Madonna as Religious Guru?

I've posted a new Examiner article about "Madonna as Religious Guru?" I think it's important that she use her considerable clout for purposes of enlightening, rather than coddling! Please go read and comment!

Madonna as Religious Guru?

"The Gospel According to Acharya S" Available Internationally!

My new book The Gospel According to Acharya S is now available internationally through Amazon! Go to my page here, and you will see the Amazon links under "Canadian and International Orders":

http://stellarhousepublishing.com/gospel.html

I've also added some more excerpts, such as the following from the "Prologue":

If you are atheistically prone and do not enjoy discussions or definitions of God or spirituality, you may still wish to read my colorful essays and rants--consider them not as doctrine but as "mystical poetry" addressing some of the most important and profound concepts to face humanity. It is my experience that most people enjoy these mystical or spiritual subjects and that the notion of God will not disappear from the human psyche, so let us at least drag it out of the Stone Age and redefine it.

I should add that there is also much fascinating factual material as I present in my other books but which is unique to "The Gospel," including a short but succinct discussion of the founders of Communism and Nazism, and their relationship to religion. Fully cited from respectable sources, of course! In fact, for a book of this size, the bibliography is significant, with over 160 sources.

The Gospel also has over 130 inline illustrations, which means they are right next to the relevant text.

Don't forget -

This "Purple Bible" is the antidote to the world's insanity-producing "holy scriptures!"

Enjoy!

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.

Does the Old Testament foster corruption?

I have posted two new articles on Examiner.com -

Jimmy Carter: 'Stop abusing women in the name of God'

and

Does the Old Testament foster corruption?

Please go read my articles, subscribe, favorite, share and social bookmark, using Digg, Reddit, StumbleUpon and so on!

Islamist Assault on the U.S. Constitution

I have posted a new article as Freethought Examiner -

Islamist Assault on the U.S. Constitution

Makes the blood boil. Of course, these knuckledraggers believe that the First Amendment protects their rights to call for treason against the U.S. Constitution.

Why in the 21st century of the common era are we having to do battle with people over the right to exist without being enslaved by demented religious dogma?

Please go to my article, comment, subscribe, favorite, send to your friends and social bookmark it!!!

"The Gospel According to Acharya S" is Here!

I'm delighted to announce that my new, "revolutionary" book The Gospel According to Acharya S is now available!

You can get your copy right now by going here -

http://stellarhousepublishing.com/gospel.html

The Gospel tackles some of the most interesting and important aspects of human consciousness, such as:

What is God? Is belief in God righteous? Should we praise God? Who speaks for God? Is the Bible "God's Word?" Does prayer work? Are we born in sin? What is the original of good and evil? Who is the Devil? Is the Bible prophetic? Do we have free will? What is the purpose in life?

Some kind words about The Gospel:

"I just read your essay titled, 'What is God?' and I'd like to tell you that I found it the most truthful piece of spiritual writing I have ever read. So concise, a real stimulation unhindered by myth, parable and occult symbolism."

Steve R., Australia

This "Purple Bible" is the antidote to the world's insanity-producing "holy scriptures!"

If you obtain your copy of The Gospel through my website, I will throw in a free bonus -

Acharya's Religion 101 for Seekers, a 20-page ebook made up of some of my spiciest writings!

The Gospel According to Acharya S

Grab your copy of the "Purple Bible" today!

Enjoy!

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!

The Chronicles of Acharya S

I wanted to make sure everyone knew about my various radio shows with my friend Miguel/Abraxas, who does a first-class job interviewing interesting and unique minds on the subject of religion.

I particularly enjoy appearing on Miguel's program and have done so several times now. The shows are listed here -

http://www.thegodabovegod.com/shop/index.php?cat=5

Like me, Miguel works very hard on a shoestring budget to bring everybody the best material he can find. If you are looking for something interesting to do, and you enjoy my work, please go to Miguel's site and listen to our programs together. I'm certain that Miguel will be very grateful for your attention and patronage.

It's because of the support and appreciation of all the great folks that we can continue to bring to light this fascinating information, so thank you!

Enjoy - and check out the rest of Miguel's massive audio library as well.

"Your book 'Who Was Jesus?' is phenomenal!"

I wanted to pass along the following really great blurb from a reader of my book Who was Jesus? Fingerprints of The Christ:

From: Sandy Felton
Subject: Your book "Who Was Jesus" is phenomenal!
To: Acharya S
Date: Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Hi Acharya or Ms. Murdock:

I got the book "Who Was Jesus? Fingerprints of The Christ" from the library, and I wanted to start underlining very quickly into it, so I bought it.

Fantastic book, what a research job!

The last chapter, where you try to decipher the politics of why such and such passage is in which gospel was amazingly insightful.

It is so great to have a scholar of this area who isn't so biased in favor of the "accuracy" of these documents.

Thank you so much.

Mr. Sandy Felton

Iam now making a special offer to anyone who gets a copy of my book Who Was Jesus? Fingerprints of The Christ through my website. If you obtain the book directly from me, I will throw in three ebooks for free, including:

The Acharya Articles Collection
The Companion Guide to ZEITGEIST, Part 1
Jesus as the Sun throughout History

Here's the URL for the book, with the special offer:

http://www.stellarhousepublishing.com/whowasjesus1.html

Here's what others are saying about WWJ:

"Who Was Jesus? is a fine work, characterized by your unique ability to spot neglected implications and aspects of debates..."

Robert M. Price, PhD

"I've known people with triple Ph.D's who haven't come close to the scholarship here."

Pastor David Bruce, M.Div

"D.M. Murdock, aka 'Acharya S,' has written a really fine introduction to the problem of the Historical Jesus."

Robert H. Eisenman, PhD

"D.M. Murdock's Who Was Jesus? Fingerprints of The Christ is unquestionably one of the finest and most enjoyable books I've ever read."

David Mills

"Who Was Jesus? Fingerprints of the Christ just might be the best short introduction to Biblical scholarship yet."

