The Jewish Bible is full of Nature-worship to all whose eyes are not veiled by sacerdotalism. The fact that God is said to have appeared to Moses in the burning bush is suggestive of both tree- and fire-worship (Ex. 3: 2). Josephus says, “The bush was holy before the flame appeared in it and because it was holy it became the vehicle of the burning, fiery, jealous God of the Jews. Even our Christmas evergreens contain a recognition of the gods of the trees. The feet is, many of the religious rites of both Jews and Christians are but slight modifications of the ancient Nature-worship, as all well-read men know, but to which truth our modern theologians are as blind as bats. Abraham, the alleged progenitor of the Jewish nation (so called), is represented as a dissenter from the religion of his native country; yet he, and his descendants and followers after him for hundreds of years, employed the same religious symbols and forms of worship used by the people of Chaldea and other so-called idolatrous nations. Read the solemn arraignment of the “chosen people” by the prophet, recorded in Ezek. 16:15 to the end of that chapter, if you would have proof of this charge. The fact is, if we treat the story of Abraham and other so-called Old-Testament patriarchs as we do the traditions of other nations, we shall be forced to give it an esoteric interpretation rather than a literal or an historic one. But more of this farther on. _Serpent-worship_ is another form of sacred symbolism, and has an intimate connection with phallic rites. The serpent was not at first a personification of evil, but of wisdom, and is so used in our New Testament, “... wise (shrewd) as serpents, harmless as doves.” It also denotes the art or gift of healing, and was not only so used by Esculapius, but also by Moses, and is recognized as a type by Jesus himself: “... And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have, eternal life” (Num. 21:9; John 3:14, 15). Indeed, the serpent has almost universally been regarded as a symbol of immortal life, and especially, as frequently presented in ancient sculptures, with its tail in its mouth, thus forming an endless circle. This idea may have been suggested at first by its tenacity of life, and its being so thoroughly alive in all its parts, its body and tail moving and living after its head has been crushed; and, further, from the periodic renewal of its skin, suggesting a new and continuous life. Then there are other significant qualities in the serpent—viz. its power of voluntary enlargement and self-erection, combined with its intense gaze and wonderful secret of fascination and its noiseless and mysterious movement—all suggestive of the _spirituel_. It is also a symbol of power and divinity, and as such was embroidered upon ancient robes and flags of royalty. Upon a decorative banner recently displayed upon the walls