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Can the information contained in the link below have any impact on the beliefs of true Christians? Does it really matter whether a religion is based solely on the historicity of a God man or just philosophy, experience and reason of saints and sages with the same goal of transformation and salvation? Since the goal of religion is the transformation of man for the purpose of salvation, what does it mater if religious teachings are not based on the historicity of a God figure? For more information on the subject, please google Forged Origins of The New Testament.
http://www.nexusmagazine.com/articles/NewTestament.html
Some say that Christianity is Hindu and Buddhist based. But both Hindu and Buddhist doctrines are not based on revelations, but the intuition and reason of holy men who devoted their entire lives in finding the truth about themselves and the cosmos.
http://www.jdstone.org/cr/files/mithras ... anity.html (http://www.jdstone.org/cr/files/mithraschristianity.html)
"But the STORIES of Jesus and many of the teachings are exactly the same as the stories told in Hinduism and Buddhism. There are scholars who are saying there is not a single original thought in Christianity. These scholars are now saying there are FEW things taken from Tanakh. Predominantly, the teachings and myths of Christianity are Buddhist and Hindu." (taken from the above link.)
The above analysis of the seeming false historicity of God, Jesus, appears to be the most convincing of all that has been written on the subject matter so far. If it is indeed true, then it follows that all the religions based on revelations are to be questioned for what they refer to as truth. I believe that it was St. Augusting and Pope Leo who came out and questioned the veracity of Christianity, but decided to say no more on the subject, preferring to leave people alone to follow their beliefs. But it is interesting to note many are grounded in beliefs that matter to them, as long as they can have a positive impact on the behaviors of man, which they often do, whether grounded in the historicity of a God man or not.
lexbarker
10-25-2007, 09:36 AM
Further examinations can be viewed on this Google video.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid ... 2995115331 (http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5547481422995115331)
Wow!!! What a documentary?!!!
MannyQ
10-25-2007, 04:57 PM
If there was no resurection there would be no Christianity...There is always a possibility of forgery but the fact still remains...the resurrection.
There is only one wAy....Jesus the Christ
Proven by the New Testament.
I believe that it was St. Augusting and Pope Leo who came out and questioned the veracity of Christianity, but decided to say no more on the subject, preferring to leave people alone to follow their beliefs.
Please cite sources for this accusation. St Augustine, was one of the greatest writers for the holy Church. So, i can't see you statement as having any sort of truth to it. You can get most of his writing here:
http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/
Read Eusebius' Church Historicy, he for one viewed Christianity as a religion founded in reality, not just men's imaginations.
But it is interesting to note many are grounded in beliefs that matter to them, as long as they can have a positive impact on the behaviors of man, which they often do, whether grounded in the historicity of a God man or not.
You hit the nail on the head right here. Now this is a valid, well thought out observation. And, I strive with all that's in me, to convince Christians, that our faith is based on a historical event that happened 2000 years ago. among the other "revelations" of God, Christianity is the most "risky". It is so, because we hang our WHOLE hope on ONE ACT. If that ONE ACT did not happen, then the WHOLE of Christianity falls DOWN. And, even riskier, we believe that this act happened in REAL HISTORY, like, for example, the 9/11 bombings, the Tsunami, the Trinidad coup and other historical events of great importance. For Christianity to have any worth the resurrection MUST have happened in TRUE time and SPACE, just like how all those other events I named happened. This is why Archeology, and Historical sciences are of UTMOST importance to Christianity.
Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; 14and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is empty, and your faith also is empty.15Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we witnessed against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. 16For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; 17and if Christ has not been raised your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. 18Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men. 20But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. (Paul, a writer in the Bible, to the Church that was in Corinth at the time)
But both Hindu and Buddhist doctrines are not based on revelations, but the intuition and reason of holy men who devoted their entire lives in finding the truth about themselves and the cosmos.
Correct, they are not based on revelations, or any concrete historical events. Neither do they have sufficient sources outside the events contained in their books to verify what their books say. They contain nothing spectacular, or out of the ordinary, for it too be labeled "revelation from an external source" . Then, you look at the documents of the Bible, and you see things being prophesied centuries before the event happened (history proves these events happened) Then one can deduce that this had to be "revealed" to the writers (or the writers wrote after the event happened) But who revealed these things to the writers? Someone that knew the future, someone that exists outside time, and, more importantly someone who has some "control over the outcomes in certain situations. This person, in our language is called God. Until I see that sort of evidence (or similar) of revelation in other religions, I see no problem in rejecting them, though they contain some truths.
