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Wanted Level in GTA IV Era
A Wanted Level in Grand Theft Auto IV and its expansions is a measure of how much the player is wanted by Liberty City law enforcement, and therefore how much force will be used in pursuit of the player. As in previous games, the GTA IV's Wanted Level is measured on a six-star scale, ranking police lethality from the non-lethal one star to the extremely aggressive six stars.
Relatively minor crimes committed within sight of the police may attract one star. Committing serious crimes is likely to earn multiple stars outright — for example, killing or wounding a police officer with a firearm results in an immediate three star Wanted Level, rather than a two star Wanted Level like in previous GTA games.
Wanted Level stars are cumulative — repeatedly committing "one-star" crimes within sight of police may lead to a two-star rating, and so on.
Once the player has a Wanted Level, LCPD officers give chase and attempt to arrest the player; if caught, the player is transported to the nearest police station and released a few hours later after a fine (10% of the player's current cash balance) and the confiscation of all weapons.
Police officers can arrest the player by holding them at gunpoint — if the player is in a vehicle, the protagonist surrenders immediately; if on foot, the player can resist arrest by running away and/or fighting back; however, this immediately escalates a one-star wanted level to two-stars (three if the player wounds or kills the officer with a firearm) and causes the officer to open fire, a risky endeavor at close range. If the player is at low health and evading the wanted level is not likely, it is better for the player to get wasted rather than busted as the player retains his weapons if sent to a hospital.
As the player's Wanted Level increases, law enforcement spends less energy trying to arrest the player and more trying to kill the player at all costs. As such, it is almost impossible to get arrested at a Wanted Level of three stars or higher, although police will attempt vehicular arrests if the opportunity arises.
Search radius
Police are in constant radio contact with one another, which is reflected in the 'search radius' system — when the player attracts a Wanted Level, a 'search radius' will appear on the map, in the form of a flashing red and blue circle centered on the player's position when the police are first alerted to the crime. While within this radius, the player's Wanted Level does not decrease; the goal is to move outside of this circle without the police making visual contact with the player again — if they do, the circle re-centers itself at the player's current position. If the player escapes the circle and avoids the police for several seconds, the player's wanted status is entirely removed.
Pay 'n' Spray
Unlike GTA III era games, Wanted Levels cannot be reduced by picking up police bribes, as these no longer exist; the Pay 'n' Spray service is, however, still available. Unlike in previous games, Pay 'n' Sprays cannot be used in sight of police, even for vehicle repair; visibility to police is indicated by whether the wanted stars on the HUD are white (visible) or gray (out of sight). Pay 'n' Sprays instantly remove the player's Wanted level, and their use advances the in-game clock three hours.
Swapping vehicles
The player can swap vehicles while he is wanted. This makes the cops less likely to find the player as the police dispatcher relies on the last known location of the player as well as the color, make, and model of the vehicle the player was last seen driving. Like the Pay 'n' Spray, swapping a vehicle can only be done if the player is out of the sight of the police. When possible, the player should obtain a replacement vehicle in a secluded area. At higher wanted levels, swapping vehicles is essential in order to keep police confused and to ensure that the player has a fresh getaway vehicle. The player must be careful not to stay in a particular area for too long or meet any police car head-on while the stars are gray, as the police will eventually recognize the player, causing the wanted radius to refocus to the player's current location.
Like previous games, if the player can access a safehouse, the player can then use the bed to access the save function, dropping any wanted level in the process. This will, as usual, advance time six hours if the player decides to save the game, and cannot be used to achieve the Walk Free achievement.
Character assistance
During gameplay, the player meets two characters who may help the player reduce a wanted level. Kiki Jenkins, a datable character who can be met on Love-meet.net, is a lawyer whose influence with the District Attorney may be used to reduce a wanted level up to three stars once her 'like' statistic reaches 70%. Following Blood Brothers, it is possible to have Francis McReary lower one's wanted level if the player chooses to spare him. Both of these characters' abilities are not available during some missions, with Francis' ability removed after the final storyline mission.
Police behavior
Police in GTA IV are better-equipped, smarter, more determined, and more lethal than in previous GTA games; they can even respond to crimes committed out of their sight, as civilians can call police on their cell phones to report crimes. Police use their available weapons intelligently -- an officer with a Pump Action Shotgun will move in closer to the player to compensate for the weapon's short range, while one with a Carbine Rifle will hang back to take advantage of distance. During a chase, police officers will coordinate themselves and will attempt to box the player in with several cars, drive faster, use the PIT maneuver and try harder as the player's wanted level increases. Also, police can commandeer civilian vehicles (parked or occupied) if their vehicles are destroyed, or if a police car is unavailable; they may even commandeer the cars parked in front of the player's safehouses.
Police radio messages are an additional audio indicator of a player having one or more police stars. These messages reflect the crimes being committed by the player; for example, firing a pistol will lead to mentions of "firearms discharge" over the radio, and hitting an individual with any gun is described as a "shooting".
In-game help
When the player attains their first Wanted level, the game displays information to briefly explain the Wanted level system.
The area cops search is shown by the flashing red and blue zone. Cops are shown by the flashing red and blue icons.
To lose your wanted level, escape the flashing zone.
The cops are less likely to identify you if you swap vehicles or run through alleyways and side streets.
If the wanted stars are grayed out then the cops have lost sight of you.
Wanted levels
One star
At a one-star Wanted Level, any LCPD police patrols will give chase and attempt to arrest the player on sight. Officers only shoot at one star if they feel threatened (for example, if the player aims a firearm in their direction or drives dangerously close to said officer), and most commonly attempt to arrest the player. Police cars follow the player. The search radius for one star is approximately two city blocks. The player is unable to buy any items (weapons, clothes, or food [except from vending machines]), enter a taxi as a passenger (except for Roman's Car Service), enter bars or clubs, or partake in activities like TV, darts, bowling, etc., while wanted by police.
A one-star Wanted Level is attained by committing the following crimes:
- Attacking a police officer unarmed or with a melee weapon
- Running into or pushing down a police officer repeatedly
- Attacking, crashing into, or climbing on top of an occupied police vehicle
- Obstructing justice, when an officer is chasing or arresting an NPC
- Attacking or colliding with the guard house at the entrance to Beachgate
- Failing to pay the toll at tollbooths in a non-emergency vehicle
- Attacking and/or killing a civilian
- Damaging or destroying a vehicle
- Discharging any firearm in public
- Vehicular hit and run
- Stealing any vehicle
- Driving a vehicle with its alarm sounding
- Driving under the influence
- Spraying NPCs with a water cannon while driving a fire truck
- Robbing any accessible store
- Arson
Two stars
Officers now shoot to kill more often. Officers in cars now chase the player, rather than simply following behind, and often try to overtake the player or run them off-road.
Two wanted stars are attained by:
- Attacking a police officer with a firearm or explosives
- Aiming any weapon at a police officer
- Continuing to physically assault a police officer
- Resisting arrest
- Destroying a Securicar or Police Stockade with firearms or explosives
- Killing multiple civilians in a short period of time
- Destroying several vehicles in a short period of time
- Shooting someone in front of a police officer
- Destroying a fuel pump at a gas station
- Hovering over the runway area at Francis International Airport, or the grounds of the Civilization Committee complex, in a helicopter
- Stealing certain cars for Brucie's Exotic Exports
- In TBOGT, Punching someone with the explosive punches cheat enabled
- Spraying a police vehicle with the water cannon from a fire engine.
Three stars
At a three-star Wanted Level, police vehicles become more aggressive in their pursuit, attempting to pin the player's vehicle against buildings and run them off the road. NOOSE now begin to assist the LCPD in setting up roadblocks on main roads and bridges; they also send NOOSE Cruisers and NOOSE Patriots in pursuit of the player. NOOSE Patriots may attempt to ram the player from the front, putting the player and officer(s) inside at risk of a windshield ejection from their vehicle. Strong, fast vehicles are recommended; motorcycles are not suggested, due to the aggressive driving of the police. Officers on foot now use Pump Action Shotguns against the player.
A police helicopter is now called in, which can be heard on the radio as "Dispatch air unit from _______", The helicopter will shine a spotlight on the player at night and opening fire if officers on board get a clear shot. The helicopter, however, periodically breaks off from pursuit. The helicopter retreats if the player goes underground, stays inside a large structure for a long time, or kills both sharpshooters on board; however, oftentimes, the helicopter will remain until it runs out of fuel and crashes. In the Ballad of Gay Tony, sharpshooters are equipped with Advanced Machine Guns instead of Carbine Rifles. Police boats are dispatched if the player is in or near water. Like the Police Maverick, the Predator has a sharpshooter on board. The player is now unable to board the subway.
Three wanted stars are attained by:
- Killing or wounding a police officer with a firearm
- Continuing to resist arrest
- Continuing to cause collateral damage
- In Episodes from Liberty City, entering the Alderney State Correctional Facility
Four stars
At four wanted stars, the FIB and NOOSE's Tactical Response Unit join the fray, and the player is confronted by NOOSE Enforcers and FIB Buffaloes in addition to the previously mentioned forces. Tactical Response Unit officers and FIB agents come four to a vehicle and are typically armed with Carbine Rifles, although some agents carry SMGs and Pump Action Shotguns, and wear body armor for protection. The search radius covers an area approximately the size of Bohan.
Note: In The Ballad of Gay Tony, all law enforcement officers start firing upon the player while in pursuit at this level, and NOOSE and FIB officers use Assault SMGs and Automatic Shotguns as well as the aforementioned weapons against the player.
