Jesus Christ of the Four Gospels; No Evidence – Ernest Pack, 8/21/1910

Republished from the free-thought publication the Blue Grass Blade

Whether Jesus Christ of the Four Gospels ever existed is the question we propose briefly to examine, and, space
being limited, we have none to waste by way of preamble. We seek to save the reader’s time and trust we shall not
be considered abrupt because we are direct. We even expect a little credit for our consideration. First, then, by Jesus
Christ of the Four Gospels we mean not some fanatical man-Christ or crafty impostor who may have claimed for
himself divine honors, but the said-to-be immaculately born Son of the Virgin Mary and miracle-working God-man
—this, and no other. It is necessary to be very particular upon this point, for there have been many saviors, both
before his reputed time and since. Saviors to the right of us, saviors to the left of us, saviors all around us, as one
might say. And although the same claims are made for them all, Christians would have us believe that their Jesus
only is genuine and the others are spurious. Well, in our mustard-and-cress days we were wont to hold the same
opinion, and it will be our duty to give a few reasons why we renounced it. We found: We had been bamboozled into
believing by faith instead of by facts. Contemporary history had nothing to say about this mythical personage. The
Christians had done their best to rectify this misfortune by forging the missing testimony. No evidence was forthcoming
that any such persons as the Twelve Apostles ever lived. No trace of our four Gospels could be found prior to about
150 A.D. We thought that, had the miracles ever taken place during the active life of Jesus (1–33 A.D.), there would
have existed ample records of them in the historical accounts of that period, and we looked upon this solemn silence
on the part of every contemporary writer as conclusive testimony in confutation of the Christian legend. We reflected
also that one little grain of evidence traceable to the first half of the first century would have been of greater value than
whole granaries of assertions made in the latter half of the second century. Then there was presented to us the fact
recorded by Gibbon that in Rome Christianity was rejected “as an idle and extravagant opinion by every man of a
liberal education and understanding” (Decline and Fall, chap. XV).

We observed likewise that “both parties” (Christian and pagan) “seemed to acknowledge the truth of those miracles
which were claimed by their adversaries; and while they were contented to ascribing them to the arts of magic and to
the powers of demons, they mutually concurred in restoring and establishing the reign of superstition” (Ibid., chap.
XVI). And the same great scholar sagely remarks in a footnote that “It is seriously to be lamented that the Christian
Fathers, by acknowledging the supernatural, or, as they deem it, the infernal part of Paganism, destroy with their own
hands the great advantage which we might otherwise derive from the liberal concessions of our adversaries” (Ibid.).
Further, we noted in the pages of this noted writer that those among the Romans “who condescended to mention
the Christians considered them only as obstinate and perverse enthusiasts who exacted an implicit submission to
their mysterious doctrines without being able to produce a single argument that could engage the attention of men
of sense and learning” (Chap. XV). These truths we read, and many others, and they burst upon us like a revelation.
The belief of our youth was shaken mightily, yea, even to its very foundations—and after that the earthquake! Down
fell the whole edifice of our faith, and there we stood looking on with mixed feelings of annoyance, disappointment,
and regret, for we received in our youth a very pious training and were ill prepared for such disquieting discoveries.
But the facts were too strong and forced upon us the conclusion that we had been grossly deceived. There can be
no doubt that all Christian teaching has been anticipated by other masters long prior to the time that Christ is said
to have lived, as a study of comparative religions amply proves, and religious parallels everywhere abound. Here,
for instance, is a list of crucified saviors who were all good enough to die for us before Jesus thought of doing so:
Chrishna of India, 1200 B.C. Sakia of Hindustan, 600 B.C. Thammuz of Syria, 1100 B.C. Wittoba the Telingonese,
522 B.C. Iao of Nepal, 622 B.C. Hesus of Great Britain, 834 B.C. Quetzalcoatl of Mexico, 587 B.C. Quirinus of Rome,
506 B.C. Prometheus of Greece, 547 B.C. Thulis of Egypt, 1700 B.C. Indra of Tibet, 725 B.C. Alcestis of Greece,
600 B.C. Atys of Phrygia, 1170 B.C. Crite of Chaldea, 1200 B.C. Bali of Orissa, 725 B.C. Mithra of Persia, 600 B.C.

Also: Osiris of Egypt; Horus of Egypt; Odin of Scandinavia; Zoroaster of Persia; Baal of Phoenicia; Bali of Afghanistan;
Xamolxis of Thrace; Zoar of the Bonzes; Adad of Assyria; Deva Tat of Siam; Alaides of Thebes; Mikado of the Shintoos;
Beddin of Japan; Thor of the Gauls; Cadmus of Greece; Hil and Feta of the Mandaites; Gentaut of Mexico, etc., etc.
They may find the various histories of these obliging gentlemen in a work by Kersey Graves entitled Sixteen Crucified
Saviors. They may also consult The Hindu Pantheon, Mexican Antiquities, Higgins’ Anacalypsis, and The Progress of
Religious Ideas, all strongly recommended by the clergy. The present following of the principal among these saviors is:
For Chrishna: 400,000,000 For Christ: 200,000,000 For Mahomet: 150,000,000 For Confucius: 120,000,000 For Mithra:
50,000,000 So that there still remains much missionary work to be done. History repeats itself, especially religious history.
Take, for example, the accounts of Chrishna and Christ, which furnish a striking illustration. It is said of Chrishna that:
His birth was foretold. He was an incarnate god. His mother was a virgin. He had an adopted father who was a carpenter.
There was rejoicing on earth and in heaven at his birth. His mother’s name was Maia. He was born on December 25.
He was visited by wise men and shepherds who were led by a star. He was warned by an angel of danger. All children
were ordered to be destroyed to include him. His parents fled to Mathura. He had a forerunner. He was wise in childhood.
He was lost and searched for by his parents. He fasted and preached a noteworthy sermon. He was entitled Savior and
Redeemer. He existed prior to his birth. He was both human and divine. He worked miracles, read thoughts, and ejected
devils. He had apostles. He reformed the existing religion. He was poor, meek, and merciful. He denounced riches. He
associated with sinners and was rebuked for it. He befriended a widow and met a woman at a well. He submitted to insults
and injuries. He had a last supper. He was crucified between two thieves. Darkness supervened. He descended to hell.

