What do you think of the notion that christianity was influenced by mithraism?

Question

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mithraism#Connections

Oh Carol, quit serving god for two seconds and learn something.

Some of these answers are fantastic! Thanks for expanding me brain!

Answer 1

Christianity has been influenced and altered at one time or another by just about every other religion on the face of the Earth, including Mithra and Zoroaster, and all the rest. See how the original theology, as outlined by the Apostle Paul has been pulled and stretched and re-interpreted by contemporary neo-pagans. They teach that nothing is really evil, it's just how you feel about it in your heart. Martin Luther was a great anti-semite. John Calvin burned people at the stake. I could go on and on. Go back to Paul. Read it in the King James. Way better than Shakespeare, in my opinion. His writing are the essence, the fundamentals, the original intent of Christianity. After him came the distortions.
A follow up thought. Paul was greatly influenced by Greek philosophy. The Greeks accepted Christianity quickly because of the compatibility of thought between the two philosophies. Paul was familiar with Plato and the others and some of what he wrote expressed that familiarity. Some historians posit a "what if" Jesus had come to the Greeks instead of the Jews?

Answer 2

I believe it was influenced by more than just Mithraism, though I can see a lot of similarities between just those 2. It's really not surprising, any religion that has started has always been influenced by the culture it comes from. And in the case of Christianity, it was influenced greatly by Rome and it's own idea of religion(s). Though, I do find it odd... Christianity supposedly comes from Christ, and I don't think I've read where Christ was born in Rome or even went to Rome. Yet this religion started in Rome?

Answer 3

Any religion that comes in contact with another will influence it, even just a bit--even if that influence is to create a schism between the two.

It's highly possible. However, I don't know if there's enough yet for anyone to make a concrete call.

ETA: Svartalf--not much at all. If I remember correctly, the major celebrations of Sol Invictus as Sol Invictus and not as a part of Christianity or Saturnalia were pretty much carried on by Roman soldiers who followed Mithras. Sol Invictus didn't quite catch on the way it was supposed to...

Answer 4

I am not expert enough to be sure, but given that in Roman times both religions were present, and vied for place as the dominant monotheistic faith... influence is likely.

I have heard that Xmas was instituted around the winter solstice so as to compete with the Mithraic festival of the Unconquered Sun (and yes, I may be making a wrongful mix between Mithras and Sol Invictus, but I'm not sure just how distinct those two ever really were).

Answer 5

Good morning! I must in all honesty say, I have not researched mithraism at all. But, from what I've heard about the similarities from those who have studied it, I would tend to agree that some of the early story-tellers used those myths to booster their ideas about christianity.

Answer 6

From 1979 WT

“THE most familiar solstic celebration of ancient times was that of the Romans,” according to science writer Isaac Asimov. It was the week-long Saturnalia (December 17 to 24), held in honor of their agricultural god, Saturn. Dr. Asimov also comments:

“The Mithraists celebrated the birth of Mithra at the winter solstice, a natural time, and fixed on the day December 25 so that the popular Roman Saturnalia could build up to the Mithraist ‘Day of the Sun’ as a climax. . . . Sometime after A.D. 300, Christianity managed the final coup of absorbing the Saturnalia, and with that it scored its final victory over Mithraism. December 25 was established as the day of the birth of Jesus, and the great festival was made Christian. There is absolutely no biblical authority for December 25 as having been the day of the Nativity.”

Also form 1978 WT
• In an article on sun worship in “Saturday Review” magazine, the noted science writer Isaac Asimov describes various ancient festivals associated with the winter solstice (December 21—when days begin again to become longer than nights). He notes that the Romans celebrated this “with a week-long Saturnalia [for the agricultural god, Saturn] from December 17 to 24. It was a time of unrelieved merriment and joy. . . . gifts were given all round.”

Asimov goes on to relate that in the third century, “the worship of Mithra, a sun-god of Persia, was becoming popular, especially among the soldiers. The Mithraists celebrated the birth of Mithra at the winter solstice, a natural time, and fixed on the day December 25 so that the popular Roman Saturnalia could build up to the Mithraist ‘Day of the Sun’ as a climax.

“At that time, Christianity was locked in a great duel with the Mithraists for the hearts and minds of the people of the Roman Empire. . . . Sometime after A.D. 300, Christianity managed the final coup of absorbing the Saturnalia, and with that it scored its final victory over Mithraism. December 25 was established as the day of the birth of Jesus, and the great festival was made Christian. There is absolutely no biblical authority for December 25 as having been the day of the Nativity.”

How, then, should a Christian view a holiday so deeply rooted in the worship of unbelievers? “Do not try to work together as equals with unbelievers, for it cannot be done,” says God’s Word. “You must leave them and separate yourselves from them. Have nothing to do with what is unclean, and I will accept you.”—2 Cor. 6:14-18, “Today’s English Version.”

Here is the main influence.

Answer 7

Seeing how Mithraism was "the" religion for such a long time in that part of the world at that time, how couldn't it have been influenced by it? :-)

Of course it was, just as Judaism was influenced by the first Monotheistic Egyptian and Zoroatrism religions. They just build upon other religions, change a few names and such and then slap on a new title.

If Jesus actually lived, he taught nothing new that hadn't been taught previously in other man-god-savior religions nor Buddhism...love, peace, kindness, etc.

Answer 8

I think that it is another attempt to put the cart before the horse and to look at the Bible from the wrong perspective. The Bible is the ultimate source of truth. When we start comparing other religions to what the Bible teaches we should realize that in the early part of the book of Genesis that we find out that Noah's three sons went off in different directions to settle and that after the fall of the tower of Babel God dispersed mankind over the face of the earth. Most all of the religions that have sprung up since that time will have elements of Biblical truth in them that have become distorted over time as stories have been changed and reshaped.

So saying that Christianity was influenced by Mithraism because there are similarities between the two, and even arguing for that notion because the worship of Mithra predates the time of Christ, ignores the fact that Christianity is the final outworking of God's plan for salvation that was only alluded to in a patch work way in the Old Testament that starts at the creation of this world.

Answer 9

Considering everything said about Mithras predates Yshua ben Ysef, and is applied to Yshua ben Ysef by Yshua's followers?

I think it pretty much proves Christianity false.

Answer 10

The religion of Mithra was incorporated into the christian religion with the full knowledge and consent of the church in Rome, which, after Constantine became a (nominal) christian, became the church OF Rome, with the Bishop of Rome the head of ALL of the religions of the Romans. The temple of Isis (Semiramis) is now called the Vatican. Beginning to get the picture? Might I suggest that you study early Christianity?