Does Christianity prove the actual existence of Christ as depicted in Christianity’s holy texts? Does Christ prove the tenants of Christianity? My short answer is “no”. Read on.

There are many, including no doubt 100% of Christians, who note that the very establishment and rise of Christianity in and of itself requires, even must prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Biblical, especially the New Testament texts must be true and foundational to the rise and rise and rise of Christianity. However, because humans are, well human and fallible, and because are first and foremost tellers of tall tales (i.e. – humans are hardwired innate storytellers), one of the easiest things for a charismatic human (the usual case) or a group of humans to do is establish the existence of an invisible magic man in the sky or any one of hundreds of variations on the theme of deities and the supernatural. Miracles abound in religions (plural) galore. In principle the establishment and the rise of Christianity is no different than all of the other theologies on offer – past and present.

To repeat, one of the easiest things to do in your lifetime is to establish and start up a brand new religion. Even just in the United States, in the 1880’s you had charismatic individuals like Joseph Smith (Mormonism). More recently L. Ron Hubbard (Scientology), Jim Jones (The People’s Temple), David Koresh (The Branch Davidians) and Marshall Applewhite (Heaven’s Gate). The latter three all suicided along with their flock followers. Then too there was Sun Myung Moon (The Moonies) and (Li Hongzhi) Falun Gong. You had Anton LaVey (Satanism) and Gerald Gardner (Wicca) and Luc Jouret & Joseph di Mambro (the Order of the Solar Temple). And how can we forget the theology behind the Flying Spaghetti Monster! You’ll also get a lot of people claiming “Jedi” as their religion although how seriously they really are is open to question. I’m sure Christians tend to give the thumbs down to these theologies and no doubt the feelings are mutual from the other sides.

But just because a religion becomes established and rises and thrives doesn’t mean the tenants behind the religion are true. Religions can have negative consequences for their True Believers as in the case of Heaven’s Gate, the Branch Davidians and the People’s Temple. One should probably include Scientology in that negative category judging from all of the negative PR Scientology has received by ex-members.

As another example of a religion that could parallel Christianity, in say the establishment of miracles and salvation and a return to the Promised Land / Paradise all with the following of a charismatic leader, look no further than the establishment and rise of the Ghost Dance theology among the Native American Indians. The Ghost Dance theology was a concept that Native American Indians could rid their land of the white settlers if they just danced the Ghost Dance. It would be a return to their own Eden; the return of the buffalo; the return to the status quo before 1492.

The Ghost Dance theology was originally established in the late 1860’s and early 1870’s with little impact but was revived in 1888-1889 by the charismatic Paiute Chief Wovoka who had a vision(s) that would restore the pre-white man status quo for the Native American Indians. Wovoka was a Christ-like figure, a shaman, a prophet, even a messiah who some though was the actual second coming of Christ dressed in Native American Indian costume. Wovoka was seen to be the savior that would address the plight of the Native American Indians, endorsed no less than by the legendary Sitting Bull.

Part of the Ghost Dance theology was that their special, sacred ghost shirts / garments would protect them from the White Man’s bullets. Of course the Ghost Dance craze didn’t go over very well with the white folks. Minority uprisings usually don’t. The irresistible force ultimately had to meet the immovable object, and so the Ghost Dance theology all came unstuck in a violent ending when in late December 1890 things came to a head at Wounded Knee Creek. The Native American Indians faced off against the American Army in what’s called the Battle of Wounded Knee. Alas, those sacred indestructible garments worn by the Native Americans didn’t stop those Army bullets and when the shooting stopped roughly 200 Native American Indians – men, women and children – were dead as were roughly 60 Army soldiers / troopers. And that event for all practical purposes was the end to Native American Indians as a viable entity and a force to be reconciled with in U.S. history.

There are of course parallels between the Ghost Dance theology and Christianity. The Ghost Dance participants wanted an immediate reversal of their world order. Think of the Ghost Dance movement as the Native American Indian version of the Book of Revelation which was also a visionary experience. In Revelation it was out with the contemporary (Roman) landscape and in with the New (Jerusalem) order. The Ghost Dance was the Native American equivalent of liberating Israel and restoring her to former glory via the establishment of God’s Kingdom. But instead of the Roman Empire substitute the White Man; instead of Israel substitute the Indian Territories. Further, the Ghost Dance itself (and associated chanting) is akin to all of the rituals and prayers and musical hymns, etc. associated with Christianity, especially Catholicism. The sacred bullet-proof shirts are akin to the Crosses and Bibles and other religious artefacts and icons associated with Christianity and carried around by the faithful.

So, in conclusion, there was indeed an establishment and rise of Christianity. But that doesn’t mean any of the foundations are based on anything other than quicksand. Christianity is just composed of a long strings of claims none of which have any supporting historical and independently verifiable evidence. Christ no more proves Christianity and Christianity no more proves Christ than Allah proves Islam or that Islam proves Allah or that Brahma proves Hinduism or that Hinduism proves the existence of Brahma. Wovoka failed to prove that the Ghost Dance theology did what he said it would do. Unlike Jesus, Allah and Brahma, we of course know that Wovoka was an actual historical figure who really existed, but the Ghost Dance debacle certainly didn’t show Wovoka to be any sort of prophet, far less even a messiah figure.