Does Church Father Papias Prove the Gospels Existed in the First Century?

Does Church Father Papias Prove the Gospels Existed in the First Century?


Hot off the presses! A brand-new article on the value of Church father Papias, adapted from "Who Was Jesus?" Enjoy!

As always, feel free to like, share and comment - and to post wherever you see a discussion of Papias as providing evidence for the gospels in the first century.

Victims of the Christian Faith

Victims of the Christian Faith

How many people have been killed by Christians since Biblical times? "WONDERFUL EVENTS THAT TESTIFY TO GOD'S DIVINE GLORY" What your church does not want you to know.

Buddhism in prison - a good idea?

I've just posted a new article at Examiner. Please read, comment there and pass around!

Buddhism in prison - a good idea?

Ultimately, there is a reason we rarely hear about Buddhist terrorists, murderers, rapists, thieves and so on. In consideration of this fact, it might be wise to increase the availability of Buddhistic thought within prisons, the realm of the most difficult and hardened individuals on the planet. Increasing difficulties and hardening via fanaticism that teaches supremacy of the faithful and hatred for unbelievers—to be manifested in a myriad of aggressive, hostile and violent ways—is certainly not the answer. Nor is proselytizing the projection of one's life and responsibility on a giant man in the sky an appropriate solution. Teaching how to create a peaceful mind, body and soul represents the most productive path for all human beings, whether incarcerated or not. For, in the end, if we do not develop our own innate morality and integrity, we remain in a prison of our own making.

'You are headed for a Devil's hell'

Haven't had one of these in a while - it appears the Christ-insanity is being spread around to more sites these days.

I have little doubt that this well wisher hasn't read a word of my writing. He obviously has no clue about history if he thinks "there is [sic] no remaining 'pagan' writings to support your own writings." I have never said such a thing, and I have demonstrated in Christ in Egypt in particular that there are THOUSANDS of pages of "remaining 'pagan' writings" to support my contentions.

Talk about lies.

Nice hate speech from a loving Christian.

--- On Wed, 11/4/09, J. T. Tomlinson wrote:

> From: J. T. Tomlinson
> Subject: You are headed to a Devil's Hell
> To: acharya_s@yahoo.com
> Date: Wednesday, November 4, 2009, 5:59 PM
> You
> are a foolish woman that is on her way to a Devil's
> Hell. You speak in lies and have no idea of the truth of
> Jesus Christ. You should do real research and find out who
> Jesus really is, not this falsified research you claim to
> have done and print said lies in books. How can you have
> researched these things when you yourself say there is no
> remaining 'pagan' writings to support your own
> writings. You really need to get with the truth and stop
> printing these lies you write.
>
>

Shroud of Turin a fake?!

It's about time!

Of course, we've known about this fake all along...

Shroud of Turin a fake?!

Why debunk atheism?

I've just posted a new Examiner article -

Why debunk atheism?
http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-17009-Freethought-Examiner~y2009m9d22-Why-debunk-atheism

"These days, we often see the battle raging in news items, on websites and in forums between theists and atheists, as one tries to outwit the other, etc., ad infinitum. Each side takes great glee in providing a more clever or morally superior position than the other. The question is why? Why does one side or the other care?"

Please read, comment there and pass around.

Enjoy!

Acharya

P.S. Here's a terrific message I received on MySpace in response to my Examiner article that truly gets at the heart of the matter.

i loved your article. it seems to me that in the crossfire between theist vs atheist there has to, ironically, be a voice of pure *practical* reason to keep things in perspective, so neither side loses sight of the goal, which ultimately is the expansion of intellectual boundaries. on the other hand, for me, living in the south and being subject to irreligious persecution, i equate the validation of arguments from the atheist side roughly to the Civil Rights Movement. each time we make headway in establishing atheism as something that must be accepted as a valid meta-ethical or religious position, atheists come closer to being true citizens and human beings in more than a merely "technical", de facto sense. i hope Dr. Dawkins will read and absorb what you've written to avoid future outbursts like the ones you describe in your article. ....you rock.

'The Christ Conspiracy' in the Huffington Post

'The Christ Conspiracy' in the Huffington Post

My friend Dr. Robert Eisenman, a well-known Bible scholar, has just scored a major coup—albeit one that may not be immediately recognized—in his article for the Huffington Post entitled, "Redemonizing Judas: Gospel Fiction or Gospel Truth?"