Four wanted stars are attained by:
- Continuing to retaliate against law enforcement
- Continuing to cause collateral damage
- Entering the runway area at Francis International Airport (except during the Sixaxis Tutorial (PS3))
- Entering the grounds of the Civilization Committee in Algonquin
- Shooting down a helicoper with a Rocket Launcher (regardless of model and type)
Five stars
At five wanted stars, the Police Maverick is accompanied by a NOOSE Annihilator. In the main game and The Lost and Damned, all law enforcement officers fire upon the player while in pursuit (In The Ballad of Gay Tony they will do this at Four Stars), making getaways difficult — FIB or NOOSE are particularly perilous to engage, as their SMGs are likely to make short work of the player's getaway vehicle. Due the increased risk of being shot to death, use of a motorcycle as a getaway vehicle is especially not recommended. All officers employ more advanced driving techniques, such as the PIT maneuver, as they try to make the player spin out of control and crash. NOOSE/FIB cooperation is more apparent at this level, both forces spawning and pursuing the player in equal numbers. In certain areas, rooftop snipers with high-powered rifles appear on low to mid-rise rooftops and ledges.
Five stars are attained by:
- Continuing to retaliate against law enforcement
- Continuing to cause collateral damage
- Visiting "www.littlelacysurprisepageant.com" on the in-game Internet
Six stars
At six wanted stars, the Police Maverick is replaced with a second Annihilator, making escape from the search radius extremely difficult. The search area is approximately the size of the Broker-Dukes island in Liberty City. More NOOSE Cruisers, Patriots, Enforcers and FIB Buffaloes pursue the player, with only a smattering of LCPD cruisers and patrol cars. The number of police patrols and police cruisers reduces so more FIB Buffaloes and NOOSE Enforcers can join the chase/shootout. Survival and escape is most difficult, and a very fast and/or durable vehicle is recommended. All law enforcement vehicles fire upon and ram the player relentlessly with very little regard for collateral damage. The player must not hang around too long in a busy area of the city, or else they will rapidly lose health due to the rooftop snipers. On foot, the player must act accordingly to avoid getting cut down by gunfire. Fleeing is the better option when pitted against several officers, and the player should only attack when officers impede the player's escape.
Six stars are attained by:
- Continuing to retaliate against law enforcement
- Continuing to cause collateral damage
- Crossing or attacking police barricades or flying/swimming/walking into areas of Liberty City that the player has not yet unlocked
- Killing any LCPD officer guarding the barriers to the locked island.
Achievements and Trophies
The player can earn two Achievements/Trophies associated with the Wanted Level, however the use of specific cheat codes blocks the rewards. GTA IV Tips can give help on obtaining these achievements/trophies.
- Walk Free — Evade/lose a four-star wanted level. (50G/Bronze Trophy)
- One Man Army — Survive a six-star wanted level for five minutes without saving and/or getting wasted or busted. (40G/Silver Trophy)
- With a Wanted level, any nearby helicopter will chase the player, including the Helitours Mavericks, other civilian Mavericks, or even an Annihilator. Fortunately the civilian Mavericks have no riflemen on-board to fire upon the player, but the pilots will shout the same warnings and threats usually heard from police helicopters, as though they were themselves police.
- If the player drinks a can of soda, the police will temporarily cease fire while the player is drinking; they will, however, resume attacking immediately afterwards.
- If the protagonist is drunk and on foot with a one-star Wanted level, the police will merely follow him around, pointing their guns at him until he 'sobers up'.
- If an officer commandeers a vehicle in the player's parking space and the player uses the "Wanted Down" cheat, stealing the car back from the officer doesn't earn the player a Wanted rating.
- If the player spawns a FIB Buffalo via cheat code 227-555-0100, it increases the likelihood of FIB agents appearing at higher wanted levels.
- If the player shoots down an Annihilator or Police Maverick and wanted level is dropped, sometimes the burnt out wreck of helicopter remains with a police officer slumped over the controls inside, and upon ramming the wreck with a vehicle, the player weirdly attains 1 star, typically normal if a player rams into a police car, yet this glitch happens very rarely.
Escaping the search radius
- Run through alleys and narrow streets when on 1-2 star wanted level to give the cops the slip.
- At lower wanted levels, steal a helicopter or a boat as a means of escape. It is easier to escape by air or water than by land. However, above 3 stars, the player is always visible if in a helicopter, and Police Predators will follow alongside if on or near water, making it impossible to escape via these methods.
- At higher levels, the best way to escape is to take down the police helicopters, and sneak into a Pay 'n' Spray before they respawn. Another good strategy is to enter the subway system and follow the underground routes until out of the search radius, but the player must be careful not to get lost in the system or get hit by the oncoming subway trains, as getting hit by the subway trains results in instant death.
- Stunt jumping gives the player considerable distance from the police but may not guarantee total escape, as certain factors, such as wanted level radius, environment of the stunt jump, "projectile" motion concept of physics, and the position of other police units, come into play.
- Listen to the police scanner; it will indicate which vehicles the police are sending after the protagonist as well as the general area where they will spawn. Some are: "Dispatch X (number of police units, usually 2-6) units from __", "Dispatch Air Unit from __", "Dispatch FIB team from __" and "Dispatch NOOSE team from __".
- To save money, only use the Pay 'n' Spray at a wanted level of at least 3 stars, as the player can easily escape a 1-2 star wanted level (and occasionally 3 stars, depending on the location of the Police Maverick).
- Learn the locations of police stations and other places officers on foot are often found, such as subway stations and landmark areas, and avoid these areas whenever possible, especially since some of these officers may carry Carbine Rifles.
Fighting the police
- Typically, the player should avoid engaging and/or provoking the police at all costs, especially if NOOSE and FIB are involved; however, if a confrontation cannot be avoided, especially during some missions, it is recommended to engage them with either the Carbine Rifle (long range), Assault Rifle (medium-long range), SMG (medium range), Micro SMG (short-medium range), Combat Shotgun (short range), Grenades (anti-personnel, area of effect) or RPG (anti-material, area of effect).
- Avoid trying to use pistols or the Pump Shotgun to engage the police. They fire at a slow rate, which carries the risk of the police swamping the player as soon as they take out a few officers. Additionally, Molotovs are slow and cumbersome against officers and carry the additional burn risk.
- Sniper rifles should only be used for taking out police rooftop snipers or helicopter pilots. Using it to combat ground forces can result in the player getting killed.
- Whenever possible, attain headshots for instant kills, especially against NOOSE officers and FIB agents. Also, officers killed in one shot drop twice as much ammunition.
- At lower levels, prioritize escaping from or killing officers with shotguns, as they can kill the player with 1-2 shots at close range.
- Avoid getting stuck into open, dead end alleyways, as that allows the police to easily finish off the player.
- When in a gunfight with the police, make full use of the cover system. Unless the player is proficient in out-of-cover combat, not using it can result in the player getting wasted in a matter of seconds, due to the advanced weaponry of the NOOSE and the FIB.
- When fighting the police officers while in cover, unless using the shotgun, use blindfire and fire in bursts, using full auto only when confronted up close. The player should use caution when using vehicles as cover, due to potential burn or explosive damage.


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Ronteau, Sébastien
Preferred name
Ronteau, Sébastien
Official Name
Ronteau, Sébastien
Research Output
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Two-sided Internet Platforms: A Business Model Lifecycle Perspective
2015, Muzellec, Laurent, Ronteau, Sébastien, Lambkin, Mary
Multi-sided platforms bring together two or more distinct but interdependent groups of
customers, normally described as B2B and B2C. Two-sided platforms have proliferated
rapidly with the Internet and this has led to the development of new business models to
monetize innovative value propositions in online markets. This paper puts forward a
model of the evolution of the marketing strategies and business models of two-sided
Internet businesses. In this model, Internet intermediaries are visualized as resource
integrators, involving consumers and business partners in a process of co-creation of
value—an integrated, two-sided business model. An analysis of five early stage Internet
ventures reveals that the business models of these Internet ventures show a clear pattern of evolution from inception to maturity, from B2C towards B2B, and ultimately to an integrated combination (B2B&C and B2C&B). This is primarily due to a shift in the relative influence of different business stakeholders, identified as change agents in the context of the business modeling of two-sided Internet platforms.


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Jesus Christ—Unique Savior or Average Fraud? [Part I]
The freshman college student walked into his first class of Comparative Religions 101. He had come to the university prepared—or so he thought—for whatever college might throw at him. After all, he was a faithful Christian, and had been reared by dedicated Christian parents who, throughout his upbringing, had taught him about the unique, heaven-sent, virgin-born, miracle-working, resurrected-from-the-dead Son of God that he revered, served, and loved. His Bible class teachers, and the ministers to whose sermons he had listened for the past eighteen years, similarly had reinforced in his mind the concept that there was no one in the entire history of the world quite like Jesus Christ. In fact, truth be told, the young student had grown up thinking that no one even came close to resembling, or imitating, the carpenter's son from Nazareth.