"But the STORIES of Jesus and many of the teachings are exactly the same as the stories told in Hinduism and Buddhism. There are scholars who are saying there is not a single original thought in Christianity. These scholars are now saying there are FEW things taken from Tanakh. Predominantly, the teachings and myths of Christianity are Buddhist and Hindu."
This is, of course, the writer's own conclusion based on poor research (more than likely, based on the works of Kersey graves) Sadly, it is not in touch with reality, nor historical sciences. Please do more research. I have dealt with this topic extensively on the previous forum. If you want to resurrect :)(..no pun intended) this topic i'll gladly help you.
Can the information contained in the link below have any impact on the beliefs of true Christians? Does it really matter whether a religion is based solely on the historicity of a God man or just philosophy, experience and reason of saints and sages with the same goal of transformation and salvation? Since the goal of religion is the transformation of man for the purpose of salvation, what does it mater if religious teachings are not based on the historicity of a God figure? For more information on the subject, please google Forged Origins of The New Testament.
I glanced the article you posted, and I would have read it, but, I saw this:
It was British-born Flavius Constantinus (Constantine, originally Custennyn or Custennin) (272-337) who authorised the compilation of the writings now called the New Testament.
AND
The New Testament subsequently evolved into a fulsome piece of priesthood propaganda, and the Church claimed it recorded the intervention of a divine Jesus Christ into Earthly affairs.
These are pretty low level arguments against Christianity, there are better ones. There are TONS of information online that deals with these objections. But, if you want me to deal with them again I would, because I am a slave for the Gospel. Please say, and I will go through them again.
May the one who rose form the dead bless you, and keep you safe.
Babe.
The following summary was taken from the site shown below. It raises some interesting questions about the historicity of Exodus, Moses and the credibility of Jesus as Messiah. It is only food for thought for new seekers, since it makes no difference for the many whose beliefs are based on faith in God as per scriptures.
http://exchristian.net/exchristian/2002 ... tually.php (http://exchristian.net/exchristian/2002/03/did-israels-exodus-from-egypt-actually.php)
"What Are The Christian Theological Implications of a Fictionalized Non-Historical Exodus and Moses?
Moses’ historicity is both foundational and prerequisite to Jesus’ credibility as Messiah. Moses’ name is used eighty times in the New Testament. Scriptural examples of the alleged Moses- Jesus relationship are : Jesus fulfilled the prophecy of the prophet like unto Moses (Dt 18:15) whom God would raise up (Jn 6:14); Jesus’ ministry of grace and truth is compared to Moses ministry of the law (Jn 1:17); Jesus quotes Moses giving the 5th Commandment to honor your parents (Mk 7:10); Jesus’ crucifixion is likened unto Moses lifting up the serpent in the wilderness(Jn 3:14); the resurrected Moses appears on the Mount of Transfiguration with Elijah before Jesus, Peter, James, and John (Mt 17:1-8).
If historical and archaeological evidence for the American Revolutionary War provided no confirmation and in fact offered numerous facts which contradicted even the possibility of that war, then one would have to question the very existence of George Washington as well as the legitimacy of subsequent stories built on George Washington’s life. Likewise the gospel accounts of Jesus are dependant on the veracity of Exodus and Moses. Their validity as historical persons is mutually dependent on one another. To put it bluntly, if the Exodus and Moses are mythical or folkloric fabrications, then at a minimum, Jesus has to be put in the same class, or least that of an impostor.
The facts are : in spite of an alleged omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient God of the bible having an eternity to plant extra-biblical historical and archaeological artifacts confirming the stories of the Exodus and Moses,
(1) there is no historical or archaeological confirmation for the Exodus, for the 40 year Wilderness Journey, or for Moses;
(2) the Egyptian military outposts in the eastern Nile delta and Canaan make it highly improbable that Israel could escape unnoticed, with no Egyptian written account;
(3) the thousands of surviving detailed cunieform letters failure to even mention an Israel (until 1207 BCE) indicates that there was no Israel in the Wilderness;
(4) the Exodus writer’s demonstrated ignorance of Bronze Age Egypt suggests a much later folkloric creation;
(5) the bible’s self-contradicting time schedule for the Exodus only dampens Exodus’ credibility. Unless a major archaeologic discovery overcoming the past 200 years of research occurs, Israel’s Exodus and Wilderness Journey can only be seen as a folkloric, a social-construct common to many ethnic groups who create they’re own history to legitimize their goals. A fictional, non-historical Exodus and Moses removes the legitimacy of present-day Israel’s claim to Palestine and clearly questions the origins and truthfulness of the Jesus of Nazareth story."
