CHAPTER XXII.

ORTHODOXY CATECHISED.

It will be observed by preceding references that in arranging the New Testament, the Catholics, as well as the Protestants, did all they could to hide from the world the good work that James, the brother of Jesus, did. This was done that the works of the latter would appear more miraculous, and give greater weight to their salvation plans, which they intended to push with all the power they possessed. Now, had it not been for Josephus, that good man and honest historian, we should have remained in ignorance of James' part in the good work, and for which he suffered an ignominious death. It was well known that James was the brother of Jesus, but it was purposely kept hidden, so that they could make a God of Jesus and add to his staff two other Gods besides Mary, whom they dubbed the mother of a God.

It was a long-headed scheme and a deep-lai plan, but it succeeded well, and is still in operation.

The Jews never took much interest in the so-called Godship of Jesus. They continue to reverence Jehovah, but deny his relationship to Jesus. Neither do they take any stock in the Holy Ghost story, or of the overshadowing of Mary, the mother of Jesus and James, the two most wonderful mediums of their day. James accomplished even

more than Jesus did, for he lived fifty years longer. But one God in a family was enough.

Strange things have happened in this world and stranger things will yet come to pass. Jesus and his brother James are living yet, and have not forgotten the manner in which they were driven from this life. It is not through the spirit of revenge but of love, however, that they are at the head of this grand movement that is now going on for the purpose of enlightening the people and getting them out from under the control of a syndicate that has held the monopoly for two thousand years. The Jewish syndicate antedates the Christians, and the Jews claim to be the originators of the first God that existed, and the fact that he is the father of the other two, there really should be no contention between Christians and Jews. Nor would there have been a third God if it had not been for a Jew by the name of Judas. And yet the Christians condemn Judas. He should hold. a place of honor among them. Did not the part he took helped to establish the Godhead and finish up the plan of salvation? We believe in giving the Devil his due; and even if Judas did enact the villain's part in the tragedy, he is entitled to his share of praise for the drama. Therefore, let his spirit rest in peace; for his mission is ended; his repentance was ample when he took his own life.

Peter even acted the part of a coward, being a regular blatherskite, and should be condemned by all honest Christians. But Peter, like many dishonest Christians, has reached a high place in the heavenly kingdom. He has been honored with the keeping of the gate to the golden city, and no one minus a passport from some regularly organized orthodox Church can enter.

Peter and the Devil hold similar positions, but unfortunately for both of them, Jesus and James never travel their way.

The spirit world is in no manner connected with either of these places, hence I speak of them in such a light manThe messengers from the spirit world inform us that

ner.

they know nothing of either. vast world, the boundaries of covered.

But they do inform us of a which they have not yet dis

Notwithstanding all the evidence that is being brought forward to prove the immortality of the soul, and with all the knowledge that can be obtained, that he who commits sin must atone therefor sooner or later, yet the daily press is filled with criminal acts committed by preachers who pretend to be followers of the humble Nazarene. When a priest or preacher has been called to the pulpit, he is supposed to be safe in the hands of God, and no crime or sin that he may commit will debar him from entering the golden city, and a harp is awaiting him to play upon as soon as he takes his seat at the right hand of God. But can a preacher sin after he has been consecrated to do the work of his Lord and Master? In my opinion, sin committed by anyone who claims to be more holy than his fellow man is infinitely worse and less pardonable than one committed by those who make no claim to piety.

Jesus called all men to repentance; he made no exceptions. He regarded all alike, and administered his blessings on the rich and poor; the high and low. He made no distinctions, except that the rich man would have greater difficulty in trying to enter the house of God. He realized that the rich held men in bondage and did traffic in souls, hence he spoke of them in the way he did. His sympathy was always on the side of the poor, the weak and distressed. This made those in authority cry him down, and the fact of his being a Nazarene gave additional cause for the authorities to despise him.

Was there ever anything good come out of Nazareth? was a common expression at that time, and what right had this low-born man to assume to accomplish more than their priests or their so-called holy men? Jesus was doomed; his life must be sacrificed, vengeance must be rewarded with blood. His innocence would not save him; his examples could not be followed; and he must die, in order to appea s

a wrathful people and the offended Jewish God. Jesus was no offender, he broke no laws; he was no egotist; he was not conceited, for he unhesitatingly proclaimed that others coming after him would do even greater things than he. His words were fulfilled even in his own family, for Josephus says that James was stoned to death for doing the same things that Jesus did.

It will be noticed that the writers of the New Testament said but little about the works of James. It would not do to give to the world two Gods out of one family; hence the works of James must, in a measure, be suppressed. The traffic in Gods among the Jews is yet to be solved. The elder God, and even the Holy Ghost that was required to overshadow Mary, is a mystery, even unto this day. Moses was the father of the Jewish God, but he knew nothing of the Holy Ghost, or his mission on the earth. Moses died and his soul was translated into the spirit world long before the Holy Ghost was born. After overshadowing Mary, this Holy Ghost took his departure to some secluded part of God's dominions, and has never since been heard of. Was he, like the Devil, born in heaven, and did he retire into obscurity when Christianity no longer had use for him? When Christianity dies the Devil will also die. But Christianity has served its time; its mission is nearly ended, and we know of no one that will be better pleased than that lovely brother. The responsibilities that have been heaped upon his shoulders are almost incredible; yet he died a martyr to his cause on earth, and for nearly nineteen hundred years he has continued to be a martyr, even in his home in the spirit world. If all that I have said in defense of Jesus cannot be verified, please wait a little while longer, when your own predictions as well as mine will be verified by the return of Jesus. He certainly has the right to return to settle this momentous question that has so long been pending.

The children of earth must not much longer be separated on the truths of religious sentiments; they must be united in their fundamental principles of his teachings. The divi

sion that has been kept up is of long duration and has been the cause of many wars and much suffering, and the time has now come when all grievances must be settled. Let us all unite under the banner of truth and proclaim in one accord that God is love, and humanity is the outgrowth of his loving nature.

Jesus once proclaimed that little children come unto him, while the Presbyterian clergy have sent them to hell. From the hills of bonny Scotland first came the cry of eternal punishment of little children. How sad will be the fate of these hard-hearted old Highlanders when they discover their mistake. Bobby Burns was, not strictly speaking, a very moral man, but nowhere do we find him committing little children into the burning lakes of hell. Tom Moore also loved little children, for to him such was the kingdom of heaven. Some of the hard-fisted of Merry England, too, thought best to transfer the souls of some little children into that fiery furnace, but the greater share have now become civilized enough to think otherwise.

The Catholics claim the right to condemn or save whomever they please, but their theory is so thin that they have become the laughing-stock of outside thinkers. But I would arraign both the Catholic and Protestant clergy at the bar of justice, and have them show cause why they claim to be the only true followers of Jesus. We will put the same tests that Jesus did while on the earth. First. Do you live the same kind of a life that Jesus said you should so as to be known as his only true followers? Second. Do you go about doing good; do you visit the fatherless and motherless and administer to their wants? Third. If your enemy smite you on one cheek, do you turn the other? Fourth. Do you heal the sick by the laying on of hands? you do as you would like to be done by? in any of these essential points as Jesus has surely you are not what you claim to be. a little further. Do you prophecy concerning coming events, and do they come true? No! Do you love your neighbor

And, fifth. Do Now, if you fail proclaimed them, We will try you