Polytheism?

Question

Please comment on the significance of the fact that within 325 years of dieing on the cross, Jesus' gospel message became the defining religion of the mighty Roman Empire that had spent so much time trying to crush it and shortly after destroyed the many polytheistic practices of the known civilized world at that time and continues to impact our world today.

Basically, Jesus defeats polytheism. This is not a religious question. It is a historical fact. If not what other factor contributed to the many gods of the Greeks, Romans, Eqyptians, Babylonians, Persians, Norse Germanic Tribes and many others becoming Myth?

Answer 1

The reason Christianity was subjected to persecution by Rome is that Christians refused to prove their loyalty to Rome by making sacrifices to the Emperor. Now, Judaism did not do it either, but Rome let them go because they weren't obnoxious about it, and they were very obviously religious. Christianity was a new religious movement and people thought it was a cult. Most of the rumors about Jews in the Middle Ages and occult practitioners nowadays were said about the early Christians.

There are a couple of reasons that Christianity became so popular among the Romans. 1) Roman religion was not based upon belief, but upon practice. They didn't care if you polytheist, monotheist, or atheist, so long as you did your duty, made your sacrifice-tax, and didn't act too weird. 2) New religious movements kind of awakened a big interest in the soul (the most popular foreign cult in Rome was the cult of Mithras, whose story is veeeery similar to Jesus.

Like I said before, in Rome and Greece, belief was not so important, and by the time Constantine declared Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire, it was politically powerful. I don't know enough about the Norse tribes to comment on that.
Christianity cannot be credited with the destruction of the Egyptian and Babylonian polytheistic faiths (the Persian faith was Zoroastrianism, which is alive and well today). Islam is responsible for that.

The thing is that polytheism has not been destroyed. There are plenty of polytheists in the world, me included, and it never died. The cult of saints in the Middle Ages was functionally polytheistic, and the Chinese Traditional Religion is still practiced today. Depending on whether you define Hinduism as polytheistic (they don't, although you probably do), they're still going strong.

A myth is a religion's story. It tackles the Big Questions that religions address. A myth is neither true nor untrue; it is simply a category of literature. The Christian story is a myth. It is not an insult; it is an anthropological fact.

Answer 2

Actually, Rome was already on the verge of collapse under its own weight. It was mititary might, not religious teaching that changed the face of Rome, as well as the other Polytheistic cultures fo the time. Constantine was responsible for makin it a LAW that the whole of the Empire should be Christian. It wasn't that people followed the Christian religion in thos places becasue they though that it was the right religion, it was because anyone that didn't was put to the sword or worse. And even after it was more than a thousad years before it took hold in most of Europe to any degree. In the Year 1000 the leader of Iceland had to oficially outlaw the practice of the pre-Christian religion of the Icelanders. Even the wearing of the Thor's Hammer was an offence punishable by death. And in the 1600's they had to pass yet another law outlawing the use of the Runes because there were still many people there working with them.

It wasn't a cast of priest and missionaries going to these places and people being moved my them to convert based on those teachings. Rather it was the conquest of the Roman Empire and the law they passed in the regions delcaring that all newly conquered peoples should be converted, either by choice, or by force, and the Romans were well acquainted with force. After all, in the 7th century, at the great Temple in Uppsalla, Sweeden, more than 4,500 men, women and children were executed for refusing to convert.

The majority of the early convserions in Europe were none too sincere and were more for the sake of remainig alive, or in power politically. It took several generations before the people actually took to the teachings and that was only because it was becoming more difficult to pass on the treachings to the next generation. IF it ahdn't been for the hcurch itself keeping such detaild records of the bleiefs and practices those in the modern world who follow them wold not have been able to do so.

The same was done in the Amreicas to the Aztecs, and the tribal peoples farther north. It was a matter of convert or die.

That is why the beliefs and practices are resurging, because the peole should never have had to follow other ways to begin with and the gods of those people are reasserting their power, power that is growing even as I type these words. There are over a million people in Greece that have returned to the worship of the ancint gods, the TRUE gods of the Greek People. There are several groups in Mexico that ahve returned to the worship of the Aztec deities (some evidence existst that the religions never died out but has existed underground for generations). There are hundreds of thousadns of people in the States and in Europe that ahve returned to the worship of thier ancestral gods, their TRUE gods. Doesn't sound like defeat to me, more like a withdrawel to recover from injury and regain strength. NOW, they are back with a vengeance and drawing their descendants to them in droves....

Answer 3

so some how that makes it better...

by the way the persecution of Christians under the Roman empire is greatly exaggerated.

while the amount of non Christians persecuted from 325 onward is mind numbing.


one thing is for sure while Christianity might have defeted the religions of Rome. The world was not better of as a result.

Answer 4

Actually, _Constantine_ "defeated polytheism" by converting to Christianity and declaring it the official religion of the Roman Empire.

Sorry to burst your bubble.

