. Upon this the seditious came in presently, and smelling the horrid scent of this food, they threatened her that they would cut her throat immediately if she did not show them what food she had gotten ready. She replied that she had saved a very fine portion of it for them, and withal uncovered what was left of her son. Hereupon they were seized with a horror and amazement of mind, and stood astonished at the sight, when she said to them, "This is mine own son, and what hath been done was mine own doing! Come, eat of this food; for I have eaten of it myself! Do not you pretend to be either more tender than a woman, or more compassionate than a mother; but if you be so scrupulous, and do abominate this my sacrifice, as I have eaten the one half, let the rest be reserved for me also." After which those men went out trembling, being never so much afrighted at any thing as they were at this, and with some difficulty they left the rest of that meat to the mother.48 I would first note that while the passage may have been based on an actual event, Josephus seems to have invented the dialogue. There are no witnesses to the speech Mary gives before she kills her son. It is, of course, unlikely that a mother would have slain and eaten her son in the presence of others. To see the satire that lies within this passage one must first understand the phrase "Bethezob, which signifies the House of Hyssop." Beth is the Hebrew word for "house" and Ezob is the Hebrew word for "hyssop," hyssop being the plant that Moses commanded the Israelites to use when marking their houses with the blood of the sacrificed Passover lamb. This mark identified the houses that the Angel of Death would "pass over." Then Moses called on the elders of Israel and said to them, Pick out and take lambs for yourselves according to your families, and kill the Passover lamb. And you shall take a bunch of hyssop, dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and strike the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin . .  The phrase House of Hyssop, therefore, brings to mind the first Passover sacrifice. Another statement in this passage can also be seen as relating to the Passover sacrifice. After slaying her son, the woman roasts the body. In God's instructions to Moses as to how to prepare the Passover sacrifice, God ordered the following: "Do not eat it raw, nor boiled at all with water, but roasted in fire—its head with its legs and its entrails."50 Thus, in the passage from War of the Jews we are analyzing, Mary's son can be seen as a symbolic Passover lamb. This is the same method used by the author of the New Testament, who also denoted the symbolic Passover lamb by combining a reference to hyssop with an instruction to Moses about preparing the Passover lamb—that not one of its bones be broken. Now a vessel full of sour wine was sitting there; and they filled a sponge with sour wine, put it on hyssop and put it to his mouth. So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, "It is finished!" And bowing his head, He gave up his spirit. Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who was crucified with him. But when they came to Jesus and saw him already dead, they did not break His legs. John 19 Identifying Jesus with the symbolic Passover lamb at his crucifixion continued a theme begun at the Passover supper where Jesus asked the disciples to eat of his flesh. Also during the meal He took a Passover biscuit, blessed it, and broke it. He then gave it to them, saying, Take this, it is my body. Mark 14:22-27 There is, then, a parallel between the New Testament's son of Mary who asks that his body be eaten and the son of Mary Josephus described, who actually has his flesh eaten. Josephus connects the Mary described in his passage to the Mary in the New Testament with another of the details he records. The Son of Mary Who Was a Passover Sacrifice  He describes the famine—as Winston translates it above—as having "pierced through Mary's very bowels." In the New Testament, being pierced through is predicted for only one person, Jesus' mother Mary: Then Simeon blessed them, and said to Mary His mother, Behold this child is destined for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign which will be spoken against (yes, a sword will pierce through your own soul also; that the reasonings in many hearts may be revealed.") Luke 2:35 The fact that the New Testament's Mary and the Mary in War of the Jews both had their heart pierced has, to my knowledge, never been noticed by another scholar. The reason for the oversight is important. Scholars have not noticed the parallel between the two Marys because it is more conceptual than linguistic. In the New Testament the Greek words making up the phase are dierchomai psuche while in War of the Jews they are dia splanchon. Though the words that indicate the piercing through, dia51 and dierchomai, are linguistically related (the verb dierchomai having the preposition dia as part of its stem), the words used to describe the part of Mary that was to be pierced through—psuche and splanchon—are different. Psuche,53 the word translated in the New Testament above as "soul," can also mean "heart," or "the seat of emotions." Splanchon, the Greek word that Josephus uses to describe the part of Mary that was pierced through, is translated above as "bowels," but is in fact a synonym for psuche, and can mean either "inward parts," especially the heart, lungs, liver, and kidneys, or, like psuche, it can mean "the seat of the emotions." Scholars have not seen this conceptual parallel between the two Marys simply because it was created using different words, even though the words mean the same thing. In other words, if a prophet predicted that "next week a dog will bite a mailman" and a historian recorded that during that week "a cur sank its teeth into a letter carrier" the prophecy, in fact, came to pass even though the prophet and the historian used different words to describe the event. The concept the prophet predicted was the same as the one the historian recorded.  The "fulfilled prophecy" of the "bitten postman" cannot be seen through an analysis of the individual words that the historian and the prophet used. Likewise, the satirical system that exists between the New Testament and War of the Jews cannot be seen by analyzing their individual words and nuances of grammar. The system is made up of parallel concepts, not parallel words. Notice also that the parallel "heart piercings" of the two Marys are prophetically logical. This is to say that the Mary in the New Testament is the one predicted to have her heart "pierced through" in the future and the Mary in War of the Jews, which occurred later, is the one who fulfilled this prophecy. If the New Testament had stated that Mary's heart had been pierced through, then the logic of this prophecy would have been contradicted. And notice also that the statement in the New Testament, though innocuous, is a prophecy. One reason that the comic level of the New Testament has remained unseen is because scholars have failed to recognize the many seemingly innocuous New Testament prophecies that are fulfilled within War of the Jews. Josephus has, thus, described a Mary who fulfilled the prophecy made for the Mary in the New Testament, in that she was "pierced through the heart." As this Mary is of the "House of Hyssop" and her son is a "sacrifice" who was "roasted" and his flesh was eaten, he can certainly be likened to a human Passover lamb, like the one established in the New Testament. Josephus' use of the word "splanchon" also builds on this theme—"splanchon" being the Greek word that was used to describe those parts of a sacrificed animal reserved to be eaten by sacrificers at the beginning of their feast. Yet another detail recorded by Josephus also links this passage to the New Testament. Josephus gives the name of Mary's father as Eleazar, which in Greek is Lazarus, the name of the individual whom Jesus raised from the dead. To summarize, within this short passage Josephus has used a number of concepts and names that are parallel to those associated with the New Testament's symbolic Passover lamb. These are a mother named Mary; the fact that this Mary was pierced through the heart; a son of Mary; hyssop; a son who is a sacrifice; a son whose flesh is eaten; a son who is to become a "byword to the world," one The Son of Mary Who Was a Passover Sacrifice 51 of Moses' instructions regarding the Passover lamb; an individual named Lazarus (Eleazar); and Jerusalem as the location of the incident. It is unlikely that there is another passage in all of literature that contains, by chance, as many as half the number of parallels with a concept as singular as Christianity's Passover lamb. When I first recognized these parallels I felt that the simplest explanation for such an improbable grouping was that it had been deliberately created and that, therefore, the passage was a lampoon of Jesus. To argue against this proposition one must accept this idea that Josephus unknowingly recorded these parallels in such detail within a passage of less than two pages. However, because Josephus wrote War of the Jews while living in the Flavian court, a place where Christianity flourished, and was one of the few historians to have recorded Jesus' existence, he would seem to be among the authors least likely to have recorded a satire of Christ accidentally. For example, if the passage in question had occurred within a work by Tolstoy, there would be virtually complete agreement that it was a deliberate satire. And notice that when viewed from such a perspective the passage would certainly be seen as comical, the irony being self-evident of a Messiah who instructs his followers to symbolically "eat of my flesh" actually having his flesh eaten by his mother. I shall show in a later chapter that Josephus' passage shares yet another parallel with the life of Jesus, that of "Mary's fine portion that was not taken away from her"—a parallel that when seen in combination with those noted above puts the proposition that Josephus was intentionally satirizing Jesus beyond doubt. If Josephus was lampooning Jesus, what was his purpose? An obvious explanation is that he wrote the passage to amuse a group on whom the joke would not be lost: he would have created it to be enjoyed by the Flavians and their inner circle. This conclusion is especially plausible in light of the fact that there were individuals within the Flavian court who were aware of Christianity around the time Josephus published War of the Jews. Further, there were four colleges in Rome that were responsible for overseeing the religions within the empire. Because religion was an  important tool of the state, these colleges had considerable political power. From Augustus on, the emperor was a member of all four colleges, one of which, the Quindecimviri Sacris Faciundis, was responsible for the regulation of foreign cults in Rome. All the Flavian emperors were members of this college and would have categorized Christianity as a foreign cult during this era. Moreover, the most obvious reason to believe that there were Flavians familiar with Christianity is that so much of the New Testament is related to the family. The Flavians brought about the fulfillment of all of Jesus' doomsday prophecies—the destruction of the temple, the encircling of Jerusalem with a wall, the towns of Galilee being brought low, and the destruction of what Jesus describes as the "wicked generation." Titus' mistress, Bernice, and Tiberius Alexander, his chief of staff during the siege of Jerusalem, are actually named within the New Testament. A cult whose canon prophesied the accomplishments of the Flavians, named individuals within its inner circle, and actually had converts within the imperial family would certainly have been scrutinized during an era when the regulation of religion was so important that the emperor himself was involved with it. Titus is known to have reviewed War of the Jews. As noted above, Josephus wrote that Titus so wished that "the knowledge of these affairs should be taken from these books alone, that he affixed his own signature to them." Thus, Titus certainly had read the passage describing the Mary who ate her son and, considering the traditions connecting his family to Christianity, could well have understood its ironic parallels with the mother of Jesus. Again, though Jesus seems to be speaking symbolically when he speaks of having his flesh eaten as a Passover sacrifice, in Josephus' history we see a literal interpretation of Jesus' words, which renders them blackly comic. If the passage is a satire of Jesus, a number of statements Josephus makes within it can be seen as double entendres. The reader need only read these statements from the perspective that the Flavians had invented Christianity and their satirical meaning will become obvious. Some of these are found in Josephus' narration: The Son of Mary Who Was a Passover Sacrifice 53 It is horrible to speak of it, and incredible when heard . . . While I am going to relate a matter of fact, the like to which no history relate . . . I might not seem to deliver what is so portentous to posterity . . . I have innumerable witnesses to it in my own age . . . But the most important play on words is found within Mary's address to her "miserable child," wherein she states "... be thou a fury to these seditious varlets and a byword to the world, which is all that is now wanting to complete the calamities of us Jews." As I have suggested, this quote seems to have been invented by Josephus. Not only were there no witnesses to hear them, but they are, on their face, dubious. Would a mother who has eaten her son really wish him to become a byword to the world? Further, taken literally, Mary's words seem incoherent. Why would her child become a "fury" to the "varlets"—that is, the Jewish rebels against Rome— by being cannibalized? And why would this "complete the calamities of us Jews"? Within the context of a lampoon of Jesus the meaning of the phrase becomes clear. The author is not merely ridiculing Christ. He is stating that Jesus will "complete the calamity" of the Jews by becoming a byword to the world and that the spread of Christianity will "complete" the destruction of the Jews. This interpretation indicates that Christianity was designed to promote anti-Semitism—a concept that is at least plausible, historically. A cult that produced anti-Semitism would have both helped Rome prevent the messianic Jews from spreading their rebellion and punished them by poisoning their future. The New Testament has numerous passages that seem deliberately intended to cause Christians to hate Jews. Though Christian apologists have attempted to explain away such passages, there are clear examples of this technique throughout the New Testament. 54 CAESAR'S MESSIAH The most famous occurs in the Gospel of Matthew, in which Pilate, after having "washed his hands of the blood of this just person" tells the Jews that they, not the Roman authorities, must be the ones responsible for crucifying Christ. The Jews responded thus: ... all the people answered and said, "His blood will be on us and on our children."54 Some scholars have speculated that later Christian redactors inserted the anti-Semitism passages into the New Testament out of hatred for the people who had crucified their savior. My interpretation of the passage above suggests the opposite. The New Testament was designed to promote anti-Semitism. If Christianity had been created by the Flavians to "complete the calamities" of the Jews, why had the religion's inventors created a Messiah who was a symbolic Passover lamb? The symbolism of John 19 and the passage from Josephus we have been analyzing, which set up the symbolic Passover lambs, both stem from Exodus 12, where God tells Moses and Aaron how to observe the Passover "throughout their generations": This is the ordinance of Passover: no foreigner shall eat it. But every man's servant who is bought for money, and when you have circumcised him, then he may eat it. In one house it shall be eaten; you shall not carry any of the flesh outside the house, nor shall you break one of its bones. All the congregation of Israel shall keep it. And when a stranger dwells with you and wants to keep the Passover to the Lord, let all his males be circumcised and let him come near and keep it; and he shall be a native of the land. For no uncircumcised person shall eat it. The above passage may have provided one of the motives behind the decision to establish a Messiah whose flesh may be eaten by all humanity. God's instruction to Moses regarding how only the circumcised, the Jews, may eat of the Passover lamb is one social marker of the religious separateness of the Jewish people. Judaism's requirement of religious separatism was one of the causes of the war with the, Romans. By creating a Passover lamb for The Son of Mary Who Was a Passover Sacrifice 55 all mankind, the New Testament was clearly, on one level, ending the religious separatism that made it impossible for Judaism to be absorbed into the Roman Empire. However, another passage within War of the Jews may reveal a more comic inspiration for Christianity's human Passover lamb. As the number that perished during this whole siege, eleven hundred thousand, the greater part of whom were indeed of the same nation, [with the citizens of Jerusalem], but not belonging to the city itself; for they were come up from all the country for the feast of the unleavened bread. And were on a sudden shut up by an army, which at the very first, occasioned so great a straitness among them that there came a pestilential destruction upon them, and soon afterward such a famine as destroyed them more suddenly.55 Thus, the Romans were aware that they had besieged Jerusalem at a time when Passover celebrants had swollen its population. As starvation set in, these Passover celebrants, like the Mary described by Josephus, engaged in cannibalism. The Roman historian Suetonius, writing in the third century, also recorded that there was cannibalism during the siege of Jerusalem. The Jews, meanwhile, being closely besieged, as no chance either of peace or surrender was allowed them, were at length perishing from famine, and the streets began everywhere to be filled with dead bodies, for the duty of burying them could no longer be performed. Moreover, they ventured on eating all things of the most abominable nature, and did not even abstain from human bodies, except those which putrefaction had already laid hold of and thus excluded from use as food. The cannibalism that occurred during the siege of Jerusalem is, therefore, a candidate as the inspiration behind Christianity's "flesh eating" innovation. This premise is especially plausible in light of the fact that so much of Jesus' ministry involved prophecy, and these prophecies all seemed to have come to pass within War of the Jews. In other words, the New Testament's "son of Mary" telling his disci- 56 CAESAR'S MESSIAH ples that they must "eat of my flesh" would simply have been another prophecy Josephus recorded as having come to pass. If the Romans did create the New Testament, they invented the darkly comic narrative about a human Passover lamb to satirize the grim "feast" of the starving Passover celebrants who were trapped inside Jerusalem. Josephus' story concerning the "starving Mary" and the sacrament of communion are both reflections of this comic theme. Though the strange fact that Jesus' flesh was the basis for the sacrament is not often noted today, this may not have been the case during Christianity's first centuries. Eusebius recorded that early Christians had to defend themselves against charges of infanticide and cannibalism: . . . she contradicted the blasphemers. "How," she said, "could those eat children who do not think it lawful to taste the blood even of irrational animals?" And thenceforward she confessed herself a Christian.56 Members of the Flavian court could have understood the passage from Josephus as black comedy because such individuals would have seen irony in Jesus telling his followers, particularly at Jerusalem, where Jews resorted to cannibalism, that "the bread that 1 give is my flesh." From the Flavian perspective, the comedy is selfevident. The short chapter in War of the Jews that contains the "son of Mary" passage concludes with Titus, having been told the story of the mother who ate her son's flesh, delivering a sermon on the meaning of the sordid affair. But for Caesar, he excused himself before God as to this matter, and said that he had proposed peace and liberty to the Jews, as well as an oblivion of all their former insolent practices; but that they, instead of concord, had chosen sedition; instead of peace, war; and before satiety and abundance, a famine. That they had begun with their own hands to burn down that temple which we have preserved hitherto; and that therefore they deserved to eat such food as this was. That, however, this horrid action of eating an The Son of Mary Who Was a Passover Sacrifice 57 own child ought to be covered with the overthrow of their very country itself, and men ought not to leave such a city upon the habitable earth to be seen by the sun, wherein mothers are thus fed, although such food be fitter for the fathers than for the mothers to eat of, since it is they that continue still in a state of war against us, after they have undergone such miseries as these. And at the same time that he said this, he reflected on the desperate condition these men must be in; nor could he expect that such men could be recovered to sobriety of mind, after they had endured those very sufferings, for the avoiding whereof it only was probable they might have repented.57 Titus' use of the word "repent" here is interesting. "Repent" is, of course, one of the key words of Jesus' ministry and Caesar's usage of it brings the parallels even tighter. Jesus states repeatedly, "Repent, the Kingdom of God is at hand," but exactly what sin does he wish the Jews to repent of? Jesus never gives an answer to this question. However, if my interpretation of the lampoon is correct, the sin of which Jesus wishes the Jews to repent becomes obvious. It is their rebellion against Rome. C H A P T E R 4 The Demons of Gadara When I first came across the passage from War of the Jews describing a son of Mary whose flesh was eaten and recognized its linkage to Christianity, I was perplexed. The more I studied the passage the more I was convinced that it had been deliberately created as a lampoon—but as more than just a lampoon of Jesus. It appeared to be a disclosure of a different origin of Christianity than the one that had been passed down to the modern era. That is, that Christianity had been created to be a "calamity" upon the Jews. 1 began to analyze War of the Jews to determine if it contained other passages that could be seen as satirical disclosures regarding this different version of Christianity's origin. That was when it became clear to me that there were humorous parallels between the story line of Jesus' ministry and Titus' campaign through Judea, and that among them was their similar experience near the town of Gadara. Each of the Synoptic Gospels tells a story of Jesus coming to Gadara where he meets a man who is possessed by demons (in Matthew, Jesus meets two demon-possessed men, a point I shall return to). In the versions of the story found in Mark and Luke, when Jesus asks the demon his name, the demon replies: My name is Legion: for we are many. Mark 5:9 I found it interesting that the demon would choose to describe himself and his cohort as a component of an army. Remembering that the location where Jesus asked his disciples to become "fishers 58 The Demons of Gadara 59 of men" was used to create a comic linkage to an event that occurred at the same location in War of the Jews, I wondered whether the use of the word "legion" by the demon might be satirically related to an event in War of the Jews that occurred near Gadara. The passage in Mark describing the demoniac of Gadara tells of Jesus' encounter with a man possessed by numerous demons. These demons leave the man at Jesus' bidding and then enter into a herd of swine. Once the swine are possessed by the demons, they rush wildly into the sea and drown. The passage does not reveal what happened to the demons after the swine drown. Note that in the New Testament "unclean spirits" are synonymous with devils and demons. And they came over unto the other side of the sea, into the country of the Gadarenes. And when he was come out of the ship, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, Who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no man could bind him, no, not with chains: Because that he had been often bound with fetters and chains, and the chains had been plucked asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces: neither could any man tame him. And always, night and day, he was in the mountains, and in the tombs, crying, and cutting himself with stones. But when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshiped him, And cried with a loud voice, and said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the most high God? I adjure thee by God, that thou torment me not. For he said unto him, Come out of the man, thou unclean spirit. And he asked him, What is thy name? And he answered, saying, My name is Legion: for we are many. And he besought him much that he would not send them away out of the country. Now there was there nigh unto the mountains a great herd of swine feeding. 