Moses

Plume has mentioned, at some point, the fact that, by Egyptian accounts, there is no mention of this "Israelite" who brought plagues to the Pharoah, in order to lead the Jews out of Egypt and, ultimately, drown the Egyptian army in the Red Sea. Granted, there was no Daily newspaper, but for ancient people who wrote on rocks, the Egyptians were quite meticulous when it came to recording their history. You would think that such an event would have gotten 9/11 type coverage.

"That was just one of those facts that I had heard forever," he said. "But now that I've decided to smash these heretics known as religious organizations, I came across an account that does make some sense, and actually, fits right in to my explanation of mankind, something that hardly surprises me."

I don't think we have to review the story, but very quickly: Years after Joseph (and his techni-color dreamcoat) won the hearts of Egypt (as he did years later on Broadway), the Pharoah of Egypt turned on the Jews, enslaving them and ordering that all newborns be killed. Moses was spared as a child, sent up a river, found by an Egyptian princess and allowed to "mingle" with Egyptian nobles. Keep in mind he is a JEW, not an Egyptian.

He then beat up an Egyptian for beating up a Jew (bible-ists point to that as definitive proof that he must have been an Israelite, and not an Egyptian), and out of fear, he runs away to herd sheep for 40 years (40 is a big number for him).

During that time, God speaks to him through a burning bush and commands him to go to the Pharoah and have the Jews released. When Pharoah doesn't comply, God sends the aforementioned plagues, including frogs and locusts, to Egypt and parts the Red Sea, just long enough for Moses to lead the Jews to their new land, and drowns the Egyptian army which was in pursuit.

Do we notice any similarities in these religious stories, whether it's Moses or St. Paul or Muhammad? It is always political. It always involves new land and a new government. Power and conversion are always at the forefront. It's always about separation and segregation. It is typical human greed and corruption. It is always about ego. These are the Devil's traits, clearly illustrated by the Judeo-Christian-Islamo God, over and over again.

So, Moses starts trouble with the Pharoah, and he heads up a new nation, under God, complete with, you guessed it,.....rules! (The bible talks of a puppet King, named Saul, being the first king of Israel. However, SOME Hebrew, and other, scholars believe Moses and Saul are one in the same. Either way, it fits.)

Take a look at how the Greeks viewed Moses. Does he sound like a dull-witted shepard or an organized politician?

Greek account of Moses' life:

The earliest existing reference to Moses in Greek literature occurs in the Egyptian history of Hecataeus of Abdera (4th century BC). All that remains of his description of Moses are two references made by Diodorus Siculus, wherein, writes historian Arthur Droge, "he describes Moses as a wise and courageous leader who left Egypt and colonized Judaea." Among the many accomplishments described by Hecataeus, Moses had founded cities, established a temple and religious cult, and issued laws:

After the establishment of settled life in Egypt in early times, which took place, according to the mythical account, in the period of the gods and heroes, the first . . . to persuade the multitudes to use written laws was Mneves [Moses], a man not only great of soul but also in his life the most public-spirited of all lawgivers whose names are recorded.^:

^{(Personally, I would describe Hitler, Sadam, and any leader as a "spirited lawgiver".}
^{Just saying....}⁾

Do you remember when we said that the Jews' nation of Israel was the first to use ONE God and reinforce their laws with His Divine authority? We said that it was a pretty good idea for a ruler looking to be a totalitarian monarch. It was a natural upgrade from the pagan Greeks and Egyptians, as the Romans almost 2,000 years later, when they adopted Christianity.

Well, class, I believe we may have found the man responsible for that innovation: an Egyptian, whose initial attempts were rejected by the pagans, but who, like any power hungry aspirant, persevered and eventually broke off to form his own nation, Israel. Thank you, Moses.

*(Again, some scholars say Moses was the first king, hence he WAS Saul. The bible's version displays Saul as a puppet who looks good for the role: He was "a head above any Israelite" (1 Samuel 9:2) Either way, does it not fit? The next King was a military commander, David, who incidentally, was a direct descendant of Abraham and chosen by God. Are you surprised by that, class?)

I came across this article, which suggests that Moses was indeed an Egyptian Pharoah. This is not the first time this theory has come up, but it makes all the sense in the world. Other versions call him a "nobleman."

It is interesting to follow the link to the article and read the comments, just to see how the religious advocates nervously reject these ideas and how they ultimately come across as ignorant or devious.

Enjoy:

The name Moses derives from the Egyptian word mose, meaning "offspring" or "heir", as in Tuthmose: "born of Thoth". In the book of Exodus, it is stated that Moses' life was under threat when the Pharoah decreed death to newborn Israelite males.The reason for this was that their were too many Israelites in Egypt and they were becoming too powerful. So it was pronounced that every son born should be cast into the river. An Israelite woman placed her son in a basket of rushes and set him among the water reeds. The Pharoah's daughter discovered the baby and rescued him, she paid a woman to nurse him and eventually adopted him. It was she who named him Moses. In the very next verse of the bible, Moses appears as a grown man.

Amenhotep III

Historical linguist, Ahmed Osman, has conducted an in-depth research into the identity of Moses using Egyptian records. He believes there was an influential Israelite named Yusef- Yuya (Joseph), who was chief minister to the Pharoahs Tuthmosis IV and his son Amenhotep III. When Tuthmosis died, Amenhotep married his younger sister, Sitamun, so he could inherit the throne. Shortly afterward, in order to have an adult wife, since Sitamun was only a child at this time, Amenhotep married Tiye, the daughter of Yusef- Yuya. It was decreed however, that no son born to Tiye could inherit the throne,there was a general fear that the Israelite relatives were gaining too much power in Egypt. So when Tiye was pregnant, certain palace officials thought that her child should be killed at birth if a son.

Akhenaten

Arrangements were made for Tiye's Israelite relatives to nurse the boy. Amenhotep (born 1394 BCE) was educated at Heliopolis by the Egyptian priests of Ra and spent his teenage years at Thebes. During this time his mother had become more influential than the senior queen Sitamun-who had only borne a daughter- Nefertiti. When Amenhotep III suffered ill health, young Amenhotep was brought to the fore. He married Nefertiti in order to reign as co -regent and when his father died he succeeded as Amenhotep IV.

Because of his part Israelite upbringing, Amenhotep IV couldn't accept the Egyptian dieties and developed the notion of Aten - an omnipotent god with no image, represented by a solar disk with downward rays. Amenhotep changed his name to Akhenaten (Glorious spirit of the Aten) and closed all the temples of the Egyptian Gods making himself very unpopular.There were plots against his life and threats of armed insurrection if he didn't allow traditional gods to be worshipped alongside the faceless Aten.

He was eventually forced to abdicate in favour of his cousin Smenkhkare. Akhenaten was banished from Egypt and fled to the land of Midian. Here, he took another wife, an Israelite named Zipporah. Nefertiti had died a short while before. He then made arrangements to return to Egypt to retrieve his supporters who believed he was the rightful heir, the royal"mose", as they had been placed in bondage under the new, harsh laws.

Moses is described in the Old Testament as being "an Egyptian" and "slow of speech" in the language of the Israelites. Ahmed Osman believes that Moses was in fact the Pharoah Akhenaten. Akhenaten introduced monotheism and closed the temples making himself extremely unpopular. He was later forced to abdicate and banished from Egypt. He returned to lead his supporters out of Egypt to a new life.

This makes so much sense. It also grants Moses his due as the most influential executive in history, whose vision was followed by men such as Paul of Tarus, Muhammad and Joseph Smith Jr.