This young student, however, was about to receive the shock of his life. Practically the first day of class, the professor began to recite a slew of similar stories about various "saviors" of other religions from the past—many of whom, supposedly, also were born of virgins, were able to perform miracles, were crucified to save mankind, and were resurrected after their deaths. This freshman was ill prepared to hear his professor suggest that the story of Jesus Christ as the Savior of mankind is not totally unique. In fact, he was completely astonished as he watched the professor document the fact that stories with similar heroes had circulated decades—and even centuries—before Jesus of Nazareth was born. As he saw what he believed to be the uniqueness of His Lord essentially evaporate before his very eyes, the young man began to wonder: Had he been taught incorrectly? Was Jesus really the unique Son of God, or was He simply one among many characters of the past who claimed to be a unique, personal savior but who, in the end, was not? Who were these other allegedly "unique saviors"? Were they as distinctive as they, or their followers, claimed? And how do such claims impact the Bible's teachings about, and a person's individual faith in, Jesus Christ as the Son of God?
During his struggle to cope with the new information that was being presented so eloquently (and so forcefully!) by his professor, this young man encountered what is known as "cognitive dissonance"—the confusion one experiences when presented with new information that contradicts what he or she believes to be true. As he struggled for consistency, the young man realized that he either had to abandon what he believed to be true, or somehow disprove (and thereby discount) the new, challenging information.
The more he pored over the matter, the more likely—and unsettling—the first option seemed to become. And the more impossible the second seemed to appear. Left unchecked, his struggle would reach the level of full-blown doubt, and his confidence in the singular uniqueness of the Savior he had loved and obeyed for so long would disappear completely. How could he be helped—or could he? Was the material to which he was being exposed trustworthy? Or could it be refuted—thus leaving his personal faith in Christ intact? The answers to these questions form the basis of this two-part series of articles on "Jesus Christ—Unique Savior or Average Fraud?"
History is filled with examples of those whose lives—real or imagined—share certain traits with the well-documented life of Jesus of Nazareth. Such accounts often compose a portion of the curriculum in college-level comparative religion courses, and provide a fine starting point for any study about the uniqueness of Jesus.
Consider, for example, Dionysus, a well-known, mythological god. The usual story of his birth relates that he was the offspring of Zeus, the immortal leader of the Greek gods who impregnated a human female by the name of Semele, the daughter of Cadmus, King of Thebes (see Graves, 1960, p. 56). Dionysus is said to have descended to the underworld and conquered death, ultimately bringing his dead mother back to the land of the living. He also is said to have died and been raised again. His followers called him Lysios or Redeemer, and grape juice commonly was used to symbolize his blood. Philip J. Brown noted: "Many Christians would be horrified to think that Jesus is in some way a manifestation of Dionysus, but the parallels are complex and deep…. Like Jesus, Dionysus is a god whose tragic passion is re-enacted by eating his flesh and drinking his blood" (2000). The Dionysus cult reached Rome in 496 B.C., but had been around long before that. The similarities in the accounts of Dionysus and Jesus [as well as in that of Osiris, the Egyptian god of fertility and ruler of the underworld, discussed below]—from their unique births, to their resurrections, to their lives being commemorated in a similar fashion by their followers—are striking indeed. In fact, in their 1999 book, The Jesus Mysteries, Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy discussed at length such similarities in support of the idea that the Jesus of Christianity never existed, but in fact was little more than a mythological character of antiquity. They wrote:
The more we studied the various versions of the myth of Osiris-Dionysus, the more it became obvious that the story of Jesus had all the characteristics of this perennial tale. Event by event, we found we were able to construct Jesus' supposed biography from mythic motifs previously related to Osiris-Dionysus:
- Osiris-Dionysus is God made flesh, the savior and "Son of God."
- His father is God and his mother is a mortal virgin.
- He is born in a cave or humble cowshed on December 25 before three shepherds.
- He offers his followers the chance to be born again through the rites of baptism.
- He miraculously turns water into wine at a marriage ceremony.
- He rides triumphantly into town on a donkey while people wave palm leaves to honor him.
- He dies at Eastertime as a sacrifice for the sins of the world.
- After his death he descends to hell, then on the third day he rises from the dead and ascends to heaven in glory.
- His followers await his return as the judge during the Last Days.
- His death and resurrection are celebrated by a ritual meal of bread and wine, which symbolize his body and blood.
These are just some of the motifs shared between the tales of Osiris-Dionysus and the biography of Jesus. Why are these remarkable similarities not common knowledge? (p. 5).
However, Dionysus hardly is the only character from the past whose life parallels that of Jesus. Prometheus is another legendary, mythological god who experienced a death similar to that of Christ. His story first circulated around 547 B.C.
Or, consider Krishna, the ancient Hindu deity who is alleged to have shared a doom similar to Christ's. He has been portrayed as hanging on a cross, with holes through his hands and his feet. His title?—"Our Lord and Savior." Krishna supposedly "rose from the dead" and then "ascended bodily into heaven" (Doane, 1882, p. 215). He even is purported to have said: "Do good for its own sake, and expect not your reward for it on Earth" (Graves, 1875, p. 112). Christ employed the same idea in Matthew 6. But Krishna's story dates to 1200 B.C.
The parallels continue. In the Egyptian Papyrus of Ani (also known as The Egyptian Book of the Dead), which is dated between 1450 and 1400 B.C. (see Budge, 1960, p. 220), the god Osiris commands the titles of King of Kings, Lord of Lords, and Prince of Princes (Budge, p. 352). In his intriguing book, Bible Myths and Their Parallels in Other Religions, T.W. Doane observed: "Osiris, the Egyptian Saviour, after being put to death, rose from the dead, and bore the title of 'The Resurrected One' " (p. 221, emp. in orig.). Osiris' scribe, Ani, is described as one "whose word is truth" (Budge, p. 384). In the latter part of the papyrus, a specific creed is provided that supposedly is capable of providing justification for the person who recites it upon his or her entrance into eternity. That creed reads as follows: "I have given bread to the hungry man, and water to him that was athirst, and apparel to the naked man, and a ferry-boat to him that had no boat" (Budge, p. 587). The writer of this papyrus could have copied the words of Jesus as found in Matthew 25:31-46—except for one small fact: the Papyrus of Ani dates to 1400 B.C.—over a thousand years before Christ made His earthly appearance.
Furthermore, in 550 B.C., Confucius said: "Do not to another what you would not want done to yourself." Christ uttered an almost identical statement approximately 600 years after Confucius when He said: "And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise" (Luke 6:31).
Similarities also exist between the stories of Buddha and Jesus. In the cover story article he authored for the March 27, 2000 issue of Newsweek on "The Other Jesus," Kenneth L. Woodward commented that "the life stories of Jesus and Buddha are strikingly similar," and then went on to note that both of these religious leaders challenged the religious teachings of their day, allegedly were born of virgins, and were supposed to have worked miracles (135[13]:58-59).
Some Bible critics have suggested that it would be a simple matter to cite stories with similarities such as these by the dozen. In fact, in a public debate with theist Norman Geisler (held at Columbus College in Columbus, Georgia on March 29, 1994), Farrell Till, a former-Christian-turned-skeptic, stated exactly that when he said to the audience:
People, I want you to stop and think seriously for just a moment. I know how much emotionalism is involved in this, but please understand this. Crucified, resurrected savior-gods, who had been born of virgins, were a dime a dozen at this time (1994).
Stephen Franklin—although an avid defender of Christ's uniqueness—corroborated Till's statement in an article in the Evangelical Review of Theology when he wrote: "Incarnation, far from being unique to Christianity, seems to be a universal possession of the religious heritage of mankind" (1993, p. 32).
Christ's critics have used such parallels time and again in an attempt to establish their contention that Jesus of Nazareth is neither a unique character nor a worthy, personal savior. For example, three weeks after Kenneth Woodward's article on Jesus was published in Newsweek, a letter to the editor from Don Zomberg of Wyoming, Michigan appeared in the April 20 edition of the magazine. In response to a quotation from Woodward's article which suggested that "Christ is absolutely original and absolutely unique," Mr. Zomberg wrote to dissent when he said: "Nothing could be further from the truth. The legend of Jesus is little more than a variant of older religions common to the Middle East thousands of years ago" (2000, 135[16]:17). Such an attitude—which stems from the fact that historical and mythological parallels between Jesus and other religious personalities do exist—likely is much more prevalent than many people realize. And while it is true that none of these historical/mythological parallels is exact, it is true that they are close enough to elicit serious investigation on the part of those who believe Jesus Christ to be the unique Son of God.
Of course, contemporary skeptics who use such an argument in attempts to debunk the uniqueness and deity of Christ cannot take credit as its originators. History records that almost two thousand years ago the early Christian apologists were busily engaged in responding to the exact same argument. For example, Augustine of Hippo (A.D. 354-426) stated in his Christian Doctrine:
The readers and admirers of Plato dared calumniously to assert that our Lord Jesus Christ learnt all those sayings of His, which they are compelled to admire and praise, from the books of Plato—because (they urged) it cannot be denied that Plato lived long before the coming of our Lord (2:28, parenthetical item in orig.).
Augustine refuted the argument by suggesting that Plato had read the prophet Jeremiah and then conveniently incorporated Jeremiah's teachings into his own. The point, however, is clear: as early as A.D. 400, skeptics and enemies of the Cross were launching fiery darts of alleged plagiarism at both Christ and His followers.
Further investigation into the history of Christian apologetics manifests something even more startling. The earliest apologists not only recognized that the story and teachings of Jesus bore striking similarities to ancient mythological accounts, but even emphasized these similarities in an attempt to get pagans to understand more about Jesus and His mission. Justin Martyr (A.D. 100-165) set forth an argument in his First Apology that was intended to put Christ at least on an equal playing field with earlier mythological gods.
