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The World's Sixteen Crucified Saviors: Christianity Before Christ
by
Khrisna of India. Thammuz of Syria. Esus of the Celtic Druids. Mithra of Persia. Quexalcoati of Mexico. All were crucified gods, and all met their fates hundreds of years before Jesus appeared on the scene. In this foundational work of modern atheism, American spiritualist KERSEY GRAVES (1813-1883) breaks the Christ myth down into its component parts and ably demonstrates
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Paperback, 436 pages
Published
April 1st 2007
by Cosimo Classics
(first published October 27th 1992)
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Start your review of The World's Sixteen Crucified Saviors: Christianity Before Christ
One of the best books of its type. The author collected loads of folklore and mythology that predated Christianity to show that the story of Jesus was not original or unique but just one more slight variation.
This book contains fascinating history I had not been aware of. Written in 1875, it can be challenging reading at times. Nevertheless, the similarities between the various savior figures are remarkable.
At times it seemed the author overreached--unnecessary given the subject matter. And he had a tendency to occupy the bully pulpit at other times, as if reveling in his self-perceived triumph.
The book is worth reading. It's amazing to know how many historical figures were crucified, even between tw ...more
At times it seemed the author overreached--unnecessary given the subject matter. And he had a tendency to occupy the bully pulpit at other times, as if reveling in his self-perceived triumph.
The book is worth reading. It's amazing to know how many historical figures were crucified, even between tw ...more
This book is dated and it shows, I had to google a few of the listed figures to get a better understanding but when I did, I gained an immense undetstanding and the second reading was a breeze.
Brilliant work, eye-opening expose on how Christianity has borrowed from pre-existing religions. Richard Dawkins often asks theists to acknowlege their atheistic states regarding Gods like Zeus and Thor, after reading this I now ask Christians to prove to me that Zoroaster isn't my saviour, to excellent ef ...more
Brilliant work, eye-opening expose on how Christianity has borrowed from pre-existing religions. Richard Dawkins often asks theists to acknowlege their atheistic states regarding Gods like Zeus and Thor, after reading this I now ask Christians to prove to me that Zoroaster isn't my saviour, to excellent ef ...more
I knew of other religions claiming the same miracles but I had no idea there were so many exact miracles and exact characters since ancient orientalism. An eye-opener! Many of the miracles attributed to Jesus were probably stolen from ancient religions long before the Council of Nicea, when those few powerful men decided what would be in the great book or what would actually be god's word for the masses.
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This is a great reference to discover all the myths/stories in history that resemble the Christ figure.
However, the authors snarkiness just overwhelms me, hence two stars.
However, the authors snarkiness just overwhelms me, hence two stars.
Decent book. Not the easiest read, though. At times it seems preachy and smug (maybe a sign of the culture of the day it was written).
Historically, it is mostly accurate but he chooses to ignore some facts while overstating others. Also, in the nearly 150 years since this book was written, we have discovered more information, artifacts, & ancient writings that shed more light on this fascinating subject.
Overall, this is worth a read especially if you’re interested in religion and religious deve ...more
Historically, it is mostly accurate but he chooses to ignore some facts while overstating others. Also, in the nearly 150 years since this book was written, we have discovered more information, artifacts, & ancient writings that shed more light on this fascinating subject.
Overall, this is worth a read especially if you’re interested in religion and religious deve ...more
A real eye opener.
While I am very familiar with the author's thesis, and I have read several other works relating to how all religions past and present, have borrowed from one source which is the continent of Africa. Kersey Graves steadily implies that India was the birthplace of the religion of Christianity, and it was India that taught the world. Unfortunately, he repeats the same racist ideology often quoted by Geofrey Higgins in Anacalypsis Vol 1 that the influence of spiritual systems, science, etc comes fro
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This was a deeply frustrating read for me. I have been curious about the supposed amalgamation of mythological and historical figures that "created" Jesus Christ. This seemed like a good place to start reading, but the lack of citations bothered me very much. I was a history major in college, and the professors constantly reminded us that citations and reference were beyond important in our professional. Part of me was intrigued to read a book on the subject from the POV of a 19th century author
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Reading this book is a bit of a challenge because:
1. It was written in 1875 and a HUGE amount of research has been done on this issue since then. So I had to spend some time on the internet verifying things presented by Graves. Most of it is accurate and just needs updating.