David Bergland

"Probably the best of this genre..."

Ex-Priest Bob Semes

"I wish every member of every Christian congregation could be made to read it through, slowly and carefully."

Barbara Walker

See what the buzz is all about - go to my website to read much more about Who Was Jesus? Watch the great video about it there as well!

http://www.stellarhousepublishing.com/whowasjesus1.html

And be sure to get your copy with the special offer of three free ebooks.

Enjoy!

Muslim Women, Vitamin D and Osteomalacia

In the global debate regarding the dress codes for Muslim women, one important factor is often overlooked: The fact that depriving a human being from live-giving sunlight and air represents physical torture. Indeed, this form of torture has been used for centuries in prisons.

It has long been known that the average human being requires a certain amount of sunshine on a daily basis in order to be healthy. Under the right circumstances sunlight creates vitamin D in the oils on the skin, which is then absorbed into the bloodstream and helps generate health throughout the entire body, largely serving to assist calcium in bone formation.

It has also been understood for many years that purdah--the custom of sequestering women from men, forcing them to remain indoors and to cover up the bulk of their skin--creates a serious disease called osteomalacia or "bad bones." Writing decades ago, famed nutritionist Adele Davis stated:

"Osteomalacia. This disease--its name literally means bad bones--results primarily from a severe vitamin-D deficiency. Arabian and Indian women who keep themselves heavily veiled frequently develop such painful backs that they can scarcely rise; and they suffer multiple spontaneous fractures and have extremely rarefied bones, all of which clears up dramatically when vitamin D is given them." (Davis, Let's Get Well, p. 256.)

In her classic work Let's Eat Right to Keep Fit (140), Davis also states:

"Sir Robert McCarrison, the great English physician, wrote of osteomalacia in India among the Mohammedan women observing the custom of purdah. These women veil their faces at adolescence and rarely go outside their homes."

In this same regard, in Deficient Sunlight in the Aetiology of Osteomalacia in Muslim Women, Dr. OP Kapoor states:

"...in most of the Sunni Muslim women (who form majority of the Muslims), in spite of high intake of calcium, osteomalacia is often seen. There are two reasons for this:

"1. Use of burkha which prevents sunlight reaching the skin.

"2. Living indoors - most of the Muslim women specially those staying in the Muslim localities, do not move out of the house and thus are not exposed to the sun and often develop osteomalacia."

As we now know, vitamin D is necessary for a variety of other metabolic processes in a healthy individual. Moreover, sunlight has other positive effects besides vitamin-D production. For one, it is necessary for the production of the hormone melatonin through the eyes. Thus, Muslim women who wear the full burkha* are deprived of this health-bestowing chemical as well, which is necessary for proper sleep and, consequently, mental health. Also, merely taking vitamin D or melatonin supplements would not make up for other potential health benefits associated with adequate exposure to sunlight, and supplements are not the best choice for optimal health in any event.

In addition to developing bone and other problems from a lack of vitamin D and melatonin, covered women are deprived of fresh air on their skin, which is the body's largest organ. Hence, the skin is not given the opportunity to breathe adequately. Furthermore, the color of choice in covering up women because of "religious" purposes is often black and sometimes blue, undoubtedly creating much sweltering and heat stroke in the very hot regions in which this clothing is traditionally worn.

While the emotional, mental and spiritual problems with forcing a woman to veil herself may be increasingly clear, the grossly under-explored factor in the burkha/niqab debate is the toll on women's physical health. The bottom line is that veiling women and depriving them of life-giving sunlight and air represents physical torture - especially in heat-absorbing dark colors - on a mass scale. How many women are suffering horrendous health problems, exacerbated by being forced to give birth repeatedly, because of this oppressive custom? In the veiling of women, then, we are looking at a serious and appalling health crisis affecting millions worldwide.

* There are many forms of oppressive dress for women within the Islamic world, compelling us to learn these terms:

burqa/burkha/burka
niqab
chador
sitar
hijab
abaya
jilbab

So obsessive is this women-oppression that there are reputedly over 100 terms for bagging females.

See also:

Women in hijabs 'need sunlight or risk illness'
Women's Rights in Islam

Acharya S on BlogTalk Radio, 6/22

Join me tonight, June 22nd, at 8:00 PM EST/5:00 PM PST, on the "Thunder" show on BlogTalkRadio.com. We will be discussing the summer solstice and "Horus crucified." I will also be answering a few questions about my work.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/7hunder/2009/06/23/TVP-RADIO

The chat room on BlogTalk Radio is very lively, so come on in.

Be sure to set a reminder on the BlogTalkRadio page so you don't miss it!

"Christ in Egypt" Bonus!

I thought everyone would like to know that I've just added TWO new gifts for everybody who gets my book "Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection" through my website!

http://www.stellarhousepublishing.com/christinegypt.html

Now, when you order CIE directly through me, you will receive THREE ebooks f.ree:

"The Acharya Articles Collection"
"Who Was Jesus?"
"Jesus as the Sun throughout History"

Here's yet another great review of CIE by ex-missionary Brian Redmond:

5.0 out of 5 stars
Set My People Free, June 1, 2009
By Brian Redmond "truthseeker" (Japan)
(REAL NAME)

"The title of this work, 'Christ in Egypt,' will bring to mind the Biblical story of Christ's flight into Egypt as a baby; but, rather than the story of a mythical sojourn within Egypt, this is a factual account of the process by which the whole Christian story actually emerged from out of Egypt; and it will set people free.

"It will set people free from the burden of having to say they believe things which countermand their intelligence and the errors and inconsistencies found in the Gospels, which Ms. Murdock elucidated in her previous work 'Who Was Jesus? Fingerprints of the Christ.' It will set people free to think for themselves as Acharya -- a teacher indeed -- shows us from impeccable sources what the people who lived in the Nile Delta 2,000 years and more ago: Egyptians, Jews and Greeks and others, thought and felt; and how their aspirations coalesced to give us the tales found in the four Gospels.