And if we assert that the Word of God was born of God in a peculiar manner, different from ordinary generation, let this, as said above, be no extraordinary thing to you, who say that Mercury is the angelic word of God. But if any one objects that He was crucified, in this also He is on a par with those reputed sons of Jupiter of yours…. And if we even affirm that He was born of a virgin, accept this in common with what you accept of Ferseus. And in that we say that He made whole the lame, the paralytic, and those born blind, we seem to say what is very similar to the deeds said to have been done by Æsculapius (Chapter 22).
Tertullian (c. A.D. 160-220) observed that the story of Romulus, another character from ancient Greek mythology who was seen after his death, was quite similar to the story of Christ being seen after His death. However, Tertullian went on to note that the stories of Christ were much more certain because they were documented by historical evidence (Apology, 21).
While ancient pagans saw, and modern skeptics still see, such similarities as militating against the originality and uniqueness of Christ, the writings of such men as Augustine, Justin Martyr, Tertullian, and others document the fact that early Christians could see obvious—yes, even welcome—similarities between the story of Jesus and the accounts of mythological, pagan gods. Furthermore, some of those early Christians even seized upon those very similarities to defend Jesus' position as the unique Son of God. The apologists' point, of course, was two-fold: (1) men of the past had searched for a unique savior-god and, finding none, resorted to inventing him and bestowing upon him certain distinct characteristics; and (2) that Savior—who, although in the past had been endowed with unique traits of their own feeble creation—actually had come!
Christians need to recognize as an undeniable fact—a fact confirmed by mythology, history, and even early Christian apologists—that ancient documents reveal that the story of Christ is not the first story ever told of a virgin-born, crucified, resurrected, miracle-working savior-god who supposedly died for the sins of humanity. These documents further reveal that many of Christ's teachings can be gleaned—at times almost verbatim—from sources that were in circulation hundreds or thousands of years before Jesus was born. Early apologists acknowledged these facts because they were, and are, quite indisputable.
And that leads us back to the issue that plagued the college freshman mentioned earlier. How, in light of such facts, can we affirm that Jesus Christ is the unique, authentic Son of God—when stories similar to His circulated decades or millennia before He ever came to Earth? What response can we offer to the Bible critics' charges? And what assurance may we offer to the young student about the genuineness of his faith?
Before we address the major question of this two-part series of articles, the obvious question must be asked: Why would anyone want to claim that the story of Jesus is unoriginal or plagiaristic? There probably are several answers that could be offered to such an inquiry. Due to space restrictions, however, we would like to concentrate on only two. First, it is a simple fact that those who do not believe in God, and who consequently accept a completely naturalistic view of the origin of the Universe and its inhabitants, must find some way to explain the uniqueness of Christ and the uniqueness of the system of religion He instituted. In addressing this point, the late James Bales wrote:
If one accepts a naturalistic and evolutionary account of the origin of religion, he will believe that Christianity can be explained naturally. His very approach has ruled out the possibility of the supernatural revelation of God in Jesus Christ (n.d., p. 7).
Eminent British evolutionist Sir Julian Huxley asserted:
In the evolutionary pattern of thought there is no longer need or room for the supernatural. The earth was not created; it evolved. So did all the animals and plants that inhabit it, including our human selves, mind, and soul as well as brain and body. So did religion (1960, pp. 252-253, emp. added).
Those who believe that the Universe and life within it evolved in a purely naturalistic fashion likewise must find a totally naturalistic cause for every facet of life. Religion itself is one of those facets, and therefore, according to the naturalist, also must have evolved—exactly as Huxley suggested it did. It is not difficult to see why an evolutionist would believe it to be inevitable that the story of Jesus originated from earlier, primitive stories. In fact, to say that the story of Jesus "evolved" from older, more primitive stories is to assert nothing more than what the theory of evolution already teaches in every other area of human existence. Atheist Joseph McCabe explained: "What we see, in fact, is evolution in religion. The ideas pass on from age to age, a mind here and a mind there adding or refining a little. The slow river of human evolution had entered its rapids" (1993, p. 72, emp. added).
Second, while some may be motivated by a search for a purely naturalistic origin of religion, others teach that the story of Jesus is derived from earlier Jewish and/or pagan myths and legends. As Bales went on to observe, some have suggested that "Christ and Christianity are viewed as natural developments out of Judaism and paganism" (n.d., p. 7). That very position has been defended by former-believers-turned-apostates, Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy, in The Jesus Mysteries (which is an all-out, frontal assault on the divinity of Christ).
We had both been raised as Christians and were surprised to find that, despite years of open-minded spiritual exploration, it still felt somehow dangerous to even dare think such thoughts. Early indoctrination reaches very deep. We were in effect saying that Jesus was a Pagan god and that Christianity was a heretical product of Paganism! It seemed outrageous. Yet this theory explained the similarities between the stories of Osiris-Dionysus and Jesus Christ in a simple and elegant way. They are parts of one developing mythos….
The Jesus story does have all the hallmarks of a myth, so could it be that that is exactly what it is…. Why should we consider the stories of Osiris, Dionysus, Adonis, Attis, Mithras, and the other Pagan Mystery saviors as fables, yet come across essentially the same story told in a Jewish context and believe it to be the biography of a carpenter from Bethlehem?…
We have become convinced that the story of Jesus is not the biography of a historical Messiah, but a myth based on perennial Pagan stories. Christianity was not a new and unique revelation but actually a Jewish adaptation of the ancient Pagan Mystery religion. This is what we have called The Jesus Mysteries Thesis…
The obvious explanation is that as early Christianity became the dominant power in the previously Pagan world, popular motifs from Pagan mythology became grafted onto the biography of Jesus…. Such motifs were "borrowed" from Paganism in the same way that Pagan festivals were adopted as Christian saints' days…. The Jesus story is a perennial myth…not merely a history of events that happened to someone 2,000 years ago (1999, pp. 9-10,2,6,13, emp. in orig.).
And so, while there actually may have been a literal person known as "Jesus Christ," he was nothing more than that—literally a person. The traits claimed for him by his followers (e.g., unusual entrance into the world, unusual activities during his pilgrimage on Earth, unusual exit from this world, etc.) arose "after the fact" as a result of having been derived or plagiarized from ancient pagan and/or Jewish sources.
It is not Christ's historicity that is at stake here (see, for example, Butt, 2000); unbelievers and infidels of every stripe have long acknowledged His existence. Rather, the issue has to do with whether or not Jesus of Nazareth was Who He claimed to be—the unique, "only begotten," incarnate Son of God.
The truth of the matter is that many stories over the course of history resemble that of Jesus of Nazareth in one way or another. And why should this surprise us? After Adam and Eve ate from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, man became keenly aware of both the presence and the consequences of sin. From the time of Cain and Abel, God had established sacrifices and decreed specific rules regarding those sacrifices. Since that time, all humans have had at least some perception—however slight or flawed—that they needed to "do something" to stand justified once again before their Creator. One way to do that was to invent a "stand-in"—someone who could take their place—as the epitome of sinless perfection to plead their case before the Righteous Judge of all the Earth (cf. Genesis 18:25).
Additionally, however, it can be argued that the similarities we have listed (and, indeed, many others just like them) are only similarities, not exact parallels. It further can be argued that Jesus' story, even though it seems similar to some others, is not exactly the same and, in fact, differs substantially in the minute details. For example, Krishna allegedly was crucified via an arrow through his arms, while Jesus was nailed to the cross. Confucius offered the negative form of the so-called "golden rule" ("Do not do to others"), while Jesus stated the positive ("Do unto others"). Dionysus' mother, Persophone, reportedly had intercourse with Zeus, while Mary was a virgin. This line of reasoning possesses some merit, because it certainly is true that none of the ancient stories sounds exactly like Christ's.
A closer look at the Egyptian legend of Osiris provides a good example of the many important differences between the account of Jesus and other stories. Legend says that Osiris was killed by his evil brother Seth, who tore Osiris' body into fourteen pieces and scattered them throughout Egypt. Isis, the goddess-consort of Osiris, collected the pieces and buried them, thus giving life to Osiris in the underworld. Afterward, she used magical arts to revive Osiris and to conceive a child (Horus) by him. After fathering Horus, Osiris remained in the underworld, not really ever rising from the dead (Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1997, 8:1026-1027). This legend, taken as a whole, provides few (if any) real parallels to the story of Jesus. Furthermore, when all the stories about characters who supposedly were similar to Christ are told in their entirety, it is obvious that each of them contains only a few characteristics that come anywhere close to resembling those contained in the life story of Jesus. Additionally, some of the alleged parallels rest upon tenuous documentation and may even be fabricated.
However, there are some common threads that weave their way through many of the various legends: a superhuman hero does miraculous things, is killed to save mankind (sometimes even by crucifixion), and is brought back to life in some form or another, thereby defeating death. Although the minute details are quite different, the general similarities are close enough to demand scrutiny—and an explanation. As an illustration, suppose someone were to take our copyrighted article, use a thesaurus to change hundreds of its words, and then put his or her name on it without our knowledge or permission. We would view such a person as an obvious plagiarizer. Although the new article might be "unique" in its minutia, in its broad strokes it still would be a copy. In a similar vein, it is not enough for Christians to claim that the story of Jesus did not originate from one (or more) of the hundreds of ancient stories simply by saying that the minute details of His particular life are different from the others. We must offer a better, more thorough, and more convincing argument than this if the story of Jesus Christ is to be defended as genuinely unique.
