A Legacy to the Friends of Free Discussion

they also considered that event as an end to their then subjugation, and more than a renewal of their former greatness and glory. And here the reader will perceive that they (th

their part equivalent to their saying to the God of Jacob, "We have long waited, and most ardently desired, the fulfilment of the promise ma

e could possibly happen as to his person and authority, belonged to Jehovah alone; for if the Messiah promised, seemed in nowise to be represented in the person of Jesus, then the Jews would have been sure to have rejected him as another impostor of the same s

he Jewish Church. Moses, or whoever was its founder, took great pains to record the most minute things connected with the Jewish worship; while, on the contrary, the Christian Church is left in such a state of uncertainty, that its author wrote not a word himself, nor, for aught we know, did he give orders to his followers to commit to writing any thing he did or said, not even of the miracles he so often performed. It must appear passing strange, that a religion of such vast importance to the whole human race should be, as it were, left to chance, as to the manner in which it was to descend to posterity, when compared wi

ters have given different accounts of the things said to have taken place, no reliance can be given to any of the facts recorded as having actually occurred. The different writers have also given rise to doctrines so

t, which contains all that is written of him. And what is still more wonderful, each of these sects are positive with respect to their own opinions, and are surprised at each other's ignorance of God's Word; and even at the present day, they only want full power, and they would soon come to blows. Not only these opinions, but many more, equally opposed to each other, can

tood in the way of moral rectitude, and the development of kind and humane feelings. Although Matthew and Luke have recorded the miraculous conception of Jesus, yet, as it is omitted by Mark and John, I shall begin my remarks with the baptism of John. As it respects the heavenly origin of Jesus, he never mentions it in the course of h

ere in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan." What possible end was to be obtained by this journey into the wilderness, and what kind of spirit it was that drove him there, we have no information. At any rate, in a forlorn state, and v

is called, this temptation of the Devil, caused Jesus to make this reply:-"It is written, that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth ont of the mouth of God. Then the Devil taketh him up into the holy city, [or coaxed him to leave the wilderness,] and setteth him on a pinnacle of the Temple, and saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down, for it is written,, he shall give his angels charge concerning thee, and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a s

this earth, except he is the same identical being who, upwards of four thousand years before, came to the garden of Eden and tempted Eve, and was the cause of herself and her husband's being expelled from that abode of innocence. If it were the intention of the writers of the life of Jesus, that it should be un

God has given him power and capacity to induce men and women to commit every sort of crime that disgraces humanity? Besides, so artful is this Devil that man has but a poor chance to escape his cunning attacks and devices. We are told that the Lord is angry with the wicked every day; and yet for all that, he has made a being of immense power who

er fat or lean, and how old he appeared to be; neither are we informed in what kind of dress he walked through the street of Jerusalem, whether it was in the costume of the age, or in the livery of hell. At any rate, Jesus seemed rather scared at the old serpent. Jesus commenced his mission more like a he

nativity, brought with them the-belief in the existence of good and bad angels, and also the doctrine of a future state of rewards and punishments,-dogmas unknown to, and never taught by, Moses. It is clear, then, that the very existence of a Devil never was a doctrine of the Old Testament, but on the contrary, it was borrowed from eastern mythology; and Jesus, finding that the Jews professed to believe it, fell in with it, as also a he

old Devil, you know that you have no kingdom to bestow; you likewise well know that you have not land enough whereon to build a hovel, in which to shelter your favorite associates, the swine!" But, on the contrary, Jesus seems to act with great respect towards the Devil. He made no objections to follow Satan wherever he chose to lead him. We are ignorant of the object Jesus

sh worship, during which time Aaron and the rest of the Israelties returned back to worship the gods of their former oppressors; so that it appears, before the church of Jehovah in the wilderness was ready to sing his praise, and thank him for bringing them out of bondage, both Aaron and the people were singing and dancing before the golden calves of Egypt! The number forty has been most unfortunate for Jehovah's plans; for, in addition to repeate

list into his service, angels came and ministered unto him. What the nature of the service was, which they performed, we know not; but one would suppose their first inquiry o

ce, to great disadvantage as a divine teacher: for it must be ever borne in mind, that Jesus must be considered, according to his own account, superior to all that ever came before him, and to the imperfections found in men in common, and even in the prophets of old, so that he must so conduct himself that his sayings and doings must be capable of standing the most rigid moral scrutiny.

derstood by that Court, abuse the rulers of that kingdom, and at the same time associate with a few obscure individuals as witnesses of such abuse? Would he be considered a fit person to represent the authorities who sent him? for, never let us forget, that of all the missions sent by one nation to another nation for the settlement of any difficulties that might exist between them, none ever was of such importance as the one which Jesus was to present to "the lost sheep of the house

the performance of some of his miracles, from the New Testament account of them; and, in my next chapter, I shall show that modern discoveries have proved, beyond dispute, that some of the miracles said to have been per