Astral Worship

Astral Worship

The Project Gutenberg EBook of Astral Worship, by J. H. Hill
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Title: Astral Worship
Author: J. H. Hill
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Astral Worship
by
J. H. Hill, M. D.

"Now, what I want is--facts."--_Boz._

CONTENTS. INTRODUCTION 5 THE GEOCENTRIC SYSTEM OF
NATURE 13 The Earth 13 The Firmament 13 The Planets 14 The
Constellations 15 The Zodiac 15 THE SACRED NUMBERS 7 AND
12 17 THE TWELVE THOUSAND YEAR CYCLE 18 THE
ANCIENT TRIAD 19 GOD SOL 22 THE ANCIENT COSMOGONY
30 FALL AND REDEMPTION OF MAN 31 INCARNATIONS OF
GOD SOL 33 FABLE OF THE TWELVE LABORS 36
ANNIVERSARIES OF SOLAR WORSHIP 40 The Nativity 40
Epiphany or Twelfth Day 41 Lent or Lenten Season 42 Passion Week
44 Passion Plays 45 Resurrection and Easter Festival 46 Annunciation
48 Ascension 49 Assumption 49 The Lord's Supper 50
Transubstantiation 50 Autumnal Crucifixion 51 Michaelmas 56
PERSONIFICATIONS OF THE DIVISIONS OF TIME 57 The Hours
57 The Days 57 The Months 58 The Seasons 60 Half Year of
Increasing Days 63 Half Year of Decreasing Days 63 Last Quarter of
the Year 64 ZODIACAL SYMBOLS OF SOLAR WORSHIP 64 The
Sphinx 65 The Dragon 66 The Bull 67 The Ram 68 The Lamb 68 The

Fish 71 SIGNS OF THE CROSS 72 FUTURE REWARDS AND
PUNISHMENTS 74 The Oriental System 75 The Occidental System
75 The Second or General Judgment 77 JEWISH, OR ANCIENT
CHRISTIANITY 79 THE PROPHECIES 83 ROMAN OR MODERN
CHRISTIANITY 88 FREEMASONRY AND DRUIDISM 109 THE
SABBATH 117 PIOUS FRAUDS 121 CONCLUSION 125

INTRODUCTION.
In an article, entitled "Then and Now," published in the December
number, 1890, of "The Arena," its author, a distinguished Unitarian
D.D. of Boston, Mass., says. "Astronomy has shattered the fallacies of
Astrology; and people have found out that the stars are minding their
own business instead of meddling with theirs." Now, while it is true
that modern Astronomy has superseded the ancient system, and people
have ceased to believe that the stars are intervening in mundane affairs,
nothing could be further from the truth than the assertion that
"Astronomy has shattered the fallacies of Astrology;" and those of our
readers who will accord to this work an unprejudiced perusal can
hardly fail to be convinced that a large majority of the people of
Christendom are dominated as much by these fallacies as were our
Pagan ancestry--the only difference being a change of name. The
dogmatic element of religion, which was anciently designated as
Astrology, is now known as Theology.
All the evidences bearing upon the subject indicate that the founders of
the primary form of religion were a sect of philosophers, known as
Magi, or wise men, of the Aryan race of Central Asia, who, having
lived ages before any conceptions of the supernatural had obtained in
the world, and speculating relative to the "beginnings of things," were
necessarily confined to the contemplation and study of nature, the
elements of which they believed to be self-existent and endless in
duration; but, being wholly without knowledge of her inherent forces,
they explained her manifold processes by conceiving the idea that she
was animated by a great and inherent soul or spirit, emanations from
which impressed all her parts with life and motion. Thus, endowing

man, and other animals, with souls emanating alike from the imaginary
great soul of nature, they believed, and taught, that immediately after
death all souls were absorbed into their source, where, as "the dewdrop
slips into the shining sea," all personal identity was forever lost. Hence
we see that although recognizing the soul as immortal, considering it,
not as an entity existing independent of matter, but as the spirit of
matter itself, the primary religion was the