Independent Nature of Similar Stories
In the early part of the twentieth century, Joseph McCabe, one of the most outspoken atheists of his day, published several works, including The Myth of the Resurrection (1925), Did Jesus Ever Live? (1926), and How Christianity "Triumphed" (1926). In 1993, Prometheus Publishing Company (note that the title of this secular publishing organization is the name of one of the Greek gods supposedly similar to Jesus) republished these works in a book titled The Myth of the Resurrection and Other Essays. McCabe painstakingly documented the similarities between the story of Jesus and pagan stories such as those of Osiris, Adonis, Tammuz, and Attis, yet specifically noted: "It is a most important feature of our story that this legend of a slain and resurrected god arose in quite different parts of the old civilized world. Tammuz, Attis, and Osiris are three separate and independent creations of the myth-making imagination" (1993, p. 45, emp. added). McCabe thus acknowledged that these pagan stories with similar themes did not copy either one another or some earlier, predominant story. Rather, they arose separately—and even independently—of each other. McCabe admitted: "For some reason…the mind of man came in most parts of the world to conceive a legend of death and resurrection…. In fact, in one form or other there was almost a worldwide belief that the god, or a representative [king, prisoner, effigy, etc.] of the god, died, or had to die every year" (pp. 52,53, emp. added; bracketed material in orig.). In his conclusion, McCabe wrote: "In sum, I should say that the universal belief in a slain and resurrected god throws light upon the Christian belief by showing us a universal frame of mind which quite easily, in many places, made a resurrection myth" (p. 63, emp. added). McCabe—even as an infidel—willingly acknowledged that numerous (but different) resurrection myths arose from various regions around the globe, each similar in its facts yet original in its derivation. These stories apparently arose because of what he referred to as a "universal frame of mind." And yet in spite of such evidence, on page 69 of his book, McCabe concluded: "Man has no religious instinct."
Mankind's Religious Instinct
People around the world—due to a "universal frame of mind"—independently concocted stories that revolved around a god dying and then rising again. These stories span both time barriers and geographical limits; they are—in a very literal sense—"worldwide" and "universal." Yet we are asked to believe that the people from different countries and cultures who concocted these stories possessed "no religious instinct"? How McCabe could make the concessions he did, yet reach such a conclusion, defies rational explanation.
In truth, man does have a religious instinct—one that is keener than even many theologians would like to admit. In speaking of God, the writer of Ecclesiastes remarked: "He hath made everything beautiful in its time: he hath set eternity in their heart" (3:11). Paul said that mankind always has been able to understand God's "everlasting power and divinity" (Romans 1:20). God did not place man on Earth to abandon him. Instead:
He made of one every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed seasons and bounds of their habitation; that they should seek God, if haply they might feel after him and find him though he is not far from each one of us; for in him we live, and move and have our being; as certain of your own poets have said, for we are his offspring (Acts 17:26-28, emp. added).
God has indeed "set eternity" in the hearts of men and given them a universal instinct that is intended to cause them to seek Him.
In his book, Why We Believe the Bible, the late George DeHoff commented: "No nation or tribe has been found which did not believe in a Supreme Being of some kind and practice religion in some form" (1944, p. 42). He is absolutely right. But it is not just believers who have presented and documented this kind of information. Even nonbelievers have been forced to such a conclusion by the historical and scientific evidence.
Over seventy years ago, Clarence Darrow and Wallace Rice joined forces to edit a book titled Infidels and Heretics: An Agnostic's Anthology. On the inside cover, a description of the book's contents suggested that it contained "the best gleanings from the most important works of the great agnostics, skeptics, infidels and heretics of the world." On page 146, the compilers quoted the famous skeptic, John Tyndall:
Religion lives not by the force and aid of dogma, but because it is ingrained in the nature of man. To draw a metaphor from metallurgy, the moulds have been broken and reconstructed over and over again, but the molten ore abides in the ladle of humanity. An influence so deep and permanent is not likely soon to disappear… (1929).
Approximately fifty years later, Edward O. Wilson of Harvard University (who is known as the "father" of the biological discipline of sociobiology) penned a book titled On Human Nature. The inside front cover stated that Wilson's goal was "nothing less than the completion of the Darwinian revolution by bringing biological thought into the center of the social sciences and the humanities." Wilson wrote: "The predisposition to religious belief is the most complex and powerful force in the human mind and in all probability an ineradicable part of human nature" (1978, p. 167). He went on to say that "skeptics continue to nourish the belief that science and learning will banish religion, which they consider to be no more than a tissue of illusions," yet the idea that increased learning and technology will strip mankind of his religious nature "has never seemed so futile as today" (p. 170).
How, then, did the instinct to worship God lead to the concoction of numerous stories about a virgin-born savior-god who dies as a sacrifice for mankind's wrongdoings? First, it started with the idea of sacrifice. From the moment Adam and Eve were driven from the Garden of Eden, man was acutely aware that he was a sinful being in need of redemption. Humans also understood that some type of atoning sacrifice was required to absolve them of sin. The writer of the book of Hebrews observed that "by faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain" (11:4). Oddly, skeptics seem to understand this point quite well. In the late nineteenth century, T.W. Doane caustically attacked the doctrines of Christ and the Bible. His work, Bible Myths and Their Parallels in Other Religions (1882), gnawed at every mooring of Christian doctrine. Yet even he understood that mankind always has realized its own sinfulness and its need for an atoning sacrifice. He wrote: "The doctrine of atonement for sin had been preached long before the doctrine was deduced from the Christian Scriptures, long before these Scriptures are pretended to have been written" (p. 181). Bible scholar R.C. Trench commented:
Nations which it is impossible could have learned it from one another, nations the most diverse in culture, the highest in the scale and well nigh the lowest, differing in everything besides, have yet agreed in this one thing, namely, in the offering of things which have life to God,—or, where the idea of the one God has been lost,—to the "gods many" of heathenism—the essential feature of that offering in every case being that the life of the victim was rendered up (n.d., p. 177).
Those who might wish to challenge Trench's assessment can examine any book on world history or world religions and see that he is correct. Abel offered the first of his flock, and from that day forward, humanity began offering live sacrifices to a deity in the hope of absolving anger and forgiving sin. In fact, mankind has sacrificed living things to a deity from the beginning of time. But which particular sacrifices did humanity think had the power to forgive sins? The general rule for the atonement value of a sacrifice was: the more costly and perfect the sacrifice, the more sins it would absolve.
When God initiated the ritual sacrifice of animals for the religious ceremonies of His chosen people, He laid down strict rules. In Leviticus 22:19-20, God told the Jews: "You shall offer of your own free will a male without blemish from the cattle, from the sheep, or from the goats. But whatever has a defect, you shall not offer, for it shall not be acceptable on your behalf " (NKJV). The Lord always has demanded that blood be shed for the remission of sins. Hebrews 9:22 reiterates that point: "And according to the law…all things are cleansed with blood, and apart from shedding of blood there is no remission." This should not be at all surprising, since "the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh atonement by reason of the life" (Leviticus 17:11).
Men and women of ages past knew all too well God's commandments regarding atonement by blood. It began with Cain and Abel, was reaffirmed by Noah (Genesis 9:1-6), was regulated by Old Testament law, and was carried through to fulfillment by Jesus. When God instituted the Law of Moses, He did not introduce animal sacrifices as an innovation never before seen by the Israelites. Rather, He showed the Israelites the proper manner in which to sacrifice such animals, until the time that the fulfilling sacrifice of His Son would bring to a halt the need for any further blood atonement via animal sacrifices. In showing them the proper way, God made strict provisions to keep the children of Israel from turning from God-approved sacrifices to sacrificing their own innocent children like the pagans around them. In Leviticus 18:21, God told the children of Israel: "And thou shalt not give any of thy seed to make them pass through the fire to Molech; neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am Jehovah." God went to great lengths to warn the Israelites against offering their children as sacrifices because it was well known that the nations around them took part in such infanticide. The question arises, "What in this world could convince a mother or father to offer their children to a god?" Let us investigate this matter further.
Wendy Davis writes for Widdershins, a self-proclaimed journal of unadulterated paganism. In an article on the World Wide Web, As Old as the Moon: Sacrifice in History, she stated: "The act of ritual murder is probably as old as we [humans—KB/BT] are. Throughout the ages, people sacrificed when they needed something. Our ancestors often gave the best they had, their first-born, to save themselves" (1995, emp. added). The most precious possession of a mother or father would be their first-born child. That child, however, would be not only precious, but also sinless. Sacrifice of anything less than that which is spotless and pure diminishes the inherent value of the sacrifice. Thus, it was believed that a sinless and pure sacrifice of such magnitude could wash away the sins of the parents (or, for that matter, the sins of an entire village!). Therefore, corrupt, perverse religions sprang up around the sacrifice of children, one of the most famous of which was that of Molech (see 2 Kings 23:10).
Yet even though the sacrifice of infants fulfilled the sinless aspect of a perfect sacrifice, it was lacking in other areas. For example, an "ordinary" infant born of peasant parents was not the most costly sacrifice available; a royal child of a king would be even better. Thus, as Davis went on to observe, kings ultimately sacrificed their own children to appease "the gods."
