The story of Christ and Christianity as a whole has been influenced by various pagan beliefs and traditions. These influences can be seen in different aspects, including the birth of Christ, the concept of a divine savior, and certain rituals and symbols associated with Christianity. One of the notable pagan influences on the story of Christ is the similarities between the birth narratives of Jesus and various pagan god figures. For example, the virgin birth of Jesus bears similarities to the birth stories of pagan gods such as Mithras, Attis, and Dionysus. These gods were believed to be born from a virgin mother, often on December 25th. The inclusion of the virgin birth in Christianity can be seen as a way to make the story of Jesus more relatable and appealing to pagan converts.
The inclusion of the virgin birth in Christianity can be seen as a way to make the story of Jesus more relatable and appealing to pagan converts. Another pagan influence is the concept of a divine savior who sacrifices himself for the salvation of humanity. This idea can be traced back to ancient pagan mystery cults, where gods would undergo a death and resurrection to provide salvation for their followers.
Was Christianity influenced by pagan religions, mystery cults, and/or pagan philosophers?
Jesus mythicists often accuse Christians of borrowing their religion, including Jesus, from pagans. I'm interested in exploring whether or not that's true, and if so, how much. My own position is Yes, No and Maybe. No, if we're talking copycat: yes if we're talking general influence possibly resulting from similar human responses to general condition and cultural diffusion; maybe, because the answer depends on circumstantial evidence and impressions.
- Pagan religion. any polytheistic religion. I'll include Zoroastrianism in the category for purposes of inquiry, although I regard it as basically dualistic;
- Mystery cult. Any of the Hellenistic pagan religions popular around the time of Jesus and centered around mysteries or secret knowledge; the term "cult" is not intended to be pejorative but does refer to a religious group considered exotic in the context of traditional beliefs of the larger society.
- Pagam philosphers. Secular sages in pagan societies who might or might not be personally religious but who seek wisdom or enlightenment outside the framework of organized religion. e.g., Pythagoras, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle.
abram
Joined Oct 2014 3,248 Posts | 391+ oklahoma Discussion StarterHow mythicists can go wrong:
A statement by comedian Bill Maher in his 2008 movie Religulous illustrates how Christ mythicists can go wrong:
Bill Maher: "But the Jesus story wasn’t original.
Christian man: How so?
Maher: Written i n 1289 BC, the Book of the Dead describes a God Horus . Horus is the son of th he god Osiris, born to a virgin mother. He was baptized in a river by Anup the Baptizer who was later beheaded. Like Jesus, Horus was tempted while alone in the desert, healed the sick, the blind, cast out demons, and walked on water. He raised Asar from the dead. “Asar” translates to “Lazarus.” Oh, yeah, he also had twelve disciples. Yes, Horus was crucified first, and after three days, two women announced Horus, the savior of humanity, had been resurrected." Maher may have felt good about himself, putting the Christian rube in his place. But to anyone informed about Egyptian myth, he looks foolish for committing one gaffe after another. The Book of the Dead, which Maher presents as a kind of Egyptian bible, is actually the modern term for a couple hundred funerary scrolls from mummies tombs, caskets, wrappings and statues, to guide the deceased on the journey to the afterlife and going by the general name Book of Coming Forth by Day . And they don't exactly say what Maher says they say. For one thing, there was no Anup the Baptizer. The closest to that name in Egyptian mythology was Anubis, a god who was part man, part canine. He didn't lose his head or die at all. And he didn't exactly baptize anybody. He was involved in the mummification process, where the corpse was washed with palm oil prior to embalming. This is a bit far removed from what Christians think of as baptism as performed by John the Baptist--the purpose of which is to initiate living people into a new life.