"It is a story of human striving to make sense of the world, and how our passion to do so can overrrule our integrity as we struggle for a foothold in a turbulent world. D.M. Murdock, in this tour de force, gives the people of this age a firm foothold upon which to base our own clear-eyed view of how we came to be what we are, and the inspiration to build upon this rock, not another church, but a community of individuals who base their opinions on evidence and engage in civilized discourse."

To get your copy of this blockbuster of a book - plus three f.ree ebooks! - go to:

http://www.stellarhousepublishing.com/christinegypt.html

Enjoy!

Acharya S/D.M. Murdock

P.S. If you already have all these writings but would like to help out - I really need help right now, as I finish up my new book "The Gospel According to Acharya S" - please go to this page:

http://truthbeknown.com/help.htm

Thank you!

The Gospel According to Acharya S

I have just updated the page for my latest project, so take a look!

The Gospel According to Acharya S
http://stellarhousepublishing.com/gospel.html

I've included an extensive Table of Contents, highlighting the numerous subjects I am addressing in this new book. If you read the old Gospel online, note that this paperback edition one is expanded and updated. I've written a new essay, "Born in Sin?" and have included "A Truly Sacred Scripture" from my blog as well.

Here's a little taste from the Prologue:

When I first wrote these essays in the early 90s, those who read them thought they were revolutionary—and unpublishable. The publishing industry back then was such that if you did not have a publisher of significance—and there were relatively few—you could expect to sell a handful of copies and to remain obscure and unknown. Writers were at the mercy of overburdened editors and their massive slush piles. Once the internet became fairly popular, however, revolutionary writings such as these found a home, as did eventually also the world of small publishing using print-on-demand. The internet is the great equalizer, as self-published or small publisher books compete side by side with the big-name companies, and a controversial book like this one becomes a feasible project. What you are holding, therefore, is something that would have been difficult if not impossible to create and propagate just a couple of decades ago. In the future, with the push for censorship as concerns religious cults, such a book may again become nonviable, banned and burned. In this regard, read it while you can, before it is put on the Index of the next Inquisition!

Enjoy! With any luck, the book will be finished and available within a month or so.

Was Horus Crucified?

Here's a sneak peak just for my blog subscribers of a new article hot off the presses. I created this illustrated article in order to clear up the widespread confusion regarding the claim that the Egyptian god Horus was "crucified."

As you can see from the article, there is much more to the story than what the average encyclopedia entry reveals. Indeed, there is much more to the world's religious and spiritual ideologies than meets the eye.

"There are more things in heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy."

Was Horus Crucified?

Enjoy!

"Who Was Jesus?" New Reviews!

I thought you might enjoy seeing a couple of new reviews of my book Who Was Jesus? Fingerprints of The Christ at Amazon.

The first is from a gentleman who was a Franciscan missionary to Japan and who has an interesting perspective. You may recall his remarks on my earlier blog post - boy, did that kick up a storm! 120 comments!

5.0 out of 5 stars Fingerprints that Touched Me
May 26, 2009
By Brian Redmond "truthseeker" (Japan)

"Who Was Jesus? Fingerprints of the Christ" has touched me greatly, and with a healing touch at that. I have spent a lifetime trapped within the inconsistencies of institutionalized Christianity, with the consequent frustrations and attempts to rationalize the irrational that such a position entails. D.M. Murdock has freed me with this book. Gently, but irrefutably logically, by quoting impeccable sources, she shows that the basis of Christianity, the Four Gospels, are not inerrant, and not even history. This enlightenment has lifted a huge burden from my shoulders, and far from destroying my belief in Christ or God has strengthened my belief in both. Now I see that God, our maker, has never and can never be described in words, and that Christ, our Saviour, will always have to be ourselves doing what God wants, that is being decent people, and thus we will be saved, by God and by ourselves being the Sons and Daughters of God.

Brian Redmond, real name

-------------------------

5.0 out of 5 stars The Case Against Christ
May 22, 2009
By A. Richins (Salem, OR United States)

Christian scholars have made careers being apologists for the Christian faith. This book reveals that they may in fact owe their readers an apology.

I think the title may mislead some. The book isn't about discovering who the real Jesus was, and it certainly has nothing to do with the Templar Knights or whether or not Jesus was married. It's a critical analysis of the gospels, and the dogmatic belief held by many Christians that the Bible is the inerrant word of God, which was written by eye witnesses.

The author, who is fluent in Ancient Greek herself, and an expert in ancient mythology, draws from the research of several biblical scholars, including Christian sources.

For being such a short, easy to read book, she does an incredible job and laying out both sides of the argument. I came away with a better understanding of exactly what source materials biblical scholars actually have to go on, and the methods by which they've approximated their dates.

No one will miss the point that Murdock doesn't believe the gospel accounts are history, but it's not presented in a rash or deliberately abrasive manner.

Though this book is a great resource for those who may choose to engage a fundamentalist Christian in a debate, I believe her target audience for this book was actually Christians. She avoids for example, attacking Christianity on the grounds that it proposes donkeys can talk, people can fly up into outer space, and that loving God will fry you for eternity for not believing he committed a human sacrifice to himself. But rather, she pose questions like, if zombies really rose from the dead and walked around town, why didn't anyone record it? If King Herod knew the precise location of the infant Jesus, why did he need to have every young male in Bethlehem killed? Why does Jesus suggest that men castrate themselves?

If you have a Christian friend of family member who tries to pressure you from time to time to convert to their faith, ask them to read this book in exchange for going to church with them a few times.

For more information, read my book Who Was Jesus? Fingerprints of The Christ. If you haven't seen the great reviews by scholars and ministers there, do take a look!

Enjoy!

Is Jesus a Myth?

