Christian mythology

Thus far the ancient and the Christian mythologists differ very little from each other, but the latter have contrived to carry the matter much farther.

They have contrived to connect the fabulous part of the story of Jesus Christ with the fable originating from Mount Etna, and in order to make all the parts of the story tie together, they have taken to their aid the traditions of the Jews, for the Christian mythology is made up partly from the ancient mythology and partly from the Jewish traditions.

The Christian mythologists, after having confined Satan in a pit, were obliged to let him out again to bring on the sequel of the fable.

He is then introduced into the Garden of Eden in the shape of a snake or a serpent, and in that shape he enters into familiar conversation with Eve, who is in no way surprised to hear a snake talk.

After giving Satan his triumph over the whole creation, one would have supposed that the church mythologists would have been kind enough to send him back again to the pit, or if they had not done this, that they would have put a mountain upon him, for they say that their faith can remove a mountain, or have put him under a mountain, as the former mythologists had done, to prevent his getting again among the women and doing more mischief.

But instead of this they leave him at large, without even obliging him to give his parole, the secret of which is that they could not do without him, and after being at the trouble of making him, they bribed him to stay.

They promised him all the Jews all the Turks by anticipation nine-tenths of the world beside and Mahomet into the bargain after this who can doubt the bountifulness of the Christian mythology having thus made an insurrection and a battle in heaven in which none of the combatants could be either killed or wounded put Satan into the pit let him out again giving him a triumph over the whole creation damned all mankind by the eating of an apple these Christian mythologists bring the two ends of their fable together they represent this virtuous and amiable man Jesus Christ to be at once both God and man and also the Son of God celestially begotten on purpose to be sacrificed because they say that Eve in her longing had eaten an apple putting aside everything that might excite laughter by its absurdity or detestation by its profaneness and confining ourselves merely to an examination of the parts it is impossible to conceive a story more derogatory to the Almighty more inconsistent with his wisdom more contradictory to his power than the story is in order to make for it a foundation to rise upon the inventors were under the necessity of giving to the being whom they call Satan a power equally as great if not greater than they attribute to the Almighty they have not only given him the power of liberating himself from the pit after what they call his fall but they have made that power increase afterward to infinity before this fall they represent him only as an angel of limited existence as they represent the rest after his fall he becomes by their account omnipresent he exists everywhere and at the same time he occupies the whole immensity of space not content with this deification of Satan they represent him as defeating by stratagem in the shape of an animal of the creation all the power and wisdom of the Almighty they represent him as having compelled the Almighty to the direct necessity either of surrendering the whole of the creation to the government and sovereignty of this Satan or of capitulating for its redemption by coming down upon earth and exhibiting himself upon a cross in the shape of a man had the inventors of this story told it the contrary way that is had they represented the Almighty as compelling Satan to exhibit himself on a cross in the shape of a snake as a punishment for his new transgression the story would have been less absurd less contradictory but instead of this they make the transgressor triumph and the Almighty fall that many good men have believed this strange fable and lived very good lives under that belief for credulity is not a crime is what I have no doubt of in the first place they were educated to believe it and they would have believed anything else in the same manner there are also many who have been so enthusiastically enraptured by what they conceived to be the infinite love of God to man in making a sacrifice of himself that the vehemence of the idea has forbidden and deterred them from examining into the absurdity and profaneness of the story the more unnatural anything is the more it is capable of becoming the object of dismal admiration but if objects for gratitude and admiration are our desire do they not present themselves every hour to our eyes do we not see a fair creation prepared to receive us in the instant we are born a world furnished to our hands that cost us nothing is it we that light up the sun that pour down the rain and fill the earth with abundance whether we sleep or wake the vast machinery of the universe still goes on are these things and the blessings they indicate in future nothing to us can our gross feelings be excited by no other subjects than tragedy and suicide or is the gloomy pride of man become so intolerable that nothing can flatter it but a sacrifice of the creator i know that this bold investigation will alarm many but it would be paying too great a compliment to their credulity to forbear it on their account the times and the subject demand it to be done the suspicion that the theory of what is called the christian church is fabulous is becoming very extensive in all countries and it will be a consolation to men staggering under that suspicion and doubting what to believe and what to disbelieve to see the object freely investigated i therefore pass on to an examination of the books called the old and new testament end of section three This is a LibriVox recording.

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Thus far the ancient and the Christian mythologists differ very little from each other, but the latter have contrived to carry the matter much farther.

They have contrived to connect the fabulous part of the story of Jesus Christ with the fable originating from Mount Etna, and in order to make all the parts of the story tie together, they have taken to their aid the traditions of the Jews, for the Christian mythology is made up partly from the ancient mythology and partly from the Jewish traditions.

The Christian mythologists, after having confined Satan in a pit, were obliged to let him out again to bring on the sequel of the fable.

He is then introduced into the Garden of Eden in the shape of a snake or a serpent, and in that shape he enters into familiar conversation with Eve, who is in no way surprised to hear a snake talk.