60 CAESAR'S MESSIAH And all the devils besought him, saying, Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them. And forthwith Jesus gave them leave. And the unclean spirits went out, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the sea (they were about two thousand), and were choked in the sea. And they that fed the swine fled, and told it in the city, and in the country. And they went out to see what it was that was done. And they come to Jesus, and see him that was possessed with the devil, and had the legion, sitting, and clothed, and in his right mind: and they were afraid. And he departed, and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him: and all men did marvel. In War of the Jews, there is a short chapter that describes the battle at Gadara. The chapter begins with a description of how "John" rose to power as a leader of the rebellion. By this time John was beginning to tyrannize . .. Now some submitted to him out of their fear of him, and others out of their good-will to him; for he was a shrewd man to entice men to him, both by deluding them and putting cheats upon them. Nay, many there were that thought they should be safer themselves, if the causes of their past insolent actions should now be reduced to one head, and not to a great many. Thus, Josephus described John as a "tyrant" into whose "one head" the "insolent actions" of many had been "reduced." Josephus next describes the Sicarii, the most militant fraction of the Jewish rebellion, who, he states, were able to undertake "greater matters" because of the "sedition and tyranny" that John had created. There was a fortress of very great strength not far from Jerusalem ... called Masada. Those that were called Sicarii had taken possession of it formerly, but at this time they overran the neighboring countries, aiming only to procure to themselves necessaries; for the fear they were then in The Demons of Gadara 61 prevented their further ravages. But when once they were informed that the Roman army lay still, and that the Jews were divided between sedition and tyranny, they boldly undertook greater matters . .. Now as it is in a human body, if the principal part be inflamed, all the members are subject to the same distemper; so, by means of the sedition and disorder that was in the metropolis . . . had the wicked men that were in the country opportunity to ravage the same. Accordingly, when every one of them had plundered their own villages, they then retired into the desert; yet were these men that now got together, and joined in the conspiracy by parties, too small for an army, and too many for a gang of thieves . . . Josephus then describes the beginning of Vespasian's pacification of the Judean countryside. His first assault was on Gadara, a city held by the rebels. These things were told Vespasian by deserters; Accordingly, he marched against Gadara, the metropolis of Perea, which was a place of strength, and entered that city on the fourth day of the month Dystrus [Adar]; for the men of power had sent an embassage to him, without the knowledge of the seditious, to treat about a surrender; which they did out of the desire they had of peace, and for saving their effects, because many of the citizens of Gadara were rich men. This embassy the opposite party knew nothing of, but discovered it as Vespasian was approaching near the city. However, they despaired of keeping possession of the city, as being inferior in number to their enemies who were within the city, and seeing the Romans very near to the city; so they resolved to fly. Josephus then states that after being driven from Gadara the rebels fled to another town, where they conscripted a group of young men into their ranks. This combined group then ran "like the wildest of beasts" attempting to escape. Eventually many were forced to "leap" the river Jordan, where they drowned. So many dying in the river that, it "could not be passed over, by reason of the dead bodies that were in."  But as soon as these fugitives saw the horsemen that pursued them just upon their backs, and before they came to a close fight, they ran together to a certain village, which was called Bethennabris, where finding a great multitude of young men, and arming them, partly by their own consent, partly by force, they rashly and suddenly assaulted Placidus and the troops that were with him. These horsemen at the first onset gave way a little, as contriving to entice them further off the wall; and when they had drawn them into a place fit for their purpose, they made their horses encompass them round, and threw their darts at them. So the horsemen cut off the flight of the fugitives, while the foot terribly destroyed those that fought against them; for those Jews did no more than show their courage, and then were destroyed; for as they fell upon the Romans when they were joined close together, and, as it were, walled about with their entire armor, they were not able to find any place where the darts could enter, nor were they any way able to break their ranks, while they were themselves run through by the Roman darts, and, like the wildest of wild beasts, rushed upon the point of others' swords; so some of them were destroyed, as cut with their enemies' swords upon their faces, and others were dispersed by the horsemen. ... As for those that ran out of the village, they stirred up such as were in the country, and exaggerating their own calamities, and telling them that the whole army of the Romans were upon them, they put them into great fear on every side; so they got in great numbers together, and fled to Jericho . . . But Placidus . . . slew all that he overtook, as far as Jordan; and when he had driven the whole multitude to the river-side, he put his soldiers in array over against them ... At which fight, hand to hand, fifteen thousand of them were slain, while the number of those that were unwillingly forced to leap into Jordan was prodigious. There were besides two thousand and two hundred taken prisoners. A mighty prey was taken also, consisting of asses, and sheep, and camels, and oxen.59 The Demons of Gadara 63 As I compared Josephus' and the New Testament's Gadara stories I recognized that there were similarities between them. For example, the demoniac in the New Testament's story is described as having a "Legion" of demons inside him. The rebel "tyrant," John, is described as having "the past insolent actions [of the many] reduced to [his] one head." Thus, the demoniac of Gadara can be likened to Josephus' description of John. Further, Josephus indicates that the Sicarii were only able to become a Judea-wide movement because of John's effort to establish himself as a tyrant. Before John's "wickedness" they engaged in limited activities—"at this time they overran the neighboring countries, aiming only to procure to themselves necessaries; for the fear they were then in prevented their further ravages." However, once John had divided the country, "between sedition and tyranny, they boldly undertook greater matters." These "greater matters" being recruitment and expansion of their movement throughout the countryside and Jerusalem, "Nor was there now any part of Judea that was not in a miserable condition, as well as its most eminent city also." So, like the demons that sprang forth out of one man at Gadara, the expansion of the Sicarii can be said to have come about as the result of the wickedness inside of "one head." In another passage in War of the Jews Josephus repeats the concept of John, like the demoniac of Gadara, filling the "entire country with ten thousand instances of wickedness." Yet did John demonstrate by his actions that these Sicarii were more moderate than he was himself, for he not only slew all such as gave him good counsel to do what was right, but treated them worst of all, as the most bitter enemies that he had among all the Citizens; nay, he filled his entire country with ten thousand instances of wickedness.I also noticed that in describing the Sicarii, Josephus stated that their group was "too small for an army, and too many for a gang of thieves." There is a word that describes just such a number of fighting men—a legion. "Legion" being the word that the demons from the New Testament passage above used to describe themselves. In Josephus' story of Gadara this Legion then  ran together to a certain village, which was called Bethennabris, where finding a great multitude of young men, [armed] them, partly by their own consent, partly by force . . . Thus, this legion of Sicarii "infected" a great number, paralleling the demons' infection of the swine in the New Testament. The infected group is then confronted by the Romans and runs about "like the wildest of wild beasts," which parallels the herd of swine in the New Testament passage who "ran violently." Both the New Testament and Josephus conclude their Gadara stories with a mass drowning and a description of a group that numbered "about two thousand." In the New Testament, as I have stated, the author does not tell us what happened to the demons that infected the swine. He does, however, tell us the number of swine that drowned, "(about two thousand)." In the Gadara passage in War of the Jews Josephus tells us the number of prisoners taken captive: "There were besides two thousand and two hundred taken prisoners." Josephus also informs us that, "A mighty prey was taken also, consisting of asses, and sheep, and camels, and oxen." Notice that there were no swine taken. I questioned whether the similarities between the two passages were the result of random chance. Many concepts could be seen as parallel—"one head" that contained great evil, a "Legion," this legion infecting another group, the combined group running "wildly," the drowning of the infected group, a group that numbered "about two thousand," the "missing" swine, and, of course, the location of Gadara. However, if the parallels between the two passages had been created intentionally, what was their purpose? As I studied the New Testament passage further I became aware that there were many unanswered questions within it. Why do the demons wish to enter the swine? Why do the swine then rush into the sea? What becomes of the demons? Why do the demons ask Jesus if he is there to torment them "before the time"? Why does the possessed man cut himself with stones? As I believed that Josephus' "Son of Mary whose flesh is eaten" passage was a satire of the New Testament's symbolic Passover lamb, I attempted to determine whether one of the passages concerning Gadara might be a satire of the other. I soon realized that it is possi- The Demons of Gadara 65 ble to read the Gospel stories of the demoniac of Gadara as a satire of Josephus' description of the battle of Gadara, and that the two passages could possibly be interactive. The reason that the New Testament's demoniac of Gadara can be seen as a satire on Josephus' "tyrant" John and the battle at Gadara is simply because the two stories follow the same plot outline. In other words, the characters and events that can be seen as parallel occur in the same sequence. And it all occurs near Gadara. The satirical version in the New Testament tells the same story that Josephus does but, as is often the case with satire, the characters have different names. In the New Testament the characters are the unnamed demoniac, the demons, and the swine that the demons infect. In War of the Jews the characters are the rebel leader John, the Sicarii, and the group that the Sicarii conscripts. If the New Testament's Gadara passage is a satire of Josephus' description of the battle, the demon-possessed man in the New Testament from whom the "legion" sprang would be a satire of John, the rebel leader from whose "one head" the wickedness came forth. Following this logic, the legion of demons that sprang from one individual in the New Testament would lampoon the Sicarii in War of the Jews, who are described as "too small for an army, and too many for a gang of thieves," and the "swine" in the New Testament would satirize the group that the Sicarii "infected" in Josephus' passage. The premise that the characters in the two tales concerning Gadara are meant to be understood as the same individuals but with different names also seems to answer my question about whether the two thousand demons drowned with the swine they infected. The demons who infected the swine in the New Testament must be a satirical representation of the 2,200 Sicarii who escaped drowning and were captured alive at Gadara. Josephus appears to complete this comical interaction with the New Testament by pointing out that while many different animals were captured, none were swine: "A mighty prey was taken also, consisting of asses, and sheep, and camels, and oxen." Why were no swine captured? Because in the New Testament's story of Gadara the swine had drowned and therefore could not be captured in the parallel passage in War of the Jews. 66 CAESAR'S MESSIAH While the structure of this satire is more complex than the others I have shown, the humor itself is very straightforward. It simply denigrates the Sicarii as demons and unclean spirits, and the people they recruited as swine. No doubt this was the way the Flavian family felt about the rebels. Many of Jesus' prophecies have been long understood to foresee events from the war between the Romans and the Jews. It is therefore strange that the relationship between the two passages has not been noticed before, the Gospels' Gadara story being a "prophecy" of an event from the war that Josephus recorded as having "come to pass." This oversight is particularly odd in light of the fact that the Gospels' Gadara story is, in and of itself, incoherent. Within the context of the New Testament there is no theological or moral principle that can be gleaned from the story of a legion of demons that enter a herd of swine that then run wildly into the river and drown. However, when it is viewed as a satire of Josephus' description of the battle of Gadara, the New Testament passage makes perfect sense. Another seemingly incoherent aspect of Jesus' encounter with the demoniac that this interpretation makes clear occurs in the version of the story found in Matthew. Wherein, upon seeing Jesus, the demon-possessed men cry out, "What have we to do with you, Jesus, you Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?"62 The question the demons are asking is unanswerable within the literal context of the passage. What "time" are they referring to? However, this question is answered by the interpretation I offer. If the demons are lampoons of the leaders of the Jewish rebellion, the time of their torment is clear. They are prophesying the torment experienced by John and Simon at the end of their war against the Romans. Further, if the New Testament's passage is a satire of the battle of Gadara, notice that it is a specific satire of Josephus' passage and not of some tradition regarding the battle that Josephus might have shared with the authors of the New Testament. For example, the demoniac referring to himself as "Legion" only makes satirical sense as a comic parallel to Josephus' unique description of the rebel band as being "too small for an army, and too many for a gang of thieves." This is an important point in that it indicates that parts of the New The Demons of Gadara 67 Testament and War of the Jews were designed to be read interactively, or intertextually. Josephus' description of the manner in which John had spread his "infection" is similar to Jesus' description of the "unclean spirits" who left one man and infected many others. "Now as it is in a human body, if the principal part be inflamed, all the members are subject to the same distemper." This similarity is especially clear when one considers that in first-century Judea "demons" were considered to be responsible for fevers and other illnesses. The Dead Sea Scrolls actually describe a "fever demon."63 When Josephus uses "infection" as an analogy for the Sicarii's activity he is practically likening them to demons. I therefore decided to review the New Testament and War of the Jews for examples to support the premise that the New Testament lampoons the Sicarii as "demons." During this analysis it became clear that Jesus and Josephus each referred to the same "wicked generation," the generation that crucified Christ and then rebelled against Rome, as having been infected by "demons." In the following passage, for example, Jesus specifically foresees that "unclean spirits," or demons, would possess this "wicked generation." Notice that Jesus makes the point that one "unclean spirit" can infect many, which parallels Josephus' description of the wickedness passing from "one head" to many. Jesus also states that the unclean spirits pass through "waterless places." Which can be seen as a satirical way of stating that demons cannot pass through water, thereby linking the passage to what puzzled me regarding the fate of the two thousand demons. The idea that demons are unable to pass through water runs through both the New Testament and the works of Josephus. When the unclean spirit has gone out of a man, he passes through waterless places seeking rest, but he finds none. Then he says, "I will return to my house from which I came." And when he comes he finds it empty, swept, and put in order. Then he goes and brings with him seven other spirits more evil than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and 68 CAESAR'S MESSIAH the last state of that man becomes worse than the first. So shall it be also with this evil generation.64 Jesus' linking of the "evil generation" to demonically possessed men who infected others mirrors my interpretation of the New Testament's Gadara passage, wherein 1 concluded that the "Sicarii" were demons who infected others with their "wickedness." When Jesus referred to a "wicked generation" he appears to have been referring to the Sicarii, who rebelled against Rome. This proposition is especially clear in light of the fact that to Jews of this era a "generation" was forty years, which was the exact time span between Jesus' resurrection and the final destruction of the Sicarii at Masada. The understanding that a "generation" lasted forty years comes from the Pentateuch. And the Lord's anger was kindled against Israel, and he made them wander in the wilderness forty years, until all the generation that had done evil in the sight of the Lord was consumed.65 Many Christians currently hold a different position regarding Jesus' doomsday prophecies, believing that they do not refer to the generation of Jews that lived during his lifetime. Instead, they believe that Jesus was speaking about some unspecified time still in the future. I feel that this "futurist" understanding is incorrect and has the effect of obfuscating Jesus' words, thereby making it difficult to understand the meaning they conveyed in the first century. No real understanding of the New Testament is possible without knowing what Jesus meant when he used the word "generation." The Greek word in the New Testament that has been translated as "generation" is genea. Early in the 20th century some Christian scholars began to posit that Jesus' use of this word was meant to indicate not the "generation" of Jews alive during his lifetime, but rather the entire "race" of Jews, which would not pass away "without all these things having first taken place." It is easy to understand their desire for such a definition. If Jesus is referring to those Jews alive during his lifetime then his "Second Coming" must have occurred in 70 A.D. Such an understanding leaves Christianity in an awkward position. This is because if Jesus' The Demons of Gadara 69 "Second Coming" had occurred during the war between the Romans and the Jews, why was it Titus and not Jesus who demolished the temple and destroyed the "wicked generation"? The Christian theologian C. I. Scofield recognized this dilemma and in his Bible reference switched the definition of the word genea to that of genos, an entirely different word meaning "race." However, scholars showed that the New Testament's use of genea could only be referring to the Jews of Jesus' lifetime and not to the entire Jewish race, thereby debunking Scofield's position.66 The understanding that Jesus was specifically referring to the generation of Jews alive at the time he spoke the words was certainly the understanding held during the Middle Ages. For example, the following notes were found written alongside Matthew 24:34 in a Bible dated 1599. "This age: the word generation or age is here being used for the men of this age."67 We are on solid ground in understanding that Jesus was referring solely to the generation of Jews who were alive during the 40 years between his ministry and the destruction of Jerusalem. However, if this is correct, then Jesus and Josephus were referring to the same group as the "wicked generation." Notice in the following passages how similar Jesus' and Josephus' understanding was regarding "demons," the "wicked generation," and the Sicarii. From Josephus: . . . had the Romans made any longer delay in coming against these villains, the city