"Why do we fast for Shivratree?- The main reason is obviously to please the Lord Bholenath - to show to Him that we care; we are grateful to Him, the One who swallowed the deadly poison 'halahala' to save Mankind, who takes all our sins away, who purifies and pampers us with loads and loads of goodies." Reference: Sathya Sai Speaks Vol 6. Page 41.
Many of the teachings of the Vedas were practiced by the Buddha, Jesus and the Essenes.
http://www.atmajyoti.org/spirwrit-the_c ... _india.asp (http://www.atmajyoti.org/spirwrit-the_christ_of_india.asp)
Misunderstanding becomes a religion.
"Throughout the Gospels we see that the disciples of Jesus consistently misunderstood his speaking of higher spiritual matters. When he spoke of the sword of wisdom they showed him swords of metal to assure him they were well equipped.27 When he warned them against the "leaven" of the Scribes and Pharisees they thought he was complaining that they did not have any bread.28 Is it any wonder, then that he said to them: "Perceive ye not yet, neither understand? have ye your heart yet hardened? Having eyes, see ye not? and having ears, hear ye not? How is it that ye do not understand?"29 Even in the moment of his final departure from them, their words showed that they still believed the kingdom of God was an earthly political entity and not the realm of spirit.30 This being so, the Gospels themselves must be approached with grave caution and with the awareness that Jesus was not the creator of a new religion, but a messenger of the Sanatana Dharma, the Eternal Religion he had learned in India. As a priest of the Saint Thomas Christian Church of South India once commented to me: "You cannot understand the teachings of Jesus if you do not know the scriptures of India." And if you do know the scriptures of India you can see where-however well-intentioned they may have been-the authors of the Gospels often completely missed the point and garbled the words and ideas they heard from Jesus, even attributing to him incidents from the life of Buddha (such as the Widow's Mite) and mistaking his quotations from the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita and the Dhammapada for doctrines original to him. For example, the opening verse of the Gospel of John, which has been cited through the centuries as proof of the unique character and mission of Jesus, is really a paraphrase of the Vedic verse: "In the beginning was Prajapati, with Him was the Word, and the Word was truly the Supreme Brahman."31 Having confused Christ with Jesus, things could only go downhill for them and their followers until the true Gospel of Christ was buried beneath two millennia of confusion and theological debris.
Return to India-not ascension.
It is generally supposed that at the end of His ministry in Israel Jesus ascended into heaven. But Saint Matthew and Saint John, the two Evangelists that were eye-witnesses of His departure, do not even mention such a thing, for they knew that He went to India after departing from them. Saint Mark and Saint Luke, who were not there, simply speak of Jesus being taken up into the heavens. The truth is that He departed into India, though it is not unlikely that He did rise up and "fly" there. This form of travel is not unknown to the Indian yogis.
That Jesus did not leave the world at the age of thirty-three was written about by Saint Irenaeus of Lyon in the second century. He claimed that Jesus lived to be fifty or more years old before leaving the earth, though he also said that Jesus was crucified at the age of thirty-three. This would mean that Jesus lived twenty years after the crucifixion. This assertion of Saint Irenaeus has puzzled Christian scholars for centuries, but if we put it together with other traditions it becomes comprehensible. Basilides of Alexandria, Mani of Persia, and Julian the Emperor said that Jesus had gone to India after His crucifixion....................................... ........."
jborg
04-08-2008, 10:31 AM
If there was no resurection there would be no Christianity...There is always a possibility of forgery but the fact still remains...the resurrection.
There is only one wAy....Jesus the Christ
The people who know the most about the bible, the bible scholars, already know most of these things that are so shocking to average christians. They know the scriptures are all forgeries if only because they are re tellings of well known stories that pre-dated them.
The pagans outright told the early christians that christianity was nothing more than a recycled version of pagan traditions, so how can they pretend to be a higher authority than the originators?
Not only the New Testament, but what about the Old Testament? How about these amazing similarities, almost word for word?
http://akinculture.blogspot.com/2006/08 ... ology.html (http://akinculture.blogspot.com/2006/08/similar-mythology.html)
The legends of Moses and Karna.
