Birds vs. Fowl Works

First of all, I'm aware that foul and fowl have different meanings. I intend to use the word 'fowl' in discussing the work, doctrine, and tactics of false teachers. I'm sorry if someone doesn't like it, but I don't intend to change that.

Secondly, but more importantly, we need to remember to place the greater emphasis on the works themselves, and not the birds. I have no doubt that God is able and willing to save anyone who will turn to Him at anytime. I expect to see some of these people in heaven, because it would be strange indeed if some of them did not turn to Christ in the last fleeting moments of their lives. Our Savior forgave a thief on another cross. I'm confident that Jesus Christ is mighty to save. Our LORD forgave Simon Peter. He'll restore anyone who will repent.

I think however that it is important to deal with names, faces, times, and places when we talk about heresy and the works of Satan. God said the the sons of Eli were sons of wickedness (1Sa 2:12). Balaam (Num 22-24) was a false prophet and purveyor of curses. The Church is warned about the way of Balaam (2Pe 2:15), the error of Balaam (Jud 1:11), and the doctrine of Balaam (Rev 2:214).

God knows that we relate to names and faces, and that is one of the reasons He put a name and a face on salvation, Jesus Christ.

So don't get lost in the who of heresy, but pay careful attention to the way, the error, and the doctrine.

Fowl Doctrine - Date-setting (Adventism)

William Miller (1782-1849) is a good example of a date-setter. Miller made a name for himself by claiming the Christ would return to the earth on October 22, 1844.

The Millerite movement  spawned a number of groups claiming special revelation and privilege as "true Churches". Groups which have spun off from the Millerites include Seventh-day Adventists and Jehovah's Witnesses.

To be expanded...

Fowl Doctrine - Sabbath-keeping

Denominations like the Seventh-day Adventists teach that it is essential for Christians to keep the Sabbath.  The SDA church offers the best example for a thumbnail sketch of the problem. 

Ellen G. White (1827-1915) was a founding member of the SDA Church. Her writings are considered to be divinely inspired by many SDA members. White taught that worship on Sunday was introduced by heretics in the Roman Catholic Church.  She claimed that the Pope of the Roman Catholic Church is the Anti-Christ and Christians who worship on Sunday are under the mark of the beast.

To be expanded...

Fowl Workers - Alice A. Bailey (Founder of Neo-Theosophy)

Alice A. Bailey (1880-1949)  was grew up in the Anglican Church before turning to Theosophy in 1915.  She was born into a wealthy British family and received education in her denominational church.  She claims to have attempted suicide three times in her childhood.

She also founded Lucifer Publishing, which later became the Lucis Trust. The later organization is reported to have operated a meditation room in the United Nations building and has ties to the work of the UN through a subsidiary called World Goodwill. 

To be expanded...

Fowl Nominees - William Blake

William Blake (1757-1827) was a well known poet and artist.

To be expanded...

False Apostles - Helen P. Blavatsky

Helen P. Blavatsky (1831-1891) was a founder of the Theosophical Society. 

To be expanded...

Fowl Workers - Kersey Graves

The author of The World's Sixteen Crucified Saviors, Kersey Graves (1813-1883) was a former Quaker. His book is widely acknowledged as stealing much from Sir Godfrey Higgins (1782-1833) and his book, Anacalypsis.  Graves denied his plagiarism, but cited very few sources in his work.  So much for scholarship, Mr. Graves!

Graves often detours from his presentation of "facts" to state his aim of destroying Christianity. Graves claimed to be a champion of Freethought. But like most self-proclaimed free thinkers, he couldn't tolerate religion in general and Christianity in particular. So much for free thinking, Mr. Graves!

I examined the sixteen characters from Chapter 16 of Graves' book, The World's Sixteen Crucified Saviors. I rated each character on ten criteria that Graves acknowledged as being characteristics attributed to Jesus Christ. The list of criteria I choose are not mentioned by Graves as comprehensive standard, though he did spend the previous 15 chapters of his book trying to convince the reader that many mythological characters met at least one of them. In building up a case upon which to present his list of 16 gods, Graves subscribes to the notion that a savior like Christ much meet many criteria. I chose a subset of the criteria that Graves implicitly claims that a savior like Christ should meet.

My findings are that Graves and his work are fraudulent. None of the characters from Chapter 16 met half of the criteria. Fifteen of them were not crucified, and the one that I gave credit for crucifixion was persecuted and crucified by another pagan god. In short, none of Graves savior met half of the ten criteria that Graves attributes to Christ. So Graves fails to present one character as a forerunner of Christ, and hence fails to make the case that Christ was a myth built upon sixteen crucified saviors that preceded him by centuries.

In building his case to refute the claims of Christ, Grave constructs a noose on which he is hung. For the reader who likes what Graves has to say, he makes a seemingly compelling case for rejecting Jesus Christ.  For the reader who will try to verify Graves work though independent historical and religious sources, Graves is a fraud.