But the sacrifice of a king's child still did not represent the perfect sacrifice, because the child did not go of his (or her) own free will. A free-will sacrifice of royal blood would come closest to the perfect offering. In an article titled No Greater Sacrifice, which appeared in Widdershins, one writer suggested: "Willing sacrifice is more interesting. Why does someone want to sacrifice himself or herself for what they believe in? Historically speaking, we must consider the sacred kings who sacrificed themselves for the Land" (see Andy, 1998). Yes, a king who offered himself of his own free will would be almost the perfect sacrifice. The only problem with such a concept was the fact that no king ever had lived a perfect life. As the Widdershins writer correctly observed, in an attempt to solve this, "Finally someone came up with the idea of one final sacrifice. One sacrifice to count for all the rest for all time. But who could be offered? It had to be someone very important; even kings were not good enough. Clearly, only a god was important enough to count as the last one" (Andy, 1998). Thus, it becomes clear why even the pagan world demanded a sacrifice that was sinless, royal, and higher in stature than other humans. Doane stated: "The belief of redemption from sin by the sufferings of a Divine Incarnation, whether by death on the cross or otherwise, was general and popular among the heathen, centuries before the time of Jesus of Nazareth" (1882, pp. 183-185).
Once we comprehend the need for the death of the savior-god, it is not difficult to see why humanity would want (and need) to see him defeat death. The writer of the book of Hebrews addressed this very point when he wrote that Christ allowed Himself to be sacrificed so that He "might deliver all them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage" (2:15). Death holds more terror for man than perhaps anything else on Earth. It was for this reason that the Greeks invented Hercules—half man and half god—to conquer the Underworld, and the Egyptians formulated Osiris. Surely a savior-god who offered himself voluntarily as the sacrifice for all humanity could defeat mankind's dreaded enemy—Death. So, the idea of a sacrificial savior-god who victoriously defeats death through his resurrection came easily to the minds of people who knew that they needed forgiveness, and who desperately wanted to live past the grave.
And so, from a "universal frame of mind" different tribes and religions—spanning thousands of years—formulated their personal versions of what they thought a resurrected savior-god should be and do. Some said he was torn into fourteen pieces and scattered throughout the land of Egypt (e.g., Osiris). Others said he would look like a man but would possess superhuman physical strength and descend to the underworld to conquer Hades (e.g., Hercules). Yet one thing is certain: tales about a hero who saved mankind were on the lips of almost every storyteller. Trench stated correctly:
No thoughtful student of the past records of mankind can refuse to acknowledge that through all its history there has run the hope of a redemption from the evil which oppresses it; and as little can deny that this hope has continually attached itself to some single man (n.d., p. 149).
But how can it be maintained, then, that the one savior for whom all humanity waited was, and is, Jesus?
Andy (1998), "No Greater Sacrifice," Widdershins, 4[4]:no page number, [On-line], URL: http://www.widdershins.org/index.html.
Bales, James D. (no date), The Originality of Christ (Searcy, AR: Privately published by author).
Brown, Philip J. (2000), Dionysus [Online], URL: http://www.belinus.co.uk/mythology/Dionysus.htm.
Budge, E.A. Wallis, Trans. (1960), Papyrus of Ani: The Egyptian Book of the Dead (New York: Gramercy, 1999 reprint).
Butt, Kyle (2000), "The Historical Christ—Fact or Fiction,?" Reason & Revelation, 20:1-6, January.
Darrow, Clarence and Wallace Rice (1929), Infidels and Heretics: An Agnostic's Anthology (Boston, MA: Stratford).
Davis, Wendy (1995), "As Old as the Moon: Sacrifice in History," Widdershins, June 21, 1[2]:no page, [Online], URL: http://www.widdershins.org/index.html.
DeHoff, George W. (1944), Why We Believe the Bible (Murfreesboro, TN: DeHoff).
Doane, T.W. (1882), Bible Myths and Their Parallels in Other Religions (Kila, MT: Kessinger).
Encyclopaedia Britannica (1997), "Osiris" (London: Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.) 8:1026-1027.
Franklin, Stephen T. (1993), "Theological Foundations for the Uniqueness of Christ as Hope and Judge," Evangelical Review of Theology, 17[1]:29-53, January.
Freke, Timothy and Peter Gandy (1999), The Jesus Mysteries (New York: Harmony Books).
Graves, Kersey (1875), The World's Sixteen Crucified Saviors (Escondido, CA: The Book Tree, 1999 reprint).
Graves, Robert (1960), The Greek Myths (New York: Penguin).
Huxley, Julian (1960), "The Evolutionary Vision," Issues in Evolution [Volume 3 of Evolution After Darwin], ed. Sol Tax (Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press).
McCabe, Joseph (1993), The Myth of the Resurrection and Other Essays (Amherst, NY: Prometheus, reprint of 1926 edition).
Till, Farrell and Norman L. Geisler (1994), Debate held at Columbus College (Columbus, GA) on March 29. Quotations are from written transcript of the debate.
Trench, R.C. (no date), Christ the Desire of All Nations; or the Unconscious Prophecies of Heathendom, (Searcy, AR: Bales Publications).
Wilson, Edward O. (1978), On Human Nature (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press).
Woodward, Kenneth L. (2000), "The Other Jesus," Newsweek, 135[13]:50-60, March 27.
Zomberg, Don (2000), "Letter to the Editor," Newsweek, 135[16]:17, April 10.
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::Coffee Talk:: Let's Catch Up
I'm back! This is the first time in 10 years that I have been away from blogging for this long. This is also the first time in 10 years that I haven't felt like I had to put out content even though mentally I just wasn't completely focused. I'll be real this pregnancy hasn't been my easiest and most nights I'm in bed with Alder at 7:30pm because my stomach is just not feeling it's best and while I don't want to get too political this election took a huge toll on my mind and my spirit. Pregnancy + Post-Election Stress + the Holidays left me with the decision to just take a break until the new year. So it's 2017 and I'm feeling re-energized and I have so much to share. Side note while I have been absent from this blog I have finally converted over to Instagram stories and I'm super active over there if you want to join me.
So let's chat about a few things:
First, I'm pregnant. Yes that's right baby #3 is on the way. I'm officially in my second trimester and while I have shared this on social media already this is the first the blog is hearing about it. It's been a bit of a struggle; I've been pretty sick this time around and with 4.5 year old and 2 year old pregnancy is just about as easy as it sounds. This pregnancy is also feeling slightly neglected and I guess that's how third pregnancies go. I'm trying to think of some ways that I could make this pregnancy a bit more special but I'm just coming up blank – any ideas? Also any questions about this pregnancy?
Second, RWT is getting a bit of a content face lift. I am working on a post completely dedicated to this topic so keep your eyes peeled for a post regarding content in the next week or so. Also I'm always interested in hearing what you would like to see more of on RWT so share in the comments below.
Third, I'm just really excited to be back. That's it. Oh and I'll be catching up on replying to comments over the next few weeks.
I hope you all had a wonderful holiday and I look forward to sharing another year with you.
Happy New Year!


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A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001): A Film by Steven Spielberg
by Carson Lund
Frankly, A.I. possesses qualities of the termite and the elephant: on the one hand, there is the haphazard, messy presentation in service of a scatterbrained script that bursts with potentially intriguing ideas and on the other, there is the superficial slickness, the empty-headed spectacle, and the ultimately watered-down substance. The tension makes for an experience that is profoundly aggravating during the fact and somewhat of a growing curiosity after. The aggravation met its pinnacle for me in the much-discussed "double ending" of the film, in which Spielberg almost concludes with a succinct and affecting summation of the film's thematic preoccupations only to burst into an outrageously didactic and less satisfying coda. One of the most revelatory images in all of Spielberg's career is that of David in his sunken futuristic cargo staring straight ahead at a glowing blue fairy while trapped inside a Coney Island Ferris wheel. Not only is it visually thrilling but it also presents a rather penetrating and accurate insight into the state of the human race: we are constantly looking ahead to our goals, believing in the unreachable, and even if we are trapped in a fundamental way, unable to fully enlighten ourselves, it doesn't make the experience of searching any less fulfilling. Never mind Spielberg's irksome tendency to dilute the simple power of his images in this scene (David's stuffed bear sidekick's reiteration of "we're trapped") and in the scene directly prior (William Hurt's spelling out of this very philosophy) - this is thoughtful filmmaking at a blockbuster level.
Escapism as Art: Steven Spielberg's Duel
by Eric Kohn
Close Encounters of the Third Kind
by Ratnakar Sadasyula
In sharp contrast to other alien movies, which generally depicted them as nasty, scheming monsters, Spielberg actually breaks ground here by showing them as friendly and of course he takes it further in E.T. by showing the bonding between an alien and a young boy. Actually in a way the fascination for UFO's and aliens, is a reflection of average American paranoia. During the cold war it was of course those Russians. So this constant fear of the other, could be Russians/Germans/Japs, some how explains the plethora of literature and movies dealing with aliens attacking planet Earth. Of course the extreme manifestation of this paranoia could be seen in movies like Independence Day. James Cameron again attempted a similar theme of human-alien bonding, in The Abyss, but there it went a bit deeper, with the aliens warning Earth of destruction, if the arms race was not stopped.