would either have been swallowed up by the ground opening upon them, or been overflowed by water, or else been destroyed by such thunder as the country of Sodom perished by, for it had brought forth a generation of men much more atheistical than were those that suffered such.68 . . . And truly so it happened, that though the slayers left off at the evening, yet did the fire greatly prevail in the night; and as all was burning, came that eighth day of the month Gorpieus [Elul] upon Jerusalem, a city that had been liable to so many miseries during this siege, that, had it always enjoyed as much happiness from its first foundation, it would certainly have been the envy of the world. Nor did 70 CAESAR'S MESSIAH it on any other account so much deserve these sore misfortunes, as by producing such a generation of men as were the occasions of this its overthrow.69 From the New Testament: "Wicked and faithless generation!" He replied, "They clamor for a sign, but none shall be given to them except the sign of the Prophet Jonah." Matt. 12:39.4 Then he goes and brings back with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they come in and dwell there; and in the end that man's condition becomes worse than it was at first. So will it be also with the present wicked generation. Matt. 12:45.46 "0 unbelieving and perverse generation!" replied Jesus; "How long shall I be with you? How long shall I endure you?" Matt. 17:17.5 I tell you in solemn truth that all these things will come upon the present generation. Matt. 23:36.16 I tell you in solemn truth that the present generation will certainly not pass away without all these things having first taken place. Matt. 24:34 Somehow, the three-way connection between the "wicked generation," Jesus' "demons," and Josephus' "Sicarii" has not attracted much attention from scholars. For example, the Hebrew scholar Joseph Klausner completely missed the connection. He wrote: At that time even educated people and those who had imbibed of the Greek culture such as Josephus, such nerve cases and cases of insanity as cases of "possession" by some devil or evil or unclean spirit, and believed in cures and that certain men could perform miracles.70 The Demons of Gadara 71 In fact, Josephus did not believe that demons were "nerve cases" and gave a precise definition as to what they were. He stated that demons were the spirits of the wicked. Demons . . . are no other than the spirits of the wicked.71 This definition indicates that Josephus saw the Sicarii as "demons" in that he constantly describes the rebels as "wicked." Josephus also links the Sicarii with "demons" in another way. He describes the Sicarii as moving "with a demoniacal fury"72 as they went to kill their families at the end of the siege of Masada. Like Jesus, Josephus makes it clear who the "wicked" are. They are the generation of Jews that rebelled against Rome. That neither did any other city ever suffer such miseries, nor did any age ever breed a generation more fruitful in wickedness than this was, from the beginning of the world.73 Thus, Jesus and Josephus share a narrow understanding and express it with the same vocabulary: that the generation of Jews who lived between 33 C.E. and 73 C.E. were "wicked" because they had been "infected" by a demonic spirit. This shared understanding is suspicious. Jesus could only view the "wickedness" of this generation by looking into the future, and yet he not only held the same opinion of the generation as Josephus, he used the same words in describing it. Returning to the version of the story of the demoniac of Gadara found in Matthew, where Jesus meets two demons, in War of the Jews we learn that were two "tyrants" or leaders of the Jewish rebellion, John, described above, and a Simon. Since my analysis suggests that the New Testament is satirizing John in the version that describes a single demon of Gadara, it seemed logical to ask whether the version describing two demoniacs was satirizing both leaders of the Jewish rebellion, John and Simon. Experimenting with this premise I noticed that at the conclusion of the siege of Jerusalem in War of the Jews Simon and John both take refuge in subterranean caverns beneath Jerusalem. Eventually they are forced by starvation to come out of these "tombs" and sur- 72 CAESAR'S MESSIAH render to the Romans. This event struck me as a parallel to the description of the demon-possessed men "coming out of the tombs" in the New Testament. The passage in War of the Jews that describes these caverns confirms that they are indeed "tombs." The Romans slew some of them, some they carried captives, and others they made a search for under ground, and when they found where they were, they broke up the ground and slew all they met with. There were also found slain there above two thousand persons, partly by their own hands, and partly by one another, but chiefly destroyed by the famine; but then the ill savor of the dead bodies was most offensive to those that lighted upon them, insomuch that some were obliged to get away immediately . . . 74 As I have mentioned, the demon-possessed man at Gadara is described as "cutting himself with stones."75 Cutting oneself with "stones" is, of course, unusual—a stone is not a tool someone would normally use to cut with. What is the author of this passage actually referring to? 1 realized that if the demoniacs of Gadara are intended to satirize the rebel leaders, then there was a comic answer to this question. The phrase in the New Testament where the demoniac is "in the tombs . . . cutting himself with stones" shares a comic relationship with the passage in War of the Jews that describes the "tombs" that John and Simon take refuge in. The joke comes from the unanswered question in Mark 5:5. This question being, what does one call someone who cuts himself with stones? In a passage in War of the Jews relating to the rebel leader's hiding in the "tombs" we learn the absurdly obvious answer. Someone who cuts himself with stones is, of course, called a "stonecutter." This Simon, during the siege of Jerusalem, was in the upper city; but when the Roman army was gotten within the walls, and were laying the city waste, he then took the most faithful of his friends with him, and among them some that were stonecutters, with those iron tools which belonged to their occupation.76 The Demons of Gadara 73 The version of the Gadara encounter in Matthew does not describe the fate of either of its two demon-possessed men. However, if the demoniacs were spoofs of the leaders of the Jewish rebellion, then the version in Mark, which describes only one possessed man, must tell the fate of John. I reached this conclusion because the passage concludes with the statement "Him that was possessed with the devil, and had the legion, sitting, and clothed, and in his right mind, and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him."77 If the New Testament was lampooning Simon and John, the leaders of the Jewish rebellion, then the individual who was restored to his "right mind" and who went to Decapolis could only have been John. This is because Josephus records that, after being captured, John was given life imprisonment while Simon was taken to Rome and executed. Following this logic, it could only have been John, then, who "began to publish in Decapolis." So my musings raised the question of whether John the Zealot, leader of the Jewish rebellion, had assisted the Romans in creating Christian literature while he was imprisoned in Decapolis. And further, I wondered exactly what literature this individual could have helped the Romans create? The only known Christian literature from this era is the New Testament itself. There was, of course, someone named "John" who wrote a Gospel. While the premise that the Apostle John was a lampoon of the John who was the leader of the rebellion was based at this point in my analysis as much on imagination as evidence, it was consistent with the style of black humor I felt was in play within the passages analyzed previously. Of course, if the Apostle John is a lampoon of the rebel John, then it would follow that the Apostle Simon is also a lampoon of the other rebel leader, Simon. Since my analysis of the New Testament's Gadara passages suggest that the Sicarii were lampooned as demons in the New Testament, I first attempted to determine if there were other New Testament passages concerning demons that might support the proposition regarding the relationship between rebel leaders John and Simon and the two Apostles. During this search I noticed the 74 CAESAR'S MESSIAH following passage from the Gospel of John, which states that the Apostle Judas was the "son of Simon the Iscariot." "Did not I choose you—the Twelve?" said Jesus, "and even of you one is a devil." He alluded to Judas, the son of Simon the Iscariot. For he it was who, though one of the Twelve, was afterwards to betray Him. John 6:70-71 Scholars have commented on the possibility that "Iscariot," the last name of Judas, is somehow related to "Sicarii," the word Josephus uses to describe the messianic rebels. As Robert Eisenman notes, the only difference between the two Greek words the switching of the iota, or "I," with the sigma, or "s." I concur, and will show below that it is simply one of the many puns that the author(s) of Josephus and the New Testament use in challenging the reader to discover that the two works describe the same characters. I determined that the following passage from the Gospel of Matthew could be read as a satire on John, the leader of the rebellion, as well as on the "wicked generation." Notice that "John" is accused of having a demon because he is not eating and drinking, which certainly can be likened to the rebel John's situation in the subterranean caverns. John is shown as a mirror opposite of the "Son of Man," who is eating and drinking and is "the friend of tax gatherers," and who will "upbraid towns" "because they had not repented"—this description of Jesus having a clear parallel in Titus' activities in Judea. Therefore, if the passage has the satirical meaning I suspected, then the "John" described within the passage is meant to be understood as John, the leader of the rebellion, and Jesus' prophecy is actually envisioning Titus' campaign through Judea. But to what shall I compare the present generation? It is like children sitting in the open places, who call to their playmates. "We have played the flute to you," they say, "and you have not danced: we have sung dirges, and you have not beaten your breasts." The Demons of Gadara 75 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, "He has a demon." The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they exclaim, "See this man!—given to gluttony and tippling, and a friend of tax-gatherers and notorious sinners!" And yet Wisdom is vindicated by her actions. Then began He to upbraid the towns where most of His mighty works had been done—because they had not repented. Matt. 11:16-20 My analysis of the New Testament story of the demons of Gadara suggests that the "subterranean caverns" the Jewish rebels fled into at the end of the siege of Jerusalem were satirized as "tombs" within the New Testament. The following passage from the Gospel of John appeared to me to be using this theme. However, notice that if this interpretation is correct, then in the passage Jesus is actually comparing himself to Titus, in that Titus is the individual sent by "god," that is, his father Vespasian, to hand out "life," or "judgment," to the Jews hidden in "tombs," that is, the caverns beneath Jerusalem. I shall return to this point below. This interpretation also indicates a different origin for the Christian concept of "resurrection" than that traditionally held. It is not based only on the Pharisaic belief that God will return the dead to life, but rather is a satire on the raising of the dead, that is, those Jews found buried within the tombs under Jerusalem at the end of the siege. If this is correct, it is another example of the theme of Jesus seemingly speaking symbolically but Josephus' history showing a comicly literal meaning to his words. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself, and has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come forth, those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the res- 76 CAESAR'S MESSIAH urrection of judgment. I can do nothing on my own authority; as I hear, I judge; and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me. John 5;26-30 While these interpretations of the passages above are logical, they do not, in and of themselves, provide direct support for the contention that the Apostles John and Simon were satires of the leaders of the Jewish rebellion. Further analysis of the New Testament produced more examples of this kind but nothing that provided the clarity 1 sought. Finally, I realized what had been staring me in the face the entire time. There is a passage within the New Testament that provides extraordinary support for the premise that the Apostles Simon and John were lampoons of the Jewish rebel leaders Simon and John. The Gospel of John concludes with a discussion between Simon (Peter) and Jesus. Jesus foresees that Simon will be bound and carried "where you do not wish to go." Jesus also tells Simon that he will have a martyr's death, "to glorify God." In the midst of this discussion, "the disciple that Jesus loved," clearly meaning the Apostle John, appears. Simon asks Jesus what the fate of John is to be. Jesus replies, "It is my will that he remain." The passage then points out that John "is the disciple who is bearing witness to these things, and who has written these things" referring to the Gospel of John itself. Below is the entire passage. Notice how the author goes to great lengths to avoid calling the Apostles by their real names, Simon and John. Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you girded yourself and walked where you would; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish to go." (This he said to show by what death he was to glorify God.) And after this he said to him, "Follow me." Peter turned and saw following them the disciple whom Jesus loved, who had lain close to his breast at the supper and had said, "Lord, who is it that is going to betray you?' When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, "Lord, what about this man?' The Demons of Gadara 77 Jesus said to him, "If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? Follow me!" The saying spread abroad among the brethren that this disciple was not to die; yet Jesus did not say to him that he was not to die, but, "If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you?" This is the disciple who is bearing witness to these things, and who has written these things; and we know that his testimony is true. John 21:18-24 This passage, which is the conclusion to Jesus' ministry, is exactly parallel to Titus' judgments concerning the rebel leaders Simon and John at the conclusion of his campaign through Judea. Thus, at the conclusion of the Gospel above, Jesus tells Simon "when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish to go." Jesus tells Simon to "follow me" and that his death will "glorify God." However, Jesus also states that it is his will that John is to "remain." At the conclusion of his campaign through Judea, Titus, after capturing "Simon," girds him in "bonds" and sends him "where you do not wish to go," this being Rome. During the parade of conquest at Rome, Simon follows, that is, is "led" to a "death, to glorify God," the god "glorified" being Titus' father, the diuus Vespasian. However, it is Titus' will to spare the other leader of the rebellion, John. Notice that in the following passage Josephus records Simon's fate before John's, just as it occurs in John 21. A seemingly innocuous detail but one that I will show has great significance. Simon . . . was forced to surrender himself, as we shall relate hereafter; so he was reserved for the triumph, and to be then slain; as was John condemned to perpetual imprisonment.78 Josephus also records that Jesus' vision of Simon "following" also comes to pass for the rebel leader Simon. Simon ... had then been led in this triumph among the captives; a rope had also been put upon his head, and he had been drawn into a proper place in the forum.79 78 CAESAR'S MESSIAH In the passage from the Gospel of John above, notice that the author does not call the Apostle John by his name but rather as "the disciple whom Jesus loved," and as the individual who had said at the Last Supper, "Lord, who is it that is going to betray you?" Later in the chapter the author identifies this disciple with yet another epithet when he states, "This is the disciple who testifies of these things, and wrote these things"—even here not referring to John by name but requiring the reader to determine it by knowing the name of the author of the Gospel. The author's use of epithets here, instead of simply referring to the disciple as "John," seems clearly an attempt to keep the parallel conclusion of Jesus' and Titus' "ministries" from being too easily seen.80 The author also has Jesus call Simon by his nickname, "Peter," for the same reason. The same technique is used throughout the New Testament and War of the Jews. To learn the name of an unnamed character, the reader must be able to recall details from another, related passage. In effect, the New Testament is designed as a sort of an intelligence test whose true meaning can be understood only by those possessing sufficient memory, logic, and humor. For clarification, I present the following table showing the parallels between the ends of Jesus' ministry and Titus' campaign: 1) Characters are named Simon and John 2) Both sets of characters are judged 3) Both sides of the parallel occur at the conclusion of a "campaign" 4) In each, Simon goes to a martyr's death after being placed in bonds and taken someplace he does not wish to go 5) In each, John is spared 6) In each, Simon "follows" Further, the two events continue the theme of a prophecy made in one work being fulfilled in the other. In other words, what Jesus predicts, Josephus records as having "come to pass." This group of parallels seems too complex to have occurred by chance and provides direct support for my premise that the Apostles Simon and John were lampoons of the leaders of the Jewish rebellion, as well as my suspicion that the "Son of Man," whose The Demons of Gadara 79 coming the New Testament predicts will bring destruction to Jerusalem, is Titus. I then realized the larger implications of what I had discovered. The reader will recall the parallel beginnings to the "ministries" of Titus and Jesus; that is, both were "followed" by "fishers of men." The conclusions of Titus' and Jesus' stints in Judea are also conceptually parallel. When I looked at the relative placements of the Gadara and the "son of Mary whose flesh was eaten" parallels, I found that those too occurred in the same sequence. Thus, the New Testament satires of events from War of the Jews were not haphazardly sequenced, as I had originally assumed, but were put in the same sequence as the events they satirized. In other words, the entire outline of Jesus' ministry, as recorded within the New Testament, was designed to prophecy Titus' campaign through Judea. For clarification, I present the following table of parallels in sequence shown thus far: TABLE OF PARALLELS IN SEQUENCE JESUS' MINISTRY TITUS' CAMPAIGN Jesus begins ministry at Gennesareth and says "Follow me" Titus begins campaign at Gennesareth where his soldiers and become fishers of men "follow" him and fish for men At Gadara, encounters a legion inside of one man that infects a group that in turn infects another group Describes "one head" whose "wickedness" unleashes a legion of "demons" that infects another group that runs wildly "Swine" run wildly and 2,000 drown At Gadara, 2,000 of the "demons" do not drown At Jerusalem, the "Son of Mary" offers his flesh to be eaten At Jerusalem, describes a son of Mary whose flesh is eaten Jesus foresees a martyr's death for Simon at Rome but spares John at conclusion of ministry Titus sends Simon to a martyr's death at Rome but spares John at conclusion of campaign 80 CAESAR'S MESSIAH The New Testament passages concerning "fishing for men," a "legion" of demons coming out of one man to infect many, a human Passover lamb, and a conclusion where Simon is condemned and John spared can be seen as satirizing very few works of literature. It is, therefore, quite implausible that the New Testament describes, by chance, so many episodes that can be seen as satirizing the events in a single book. Moreover, while it is possible to argue that each New Testament episode that appears to satirize an event in War of the Jews does so accidentally, if that were the case then these accidents would occur in a random sequence and at random locations. It was not required that Jesus use the expression "fishers of men" while standing on the beach at Gennesareth, any more than it was required that he meet the demoniac at Gadara. Nor was it necessary for him to offer his flesh at Jerusalem, or to condemn Simon but spare John at the conclusion of his ministry. The fact that these four events occur in the New Testament in the same sequence and at the same location as their parallel events in War of the Jews strongly supports the contention that one work was created with the other in mind. Two foursided dice, for example, will each land with the same side up four times in a row only once in two hundred and fifty-six throws. Therefore, the parallel sequences, concepts, and locations make the authors' intent clear. In the same way that they show the first savior of Israel, Moses, to have been the "type" of Jesus, the second savior of Israel, through their parallel infancy experiences, they also "prove" that Titus is the last and greatest "savior" because Jesus' ministry is the "type" of Titus' campaign through Judea. Finally, the parallel sequences of Jesus' and Titus' "ministries" must be considered in the context of their historical overlaps. As I noted above, Jesus predicted that a "Son of God" would come to Judea before the generation that crucified him had passed away, then encircle Jerusalem with a wall and destroy the temple. Titus is the only individual in history who can be seen as having fulfilled these prophecies. Such a combination of historical singularities could not occur by chance. This is self-evident. Therefore, the only plausible explana- The Demons of Gadara 81 tion for the similar story lines is that these parts of Jesus' ministry were deliberately created to parallel Titus' campaign through Judea. History has shown, of course, that the comic aspect of the parallels between the two "Sons of God" are not easy to see. Within the Flavian court, however, where "foreign cults in Rome" were carefully scrutinized and knowledge of Titus' exploits was common, those responsible for overseeing the Empire's religions would have recognized the satirical parallels between Jesus and Titus and seen them as humorous. The purpose of these parallels, moreover, was not merely to create an amusing satire for patricians. I will show in the following chapter that the authors of the New Testament use parallelism to create a story entirely different from the one that appears on its surface—a