Was Horus born of a virgin? That's a stretch. He certainly had a miraculous birth, being conceived while his father was still a corpse. His mother used a prosthetic penis or"dildo"--again miraculous, but not what we usually think of as "virgin"' i.e., conception without penetration. I know--picky, picky. Like Jesus, Horus was tempted. Well, not quite like Jesus. I hesitate to go into the lurid details, which I once did once to my Sunday school class to their shock and horror. Discretion being the better part of valor, suffice it to say that the story involves attempted homosexual rape and incest, ending when the gods call upon Horus' semen to identify itself, which it did by appearing as a solar disc, the symbol of Horus, in the middle of funny uncle Seth's forehead. Again, there was tempting and resisting going on, but the devil is in the details. For the unexpurgated version, see "The Contendings of Horus and Seth" Chester Beatty Papyrus 1 The Contendings of Horus and Set As for the miracles performed by Horus, no record of any of those. Asar is another name for Horus' father, Osiris, no relation to Lazarus, and it was his mother, not Horus, who raised him. Horus was never "crucified"--that being a specific form of execution not in vogue in Egypt. In fact he never died. It was his father who did that. nor was he resurrected or resuscitated. Dad did that too. No annunciation by the women. No proclamation that Horus "saved" anybody, whatever that might mean. What we have here in a few short sentences is an illustration of the pitfalls of reckless mythicism. Of course, Maher can get away with it because most folks can't spot the errors, or have the attitude "Whatever". We, as historians, should follow a higher standard.
Last edited: Feb 15, 2022 Reactions: Multicolored LemurOldandeasilycofused
Joined Dec 2021 7,205 Posts | 3,494+ AustraliaHow mythicists can go wrong:
A statement by comedian Bill Maher in his 2008 movie Religulous illustrates how Christ mythicists can go wrong:
Bill Maher: "But the Jesus story wasn’t original.
Christian man: How so?
Maher: Written i n 1289 BC, the Book of the Dead describes a God Horus . Horus is the son of th he god Osiris, born to a virgin mother. He was baptized in a river by Anup the Baptizer who was later beheaded. Like Jesus, Horus was tempted while alone in the desert, healed the sick, the blind, cast out demons, and walked on water. He raised Asar from the dead. “Asar” translates to “Lazarus.” Oh, yeah, he also had twelve disciples. Yes, Horus was crucified first, and after three days, two women announced Horus, the savior of humanity, had been resurrected." Maher may have felt good about himself, putting the Christian rube in his place. But to anyone informed about Egyptian myth, he looks foolish for committing one gaffe after another. The Book of the Dead, which Maher presents as a kind of Egyptian bible, is actually the modern term for a couple hundred funerary scrolls from mummies tombs, caskets, wrappings and statues, to guide the deceased on the journey to the afterlife and going by the general name Book of Coming Forth by Day . And they don't exactly say what Maher says they say. For one thing, there was no Anup the Baptizer. The closest to that name in Egyptian mythology was Anubis, a god who was part man, part canine. He didn't lose his head or die at all. And he didn't exactly baptize anybody. He was involved in the mummification process, where the corpse was washed with palm oil prior to embalming. This is a bit far removed from what Christians think of as baptism as performed by John the Baptist--the purpose of which is to initiate living people into a new life.
Was Horus born of a virgin? That's a stretch. He certainly had a miraculous birth, being conceived while his father was still a corpse. His mother used a prosthetic penis or"dildo"--again miraculous, but not what we usually think of as "virgin"' i.e., conception without penetration. I know--picky, picky. Like Jesus, Horus was tempted. Well, not quite like Jesus. I hesitate to go into the lurid details, which I once did once to my Sunday school class to their shock and horror. Discretion being the better part of valor, suffice it to say that the story involves attempted homosexual rape and incest, ending when the gods call upon Horus' semen to identify itself, which it did by appearing as a solar disc, the symbol of Horus, in the middle of funny uncle Seth's forehead. Again, there was tempting and resisting going on, but the devil is in the details. For the unexpurgated version, see "The Contendings of Horus and Seth" Chester Beatty Papyrus 1 The Contendings of Horus and Set As for the miracles performed by Horus, no record of any of those. Asar is another name for Horus' father, Osiris, no relation to Lazarus, and it was his mother, not Horus, who raised him. Horus was never "crucified"--that being a specific form of execution not in vogue in Egypt. In fact he never died. It was his father who did that. nor was he resurrected or resuscitated. Dad did that too. No annunciation by the women. No proclamation that Horus "saved" anybody, whatever that might mean. What we have here in a few short sentences is an illustration of the pitfalls of reckless mythicism. Of course, Maher can get away with it because most folks can't spot the errors, or have the attitude "Whatever". We, as historians, should follow a higher standard.
