—I offer a few examples of the sort of thing these petty people
have got into their heads—what they have put into the mouth of
the Master: the unalloyed creed of “beautiful souls.”—
”And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you, when ye
depart thence, shake off the dust under your feet for a testimony against
them. Verily I say unto you, it shall be more tolerable for Sodom and
Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city” (Mark vi,
11)—How evangelical! . . .
”And whosoever shall offend one of these little ones
that believe in me, it is better for him that a millstone were hanged
about his neck, and he were cast into the sea” (Mark ix, 42).—How
evangelical! . . .
”And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for
thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes
to be cast into hell fire; Where the worm dieth not, and the fire is not
quenched.” (Mark ix, 47)[1]—It
is not exactly the eye that is meant. . . .
”Verily I say unto you, That there be some of them that stand
here, which shall not taste death, till they have seen the kingdom of God
come with power.” (Mark ix, 1.)—Well lied,
lion![2]
. . . .
”Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take
up his cross, and follow me. For . . .” (Note of a
psychologist. Christian morality is refuted by its fors: its
reasons are against it,—this makes it Christian.) Mark viii, 34.—
”Judge not, that ye be not judged. With what measure ye mete, it
shall be measured to you again.” (Matthew vii, l.)
17]—What a notion of justice, of a “just” judge! . . .
”For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do
not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what
do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so.”
(Matthew v, 46.)[3]—Principle of
“Christian love”: it insists upon being well paid in
the end. . . .
”But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your
Father forgive your trespasses.” (Matthew vi, 15.)—Very compromising
for the said “father.”
”But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness;
and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matthew vi, 33.)—All
these things: namely, food, clothing, all the necessities of life. An error,
to put it mildly. . . . A bit before this God appears as a tailor, at least in
certain cases.
”Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy: for, behold, your
reward is great in heaven: for in the like manner did their
fathers unto the prophets.” (Luke vi, 23.)—Impudent rabble!
It compares itself to the prophets. . .
”Know yea not that ye are the temple of God, and that the
spirit of God dwelt in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him
shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye
are.” (Paul, 1 Corinthians iii, 16.)[4]—For
that sort of thing one cannot have enough contempt. . . .
”Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the
world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters?”
(Paul, 1 Corinthians vi, 2.)—Unfortunately, not merely the speech of a
lunatic. . . This frightful impostor then proceeds: “Know ye not
that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this
life?” . . .
”Hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For after
that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God
by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. . . . Not many
wise men after the flesh, not men mighty, not many noble are called:
But God hat chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the
wise; and God hat chosen the weak things of the world confound the things
which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are
despised, hat God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring
to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence.”
(Paul, 1 Corinthians i, 20ff.)[5]—In order
to understand this passage, a first rate example of the psychology
underlying every Chandala-morality, one should read the first part of my
“Genealogy of Morals”. there, for the first time, the antagonism
between a noble morality and a morality born of
ressentiment and impotent vengefulness is exhibited. Paul
was the greatest of all apostles of revenge. . . .