I've been reading the book, _MT & the Bible_ by Ensor.
It seems to have more critical thoughts in it than
the one you have here.  I doubt if Twain
'borrowed'  this from someone else, he
had some pretty deep set ideas of religion
of his own.  Hope it helps!

Jules

>While  rereading Thomas Paine's _Age of Reason_, I came across the
>following passages I could swear Twain paraphrased almost word for
>word.  Can anyone readily point me to specific passages that sound
>like:
>
>
>          Of all the systems of religion that were ever invented,
>          there is none more derogatory to the Almighty, more
>          aunedifying to man, more repugnant to reason, and more
>          contradictory initself, than this thing called
>          Christianity . . .  The Bible represents God to be a
>          changeable, passionate, vindictive Being, making a
>          world and then drowning it, afterwards repenting of
>          what he had done, and promising not to do so again.
>          Setting one nation to cut the throats of another,
>          and stopping the course of the sun, till the
>     butchery should be done (197).
>
>Paine, Thomas.  The Age of Reason. Ed., Moncure Daniel      Conway.
>New York: Putnam, 1924.

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Mrs. Jules Austin Hojnowski
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