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I am pagan and have been for a long time. I had always believed that Christians took beliefs from the Pagan religions and added it to their own. However, after much research, I have learned that this is not true. The reason is because all of the myths that are similar to Christianity are not really older than Christianity. These myths, Dyonisus for example, were not told or written until after the 1st Century. Many respectable Biblical Scholars believe this. I was wondering if anyone had any input on the subject. Does anyone know of any sources that might possibly prove that Christians took at least something from us?

To the Christians.....
I am not disrespecting your religion. You must understand that I am just very curious about this and would like answers based on actual facts.

2007-07-21 09:15:37 · 13 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture Religion & Spirituality

13 answers

No. Paganism took from the Lord God. The devils an identity thief.

2007-07-21 09:24:47 · answer #1 · answered by t a m i l 6 · 0 5

I know that the first Christian leaders would tear down Pagan temples and build their churches in the same spot, believing that it would make it easier to convert the local Pagans that way. And if you look at the dates of their religious holidays, isn't it awfully coincidental that they fall around thew same time as the Pagan ones, and I'm pretty sure ours were in place first, considering the fact that ours are based on the Equinoxes and the Solstices, not on a date specifically? I know that Paganism was around long before the dawn of Christianity, so I think it's pretty safe to say that there are things that the Christians have incorporated into their belief systems that came from Paganism. Hope I helped you out!!
Blessed Be!
Lady Shayyna

2007-07-23 05:18:04 · answer #2 · answered by Lady Shayyna 1 · 0 0

MM, remember, You are reading from BIBLICAL scholars, who specialize in Christian Beliefs, not necessarily where they originated, or to promote Paganism. So, many Christian scholars downplay the Pagan roots of some Christian Rituals. I believe that you already have some very, good, informed answers here on this question, so I will add nothing else except that Constantine I, even though he espoused Christianity in his lifetime, was not baptized or even became a Christian, until on his deathbed. His sons, Constans, and Constantine II were Christians,and there were Pagan revivals even after the Roman Empire "officially" went Christian. It is interesting someone brought up Mithraism, thought by some to be the true roots of Jesus and the Christian beliefs about doing good to others. Read more about that sect, it is interesting....Blessed Be, Icefire

2007-07-21 09:34:07 · answer #3 · answered by Icefire 3 · 2 0

Religions do not exist in a vacuum. Concepts that are totally bizarre and foreign to listeners are not likely to be accepted, so it makes perfect sense that Christianity shares certain things with the other local religions of the time. The borrowing of ideas is called syncretism and happens on a regular basis.

I wouldn't call it "taking" ("stealing" is another verb I often see). While Christians did specifically adopt some aspects of paganism to help with conversion, I believe the majority of syncretism happened unconsciously. As people from different cultures were brought into Christianity, they brought their ideas with them and old ideas were woven in with new.

Most importantly, in most cases they absolutely did not steal, take or borrow these ideas from "us." Most self-described Pagans have themselves borrowed pre-Christian ideas. These are not continual traditions. Some Pagan religions are reconstructionist, in which case practitioners are trying to be as authentic as possible, but the majority are blatant syncretists, taking bits and pieces from a variety of cultures and creating an entirely new and modern theology and practice. For example, Wiccan Beltaine and ancient Celtic Beltaine often has very little in common beyond a name and the use of fire in the celebrations.
We took an ancient name and date and then ascribed to it new meanings and celebrations - which is no more or less than what early Christians sometimes did.

2007-07-24 09:06:00 · answer #4 · answered by Nightwind 7 · 0 0

No, it's not impossible, but you will take a lot of flak from Christians and Pagans alike. I'm assuming you can live with that, because they've just as much right to their views as you have to yours. If you wish to pursue a christopagan path, you are basically saying that Jesus is an avatar of the sun god who sacrifices himself for the land - Osiris, Tammuz, Mithras and many others are such avatars. There is nothing unique about Jesus - he is neither more nor less than the others, that is what you would be saying. Pagans are polytheist. I don't know where the idea of there being one god only came from - it isn't even in the Bible. Jehovah said, "you shall have no other gods before me" - so even he says there is more than one god. No reason why Jesus shouldn't be one of them. I think you would find Jonathan Black's "The Secret History of the World" very interesting. Hope that helps ... and please don't shout.