Although I deal with many subjects within the fascinating field of comparative religion and mythology, one of my major focuses is on the thesis that the biblical figure called "Jesus Christ" represents a mythological compilation of characters, including various Pagan gods and the awaited Jewish messiah(s). In my various writings, which include The Christ Conspiracy, Suns of God, Who Was Jesus?, Christ in Egypt and Jesus as the Sun, I bring together evidence that a multinational cabal largely composed of Jews, Samaritans, Greeks, Romans and Egyptians created first the Jesus character and then later Christian tradition, eventually in order to unify the Roman Empire under one state religion.

I demonstrate this thesis in a wide variety of ways, including dissecting the canonical gospels on their face, as I do in my book Who Was Jesus? Fingerprints of The Christ. After this vast amount of evidence both ancient and modern, internal and external, is studied, it becomes obvious that once the mythological and messianic literary layers are peeled away, there remains no core to the onion.

Indeed, we are left with the conclusion that the mythical figure of "Jesus Christ" was largely contrived in order to raise the Jewish religion and scriptures to the forefront of religious ideologies, to fulfill the biblical "prophecy" that the Jews are the "chosen people," that their nation is the "Holy Land" and that their tribal writings represent "God's Word." As stated in the Old Testament:

"For you are a people holy to the LORD your God; the LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for his own possession, out of all the peoples that are on the face of the earth."

Deuteronomy 7:6

"When you draw near to a city to fight against it, offer terms of peace to it. And if its answer to you is peace and it opens to you, then all the people who are found in it shall do forced labor for you and shall serve you. But if it makes no peace with you, but makes war against you, then you shall besiege it; and when the LORD your God gives it into your hand you shall put all its males to the sword, but the women and the little ones, the cattle, and everything else in the city, all its spoil, you shall take as booty for yourselves; and you shall enjoy the spoil of your enemies, which the LORD your God has given you. Thus you shall do to all the cities which are very far from you, which are not cities of the nations here. But in the cities of these peoples that the LORD your God gives you for an inheritance, you shall save nothing that breathes ..."

Deuteronomy 20:10-16

"Foreigners (Gentiles) shall rebuild your walls, and their kings shall minister to you ...Your gates shall be open continuously; day and night they shall not be shut; that men may bring to you the wealth of the nations, with their kings led in procession. For the nation or kingdom that will not not serve you; shall perish; those nations shall be utterly laid waste...."

Isaiah 60:10-12

"You shall suck the milk of nations, you shall suck the breast of kings; and you shall know that I, the LORD, am your Savior and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob."

Isaiah 60:16

"And strangers [Gentiles] shall stand and feed your flocks, strangers shall be your plowmen and vinedressers; but you shall be called the priests of the LORD, men shall speak of you as the ministers of our God; you shall eat the wealth of the nations, and in their riches you shall glory."

Isaiah 61:5-6

The same sentiment and sense of triumph are reflected in "A Real Case Against the Jews" by Jewish writer Marcus Eli Ravage, published in The Century Magazine, v. 115, no. 3, The Century Co., NY, 1928, p. 346ff:

"Our tribal customs have become the core of your moral code. Our tribal laws have furnished the basic groundwork of all your august constitutions and legal systems. Our legends and our folk-tales are the sacred lore which you croon to your infants. Our poets have filled your hymnals and your prayer-books. Our national history has become an indispensable part of the learning of your pastors and priests and scholars. Our kings, our statesmen, our prophets, our warriors are your heroes. Our ancient little country is your Holy Land. Our national literature is your Holy Bible. What our people thought and taught has become inextricably woven into your very speech and tradition, until no one among you can be called educated who is not familiar with our racial heritage.

"Jewish artisans and Jewish fishermen are your teachers and your saints, with countless statues carved in their image and innumerable cathedrals raised to their memories. A Jewish maiden is your ideal of motherhood and womanhood. A Jewish rebel-prophet is the central figure in your religious worship. We have pulled down your idols, cast aside your racial inheritance, and substituted for them our God and our traditions. No conquest in history can even remotely compare with this clean sweep of our conquest over you."

When we realize that the ancient, pre-Christian world was filled with stories about superhuman gods, goddesses and heroes of all cultures whose purported lives on Earth were replete with miracles of all manner, we must recognize that it is only by extraordinary human perseverance that one particular set of fabulous tales from one particular culture has become accepted as "true," while all the rest are deemed "myths." In actuality, the acceptance as "history" of such patent fairytales as the son of God born of a virgin who miraculously heals the sick, raises the dead, walks on water, transfigures on a mount, resurrects from death and ascends into heaven ranks as cultural bias and extreme prejudice, not reality. It is high time that this fallacious development and lopsided injustice be exposed and the whole of the human cultural record be embraced.

The importance of knowing the history of religious ideology can be illustrated by the following email I recently received:

"Dear Ms. Murdock:

"I have just finished reading Who Was Jesus? Fingerprints of the Christ and Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection, and I humbly fall at your feet in admiration. You, with your genius, perseverance and strength have freed me from a lifetime of being shackled by Catholicism. I am 70 years old, and I now I can live out the rest of my life in tranquility of mind and conscience, thanks to you.

"God Bless you, and thank you again."

Brian Redmond, Former Franciscan Missionary

It is imperative that the human family not believe blindly in religious ideologies and stories but study scientifically the foundation of those religions, eventually discovering that many of the most important religious and spiritual concepts date back to the hoary mists of time and possess very human origins. If we do not realize our common shared heritage, we will be facing an armageddon and apocalypse of our own making, as evidenced by the debacle concerning the use of biblical scriptures to incite soldiers in Iraq and the ongoing jihad in the opposite direction using koranic writings. These two factions essentially hold the world hostage and will be the demise of the entire human civilization, if humanity does not wake up and stop following these outdated and specious ideologies. We are one family, and we share a small sphere - let us unify as found in the best of futuristic scenarios, not destroy ourselves as in the worst.

For more information, read my book Who Was Jesus? Fingerprints of The Christ, which was written with Christians in mind and represents a kind and gentle approach to the subject. Here's a testimonial:

I've known people with triple Ph.D's who haven't come close to the scholarship here.