Something Evil vs. Duel
by Simon Abrams
If you compare Something Evil, an obscure, made-for-tv Rosemary's Baby knockoff Steven Spielberg directed in 1972, with Duel, his more well-known 1971 TV movie about a man menaced by a killer truck, you'll see how far the artist regressed over the course of a year. While it's easy to blame writer Robert Clouse's weak screenplay for Something Evil's shortcomings, Richard Matheson's script for Duel could have just as easily automatically sank the project beneath the pretension of it macho premise. The key difference between the two films is their subject matter: Something Evil is about a mother's fears of losing influence over her children while Duel is essentially about gay panic inspired by a traumatic car accident (or at least, the film's comparatively more interesting first half is). Though I readily admit that I could be making something out of nothing here, the fact remains: Spielberg has never successfully made a movie centered around a woman's world. The absent father figure is a staple of his cinema because his movies are typically about men struggling to regain their agency. No dad means no manly influence, which means a lot more in Spielberg's world than you might suspect at first glance.
Loving and Hating My Idol
by Fei Meng
Unlike most or all of the other contributors to this blogathon, I identify myself as a filmmaker. No, I'm not a professional yet, but having gone through film school and directed a number of shorts myself, I can at least offer the perspective of a filmmaker. The hardcore technical aspects of the craft are irrelevant to the discussion; what I wish to relate is what I think about Spielberg as a fellow artist of cinema and what he means to me in that context. For me, loving and hating Spielberg is not so much about the movies themselves as it is about about what he represents as an artist.
Memories of Jurassic Park
by Rob Humanick
Sad that it's ending today... but all good things must end. Many thanks to all those who contributed to the blogathon, advertised it, and read the pieces during what is the busiest time of the year for all of us, no less. We couldn't have done it without you.
Happy New Year, everyone. Much love.


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a 1 a 234
b 2 b 23
c 3 d 234
d 5 f 55
e 6
f 2
VLOOKUP is the method to match values of one to another.
Used for aligning tables of translations. Where we have GUID + text in one language, and GUID + text in other language, and some texts are not present in other language


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Biblical Scholar: Life in Heaven Similar to Earth, but Better
In heaven, people will have a similar body, voice and vocation as they did on earth, but everything will be much better, said a respected biblical scholar.
Dr. Paul Enns, professor and director of the Tampa extension of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, explores what heaven will be like based on biblical descriptions in his latest book Heaven Revealed.
Enns, who researched and wrote the book in memory of his late wife, Helen, answers questions such as "Where is heaven?" "What kind of body will we have?" "What will life be like in heaven?" "And will we remember people we met on earth in heaven?"
"We will continue to be the people that we are," stated Enns in an interview with The Christian Post.
Enns pointed to Matthew 26:29, when Jesus says he will not drink this wine until he meets his disciples in heaven, and highlighted that Jesus uses the pronouns "I" and "you," which means there is a "continuity of the person."
"God has given us natural abilities and also given us spiritual gifts when we became believers in Christ, and so we will continue, which means our spiritual giftedness continues," said Enns. "We will continue in heaven to do things we did here."
The biblical scholar, who also wrote the book The Moody Handbook of Theology, said heaven is not just a state but a real place where God dwells. There is the intermediate heaven (Luke 23), a paradise for believers between death and the Second Coming, and the new heaven and new earth (Revelation 21:1, Isaiah 65, 66), which is the final destination of believers on a restored earth, according to Enns. He said he thinks the "the third heaven," although he admitted he is unsure, is the same as the intermediate heaven.
Bodies in Heaven
In the intermediate heaven, believers will have an intermediate body, which is different from the resurrected body that all followers of Jesus will have at the rapture. Enns, however, said the Bible is unclear about how our intermediate body is different from the resurrected body.
But believers can be assured they will have an intermediate body because during the transfiguration scene in Matthew 17, he pointed out, Moses and Elijah appeared in their intermediate bodies and the disciples were able to recognize them in their physical form.
Only Jesus, so far in history, has a resurrected body, which is of higher form than the intermediate body. A believer's final body, the resurrected body, will be like Jesus', the scholar said. The Bible, through the stories of Jesus after the resurrection, provides many clues on what our resurrected body will be like. In many ways, the resurrected body will be similar to our earthly bodies based on the fact that the disciples were able to recognize Jesus in his resurrected body and Mary was even able to immediately recognize Jesus' voice when he called "Mary" (John 20:16).
But unlike our earthly bodies, our intermediate and resurrected bodies will never perish or be vulnerable to disease or disabilities. The heavenly bodies will be youthful and be controlled by the Spirit the way God intended us to live originally, writes Enns.
"There is a continuity of who we were here to who we will be in our resurrected bodies. There is a continuity in our appearance, a continuity in our voice, so we will recognize one another even in the intonation of our voice," said Enns to CP. "So that is quite exciting."
Memory in the Afterlife
Believers will remember their life on earth and will continue their relationships with family and friends in heaven, according to Enns. But the relationships will all be much better, even if they were already good on earth.
"Should we think that God would give us a wonderful, loving relationship with family and friends for forty or fifty years, only to be terminated, never to be enjoyed again? Impossible!" writes Enns, who pointed to the recurring phrase "he was gathered to his people" in the Old Testament as meaning believers will be reunited with their loved ones.
"Death is not cessation of existence; death is separation of the body from the soul and spirit (James 2:26)," writes Enns. "The body temporarily goes into the grave, awaiting the resurrection, but the person – complete with all thoughts, memory, and personality – continues."
For biblical support, the scholar pointed to the famous story in Luke 16 about the rich man and Lazarus. The rich man retained memory of his father and five brothers while in hell.
"If the people in hell will remember their past lives on this earth, surely believers in heaven will remember their lives on earth. Abilities in heaven will not be inferior to abilities in hell," writes the Southern Baptist theologian.
"We will know everything we know now, but much clearer and much more."
God's Kingdom on Earth Will Last Forever
Some Christians believe that the millennial rule means that Jesus will restore peace on earth for only 1,000 years and then the earth will be destroyed, said Enns. But he believes that Jesus will bring heaven's rule on earth forever and not just for a millennium.
He calls the ultimate Kingdom of God on earth the new heaven, new earth, which is when the earth will be peaceful (natural disasters cease to exist), when deserts become "lush gardens," and when aggressive animals will be gentle and co-exist peacefully together.
"God did not create the earth to be very good only to have Satan lead man in rebellion against God, causing God to destroy the world. Were that the case, Satan could claim a victory," writes Enns. "As in Noah's day, the earth was cleansed but not annihilated, so the earth will be cleansed but not annihilated in the conflagration that is to come. It will still exist as earth – but it will be the 'new earth.'"
He quotes theologian Wayne Grudem who wrote in Systematic Theology: "It is difficult to think that God would entirely annihilate his original creation, thereby seeming to give the devil the last word and scrapping the creation that was originally 'very good' (Gen. 1:31)."
Enns then makes the connection that since God dwells with man on the new earth and since God's home is heaven, then the new earth is part of heaven.
"Christ, the Last Adam, will restore this earth to its perfect, pre-fall condition," the biblical scholar writes, describing the new earth as Eden-like.
What Will We Do in Heaven?
In heaven, believers will worship God, judge and rule (I Corinthians 6:2-3), rebuild cities (Amos 9:14, Isaiah 61:4), compose music (Revelation 14:13), farm, raise livestock, and continue using their God-given talents they had on earth to honor God, according to Enns. But medical doctors and dentists will need to find new vocations, he noted, since the heavenly bodies will be perfect.
"Heaven is always better than earth – in every dimension. There is no realm in which earth is better. In no way will we ever be poorer in heaven than on earth," writes Enns. "Everything will be better in heaven. That is an underlying principle that we must continually bear in mind."


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Image credit: NASA/JPL
The international Cassini-Huygens mission is poised to begin an extensive tour of Saturn, its majestic rings and 31 known moons. After a nearly seven-year journey, Cassini is scheduled to enter orbit around Saturn at 7:30 p.m. PDT (10:30 p.m. EDT) June 30, 2004.
"The Saturn system represents an unsurpassed laboratory, where we can look for answers to many fundamental questions about the physics, chemistry and evolution of the planets and the conditions that give rise to life," said Dr. Ed Weiler, associate administrator for space science at NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C.
Launched Oct. 15, 1997, on a journey covering 3.5 billion kilometers (2.2 billion miles), Cassini is the most highly instrumented and scientifically capable planetary spacecraft ever flown. It has 12 instruments on the Cassini orbiter and six more on the Huygens probe. The mission represents the best technical efforts of 260 scientists from the United States and 17 European nations. The cost of the Cassini mission is approximately $3 billion.
The Cassini-Huygens mission is a four-year study of Saturn. The 18 highly sophisticated science instruments will study Saturn's rings, icy satellites, magnetosphere and Titan, the planet's largest moon.
For the critical Saturn orbit insertion maneuver, the spacecraft will fire its main engine for 96 minutes. The maneuver will reduce Cassini's speed and allow it to be captured into orbit as a satellite of Saturn. Cassini will pass through a gap between two of Saturn's rings, called the F and G rings. Cassini will swing close to the planet and begin the first of 76 orbits around the Saturn system. During Cassini's four-year mission, it will execute 52 close encounters with seven of Saturn's 31 known moons.
There are risks involved with orbit insertion, but mission planners have prepared for them. There is a backup engine in case the main engine fails. The region of passage through the ring plane was searched for hazards with the best Earth- and space-based telescopes.
Particles too small to be seen from Earth could be fatal to the spacecraft, so Cassini will be turned to use its high-gain antenna as a shield against small objects.
