This is a reply to Greg Johnson’s “Moses the Egyptian” at Counter-Currents.
By Todd Lewis
Mr. Johnson’s Moses the Egyptian is yet another ill thought-out screed against Christianity worthy of the atheistkult. In fact most of Mr. Johnson’s claims are taken verbatim from atheistkult in this and other screeds. For the sake of brevity I will deal with his completely ridiculous gloss on paganism.
“Ancient polytheism did not just promote religious tolerance. It also helped promote peace between nations in an age of constant warfare and bloodshed. The idea of a universal divine order served as a foundation for international law and peace between nations. ”
Despite the fact that you provide no evidence for this preposterous claim, there is absolutely no historical evidence to back it up.
Returning to the real world; Rome, Assyria, Egypt, Babylon all used paganism as (1) the political ideology of empire. Rome conquered the known world for the sake of Mars. Mongols conquered the known world for their sky god Tengri and (2) the basis of persecution of philosophers (Socrates) and Jews and Christians.
So any of you atheist traditionalists should not plan on visiting Ancient Athens or Ancient Rome in your time machine; you might have to drink hemlock.
The so called ‘tolerant pagans’ of Athens judicially murdered Socrates for being an ‘atheist’ or a gad fly; Romans murdered Jews and Christians. So much for a tolerant paganism. Diocletian sought the extirpation of Christianity and Titus and Vespasian the destruction of Judaism. The so-called ‘tolerant’ pagans of Rome murdered Druids, Jews and Christians for not worshiping Caesar. You can worship any God you want as long as you worship Caesar as well. Some freedom!
The near eastern pagan cultures of Egypt, Assyria and Babylon were authoritarian theocracies with Pharaoh as a god or the Mesopotamians kings as representatives of the Gods.
“The Hebews did not just destroy idols, they cut down sacred groves.”
I suppose that Greg now supports temple prostitution and human sacrifice? Those idols and groves were where babies were sacrificed to Baal. I did not know that destroying the instruments of murder was a crime. Most people know nothing about Canaanites for if they did little pity could be shown to them.
Back in the real world Christians were hard at work in humanizing the world and reducing conflict.
In the middle ages the peace and truth-of God was implemented, i.e. battles were not to be fought on holy days or Sunday and non-combatants were not to be killed, something pagans never really tried to do. The modern codes of conduct for modern nations were hammered out in the early modern era with the aid of Francisco de Vitoria and the School of Salamanca and Hugo Grotius. What comparable humanitarian efforts do we see in paganism? None. Even your much-vaunted republic was a Hebrew invention. See Petrus Cunaeus’ The Hebrew Republic.
Someone who pretends to be on the side of civilization, especially western civilization, should abandon paganism. Did the Druids, Norse and Germanic priests produce civilization? No. Ireland and Scotland only received civilization with St. Patrick and St. Columba. The Irish Christian civilization from 400-800 AD founded by St. Patrick was the prime mover in the preservation of classical knowledge and the foundations for the Carolingian Renaissance, which if it were not for the Viking raids might have ended the dark ages in the 10th century. Yet as the manifestation of the spirit of destruction you and CC defend and praise Norse culture at the expense of progressive medieval culture. What culture? What philosophy, what science, what architecture? What do you want, bloody eagles or illuminated texts? Would you have Baal’s baby ovens in the valley of Hinnom or cities of refuge? Lest you forget the scientific revolution was a product of Christian civilization not pagan. Paganism was a washed out failure that we should all be glad died in Europe about a millennium ago. Mr. Johnson and his Norse buddies at Counter-Currents would I presume have preferred an extension of the dark ages and a complete loss of classical knowledge.
If you are interested in racial survival then the pagans offer no hope. The Greeks could never stop fighting themselves. The Romans, Celts and Germans slaughtered hundreds of thousands of each other; more imperialism and white fratricide. Attila was only barely stopped by a Roman-Visigothic alliance, which then turned on itself after Attila died. Paganism is no more a panacea to white unity than any other religion.
Lastly we have those tolerant pagans and their human sacrifice from the valley of Hinnom and Baal’s baby ovens to Viking bloody eagles to the Irish Crom Cruach who demanded the first born. We see that the gods were hungry and the rivers of blood they left behind.
Clearly this is just intentional disinformation to deceive the gullible and defend an agenda that if it cannot be defended in truth and the light of day should not be defended at all.
I suggest that Mr. Johnson cease his visits to the sacred groves of Diana and his Blóts in Norse mead halls and before he embarrasses himself further on the question of Christianity based on his own ignorance, read up on what great a debt he owes to Christendom.
Reading list:
How the Irish Saved Civilization (Hinges of History)
By Thomas Cahill
How the West Won: The Neglected Story of the Triumph of Modernity
By Rodney Stark
The Victory of Reason: How Christianity Led to Freedom, Capitalism, and Western Success
By Rodney Stark
Atheist Delusions: The Christian Revolution and Its Fashinable Enemies
By David Bently Hart
The Story of Christianity
David Bently Hart
