Consider Bible account of creation of Man and his fall from grace, (the Bible, Genesis 2:7-24 3:1-24).

We are told that God created Adam and Eve and established them in Garden of Eden where He had made adequate provisions for their needs. All went well until serpent came along and deceived them into disobeying God. The act of disobedience in Garden of Eden caused Adam and Eve to lose favour with God. Christians believe that sinfulness of Adam and Eve subsequently passed on to all generations of mankind. That, in their thinking, is responsible for mankind's fall from grace and human proneness to commit sin. The Christian concept of original sin which is that sinfulness is a part of mankind's nature is founded on this Bible story.

Now let us examine this Bible account rationally. It has been scientifically established that mankind has inhabited earth for over a million years. The coming into existence of human being is, therefore, a primeval event that is prehistoric and immemorial. Surely, any account of this even cannot be anything but an invention. Moreover, incidents related in this Bible story are inconsistent with natural phenomena. God does not talk. Snakes do not have faculty of speech. Knowledge is not gained by eating fruit of a tree, neither is it possible to attain everlasting life in this way. This tale, by all indications, is only a Jewish fable. It is not a true account of real events. However, Christianity accepts it as a factual historical event and has built its all-important concept of original sin on it. Clearly, this is a case of fiction being passed for fact.

Let us go on to consider concepts of heaven and hell as propagated by Christian faith. Heaven, we are told, is home of God where people who do God's will on earth will spend eternity with Him in bliss. Hell, on other hand, is place of punishment where those who lived sinful lives will suffer everlasting torment after death.

Now let us think seriously about these issues. God does not have physical substance, God is spirit. Because spirit has no physical limitations, God is everywhere at all times. In other words, God has infinite presence. Since God is infinite in expanse, so to speak, it does not make sense to say that God has a particular place of residence. The concept of home is a physical concept which has no application in spiritual realm. Reason clearly shows that heaven, in actual fact, does not exist.

And to question of hell. Forgiveness is a cardinal moral principle of Christian faith. Jesus Christ in his teachings stated unequivocally that we should always forgive others no matter how many times they offend us. If one desires to commune with God, one must have a forgiving heart, he taught. How then can we think of God as being so unforgiving as to establish a place of everlasting torment for those who go against His will. The very idea of hell implies that God is wicked and unchristian. It is, without doubt, a misconception to associate God who is infinitely good with such a cruel idea. In reality, heaven and hell are misconceptions that have passed for spiritual facts.

Let us now consider superstition in Bible. The gospel tells us about a father who brought his epileptic son to Jesus Christ for healing, (Luke 9:37-43). The account says that Jesus rebuked demon in boy. It came out of him and boy was instantly cured.

Let us examine this report in light of our knowledge of medical science. Epilepsy is a nervous disease and we know from medical science that demons are not responsible for illness. There is actually no proof that evil spirits exist. The belief in their existence and that they are responsible for ailments is irrational. Such belief amounts to superstition.

And now to matter of falsehood in Bible. We shall examine Bible account of conception of Jesus Christ by Holy Ghost and reports of his resurrection and ascension.

We all desire happiness, good health and success in life. Yet on our own we cannot guarantee attainment or maintenance of this state of things we desire. What this means is that for us to satisfy these cravings we need help from a power much greater than ourselves. This almighty power we need is God.

The human being, obviously, needs help of God in order to live a completely happy and successful life.

Mankind's need for God has always been there. Our search after Him is an age-long one. The early man, undoubtedly, had to face great odds in his struggle for survival. The hazards he had to contend with were indeed enormous. He had little protection against elements. He was prone to ravage by disease. There was ever present risk of being devoured by wild animals. He was not always sure of getting food he needed. There was no guarantee he would succeed whenever he left his cave to roam wild in search of food. There was also risk of being struck down by other savages. He did come to realize that on his own he could not cope successfully with life's hazards and challenges. He did feel need to reach out to a power much greater than himself to help ensure his safety and survival. His worship of rivers, trees, hills and other objects was obviously undertaken in hope of getting help and protection he evidently needed.