Gerald Massey, an English poet and amateur Egyptologist is among the first authors to link comparisons between the Egyptian religion and Christianity through his books: The Book of the Beginnings, The Natural Genesis, and Ancient Egypt: The Light of the World.

Horus: is the ancient Egyptian God of the Sun, Sky, and Kingship, he is also known as the national patron god. He is commonly portrayed as a falcon-headed man donning a red and white pschent as a symbolic representation of kingship over the entire kingdom of Egypt. Jesus: also known as Jesus of Nazareth, is the key figure of Christianity and Christian worship. Most of the Christian denominations believe him to be the Son of God and the awaited Messiah (or "Christ") from the Old Testament who came to save the sinners and bring salvation to mankind.

Origin Facts: Horus vs. Jesus

Horus ◆ According to Egyptian mythology and the Book of the Dead, the ancient Egyptian God of the Earth, 'Geb' and Goddess of the Sky, 'Nut' had four offsprings - Osiris, Isis, Set, and Nephthys. Osiris was the God of Afterlife and he married his sister Isis the Goddess of Fertility. Their union infuriated Set, their brother and God of War so much that he murdered Osiris by dismembering his body into 14 parts and scattering them away to all the corners of Egypt. ◆ Isis with the help of her sister Nephthys and Anubis, the Protector of Dead gathered all the pieces and magically bought it back to life. Soon after that she conceived through Osiris and begot Horus the falcon-headed God in a swamp. ◆ When Set learned that Horus was born, he went out to kill the newborn son of Osiris and Isis. Isis hid Horus from his uncle's devious plan in a lotus till the Gods decided that Horus was the right ruler of the throne of Egypt. Set could not take this royal declaration and decided to fight it out with Horus. During the epic battle between the two Gods, Set tore out the left eye of Horus. God Thoth restored Horus's eye and blessed him with the Light of the Moon. During another dispute, Set sent darkness over the right eye of Horus. Goddess Hathor poured some of her milk into Horus's right eye and blessed it with the Light of the Sun. ◆ The battle proved victorious for Horus as he avenged the murder of his father by killing Set. Horus gifted his left eye to Osiris who received rebirth in the underworld. The 'Eye of Horus' has been the subject of veneration in ancient Egypt since a very long time as it represents regenerative and healing properties. The eye was used as a funeral amulet for protection against evil and rebirth in the underworld, and also for embellishing mummies, coffins, and tombs. The Book of the Dead specifically records that the funerary eye amulets were made out of lapis lazuli or a stone called mak while some were gold-plated. In modern terms, the eye is known as udjat or utchat, meaning 'sound eye' and is worn as protection amulets. ◆ The ancient pharaohs of Egypt believed that they were the living representation of Horus, whereas after their death in the after-life they represented Osiris. Horus is one of the best-known avian gods from the ancient Egyptian Dynastic period, the Pre-dynastic rulers of Egypt were known as 'Followers of Horus'. ◆ Horus was also known as the sky god or 'lord of the sky', the words 'her' (hor, har) means 'the one on high' or 'the distant one', probably in context to the soaring flight of the hunting falcon or the solar aspect of the deity. Mythological evidence depicts him as a celestial falcon, whose right eye represents the sun and left eye represents the moon. Horus is depicted on an ivory comb of the 1st Dynasty king Den as a falcon on a boat riding with outstretched wings which peculiarly suggest that he was the sun god. The early Pyramid texts distinctly refer to him as 'god of the east'. ◆ Horus is also known as the God of kingship of Egypt in both his falcon aspect and as son of Isis. The early Dynastic Pharaohs depicted this through a falcon perched on a stylized palace facade that indicated the king to be the mediator between the heavenly and earthly realms. ◆ Horus was especially venerated in the Delta at the ancient site of Khem (Greek Letopolis, modern Ausim) where he is known as Horus Khenty-irty, or Khenty-khem, 'Foremost One of Khem'. In the chapter 112 of the Egyptian Book of the Dead, it is mentioned that the Delta city of Pe (historical Buto) was awarded to Horus as compensation for his injured eye which is why this place is an important Horus cult center including Behdet. At Edfu, ritualistic ceremonies prevailed which included the annual Coronation of the Sacred Falcon at the beginning of the 5th month of the Egyptian year in which an actual falcon was selected to represent God Horus as king of all Egypt. ◆ He is often interpreted by amulets depicting him either in the form of a falcon or as a falcon-headed man. In both cases, he is seen donning the Double Crown of Egypt. His widespread worship is depicted through many healing plaques, or cippi. The cippi of Horus are a common reflection of the importance of Horus in healing rituals and popular ritual practice. Jesus ◆ According to the sacred scriptures from the Bible, the birth of Jesus was predestined and predicted by the prophets in the Old Testament. ◆ As per the prophecies Jesus was born through Virgin Mary in the town of Bethlehem in a poor manger, his earthly guide and father would be Joseph. Shepherds were heralded with the birth of Jesus by the angles in heaven. And the three wise men or kings traveled all the way guided by the great East star to seek the newborn baby and shower him with gifts. ◆ The young Jesus used to spend his time in the temple discussing and debating with pharisees and scholars about the kingdom of god, his public life is not documented until he reaches a mature age of 30. He goes into the wilderness to fast and pray for 40 days before beginning his ministry on earth there he is tempted by Satan. After overcoming the temptation he receives baptism through John the Baptist during which the heavens open and God, the Father declares him as his Son. ◆ He preaches the kingdom of God for three years performing miracles, explaining through parables, and healing the suffering. He chooses 12 disciples as his followers who will later on become apostles to spread the Good News. ◆ The Pharisees and the popular opinion of the crowd turn against him and he is betrayed by his own disciple Judas. Judged by Pontius Pilate he is put to death on a cross. ◆ Jesus later rose from the death and resurrected to heaven only to come again to judge the living and the dead which is known as his Second Coming. ◆ Of course from the biblical times, Christianity has spread into a global church and remains to be a predominant religion with billions of followers worldwide.

