Is it possible that christianity was simply an adaption of the earlier religion of Mithraism ?

Question

The entirely unearthly Mithras was worshipped as the "Good Shepherd", "the Way, the Truth and the Light", and as a redeemer, saviour and Messiah. Mithras was supposed to have been born to a virgin on what is now 25 December, and was visited by shepherds and Magi. He travelled and taught, cast out devils, made miracle cures, held a last supper, was killed, buried in a rock tomb and rose again after three days, at the time of the spring equinox in March (equivalent to the Christian Easter). Mithraism included baptism and Sunday worship, with a Eucharist and sacraments.

Mithra's birth was witnessed by shepherds and by Magi bearing gifts to his sacred birth-cave of the Rock (J. Smith 146). Mithra's image was buried in a rock tomb, a sacred cave that represented his Mother's womb. This was ritualistically removed each year, and he was said to live again. Mithra's triumph and ascension to heaven were celebrated during the spring equinox.

The similarities are striking.

Answer 1

This is actual, not merely possible. The seat of Mithraism was in what is now called Rome, and the leader was called the Papa. It is from these Persian religions (including Zoroastrianism), that the Hebrews got their idea of heaven and hell. Before the Persians helped the Jews escape from Babylon, no such ideas were in Judaism - everyone who died was said to go to a limbo like place called sheol. Christianity also absorbed the traditions of many of the pre existing religions of Europe. For instance, the flute playing, debaucherous Pan became the image of Satan. The Druidic solstice celebration Yule (Dec. 22nd) was absorbed into Christmas – as in the Yule Log, Yule tide, decorated tree and mistletoe. This tendency to absorb and rename rather than compete with the old customs is the insidious modus operandi of the church.

Answer 2

What has been the point of this diversion? The point is to give the reader a warning, to be on the lookout any time a critic makes some claim about Mithraism somehow being a parallel to Christianity. Check their sources carefully. If, like Acharya S, they cite source material from the Cumont or pre-Cumont era, then chances are excellent that they are using material that is either greatly outdated, or else does not rely on sound scholarship (i.e., prior to Cumont; works by the likes of King, Lajard, and Robertson). Furthermore, if they have asserted anything at all definitive about Mithraic belief, they are probably wrong about it, and certainly basing it on the conjectures of someone who is either not a Mithraic specialist (which is what Freke and Gandy do in The Jesus Mysteries) or else is badly outdated.

Mithraic scholars, you see, do not hold a candle for the thesis that Christianity borrowed anything philosophically from Mithraism, and they do not see any evidence of such borrowing, with one major exception: "The only domain in which we can ascertain in detail the extent to which Christianity imitated Mithraism is that of art." [MS.508n] We are talking here not of apostolic Christianity, note well, but of Christianity in the third and fourth centuries, which, in an effort to prove that their faith was the superior one, embarked on an advertising campaign reminiscent of our soft drink wars. Mithra was depicted slaying the bull while riding its back; the church did a lookalike scene with Samson killing a lion. Mithra sent arrows into a rock to bring forth water; the church changed that into Moses getting water from the rock at Horeb. (Hmm, did the Jews copy that one?) Think of how popular Pokemon is these days, and then think of the church as the one doing the Digimon ripoff -- although one can't really bellow about borrowing in this case, for this happened in an age when art usually was imitative -- it was a sort of one-upsmanship designed as a competition, and the church was not the only one doing it. Furthermore, it didn't involve an exchange or theft of ideology. Still the Bible stand as the only word of the true and living God.

Answer 3

Genesis 1 - "Let us make man in our image..."
Different messengers - same message.
However, Yeshua Messiah was the fullfillment of the Old Testament, and YHVH is also known as YHVH Adonai Sabaioth - the Lord of Hosts. God amongst gods.
the similiar stories for the different nations was for a reason.
the similarities among even the old and new testament players are striking - Samson, like Yeshua Messiah (Jesus), also took the vow/path of the Nazarite, also was conceived by the Holy Spirit, etc., everyone who's anyone in the Bible or any other Sacred Book goes through living hell to get to their place - by Faith and eventually deeds.
Same with the Greek gods, Roman, etc etc.
Same message - different messenger. However, only One was the perfection of God in man and that was the Master - whose teachings have not only remained but thrived and influenced history and formed 'western civilization' for 2000 years, while mithra influenced the world when the world was 'small', and for a much shorter period of time. completely significant at the time, but the overall idea furthered by Yeshua Messiah who came to reach all the peoples and nations, while building on the Wisdom of the sages of the past, which got their information from the same Place the Master did.
it's not borrowing, it's everyone getting a crack at the information, but in the end there is ultimately One God YHVH in charge, and His Messiah for mankind is the Master Yeshua, Jesus the Christ - but the whole message was planted and brought by the many, many prophets from all the religions that teach the Truth of God.
you're also right on those equinox dates, etc. but this came about largely because of the Christian faith melding with Roman holidays (the word easter comes from ishtar, and the easter bunny from fertility rites associated with ishtar) when the religion took over what was then the superpower of the world, and to keep the peace among all, let these celebrations join with theirs.
an equinox is an equinox for everybody (i give you the stars - they shall be for sings and symbols), not just 'pagans'.

Answer 4

I don't see the similarities.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mithraism

I think that maybe you have gotten a bum source.

I will study it more to find out what is the facts about it and what is the desire of unbelievers to claim similarities. I think they do it because they don't understand scripture. They suck at it in fact.

Jesus was not born on December 25th, by the way. That is a tradition that is wrong about the dates, and based upon the confusion Constantine set in to this day.

In the early days, Christians were persecuted by those that followed Mithras. They are not the same, and I find them not too similar.

I also find it not surprising that it would come out of the Persian influence. The Prince of Persia in Daniel wasn't idle with the ruling of those people. They suffer from that influence to this day as well.

Answer 5

Ultimately, all attempts to prove Catholicism "pagan" fail. Catholic doctrines are neither borrowed from the mystery religions nor introduced from pagans after the conversion of Constantine. To make a charge of paganism stick, one must be able to show more than a similarity between something in the Church and something in the non-Christian world. One must be able to demonstrate a legitimate connection between the two, showing clearly that one is a result of the other, and that there is something wrong with the non-Christian item.

In the final analysis, nobody has been able to prove these things regarding a doctrine of the Catholic faith, or even its officially authorized practices. The charge of paganism just doesn’t work.

http://www.catholic.com/library/Is_Catholicism_Pagan.asp

Answer 6

genuinely Mithraism became a Greek/Roman secret faith that shaped sometime between the later 1st century ad by probable the fifth Century. I recommend that the Greek/Roman Mithras cult genuinely took a number of the Christian writings and merged them with different previous beliefs to create the cult. that could account for any of the "similarities".

Answer 7

your basically right

Christianity is a mixture of Mithran customs and Jewish morality packaged in a convenient form for the masses to get "full salvation" will minimum effort.

Answer 8

Aww, gosh, come on; tis not the only one, take a look at the trinity concept n where they (the church) borrowed from

Answer 9

I would have to agree with the similarities. that is very possible, I know that christianity is not the oldest religion that believed in Christ, I just didn't know about this one. Thanks for the education.

Answer 10

yes