Astral Worship Part 3

The last quarter of the year was personified in the ancient allegories as a decrepit old man, who, stung by a Scorpion (Scorpio), and fatally wounded by an arrow from the quiver of an archer (Saggitarius) dies at the Winter Solstice; and, after lying in the grave for the s.p.a.ce of three days, is brought to life again. Such was the personification referred to in the Christian Gospel-story as having been raised from the grave by the mandate, "Come forth, Lazarus." Thus have we shown that the elders and the saints; the angels, and the Archangels; the Cherubim and Seraphim; and also poor old Lazarus, are but personifications of the several divisions of time.

ZODIACAL SYMBOLS OF SOLAR WORSHIP.

Having shown that the founders of the ancient astrolatry accorded homage to G.o.d Sol as Lord of Evil, under the symbol of the serpent, and marked the beginning of his reign, as such, by the constellation "Serpens" placed in conjunction with the Autumnal Equinox; we will now direct attention to the symbols under which he was worshipped as Lord of Good, which, corresponding to the form of the constellation in which occurred the Vernal Equinox, and which was changed to correspond to the form of the succeeding constellation as that Cardinal point pa.s.sed into it, by that process, known in Astronomy, as the precession of the Equinoxes, its explanation becomes essential to a correct understanding of our subject.

After long observation, aided by the telescope, of which they were undoubtedly the original inventors, the ancient Astrologers discovered that the Sun, in making his apparent annual revolution, did not return to the same point in the heavens, but fell behind that of the preceding year, at the, rate of 50 1/4 seconds of a degree annually. At this rate of precession, which modern, calculation has confirmed, it requires 71 2-3 years for the Cardinal points to pa.s.s through one degree on the Ecliptic, and 2150 years through thirty degrees, or one sign of the Zodiac. The knowledge of this process affording an exact chronology, we are enabled, not only to determine the origin of these symbols, but to approximate, very nearly, to the respective dates of their adoption.

The Sphinx.

From the teachings of Astronomy we learn that the Summer Solstice is now occupying the point between the signs of Taurus and Gemini, from which we know that that Cardinal point has pa.s.sed through three whole signs since it was between the signs of Leo and Virgo, and we have but to multiply 2,150 by 3 to determine that it has been about 6,450 years ago. Hence, the tourist to the Nile valley, when viewing, near the base of old Cheops, the great Egyptian pyramid, a colossal head and bust of a woman, carved in stone, and learns that it is attached to a body, in the form of a lion in a crouching att.i.tude 146 feet long, hidden beneath the shifting sands of the Libyan desert; if possessed of the knowledge of the precession of the Equinoxes, he will be enabled to solve the riddle of the Sphinx by recognizing in that grotesque monument the mid-summer symbol of solar worship, when the Summer Solstice was between the signs of Leo and Virgo.

The Dragon.

When the Summer Solstice was between the signs of Leo and Virgo, the Winter Solstice was between those of Aquarius and Pisces, and the figure composed of the body of a man with the tail of a fish became the mid-winter symbol of solar worship. Such was the form of this symbol to which the ancient Phoenicians paid homage to the Lord under the name of Dagon.

The Bull.

At the same time the Summer Solstice entered the sign of Leo, the Vernal Equinox entered that of Taurus, and the bull becoming the spring symbol of solar worship--the Lord was designated in the ancient allegories as the bull of G.o.d which taketh away the sin of the world; which, shorn of its allegorical sense, signifies the sun in Taurus, or sun of spring, which taketh away the evil of Winter. Such is the purport of hieroglyphical inscriptions upon papyrus rolls found in Egypt, and engraved upon obelisks erected in the Nile valley, one of which has been recently brought to the City of New York and set up in Central Park. In the East Indies this symbol was represented by the figure of a bull with the solar disk between his horns; and the Egyptians, who were of Hindoo origin, perpetuating it in their "Apis,"

it was reproduced in the golden calf of the ancient Israelites. The a.s.syrians represented this symbol by the figure of a winged bull with the face and beard of a man; the Phoenicians, in their "Baal," by the figure of a man with a bull's head and horns; and the small silver bull's heads with golden horns, recently discovered by Dr. Schliemann in the ruins of Mycenae, were jewels worn by the women of that ancient city, when the Vernal Equinox was in the sign of Taurus.

The Ram.

By deducting 2,150 years from 6,450, we determine that about 4,300 years; ago the Vernal Equinox entered the sign of Aries, and the spring symbol of solar worship, changing from the bull to the ram, was represented by ram-headed figures, two of which, found in Egypt, are on exhibition in the British Museum. Then the text which read the bull of G.o.d, was changed to the Ram of G.o.d which taketh away the sins of the world.

The Lamb.