Claimed parallels between Horus and Jesus

◆ Both are conceived through a virgin. ◆ Both are the 'only begotten Son of God.' ◆ Horus's foster father was Jo-Seph, and Jesus's earthly father was Joseph. ◆ Both were of royal descent. ◆ Both were born in a cave. ◆ An angel heralded their birth to their respective mother's. ◆ Birth of Horus was heralded by the star Sirius (the morning star). Birth of Jesus was heralded by a star in the East (the sun rises in the East). ◆ Ancient Egyptians observed the birth of Horus on 21st December, the Winter Solstice. Christians observe the birth of Jesus on 25th December. ◆ Both the births were witnessed by shepherds. ◆ Baby Horus was visited by 'three solar deities' whereas baby Jesus was visited by the 'three wise men'. ◆ After the birth, Herut wanted Horus dead whereas after birth Herod wanted Jesus dead. ◆ Both were 12 at this coming-of-age ritual. ◆ Both were baptized at age 30, Horus at the river Eridanus and Jesus at the river Jordan. ◆ Horus was baptized by Anup the Baptizer whereas Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist. ◆ Horus went up to the desert of Amenta to be tempted by his arch-rival, Set. Jesus went up to the desert in Palestine to be tempted by his arch-rival, Satan. ◆ Both had 12 disciples and both performed miracles, hearings, and walked on water. ◆ Horus raised Osiris from the dead and Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead. ◆ Both were crucified next to two thieves. ◆ Both were buried in a tomb. ◆ Both rose from the dead and their resurrection was witnessed by a woman. ◆ Horus is known as KRST, the anointed one. Jesus is known as Christ which means anointed one. ◆ Both are associated with the zodiac sign - Pisces the fish. ◆ Both are linked with the symbolic representation of the fish, the beetle, the vine, and the shepherd's crook.

How Horus is Different from Jesus?

◆ Horus did not have a virgin birth. His widowed mother, Goddess Isis conceived through Osiris after she magically resembled his body parts. Isis is never mentioned as Mary or named Mary in any of the Egyptian texts and records. ◆ Horus is described as God according to the ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead, written in 1280 B.C. It is actually a collection of spells and incantations which were used as protection for the dead in the after-life. Horus is depicted only through vignettes in the book and no actual account of his life is presented. In fact much of his information comes from mythological legends, stories, and cult. ◆ Horus is mentioned as the son of Osiris in various Egyptian mythologies and he never had a foster father. ◆ Horus was born in the deserts of Egypt not in a cave. There is no mention of him being born on December 25th in the Book of the Dead, the Egyptian mythologies or book of Gods and Goddesses. The only fact mentioned is that he was born during the Egyptian month of Khoiak. In present day context, the Egyptian calendar cannot be co-related since the Egyptian calendar was stringently based on the tidal fluctuations of the Nile river. ◆ An angel never visited Isis before the birth of Osiris, and the three solar deities are never mentioned in any mythological sources. Isis after the birth of Horus had the baby hidden away from the anger of Set and not Herud. The claims of his birth being witnessed by simple shepherds and the heralding of his birth by star Sirius is also false as there are no mentions of them in the ancient Egyptian texts. ◆ In none of the Egyptian texts or accounts, Horus is projected as a teacher. In fact he spent much of his life trying to avenge the death of his slain father hence he never witnessed a water baptism or had a ministry or 12 disciples. The concatenation of Anup the Baptizer sprung from the writings of Gerald Massey who invented the character in many of writings about Egypt. His works on Egyptology are considered in poor light by fellow professional Egyptologists and archaeologists who state that his works lack historical evidence. Archaeological evidence found from ancient Egyptian tomb paintings and sculptures depict that the pharaohs witnessed a washing ritual before the official coronation ceremony only by the hands of gods. This simply means that it was a spiritual cleansing and not the actual ceremony. No evidence has been found of Horus being ritualistically washed by any of the Gods or Goddesses. ◆ Horus went out to the desert not to fast and pray but to fight a series of battle challenges posed by his evil uncle, Set in order to gain the throne of Egypt and avenge the murder of this father. ◆ The healing associated with the 'Eye of Horus' is prevalent among the cult believers of Horus, Horus personally did not display any healings or miracles. There are no ancient accounts supporting the claims of Horus as the divine healer. ◆ Horus did not suffer crucifixion except an injury to his left eye during the battle with Set. He killed Set and revenged the death of his father. After which the Gods crowned him as the supreme King of Egypt. Hence he is also known as the God of Kingship. Moreover this kind of crucifix punishment is never mentioned in any of the Egyptian texts, Egyptians were known to mummify not crucify. The Horus cult predominantly clings with the pharaohs of Egypt as they conceived that they were the living representation of Horus. ◆ The legend of Horus is the story of avenge and he nowhere appears as the 'Savior of humanity' or as the 'One who came to wipe out people's sins.' ◆ Many of the claims made by conspiracy theorists is based on the assumptions and writings by Gerald Massey which is not considered as an authentic source of information. Hence people should be careful and critical about what is being projected to you in the name of history.