Quoting directly from the Zeitgeist Movie transcript, below is the text that the author expects to cause the greatest amount of controversy among Christians:

The attributes of Horus, whether original or not, seem to permeate in many cultures of the world, for many other gods are found to have the same general mythological structure.

Attis, of Phyrigia, born of the virgin Nana on December 25th, crucified, placed in a tomb and after 3 days, was resurrected ^{2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7}

Krishna, of India, born of the virgin Devaki with a star in the east signaling his coming, performed miracles with his disciples, and upon his death was resurrected.^{8, 9, 10, 11, 12}

Dionysus of Greece, born of a virgin on December 25th, was a traveling teacher who performed miracles such as turning water into wine, he was referred to as the “King of Kings,” “God’s Only Begotten Son,” “The Alpha and Omega,” and many others, and upon his death, he was resurrected.^{13, 14, 15, 16, 17}

 Mithra, of Persia, born of a virgin on December 25th, he had 12 disciples and performed miracles, and upon his death was buried for 3 days and thus resurrected, he was also referred to as “The Truth,” “The Light,” and many others. Interestingly, the sacred day of worship of Mithra was Sunday.^{18, 19, 20, 21, 22}

The fact of the matter is there are numerous saviors, from different periods, from all over the world, which subscribe to these general characteristics. The question remains: why these attributes, why the virgin birth on December 25th, why dead for three days and the inevitable resurrection, why 12 disciples or followers? To find out, let’s examine the most recent of the solar messiahs.

After reading this far, I thought to myself, perhaps this author is on to something. There is obviously a master source fueling all these stories, because they are all so alike. According to the author, that master source is the sun, moon, and stars. The research continues.

… the character of Jesus, a literary and astrological hybrid, is most explicitly plagiarized from the Egyptian Sun-god Horus.^{23, 24, 25, 26} For example, inscribed about 3500 years ago on the walls of the Temple of Luxor in Egypt are images of the enunciation, the Immaculate Conception, the birth, and the adoration of Horus.²⁷ The images begin with Thaw announcing to the virgin Isis that she will conceive Horus, then Nef the Holy Ghost impregnating the virgin, and then the virgin birth and the adoration. ^{28, 29} This is exactly the story of Jesus’ miracle conception. In fact, the literary similarities between the Egyptian religion and the Christian religion are staggering. ³⁰

And the plagiarism is continuous. The story of Noah and Noah’s Ark is taken directly from tradition. The concept of a Great Flood is ubiquitous throughout the ancient world, with over 200 different cited claims in different periods and times.^{31, 32} However, one need look no further for a pre-Christian source than the Epic of Gilgamesh, written in 2600 BC. ^{33, 34} This story talks of a Great Flood commanded by God, an Ark with saved animals upon it, and even the release and return of a dove, all held in common with the biblical story, among many other similarities.³⁵

And then there is the plagiarized story of Moses. Upon Moses’ birth, it is said that he was placed in a reed basket and set adrift in a river in order to avoid infanticide. He was later rescued by a daughter of royalty and raised by her as a Prince.³⁶ This baby in a basket story was lifted directly from the myth of Sargon of Akkad of around 2250 BC. Sargon was born, placed in a reed basket in order to avoid infanticide, and set adrift in a river. He was in turn rescued and raised by Akki, a royal mid-wife.^{37, 38}

Furthermore, Moses is known as the Law Giver, the giver of the Ten Commandments, the Mosaic Law.³⁹ However, the idea of a Law being passed from God to a prophet on a mountain is also a very old motif. Moses is just a law giver in a long line of law givers in mythological history.⁴⁰ In India, Manou was the great law giver.⁴¹ In Crete, Minos ascended Mount Dicta, where Zeus gave him the sacred laws.⁴² While in Egypt there was Moses, who carried stone tablets and upon them the laws of god were written.⁴³

And as far as the Ten Commandments, they are taken outright from Spell 125 of the Egyptian Book of the Dead.⁴⁴ What the Book of the Dead phrased “I have not stolen” became “Thou shall not steal,” “I have not killed” became “Thou shall not kill,” “I have not told lies” became “Thou shall not bear false witness” and so forth.⁴⁵ In fact, the Egyptian religion is likely the primary foundational basis for the Judeo-Christian theology. Baptism,⁴⁶ afterlife,⁴⁷ final judgment, ⁴⁸ virgin birth ⁴⁹ and resurrection,⁵⁰ crucifixion,⁵¹ the ark of the covenant,⁵² circumcision,^{53, 54} saviors,⁵⁵ holy communion,⁵⁶ the great flood,⁵⁷ Easter,⁵⁸ Christmas,^{59, 60} Passover,⁶¹ and many, many more, are all attributes of Egyptian ideas, long predating Christianity and Judaism.

Justin Martyr, one of the first Christian historians and defenders, wrote: “When we say that he, Jesus Christ, our teacher, was produced without sexual union, was crucified and died, and rose again, and ascended into Heaven, we propound nothing different from what you believe regarding those who you esteem Sons of Jupiter.”⁶² In a different writing, Justin Martyr said “He was born of a virgin; accept this in common with what you believe of Perseus.”⁶³ It’s obvious that Justin and other early Christians knew how similar Christianity was to the Pagan religions. However, Justin had a solution. As far as he was concerned, the Devil did it. The Devil had the foresight to come before Christ, and create these characteristics in the Pagan world.⁶⁴

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More Articles by John Milor: • The Giant Conspiracy • Why Do Ghosts Exist? • Who is the False Prophet? • Will Reality of Extraterrestrial Life Shatter Religion? • Understanding Heaven Via Quantum Physics • The Nature of Heaven • A case of haunting in the Old Testament?