venomous animal and every deleterious plant shell perish
together. The fields shall be yellow with corn, the grape shall
hang its ruddy clusters from the bramble, and honey shall distil
spontaneously from the rugged oak. The universal globe shall
enjoy the blessings of peace, secure under the mild sway of its
new and divine sovereign."
There is no lack of evidence to prove that for several centuries
great numbers of Christians regarded Christ as a solar
incarnation similar to those which from time to time were born in
the valleys of the Nile and the Ganges. By the fathers in the
church Jesus Christ was named the New Sun, and in the early days
of Christianity the Egyptians struck a coin representing O. B. or
the holy Basilisk, with rays of light darting from his head, on
the reverse side of which was figured "Jesus Christ as the New
Solar Deity."
The similarity if not the actual identity of the religion of
Christ and that of the pagans in the second century is shown by
various writers. The Emperor Hadrian writing to his friend
Servianus says:
"Those who worship Serapis are also Christians; even those who
style themselves the Bishops of Christ are devoted to Serapis. .
. . There is but one God for them all; him do the Christians,
him do the Jews, him do all the Gentiles also worship."
It has been said that the head of Serapis supplied the first idea
of the portrait of Christ. Before the figure of Serapis, in his
temple, used to stand Isis, the Celestial Virgin, with the
inscription "Immaculate is our Lady Isis." In her hand she bore
a sheaf of grain.
As Serapis, or Pan, finally became Christ, so Isis, or the Queen
of Heaven, became his mother, and to the latter were transferred
all the titles, ceremonies, festivals, and seasons which from the
earliest time had belonged to the great Goddess of Nature.
Subsequently, probably about the close of the second century,
Christianity began slowly to emerge from the worship of Mithras
and Serapis, "changing the names but not the substance."
Upon the coinage of Constantine appears Soli Invicto Comita--"To
the invincible sun my companion or guardian," and when the Greek
and Roman Christians finally separated themselves from the great
body of pagan worshippers they apologized for celebrating the
birthday of their Savior on the 25th of December, saying that
