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By Root 1286 0

East, Buddhism exerted more influence on early Christianity than church fathers liked to admit, since they viewed Oriental religions in general as devil worship. . . . Stories of the Buddha and his many incarnations circulated incessantly throughout the ancient world, especially since Buddhist monks traveled to Egypt, Greece, and Asia Minor four centuries before Christ, to spread their doctrines. . . . Many scholars have pointed out that the basic tenets of Christianity were basic tenets of Buddhism first; but it is also true that the ceremonies and trappings of both religions were more similar than either has wanted to acknowledge.33

As to Buddhistic influence in the specific area where the Christ drama purportedly took place, Larson states:

Buddhist missionaries penetrated every portion of the then known world, including Greece, Egypt, Baktria, Asia Minor, and the Second Persian Empire. Palestine must have been permeated by Buddhist ideology during the first century.... The literature of India proves that Jesus drew heavily upon Buddhism, directly or indirectly, to obtain not simply the content of His ethics, but the very form in which it was delivered. Both Gautama and Jesus found parable effective.34

Indeed, it seems that a number of Jesus's parables were direct lifts from Buddhism; for example, that of the prodigal son.35

The existence of Buddhism in the Middle East during the Christian era is acknowledged by Christian apologists themselves such as Cyril and Clement of Alexandria, who said the Samaneans or Buddhists were priests of Persia.36

Furthermore, a number of scholars have pushed back the origins of Buddhism many thousands of years prior to the alleged advent of Gautama Buddha. Albert Churchward also traces the Buddha myth originally to Egypt:

The first Buddha was called Hermias, and can be traced back to Set of the Egyptians; he originated in the Stellar Cult. Later, however, the Solar Cult was carried to India, and the Buddha is there the representative of Ptah of the Egyptians. . . . . Sakya- Muni or Gautama, whose life and history were evolved from the pre-extant mythos, the true Buddha, . . . could become no more historical than the Christ of the gnosis. If Buddhism could but explicate its own origins, it would become apparent that it is both natural and scientific, i.e. the old Stellar Cult of Egypt. But the blind attempt to make the Buddha historical in one person will place it ultimately at the bottom of a dark hole.37

Higgins also evinced that true "Buddhism" is much more ancient than the legends of the Buddha, since in ancient Indian temples long predating the era of "Gautama" are depictions of the Buddha as a black man, not only in color but in feature.38 In Higgins's opinion, Buddhism has been the most widespread religion on the planet, also found in England, where it was the religion of the Druids. He also states that the "Hermes of Egypt, or Buddha, was well known to the ancient Canaanites," i.e., the people who preceded and in large part became the Israelites. Therefore, Buddhism was no doubt an early influence on Hebrew thought and religion.

Dionysus/Bacchus

Dionysus or Bacchus is thought of as being Greek, but he is a remake of the Egyptian god Osiris, whose cult extended throughout a large part of the ancient world for thousands of years. Dionysus's religion was well-developed in Thrace, northeast of Greece, and Phrygia, which became Galatia, where Attis also later reigned. Although Dionysus is best remembered for the rowdy celebrations in his name, which was Latinized as Bacchus, he had many other functions and contributed several aspects to the Jesus character:

• Dionysus was born of a virgin on December 25th39 and, as the Holy Child, was placed in a manger.

• He was a traveling teacher who performed miracles.

• He "rode in a triumphal procession on an ass."40

• He was a sacred king killed and eaten in an eucharistic ritual for fecundity and purification.

• Dionysus rose from the dead on March 25th.

• He was the God of the Vine, and turned water into wine.

• He was called