And the issue of this tete-a-tete is that he persuades her to eat an apple, and the eating of that apple damns all mankind.

After giving Satan his triumph over the whole creation, one would have supposed that the church mythologists would have been kind enough to send him back again to the pit, or if they had not done this, that they would have put a mountain upon him.

for they say that their faith can remove a mountain or have put him under a mountain as the former mythologists had done to prevent his getting again among the women and doing more mischief but instead of this they leave him at large without even obliging him to give his parole the secret of which is that they could not do without him and after being at the trouble of making him they bribed him to stay they promised him all the jews all the turks by anticipation nine-tenths of the world beside and mahomet into the bargain after this who can doubt the bountifulness of the christian mythology having thus made an insurrection and a battle in heaven in which none of the combatants could be either killed or wounded put satan into the pit let him out again giving him a triumph over the whole creation damned all mankind by the eating of an apple these christian mythologists bring the two ends of their fable together they represent this virtuous and amiable man jesus christ to be at once both god and man and also the son of god celestially begotten on purpose to be sacrificed because they say that eve in her longing had eaten an apple putting aside everything that might excite laughter by its absurdity or detestation by its profaneness and confining ourselves merely to an examination of the parts it is impossible to conceive a story more derogatory to the almighty more inconsistent with his wisdom more contradictory to his power than the story is in order to make for it a foundation to rise upon the inventors were under the necessity of giving to the being whom they call satan a power equally as great if not greater than they attribute to the almighty they have not only given him the power of liberating himself from the pit after what they call his fall but they have made that power increase afterward to infinity before this fall they represent him only as an angel of limited existence as they represent the rest after his fall he becomes by their account omnipresent he exists everywhere and at the same time he occupies the whole immensity of space not content with this deification of satan they represent him as defeating by stratagem in the shape of an animal of the creation all the power and wisdom of the almighty they represent him as having compelled the almighty to the direct necessity either of surrendering the whole of the creation to the government and sovereignty of this satan or of capitulating for its redemption by coming down upon earth and exhibiting himself upon a cross in the shape of a man had the inventors of this story told it the contrary way that is had they represented the almighty as compelling satan to exhibit himself on a cross in the shape of a snake as a punishment for his new transgression the story would have been less absurd less contradictory but instead of this they make the transgressor triumph and the almighty fall that many good men have believed this strange fable and lived very good lives under that belief for credulity is not a crime is what i have no doubt of in the first place they were educated to believe it and they would have believed anything else in the same manner there are also many who have been so enthusiastically enraptured by what they conceived to be the infinite love of god to man in making a sacrifice of himself that the vehemence of the idea has forbidden and deterred them from examining into the absurdity and profaneness of the story the more unnatural anything is the more it is capable of becoming the object of dismal admiration but if objects for gratitude and admiration are our desire do they not present themselves every hour to our eyes do we not see a fair creation prepared to receive us in the instant we are born a world furnished to our hands that cost us nothing is it we that light up the sun that pour down the rain and fill the earth with abundance whether we sleep or wake the vast machinery of the universe still goes on are these things and the blessings they indicate in future nothing to us can our gross feelings be excited by no other subjects than tragedy and suicide or is the gloomy pride of man become so intolerable that nothing can flatter it but a sacrifice of the creator i know that this bold investigation will alarm many but it would be paying too great a compliment to their credulity to forbear it on their account the times and the subject demand it to be done The suspicion that the theory of what is called the Christian church is fabulous is becoming very extensive in all countries and it will be a consolation to men staggering under that suspicion and doubting what to believe and what to disbelieve to see the object freely investigated.

I therefore pass on to an examination of the books called the Old and New Testament.

Thus far the ancient and the Christian mythologists differ very little from each other, but the latter have contrived to carry the matter much farther.

They have contrived to connect the fabulous part of the story of Jesus Christ with the fable originating from Mount Etna, and in order to make all the parts of the story tie together, they have taken to their aid the traditions of the Jews, for the Christian mythology is made up partly from the ancient mythology and partly from the Jewish traditions.

The Christian mythologists, after having confined Satan in a pit, were obliged to let him out again to bring on the sequel of the fable.

He is then introduced into the Garden of Eden in the shape of a snake or a serpent, and in that shape he enters into familiar conversation with Eve, who is in no way surprised to hear a snake talk.

But instead of this they leave him at large, without even obliging him to give his parole, the secret of which is that they could not do without him, and after being at the trouble of making him, they bribed him to stay.

They promised him all the Jews, all the Turks by anticipation, nine-tenths of the world beside, and Mahomet into the bargain.

After this, who can doubt the bountifulness of the Christian mythology? Having thus made an insurrection and a battle in heaven in which none of the combatants could be either killed or wounded, put Satan into the pit, let him out again, giving him a triumph over the whole creation, damned all mankind by the eating of an apple, these Christian mythologists bring the two ends of their fable together.

They represent this virtuous and amiable man, Jesus Christ, to be at once both God and man, and also the Son of God, celestially begotten on purpose to be sacrificed because they say that Eve in her longing had eaten an apple.