Saturn is the sixth planet from the sun. It is the second largest planet in our solar system, after Jupiter. The planet and its ring system serve as a miniature model for the disc of gas and dust surrounding the early Sun that formed the planets. Detailed knowledge of the dynamics of interactions among Saturn's elaborate rings and numerous moons will provide valuable data for understanding how each of the solar system's planets evolved.
The study of Titan, Saturn's largest moon, is one of the major goals of the mission. Titan may preserve, in deep-freeze, many of the chemical compounds that preceded life on Earth. Cassini will execute 45 flybys of Titan, coming as close as approximately 950 kilometers (590 miles) above the surface. This will permit high-resolution mapping of the moon's surface with an imaging radar instrument, which can see through the opaque haze of Titan's upper atmosphere.
"Titan is like a time machine taking us to the past to see what Earth might have been like," said Dr. Dennis Matson, Cassini project scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. "The hazy moon may hold clues to how the primitive Earth evolved into a life-bearing planet."
On Dec. 25, 2004 (Dec. 24 in U.S. time zones) Cassini will release the wok-shaped Huygens probe on its journey toward Titan. Huygens will be the first probe to descend to the surface of a moon of another planet. It will also make the most distant descent by a robotic probe ever attempted on another object in the solar system. On Jan. 14, 2005, after a 20-day ballistic freefall, Huygens will enter Titan's atmosphere. It will deploy parachutes and begin 2.5 hours of intensive scientific observations. The Huygens probe will transmit data to the Cassini spacecraft, which will relay the information back to Earth.
JPL designed, developed and assembled the Cassini orbiter. The European Space Agency managed the development of Huygens and is in charge of operations of the probe from its control center in Darmstadt, Germany. The Italian Space Agency provided the high-gain antenna, much of the radio system and elements of several of Cassini's science instruments. JPL manages the overall program for NASA's Office of Space Science, Washington, D.C.
For information about the Cassini-Huygens mission to Saturn and Titan on the Internet, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/cassini or http://www.esa.int/Cassini-Huygens.
Original Source: NASA/JPL News Release


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Charles XI was king of Sweden from 1660 to 1697. Charles, along with Gustavus Adolphus, was one of Sweden's most important monarchs in the Seventeenth Century. Charles was the only son of Charles X and was born in November 1655. He was 4 when he was crowned king, so a regency existed until he was 18. Charles was educated under the guidance of the Queen Mother. His education had an outdoor bias and not an academic one.
The reign of Charles is characterised by the overthrow of the high nobility and the establishment of bureaucratic absolutism.
His reign is divided into two periods; the Regency from 1660 to 1672 and the Personal Rule from 1672 to 1697.
The Regency: the regency was lead by Count Magnus de la Gardie, the king's uncle. The high nobility persuaded the Diet to set aside the will of Charles X. They then took advantage of de la Gardie's incompetence to advance themselves.
The regents adopted a foreign policy that switched from supporting Louis XIV of France or his enemies. The logic behind this approach was to gain money from whatever source so they could to invest in Sweden's army. However, such an approach did little to enhance Sweden's reputation in Europe even if though the Swedes knew that France needed an ally in the Baltic states.
At home, the regents ended the policy of resumption – to their own great benefit. The crown was better off during this time as a result of revenue from foreign subsidies, but this dependence of foreign money soon backfired.
In April 1668, Sweden joined the anti-French Triple Alliance with Holland and Britain. In 1672, Sweden allied with France who was about to embark on the French-Dutch War. The regency had no intention of keeping to her military commitments but they were forced to do so by Louis XIV who pressurised Sweden into attacking Brandenburg. In 1675, the Swedes were defeated at the Battle of Fehrbellin which resulted in Sweden being driven out of Swedish Pomerania – a vital link to mainland Europe.
Denmark took this moment of Swedish military weakness to overrun Holstein-Gottorp and then to launch an invasion of Sweden itself – the Scanian War of 1675 to 1679. The general incompetence of de a Gardie was clear to see. Under Gustavus, Sweden had been the leading power in the Baltic. Less than fifty years later, Sweden was invaded by Denmark.
The Personal Rule: Charles came of age in December 1672 but his time of personal rule did not start until 1674. Charles used the Scanian War to his own advantage. With Sweden at war, Charles decided that the country needed firm leadership. He dispensed with the nobles and assumed full authority himself. By doing this, he was playing the patriot's card – if the nobles objected to what Charles was doing, then they could not have Sweden's best interests at heart. If they agreed, as they did, to his sole rule, then they were playing into his hands.
Charles defeated the Danes at Lund in December 1676 and then set about making peace with Denmark. Louis XIV pressurised Brandenburg to return what had been Swedish Pomerania to Sweden in an effort to court stronger ties with a country now lead by a king rather than a group of noblemen. However, Charles was more interested in a policy of neutrality when it came to foreign affairs. If he wanted to be an absolute monarch in his own country, then foreign involvements were likely to be an unwanted distraction. For the rest of his reign, Charles was all but neutral when foreign affairs were concerned.
Charles was more concerned with his own power in Sweden. During the Scanian War, he had assumed what was effectively dictatorial power. He now had no intention of giving it up when Sweden was not involved in a war. The main target for Charles was the high nobility. They had acquired much land, power and wealth since the times of Gustavus. Such power threatened his status as king.
Charles was a very hard working man and lead a life of self-denial. This was in stark contrast to the high nobility who lead a life that copied Louis XIV at Versailles Palace. They openly flaunted their wealth at a time when Charles was seen as living a pious and, by the standards of a monarch, meager lifestyle.
Charles took on the nobles by allying himself to the lesser classes – the lower nobility, the clergy, the burghers and the peasants. The logic was simple. There were a lot more people in the lesser classes than there were high nobles. Charles could count on huge popular support if he took on the high nobles. With this support, Charles made legal and constitutional changes in four major areas: land, government, the army and bureaucracy.
With regards to land, Charles resumed the policy of resumption (reduktion) whereby former royal land sold cheaply to the nobles to raise revenue was restored to the crown. Charles X had put a limit of 25% on reclaimed land but Charles extended it. A Great Commission was established to get the senior nobility to hand over their ex-crown land. When Charles was crowned in 1660, the monarchy owned just 1% of all land in Sweden. By his death in 1697, the crown owned 30% of land. The income from this land had two important effects; i) it freed Charles from having to rely on foreign subsidies which might have threatened his policy of independence when foreign affairs were concerned and ii) it financed more reforms at home.
With regards to government, the Rad had lost a great deal of its traditional power during the lead up to the Scanian War and the successful conclusion of it by Charles. Those responsible for these failings which culminated in the invasion of Sweden by Denmark, were the high nobles. Charles came out of the war with absolute power – which, by its very nature, had to severely undermine the authority of the Rad.
In 1680, the Riksrag (which represented the lesser classes in Sweden's government) declared that Charles was no longer bound by the decisions of the Rad. In 1682, the Council of State was re-named the King's Council. This move was deliberate – it was the king's council thus emphasising his supremacy over it. In 1693, the king was declared to be "by God, Nature and the Crown's high hereditary right …….an absolute sovereign king" by the Riksdag.
The army was reformed onto an allotment system – the so-called indelningsverket. This was a conscript citizen army paid for by being given farms from land that had been returned to the king as a result of resumption. "It became the best trained and equipped force ever to leave Sweden" (E N Williams) It was most notable for the speed with which it could be mobilised and its ability o get to a war zone quickly.
Government bureaucracy was reformed and modernised by the crown. In 1680, the Table of Ranks was introduced. This made promotion dependent on service and merit rather than birth. Though the civil service was dominated by the nobility, it became progressively more open to commoners. Pay was regular and the king took a close interest in its activities. When Charles XII was absent for 15 years due to the Great Northern War, the civil service adequately ran Sweden.
Charles XI was a very able king and he did a great deal to modernise Sweden. He kept the nation out of foreign entanglements and he dedicated his life to Sweden itself endearing him to the four lower classes in Sweden – if not to the high nobility.
Charles died suddenly of stomach cancer in April 1697 aged just 41 years of age.


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Of course it was a little while before Harry was old enough to appreciate Each Peach Pear Plum or Peepo, but luckily he was a very alert and interested baby, and he was looking at books when he was just a few days old.
My absolute favourite baby book was called Faces - see picture below. There are several in the series and they are often bundled together on Amazon, or else they cost about £3-4 each. They are soft books with just a few pages and a mirror on the front. Each page has a very simple picture and a few words. In the Faces book are Mummy, Daddy and Baby. On the opposite side of each is a simple black, white and coloured pattern. Night is also a lovely book with a really sweet rhyme.
We used to hang these books up over Harry's playmat or lie them next to him in his moses basket or pram, and he would lie there for a good while looking at the pictures. He would also sit on our knee and look at the pages.


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Stoic and inhumanly patient, the Locus can go from sombre stillness to a blur of motion in an eye-blink. This sudden eruption of violence is as startling as it is deadly. Like a Lictor jumping from the shadows, the Locus makes a lightning-fast decapitating strike, their twin sabres flashing through the fog of battle to take the head of their foe.
If you want to keep your Genestealer Cults leaders safe, you want a Locus. This unit is the ultimate bodyguard, capable of intercepting wounds and striking down enemies before they've even had the chance to get at your Patriarch, Magus, Primus, or champion of choice!
This kit lets you build a Locus with a choice of four different heads – one with a hood down, one with a hood up, and two unhooded. These are great for personalising your models, while the spares are compatible with a host of other Genestealer Cults models.
This kit is supplied in 11 plastic components and contains a 32mm round base.