This book argues that a new religion like Christianity did not come from nowhere but has its origins in older religions which preceded it. Those older religions include not only the Judaism found in the Old Testament but also the religions of the Greeks and Romans. Questions are also asked about the possibility that Christianity was influenced by Zoroastrianism and Buddhism and what chances existed for contact with practitioners of those faiths. References are made throughout the book to ancient Chinese history and Chinese ...
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This book argues that a new religion like Christianity did not come from nowhere but has its origins in older religions which preceded it. Those older religions include not only the Judaism found in the Old Testament but also the religions of the Greeks and Romans. Questions are also asked about the possibility that Christianity was influenced by Zoroastrianism and Buddhism and what chances existed for contact with practitioners of those faiths. References are made throughout the book to ancient Chinese history and Chinese legends which relate to the Christian story, especially the birth of Jiang Yuan's son Hou Ji who was fathered by the Heavenly God. The lack of information on the actions and travels of Jesus after the age of twelve up to the beginning of his ministry at age 30 is brought into focus and possibilities are suggested. Jesus, Thomas, Mary and Joseph are shown to have some similarity to characters in Greco-Roman myths and legends. Even the Easter festival has a near equivalent in a Greek cult of Phrygian origin which claims that Attis died and was resurrected three days later. Sunday as a day of worship, as well as the Christmas festival, are largely of Roman origin. The relationship of Jesus with Mary Magdalene and his appearance in the canonical gospels as a celibate man is contrasted with his married status in the apocryphal gospels. The practice of human sacrifice in ancient China, Greece and Mexico and its eventual abandonment is compared to how Isaac escaped human sacrifice. Then the self-sacrifice of Jesus on the cross is examined. The sequence of events leading to the crucifixion and the possibility that Jesus survived are examined in some detail as is the role of Pontius Pilate the Roman governor. The ascension is also questioned and alternative explanations related to Greco-Roman myths and Chinese legends are presented. And the plausibility of Jesus travelling to India with Thomas and his mother Mary or wife Mary Magdalene after surviving the crucifixion is provided with supporting evidence. Aspects of Christianity, derived from both the New and Old Testaments, which support religious and secular warfare and the massacre of civilians are examined in detail. The killing of thousands of Chinese civilians in the Philippines by the Spanish colonial authorities is suggested as a likely consequence while the death of 20 million people in China's Tai Ping Rebellion has obvious Christian connections. The Rise of the Mauryan Empire and India's Relations with the Ancient Greek World. In India the Mauryan Emperor Asoka (304-232 BC) was very powerful and ruled a vast territory from southern India and Assam to Afghanistan and parts of Iran. He adopted and promoted Buddhism and to some extent influenced the ancient Greek world. Not only did he send Buddhist monks and teachers to Asian countries but also to cities in Egypt and the Greek World and there is the possibility that Christianity absorbed some Buddhist ideas. After fleeing to Egypt, the parents of Jesus may have encountered Buddhist teachings and Jesus himself at a later date may have incorporated some Buddhist ideas in the new religion which he founded. These are some of the reasons that make it important to understand how the Mauryan Empire came into being and how it interacted with Alexander of Macedon and his successors in the ancient Greek world. Was Noah a Woman? The Biblical story of Noah and the flood is compared to the Greek story of Deucalion and then the Babylonian, Indian and Chinese flood stories are analysed. Evidence and arguments are presented to show that these flood legends relate to the same cataclysmic event in antiquity. Humans migrating out of Africa are proposed as the transmitters of the legend to different cultures and language groups. Conflict and interbreeding with Neanderthals and evidence from the Black Sea also appear in this analysis. Then the possibility that Noah was a woman is deduced from an ancient Chinese legend.
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