But the Cythereans venerated this goddess in consequence of learning her sacred rites from the Phoenicians." The Assyrian Venus, then--that is, the great goddess of Babylon--and the Cyprian Venus were one and the same, and consequently the "bloodless" altars of the Paphian goddess show the character of the worship peculiar to the Babylonian goddess, from whom she was derived. In this respect the goddess-queen of Chaldea differed from her son, who was worshipped in her arms. He was, as we have seen, represented as delighting in blood. But she, as the mother of grace and mercy, as the celestial "Dove," as "the hope of the whole world," (BRYANT) was averse to blood, and was represented in a benign and gentle character. Accordingly, in Babylon she bore the name of Mylitta--that is, "The Mediatrix." *
* Mylitta is the same as Melitta, the feminine of Melitz, "a mediator," which in Chaldee becomes Melitt. Melitz is the word used in Job 33:23, 24: "If there be a messenger with him, an interpreter (Heb. Melitz, "a mediator"), one among a thousand, to show unto man his uprightness, then he is gracious unto him, and saith, Deliver him from going down to the pit; I have found a ransom."
Every one who reads the Bible, and sees how expressly it declares that, as there is only "one God," so there is only "one Mediator between God and man" (1 Tim 2:5), must marvel how it could ever have entered the mind of any one to bestow on Mary, as is done by the Church of Rome, the character of the "Mediatrix." But the character ascribed to the Babylonian goddess as Mylitta sufficiently accounts for this. In accordance with this character of Mediatrix, she was called Aphrodite--that is, "the wrath-subduer" *--who by her charms could soothe the breast of angry Jove, and soften the most rugged spirits of gods or mortal-men. In Athens she was called Amarusia (PAUSANIAS)--that is, "The Mother of gracious acceptance." **
* From Chaldee "aph," "wrath," and "radah," "to subdue"; "radite" is the feminine emphatic. ** From "Ama," "mother," and "Retza," "to accept graciously," which in the participle active is "Rutza." Pausanias expresses his perplexity as to the meaning of the name Amarusia as applied to Diana, saying, "Concerning which appellation I never could find any one able to give a satisfactory account." The sacred tongue plainly shows the meaning of it. In Rome she was called "Bona Dea," "the good goddess," the mysteries of this goddess being celebrated by women with peculiar secrecy. In India the goddess Lakshmi, "the Mother of the Universe," the consort of Vishnu, is represented also as possessing the most gracious and genial disposition; and that disposition is indicated in the same way as in the case of the Babylonian goddess.