I think I've read every popular alternative theory about Jesus that has come down the pike - with Who Was Jesus I was very impressed.

This book gives me pause for serious thought.

Pastor David Bruce, M.Div
North Park Seminary, Chicago

Do You Hate Yourself?

Do you hate yourself?

Harassing, slandering, libeling, stalking, abusing, killing or otherwise harming a human being or other living creature in the name of religion, God, Allah, Jesus, the Bible, the Koran or some other religious idea or artifact is evil, period. There simply is no excuse, no justification and no rationale that makes these abuses and transgressions righteous and moral. You are committing evil, and you will suffer for it at some point, by your own conscience at the very least.

You are also sullying and defaming whatever ideology you are defending by making it human-hating and life-destroying. Regardless of what you have been taught, your ideology is not more important than the human being you are debasing, denigrating and demeaning. No religion or ideology feels pain - not even a god feels pain - but human beings certainly do. You are causing pain to a living, breathing being over something that does not feel pain. Have you not heard, "As you sow, so shall you reap?"

Your ideology is only as worthy as it treats the individual human being. Nay, as it treats even animals. As Abraham Lincoln once said:

"I care not for a man's religion whose dog or cat are not the better for it."

In any event, if you find yourself merely tempted to abuse another human being or other living creature in the name of your religion, God, son of God and/or prophet, you have already stained and shamed your ideology by your thoughts of violence and hatred.

Think twice or however many times you need to remove these hateful and violent thoughts against your fellow human being. If your ideology teaches anger and hatred towards human beings, it is unworthy of following. You are full of self-hatred, as you hate your fellow human being, because you have been taught that human beings in general are "wretched sinners," and you are one of them. Your ideology is not godly or divine. It is ugly, vicious and evil. And it is making you all of those things. Throw it away as the garbage it has become. Join the human race and practice love, tolerance, patience and acceptance of your fellow human beings and other living creatures.

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?

"Christ in Egypt" New Review!

Here's a great new review of my book Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection.

You can read more about CIE here - and watch the video!:

http://www.stellarhousepublishing.com/christinegypt.html

Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection, by D.M. Murdock
Book Review by Joan d'Arc

The boat of Afu-Ra glides silently in the black eternal waters of the Amduat; in front the goddess Isis, her arms outstretched in cruciform, conducts her son, the Sun God Horus, with his 12 assistants (who are deceased)—the major stars of the night sky—to new life in the daily rebirth of the morning sun. This is the powerful imagery conjured by D.M. Murdock (aka Acharya S) in her new book, Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection.

Where does the sun go when it goes down under the world? The Egyptians had it all figured out in books like The Pyramid Texts and The Book of the Dead. The Book of Portals recounts the sun’s passage at night through the 12 gates, which are also the night hours. The Sun Boat of the Creator, the one who “crosses over” the heavens each day for 12 hours, also passes through the underworld each night for 12 hours, accompanied by his 12 assistants or helpers. According to Murdock, this is the derivation of the 12 disciples of the Christ mythos.

Murdock contends that the Gnostics of Alexandria, in fact, created the imagery of Jesus on the cross, derived from the Egyptian god Horus. The task of the Gnostic Horos was to separate the upper from the lower, the saved from the fallen, the light from the dark. This task was accomplished by the Sun God Horus and his 12 assistants, the Egyptian Ennead.

The 12 are sometimes companions of the Father, Osiris, and at other times Horus is one of the 12 in the presence of the Father. This is mindful of Jesus being God and not God, both the Sun and the Son (a quandary the nuns could never quite answer to my liking). The 12 assistants are simply the signs of the zodiac, which Murdock tells us were alive and well in Egypt, being derived from the symbols for the Egyptian months...

As Murdock explains, Christianity was created by Gnostics in Alexandria and then the Christians later came back and burned it all down, sacked the city, killed thousands of people, and covered up the tracks of its creation. The tale of Jesus and Satan is the same astrotheological epic drama told in Egypt. For instance, Set is the serpent, the "Prince of Darkness," and all things "Satan." Horus is the "Prince of Light," the KRST, or the Christ (meaning "anointed one").

Interestingly as well, we learn that the story of Lazarus in the Gospel of John was taken directly from sources like the Pyramid Texts and the Egyptian Book of the Dead. Horus was known as the anointed one, the "standing mummy" symbol of Egyptian hieroglyphs: the mummy come back to life. The Egyptian religion was all about being prepared for death and rebirth, as is the Christian religion today, only today prepping doesn't involve the oil and rags of mummification.

Murdock proves with historical sources that Jesus was not born of the Virgin Mary in Bethlehem, but was born of the Virgin Isis in Egyptian mythology....

I have always been wowed by Ms. Murdock's work, but this time she has outdone herself and has created a 574-page masterpiece that I'm sure will become a classic in religious studies.... I would say she's the goddess of the godless. I'm ever thankful she's got my back.

http://www.stellarhousepublishing.com/christinegypt.html

Enjoy!

Acharya S/D.M. Murdock
Author, The Christ Conspiracy, Suns of God, Who Was Jesus? and Christ in Egypt
http://StellarHousePublishing.com

P.S. If you support my work, please help out!
http://www.truthbeknown.com/help.htm

The Star in the East & Three Kings

Here is an excerpt from my new book Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection.

http://stellarhousepublishing.com/star-east-three-kings.html

This excerpt specifically addresses the "biblical" motif of the Star in the East and Three Kings allegedly appearing at the birth of Jesus Christ. There is much confusion on the internet about this motif, but, as we can see, it was firmly present in the Egyptian religion ages prior to the purported advent of the Jewish messiah.

Here's a little taste:

"Over the centuries, various supposedly scientific theories have been put forth concerning this purported phenomenon that turn out to be all for naught, because this theme reveals itself to be an old mythical motif. In actuality, many ancient gods, kings and heroes were said to have been born under a 'bright star' or some other sort of celestial sign, indicating their greatness and role as 'savior' as well."