Moses
In the Exodus account, the birth of Moses occurred at a time when the current Egyptian Pharaoh had commanded that all male children born to Hebrew slaves should be killed by drowning in the Nile. The Torah leaves the identity of this Pharaoh unstated. But he is believed by some to be Thutmose III. Other, earlier pharaohs have also been suggested including a Hyksos pharaoh or one shortly after the Hyksos had been expelled. Apepi II is one such example.
Jochebed,the wife of the Levite Amram, bore a son, and kept him concealed for three months. When she could keep him hidden no longer, rather than deliver him to be killed, she set him adrift on the Nile river in a small craft of bulrushes coated in pitch. The daughter of Pharaoh discovered the baby and adopted him as her son, and named him "Moses" (considered to mean "to draw out"). By Biblical account, Moses' sister Miriam observed the progress of the tiny boat. Miriam then asked Pharaoh's daughter if she would like a Hebrew woman to nurse the baby. Thereafter, Jochebed was employed as the child's nurse, and he grew and was brought to Pharaoh's daughter and became her son.
Karna
The princess Kunti, while young looked after the sage Durvasa for a full year. The sage was pleased with her service and so he granted her a boon whereby she could call upon any of the gods through a mantra and the god would grant her a son equal to the god in splendour. Unsure of whether the boon would actually be granted, Kunti, while still an unmarried young girl, decided to test the mantra and called upon Lord Surya, the Hindu deity of the sun. When Surya appeared before her, she was completely overawed. Bound by the power of the mantra, Surya granted her a son as radiant and strong as his father, although she did not want a child. Through his divine power, Kunti retains her virginity and honor. But that son of the Sun was Karna, born with divine armour and earrings that would ensure his protection.
Kunti was now in the embarrassing position of being an unwed mother. Although still a virgin, how was she to explain having a child? Unable to face the world with her divine child, she placed Karna in a basket and floated him down a river with his jewellery (the story of Moses bears a strong similarity to this), praying fervently that he would be kept safe.
The Flood Legend
In the traditions of most ancient civilizations there can be found a legend concerning a flood of such enormous proportions that it is believed to have covered the whole Earth. Such was the destructive force of this flood that few land animals and plants survived it. For readers in Western society the most famous version is the story of Noah and the Ark as recounted in Genesis, the first book of the Bible. Although it may be the best known, the account of Noah's adventure is neither the only nor the oldest such legend.
Legends of a flood can be found in the folklore of such diverse places as the Middle East, India, China, Australia, southern Asia, the islands of the Pacific, Europe, and the Americas. But the best-known flood legend--that on which the story of Noah is based--had its origins among the peoples of ancient Mesopotamia in the Tigris-Euphrates river valley.
Excavations in Mesopotamia have led archaeologists and other scientists to conclude that a number of serious floods occurred there between 4000 and 2000 BC. It is possible that one of these floods was so destructive that it made a lasting impression on the population and became a subject for the ancient literature of the period.
In a fully developed form, the Mesopotamian flood myth appeared in the 'Epic of Gilgamesh', one of the first literary masterpieces, which relates the adventures of a hero-king of Sumer. The earliest versions of the epic derive from the first part of the 2nd millennium BC. The story of the flood is told to Gilgamesh by Utnapishtim, the counterpart of Noah in the story. Advised by the god Ea that his city is to be destroyed by flood, Utnapishtim is told to build a ship for his family, servants, and animals. After a seven-day flood, the vessel comes to rest on a mountaintop. The wrath of the gods has been appeased, and Utnapishtim and his wife are granted immortality.
Parallel legends were told in other parts of the Middle East at an early date. The Mesopotamian version was probably brought to Canaan, the land where the Israelites settled, by the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The tale was reshaped by later Hebrew writers into a narrative about God and his purposes for mankind. In this version it is the whole Earth that is to be flooded. Only Noah, his family, and the animals he collects are to be saved. The flooding lasts 40 days, and afterward Noah's Ark settles on top of a mountain.
In Greek mythology the flood was first mentioned by the poet Pindar in the 5th century BC. In this legend Zeus has decided to destroy the Earth. Only King Deucalion and his family are saved by taking refuge in an ark well stocked with provisions.
Religious texts from the 6th century BC in India tell the story of Manu, meaning "man," who is warned by a fish about a coming flood. In the legend Manu builds a boat and saves himself.
