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I want to start by saying that I have no hope for humanity when something so intrinsically simple as flushing the toilet is such a difficult task for many. Despite my seemingly pessimistic view, however, I shed an inkling of optimism by staying ever vigilant in my efforts to at least try and educate the vast ocean of ignorant sheep being herded by what I can only express as the evil of religion.
It’s now story time… There once was a boy who was born on Dec. 25 to a virgin mother by a miracle. A star had shone in the east on the day of his birth that guided the way for three wise men to find him. When he was 30 years old, he was baptized and he had 12 disciples. Later, he was betrayed, crucified, buried and resurrected.
Who could I be talking about? If you answered Horus, the Egyptian sun god (circa 3000 B.C.), you are correct! But it feels like I’ve heard this story before and I’m sure the majority, if not all, of you have too. If you have not made the connection yet, this is also the story of Jesus Christ, which followed much later. The point I am making is that Christianity is not original. Many stories of the Bible were actually taken from ancient beliefs. Actually, the story of Horus is not original either; it stems from early astrology.
Many argue against the relationships between Jesus and Horus, but all of the arguments I have read approach the story as if both Horus and Jesus were real people. They are as real as Aphrodite and, dare I say, God or any other derivation. Horus’ 12 disciples were, in fact, symbolic for the 12 signs of the zodiac, which is the same for Jesus.
Twelve is a very important number in history because of the signs of the zodiac, just as the three days before Jesus resurrected has to do with the sun during the winter solstice, the three kings with Orion’s belt and the star in the east as Sirius. During this time, Orion’s belt, which has always been known as the “three kings,” lines up with Sirius and points directly at where the sun rises on Dec. 25. The “three kings” follow the star in the east to the birth of the son (or sun).
This was also a significant date because it meant the days were getting longer and spring would follow. On Dec. 21, the winter solstice, the sun would rise at its lowest point in the sky and would move neither forward or backward for three days, perceivably. The sun had died. After three days, the sun would then “resurrect” and begin to move back out.
It also doesn’t help that there is no evidence that Jesus ever existed, which I stated in a previous article. Someone argued with me that it is because he was resurrected and went to heaven so there is no possible way to have that evidence. First, only a holy spirit can enter the kingdom of heaven, not a physical body. Likely a convenient load of crap, this is nothing to base fact on. We have learned the story of Jesus was written many years after the supposed events took place and much of the Bible itself was taken from many earlier scripts and was evidently altered to satisfy the norms of more modern eras.
Aware of these things, it is funny when I stumble upon a devout who knows nothing about the origin of their faith, leading me to conclude that to fully understand religion, you must not be a part of it. Religion is a blindfold used to wrap around the eyes of the weak-minded. When you’re blind you are very easy to control. Religion is, I believe, the true form of evil because it makes a clear distinction of what evil is, then continues to exhibit many of those attributes.
I want to end this article by saying I do not hate people who are religious; I simply hate their religion. I am writing this not to incite the faithful, though it is incidental, but to encourage other atheists, and those on the fence, to see what is happening to this world and to speak out against this plague that will surely bring all of humanity to ruins, if not stopped. In the words of my favorite atheist, Christopher Hitchens, from his book, “God is Not Great,” where he gives many examples in history of the atrocities performed in the name of several different gods including the most beloved, “Religion poisons everything.”
Matthew L. Campbell is a fourth-year biology student.
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