story that reveals the hidden identity of the "Jesus" who interacts with the disciples at the conclusion of the Gospels. Moreover, understanding that Jesus' ministry shares a parallel story line and characters with Titus' campaign creates a way to understand a lot about the New Testament. Simply moving the events of Jesus' ministry forward forty years in time and comparing them to the events of Titus' campaign reveals their satirical meaning. For example, whoever put Jesus' prophecy about the fate of Simon and John at the conclusion of the Gospel of John did so solely to have the conclusion of the Gospels comically mirror the end of Titus' campaign. The discussion between Jesus and Simon could have occurred at any time during Jesus' ministry or been recorded in any of the other Gospels, or not been included at all, since it contains no important theological ideas. This method also reveals the satirical basis for Simon's nickname, Peter, which in Greek is Petros, meaning "rock" or "stone." It is a joke relating to Josephus' description of the circumstance of the real Simon's capture. As stated above, in trying to escape Roman-occupied Jerusalem, Simon fled into a subterranean cavern with a group of stonecutters and attempted to dig an escape passage. Unable to carve through rock and out of food, he was forced to surrender. He did so in an extraordinary fashion. Josephus writes: 82 CAESAR'S MESSIAH Simon, thinking he might be able to astonish and elude the Romans, put on a white frock, and buttoned upon him a purple cloak, and appeared out of the ground in the place where the temple had formerly been.81 The humor is subtle. In the comic logic of the New Testament's Simon's epithet, "stone" satirizes Josephus' depiction of Simon being captured with a group of stonecutters, who, of course, cut "stone." As he came "out of the ground in the place where the temple had formerly been" he was, therefore, the first "stone" upon which the new "temple," Christianity, was to be built. Once again, though Jesus appears to have spoken metaphorically when he tells Simon that he is the "stone" upon which he will build a new church that will replace Judaism, Josephus records an event showing another, comic, meaning to Jesus' words. And I declare to you that you are Peter, and that upon this Stone I will build my Church . . . Matt. 16:18.14 The depiction of Simon coming out of a cavern that is a "tomb" and contains a group of stonecutters also provides satirical confirmation of the premise that Simon the Apostle and the demoniac of Gadara were both lampoons of Simon the leader of the Jewish rebellion. This is because the humor regarding "stonecutters" creates a parallel between the demoniac of Gadara and the rebel leader Simon. And since the passages are parallel, the unnamed character in one would have the same name as his named "type" in the other; in this case "Simon" is the name of one of the demoniacs of Gadara. Understanding this simple point of logic enables a reader to learn the names of many the unnamed characters in the New Testament and War of the Jews, and the real identity of Jesus. I will also show that far from being unusual, the use of intertextual parallels to exchange information between passages was commonplace in the Judaic literature of this era. The New Testament's comic theme regarding "rock" and "stone" appears to be satire on a well-known metaphorical theme found throughout the Dead Sea Scrolls, that of the "foundation of rock." In the following example from the Thanksgiving Hymn, notice that the The Demons of Gadara 83 author sees himself, like the rebel leader Simon, as entering a "fortified city" and "seeks refuge behind a high wall." But I shall be as one who enters a fortified city, As one who seeks refuge behind a high wall Until deliverance [comes]; I will (lean on) Thy truth; O my God. For Thou wilt set the foundation on rock And the frameworks by the measuring cord of justice; And the tried stones {Thou will lay}82 The comic logic that links the New Testament to War of the Jews also makes clear the basis for the epithet of the Apostle John, which is "the disciple whom Jesus loved." John was the "loved disciple" because he was the captive leader whom Titus spared. Further, the real meaning of Jesus' criticism of his disciples—for example, his describing the Apostles "Simon" and "John" as having demons—is now also apparent. Having maliciously satirized the leaders of the messianic movement as Jesus' Apostles, the Roman authors of the New Testament then "record" Jesus lecturing his Apostles on their wickedness. In the Gospel of Luke there is a passage that warns Simon of his being possessed by "Satan" and reiterates the concept that Simon is going to prison and to death "with" Jesus. It also repeats the theme of the demoniac of Gadara (Simon), who returns to his true self after Satan has been repelled. It is another example of Jesus making statements that seem metaphoric but have literal and comic meaning when read in conjunction with War of the Jews. "Simon" did indeed go with his "master" to prison and death, his "master" being Titus. Though in the past the following passage has mystified scholars, its meaning is now clear. "Simon, Simon, I tell you that Satan has obtained permission to have all of you to sift as wheat is sifted. "But T have prayed for 'you' that your faith may not fail, and you, when at last you have come back to your true self, must strengthen your brethren." "Master," replied Peter, "with you I am ready to go both to prison and to death." Luke 22:33 84 CAESAR'S MESSIAH Continuing this comic theme in the Gospel of Mark, Jesus actually calls the Apostle Simon "Satan." His strange remark about the founder of his church is rendered coherent when one understands that Jesus is referring, in the Roman context, to the rebel Simon. The reader will note that the mysteriousness of many of Jesus' sayings disappears when they are understood within the context 1 suggest. In the passage, Jesus repeats the command to Simon that he gives at the conclusion of the Gospel of John above. That is, to "follow me" with a cross to your doom. And Peter took him and began to rebuke him, saying, "God forbid, Lord! This shall never happen to you." But he turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me; for you are not on the side of God, but of men." Then Jesus told his disciples, "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up my cross and follow me. "For whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." Matt. 16:21-25 In the passage above, from Matthew, notice that Jesus tells his disciples to "take up his cross" and follow. In the passage below, from Luke, we learn that, in fact, "Simon," called a "Cyrenaean," did indeed "take up his cross" and "follow" Jesus. Notice how deliberately the author conveys the idea that a "Simon" "followed" Jesus with a cross. As soon as they led Him away, they laid hold on one Simon, a Cyrenaean, who was coming in from the country, and on his shoulders they put the cross, for him to carry it behind Jesus. Luke 23:26 The structure of the comedy involved in Simon's "following with a cross" is familiar. If one interprets Jesus' words metaphorically they can be seen to have a spiritual meaning, but if interpreted literally they are black comedy. The Demons of Gadara 85 The Apostle Paul is also engaged in the lampooning of Simon's execution. But when Cephas [Simon] came to Antioch I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. Gal 2:11 The strange tale of Simon's three denials of Jesus is also part of the sequence of events shared by the New Testament and War of the Jews. The tale is one of the most famous stories in the New Testament and is found in all four Gospels. The maid who kept the door said to Peter, "Are not you also one of this man's disciples?" He said, "I am not." Now Simon Peter was standing and warming himself. They said to him, "Are not you also one of his disciples?" He denied it and said, "I am not." One of the servants of the high priest, a kinsman of the man whose ear Peter had cut off, asked, "Did I not see you in the garden with him?" Peter again denied it; and at once the cock crowed. John 18:25-27 When I had determined that the Apostle Simon was a lampoon of Simon the leader of the Jewish rebels, and that there was a parallel sequence of events in War of the Jews and the New Testament, I was curious to determine if War of the Jews contained a parallel to the New Testament story describing Simon's three denials of Jesus. In fact, just scanning War of the Jews where Simon's "denials" would have occurred, that is, immediately following the capture on the Mount of Olives, reveals a passage in which Titus states that three times he has exhorted Simon to "peace" and three times he had been denied. This bridge it was that lay between the tyrants and Caesar, and parted them; while the multitude stood on each side; those of the Jewish nation about Simon and John, with great hopes of pardon; and the Romans about Caesar, in great expectation how Titus would receive their supplication . . . Titus said . . . 86 CAESAR'S MESSIAH "I exhorted you to leave off these proceedings before I began this war. . . "After every victory I persuaded you to peace . . . "I will not imitate your madness. If you throw down your arms, and deliver up your bodies to me, I grant you your lives; and I will act like a mild master of a family; what cannot be healed shall be punished, and the rest I will preserve for my own use." To this offer of Titus they made this reply—That they could not accept of it.83 In the New Testament Simon denies three times that he is a "follower" of Jesus. He then returns to his "right mind" and feels remorse. This is a comic depiction of the true Simon's three refusals to surrender and then his being, as Josephus records, "made sensible" once he has been captured by the Romans. In the Christian tradition, "Simon the Apostle" suffers a martyr's death at Rome. In fact his execution, in the manner and approximate year that the Christian tradition maintains, is described by Josephus. Simon is not, however, a Christian martyr but a Jewish one. In retrospect, it seems hard to understand why, with the exception of Robert Eisenman, scholars have not commented on the parallels between the Christian Simon and his Jewish counterpart, because they are obvious. Both Simons were leaders of a Judean messianic movement engaged in missionary activity who suffered a martyr's death at Rome in approximately the same year. How many such individuals could there have been? The traditional time span given as likely for the Christian Simon's death is between July 64 C.E. (the purported date of the outbreak of the Neronian persecution) and 68 C.E. The rebel Simon was martyred in 70 or 71 C.E. And, as shown above, both can be seen as the "cornerstone" of the church that replaces one that is destroyed. Further, both Simons are recorded as having a relationship with the Flavian family. St. Jerome and Tertullian both refer to the tradition that "Simon" ordained Clement, the purported Flavian pope. This tradition that the early church scholars refer to is significant in that it not only links the Flavian family to the origin of Christianity but, if correct, creates a conundrum for the religion. If The Demons of Gadara 87 Simon did ordain Clement it would suggest that he was not martyred by Nero, but later, by the Flavians. However, it is hard to imagine that Simon would have handed over control of his movement to a member of the family that was about to execute him. My explanation resolves this paradox. If the rebel Simon and the Christian Simon were the same individual, then his being martyred by the Flavians and also handing control of the religion over to them becomes understandable. The tradition that Simon ordained a Flavian as pope and then was executed by that family simply reflects the truth. The Flavians executed Simon and then passed control over his messianic cult (now "Christianity") to family members. Later Christian scholars attempting to organize the history of the religion recognized that such a direct connection to the Flavian family was problematic. Therefore, they simply inserted popes between Simon and Clement. This led to the two lists of popes, the one that the Church officially claims, and the one that Tertullian and Jerome knew of, which had the succession go directly from Simon to a member of the Flavian family. Scholars have puzzled over why Paul always refers to Simon as "Cephas," the Aramaic equivalent of Peter. My explanation is that the authors of the New Testament determined that to refer to the Apostle as "Simon" during the period when the real Simon's life is covered in War of the Jews might make the ruse too obvious. Even hoi polloi might notice that the two Simons were suspiciously similar. The authors of the New Testament therefore changed the Apostle's from "Simon" to "Simon Peter," then to "Peter," and finally to "Cephas" as their narration comes closer to the time when the real Simon leads the rebellion. The creators of the Roman church had literally used the Sicarii leader as the "rock" upon which they "built" the church that would worship their pacifistic, tax-paying Messiah. By appropriating the real Simon's name and position of authority, they were able to "graft" the Apostle Simon onto the history of Christianity. The New Testament has numerous Simons: 1) Simon the Apostle 2) Simon called Zelotes or the Kanaites 3) Simon, the father of Judas, who betrayed Jesus 88 CAESAR'S MESSIAH 4) Simon Magus, the Samaritan wizard 5) Simon the tanner, Acts 10 6) Simon the Pharisee, Luke 7:40-44 7) Simon of Cyrene who carried the cross of Christ Simon, the brother of Jesus, the son of Cleophas 9) Simon the leper 10) Simon Peter The idea that the New Testament obfuscates the similarities between the Apostle Simon and Simon, the leader of the Jewish rebellion, by constantly changing the Apostle's name suggested to me that all the "Simons" in the New Testament might be lampoons of the Jewish leader. Supporting this conjecture was the fact that while Jesus gave instructions to "Simon the Apostle" to "follow him" with a cross, it was "Simon the Cyrene" who carried out the prophecy, indicating that these two "Simons" were lampoons of the same individual. Further, it seemed clear that the Simon who was the father of Judas the "Iscariot," was also a lampoon of the rebel Simon who was likely to have been a Sicarii. Simon the "Zealot" also seems a likely epithet for Simon the leader of the Jewish "Zealots" in the war against Rome. The idea that the "Simons" within the New Testament were created as a unified comic theme sheds light on a parallel phenomenon within the New Testament, that of the many "Marys." "Mary," like "Simon," is the name of numerous characters within the New Testament. In fact, it is the name of every female character central to Jesus' ministry: 1) Mary, the mother of Jesus 2) Mary Magdalene 3) Mary, the sister of Lazarus and Martha of Bethany 4) Mary of Cleophas, the mother of James the less 5) Mary, the mother of John Mark, a sister of Barnabas 6) Martha, the sister of Lazarus and Mary of Bethany Martha, Lazarus' sister, is on this list because Martha is the Aramaic approximation of the Hebrew name Mary. The names both stem from the word for rebellion. Martha is Aramaic for "she was rebellious" and Mary is Hebrew for "their rebellion."84 The Demons of Gadara 89 There is no known Hebrew tradition of giving sisters the same name. The fact that the New Testament records that a family so central to Christianity's origin had chosen to do so suggests to me that all the characters named Mary in the Gospels might, as I suspect of all the Simons, be lampoons. A passage in the Gospel of John that states that Mary the mother of Jesus also had a sister named Mary supports this premise. Now there stood by the cross of Jesus His mother, and His mother's sister Mary, the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. John 19:25 It is quite improbable that the two families most central to Jesus' ministry would have each had, by chance, two sisters named Mary. Many scholars have commented on the dubiousness of Mary's sister being named Mary. For example Eisenman wrote, Mary did not have a sister Mary. This confusion was based on either separate and conflicting descriptions of Mary before the redaction of these traditions or simply a grammatical error in the Greek. Eisenman is correct in stating that Mary did not have a sister with the same name, but there is a better explanation for the many Marys than "grammatical error." All the Marys in the New Testament, together with the sole Mary in War of the Jews, the mother who ate her son's flesh, are part of a comic theme like that created by the various Simons. Given that the name Mary stems from the word "rebellion," I believe that these lampoons were not based on a historical individual but on an archetype. In other words, all the female members of the militant messianic movement the Sicarii would have been known as Marys to the Romans, because they were all "rebellious." This insight is important in understanding Mary Magdalene's key role in the New Testament's satire on the resurrection of Jesus. That the sole Mary in War of the Jews would have such a connection to the New Testament, a work in which all of the central females are also named Mary, is unlikely to have been circumstantial. 90 CAESAR'S MESSIAH I would conjecture that during the war "Mary" became a Roman nickname for female rebels in much the same manner that enemy soldiers have been referred to by a single name during the modern era. For example, Americans soldiers called their enemy "Charley" during the Vietnam War and "Kraut" during World War II. One can imagine a Roman centurion ordering all the "Marys" to be separated from the men following the capture of a group of Jewish rebels. This theme may have then been continued by the authors of the New Testament to comically make the point that all the female followers of the Messiah were rebellious. In any event, it is clear that to a reader within the Flavian court the New Testament's naming of all of the female followers of the Messiah Mary—that is, "rebellious female"—would have been seen as another comic stroke. Imagine such an individual reading of a savior who told his followers to "follow me" and become "fishers for men" on the beach at Gennesareth, and who described his flesh as "living bread" at Jerusalem, having both his mother and every other female member of his entourage named Mary. To cognoscenti of the Flavian court, the Gospels were burlesque. Understanding that the authors of the New Testament created comic themes regarding individuals with the same name is a critical insight that will enable one to learn the real identity of Lazarus in the following chapter. Further, knowing that the rebel leaders were transformed into the Christian Apostles clarifies the intent the Romans had for their religion. The Romans wished to not merely destroy the militant brand of messianic Judaism that spawned the rebellion but to rewrite its history in such a way as to make both its Messiah and its leaders become the "founders" of Christianity. In this manner, the Romans intended to make the history of the Sicarii movement disappear by having its beliefs and key figures become the "history" of their new religion. We are also able to understand the plight of John, the leader who was imprisoned by the Romans and was satirized as the Apostle John and the demoniac of Gadara. Both Josephus and the authors of the New Testament often made reference to the fact that they wrote the truth. I believe that they were sincere in this claim but The Demons of Gadara 91 required the reader to understand the code that they wrote the truth in. Therefore, I believe that John, after coming out of the "tombs," and coming to his "right mind," did cooperate with the Romans and "publish" Christian literature at Decapolis. The ending of the Gospel of John specifically identifies the "John" whom Jesus spared as its author. Understanding that the Apostle "John" and the demoniac of Gadara were both lampoons of John, along with Simon a leader of the Jewish rebellion, enabled me to see the real meaning of the following statement concerning the demoniac of Gadara: And he departed, and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him: and all men did marvel.85 The passage indicates that John, a leader of the rebellion, was taken to Decapolis, where he provided the Romans with details of the messianic movement that were used in creating the New Testament. John was used by the Romans to help create the literature that poisoned the future of his own people. The Romans then "recorded" their use of John, anticipating that those in the future who would learn the truth regarding Christianity's origin would appreciate such irony. This is the disciple who is bearing witness to these things, and who has written these things; and we know that his testimony is true.86 This "conversion" by the rebel leader John to Christianity, also explains the two Simons' different surnames. The Simon who is condemned at the end of the New Testament is called "Simon bar Jonas," while the Simon who is condemned at the conclusion of Titus' campaign is named "Simon bar Gioras." Jonas is simply the Hebrew for John—once again the name-switching technique—indicating that Simon was the son of John. Gioras, means "the convert" in Hebrew, thus, the rebel Simon's full name was "Simon the son of the convert," a satirical synonym for "Simon, the son of John" because John had become a "convert" to the new religion. The fact that John was Simon's father also fulfills another "innocuous" prophecy found within the New Testament: 92 CAESAR'S MESSIAH From now on, five in one household will be divided: three against two, and two against three. They will be divided, father against son, son against father.87 Josephus records that at the beginning of the siege of Jerusalem Simon and John waged a violent struggle for control of the city, both against one another and against the leader of yet another faction, named Eleazar.88 War of the Jews contains a clear theme regarding the Jews destroying themselves that I shall go into more depth elsewhere. 1 conclude this chapter by pointing out that throughout Christianity's history, Jesus' words have been interpreted as the very essence of love. My analysis indicates that this is, at times, a complete misunderstanding, albeit one that was deliberately brought about. The "Jesus" who is speaking to Simon in John 21 did not have love in his heart. What was in his heart can be known by rereading the passage with the understanding that Jesus was describing what Titus would do to Simon, the captured leader of the Jewish rebellion. When these words are read as an address to a man who would be taken to Rome and tortured to death, what was in Jesus' heart is truly revealed. As John the Baptist states, Jesus did not come to baptize with water but with fire. Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you girded yourself and walked where you would; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish to go. (This he said to show by what death he was to glorify God.) And after this he said to him, "Follow me."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Apollonius Of Tyana (Paul The Apostle)