In China the flood myth had a different emphasis from the legends told in the West. The flooding of the land from time immemorial was seen as a hindrance to agriculture. The floodwaters were made to recede through the labors of a savior-hero named Yu the Great, who successfully dredged the land to provide outlets to the sea for the water. Thus was the great central river valley of China made suitable for agriculture and the development of civilization.
In the traditions of most ancient civilizations there can be found a legend concerning a flood of such enormous proportions that it is believed to have covered the whole Earth. Such was the destructive force of this flood that few land animals and plants survived it. For readers in Western society the most famous version is the story of Noah and the Ark as recounted in Genesis, the first book of the Bible. Although it may be the best known, the account of Noah's adventure is neither the only nor the oldest such legend.
Legends of a flood can be found in the folklore of such diverse places as the Middle East, India, China, Australia, southern Asia, the islands of the Pacific, Europe, and the Americas. But the best-known flood legend--that on which the story of Noah is based--had its origins among the peoples of ancient Mesopotamia in the Tigris-Euphrates river valley.
Excavations in Mesopotamia have led archaeologists and other scientists to conclude that a number of serious floods occurred there between 4000 and 2000 BC. It is possible that one of these floods was so destructive that it made a lasting impression on the population and became a subject for the ancient literature of the period.
In a fully developed form, the Mesopotamian flood myth appeared in the 'Epic of Gilgamesh', one of the first literary masterpieces, which relates the adventures of a hero-king of Sumer. The earliest versions of the epic derive from the first part of the 2nd millennium BC. The story of the flood is told to Gilgamesh by Utnapishtim, the counterpart of Noah in the story. Advised by the god Ea that his city is to be destroyed by flood, Utnapishtim is told to build a ship for his family, servants, and animals. After a seven-day flood, the vessel comes to rest on a mountaintop. The wrath of the gods has been appeased, and Utnapishtim and his wife are granted immortality.
Parallel legends were told in other parts of the Middle East at an early date. The Mesopotamian version was probably brought to Canaan, the land where the Israelites settled, by the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The tale was reshaped by later Hebrew writers into a narrative about God and his purposes for mankind. In this version it is the whole Earth that is to be flooded. Only Noah, his family, and the animals he collects are to be saved. The flooding lasts 40 days, and afterward Noah's Ark settles on top of a mountain.
In Greek mythology the flood was first mentioned by the poet Pindar in the 5th century BC. In this legend Zeus has decided to destroy the Earth. Only King Deucalion and his family are saved by taking refuge in an ark well stocked with provisions.
Religious texts from the 6th century BC in India tell the story of Manu, meaning "man," who is warned by a fish about a coming flood. In the legend Manu builds a boat and saves himself.
In China the flood myth had a different emphasis from the legends told in the West. The flooding of the land from time immemorial was seen as a hindrance to agriculture. The floodwaters were made to recede through the labors of a savior-hero named Yu the Great, who successfully dredged the land to provide outlets to the sea for the water. Thus was the great central river valley of China made suitable for agriculture and the development of civilization.
Randall
04-22-2008, 01:34 PM
http://www.zeitgeistmovie.com/
guyguy
04-22-2008, 02:48 PM
http://www.zeitgeistmovie.com/
This is some scary stuff:
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_q ... arch_type= (http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Zeitgeist+-+The+Movie%3A&search_type=)
PB144
08-25-2008, 12:31 PM
Hi Brag,
Your first link in this discussion thread seems to have been removed or relocated. However the other article (located at http://www.jdstone.org/cr/files/mithraschristianity.html) is a very interesting read.
Some parts of that discussion harmonize with what many of us non-mainstream Christians have been asserting for a long time. Namely that the brand of Christianity that came into existence by the fourth century AD was heavily influenced by other eastern religions. This is especially true of the point about December 25th and the birth of Christ.
Please bear in mind that Jesus was not born on December 25th at all. His actual birth was closer to October 1st or 2nd. However, due to the influence of the Roman Saturnalia, we've inherited the date December 25th as the celebrated date of our Lord's birth.
Many other aspects of mainstream Christian belief and dogma can find its root in eastern religion especially Greek and Babylonian religious influences.
Having said that, I must make the point that the New Testament has essentially been carried down to our time intact with little or no changes since the second century AD. So there is no forgery on the part of the New Testament. The forgery (or deception) only exists in the interpretation and established doctrines and dogma created by the larger Christian denominations.