2016-05-19 06:15:20 · answer #5 · answered by ? 3 · 0 0

Read Revelation 12....There is a very Good description of the Goddess as I know her in the Bible. Study Gnostic Teachings. There you will find the Story of Sophia the Goddess of Wisdom. Who are Lady Wisdom in Proverbs and The Bride in the Song of Songs. Study the History of Voodoo and Catholics or Strega (Italian Witchcraft) and Catholics; there you will discover how the Catholic Church got Pagans to convert. Being willing to believe that Jesus is also the Green Man, Osiris, Horus, and RA….Out of Egypt I call my son…

2007-07-23 06:20:03 · answer #6 · answered by ? 1 · 0 0

"Dyonisus for example, were not told or written until after the 1st Century."

I'm not sure what your source is for that, but Euripedes and Aristophanes are good sources for Dionysian myths that date to the 5th century B.C.

As far as Christianity "taking" from paganism... I'd highly recommend G.K. Chesterton's "The Everlasting Man" for a fair treatment of how Christianity sprang from pagan soil, as it were. (Chesterton is notorious for playing fast and loose with historical facts, but he EXCELS at capturing the subjective, poetic side of history - how it affects the common person in their daily lives).

The fact is that Christianity has always had a give-and-take relationship with the cultures it finds itself in, and most of these are "pagan" cultures. It is in that sense far more adaptable than Judaism or Islam, say, because (outside of a few uninformed individuals) it allows for a broad view of human life and human activity. It has a doctrine that says basically "since God became a man, all aspects of mankind can become godly" and that includes such basic human things as feasts and rituals and reverence of nature.

Peace to you, and I wish you well in your quest for objective answers in this the most subjective of all inquiries... :-)

2007-07-21 11:14:58 · answer #7 · answered by dreamed1 4 · 0 0

I wouldn't say that Christian took beliefs from the pagan religions. I would say they absorbed many pagan practices and turned them to their own purposes. Primary among those purposes was to spread Christianity and convert the "heathens". Many modern day Christian celebrations have pagan roots. Christmas coincides with the Winter Solstice, the tree, mistletoe, Yule log, holly and evergreens were all used in pagan celebrations. Easter coincides with the Vernal Equinox, the eggs, chicks, bunnies, & grass were used in the pagan rites of Spring.

2007-07-23 09:43:45 · answer #8 · answered by kronekrafts 2 · 0 1

Yes,
The Christian church made use of formerly pagan worship sites and dates to convert non Christians. It was much easier to change the significance of a place and holiday than to eradicate it.
A very interesting and well documented book that addresses this question is 'The Jesus Mysteries' by Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy. (copious footnotes)

2007-07-23 13:36:43 · answer #9 · answered by Elana 1 · 0 0

I found Father K's answer to be interesting. It seems to say "we didn't take them, we took them". I don't have a source for you, and I'm not going to take the time to find one (I'm sure that some simple internet sleuthing could turn up something) I am of the impression that many of the rituals of the church were borrowed and incorporated by earlier belief systems.

2007-07-21 09:32:23 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1 0

We "took" nothing.

We Christianized pagan practices, there can be no doubt. Just look at what happened to the placement of Christmas and Easter. The Church, the Body of Christ, redeems all of humanity - our space, our time - and - yes - our calendars, too.

This is the essence of our belief in the Incarnation. God becomes man. "The Word was made flesh, and dwelt amongst us."

Christ's Body here on earth, (St. Paul's words, not mine - the Church) redeems in the same way.

2007-07-21 09:22:00 · answer #11 · answered by Anonymous · 1 2

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