Ultimately attaching a meek and lowly disposition to the imaginary incarnations of the mythical genius of the sun, the symbol of the ram was changed to that of the lamb, and the text in the allegories, which read the Ram of G.o.d, was changed to read "The Lamb of G.o.d which taketh away the sin of the World," John i, 29. The explanation we have given relative to the Zodiacal Symbols of solar worship makes the a.s.surance doubly sure that the originals of the New Testament were composed when the Vernal Equinox was in the sign of Aries, as will be shown hereafter. Having adopted the symbol of the lamb, it was represented by several forms of what is known as Agnus Dei, or Lamb of G.o.d, one of which was in the form of a bleeding lamb with a vase attached into which blood is flowing, which originated in reference to the shedding of blood as a vicarious atonement for sin. But the most comprehensive form of this symbol in its astronomical signification, was represented by the figure of a lamb in a standing att.i.tude, supporting the circle of the Zodiac, divided into quarters to denote the seasons. At each of the cardinal points there was a small cross, and the lamb held in its uplifted fore-foot a larger cross, the long arm of which was made to cut the celestial equator at the angle of 23 1/2 degrees, the true angle of obliquity of the Ecliptic. This symbol is still retained in the Catholic Church.

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The Fish.

By deducting 2,150 years from 4,300 we determine that about 2,150 years ago the Vernal Equinox entered the sign of Pisces; and although the original version of the New Testament was founded upon the symbol of the lamb, it is a historical fact that for centuries after the beginning of our era, the Christians paid homage to the Lord under the symbol of the fish; but ultimately going into desuetude, the lamb was retained as the distinguishing symbol of the Christian religion until the year 680, at which date another was subst.i.tuted, as will be shown under our next heading.

SIGNS OP THE CROSS.

Among the numerous symbols of solar worship, besides those we have already referred to, there are three to which we will direct attention.

Two of these were of astronomical signification: the one adopted when the Spring Equinox was in the sign of Taurus and shaped like the letter T, was the model after which the ancient temples were built; and the other, shaped like the letter X, in reference to the angle of 23 1/2 degrees made by the crossing of the Ecliptic and the Celestial equator, is known as St. Andrew's Cross. The third, and most important of all the symbols of solar worship, in its relation to the Christian religion, which, having no astronomical signification, originated in Egypt, in reference to the annual inundation of the river Nile. To mark the height to which the water should rise to secure an abundant harvest, posts were planted upon its banks to which cross beams were attached thus +. If the water should rise to the designated height, it was called "the waters of life," or "river of life;" and, ultimately, this form of the cross was adopted as the symbol of the life to come, or eternal life; and the ancient astrologers had it engraved upon stone, encircled with a hieroglyphical inscription to that effect, one of which was discovered in the ruins of the temple erected at Alexandria, and dedicated to "our Lord and Saviour Serapis."

But, if the water failed to rise to the required height, and the horrors of starvation becoming the inevitable result, it was the custom of the people to nail to these crosses symbolical personifications of the Demon of Famine. To indicate the sterility of the domain over which he reigned, he was represented by the figure of a lean and haggard man, with a crown of thorns upon his head; a reed cut from the river's bank was placed in his hands, as his unreal sceptre; and, considering the inhabitants of Judea as the most slavish and mean-spirited race in their knowledge, they placarded this figure with the inscription: "This is the King of the Jews." Thus, to the ancient Egyptians, this sign of the cross was blessed or accursed as it was represented with, or without, this figure suspended upon it.

When the Roman, or modern, form of Christianity was inst.i.tuted, the hieroglyphical inscription signifying the life to come or eternal life was subst.i.tuted by a placard nailed to the cross with the letters I. N.

R. I. inscribed upon it, which are the initials of the Latin words conveying the same meaning. But if we would learn how the figure of a man came to be suspended upon this form of the cross, we must refer to Mediaeval History, which teaches that in the year 680, under the Pontificate of Agathon, and during the reign of Constantine Pogonat, at the sixth council of the church, and third at Constantinople, it was ordered in Canon 82 that "Instead of a lamb, the figure of a man nailed to a cross should be the distinguishing symbol of the Christian religion." Now, as this figure is represented by that of a lean and haggard man, with a crown of thorns upon his head, does it not look as if the old Egyptian Demon of Famine was the model after which it was constructed?

FUTURE REWARDS AND PUNISHMENTS.

In the ancient Astrolatry, two different systems of future rewards and punishments were inculcated; the Oriental or East Indian, and the Occidental or Egyptian; the former, ignoring the resurrection of the body, taught but one judgment immediately after death, and the latter inculcated an individual judgment immediately after death, the resurrection of the body, and a general judgment at the end of the world, or conclusion of the 12,000 year cycle.

The Oriental System.

