246. Absurd and Foolish Fables

Volumes might be written upon the infinite absurdity of this most incredible, wicked and foolish of all the fables contained in that repository of the impossible, called the Bible. To me it is a matter of amazement, that it ever was for a moment believed by any intelligent human being.

247. The Bible the Work of Man

Is it not infinitely more reasonable to say that this book is the work of man, that it is filled with mingled truth and error, with mistakes and facts, and reflects, too faithfully perhaps, the "very form and pressure of its time?" If there are mistakes in the Bible, certainly they were made by man. If there is anything contrary to nature, it was written by man. If there is anything immoral, cruel, heartless or infamous, it certainly was never written by a being worthy of the adoration of mankind.

248. Something to Admire, not Laugh at

It strikes me that G.o.d might write a book that would not necessarily excite the laughter of his children. In fact, I think it would be safe to say that a real G.o.d could produce a work that would excite the admiration of mankind.

249. An Intellectual Deformity

The man who now regards the Old Testament as, in any sense, a sacred or inspired book, is, in my judgment, an intellectual and moral deformity.

There is in it so much that is cruel, ignorant, and ferocious, that it is to me a matter of amazement that it was ever thought to be the work of a most merciful Deity.

250. The Bible a Poor Product

Admitting that the Bible is the Book of G.o.d, is that his only good job?

Will not a man be d.a.m.ned as quick for denying the equator as denying the Bible? Will he not be d.a.m.ned as quick for denying geology as for denying the scheme of salvation? When the Bible was first written it was not believed. Had they known as much about science as we know now, that Bible would not have been written.

251. The Bible the Battle Ground of Sects

Every sect is a certificate that G.o.d has not plainly revealed his will to man. To each reader the Bible conveys a different meaning. About the meaning of this book, called a revelation, there have been ages of war, and centuries of sword and flame. If written by an infinite G.o.d, he must have known that these results must follow; and thus knowing, he must be responsible for all.

252. The Bible Childish

Paine thought the barbarities of the Old Testament inconsistent with what he deemed the real character of G.o.d. He believed that murder, ma.s.sacre and indiscriminate slaughter had never been commanded by the Deity. He regarded much of the Bible as childish, unimportant and foolish. The scientific world entertains the same opinion. Paine attacked the Bible precisely in the same spirit in which he had attacked the pretensions of kings. He used the same weapons. All the pomp in the world could not make him cower. His reason knew no "Holy of Holies,"

except the abode of Truth.

253. Where Moses got the Pentateuch

Nothing can be clearer than that Moses received from the Egyptians the princ.i.p.al parts of his narrative, making such changes and additions as were necessary to satisfy the peculiar superst.i.tions of his own people.

254. G.o.d's Letter to His Children

According to the theologians, G.o.d, the Father of us all, wrote a letter to his children. The children have always differed somewhat as to the meaning of this letter. In consequence of these honest differences, these brothers began to cut out each other's hearts. In every land, where this letter from G.o.d has been read, the children to whom and for whom it was written have been filled with hatred and malice. They have imprisoned and murdered each other, and the wives and children of each other. In the name of G.o.d every possible crime has been committed, every conceivable outrage has been perpetrated. Brave men, tender and loving women, beautiful girls, and prattling babes have been exterminated in the name of Jesus Christ.

255. Examination a Crime

The Church has burned honesty and rewarded hypocrisy. And all this, because it was commanded by a book--a book that men had been taught implicitly to believe, long before they knew one word that was in it.

They had been taught that to doubt the truth of this book--to examine it, even--was a crime of such enormity that it could not be forgiven, either in this world or in the next.

256. Read the Bible--and Then!

All that is necessary, as it seems to me, to convince any reasonable person that the Bible is simply and purely of human invention--of barbarian invention--is to read it. Read it as you would any other book; think of it as you would any other; get the bandage of reverence from your eyes; drive from your heart the phantom of fear; push from the throne of your brain the cowled form of superst.i.tion--then read the Holy Bible, and you will be amazed that you ever, for one moment, supposed a being of infinite wisdom, goodness and purity, to be the author of such ignorance and such atrocity.

257. An Infallible Book Makes Slaves

Whether the Bible is false or true, is of no consequence in comparison with the mental freedom of the race. Salvation through slavery is worthless. Salvation from slavery is inestimable. As long as man believes the Bible to be infallible, that book is his master. The civilization of this century is not the child of faith, but of unbelief--the result of free thought.

258. Can a Sane Man Believe in Inspiration?

What man who ever thinks, can believe that blood can appease G.o.d? And yet our entire system of religion is based on that belief. The Jews pacified Jehovah with the blood of animals, and according to the Christian system, the blood of Jesus softened the heart of G.o.d a little, and rendered possible the salvation of a fortunate few. It is hard to conceive how any sane man can read the Bible and still believe in the doctrine of inspiration.

259. An Inspiration Test

The Bible was originally written in the Hebrew language, and the Hebrew language at that time had no vowels in writing. It was written entirely with consonants, and without being divided into chapters and verses, and there was no system of punctuation whatever. After you go home to-night write an English sentence or two with only consonants close together, and you will find that it will take twice as much inspiration to read it as it did to write it.