The Works of Robert G. Ingersoll, Vol. 06 (of 12): Dresden Edition—DiscussionsIngersoll, Robert Green
Religion
The Works of Robert G. Ingersoll, Vol. 06 (of 12): Dresden Edition—Discussions
Ingersoll, Robert Green
Free thought
If Christ had wrought the miracles attributed to him--if he had cured
the maimed, the leprous, and the halt--if he had changed the night of
blindness into blessed day--if he had wrested from the fleshless hand
of avaricious death the stolen jewel of a life, and clothed again with
throbbing flesh the pulseless dust, he would have won the love and
adoration of mankind. If ever there shall stand upon this earth the king
of death, all human knees will touch the ground.
We are further informed that "what we call the fundamental truths of
Christianity consist of great public events which are sufficiently
established by history without special proof."
Of course, we admit that the Roman Empire existed; that Julius Caesar
was assassinated; and we may admit that Rome was founded by Romulus and
Remus; but will some one be kind enough to tell us how the assassination
of Caesar even tends to prove that Romulus and Remus were suckled by
a wolf? We will all admit that, in the sixth century after Christ,
Mohammed was born at Mecca; that his victorious hosts vanquished half
the Christian world; that the crescent triumphed over the cross upon a
thousand fields; that all the Christians of the earth were not able to
rescue from the hands of an impostor the empty grave of Christ. We will
all admit that the Mohammedans cultivated the arts and sciences; that
they gave us our numerals; taught us the higher mathematics; gave us our
first ideas of astronomy, and that "science was thrust into the brain of
Europe on the point of a Moorish lance;" and yet we will not admit that
Mohammed was divinely inspired, nor that he had frequent conversations
with the angel Gabriel, nor that after his death his coffin was
suspended in mid-air.
A little while ago, in the city of Chicago, a gentleman addressed a
number of Sunday-school children. In his address, he stated that some
people were wicked enough to deny the story of the deluge; that he was
a traveler; that he had been to the top of Mount Ararat, and had brought
with him a stone from that sacred locality. The children were then
invited to form in procession and walk by the pulpit, for the purpose of
seeing this wonderful stone. After they had looked at it, the lecturer
said: "Now, children, if you ever hear anybody deny the story of the
deluge, or say that the ark did not rest on Mount Ararat, you can tell
them that you know better, because you have seen with your own eyes a
stone from that very mountain."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account