Are you seriously citing Bill Maher as a credible source? Good Grief man, the dill seems to be citing the unintentionally hilarious " Zeitgeist "
Trying to make a causal connection between the Virgin birth of Jesus and the Isis-Osiris-Seth- Horus myth is a bit beyond the pale. To be fair, even quite educated and astute scholars such as Richard Collier have problems distinguishing between correlation and causation.
With respect, my experience of watching Bill Maher is that he is a popular talking head , with opinions which don't always seem to be filtered through his brain.
On this occasion I'm on your side.
Was Horus born of a virgin? That's a stretch. He certainly had a miraculous birth, being conceived while his father was still a corpse. His mother used a prosthetic penis or"dildo"--again miraculous, but not what we usually think of as "virgin"' i.e., conception without penetration. I know--picky, picky. Like Jesus, Horus was tempted. Well, not quite like Jesus. I hesitate to go into the lurid details, which I once did once to my Sunday school class to their shock and horror. Discretion being the better part of valor, suffice it to say that the story involves attempted homosexual rape and incest, ending when the gods call upon Horus' semen to identify itself, which it did by appearing as a solar disc, the symbol of Horus, in the middle of funny uncle Seth's forehead. Again, there was tempting and resisting going on, but the devil is in the details. For the unexpurgated version, see "The Contendings of Horus and Seth" Chester Beatty Papyrus 1 The Contendings of Horus and Set As for the miracles performed by Horus, no record of any of those. Asar is another name for Horus' father, Osiris, no relation to Lazarus, and it was his mother, not Horus, who raised him. Horus was never "crucified"--that being a specific form of execution not in vogue in Egypt. In fact he never died. It was his father who did that. nor was he resurrected or resuscitated. Dad did that too. No annunciation by the women. No proclamation that Horus "saved" anybody, whatever that might mean. What we have here in a few short sentences is an illustration of the pitfalls of reckless mythicism. Of course, Maher can get away with it because most folks can't spot the errors, or have the attitude "Whatever". We, as historians, should follow a higher standard.
The parallels between these myths and the story of Christ's crucifixion and resurrection suggest that early Christians may have incorporated elements of these pagan beliefs into their own theology. In addition, certain rituals and symbols associated with Christianity have their roots in pagan practices. The use of incense, candles, and processions can be traced back to ancient pagan religious ceremonies. The cross, which is a central symbol in Christianity, was also used by pagan cultures as a symbol of fertility and life. While these pagan influences on the story of Christ may be seen as a cause for concern for some Christians, they can also be seen as a way to bridge the gap between different religious traditions and reach a wider audience. By incorporating familiar beliefs and rituals, Christianity was able to attract pagan converts and establish itself as a dominant religion in the ancient world. Overall, the pagan influences on the story of Christ can be seen as a reflection of the cultural and religious context in which Christianity emerged. These influences helped shape the narrative and practices of early Christianity, and continue to be a topic of discussion among scholars and theologians to this day..
Reviews for "Christianity as a Syncretic Religion: Tracing the Pagan Influences"
- Name: John Doe
- Rating: 1 star
The book "Pagan influences on the story of Christ" was a major disappointment for me. As a devout Christian, I was expecting an insightful and well-researched analysis of the topic. However, instead of providing clear evidence and logical arguments, the author indulged in baseless speculation and conspiracy theories. The book lacked credibility and failed to convince me of any pagan influences on the story of Christ. I would not recommend it to any serious Christian seeking accurate information on this subject.
- Name: Sarah Johnson
- Rating: 2 stars
I purchased "Pagan influences on the story of Christ" with high hopes but unfortunately, it fell short of my expectations. While the author presented some interesting ideas, the overall argument lacked cohesion and logical reasoning. The evidence provided seemed weak and often relied on cherry-picked data. Additionally, the writing style was convoluted and hard to follow at times. I was left feeling frustrated and unconvinced by the book's content. I would advise potential readers to approach with caution and seek out more reputable sources on the subject.
- Name: Michael Thompson
- Rating: 1 star
I found "Pagan influences on the story of Christ" to be poorly researched and filled with speculative claims. The author seemed more interested in promoting sensationalism rather than presenting a balanced view of the topic. The arguments were weak, and the evidence provided was often anecdotal or based on flimsy connections. It felt like a wasted opportunity to explore a potentially interesting subject. I would not recommend this book to anyone seeking reliable information on the influence of paganism on the story of Christ.