       

                         

 

 

 

 

 

Apollonius of Tyana is a rather obscure figure who no one outside the field of mainstream acadmia and heathens out to defend there beliefs from claims of plagerizism know about he is an ancient Neopythagoran sage who is virtually identical to the Gospel Jesus and villains against the faith such as Mike Winger will attempt to dicredit this fact in 3 ways

 

1. They will attempt to deliberatly water down or misrepresent the parallels to make them seem like none parallels when they quite clearly are paralles 

 

2. They will focus on the differences as if those somehow in of themselves disprove the parallels

 

3. When all else fails the dastardly pagans will accuse Apollonius of copying from Jesus except for the fact that Christianity at that point in history was very obscure and largely irrelevant meaning it is highly unlikely Apollonius would have even heard of Jesus and/or Christianity in the first place making it more plausible that It was the Christians copying from Apollonius and not the other way around.

 

 

 

Also the Apostle Paul who has no evidence of even existing also oddly shares many parallels to Apollonius of Tyana infact the whole story of Paul appears to be a syncretism of Elisha blinding an Armenean Army in the OT, Elisha ben Abdula a rabbi in the Talmud and his "Miraculous" conversion to Christianity and the rest appears to be based on Apollonius

 

 

 

 

 

Apollonius, Jesus and Paul: Men or Myths?

Categories: Stellar House Archives

by Acharya S/D.M. Murdock

Over the centuries, not a few people have noticed a resemblance between the lives of the ancient sage Apollonius of Tyana and the Christian savior Jesus Christ, a comparison most notably brought to light by the “very important Roman official” Sossianus Hierocles in the fourth century. Apollonius was said to have lived in the first century, precisely at the time of Jesus’s advent, although the former supposedly lived to be around 100 years old, while the latter allegedly died several decades earlier.

It is claimed that hundreds of statues of Apollonius were erected during the first centuries of the Christian era, with his fame as a “divine man” widespread around the Mediterranean. Numerous events in Apollonius’s life, as provided to us principally from a biography created around 210 by Philostratus, commissioned by the empress Julia Domna, peculiarly parallel those of Christ. It is difficult to determine what, if any, of Philostratus’s Life of Apollonius constitutes history, although there appears to be confirmation at least of Apollonius’s existence. In fact, from the odd coincidences between his life and that of Jesus, it has been suggested by not a few people that Jesus Christ is a fictional character based in large part on Apollonius of Tyana, although Christians beginning in early times cast the accusation of plagiarism in the opposite direction.

In addition to this possible development are striking correlations between the lives of Apollonius and the apostle Paul, who, like Jesus, strangely finds no place in contemporary history, despite claims to his having made quite a ruckus in a populated and well documented part of the world. It appears that the stories of both Jesus and Paul were in part fabricated from that of Apollonius. The opposite is also possible, although, in this author’s studied opinion, unlikely. It also may be that both Apollonius and Jesus were historical figures who did and said everything they are reported to have done and said, in which case we would be dishonest in accepting one without the other, both representing “God on Earth.”

The following table outlines germane events and characteristics in the lives of the three men, as recorded in various sources, particularly the Life of Apollonius and the Bible. It should be noted that just as the Bible does not acknowledge “Apollonius of Tyana,” nor does Apollonius’s biography mention Christ, Paul, Christians or Christianity. (The events herein are not necessarily in chronological order; nor is the list complete. A fuller treatment of this important subject would require an entire volume.)

 

Apollonius	Jesus	Paul
Born 4 BCE	Born 4 BCE	Born c. 2 CE?
Birth miraculously announced by a supernatural being	Birth miraculously announced by a supernatural being
Was the son of a god and a mortal woman	Was the son of a god and a mortal woman.
Raised in Tarsus		Raised in Tarsus
Religiously precocious as a child	Religiously precocious as a child	Religiously precocious as a child
Asserted to be a native speaker of Aramaic	Asserted to be a native speaker of Aramaic	Claimed to be a speaker of Hebrew
Associated with wise men or magi	Associated with wise men or magi
Had a disciple named Damis from Asia Minor	Had a disciple named Thomas; blessed a robber on the cross named Demas	Had a disciple named Demas from Asia Minor
Had an associate named Titus		Had an associate named Titus
Associated with a Demetrius		Associated with a Demetrius
Associated with a Stephanus		Associated with a Stephanus
Influenced by Plato	Reflected Platonism	Influenced by Philo/Plato
Renounced wealth	Denounced wealth	Embraced poverty
Followed abstinence and asceticism	Followed abstinence and asceticism	Followed abstinence and asceticism
Wore long hair and robes	Wore long hair and robes	Wore long hair and robes
Discussed eunuchs for the kingdom of Babylon	Discussed eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven
Was unmarried and childless	Was unmarried and childless	Was unmarried and childless
Was anointed with oil	Was anointed with oil
Went to Jerusalem	Went to Jerusalem	Went to Jerusalem
Spent much time at Antioch		Spent much time at Antioch
Made missionary journeys around Mediterranean		Made missionary journeys around Mediterranean
Traveled to the East for three years, where he was taught by sages		Traveled to the East for three years, where he was taught by Jesus
Wrote epistles instructing followers in spirituality		Wrote epistles instructing followers in spirituality
Spoke in metaphors	Spoke in parables
Fought wild beasts at Ephesus		Fought “wild beasts” at Ephesus
Saw and predicted the future	Saw and predicted the future
Performed miracles	Performed miracles	Performed miracles
Healed the sick	Healed the sick	Healed the sick
Cast out evil spirits	Drove out demons	Cast out demons
Raised the daughter of a Roman official from the dead	Raised the daughter of a Jewish official from the dead
Famed far and wide	Famed far and wide	Well known in Christian communities around the Mediterranean
Religious reformer	Religious reformer	Religious reformer
Spoke authoritatively to temple priests	Spoke authoritatively to temple priests	Spoke authoritatively to temple priests
Spoke as a “law-giver”	Spoke as a “law-giver”
Founded a religious community at Corinth		Founded a religious community at Corinth
Was on a mission to bring Greek culture to the “barbarians”	Was on a mission to bring Jewish culture to the “nations”
Converted “unrefined” people to himself	Converted “unsaved” people to himself
Believed to be a “savior” from heaven	Believed to be a “savior” from heaven
Worshipped as a god	Worshipped as a god	Mistaken for a god
Accused of being a magician	Accused of being a magician
Had his life threatened	Had his life threatened	Had his life threatened
Brought before a king, whose righteousness he challenged	Brought before a king, whose righteousness he challenged
Was accused of killing a boy	Was accused of killing a boy (Infancy Gospel of Thomas)
Condemned by Roman emperor	Condemned by Roman authorities	Condemned by Roman emperor
Imprisoned at Rome	Imprisoned at Jerusalem	Imprisoned at Jerusalem and Rome
Miraculously escaped prison		Miraculously escaped prison
Was shipwrecked		Was shipwrecked
Descended into the underworld	Descended into the underworld
Was assumed into heaven	Ascended into heaven
Appeared posthumously to a detractor as a brilliant light	Appeared posthumously to a detractor as a brilliant light
Said to be in two places at once	Said to be in many places at once
Had his image revered in temples	Had his image revered in churches

As can be seen, there are many important details that correspond between the lives of all three men. In some ways, of course, one or the other of the godmen was superior in his capacities, such as the claim about Apollonius being able to speak and understand “all languages” without having studied or learned them.

In an interesting development, Apollonius and Paul’s journeys took a very similar route, though generally in reverse of each other. In fact, it has been calculated that Paul and Apollonius were at both Ephesus and Rome at precisely the same time. It would be very odd if two such similar and powerful men, preaching to religious communities in these places, were unknown to each other. Unless, of course, they were each other. Oddly enough, the book of Acts mentions an “Apollos” at Ephesus with Paul, the name “Apollos” being an abbreviation of “Apollonius.” In any event, encompassing various brotherhood and mystery school sites, the route taken by both Apollonius and Paul was also more or less that of Orpheus, a mythical proselytizer of the religion of Dionysus, whose epithet was said to have been IES, centuries before the Christian era. Many others doubtlessly also made this pilgrimage to these pre-Christian sacred sites and mystery schools over the centuries.

Paul’s Journeys

Apollonius’s Journeys

Not only are the journeys of Paul and Apollonius very similar, their names are as well. While Paul is “Paulos” in Greek, Thayer’s Lexicon states that “Apollos” is, according to some ancient authorities, contracted from “Apollonios.” Interestingly, “Apollos” is mentioned in five places in Paul’s 1st Epistle to the Corinthians, in such a way – juxtapositioned with the names of Paul, “Cephas” and Christ; Paul and Christ; or Paul alone – as to attribute great significance to him. It has further been asserted that this contraction of the name Apollonius, Apollos, was found uncontracted in the Codex Bezae of the New Testament.

Moreover, the name “Apollonius,” it has been evinced, was also abbreviated in ancient times as “Pol,” but this writer has not been able to confirm that claim. It has further been asserted that the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews was not “Paulos” but “Apollos,” an interesting claim in consideration of the fact that Hebrews is written in “Hebraistic Greek” and that Apollonius was said to be a native speaker of the Hebraistic language of Aramaic. Oddly, Hebrews was one of the three epistles that were missing in the first New Testament compiled by Marcion. Furthermore, there are various “Pauline” writings that appeared after the alleged death of Paul, during the period when Apollonius was said to be still alive.

If the story of Apollonius was as well known in more or less detail as presented by Philostratus in the century proceeding that writer, i.e., the second century, with aristocracy admiring Apollonius to the point of worship, the gospel tale must be regarded as an obvious attempt at competition. In this scenario, fervent monotheists who believed it was their destiny to achieve religious hegemony set about to outdo the Capadoccian sage and, via their own usurping godman, prove themselves the spiritual leaders of mankind.

Sources:

Philostratus, Life of Apollonius, Conybeare
The Bible, RSV and others
Bernard, Dr. Raymond, Apollonius the Nazarene, Health Research
“Apollonius of Tyana,” www.livius.org/ap-ark/apollonius/apollonius01.html
Waite, Charles, History of the Christian Religion to the Year Two Hundred
Smith, William, “Apollonius Tyanaeus,” A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, www.apollonius.net/tyanaeus.html
“Is Apollonius of Tyana – Paul of Tarsus?”

 

 

https://stellarhousepublishing.com/apollonius/

 

Apollonius of Tyanna, a Pythagorean philosopher and contemporary of the Jesus Christ of the Gospels. Many agnostic and atheistic scholars as well as other free thinkers believe that some portions of the Gospels of Jesus Christ are actually modeled on the adventures of Apollonius. Quite possibly, due to the lack of historical evidence for Jesus as depicted in the Gospels. Some believe him to have actually been the Jesus Christ. Others postulate the theory that Paul the Apostle and Apollonius are one and the same. Some scholars argue that Paul of Tarsus a/k/a Paul the Apostle did not exist, and that All of the original writings and teachings attributed to him in the New Testament are the writings and teachings of Apollonius of Tyanna. Other scholars present reasonable arguments that Paul was only a mythical character patterned after Apollonius. The hypothesis that Apollonius was actually the apostle Paul lends itself much credence upon a brief review of the available facts.

Parallels Paul the Apostle and Apollonius of Tyanna

1. Apollonius is a Greek name, the Latin Romanized version would be Apollos . Apollos over a period time as well as convenience morphed to Paulos. Paulos in its English format is Paul

2. Apollonius was born in the city of Tyana, in the Roman province of Cappadocia, in present day Turkey. At the age of twelve Apollonius went to Tarsus and was educated there, coincidentally Tarsus is the birthplace of Paul of Tarsus a/k/a Paul the apostle. Tarsus is the place Apollonius moved to at a young age and went to school, hence he could be referred to as Paul of Tarsus both Apollonius and Paul were in Tarsus at the same time in their youth, as Newman points out, Apollonius and Paul were also at Ephesus and Rome at at exactly the same time . Apollonius's biographer does not mention Paul at all, but Paul's biographer speaks of "Apollos" having been at Ephesus with him. .Many of his teachings coincide with Paul of Tarsus, and Paul is said to have done many of the same things Apollonius did. {Catholic Authorities claim that Apollonius of Alexandria is the Apollos of the New Testament }

3. Both Paul of Tarsus and Apollonius were unmarried and as far as History records, neither produced any progeny.

4. Martin Luther (Founder of Protestant- Christianity} believed Apollonius to be the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews . And there are strong cases that early Christian censors, and plagiarizers inserted the name Pol / Paul in place of Apollonius/apollos/paulos wherever it could be found, it remained in the New Testament as Apollos in some instances because the Paul character they were creating was the speaker in the instances in question .

Fortunately, one book survived in its entirety- Life of Apollonius of Tyana by Flavius Philostratus. The Life of Apollonius of Tyana was secretly carried to the Near East where it remained over a 1000 years. In 1801 it was brought to Europe and was translated into English . 5. In the Greek text, Apollonius is commonly written as Pol as well as Apollos, "Apollos" of the New Testament - the eloquent "Jew" whose preaching and baptizing at Corinth and at Ephesus preceded the work of the Apostle Paul. Almost as if the narrative of Apollos is John the Baptist to Paul/Pol being Jesus. 6. Apollonius is named for the Greek sun god Apollo. Paul's original name as per the Gospels was Saul, a mutation of Sol / The Sun God as per the religion of Constantine - Sol Invictus/ The invincible Sun. 7. The companion of Apollonius, as well as scribe was Demis. As per -2 Timothy 4:10 Demas was the companion of Paul See Also Philemon, Verse 24; I Corinthians, Chapter 3: Verses 4 -- 6 & Verse 22; I Corinthians, Chapter 4: Verse 6; Titus, Chapter 3: Verse 13. Demas is also the name of one of the "criminals" crucified alongside Jesus as per The Narrative of Joseph of Arimathea.