Posted using ShareThis

Pacific garbage patch and religious fanaticism

I've posted a new Examiner article exploring the connection between environmental degradation and religious fanaticism.

Pacific garbage patch and religious fanaticism

"By now, many may be wondering if I will be tracing every human ill to religious fanaticism, mania, pathology and psychosis. On a global scale, there is much to be said for the notion that religious delusion has created a tremendous amount of suffering, including and significantly as concerns environmental degradation...."

Please read, comment there and pass it around!

Iranian women imprisoned for converting to Christianity

Another new Examiner article -

Iranian women imprisoned for converting to Christianity

As usual, please read, comment there and pass around!

Social bookmarking like Digg, Reddit, StumbleUpon, Facebook and so on is a great idea as well.

Thanks. :)

'My mother is a religious fanatic - what can I do?' Part 2

I have posted the conclusion to my Examiner article:

"My mother is a religious fanatic - what can I do?" Part 2

I have included suggestions I've encountered a number of times over the years during which so many people have asked me the same or similar question. I have also provided approaches I have used in other arenas, such as "going native."

Please go read my article and pass it around to anyone you feel would benefit! Also, be sure to comment - it's easy to comment there, no account needed.

Enjoy!

What is a mythicist?

I have created two new articles:

What is a Mythicist?

The History of Mythicism

These articles deal with the third option in the believing versus non-believing debate as concerns various religious traditions, specifically Christianity and bibliolatry in this case.

Hinduism in America on the rise

Please see my latest Examiner article -

Hinduism in America on the rise

Festivities in a new temple dedicated to the Indian monkey god Hanuman in Frisco, Texas, earlier this month remind us that a minority of religions exists within the shores of the United States that is relatively silent. The faith that is the subject here, of course, is Hinduism, which in that North Texas town, at least, is enjoying an "expanding population," according to the Dallas Morning News. Despite the fact that Indians have been quietly enriching the American melting pot for decades to centuries, few non-Indians know much about the colorful religion of Hinduism....

Monotheism in America will simply need to become accustomed to the fact that this country is inhabited by polytheists such as the Hindus as well as atheists, humanists and secularists, and to stop being so aggressive and insistent upon its own way. That's America under the U.S. Constitution, a fact that freedom lovers everywhere will appreciate.

Acharya S: Freethought Examiner

I just got an important new gig at Examiner.com, and I've got a new article published there:

Science versus religion: the debate comes to the NIH

My work will now reach a new audience. PLEASE read my article and comment on it! And share it with all your friends. :)

Be sure to subscribe to my page and add me as a "Favorite Examiner!" A strong show of support will send a great message to Examiner.com that the Freethought perspective is very popular and that they made the right decision in welcoming me as the Freethought Examiner.

Also, if you would like to apply as a writer to Examiner.com, please include my name and ID code in your application in the Referral Details, where it asks "How did you hear about becoming an Examiner?"

D.M. Murdock
17009

Thanks!

Jesus as the Sun throughout History

Surprise! Surprise!

I've just created a new 37-page ebook for your enjoyment that explores the history of Jesus Christ as the sun in art and literature. The ebook is linked here:

Jesus as the Sun throughout History ebook

I have also included a long excerpt from the ebook that you can read online here:

Jesus as the Sun throughout History excerpt

I hope people will enjoy both the ebook and excerpt for their own edification and for that of others around the net, where much disinfo abounds.

Note that the ebook will help me to create a planned paperback on the same subject, so if you can afford it, please donate to the cause by getting it! In these tough times, I need all the help I can get to keep my work going. If you feel there is value in my work, come help out! I greatly appreciate it, and you can be assured that your assistance will help me to continue providing quality material on subjects about which very few others are giving you the lowdown.

You just can't get this material in this concisely presented manner anywhere else, which is why I continue to work so hard to bring it to you!

Thank you for your ongoing support of my work!



Was Jesus the Sun God?

Freethought Nation News

Hi friends!

I have created a new website that will continue to expand, hopefully, with any luck, time and help.

http://freethoughtnation.com/

Right now, I'm collecting on a daily basis - several times a day, sometimes - news from around the world that concerns religion in general as well as specific religions, such as Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism and so on. I am also gathering news items about atheism, secularism, humanism and freethought. I'm keeping an eye on news items about archeology, archaeoastronomy, astrotheology and mythology as well.

This news posting will be an ongoing function of my new website "Freethought Nation." I will be forwarding my forums there as well, and I intend to have a blog where I and others will post news with commentary. Of course, on the blog will be a comments area for visitors to leave their thoughts as well.

