Among the dozen or so criticisms of my book The Christ Conspiracy by Bart Ehrman in his book Did Jesus Exist? (24) appears the following, regarding the time and effort spent on the canonization of the New Testament part of the Bible. In this criticism, Ehrman quotes my book and summarizes another point, commenting in […]
(Following are biblical verses compiled by independent comparative religion scholar and Freethought Nation guestwriter Barbara G. Walker, concerning the supposed “morality” of the Bible. The paraphrases and commentary are Barbara’s, while the original verses are linked. For more of Barbara’s Bible investigations, see MAN MADE GOD, especially the section on Bible Studies.) BIBLE MORALITY (King […]
“A girl of seven in India was murdered and had her liver cut in a ritual sacrifice to ensure a better harvest. Child was kidnapped as she walked home after watching TV at a neighbour’s house. Two farmers admit they carried out gruesome act to appease gods, say police.” (See story below.) The practice of […]
Question: “How about working on the Koran?” Ehrman’s answer: “When I stop valuing my life, that’s what I’ll do.” I believe Ehrman’s response is important to demonstrate the atmosphere in which scholars must operate. The same occurred, of course, within Christianity during the Inquisition.
There has been much debate of late about whether the biblical Adam and Eve were “real people” or myths. A number of Christian scientists, for example, have conceded that DNA studies cast serious doubt on the biblical account of Adam and Eve, indicating that the story is indeed mythical. Obviously, most nonbelievers would tend to […]
“Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord.” Colossians 3:18 With Christian women entering into the political arena more frequently, it is necessary to take a look at exactly what Christianity teaches about women. We are reminded, of course, of Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann’s remark about “submitting to […]
The NPR article below explains that Christian scholars are being forced to reconsider the account of Adam and Eve in the Bible, largely because of genetic studies. If Adam is mythical, then the Bible is incorrect and not “inerrant.” Moreover, the New Testament traces Jesus’s family lineage to the (fictional) Adam. (Lk 3:38) Based on […]
In one of the most fascinating books I’ve ever read, Pygmy Kitabu, Belgian anthropologist Dr. Jean-Pierre Hallet relates numerous detailed legends of the Pygmy people of the Ituri Forest in the Congo, including their origin and savior myths. Hallet, who spent some 30 years living off and on with the Pygmies, including one 18-month stint […]
In my book The Christ Conspiracy: The Greatest Story Ever Sold, published in 1999, I included a discussion of the hundreds of thousands of “variations” in the various Bible manuscripts dating to the earliest presently in existence. This fact has been known since the 18th and 19th centuries. It’s good modern scholarship is finally catching […]
Sometimes the obvious needs to be stated, especially when there is so much at stake. In this case, what is at stake are not only human lives but also the very heart of individual freedom. Because of violent reactions from many in the Muslim world, American politicians are seriously considering enacting anti-Constitutional restrictions on free […]
I said pretty much the same thing in my book The Christ Conspiracy in 1999 – and I was collecting there a scholarly consensus that dates back centuries. Ehrman’s playing catch-up: Some day perhaps he will look more closely at the mythicist position. One of the chapters in my book, in fact, is called “The […]
Well, it’s only been about 2,500 years in the making, but finally the wife of God is getting her due. Many of us have known for decades what Discovery “News” is now reporting. Of course, it hasn’t been polite for the mainstream media to reveal such important faith-challenging facts, so it was up to people […]
Enjoy my latest article! The book it’s excerpted from is one of the best for debating Christian apologists, in my humble opinion and that of many others. 🙂 Is the King James Bible Inspired? | History of the King James Version Is the King James version of the Bible inerrant and inspired? What is the […]
Is the story about the raising of Lazarus by Jesus in the New Testament Gospel of John a remake of the mythical resurrection of Osiris by Horus in the ancient Egyptian texts? Below is an image of the parts from my book Christ in Egypt: The Horus-Jesus Connection showing a comparison between the Egyptian Texts […]
In Switzerland, three Hindu fundamentalists tried to invoke Agni the fire god to destroy anti-human and children-abusing hate speech. In this quest, they wanted to burn Bibles and Korans, which are loaded with such hate speech, targeting non-believers, women and all manner of other ethnicities and living creatures. The Hindus’ planned religious ceremony was stopped […]
What are the most accurate dates for the canonical gospels in the New Testament as we have them? Are these texts really the faithful accounts of eyewitnesses written shortly after Jesus’s advent? Or does the evidence point to the gospels as anonymous compositions dating to the late second century? The Gospel Dates | When Were […]
New evidence that the biblical tale of Moses was neither historical nor written by him, as is widely believed, comes in the form of a small tablet found in northern Israel at the site of Hazor. This tablet dating to the 17th-18th centuries BCE and written in Akkadian appears to be similar to the famous […]
My friend Miguel/Abraxas has a very special radio show playing all this weekend, May 8th and 9th. On this program, Miguel interviews the fabulous Barbara G. Walker, who discusses her wondrous life’s work as found in her new book, Man Made God. Here is where you can listen in to the show on May 8th […]
In case you somehow missed my latest Freethought Examiner article, here it is! Please read, enjoy the comments – phew! – and leave a few yourself. The Great Noah’s Ark Hoax The reasons for doubting this alleged discovery are many, including the plethora of previous purported “arks” dating back centuries, a fact that immediately causes […]
I have many religious friends who are clearly not mentally ill. They like to fool themselves into acceptance of their religion by denial that their religion promotes unethical and at times horrific actions, not to mention the acceptance of supernatural occurrences without a smidgen of evidence. There is a wide range of this self delusional […]
Archaeologists working in Turkey found a tablet dating to around 670 BCE that “could have served as a model for the biblical description of God’s covenant with the Israelites.” What this discovery suggests, of course, is that the biblical tale does not represent “history” or “facts” but is a rewrite, borrowing or plagiarism of this […]
I have decided to spill a few beans here – not all, but a few of the “mysteries” that have been created around my work and the Christ-myth field in general. Here’s a major secret – are you ready? As you can tell from the title of this article, the secret is…many ministers, preachers, priests, […]
Here’s a short excerpt from the book I am currently editing and will be publishing relatively soon. Man Made God is by the great mythologist Barbara G. Walker, who thoroughly demonstrates the massive injustice committed against ancient goddess-worshipping peoples by the Abrahamic, male-dominant cultus. Included in this manmade cultural domination is the ongoing attempt at […]
Seriously, the Bible has caused more horror and trauma on this planet than practically any other text in history. The Koran/Quran, obviously, comes in a close second – although it’s right up there neck and neck as concerns body count, some 250 million allegedly murdered in the name of Christianity (if you count both World […]