Thanks PB144 for bringing the moderator's comment to my attention. I am seeing it for the first time after almost a year of the thread. I have no idea which of the moderators posted the reminder and when. It would have been helpful if I was able to understand what aspect of the copyright or forum rules was violated. I am sure I am not always in full compliance, but that would not be because of deliberate violation since I make every effort to follow the rules. I have to wonder how different that thread was from a similar post above dated October 1st which was not deleted.
Regarding dogma, I would not describe Eastern religions though as dogmatic since Eastern religions essentially point the way based on experience which hardly fits the definition of dogma. That is perhaps why people in Eastern religions take what they want from their religion and leave out other aspects of it.
If I can put my hand on the link again, I will bring it to your attention. I don't always keep them in my library orfavorite folder.
Here is the link again PB144. I know that people believe what they want and it is not about stopping anyone from doing so, but about sharing information about the universality of stories that shape our lives. As is said, God made man in his own image and man makes God in any image he likes.
http://www.thepeoplesvoice.org/cgi-bin/ ... /06/p18661 (http://www.thepeoplesvoice.org/cgi-bin/blogs/voices.php/2007/08/06/p18661)
Sorry PB144, it might be another version of the original link. In view of the current discussions with adeodatus, the earlier discussions could have been useful.
One of the moderators just posted the entire thread, but removed it almost immediately as I was reviewing it. I don't know how to go to archives to recover the discussion.
It is confusing to show this thread with 21 replies and you can't see them. It is the same with giggler's last post.
Now you see it , now you don't.
This is the link to which I was referrring. It is probably the most complete discussion on the subject.
http://www.nexusmagazine.com/index.php? ... iew&gid=70 (http://www.nexusmagazine.com/index.php?option=com_docman&task=doc_view&gid=70)
The Ten Commandments (Really) by Rich LaPuma questions if we really know the Ten Commandments.
http://secweb.infidels.org/?kiosk=articles&id=777
So, you think you know the Ten Commandments. You learned them in Church. You watched Cecil B. DeMille's classic movie ten times. You saw them posted in front of the courthouse. Are you sure you know them? I doubt it.
The commandments that most people refer to as the "Ten Commandments" are not really the Ten Commandments that God wrote on two stone tablets and gave to Moses on Mount Sinai. They are commandments that God gave orally to the people of Israel, as part of a long set of commandments...
How faith in any principle of God served people for ages until the coming of Christianity and Islam when it became conflictual, even to the point of whether faith or service leads to salvation. Today it is not about faith or service, but rather faith only in Jesus for Christians and faith only in Allah for Muslims that matters and each is preached as the only true way.
The narrative below in parenthesis was sent to me in response to a discussion about the Mythical Jesus. I had a video/documentary of this story many years ago, but loaned it out and never received it back, so I cannot provide the proper reference. It was alse posted on this forum a few years ago.
"Yes many people think that the great cultures of Greece and Egypt somehow died and were replaced by the new Jewish thinking. This is not true for the most part, because the Jews are inventive storytellers.
The Jews are a desert people, these people know how to make something out of nothing. That is what made them excellent merchants, and they know how to make a good story. Like the Arabs do too. People from the desert are best of poets who tell imaginative stories around the campfires.
People now believe Jewish religion replaced the religious culture of an entire empire. The Jews made a few vital contributions, but for the rest, it is more the other way round. Israel was dominated by Greek culture for centuries and they borrowed many of their ideas from them. Many other ideas came from Egypt. The Jews combined it into their own, like all other cultures do.
Who is Jesus. Did he really live? That is something for the believer. But Jesus is more of a mythical figure than a real life person.
The most telling detail is the date of birth. As I mentioned the Sun-cults became the dominant cults. This had many reasons. For one, the sun is the most dominant being in the sky. He became even more important when people developed agriculture, because the sun directly rules seasons, weather, climate and more. The sheer domination of the Sun is why dictators identified with him. The sun is regarded male that is why his priest-class became male too.
In the beginning the religion in Egypt was much like Hinduism. But Egypt soon became a centralized state ruled by dynasties of kings. These kings were absolute rulers and developed the idea they were sons of the main God. They still had to share power with the priesthood because there were many Gods.
So then Akhenaton first developed the idea that the Sun was ruler of the sky/heaven and the king ruled the earth by his consent. This made him the absolute totalitarian ruler. This was short-lived. The Greek largely inherited the Egyptian culture, but the Greek were not ruled centrally. In fact they hated central rule and they hated central order. Every city-state ruled herself. While Egyptians saw the Gods as the bringer of order. The Greeks saw them as the bringers of disorder. They did not like the order of kings, earthly or heavenly.