If anyone would like to help with this endeavor, let me know, as I do not have the time or tech know-how to make it all happen alone!

Freethought Nation News
http://freethoughtnation.com/

Be sure to stop back on a regular basis, as I will be posting news items there continually, with the newest posts at the top. And tell your friends about it!

Thanks - and enjoy!

Acharya S

Christian Apologist: "ZEITGEIST is Right"

In an article posted on March 25, 2009, conservative Christian website WorldNetDaily.com claims that the film "ZEITGEIST" is an "'Antichrist' movie tricking Christians." The article by Joe Kovacs goes on to cite the opinions of Christian apologist Richard Rives, who ironically runs a website called "ZEITGEISTisRight.com"

According to WND, Rives "has himself been educating the public about the impact heathen sun worship has had on traditional Christianity." Indeed, he has published a book called Too Long in the Sun, which highlights the usurpation of Pagan solar religious traditions by Christianity. As a fundamentalist Christian, however, Rives's purpose is to distinguish between true biblical teachings and supposedly later attachments to Christian tradition from heathenism.

In Rives's videos and on his "ZEITGEIST is Right" website, he specifically names me, D.M. Murdock aka Acharya S, as the "scholar who provided data for the movie ZEITGEIST." On his book website, Toolong.com, Rives has posted articles concerning the connection between "Traditional Christianity" and Pagan sun worship, such as regards the Persian sun god Mithra, the Roman sun god Sol Invictus and the solar holidays of "Christmas" and Easter. In effect, Rives is verifying that various important aspects of Christianity were taken from sun worship and that ZEITGEIST is correct in its identification thereof.

However, again, Rives delineates between the Christianity of tradition and that of the Bible, reiterating that Christ's winter-solstice birthday, for example, is not in the New Testament. Rives also claims that Christ's crucifixion and resurrection occurred not during Easter but during Passover, which was changed to coincide with Easter. In his analysis, Rives says:

"Today Contemporary Christianity has not only allowed truth to fall, but it has thrown truth in the street as a gesture of religious tolerance and compromise. It has given the adversaries of scripture exactly what they need to substantiate their claims that what most present as Christianity is nothing more than redefined pagan mythology. Educated theologians know that; yet they continue to present a compromised gospel filled with pagan tradition that never had anything to do with Christ."

While we wholeheartedly concur with Rives's assessment concerning "Traditional Christianity" adopting various Pagan holidays and doctrines, we disagree that the gospel story itself is devoid of such influences. Indeed, my work in dissecting the gospel story and demonstrating its "borrowing" from pre-Christian religions is extensive and covers much more than simply Christmas and Easter. As one glaring example, the Virgin Mother concept unquestionably existed in the Pagan world long before Christianity was created - yet, there it is in black and white in the New Testament. Furthermore, such biblical doctrines as having 12 followers, healing the sick, raising the dead, walking on water, transfiguring, resurrecting and ascending are all present in pre-Christian Pagan religion and mythology as well. This fact is demonstrated thoroughly in my book Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection, which draws from thousands of pre-Christian Egyptian texts and the works of highly credentialed scholars in relevant fields.

As concerns labeling me or ZEITGEIST's producer Peter Joseph "antichrists," the word "Christ" simply means "Anointed One." It is not the exclusive name of a Jewish son of God who allegedly lived 2,000 years ago. The term was also used long prior to the Christian era, in the Greek Old Testament or Septuagint, for example, as applied to anointed figures such as Saul, David, Solomon and various priests - all of these are deemed Christs. Moreover, the word "christ," or "christos" (χριστος) in the original Greek, was likewise utilized in non-biblical, pre-Christian literature as well. "Anti" means to be against; however, while I do make the case that many of these characters are mythological in nature, I am not "against" them. Hence, I am not "antichrist" at all.

I feel for the sincere Christian who has been taught what amounts to falsified history, and I truly appreciate that Christian apologist Richard Rives has the integrity to admit that Part 1 ZEITGEIST is right in its overall premise of Christianity taking over Pagan sun worship.

Easter: The Resurrection of Spring

I have posted an illustrated article entitled "Easter: The Resurrection of Spring" that you may enjoy! This article is an excerpt from my new book Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection.