Enjoy! And don't forget that Christ in Egypt is now available internationally through Amazon as well.

"Christ in Egypt" New Video!

Here's a new SHORT video about my book Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection!

In this video are discussed some of the very important parallels between the Egyptian gods and Jesus. The vid also demonstrates the scholarly nature of Christ in Egypt - so be sure to check it out.

The reviews for my book are coming in - and they're very favorable!

By the way, Christ in Egypt is now available internationally through Amazon and other booksellers.

If you want more information, including reviews and links to international Amazon sites, see Christ in Egypt.



Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection

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

CIE Reviews & Easter Special

I wanted to remind everyone just once more that the Stellar House Easter special will be ending on Sunday, April 12, 2009! Be sure to check it out -

http://stellarhousepublishing.com/special.html

Here's some more feedback on my book Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection:

"I could hardly wait to get my hands on this tremendous book: Christ in Egypt: The Horus Jesus Connection.

"This well researched book is accessible both to the general reader and to the scholar interested in the origins of the Christian belief system.

"The author has probably collected every scholarly reference to the Egyptian correlations to Christianity. In doing this, she researched materials that had never been published before and many that until now had never appeared in English.

"This book, which surely will become a classic, is the most enlightening and well researched I have ever read on the origins of Christianity."

M.G. Ketteridge, UK

-------------------

"A Genuine Masterpiece!"

"...Christ in Egypt: the Horus-Jesus Connection is an extraordinarily well-researched and well-written volume that will illustrate unequivocally the direct link between the ancient Egyptian religion and modern Christianity.

"Ms. Murdock has published a number of volumes on similar topics, most notably Suns of God: Krishna, Buddha and Christ Unveiled, Who Was Jesus: Fingerprints of the Christ and The Christ Conspiracy: the Greatest Story Ever Sold. I have found each of them not less entertaining than elucidating. Her research is second to none. She is intimately familiar with the subject, its literature and artifacts and is capable of reading many of the ancient texts on which her research is based in the original languages.

"A work such as this with its voluminous references to primary sources and serious academic and archeological scholarship would seem, at first blush, destined for the dusty shelves of a university reference library. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Ms. Murdock writes in an extremely clear and comprehensible style, and one finds oneself caught up in the narrative as in a finely-crafted mystery which, in a certain sense, it is.

"One discovers early on that the Egyptian religion was a fully-formed cultural imperative that influenced to a marked degree the daily lives of the people Egypt as well as Greece, Turkey and the Levant for well over two millennia. Central to its belief system was the god Horus, born of a virgin, Isis-Mery, and the god Osiris. We see clearly that the parallels between the stories of the lives of Horus and Jesus leave little doubt that the one is extracted directly from the other.

"I believe that Christ in Egypt is a genuine treasure for anyone wishing to understand the truth behind our modern beliefs. This book will place that truth before you in the most lucid, cogent and reasonable fashion. It is a splendid work, powerful, elegant and highly readable, and must surely be considered, in future, a seminal work on the topic. I recommend it unreservedly."

John Reardon, NY

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"You just keep getting more and more impressive. You are definitely on a roll, and I can't wait for further installments of that amazing mind of yours.

"I am a mere 30 pages into Christ in Egypt, and I already know that this is destined to become a classic. You have created a work that will illuminate and inspire for generations.

"It is such a pleasure to read. The work and care you have put into this really shows. As someone who's been in pain this week, I can say without exaggeration that reading your book has been an anodyne for the pleasure it gives. And that's just at 30 pages.

"So I thank you for this ouvre, this masterpiece of yours, and I eagerly await Who Was Jesus?, which should be arriving I assume in a few days as well.

"This is just fantastically inspiring."

Robert T.

--------------

http://www.stellarhousepublishing.com/special.html

Enjoy!

Jesus in India?

With the creation of a new movie, there is increased interest in the old tale that Jesus Christ traveled to India, where he lived to a ripe old age.

While this story may be fascinating, when examined scientifically it fails to hold water. This legend has been spread in recent years largely by an Islamic sect that wishes to claim the hereditary inheritance of the famed Jewish godman.

For more information about this story, as well as the equally implausible tale about Jesus having been in Great Britain, see my essay:

Jesus in India? The Myth of the Lost Years

As has been demonstrated repeatedly in scientific and scholarly books on the subject, the character called "Jesus Christ" is a mythical entity based on other mythical figures dating back into the hoary mists of time.

The fact of Christianity essentially representing a contrived rehash of sun worship is clearly shown in my latest book Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection.

The "lost years" of Jesus are in fact atrotheological, representing part of solar mythology. In the story of the sun god, the solar hero is a "child teacher" at the "age" of 12 noon, when he reaches the "temple" of his "father" - Re or Ra in the Egyptian myth. When the sun transits from one month of the 360-day year or 1/12th or the zodiacal circle, he attains the age of 28 or 30. And here was have the 18 "lost years."

Fortunately, there are those who have actually studied the subject, read my work and who realize that by denying the facts presented therein we are robbing the world of the real history of religious ideology and mythology.

Support Geert Wilders!

Dutch Member of Parliament Geert Wilders has been touring the U.S. following his atrocious ousting from Great Britain for courageously sharing the truth about Islamofascism, as he showed in his short film Fitna. For years now, Geert has been living under heavy security because of constant death threats from members of the "religion of peace." He lives in jail cells and bunkers while in Europe. Yet, the cowards in the U.K. could not see fit to support this famous and brave EU politician, while kowtowing to a Pakistani businessman who bought his way into the British House of Lords and threatened to storm the streets of Britain with 10,000 rabid Muslim fanatics if Wilders were allowed to enter. This episode with the convicted criminal Muslim "lord" was apparently an allusion to the invasion of Mecca by Mohammed and his 10,000 violent thugs. In other words, it was a cloaked threat of a military takeover.