They believed that man was the bringer of order through his rationality, while the Gods only made a mess of it. You build a nice city and then the Gods send an earthquake or flood. You can worship them, but they remain untrustworthy, was their thinking. They held the same view of inner nature. Reason was the divine force, but destructive emotions could destroy in seconds what reason had build.
The Greek Gods were feared, but not loved by them. They were all fighting and creating misery for human kind. The Trojan war was not simply the war over a woman (Helen of Troy); on a deeper level it was a war between Aphrodite and Hera (Venus). All Gods lived in the sky (heaven). The Greek believed (like Islam and Christianity) that the universe was split in three spheres: The heavens where the Gods lived, The underworld were most of the dead lived and in between nature for the living.
Now if you lived really well, the Gods would lift you to heaven and make you a star! That is why people still want to become a STAR! You became a heavenly creature. But if you lived an ordinary life you went to the underworld, Hades that was ruled by Pluto. Pluto was a possessive God and would not let the souls leave.(Eternal Hel!). Knowing of vulcano's this of course was a place of fire.
So you understand the attraction of Christianity in which the beloved Sungod promises you to lift you to heaven if you obey him! Also it is understandable that people were glad to get rid of those ever fighting unreliable Gods. That is why there is so much emphasis not to worship these Gods in the Bible. In fact the Bible acknowledges their existence!
Christianity says you may only worship the Father God (Zeus) or his manifestation, the Son (the sun). (Like the Deva's are the manifestation of the Divine.)
But why did Christianity come into life on when it did? Is has to do with the Sun of course, since Jesus is the Sun God. Sun cults have worshipped the Sun as long as we can remember and studied his moves in the sky. They observed that every 2,000 years the Sun enters a new constellation of stars. This is an event of cosmic proportions.
It is believed that the Sun takes the properties of the constellation when it enters it. In 4,000 BC the Sun entered Taurus (the bull). All civilization create cults around the bull. It was the time of Minotaurus in Crete, Horus the bull in Egypt. Then 2,000 BC, the Sun entered Ares (Ram). This is the end of the bull-cult. In fact the Old Testament tells that Moses orders his people to kill all people who go on worshipping the bull (the golden calf). The Jews are Ram-people, they are sheepherders. They still blow the holy Rams horn. In Greece we see the story of the Golden flees.(A ram skin).
But in the year 0 everybody in the Roman empire awaits the new great cosmic event. The beginning of the new era. These sun era's were called eons by the Greek, (in the bible translated with generation). Can you image how the whole Roman empire held their breath for the coming of the new age.
Well it was also believed that the Sun God walked the earth as a man. Let me tell you about Mithras. He was a Persian Sun god, the most popular cult in the Roman empire, before Christianity. He was the Son of God. He walked the earth as a man. He was accompanied by 12 disciples. This was common with the Greeks (who conquered Persia). A master would always walk with his students while educating them. Mithra killed the bull. He was born on the 25 of December! He was born out of a virgin. He had a last supper with his students before he died and rose out of the death after 3 days, he then ascended to heaven.
Does it ring a bell?
But then the great moment came for the Sun god to reappear in the year 0. At exactly this time the Sun entered the constellation of Fish. And guess what is the sign of Jesus? (Fish!). So the Bible tells stories how Jesus catches fish, how his disciples are fishermen, etc. How he multiplies fish, how he walks over the water.
What happened is that all the Sun gods were replaced by the new Sun God. Jesus has a crown of thorns, actually these are rays of light. Like all the previous Sun gods he dies and resurrects after 3 days. This is a natural phenomenon. In the winter days become shorter, and people become scared that the sun would die. Then on 23 December the Sun gets on his lowest point and stays there for three days. It is considered dead. Then the Sun rises again, and is declared to be reborn. Everybody is happy!
You may know that Jesus is the pinnacle of forgiveness. Well at least this must be original. No, read the Ramayana, it says the Sun is the most forgiving among all the Gods because it shines its light on both the good and the evil. What says Jesus? Be like God for he shines his light on the good and the bad.
The Good news is: In 2012 the Sun enters a new constellation: Aquarius, or Water carrier. Already we can see that water is going to be very important in the new era. Many believe this will be an era of piece and prosperity."
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