Easter: The Resurrection of Spring
by Acharya S/D.M. Murdock

Although it is believed to represent the time of Jesus Christ's resurrection, the festival of Easter existed in pre-Christian times and, according to the famous Christian saint Venerable Bede (672-735 AD/CE), was named for the Teutonic or German goddess Eôstre, who was the "goddess of dawn" and who symbolized the fertility found abundantly during the springtime of the year....

The "Christos" is not only the sun triumphing over the darkness as the day becomes longer than the night, but it is also the sun's light in the moon, as the moon waxes and wanes monthly.... In any event, the deity reborn or raised up at the vernal equinox or springtime is a recurring theme not representing a "historical" personage but, rather, a natural phenomenon, i.e., Spring.

For the complete article, see:

http://stellarhousepublishing.com/easter-resurrection.html

Enjoy!

Also, be sure to check out my "Easter special" at the following link!

http://stellarhousepublishing.com/special.html

Don't miss it!

Acharya/D.M. Murdock

P.S. The special is for U.S. only, but Christ in Egypt is now available internationally through Amazon!

Can Religion be Humanized?

For thousands of years, the world has been in an almost constant state of religious tension, dispute and violence. During this time, humanity has been hit with a continual wave of religious fanaticism that enslaves the body, mind and soul to a heinous and oppressive ideology. This pathology is obviously innate to the human mind, unfortunately.

Fortunately, what is also innate to the human mind is the desire to be free and liberated from all enslaving and degrading regimes and ideologies. The pathological and oppressive aspect of the human mind also possesses the megalomania to associate itself with "God," the greatest power of the cosmos. Hence, this criminal element that desires to enslave and exploit humanity passes itself off as a "religion."

Let us challenge all those of a religious bent to show us the humanity within their religion. In the case of the fanaticism that frequently defines a religion, the problem is, if this fanaticism becomes less harsh, cruel, brutal, intolerant and violent, it won't be the same religion anymore.

"Let My People Go!"

All free, liberated and sovereign beings need to ask fanatical religionists to demonstrate the humanity of their religion. Such a demonstration would mean allowing the following:

• Women may wear whatever they wish, in whatever colors desired. They can expose their beauty for all the world to see. If there were any decent god "out there," SHE would be disgusted by the treatment of Her beautiful creation within fundamentalist religion.
• Women may choose their husbands OUT OF LOVE. If men may have more than one spouse, women may do likewise. Women should be able to live in an abuse-free environment full of joy, happiness and love. ALL of humanity needs to strive for such a state of enlightened life. Anything less than striving for true love and community is a degradation of humanity, the creation and any creator of such.
  
• Children are free to believe what they wish about God, religion, afterlife, etc. - they can be taught about a wide range of beliefs and disbeliefs without being brainwashed into one religion/cult.
• Children should not be compelled to recite long, boring, VIOLENT and bigoted "sacred scriptures" that teach them not only to hate themselves but also to hate others who are not like them, who do not share their rigid beliefs and traditions.
• Children should be allowed to be children and not be indoctrinated into adult matters, including and especially warfare, hatred of others, bigotry, prejudice, genocide, misogyny, etc., ad nauseam. Teaching children these hateful things, including hating themselves and life in general, constitutes CHILD ABUSE of the highest order. This child abuse includes telling innocent and beautiful little children that they are "born in sin" pieces of garbage and unworthy in the eyes of the great and glorious God/Allah, who is wholly separate and apart from this "lower" creation. This emotional and psychological child abuse is a LIE. Period. It should not be allowed.

Just as is abusing their minds, beating children physically because they are not learning or accepting a religion is EVIL. Leave the children alone! They will develop naturally as healthy and happy human beings - and if there's any true religion on planet Earth, that is it! Nothing more and nothing less. The children know what life is all about - let them be children.

And let the children show YOU the way out of the manmade HELLS created on Earth because of religion. No decent god worth its salt would be interested in the oppressive and brutally anti-human psychosis that passes itself off as "religion" on this planet.

To humanize the current violent, malevolent and woman-hating religious fanaticism is to change it utterly to the point where it no longer exists. To humanize this sort of religion, therefore, is impossible, because it is so entirely inhumane and anti-human.

In the long run, that which is truly humane in any given religion, what constitutes common decency and morality, is already intrinsic within the human mind and does not need religion either to create or sustain it. If religion is to serve any purpose at all, it must emphasize and develop that common decency and morality which provides the greatest chance for benevolence to thrive to its fullest potential.