Considering perfect happiness to consist in absolute rest, the Oriental astrologers conceived a state of eternal and unconscious repose, equivalent to soul absorption, to which they gave the name of Nirvana, into which they taught that, by the awards of the G.o.ds, the souls of the righteous, or those who had lived what they called "the contemplative life," would be permitted to enter immediately after death. But, for the souls of sinners, they invented a system of expiatory punishments which, known as the Metempsychosis, or transmigration of souls, taught that they would be compelled to successively animate the bodies of beasts, birds, fishes, etc., for a thousand years before being permitted to enter the Nirvana.

The Occidental System.

In concocting the doctrine of the first judgment the Egyptian astrologers, ignoring the Nirvana, inculcated the future sentient existence of the soul; and, while retaining the Metempsychotial expiations of the Oriental system, taught that its rewards, and princ.i.p.al punishments, would be enjoyed or suffered in the under or nether world, the existence of which they had conceived in constructing their system of nature. This imaginary region, known to the Egyptians as the Amenti, to the Greeks as Hades, and to the Hebrews as Sheol, was divided by an impa.s.sable gulf into the two states of happiness and misery which were designated in the Grecian mythology as the Elysium, or Elysian Fields, and the Tartarus. In the lower part of the latter was located the Phlegethon, or lake of fire and brimstone, the smoke from which ascended into an upper apartment.

In this system it was taught that the souls of the two extremes of society, const.i.tuted of the righteous and the great sinners, would be consigned immediately after the first judgment, the one to the Elysium, and the other to the Phlegethon, where they were to remain until the second or general judgment; while the souls of less venial sinners, const.i.tuting the greater ma.s.s of mankind, before being permitted to enter the Elysium would be compelled to suffer the expiatory punishments of the Metempsychosis, or in the upper region, or "smoky row" of the Tartarus. Such was the Egyptian purgatory, and its denizens const.i.tuted "the spirits in prison" referred to in I. Peter iii. 19, from which the astrologers claimed to have the power to release, provided their surviving friends paid liberally for their propitiatory offices; and, from this a.s.sumption, the clergy of the Catholic church derived the idea of saying ma.s.ses for the repose of the soul. These doctrines were carried by Pythagoras from Egypt to Greece about 550 years before the beginning of our era; and pa.s.sing from thence to Rome, the Greek and Latin poets vied with each other in portraying Hades and the joys and terrors of its two states.

The Second or General Judgment.

The Egyptian Astrologers, recognizing the soul as a material ent.i.ty, and conceiving the idea that in the future life it would require a material organization for its perfect action, taught that at the general judgment it would be re-united to its resurrected body. In conformity to this belief, Job is made to say in chapter xix. 25, 26, "I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth; and though worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see G.o.d." The higher cla.s.s Egyptians, however, fearing that their existence would continue to be of the same shadowy and intangible character after the second judgment, as they believed it would be in the Amenti, if worms were allowed to destroy their bodies, hoped to preserve them until that time by the process of embalming.

The imaginary events to occur in connection with the second judgment, which, const.i.tuting the finale of the plan of redemption, and inculcated in what are known as the doctrines of Second Adventism, were to be inaugurated by an archangel sounding a trumpet summoning the quick and the dead to appear before the bar of the G.o.ds to receive their final awards. At the second judgment, designated in the allegories as "the last day," "day of judgment," "great and terrible day of the Lord," etc., it was taught that the tenth and last saviour would make his second advent by descending upon the clouds, and after the final awards, the elect being caught up "to meet the Lord in the air" (I. Thes. iv. 17), the heaven and the earth would be reduced to chaos through the agency of fire. In reference to that grand catastrophe we find it recorded in II. Peter iii. 10, that "the heavens shall pa.s.s away with a great noise and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up."

After the organization of a new heaven and a new earth it was taught that upon the latter would descend a beautiful city, with pearly gates and golden streets, called the City of G.o.d, the Kingdom of G.o.d, the Kingdom of Heaven or New Jerusalem, in which the host of the redeemed would, with their Lord and Saviour, enjoy the Millennium, or thousand years of happiness unalloyed with evil; and such was the Kingdom for the speedy coming of which the votaries of Astral worship were taught to pray in what is known as the Lord's Prayer.

According to the teachings of the Allegories, there were to be no sun, moon or stars during the Millennium, their authors having arranged it so that the light of those luminaries would not be needed, as we find recorded in Rev. xxi. 23, and xxii. 5: "The city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon to shine in it; for the glory of G.o.d did lighten it," and "there shall be no night there; and they need no candle, neither the light of the sun; for the Lord G.o.d giveth them light." It must be remembered, when reading the fanciful ideas relative to the City of G.o.d, that they were composed by men who, living in a very ignorant age, gave free rein to fervid imaginations.

JEWISH OR ANCIENT CHRISTIANITY.