8. Apollonius, said by legend to be the son of a god, Proteus, a shape shifting God found in the writings of Homer. Assuming elements of the Life of Apollonius to be Allegorical, is the connection to Proteus a hint as to " how versatile he was, and for ever changing his form" ...or identity. Proteus was also known for his ability to foresee the future. 'To his mother, just before he was born, there came an apparition of Proteus, who changes his form so much in Homer, in the guise of an Aigyption Daimon. ... asked him what sort of child she would bear. And he answered: 'Myself.' 'And who are you?' she asked. 'Proteus,' answered he, 'the god of Aigyptos'. Well, I need hardly explain to readers of the poets the quality of Proteus and his reputation as regards wisdom; how versatile he was, and for ever changing his form, and defying capture, and how he had the reputation of knowing both past and future. And we must bear Proteus in mind all the more, when my advancing story shows the hero to have been more a prophet than Proteus.' - Philostratus, Life of Apollonius of Tyana 1.4 9. Paul fought with wild beasts at Ephesus; so did Apollonius. 1 Corinthians 15:32 If I fought wild beasts in Ephesus for merely human reasons, what have I gained ? If the dead are not raised, Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.'

10. Paul noticed the alter to the unknown God; so did Apollonius. Acts 17:22-23 'Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: 'Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.' Apollonius spoke of Athens as the place ' 'altars are set up in honor even to unknown divinities.'

11. Paul, on his way to Rome, landed at Puteoli, so did Apollonius. See: 1 Corinthians 15:32.

 

Continued: Part Two

• Parallels of Jesus and Apollonius

 

 

https://enigmose.com/apollonius_is_paul.html

 

Apollonius of Tyanna was an ancient Greek Philosopher, Sage and Miracle worker born in 4 BC, the year now recognized by scholars as the Birth year of Jesus Christ.

There are some fascinating paralells between the Gospel narratives of Jesus and the life of Apollonius of Tyanna as well as Paul the Apostle.

There are some fascinating paralells between the Gospel narratives of Jesus and the life of Apollonius of Tyanna as well as Paul the Apostle. The life and biography of Apollonius contains a missing period of about 20 years , which begins when he was about thirty, at approximately 50 years of age his biographical record can again be traced. So where was Apollonius for twenty years after being so visible and so successful as a philosopher and teacher ?Just a possibility: Luke 3:23: "Jesus was about thirty years old when he began his work." Sossianus Hierocles claimed, it was library of Apollonius' that was plagiarized in producing the New Testament. Hierocles, a governor in Bithynia and later Lower-Egypt, {reign of Diocletian 245-315 AD) and an enemy of the Christians verbally attacked Christianity . As per Eusebius of Caesarea . "Hierocles tried to weaken the importance of Christ's miracles without however denying them, and wanted to show that Apollonius had performed some of equal importance and even more important ones." Eusebius replied with a treatise that he wrote Against The Thesis Of Hierocles on Apollonius of Tyana. Eusebius recognized that Apollonius was a very wise man worthy of admiration; admitted everything that was told about his holiness and his teachings, but rejected many of the miracles that were assigned to him, dismissing them outright or assigning them as either magic or to the work of demons.

Hierocles also states in his writings that 'Jesus was the leader of a band of highway robbers numbering more than 900 men.'

Luke 22:36 : 'But now he that hath a purse, let him take it and likewise his scrip; and he that hath no sword let him sell his garments and buy one.'

Numerous contemporary historians make mention of Apollonius's remarkable career but absolutely ignore his fabled contemporary, Jesus. Jesus appears in later writings by Christians , most of whom went to great lengths to denigrate Apollonius , as though by discrediting the Sage from Tyanna The King of Jews would somehow gain in stature - [it worked].

As per legend The coming of Apollonius was announced to his mother by an Angel, and he was born either 3 or 4 BC - the same date {Circa}which scholars now claim Jesus was born. He visited Rome and raised the daughter of a senator from the dead. Which is reminiscent of daughter of Jairus {Luke Chapter 8 40-42}Followers of Apollonius claimed that he was the son of Proteus, a god of the sea, not nearly as popular as Poseidon or Oceanus, he was better known as their servant. Apollonius is said to have repudiated this claim. Regardless, it was believed by many contemporary and subsequent adherents that Apollonius was of divine parentage and that messengers of Apollo sang at his birth. As per legend the Angels sang at Jesuses. 'To his mother, just before he was born, there came an apparition of Proteus, who changes his form so much in Homer, in the guise of an Aigyption Daimon. ... asked him what sort of child she would bear. And he answered: 'Myself.' 'And who are you?' she asked. 'Proteus,' answered he, 'the god of Aigyptos'. Well, I need hardly explain to readers of the poets the quality of Proteus and his reputation as regards wisdom; how versatile he was, and for ever changing his form, and defying capture, and how he had the reputation of knowing both past and future. And we must bear Proteus in mind all the more, when my advancing story shows the hero to have been more a prophet than Proteus.' - Philostratus, Life of Apollonius of Tyana 1.4

Justin Martyr, a Christian apologist, born about 100 C.E., was said to have asked: 'How is it that the talismans of Apollonius have power over certain members of creation, for they prevent, as we see, the fury of the waves, the violence of the winds, and the attacks of wild beasts. And whilst Our Lord's miracles are preserved by tradition alone, those of Apollonius are most numerous, and actually manifested in present facts, so as to lead astray all beholders?'

An Athenian man, possessed by a devil shrieked in fear and rage, and could not face the look of Apollonius, reminds us of the Gospel narrative of the demon possessed man of Gadera.

Many pictures recognizable as a likeness of Jesus actually have their origins in a portrait of Apollonius of Tyana painted in the reign of Vespasian

'All through the Third Century there is repeated mention of this (Apollonius' teachings). But it was not until Hierocles in the beginning of the Fourth Century boldly charged upon the Christian priesthood their plagiarism of the teachings and works of Apollonius, that the latter found it necessary to set every means at work that could in any way help to conceal the great truth that Hierocles proclaimed with such portentous force.

It was true that no one knows exactly what it was that Hierocles wrote, for Eusebius, who took upon himself the task of destroying the testimony of Hierocles, took precious good care to destroy the work of his formidable opponent, and give his own version of the matter instead. The reply of Eusebius to Hierocles has come down to us. Why has not Hierocles' arraignments of the Christian priesthood also come down to us? Let that priesthood answer.' (J. M. Roberts -- Antiquity Unveiled)

Appollonius in the New Testament

I Corinthians 1:11-12: " . . . It has been reported to me by Chloe's people that there are quarrels among you, my brothers and sisters. What I mean is that each of you says, 'I belong to Paul,' or 'I belong to Apollos,' or 'I belong to Cephas,' or 'I belong to Christ.' Has Christ been divided?" I Corinthians 3:4-6: "For when one says, 'I belong to Paul,' and another, 'I belong to Apollos,' are you not merely human? What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you came to believe, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth." I Corinthians 3:22-23: " . . . Whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future -- all belong to you, and you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to God." I Corinthians 4:6: "I have applied all this to Apollos and myself for your benefit, brothers and sisters, so that you may learn through us the meaning of the saying, 'Nothing beyond what is written,' so that none of you will be puffed up in favor of one against another."

I Corinthians 16:12: "Now concerning our brother Apollos, I strongly urged him to visit you with the other brothers, but he was not at all willing to come now. He will come when he has the opportunity."

Scholars date 1Corinthians no later than 55 AD. All scholars also agree that the name "Apollos" is indeed "Apollonius.". And that Apollonius had visited Corinth and established a church/school there, according to all historical records of the time, Apollos of First Corinthians may well have been Apollonius of Tyana. and it is very likely that Pol - not Paul was the Author of the epistle to the Hebrews, or that Pol and Paul were one and the same. It is notable that in I Corinthians 16:12 Paul explicitly states that Apollos could not be at the same place ,at the same time that he was there. In addition in an old version of 1st Corinthians found in a French monastery by a Huguenot soldier entitled the Codex Bezae . The name Apollos is spelled Apollonius.

...concerning our brother Apollos, I strongly urged him to visit you with the other brothers, but he was not at all willing to come now. He will come when he has the opportunity.

Indicating either of the two possibilities

Exactly as Paul had stated .."not at all willing to come now. He will come when he has the opportunity"Appollos/Apollonius was already there , but as his alter ego Paul

Who wrote the Pauline Epistles

Fourteen books of the New Testament were "Epistles" allegedly written by Paul [Pol] of Tarsus [The Apostle Paul] to members of the Church. An "Epistle" is a literary letter intended to be published and/or read by the general public. This was an established literary style . The "Pauline" Epistles in the New Testament probably did not start out as epistles. They were apparently letters to various churches and individuals written to address specific problems at a church location or with a leader. They were probably intended to be read aloud during a single service, at a single church.

The authenticity of the Pauline Epistles has been the subject of much debate. For instance, The Book of Hebrews - Martin Luther, the founder of Protestantism, regarded Apollonius [Pol] as the real author of this Epistle, and this is still the opinion of Many eminent scholars. He may have also written others, some have attributed the apocalypse of Saint John [Revelation] to Apollonius of Tyanna as well, while others claim a connection to the Mandean Book of John. The writer of Revelations demonstrates no knowledge of the activities of the apostle Paul or of his letters. Though "John" relishes the martyrdom of the saints, Paul's "execution in Rome" does not get a mention.

The early Christian writer, Justin Martyr, in the mid-2nd century, has nothing to say of Paul or his epistles. Likewise with other early Christian writers , prior to the second Century AD/CE

The earliest known list containing all of Paul's accredited letters dates from the late 2nd century. The author of the list is unknown , but the list takes its name from its 18th century discoverer Muratori. The Muratori list includes the statement, "Moreover there is in circulation an epistle to the Laodiceans, and another to the Alexandrians, forged under the name of Paul ... ".

The Crucifixion of Apollonius

"It has been claimed that Apollonius of Tyana was initiated into the Arcanum of Egypt in the Great Pyramid, where he hung upon a cross until unconscious and was then laid in the tomb for three days. While his body was unconscious, his soul was thought to pass into the realms of the immortals (the place of death) After it had vanquished death (by recognizing that life is eternal) it returned again to the body, which then rose from the coffer, after which he was hailed as a brother by the priests, who believed that he had returned from the land of the dead. This concept was, in substance, the teaching of the Mysteries." (Manly P. Hall, The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Reader's Edition) p. 183)

Numerous scholars have theorized that Jesus did not die on the Cross . The crucifixion may very well have been an Gnostic - Allegorical equation. In The Jesus Mysteries Timothy Freke & Peter Gandy bring to light an interesting facet of the early Christian Tradition of Martyrdom and crucifixion . Crucifixion being somewhat symbolic of executing ones "lower self" ,to crucify the false ego or "crucify" ones lower nature/ animalistic self in order to be symbolically "born again" or resurrected.

In the original Greek texts of the New Testament one finds a totally new interpretation of the Crucifixion of Jesus. One finds the possibility that the real meaning of the crucifixion is to crucify the lower self and be "Born again" .

["The real meaning of crucifixion is to crucify the false self that the true Self may rise. As long as the false self is not crucified, the true Self is not realized." -Hazrat Inayat Khan / The Soul's Journey ]

The ancient Mystery religion[s] all contained a crucifixion scenario, or close facsimile, that of Apollonius was no different. However, in Christendom the crucifixion scenario changes to an actual historical event ...[perhaps].

Miscellaneous notes concerning Apollonius

Apollonius had the strange ability to understand any Language, in his own words..."And I," said Apollonious, "my good friend, understand all languages, though I never learnt a single one."

"You need not wonder at my knowing all human languages; for, to tell you the truth, I also understand all the secrets of human silence."

He is said to have understood the language of birds, and conversed with them.

He wrote many books and treatises on a wide variety of subjects during his life, including science, medicine, and philosophy. Most of which were destroyed by early Christians. The Book of Stones is a lengthy analysis of alchemical works attributed to Apollonius by Persian alchemist Jabir ibn Hayyan ( ca.721 -815 ) ,,,Medieval writer Nicetas tells us of bronze doors at Byzantium which bore inscribed extracts from the Book of Rites, a lost work of Apollonius, and that these doors were melted down in order to destroy non-Christian beliefs which had persisted around the teachings of Apollonius of Tyanna.

At the instant the Emperor Domitian was assassinated in Rome, Apollonius spoke of it in a public assembly in Ephesus, and declared the method and manner of his death; which was found to happen at the precise moment of time he spoke of it, and in the exact manner he had described. As per Christian dogma St. Basil, is said to have been miraculously informed of the death of the Emperor Julian at the very moment that it occurred.

After his death at somewhere around 100 years of age, Emperor Hadrian collected his works and ensured their publication throughout his realm.

According to an account from Philostratus II { 170-244 AD -Philostratus II wrote several books containing the Life of Apollonius ), after keeping a vow of silence for 5 years, Apollonius traveled to India in order to "converse with the Brahmins". During his journey, he attracted a scribe among the people of Ninevah, Damis, who extensively recorded events in the life of Apollonius which described not only events in the life of Apollonius, but events relating to a succession of emperors and the Roman Empire itself. The notes of Damis eventually came into the hands of the empress Julia Domna, who commissioned Philostratus II to use the notes to assemble a biography of Apollonius.

Eunapius,, the pupil of Chrysanius, one of the teachers of Julian, writing in the last years of the Fourth Century says that "Apollonius was more than a philosopher; he was a middle term, as it were, between gods and men."

Roman historian Ammianus Marcellinus, who composed a profane history in the Latin language, refers to Apollonius as "that most renowned philosopher," and thought that, "like Pythagoras and Socrates, he was a privileged mortal who lived assisted by a familiar genius."

Sidonius Apollinaris, Bishop of Claremont, speaks highly of Apollonius. Sidonius translated the Life of Apollonius to Latin and in writing to a friend he says: "Read the life of a man who religion apart resembles you in many things; a man sought out by the rich, yet who never sought for riches; who loved wisdom and despised gold; a man frugal in the midst of feastings, clad in linen in the midst of those clothed in purple, austere in the midst of luxury . . . . In fine, to speak plainly, perchance no historian will find in ancient times a philosopher whose life is equal to that of Apollonius. [Sidonius Apollinaris, The letters of Sidonius).

As per J.S. Phillimore { Philostratus in Honor of Apollonius of Tyana } Apollonius was the founder of a church and a community, made up of his disciples. It is very possible that these were connected to a branch of the Essene, known as the Nazarenes. Other sources state that there was a group known as the Apolloniei, the adherents of Apollonius, who survived several centuries after his death. Philostratus writes of a temple in Tyana dedicated to Apollonius and founded at the Roman imperial expense, "for the emperors had judged him not unworthy of like honors with themselves." and Maurice Magre ties Apollonius to the Albigensians, a Gnostic Cathar cult. who were massacred in 1208 Pope Innocent III in what was termed the Albigensian Crusade

As per G. R. S. Mead : "He attracted to himself many followers and disciples. It would have been interesting if Philostratus had told us more about these 'Apollonians,' as they were called, and whether they constituted a distinct school, or whether they were grouped together in communities on the Pythagorean model, or whether they were simply independent students attracted to the most commanding personality of the times in the domain of philosophy." Apollonius of Tyana the Philosopher Reformer of the first Century.

As per William Lecky in History of European Morals: From Augustus To Charlemagne Apollonius of Tyanna "obtained a measure of success second only to that of Christ."

Bishop Marcion

The original Gospel of Mark may or may not be the work of Marcion. There are strong hypothesis that this Marcion introduced the doctrine that has become Modern Christianity. About 30 years after the death of Apollonius, Marcion went to Antioch, where Apollonius had done a great deal of preaching, and secured a collection of his writings . These he allegedly plagiarized, making the requisite alterations to obscure their actual origins. He took them to Rome, and the rest is History ... well a perverse version of it anyhow. See: Marcion, the Canon, the Law, and the Historical Jesus

An interesting alternative theory pertaining to the Book of Mark is that is was derived from the cult of "Divus Juluis" See Julius Ceasar as Christ

 

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• Part One Paul the Apostle

Related Literature

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Additional Resources

The Pythagorean Sourcebook and Library

Corpus hermeticum

Apollonius the Nazarene: Mystery Man of the Bible

Flavius Philostratus: Heroikos

The Indian Travels of Apollonius of Tyana

 

 

https://enigmose.com/apollonius_jesus.html

 

 

Who Was the Real Paul?
The little that we know about the life of Paul comes not from his epsitles, but from Acts, particularly the latter portions not believed to have been written by the author of Luke. However, this is one of the most heavily redacted scriptures in the New Testament and is not always in agreement with the epistles as to the whereabouts of Paul. It also depicts Paul as a more mild mannered team player rather than the fiery individualistic evangelist depicted in the epistles. The early chapters are primarily centered around the original surviving 11 Apostles in particular Peter. Some of its more debatable entries are that Judas of Galilee rose up after Theudas and that Peter was to be crucified by Agrippa I in 44 CE and not by Tiberius Alexander in 47 CE.

