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Parallels suggested about the lives
of Jesus & Horus, an Egyptian God

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Quotations:

	"The Christian myths were first related of Horus or Osiris, who was the embodiment of divine goodness, wisdom, truth and purity...This was the greatest hero that ever lived in the mind of man -- not in the flesh -- the only hero to whom the miracles were natural because he was not human." Gerald Massey, author of "The Natural Genesis," 1
	"None of the attempts made by sceptics [sic] to demonstrate that Christianity is false because it contains alleged pagan elements is credible or convincing." Unidentified historian. 2
	Hosea 13:4: King James Version. "...I am the LORD thy God from the land of Egypt, and thou shalt know no god but me: for there is no saviour beside me."   Young's Literal Translation: "And I [am] Jehovah thy God from the land of Egypt, And a God besides Me thou dost not know, And a Saviour -- there is none save Me." This passage may have an additional and completely different meaning from the usual interpretation.

Overview:

Some skeptics have suggested that there was, in ancient times, a shared supply of religious myths spread throughout much of the Mediterranean area, the Middle East and beyond. They suggest that ancient and modern religions have adopted material from this common source of stories about heroes, saviors and god-men.

One of the more controversial theories -- sometimes called the "copycat thesis" -- suggests  that many of the miracles, other life events, and beliefs about the supernatural status of Horus, an ancient Egyptian God, were incorporated into stories about Jesus as recorded in Gospels and other books in the Christian Scriptures (New Testament).

The copycat thesis is strongly rejected by the vast majority of Christians but accepted by many skeptics.

	Most conservative Christians look upon the Bible as a "top-down" document: one revealed by God to humans. Since fraud, deceit, and lying are not attributes normally associated with God, they believe that the Bible -- as God's Word -- is truthful and accurate.
	Many skeptics view the Bible as a "bottom-up" document: one written by human authors to promote their religious and spiritual beliefs. Such authors are quite capable of adopting religious concepts of other cultures and incorporating them into their literary works.

On this topic, we are faced with a stalemate. Skeptical commentators claim that there are many parallels between the lives of Horus and Jesus; Christian commentators tend to deny the existence of most or all of them.

Some skeptics may lose objectivity because they are motivated by a desire to weaken the claims of Christianity; Christians may lose objectivity because they don't want to admit that there such parallels could exist and throw doubt on the accuracy of the Bible. We have not yet found an objective, reliable source.

Topics covered in this section:

	Background material about Yeshua of Nazareth (Jesus Christ) and Horus
	Alleged comparisons between their life events
	More life events, characteristics and teachings
	Debates about the validity of the evidence for the copycat thesis

References used:

The following information sources were used to prepare and update the above essay. The hyperlinks are not necessarily still active today.

1. Gerald Massey, "The Natural Genesis," Black Classic Press, (Reissued 1998). Read reviews or order this book safely from Amazon.com online book store.
2. Anon, "Some notes on alleged parallels between Christianity and pagan religions
   And, a proof that Winstin [sic] Churchill did not exist!," Tektonics Apologetics Ministries, at: http://www.tektonics.org/

Copyright © 2004 to 2011 by Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance.
Originally written: 2004-APR-25
Latest update: 2011-MAR-08
Author: B.A. Robinson

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