It is our purpose to present the evidences showing that a system of Astral worship, which we designate as Jewish Christianity, was in existence more than two centuries and a half before the inst.i.tution of its modern form. In verification of this a.s.sertion we must find the initial point of our inquiry in ancient history, which teaches that in the division of the Grecian Empire among his generals, after the death of Alexander the Great, who died 332 years before the beginning of our era, the governorship of Egypt and adjacent provinces was secured by Ptolemy Lagus, or Soter, who, having subsequently suppressed a revolt in Judea, removed from that country a large body of its inhabitants to people the new city of Alexandria, which had been laid out by order of and named after the great Conqueror.

The Egyptian version of the Gospel story, being more appropriate to the Nile Valley than to the region from whence they came, the Greek colonists of Alexandria adopted it, but preferring to pay homage to Serapis, one of the ninth incarnations of G.o.d Sol, which they imported from Pontus, a Greek province of Asia Minor, they erected to his worship that celebrated temple known as the Grand Serapium; and, transferring the culture and refinement of Greece to the new city, it became, under the Ptolemian dynasty, a great seat of learning; the arts and sciences flourished, an immense library was collected, the various forms of Astral worship were represented and schools for the dissemination of the several phases of Grecian philosophy and Oriental Gnosticism were founded.

Such being the environment of the Jewish residents of Alexandria, they soon acquired the vernacular and adopted the religion of the Greeks, who, having ever attached to their incarnate saviours the t.i.tle signifying the Christ, or the anointed, were known as Christians.

Encouraged by the liberal policy of Philadelphus, the second Ptolemy, a body of their learned men, who had been educated in the Greek schools, founded a college for the education of their own people, which inst.i.tution was ultimately known as the University of Alexandria. Under the auspices of Philadelphus the professors of that inst.i.tution rendered their Hebrew sacred records into the Greek language, which translation is known as the Septuagint, or Alexandrian version of the Old Testament.

Having acquired from the Egyptian astrologers the arts of healing, thaumaturgy and necromancy, and teaching them in their school, the professors of the Jewish college of Alexandria a.s.sumed the t.i.tle of Essenes, or Therapeutae, the Egyptian and Greek words signifying Doctors, Healers or Wonder Workers. Possessed of the sad and gloomy characteristics of their race, they adopted the "Contemplative Life,"

or asceticism of the Oriental Gnosticism, from which they derived the name of Ascetics. Founding a church for the propagation of their peculiar tenets, those who were set apart for the ministry a.s.sumed the t.i.tle of Ecclesiastics. Inculcating rigid temperance and self-denial among their people, they were known as Enchrat.i.tes, Nazarites or Abstainers; and the more devout among them retiring to monasteries, or to the solitude of caves and other secluded places, were also designated as Monks, Cen.o.bites, Friars, Eremites, Hermits or Solitaries.

The time having arrived, according to the cyclic teachings of Astral worship, for the manifestation of the tenth and last incarnation of G.o.d Sol, or, in other words, to, give a new name to the mythical genius of the sun, the professors of the Jewish school of Alexandria is resolved to inaugurate their own form of worship. While retaining the same t.i.tle under which they had paid homage to Serapis and known as Christians, Essenes or Therapeutae, they subst.i.tuted for their Christ the name of the Grecian Bacchus, which, composed of the letters {Greek: IOTA,ETA,SIGMA}, signifies Yes, Ies or Jes. In composing their version of the Gospel story, having, like their race, no inventive genius, they appropriated that of Serapis as its basis and laid its scene in the land of their ancestry, but inconsistently retained the sign of the cross and the phraseology connected there with, which, having special reference to the Nile River and its annual inundation, had no application whatever to the sterile land of Judea. Selecting what they conceived to be the best from other versions of the Gospel story, and a.s.suming the t.i.tle of Eclectics, they designated their system as the Eclectic Philosophy. In proof of the eclectic character of the Gospel and Epistles of ancient Christianity, we refer to the Asceticism inculcated therein, which, derived from the Oriental Gnosticism, we find perpetuated in the scriptures of modern Christianity; we also refer to the miracle of converting water into wine, taken from the Gospel story of Bacchus, and to the statements that the Saviour was the son of a carpenter and was hung between two thieves, copied from the story of Christna, the Eighth, Avatar of the East Indian astrolatry.

Thus we see that, although the scene of the Gospel story of ancient Christianity was laid in the land of Judea, its authors having adopted a Greek version of that story as its basis, given a Greek t.i.tle and name to their Messiah, perpetuated a Greek name for their sect and quoted exclusively from the Septuagint, or Greek version of the Old Testament, the facts show conclusively that it was not Jews of Judea, but h.e.l.lenized Jews of Alexandria, who were the real authors of the ancient Christianity.