He was resurrected and after three days seen by many people. And all this, 1200 B.C.! With regard to prophecy, we have
the coming to earth foretold of others besides Chrishna and Christ: Chang-Ti, Osiris, Cadmus, Quirinus, Quetzalcoatl,
and Mahomet. Messianic prophecies are found in the Vedas, the Chinese sacred books, and in those of Egypt, Greece,
Rome, Mexico, Arabia, and Persia. Miraculous conceptions are recorded of Plato (said to be the son of Apollo), Zoroaster,
Mars and Vulcan, Quetzalcoatl, Suchiquetqual, Yu, Apollonius, Buddha, Mahamava, Chrishna, Yasuva, and incidentally
of Jesus. Of virgin mothers we have: Yasoda (mother of Chrishna), Maia of Sakia, Celestine of Zulis, Chimaleon of
Quetzalcoatl, Semele of Bacchus, Prudence of Hercules, Alcmene of Alcides, Shing-mon of Yu, Mayence of Hesus,
and Mary of Jesus. Angels, shepherds, and Magi visited Confucius, Chrishna, Sakia, Mithra, Pythagoras, Zoroaster,
and Jesus. December 25 is given as the birthday of Bacchus, Adonis, Chrishna, Chang-Ti, Chris (of Chaldea), Mithra,
Sakia, and Jesus. Of infants threatened by hostile rulers we have Chrishna, Osiris, Zoroaster, Alcides, Yu, Rama,
Indra, Bacchus, Romulus, Salvahana, and Jesus. Of those who descended into hell and were resurrected after three
days: Quetzalcoatl, Chrishna, Quirinus, Prometheus, Osiris, Atys, Mithra, Chris, and Jesus. We trace the Trinity in
Brahmanism, Zoroastrianism, and the religions of Chaldea, China, Mexico, and Greece. The ceremony of the Eucharist
was observed by the Essenes, Persians, Pythagoreans, and Gnostics, who used bread and water. It was also taught
by the Brahmans and Mexicans, which so annoyed St. Justin that he remarked: “And this very solemnity an evil spirit
introduced into the mysteries of Mithra.” Well might St. Augustine remark that “This in our day is the Christian religion,
not as having been unknown in former times, but as recently having received that name,” and Eusebius tells us that “The
religion of Jesus Christ is neither new nor strange.” We respectfully submit that there exists not a particle of evidence
to prove that Jesus Christ of the Four Gospels ever lived. The nearest approach to anything of the kind is the Tacitus
passage in which Christ is mentioned as having been put to death. But that celebrated passage was never seen by
mortal man until the fifteenth century.

The Rev. Robert Taylor informs us (Diegesis) that the first publication of any part of the Annals of Tacitus was by Johannes
de Spire, at Venice, in 1468, from a single manuscript in his possession, purporting to have been written in the eighth
century. From this manuscript all others are derived. Taylor considers the passage a Christian forgery, as is the passage
in Josephus referring to Jesus, which is admitted on all hands to be a forgery and abandoned by every scholar of note.
Gibbon says of it: “The passage concerning Jesus Christ which was inserted into the text of Josephus between the time
of Origen and that of Eusebius may furnish an example of no vulgar forgery.” If there existed undeniable evidence that
Christ ever lived, where was the need and what was the object of such forgeries? Porphyry wrote no less than thirty
volumes criticizing Christianity, and these, by Christian orders, were all burned. Why? Because they would have shed
too strong a light on the subject. As Bishop Burnet said, “Too much light is hurtful to weak eyes.” The Christians not only
burned books, but their authors also. They read their blessed Scriptures by the light of the bonfires they made of their
opponents’ books. But we must draw our remarks to a close. We have not gone into this subject as exhaustively as it
deserves, but have sought to compress as much material as possible into limited space. Printers’ bills are a mighty
burden, and we are neither Rockefellers nor Morgans, nor do we enjoy the leisure of the clergy. If we have succeeded
in exposing the fraud and deceit with which Christian history abounds, and in assisting to dispel the notion that such a
mythical personage as the Christ of the Four Gospels ever existed, we shall have achieved our object. We have furnished
a magazine of information which no priest or parson is ever likely to disclose, though he may be acquainted with it. They
talk much of Revelation with a capital R, but these are the kind of revelations they like not. Brethren, farewell.