Scene from the Temple of Luxor at ancient Thebes in Egypt, built by Amenhotep III
In the age-old tale of a virgin conceiving a child, lies a captivating allegory transcending popular theology. The Bible (originally Genesis to Malachi) doesn’t talk about or support a miraculous virgin birth. It talks about a profound journey of mental conception through acquiring wisdom. I’ve actually detailed this subject in a presentation.
The origin for the virgin birth is clearly stated, in four separate scenes, within the temple of Luxor built by Amenhotep III, a Pharaoh of the eighteenth dynasty. I will quote a passage from Gerald Massey’s book to give you an idea of what this scene depicts:
“The first scene on the left hand shows the god Talit, the lunar Mercury, the divine Word or Logos. in the act of hailing the virgin queen, announcing to her that she is to give birth to the coming son.
“In the next scene the god Kneph (in conjunction with Hathor) gives life to her. This is the Holy Ghost or Spirit that causes conception; Kneph being the spirit. Impregnation and conception are made apparent in the virgin's fuller form.
“Next the mother is seated on the midwife's stool, and the child is supported in the hands of one of the nurses.
“The fourth scene is that of the adoration. Here the child is enthroned, receiving homage from the gods and gifts from men. Behind the deity Kneph, on the right three men are kneeling and offering gifts with the right hand and life with the left. The child thus announced, incarnated, born, and worshipped was the Pharaonic representative of the Aten sun, the Adon of Syria, and Hebrew Adonai, the child-Christ of the Aten cult, the miraculous conception of the ever-virgin mother personated by Mut-em-Ua.” Massey, G. (1886). The historical Jesus and the mythical Christ, or, Natural genesis and typology of equinoctial Christolatry. (32/33)
In Egypt, before a Pharaoh would impregnate his wife, he would leave the bedroom and go into a secret room. He would wash in “holy water” and anoint his entire body with “holy oil.” After doing so, he would exit this secret chamber, return to his wife, and have intercourse with her.
Pharaoh does this routine because, by washing and anointing himself in the “holy ordinance,” his body becomes a “vessel for God.” “God” now inhabits his body. The seed shooting out of him and into his wife becomes the “seed of God,” hence the wife of Pharaoh is impregnated by “God” and “their child” immaculately conceived. This is the scene depicted at Luxor. The tradition of this mythology was inevitably passed down and adopted by the writers of the gospels.
The Bible doesn’t discuss such a concept of birth, but rather highlights a birth as found in the saying, "That which is born of the Spirit is spirit" (Jn.3:6). This is a concept transcending realms of superstition and religion, representing a deep union of the mind with the scriptures and with its self. The Dawn of Devotion tackles the Bible’s concept of birth, further answering the question: “What exactly does it mean for a ‘virgin’ to ‘conceive’?”
The issue of birth and of conception are issues having to do with the growth and the development of the mind. Only by introducing acquired wisdom and understanding into the mind can one know the intended “birth.” The child of the “Holy Ghost” isn't a mythological product. These terms need to be understood in their philosophical context to grasp the learning experience our belief should have.
Terms mean much to the narrative within the Bible, and concerning this particular subject, The Dawn of Devotion, calling the Bible into action, makes sense of them. Through its narrative, we're invited, as we look at not the experience of the fiction character called “Jesus,” but at the real man, to ponder the nature of mental conception. What is learned is that true understanding emanates from the heart of the mind. The folklore written within Matthew and Luke is supposed to assist their readers in understanding the allegory therein.