2. The writing style reflects that time period and there were a number of archaic spellings to deal with, as well as misprints.
3. There is one entire chapter about the Essenes that has to be discounted because since the di ...more
1. It was written in 1875 and a HUGE amount of research has been done on this issue since then. So I had to spend some time on the internet verifying things presented by Graves. Most of it is accurate and just needs updating.
2. The writing style reflects that time period and there were a number of archaic spellings to deal with, as well as misprints.
3. There is one entire chapter about the Essenes that has to be discounted because since the di ...more
One of the the most easy to understand books on the subject that I have ever read. It is to the point and considering that it was originally published in the late 1800's it takes no prisoners. No matter what you believe it is a must read.
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This book delves into religions before Christianity that are known to have crucified, virgin birthed, saviors to offer thought on how Christianity was influenced or borrowed from religions that predate it. Mr. Graves looks into the virgin birth concepts and alternative explanations, he looks into many similarities between ancient sun worship and Christianity.
This is not a book that a devout Christian will enjoy, if your mind is made up, don't bother reading. If you like to think on the past, th ...more
This is not a book that a devout Christian will enjoy, if your mind is made up, don't bother reading. If you like to think on the past, th ...more
If you're looking for another view on religion, this book is an interesting place to start. There are in fact more than sixteen saviors in the world, but Graves' list is enough to widen one's viewpoint.
The book is in fact rather old, and its tone can be a bit, er, unlike modern books. It's as if the intellectual expected the reader to agree with him on the stupidity of others.
For that reason alone, I withheld the fifth star.
Readers should supplement this with some Joseph Campbell, who covers ...more
The book is in fact rather old, and its tone can be a bit, er, unlike modern books. It's as if the intellectual expected the reader to agree with him on the stupidity of others.
For that reason alone, I withheld the fifth star.
Readers should supplement this with some Joseph Campbell, who covers ...more
didnt read yet but here is some1 elses review on it from amazon:
Christians have heard this argument a thousand times, but few really know what people mean by saying that little in Christianity is original. This book provides you with the reasoning behind this claim in an exhaustive way. I found this book to be a much better choice than any of Robert Price's books because Price gets his ideas (or most of them) from this author. For a good counter-argument I recommend The Jesus Legend by Eddy and ...more
Christians have heard this argument a thousand times, but few really know what people mean by saying that little in Christianity is original. This book provides you with the reasoning behind this claim in an exhaustive way. I found this book to be a much better choice than any of Robert Price's books because Price gets his ideas (or most of them) from this author. For a good counter-argument I recommend The Jesus Legend by Eddy and ...more
Many of his assertions are twisted and verses are misquoted to fit with his beliefs. While there's no doubt that other myths existed before the birth of Jesus, some of the inaccurate facts and overall bad assertions make me question the validity of anything he wrote. This is Some of the most irresponsible writing I have ever seen.
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While I agree with Mr. Graves about the similarities between Christ and the other martyred saviors of the world, the presentation was very dry, and most of which I have heard before (although his book was obviously printed first). I much preferred his work with the Biography of Satan.
A really good (and informative) read...
This book was very thought provoking. It's full of information on the origins and history of Christianity. I thought it bordered on atheism close to the end... but still... a good book... ...more
This book was very thought provoking. It's full of information on the origins and history of Christianity. I thought it bordered on atheism close to the end... but still... a good book... ...more
purestrain religion
Mar 05, 2011
Okpara
added it
The books helps i clearing up the myth related to the story of Jesus the christ
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Kersey Graves was a skeptic, atheist, spiritualist, Nontheist Friend, reformist and writer. He was born in Brownsville, Pennsylvania. His parents were Quakers, and as a young man he followed them in their observance, and then later moved to the Hicksite wing of Quakerism. According to one source, Graves did not attend school for more than three or four months in his life, but another source says t
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“We can only find room for a few citations and illustrations in proof of this statement.”
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“But in an age of intelligence, when the keys of science have unlocked the sacred shrines and hallowed vaults of sacerdotal mysteries, and modern researches of history have laid bare the fact that most ancient religious countries abound in reports of this character, a profound and general skepticism must be the result, and a total rejection of their truth by all men of science and historic intelligence.”
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