Apollonius visited Taxila, India c 36-38 CE. From there he brought back 9 writings that he received from Phraotes. These writings form the basis for the original 9 epistles of Paul. After his return, Apollonius formed an order according to Gymnosophic ideas and practices whose initiation was taken from the scriptures where it said, 'Thou art a priest after the order of Melchisedec,' or 'A priest after the order of the Sun.' Later during the 40s, this time with his trusted companion Damis, he makes another journey this one taking them to far eastern India. This is where they find 4 channeled Buddhist documents pertaining to the 4 horticultural seasons, which they bring back with them to Jerusalem which form the basis for the gospels. On his journeys Apollonius covers many of the same areas that Jesus and or St. Thomas are purported to have visited. We have also demonstrated the fact that Paul was baptized by John, and not on the road to Damascus, while 'Jesus' would have still been alive and living in Israel according to the gospel timeline. The Romans were opposed to John's baptism since it signified solidarity of those opposed to the Roman occupation of Israel.

After his return from his first trip in 39 CE, Apollonius apparently split with the Essene and created his own order of Nazarites known as the 'Order of the Nazarenes' which would later be known as the 'Essene Brotherhood' in Southern Judea, near Gaza which earned him the title Apollonius the Nazarene. This is why at times Jesus is called not only the Nazorean, but also the Nazarene. Most Christian scholars mistakenly conflate these two distinctly separate orders. The following is from Epiphanius' description of the founder of the Ebionites: "For he has the Samaritans repulsiveness but the Jews name, the viewpoint of the Ossaeans, Nazoraeans and Nazaraeans,..." Clearly Epiphanius considered both of these distinctly different sects sharing a commonality.

"...the Gospel Jesus consists of four basic components: soteriology, which came from the mystery-cults; ethics, which came primarily from India; eschatology, largely derived from Persia; and the supernatural Messianic concept which was an Essene adaption of a Zorastrian doctrine."—Martin A. Larson, "The Story of Christian Origins"

Many Christian scholars have noted that the authors of the scriptures were well educated men and not some itinerrant Jewish Apostles. Apollonius left his home in Tyana at age 14, the same age that many state that Jesus left his home, and moved to Tarsus, the home of Paul, to study philosophy, mainly that of Pythagoras. As a student of Pythagorean philosophy, Apollos must have been anxious to witness the precepts of his mentor being put to practice by the Essene community in Israel. After he had studied in Tarsus for about a dozen years he moved on to Antioch and then to Jerusalem. This means that he may have first arrived in Jerusalem c 27-28 CE, or around the time that we have shown that Paul, Apollos was baptized in the Jordan by John the Baptist. In the following video Dr. Richard Carrier outlines why the gospels are a myth:


It has been noted that gospel accounts written in either Greek, Hebrew or Aramaic are all originals and not translations. This would be difficult for any Jew to have accomplished, especailly an uneducated one, but Apollonius was a Cappadocian who wrote in the Hebraic-Samaritan language, and as an educated person of Greek descent obviously also spoke that language. The 9 epistles are second century Marcionite compositions copied from the mutilated memoirs of Damis of the original 9 documents brought back by Apollonius from Taxila, India. The Prologues to the Epistles suggest that only 9 were of Pauline origin. The gospel accounts come from the Tamil people of far off southeastern India. It was these 4 writings which were used by both Marcion, of Sinope, and the satirist Lucian, and in all liklihood Orthodox Church scribes under the oversight of Irenaeus to create the 4 gospels. The baptism of Jesus is based on the Gnostic texts of the baptism of Hibil-Ziwa and the crucifixion is supposedly based on the crucifixion of Yeshai the result is that the texts take on the nature of the true story of a real living sacrificed human savior. Add to this the apochryphal texts written by the disgruntled Nazoreans and early Church Presbyters and you are left with the impression that the story is true.

According to Philostratus' biography of 'Apollonius of Tyana,' he, much like Paul, was very self absorbed. It was his practice of dressing and acting like a living god which got him thrown in jail by the Roman Emperor Domitian. Since, much like Jesus Christ, there is no historical evidence that an evangelist by the name of Paul ever existed, it is not a far reach to assume that this person, Paul, actually was Apollonius. It was Apollonius and his companions Damis and Lucius who were entrusted by Vespasian to create the scriptures for the new religious order. This project is mentioned briefly in chapter 9 of the Philostratus biography. There is also another person of interest, that being the heretical Jewish Rabbi Elisha ben Abuiah who was the Jewish persecutor of the Christians who underwent a miraculous conversion and later became an apostate to the law and converted to Christianity and who is conflated with Apollonius to become just Paul.

Both Paul and Apollonius were from Tarsus in Asia Minor which was a hotbed of both Buddhism and Persian 'Sun God' worship of Mithras. In 'Antiquity Unveiled,' Damis reports that it was he who wrote the memoirs of Apollonius which became the framework of both the Philostratus biography and Acts. He also claims that the Greek followers of Prometheus mutilated those memoirs as they were opposed to the introduction of the Indian Christos among the Greeks, and strongly opposed the teachings of Apollonius. This is supported by the following from Acts, which we have demonstrated occurred c 30 CE. It also goes a long way in explaining the reason for the vicarious blood atonement, or mock crucifixion mentioned in the Safed scroll.

"When he [Paul] came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the Apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus. So Saul stayed with them and moved about freely in Jerusalem, speaking boldly in the name of the Lord. He talked and debated with the Grecian Jews, but they tried to kill him. When the brothers learned of this, they took him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus"—Acts 9:26-30. The fact that the Grecian Jews are among the 'Christians' tells us that these are not Pharisaic Jews by religion, but called Jews because they live in Judea. These could be the Greek followers of Prometheus.

What we find represented here is the clash between 2 different competing factions of Christianity. On one side, we find the Apostolic tradition led by those following the teachings of Peter and James and on the other we have Paul. We find that Apollonius' (Paul's) Epistles were originally embraced, not by the Orthodox Church but by, yet a third faction, the Gnostics. However, it was Marcion who crafted Paul, out of the fragmentary Apollonian manuscripts that he found, as a vehicle to convey his very own theology. This explains why Paul's Epistles have not even a hint of Pythagoreanism or Buddhism as you would expect from Apollonius. Marcion was a worldly man and realized that Apollonius' message was far too Gnostic and dualistic for the mass market. Although much of Paul's dualism still comes across. It was then up to the conspirators in Rome to tie Paul to the Gospel Jesus and Judaism. They searched the history books of Josephus, but could not find a Paul. So they crafted Paul, a Jew from Tarsus, out of Jospehus' references to a Saul an avaricious Herodian aristocrat. They then added the miraculous conversion from the life of heretical Jewish Rabbi Elisha ben Abuiah, known as Aher (traitor), to the mix thus giving Paul divine authority. All of these alterations had to have been composed after the failed war of bar Kosiba c 130-35 CE, when the Jewish Christians lost whatever power they still enjoyed to the Romans.

 

http://nazoreans.com/real_paul.html

 

 

Apollonius of Tyana Equated with Both Paul and Jesus
	We must always keep in mind that the scriptural accounts are the works of the authors and do not necessarily reperesent true events. Hence it would be possible for the author, especially if that person were Paul himself, to have twisted the truth. Hence, the story of the savior's youth is taken from accounts from either the life of Yeshai and his sibling John, or the Essene Teacher, but all the events starting with the baptism of Jesus represent events from the life of Paul or Apollonius. While Paul makes claims of a miraculous baptism on the road to Damascus, those events are strongly contradicted by the Gnostic Mandaeans: "The Jordan in which Messiah Paulis was baptized, have I made into a 'trough.' The bread which Messiah Paulis receives, have I made into a 'sacrament.' The drink which Messiah Paulis receives, have I made into a 'supper.' The head-band which Messiah Paulis receives, have I made into a 'priest-hood.' The staff which Messiah Paulis receives, have I made into a 'dung [-stick]."--"Gnostic John the Baptizer." While Paulis, the Latin form of Apollos, probably refers to Paul, Lorsback informs us that it is the equivalent of a Persian word Paulus meaning 'Deceiver.' Hence it may simply mean Messiah Deceiver. While most readers may think that Messiah Deceiver refers to Jesus, it may actually refer to Paul. Therefore, it is also possible that there was no Paul and that the name Paul derived from similar epithets made by the Nazoreans towards Jesus. Although the Judean Pharisee would not have considered these people to have been Jewish, it is clear that the Romans considered everyone living in that region, including Arabs, to have been Jewish. "But in the time of our own ancestors, during the reign of Nero, there flourished Apollonius of Tyana, who from mere boyhood when he became the priest in Aegae of Cilicia of Asclepius, the lover of mankind, worked any number of miracles, of which I will omit the greater number, and only mention a few." Then he begins at the beginning and enumerates the" wonders worked by Apollonius, after which he continues in the following words: " What then is my reason for mentioning these facts? It was in order that you may be able to contrast our own accurate and well-established judgment on each point, with the easy credulity of the Christians. For whereas we reckon him who wrought such feats not a god, but only a man pleasing to the gods, they on the strength of a few miracles proclaim
their Jesus a god." To this he adds after a little more the following remark: "And this point is also worth noticing, that whereas the tales of Jesus have been vamped up by Peter and Paul and a few others of the kind,--men who were liars and devoid of education and wizards, --the history of Apollonius was written by Maximus of Aegae, and by Damis the philosopher who lived constantly with him. and by Philostratus of Athens, men of the highest education, who out of respect for the truth and their love of mankind determined to give the publicity they deserved to the actions of a man at once noble and a friend of the gods." These are the very words used by Hierocles in his treatise against us which he has entitled " Lover of Truth."--Eusebius "Against the Life of Apollonius" You can find the full treatise at "Against the Life of Apollonius". At the very time that Eusebius was writing this treatise, his Christian cohorts were busy burning any reference to Apollonius that they could find. What was it about Apollonius that they the Church were so afraid of? In the Arab world, there were numerous reports of Jesus having been seen in Damascus and other Middle Eastern locations after the crucifixion. In Islam, Jesus is considered a prophet, it is mentioned that someone else was crucified in his place. Persian historian Mir Kawand, states that a site close to Damascus is called Maqam-Isa or Mayuam-i-isa, which means "the place where Jesus lived." The Talmud of Jmmanuel (Jesus) concurs, stating that Jesus went there following his final meeting with his Apostles and stayed there for two years, which includes the time that Paul had his conversion on the road to Damascus. Other historians record that Jesus, Mary and Thomas (Judas-Thomas, presumably) having traveled to Nisibis (Nasibain) near Edessa, now Urfa in southeast Turkey just north of Syria, where Jesus preached to the king. In 1417 Mir Muhammad bin Khawand Shah Ibn-i-Muhammad, also known as Mir Khawand bin Badshah, wrote of the journey of Jesus away from the Jerusalem area to Nisibis. In the former, Jesus and Mary first go to Syria; in the latter, they and Thomas have some confrontations with the king of Nisibis. In some Muslim writings Jesus is referred to as Yuz Asaf. The meaning and derivation of the name is uncertain. "Yuz" is thought by some to mean either "Jesus" or "leader," and "Asaf" to refer to those he cured of leprosy. Thus one interpretation is that Yuz Asaf means "leader of those he cured of leprosy." It is obvious that after the crucifixion Jesus would have remained incognito. In Iranian traditions recounted by Agha Mustafai, it is said that Yuz Asaf came there from the west and preached, causing many to believe in him. His teachings are said to have been similar to those of Jesus. However, if he had taught reincarnation, one would not expect that his surmised teachings on that subject would have been carried along by Muslim writers anymore than by Christian writers, since Islam also does not embrace the concept of reincarnation. Among the Nazoreans ressurection did not mean coming back from the dead, but reincarnation. Now, according to the Christian scriptures Jesus died was resurrected and ascended. There is no mention of his having visited any of these places. However, it is noted that Paul was in Damascus shortly after the crucifixion. It is also noted that Apollonius revisited Jerusalem c 35 CE before embarking on his first trip to Taxila, c 36-38 CE, which is located in Punjab to the west of present day Islamabad. "And while he thus spake and thought, it chanced that there was there a certain merchant come from India whose name was Abbanes, sent from the King Gundaphorus and having commandment from him to buy a carpenter and bring him unto him."�Acts of Thomas 2. This person origianlly associated with Gondophares I, who lived at the end of the first century BCE, is now believed to have been Gondophares-Sases. There is a similar reference to a visit to this region by Apollonius of Tyana where, at about the same time, he meets with King Phraotes which was the Parthian name for Gondophares. "...it is a remarkable, if not a suspicious circumstance that should not be passed unnoticed, that several Christian writers, while they recount a long list of miracles and remarkable incidents in the life of this Cappadocian Savior (Apollonius), extending through his whole life, and forming a parallel to similar incidents of the Christian Savior, not a word is said about his crucifixion."--Kersey Graves, "The World's Sixteen Crucified Saviors" While Christians have long claimed that Jesus was the one and only true resurrected crucified savior, antiquity reveals that there were a whole host of such savior figures. Christians believe that Jesus' miracles were performed through God, and that the miracles of the others were the work of the devil. However, to followers of Mithras or Osiris it would be their deeds that were the act of God and Jesus' the act of the devil. The only difference in all of these religions is belief.   http://nazoreans.com/apollonius_equated.html         And Last but not least Julius Caesar!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Although Christians argue there is more evidence for Jesus than Julius Caser in actuality there is far more evidence these two figures are one and the same here are just a few of many parallels between these two figures in history:

 

1. As per the writings of Anne Baring, Maurice Arthur Canney, John Mclean and other sources Aphrodite/Venus despite her open promiscuity was a Virgin Mother and according to some sources was the mother of Caesar and thus Julius Caeser was "Born of a Virgin"

 

2. Julius Caesar was Crowned under Jupiter on December 25th Just as Jebus tradition hold December 25th as his celebration.

 

3. Both Julius Caeser and Jesus Christ begin there Campaigns in neighboring teritories to the north Caeser In Gallia and Jesus in Gallilee 

 

4. Both Cross a faithful river Caeser the Rubicon and Jesus the River Jordan

 

5. Once across the rivers both come across a Patron/Rivals who are later beheaded Caesar with Pompey the Great and Jesus with John the Baptist

 

6.. They also meet there first followers Caeser with Antonius and Curio and Jesus with Peter and Andrew

 

7. After crossing the rivers both enter key cities Caeser In Corfinium and Jesus In Capernaum

 

8. Both of them continue to move until arriving at there subsecuent capitals in short lived triumph Caeser arriving In Rome on a Horse and Jesus into Jereusalem on a Donkey

 

9. Both of them have special relationships with particular Wahmen Caeser with Queen Cleopatra and Jesus with the Triple Goddess Mary Magdelene 

 

10. Both of them have secret encounters at night Caeser with Nicomedes of Bythnia and Nicodemus of Bethania

 

11. Both of them have an affinity for the common people and both run afowl of the authories Caeser with the Roman Senate and Jesus with the Jewish Sanheidren

 

12. Both of them have a traitor as well as one who kills himself Caeser with Decemis and Marcus Brutus and and Jesus with Judas Isscariot

 

13. Both of them have an assassin who gets away or is released Caeser with Marcus Brutus and Jesus with Barabbas

 

14. Both of them have someone who washes there hands of there murders and whos names are etymologically the same Caeser with Lepidus and Jesus with Pontius Pilate 

 

15. Both of them are accused of making themselvs kings and there accusations led to there deaths Caesar Salad as King of the Romans and Jaysus Crust as King of the Jews

 

16. Both of them are adorned in royal red robes and wear a crown on there head Caeser a laurel wreath and Jesus a Crown of Thorns

 

 

 

 

17. Julius Caesar is stabbed in the side of the face by a senator named Gaius Cassius Longinus and Jesus given a faithful pierceing with a lance to the side of the chest by a centurion also named Longinus who's holy day is on celebrated on March 15th

 

18. Both Caeser and Christ die on the Ides of March or March 15th as Jesus died on Nissan 15th according to the New Testament and Nissan correlates to March-April 

 

19. Both of them are Crucified Caeser by Wax dripping after his death and Jesus on the Cross as a means of his death

 

 

 

 

 

20 Caeser and Christos both have special relations with particular Male accuatences Caesar with Octavianus (Augustus Caeser) and Jesus with John the Beloved Diciple

 

21. Both of them are Hearlded by signs from Heaven Caeser in the form of Caesers Comet of 44 BC and Jebus in the form of a Republican Star From The East 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

22. Both of them are deemed Gods Posthumeously after death Caeser as the Divine Julius and Jesus as Christ/KRST 

 

23. A Lamb was Sacrificed to Jupiter the day of Caesers asassination a Lamb of God Jesus was a lamb of God who died for the sins of the world

 

24. Caeser's Uncle Marius vanished but brought back from Hades lived with his wife Iulia and a woman called Martha who Plutarch states was a fourtune teller Jesus raised El Osiris/Lazerus from the dead who lived with his sister Miriam and a woman called Martha who fortells his ressurection 

 

25. Julius Caeser had Palm Trees sprouted to seal his victories just as Jesus has olive branches waved to seal his victory 