Oldest New Testament Out of Egypt into Cyberspace

In a move reflective of the power of technology, the oldest New Testament Bible will be placed online for all the world to examine. Of course, this is great news for students of Bible manuscripts. One fascinating fact about this archaeological gem is its origin in Egypt.

The New Testament manuscript in question is the Codex Sinaiticus, distinguished from earlier manuscripts by virtue of its completeness, containing all the canonical texts along with the Epistle of Barnabas and the Shepherd of Hermas, the former of which has been shown to have a provenance of Alexandria, Egypt. Along with the Codex Vaticanus, the CS is the oldest intact manuscript, dating to around 350 AD/CE.

Importantly, the Codex Sinaiticus was discovered and evidently written in Egypt, a locale vastly overlooked in studies of Christian origins. It is my contention, in fact, that without factoring in Egyptian religion and mythology, the study of Christian origins will always be incomplete and faulty, because it is unquestionably out of Egypt that Christ was called, so to speak, as a mythical rehash largely of the Egyptian gods Osiris and Horus.

"Out of Egypt have I called my son."
--The Gospel of Matthew (2:15)

In reality, the Sinai Peninsula, where this text was found in the oldest Christian monastery, St. Catherine's, was the only established land route to Israel, possessing numerous important Egyptian sites, including a massive fortress and temple to Horus at Tharo/Tharu. In this location, countless thousands of travelers passed between the two nations over a period of several millennia. Indeed, much interchange between cultures occurred in this very region. It is no wonder, therefore, that this site would be a sacred hot spot for the establishment of what turns out to be a Jewish-Egyptian hybrid, i.e., Christianity.

In my forthcoming book Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection, I demonstrate the correspondences between the Egyptian and Christian religions in well-documented detail, using primary source material as well as the works of highly credentialed scholars in relevant fields. Those who are interested in a preview of my book Christ in Egypt may wish to read my "Companion Guide to ZEITGEIST, Part 1," which contains a number of chapters from CIE.

Oldest New Testament Bible heads into cyberspace
By Dave Graham Mon Jul 21, 12:50 PM ET

BERLIN (Reuters) - More than 1,600 years after it was written in Greek, one of the oldest copies of the Bible will become globally accessible online for the first time this week.

From Thursday, sections of the Codex Sinaiticus, which contains the oldest complete New Testament, will be available on the Internet, said the University of Leipzig, one of the four curators of the ancient text worldwide.

High resolution images of the Gospel of Mark, several Old Testament books, and notes on the work made over centuries will appear on www.codex-sinaiticus.net as a first step towards publishing the entire manuscript online by next July.

Ulrich Johannes Schneider, director of Leipzig University Library, which holds part of the manuscript, said the publication of the Codex online would allow anyone to study a work of "fundamental" importance to Christians.

"A manuscript is going onto the net which is like nothing else online to date," Schneider said. "It's also an enrichment of the virtual world -- and a bit of a change from YouTube."

Selected translations will be available in English and German for those not conversant in ancient Greek, he added.

Dating from around 350, the document is believed by experts to be the oldest known copy of the Bible, along with the Codex Vaticanus, another ancient version of the Bible, Schneider said....

The project, launched in cooperation with the Russian National Library, the British Library and Saint Catherine's Monastery, also details the condition of the Bible, believed to have been written by early Christians in Egypt.

"I think it's just fantastic that thanks to technology we can now make the oldest cultural artifacts -- ones that were once so precious you couldn't show them to anyone -- accessible to everyone, in really high quality," said Schneider.

(editing by Ron Popeski)

ZEITGEIST Companion Guide Review

A member of the TBK Nation forum has posted the following review of my ebook The Companion Guide to ZEITGEIST, Part 1.

"Tat Tvam Asi" writes:

The Zeitgeist part 1 E-Book is a tough work for anyone to come along and try to dispute.

In [other forums], several people expressed the idea that Christianity isn't a mimic of the Egyptian religion at all.

I don't think that they could read through the Companion Guide and still hold such an uninformed opinion. That's the opinion of people who have had somewhere between little to no contact whatsoever with the Egyptian religion.

Anyone who reads through the entirety of the Zeitgeist Companion Guide will be armed with a powerful tool of debate towards addressing all modern Judeo-Christian-Islamic religious fundamentalism.

As far as I'm concerned this is the way to the future. Religious fundamentalism will become exposed for its fallacies beyond any reasonable doubt and we will start to see a new 'world view' come into fruition.

It's just a matter of time and positive thinking.

ZEITGEIST Companion Guide Forum Thread