In the meantime, Wilders has been enjoying the civility of the United States of America, where the laws are more humane and where liberty is actually valued. He has been making the media rounds, once again risking his life and limb to warn of the dangers of "radical" Islam (real Islam, in other words, as opposed to "Islam lite").

On Saturday, April 4, 2009, Geert Wilders will be speaking at Chapman University in Orange County, CA. Once again, Islamofascists have threatened protests against this brave man, merely because he dares to speak the truth. I hope that many people who believe in free speech--especially when it's the truth!--will come out and show their support for Wilders, who stands against a huge wave of suppression and censorship.

In case you need a nudge to see how important this issue is, do take a look at this article on Women's Rights in Islam. You will quickly understand why I, as a FREE WOMAN, must take this hardline stance against Islamofascism and must stand up for great heroes like Geert Wilders.

PLEASE SEND TO ANYONE YOU KNOW IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

As many of you may be aware, Dutch MP Geert Wilders, hero of the free world, will be visiting Orange County, CA this Saturday [April 4, 2009] at Chapman University thanks to the David Horowitz Freedom Center.

We have just got word that a collection of Islamist organizations are organizing a protest. Please urge everyone you know in the surrounding area to show up in force to give these jihadis a nice counter-protest welcome.

Let's get the media to pay attention to the anti-free-speech jihadists right here in our own back yard.

Counter-protesters will assemble starting at 1:00 PM in front of Memorial Hall which faces Glassell Ave at E. Palm several blocks north of the turning circle at the intersection of Glassell and Chapman in Orange, CA.

For driving directions, campus map, and parking lots.
see http://www.chapman.edu/map/map.pdf

Bring cameras, flags, signs.

For those of you unfamiliar with Mr. Wilder's work, please see the following interview:

P.S. A commenter has stated that Wilders has "prophet's hair," like Charleton Heston in "The 10 Commandments." A funny observation, indeed.

Acharya S on Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, Squidoo, Friendster

Okay, I've been tweeting a little lately. Gimmicky, of course, but, heck, everybody's doing it, and it can get lonely otherwise. Businesses, politicians, churches, newspapers, journalists - everybody's got Twitter on their website, cell phones and PDAs. (I don't even have one of those.)

I've read articles on how seriously Twitter is being taken and how it's changing the world. Most of the "tweets" I've read from those given publicity in these articles are BORING. I really don't know what the appeal is there, that's for sure.

And then there are those who are using it for marketing purposes, which is pretty much every business that wants to stay with the times.

But now, my tweeting has to be far more interesting than all that!

So here's my Twitter URL - come join me!

Acharya S on Twitter

I've also got a MySpace, of course, as well as being on Facebook and Tagged. I don't post at Tagged very often - it seems like a waste of time.

Acharya's MySpace
Acharya on Facebook
Acharya's Squidoo
Acharya on Tagged
Acharya on Friendster
Acharya on HiF.com
Acharya's Google Profile
Acharya on Delicious
Acharya on Digg
Acharya on Xanga
Acharya on 4shared.com
Acharya on Metacafe
Acharya on Fotolog
Acharya on Crunchyroll
Acharya on Flickr (People)
Acharya on Flickr (Photos)
Acharya on Bebo
Acharya on Daily Motion
Acharya on Metroflag
Acharya on Hulu
Acharya on Propeller
Acharya on Windows Live
Acharya on LiveJournal
Acharya on Google Reader/Buzz
Acharya on Blinklist
Acharya on WordPress
Acharya on Sodahead
Acharya on Typepad
Acharya on AllMyFaves
Acharya on Gather
Acharya on Tumblr
Acharya on Thoughts.com
Acharya on Netlog.com
Acharya on Pinterest 
Acharya on Newsle


If you have any other Web 2.0 sites you feel are helpful - but not a waste of time - please post them in the comments section below!

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.

Pat Condell: Free speech is sacred

Famed atheist vlogger Pat Condell, whom I count among my friends, is just so, so important. He doesn't have any position--he's not a president or prime minister. But Pat may be more important than all world leaders combined.

Astonishingly, just as I am working on a new book that emphasizes our freedoms as holy tenets, here comes Pat spelling it all out in a most brilliant manner. Pat has just made himself the high priest of the most important religious movement ever to hit planet Earth: Freedom.

I have taken the liberty of transcribing the juicy bits most appropriate for my current project. Regarding the obscene and blasphemous attempt by Islamists to criminalize criticism of their cult by their "defamation of religion" U.N. resolution, Pat remarks:

Now, to defame something, first of all you have to say something untrue about it. So, for example, if I say that religion is the art of sugar-coating a turd and selling it as a donut, well, that's not defamation because of course it is absolutely true.

In this video “Free speech is sacred,” Pat also says:

The only actual defamation I can detect here is defamation of humanity by religion, because religion is bearing false witness against us to our detriment - and that is defamation. Religion is telling us a poison story about ourselves, because it doesn't want us to like ourselves one little bit. So it denigrates us from the moment we're born, as unworthy, unclean and stained with sin, persuading us that there's something that we need to be saved from. And indeed there is: The curse of religion, which for its very survival depends on keeping us enthralled to a view of reality that's so childish, so stunted, so utterly and transparently false, it amounts to nothing less than a malicious assault on our very identity as human beings, which I believe makes religion a crime against humanity.

Pat also calls himself a “freedom-worshipper.” He further says:

I claim free speech as my religion. Yes, I'll have a slice of that pie too, thank you, along with all the attendant rights and privileges, of course. Because I can assure you that I venerate free speech as highly as anybody on this planet venerates their god or their scripture or their prophet, and any attempt to suppress free speech is deeply insulting and grossly offensive to me on a personal level. I feel violated to the very core of my being, which seriously hurts my feelings. Whenever I hear free speech being comprimised or restricted - or even heavily criticized - I take that as a grave personal affront and as a grotesquely insensitive attack on my most cherished values: Freedom of thought, freedom of speech, freedom of identity - this is my holy trinity. Each one an intrinsic aspect of my god. Freedom, the holiest of holies. Yes, it bloody well is. It is absolutely sacred and inviolable beyond any negotiation or compromise now and forever. Amen.