 

26. Upon there deaths the Sky went dark in the daytime sky both Plutarch and Virgil recording the anomaly after his death

 

27. Julius Caeser recieved 33 dagger wounds in what may be the first ever recorded autotopsy as stated by Suetonius Jesus was 33 when he died

 

28. Julius Caeser said I am not King I am Caeser the Jews Declare We have no King but Caeser in the Gospels

 

29. Julius Caeser was Pontifex Maximus and Jesus was a carpenter

 

30. Julius Caeser Died in 44 BCE and Jesus Christ Died in 33 AD (Supposedly)

 

And there are many many more

 

No one knows what happend to the cult of The Divine Julius after Caesers death and no one knows about the origins of Christianity prior to 70 AD and yet both these personages there lives and fates intertwine meticulously within the literary record left behind

 

 

Acharya S:

http://www.stellarhousepublishing.com/

file:///home/chronos/u-1bc73d42013b37ccb358fad137bb9237b796cac9/MyFiles/Downloads/Zeitgeist The movie Companion source guide.pdf

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kenneth Humphrys:

https://www.jesusneverexisted.com/index.html

 

 

 

 

Timothy Freke: 

https://timfreke.com/

 

 

 

My Good online buddy D.N. Boswell:

 

 

 

 

Neal Boswell is no D.M. Murdock but he is a very close second to her and her work and I highly recommend visiting his Mythodoxy wordpress site and reading The Perennial Gospel its a free 900 page Ebook that I derived alot of sources and information from I do disagree with Boswell when it comes to Gerald Massey and Wallis Budge and when it comes to a few other things but aside from that I am in almost complete agreement with him 

 

https://mythodoxy.wordpress.com/

 

The Perrenial Gospel is no Christ In Egypt but it is a close 2nd that from what I've read so far deals more with Osiris-Jesus Parallels with various Horus-Jesus Parallels sprinkled throughout so it would be fitting to call it Christ in Egypt: The Osiris-Jesus Connection LOL

 

Here is an Introduction to it by James Hiscox: 

 https://jameshiscoxblogs.wordpress.com/2019/01/22/christian-origins-essential-reading-on-the-relationship-between-the-ancient-egyptian-religion-and-christianity-the-perennial-gospel-d-n-boswell/

 

 

Here is The Perennial Gospel itself: https://www.scribd.com/doc/217853241/Pagan-Parallels-The-Ultimate-Source-Guide#download

 

 

Roger Viklund:

http://www.jesusgranskad.se/index.htm

 

http://www.jesusgranskad.se/jesus_parallels.htm

 

 

Joseph Atwill:

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0059912OA/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

 

http://www.caesarsmessiah.com/

 

 

 

Francesco Carotta:

https://www.carotta.de/eindex.html

 

 

 

Additional sources and Bonus Content:

https://lost-history.com/dying-and-rising-gods.php

 

http://christianity-revealed.com/cr/index.html

 

 

ben yehoshua Hayyim: 

http://mama.indstate.edu/users/nizrael/jesusrefutation.html

 

http://christianity-revealed.com/cr/files/part1themythofthehistoricaljesus.html

 

http://christianity-revealed.com/cr/files/part2thelackofhistoricalevidenceforjesus.html

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lastly to celebrate finishing my suffering some cute Japanese Girls singing 

 

 

 

 

Rejoice! Rejoice! the "Demons" have been expelled in the name of KRST! In the name of The Father, (Osiris) The Sun, (Ra-Horakthy) and

The Holy Spirit (Virgin Isis-Neith) AMEN-RA!

 

[LogicalFallacy]

Um... that might be rant of the century. 

 

Did you write all that or is it copy pasted because that is a long long log post.

 

I got to the end and I was happy because you included some videos from my first foray into Jesus Mysticism - Ken Humphreys of JesusNeverExisted.

 

Did Jesus exist? It doesn't really matter because there is no way to verify the supernatural aspects of the story, and no one, not even Christians really give a shit if just a normal human named Jesus did some preaching 2,000 years ago. 

[Clayton_Veno]

14 minutes ago, LogicalFallacy said:

Um... that might be rant of the century. 

 

Did you write all that or is it copy pasted because that is a long long log post.

 

I got to the end and I was happy because you included some videos from my first foray into Jesus Mysticism - Ken Humphreys of JesusNeverExisted.

 

Did Jesus exist? It doesn't really matter because there is no way to verify the supernatural aspects of the story, and no one, not even Christians really give a shit if just a normal human named Jesus did some preaching 2,000 years ago. 

Perhaps not... this was just an article I wrote for entertainment purposes as well as to serve as a Source Guide of types for people here to cite info from if they wish and yes this was largely a copy and paste job and pehapes you are right that no one really cares weather Jesus existed or not and honestly I dont either but it is interesting none the less to discuss the point of this wasnt to disprove Christianity nor to disprove the existance of Jesus but merely to relay my position that Jesus Christ is a Syncretism of many Historical figures, Mythological Characters and Old Testament Prophets. 

[◊ Krowb ◊]

Thought better of my original post. So long as this is used as a resource for a debate regarding the historicity of Jesus, then this is quite the compendium.

 

We should be careful to never assume the burden though. So in a debate against an active Christian there is no reason to use this to give them the opportunity to go on the offensive.  It's not an either/or proposition.

[Clayton_Veno]

3 minutes ago, Krowb said:

It's definitely a long and convoluted read, but why should atheists assume a burden?  Weak atheism takes no position for or against, it is the lack of belief that defines us.  We should be extremely careful to turn any debate or discussion into an A/B either/or dichotomy as the rejection of one position does not require the adoption of the other.

 

The answer is we don't know (agnosticism) and we don't believe (atheism) until someone presents us with sufficient reasons to believe (no matter how weak).

 

It is my position there is no reason to take a position regarding mythicism and doing so - especially with such fervor - runs a real risk of painting ourselves into a corner unnecessarily.  Christians should defend their beliefs, no reason to give them an opportunity to go on the offensive and I feel that's what this does.

The point of this wasnt to Disprove Christianity nor to disprove Jesus Existance rather to relay my personal opinions/views concerning Jesus Christ and weather he existed or not as well as to act as a "Source Guide" If you will for the parallels between Jesus and these various figures in history both real and mythological. secondly i'm fine with you disagreeing with mythicism however in my opinion there are there are solid reasons to take up mythism Jesus was supposedly the greatest and most important man who ever existed and most scholars agree he existed and yet to date there is no credible proof for his existance and even Bart Ehrman one of the most advid defenders of a Historical Jesus himself can't even conjure any proof outside of regurgitating long debunked apologist/historicist arguements and resorting to childish ad hominum insults and appeal to popularity fallacies.

 

the only reason this post is so long is becuse it is intended as a source guide not as a long conuluted rant i only posted it under rants and replies cuz it was the only topic i could think to put it on. Also keep in mind I don't think Jesus is a copy of these figures I mentioned in my article but rather that he is a syncretic fusion of these characters also even if jesus did exist and mythicism is false it still dosen't change the fact that the version of him in the Gospels is mythological even if the man himself was real. also even if mythicism is false and Jesus is a real person that still dosent change the fact that the Gospels version of Jesus is clearly a syncretic fusion of many mythological and real figures.

 

It is also worth noting that the parallels between Jesus Christ and Osiris, Mithras, Adonis, Hercules, Asclepius, Dionysus, Qezalcoatl, Buddah, Horus, Julius Caeser, Alexander The Great, Titus Flavius, Moses, Elisha, Elija, Joseph (Genesis) etc. do not in of themselves disprove Jesus existance nor Christianity as it is possible for Christianity to be true and Jesus to be a real person in spite of his many parallels to these much older figures.

 

My best freind Michael is a Devout Catholic who peer reveiwed many parts of the article and while he disagrees with me when it comes to mythicism he does agree with the parallels between jesus and the many figures I mentioned in this article. He belives in Jesus and revers him as a real person and yet also agrees with the many parallels between jesus and older figures and my GF also agrees with me concerning these parallels between jesus and other figures in mythology and history even though she is Catholic as well.

 

The main focus of this piece was primarily to focus on the parallels between jesus and other figures as well as to provide primary sources from highly credentiald scholars from various time periods as well as ancient writings to verify and confirm them NOT to validate nor invalidate mythicism. this wasnt so much an "attack" on christianity or jesus existence as much as it was an "attack" on those who claim there are no parallels between Jesus and other Godmen and obviously I dont think ill of any of the "Heathens" I have responded to in this "Gospel" (Except Richard Carrier but he's a whole other discussion) I was just teasing them with mere sarcasm and refuting there points for entertainment purposes.

 

 

Also If Christianity is true then why does it need defending? the truth is like a lion it can fend for itself so if Christianity be true than what need is there for any "defence" or "offence" as it should hold up to critical scrutiny and if theists view this as a reason to go on the offensive than that is quite the laugh and shows to me that there faith is so fragile that they cant handle opposing opinions about there religion and its origins. And if that be the case than they might as well join SJW's and REEEEEEEEEEEE there ways over to the communist marxist leftists who also can't handle opposing opinions and views very well either.

 

Also how is going into parallels between jesus and other Gods and providing primary sources for them Painting ourselves into a corner? if they see that as us backing ourselves into a corner than it shows me that they are the ones on the defensive. do they not realize there religion can still be true and Jesus still could have existed even though Jesus shares parallels with other figures?

 

I'm not an Atheist I'm a Deist, Pantheist and Panentheist hybrid. 

 

   

[◊ Weezer ◊]

Honestly, the 1st two thoughts that came to my mind as I quickly scrolled through the post were,  (1) when do you find time to sleep and eat?  (2) have you ever been diagnoised with mania, OCD, or other condition?  Frankly, it is overwhelming. 

[Clayton_Veno]

6 minutes ago, Weezer said:

Honestly, the 1st two thoughts that came to my mind as I quickly scrolled through the post were,  (1) when do you find time to sleep and eat?  (2) have you ever been diagnoised with mania, OCD, or other condition?  Frankly, it is overwhelming. 

Yeah It took several weeks to produce this piece but I can see how you could think that and no I dont have OCD or anything like that I only did this for entertainment purposes only as well as a "Source Guide" to defend our faith from the "heathen" so to speak.

[Clayton_Veno]

10 minutes ago, Weezer said:

1 minute ago, Clayton_Veno said:

Yeah It took several weeks to produce this piece but I can see how you could think that and no I dont have OCD or anything like that I only did this for entertainment purposes only as well as a "Source Guide" to defend our faith from the "heathen" so to speak.

Honestly, the 1st two thoughts that came to my mind as I quickly scrolled through the post were,  (1) when do you find time to sleep and eat?  (2) have you ever been diagnoised with mania, OCD, or other condition?  Frankly, it is overwhelming. 

Also I had lots of time to sleep and eat you seriously think I was only focused on this? lol

[◊ Weezer ◊]

I would suggest some condensing and editing for more readability.  Best wishes!

[LogicalFallacy]

11 hours ago, Clayton_Veno said:

I also want to make it clear that I am a Deist/Pantheist/Panentheist hybrid and I am also a Gnostic Christian who dosen't view the stories in the Bible to be literal historical accounts but rather as simple allegories for Nature, Life and Astrotheology.  

 

When you say "Gnostic Christian" do you mean the ancient sects who proclaimed they had secret knowledge?

[Clayton_Veno]

17 hours ago, LogicalFallacy said:

 

When you say "Gnostic Christian" do you mean the ancient sects who proclaimed they had secret knowledge?

More along the lines of Timothy Freke in terms of a symbolic view of Christianity and the stories of Jesus.

[Joshpantera]

The nature of trying to counter christian apologist's that deny these parallels is massive amounts of data and information presented back at them. That's why Murdocks books became so massive. There are tons of and tons of citation behind the pagan parallels.

 

Basically, these apologist's have no better footing arguing jesus than they do arguing god in general. Those familiar with the failures of proving god exists, should easily understand the failures associated with proving jesus' historicity, or trying prove that the jesus myth doesn't parallel many pagan myths. The apologist's job is to deny at what ever cost of integrity or intellectual honesty, anything that runs contrary to their respective faith positions. 

 

The apologist's will always do their jobs. 

 

And denial isn't just a river in Egypt....

 

This compilation, while long and tedious, does contain a lot of citation that counters apologetic denial of what can be established as credible, or as credible as one can hope for. There is a lot of credibility and citation to the pagan parallels, astrotheological and otherwise. But condensing it all is difficult to impossible. There's so much citation that it's mountainous. Which alone is damming to the apologists who claim, there is no citation. 

 

 

 

 

[freedomwalker]

Wow youve done such  a lot of work and helpful research on this.   I just finished watching Michael Malekin's video and it was the best one I've seen for deconversion and alleviating stress over it.  

 

I agree though that as it stands the information is overwhelming....its practically a book.   I realise it would be more work again but dividing it up into several or more posts under different headings would be good and very helpful for readers, perhaps with a contents 'page'.     Or, I havent read all of it so  forgive me if you've already done this, but have thought of your own blog/site too??  

[Clayton_Veno]

5 hours ago, freedomwalker said:

Wow youve done such  a lot of work and helpful research on this.   I just finished watching Michael Malekin's video and it was the best one I've seen for deconversion and alleviating stress over it.  

 

I agree though that as it stands the information is overwhelming....its practically a book.   I realise it would be more work again but dividing it up into several or more posts under different headings would be good and very helpful for readers, perhaps with a contents 'page'.     Or, I havent read all of it so  forgive me if you've already done this, but have thought of your own blog/site too??  

Hey man thanks for the comment! I actually am this christmas creating a website and E-book dedicated entirely to this info and there will be different Articles on my website covering different Gods/Goddesses, Old Testament Prophets and Historical Figures and there parallels to Jesus (with relevant primary sources included of course) as well as much research into the lack of credible evidence for Jesus existence so it will be something to look foward to! 

[freedomwalker]

On 10/30/2020 at 10:15 PM, Clayton_Veno said:

Hey man thanks for the comment! I actually am this christmas creating a website and E-book dedicated entirely to this info and there will be different Articles on my website covering different Gods/Goddesses, Old Testament Prophets and Historical Figures and there parallels to Jesus (with relevant primary sources included of course) as well as much research into the lack of credible evidence for Jesus existence so it will be something to look foward to! 

Hi @Clayton_Veno,

 

I'm sorry but I now think I was much too hasty in accepting the video I watched.....even though it seemed convincing.  

I cant really share further as im not permitted to post things in favour of Christianity here.   

 

[Clayton_Veno]

4 minutes ago, freedomwalker said:

Hi @Clayton_Veno,

 

I'm sorry but I now think I was much too hasty in accepting the video I watched.....even though it seemed convincing.  

I cant really share further as im not permitted to post things in favour of Christianity here.   

 

Actually to my knowledge you are allowed as long as you don't prostalatyze or force beliefs down anyones throats so what are you trying to tell me? 

[◊ Weezer ◊]

4 hours ago, Clayton_Veno said:

Actually to my knowledge you are allowed as long as you don't prostalatyze or force beliefs down anyones throats so what are you trying to tell me? 

 

Also my understanding.

[freedomwalker]

Well essentially I cant let go of the fact that my own life changed for the better, or rather me as a person did, when I became a believer and as did other people who I know.   

 

There is more but I don't want to be in an argument, but just to say the following.

 

I'm looking at evidence for the bible being a trustworthy record again in the light of learning and understanding about how many paradoxes are communicated in it.   I'm not well read and this was something I hadn't understood before.  

 

Also I'm not an expert at all or a scholar but accounts of history can be suppressed and stories can be changed.   I believe most of the bible has stayed the same though and it's been under intense scrutiny.   

 

 

[Clayton_Veno]

1 minute ago, freedomwalker said:

Well essentially I cant let go of the fact that my own life changed for the better, or rather me as a person did, when I became a believer and as did other people who I know.   

 

There is more but I don't want to be in an argument, but just to say the following.

 

I'm looking at evidence for the bible being a trustworthy record again in the light of learning and understanding about how many paradoxes are communicated in it.   I'm not well read and this was something I hadn't understood before.  

 

Also I'm not an expert at all or a scholar but accounts of history can be suppressed and stories can be changed.   I believe most of the bible has stayed the same though and it's been under intense scrutiny.   

 

 

And I'm Okay with that to be fair this wasnt really meant to disprove christianity nor even Jesus but rather an extensive examination of the parallels between Jesus and other figures as well as to explain my personal position as to why I see Jesus as Mythical but you don't have to agree if you don't want to.

[LogicalFallacy]

2 hours ago, freedomwalker said:

...the bible being a trustworthy record...

 

That ship has sailed, wreaked, and sunk to the bottom of the ocean.

 

The first 8 chapters of Genesis are complete horseshit, and the there is no evidence to corroborate the vast majority of the rest of the first 5-6 books. In fact there is evidence against the biblical conquest of Canaan (I.e. it never happened). So that leaves a bit of the period from around 850BC to 500BC where some historical details can be corroborated, however much of it is over exaggerated and full of failed prophesy, or just outright woo (Son of man speak to these dry bones kinda stuff... and Christians have a problem with Halloween?). The New Testament is mainly proselytizing, and even that gets details wrong or contradictory... so yeah, the trustworthy record part is a sunk ship.