Answer 5

It seemed like a good idea at the time, when people did not know any better.

Answer 6

it's natural selection of religions the more "fit" (best at making, keeping converts) religions go on to flourish, the less fit fade away..

Answer 7

Jesus was born after Adam, Noah, Abraham, Ismael, Isaac, Jacob, David, Solomon, Moses and the numerous other Prophets (peace & blessings of God be upon all of them). If he were the Son-God, then, all of the foregoing Prophets, must have been the believers of Trinity. But the case is not like that at all. None of them was the believer of Trinity, rather, none of them, had, even, heard about the name of Trinity, in their times. Hence, Trinity is nothing else but an invented and artificial concept which has no existence, even, during the time of Jesus. It is, therefore, a rootless concept from all accounts.

•Jesus believed in the same God___ who was believed in__ by Adam, Noah, Ibrahim, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses and all the prophets (peace &blessings of the LORD be upon all of them).

Jesus is a man like the other men___ and he is a Prophet like the other Prophets___ and all the men & Prophets are the creatures of God. So how Jesus or any other prophet can be considered as God?

•Whosoever will trust the God, the One God; he will be definitely, saved as Jesus was saved.

•Whosoever will call the Lord___ considering the Lord as his Saviour__ he will never be disappointed as Jesus was not disappointed.

A principle is, naturally evolved through these Verses (the Verse 4 & 5 of the prayer) that whosoever will call the Lord for help, he will be, positively helped. Provided__ he persists on Monotheism__ and desists from Polytheism. Beware please___ to seek help from someone beside the Lord___ is clear-cut polytheism___ which has been vigorously rejected by the Lord in all the Scriptures.
According to Jesus, God, the Holy One; is the Saviour of the Whole mankind. God is capable (be God glorified as God is) to relive off every infliction. None of the human beings is saviour beside God. Jesus, himself is also, not a saviour at all. The people who have chosen him as their saviour__ they have denied the Holy One___ who alone is the saviour of Jesus and whole mankind and the act of choosing Jesus as saviour__ is equal to hate the Holy One___ as it is clearly written in the old Testament:-

“I am the Lord your God. Worship no God but Me. Do not make for yourself images of anything in heavens or on earth or in the water under the earth. Do not bow down to any idol or worship it. Because I am the Lord your God and I tolerate no rivals. I bring punishment on those who hate me, on their descendants, down to third and fourth generation.”
(Exodus 20:1-5)
Jesus had never preached Trinity or Polytheism. Instead, he had always preached Monotheism alone.Jesus was a man and Messenger of the Lord. Who, practically preached the Message of Monotheism, even on the cross.
The Lord of Abraham
The Ahura of Zoroaster
The Eishwar of Krishna
The Jehovah of Moses
The God of Jesus
The Allah of Muhammad
is the AlMighty One Alone God Only who is the Creator and Nourisher of us all.

THE SUPREME LORD

Who said in the Godly voice
“I, and I alone, am God
and all other gods
(or goddesses and demigods)
are unreal.”
(Bible Duet. 32:39)

“Worship no god but Me”
(Exodus 20:3)

“Worship no god but Me”,
clearly means that:
“There is no god but Me.”

The same Words has been revealed by the Lord through the Lord’s Revelation, Al-Quran:

“There is no god but Allah
(The One Alone God)”

so, PEACE here in this world and there in the Hereafter, can be ensured through obedience of the Lord, the Holy One alone; in accordance with the Lord’s commandments, given in all the Scriptures, already, possessed by the people of the Scriptures.

Therefore, the Lord of Moses (PBUH) and the Lord of Muhammad (PBUH) and the Lord of Jesus (PBUH) and the Lord of Krishna (PBUH) is the same, Alone Lord who is known as Our God, the One and the Alone and the Absolute Holy.
Jesus had publicly declared that

“No one is good except God alone”.
(Luke 18:19)

And ___ Jesus (PBUH) had always introduced himself, as a servant of the Lord. The Holy One alone.
In Bhagavad-Gita, worship of different demigods8 or rendering service to them, is not approved. It is stated therein.
“Those whose intelligence has been stolen by material desires, surrender unto demigods and follow the particular rules and regulations of worship, according to their own nature”.
(Bhagavad-Gita 7:20)

Worship the One and Alone Lord

“Krishna even discouraged his father Nanda Maharaja from worshipping the demigod Indra because he wanted to establish the fact that people need not to worship any demigod. They need only worship the Supreme Lord, because their ultimate goal is to return to the Supreme Lord’s abode”.
(Bhagavad-Gita, Introduction, page 20, 21)9

It is written in Torah (the Law of Moses) that Jehovah (the Lord, the Holy One) is not like anything. Jehovah is the All-Alone God. All the gods, other than Jehovah, are unreal. To worship someone else beside Jehovah, is to purchase Jehovah’s anger and wrath.
(Ten Commandments)