Amen indeed. Be sure also to see my blog post from 2006 concerning the U.S. Constitution and the freedoms it represents: A Truly Sacred Scripture.

Dead Sea Scrolls Not Written by Essenes

In my books I have repeatedly addressed the decades-old contention that the famous Dead Sea Scrolls were written by the esoteric Jewish sect of the Essenes, demonstrating that the evidence shows otherwise. A recent article in TIME highlights the claim by Jewish scholar Dr. Rachel Elior that likewise views the Dead Sea Scrolls as a product of someone other than the Essenes:

Scholar Claims Dead Sea Scrolls 'Authors' Never Existed

This title, of course, is not only sensational but also erroneous, in that the Essenes were evidently not the authors of the Dead Sea Scrolls in the first place. Someone obviously wrote the scrolls, so they certainly existed. Elior, however, is taking this contention one step further and saying that the Essenes themselves never existed. As TIME relates:

As Elior explains, the Essenes make no mention of themselves in the 900 scrolls found by a Bedouin shepherd in 1947 in the caves of Qumran, near the Dead Sea. "Sixty years of research have been wasted trying to find the Essenes in the scrolls," Elior tells TIME. "But they didn't exist. This is legend on a legend."

While I would wager that an esoteric sect of the "Essenic" nature certainly did exist in Judea, as it did elsewhere around the Mediterranean, including at Lake Mareotis in Egypt, I definitely agree that the evidence points elsewhere as to the authorship of the scrolls. In my book The Christ Conspiracy (1999), I fleshed out the scholarship that logically attributes the scrolls to the Zadokites, a certain group of Sadducees, as the authors deemed themselves.

In a chapter entitled, "Essenes, Zealots and Zadokites," I write:

The idea of a monolithic Essene community from which Christianity issued was...given fuel with the discovery in 1947 of the caches of scrolls in caves near the ruined site of Qumran along the Dead Sea in present-day Jordan. However, there is yet another debate as to whether or not Qumran was indeed an Essene community....

In reality, the archaeological finds indicate Qumran was not an Essene community but a waystation for travelers and merchants crossing the Dead Sea. In Who Wrote the Dead Sea Scrolls?, Norman Golb evinced that Qumran was a fortress, not a monastery... In addition, Golb posited that the scrolls were not written by any Essene scribes but constituted a collection from libraries in Jerusalem secreted in caves throughout eastern Palestine by Jews fleeing the Roman armies during the First Revolt of 70 CE.... The Dead Sea collection is in fact eclectic, representing more than one sect or priesthood, competitors, in actuality.... (Acharya, The Christ Conspiracy, 301)

Although the DSS represent an eclectic collection, some of the original scrolls--those composed possibly using the inkpots found at Qumran--were written by individuals who could be categorized as Zealots and who, again, identified themselves as Zadokites, after the Old Testament priest Zadok, founder of the Sadducees. In this regard, in The Christ Conspiracy, I further state:

At the end of the second century BCE, Galilee was violently subjugated by the Judeans... After this invasion and forcible conversion, the ranks of the Herodian outpost Qumran supposedly swelled, evidently with Samaritans and Galileans, or Zealots "from Damascus," who also were the Sadducees, or "sons of Zadok," i.e., "the priests who keep the covenant," as the Zealots of the scrolls identified themselves. Indeed, Solomon Schechter, the discoverer of the Cairo edition of one important scroll also found at the Dead Sea--the "Zadokite Document," also known as the "Damascus Rule" or "Damascus Covenant"--considered the Dead Sea Zadokites an "offshoot" of the Sadducean sect, "possibly the Dosithean schism," thereby equating this Sadducean offshoot with the Samaritans. (Acharya, CC, 306)

In this same manner, TIME recently related:

So who were the real authors of the Dead Sea Scrolls? Elior theorizes that the Essenes were really the renegade sons of Zadok, a priestly caste banished from the Temple of Jerusalem by intriguing Greek rulers in 2nd century B.C. When they left, they took the source of their wisdom — their scrolls — with them. "In Qumran, the remnants of a huge library were found," Elior says, with some of the early Hebrew texts dating back to the 2nd century B.C.

In consideration of this current debate, it is wise to keep in mind that scholarship on various subjects is not always set in stone, as we can see in this instance. The Essene authorship of the Dead Sea Scrolls has been treated as if factual for several decades; yet, not only was there no evidence for such an attribution but the scrolls themselves pointed elsewhere, with the authors identifying themselves as Zadokites.

Moreover, this Zadokite attribution, which I developed in a book published in 1999, unravels some of the difficulties in discerning Christian origins, which I also detailed in that same book, tracing many influences upon Christianity not only to the Zadokites but also to other sects within the Mediterranean region as a whole.

While Dr. James Charlesworth rebuts Elior's statements by claiming that the term "Essenes" would not appear in the scrolls, because it is a "foreign word." Be that as it may, Josephus specifically refers to three separate sects, the Pharisees, Sadducees and Essenes, which indicates he believed that the Sadducees/Zadokites and Essenes were not the same group. Says, the Jewish historian:

At this time there were three sects among the Jews, who had different opinions concerning human actions; the one was called the sect of the Pharisees, another the sect of the Sadducees, and the other the sect of the Essenes..." (Ant., XIII, V, 9)

To this day, the majority of people perceive these two as distinct groups, for a variety of reasons, including their "different opinions concerning human actions." It is my contention, however, that all three were instrumental in the creation of Christianity.

For more information, see:

The Christ Conspiracy: The Greatest Story Ever Sold
Suns of God: Krishna, Buddha and Christ Unveiled
Who Was Jesus? Fingerprints of The Christ
Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection

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!