Calling all Mythology, Theology, Religion, History, etc. Fanatics... need help with this...?

Question

I don't know how many of you have heard of and or watched the short documentary called Zeitgeist about how Jesus is just an accumulation of mythological characters and ideas etc. etc. But I personally want to be educated to be able to make my own opinion on the matter. Where can I find totally unbiased books translating the various texts of ancient mythological figures and ideas etc. into english? I really have no idea what to look for. Any ideas and or suggesstions? Books, Websites, etc. etc.?

Answer 1

WATCH ALL THESE AND GO ONTO THESE WEB SITES.
A REAL EYE OPENER.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuIQVfmBEp8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvDOtpsmxbc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HnsPyhJj9Mg

http://youtube.com/watch?v=GRZmzf7WiNg

http://youtube.com/watch?v=05Oe1UAEATE&mode=related&search=

http://youtube.com/watch?v=JMiAwe6TAYM&mode=related&search=

http://youtube.com/watch?v=9dvupiOb6D4&mode=related&search=

http://youtube.com/watch?v=IGbJpGlwjyU

http://youtube.com/watch?v=QQ-kvw1fYXs

http://youtube.com/watch?v=v1EFuPPOM38

http://youtube.com/watch?v=v2HqrIwz0Pw

http://youtube.com/watch?v=cq5TWTTPHF8

http://skepticsannotatedbible.com/

http://www.amazon.com/Why-Rejected-Christianity-Apologist-Explains/dp/1412076811

http://www.samharris.org/

http://home.earthlink.net/~pgwhacker/ChristianOrigins/PaganHistory.html
http://altreligion.about.com/library/graphics/bl_savior11.htm

http://home.earthlink.net/~pgwhacker/ChristianOrigins/
http://www.wilsonsalmanac.com/jesus_similar.html
http://www.truthbeknown.com/origins2.htm
http://members.cox.net/deleyd/religion/solarmyth/christ2002.htm

http://www.litjournal.com/docs/fea_pagan3.html

http://culturalvision.net/html/merry_mithras.html
http://www.near-death.com/experiences/origen048.html
http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_jcpa1.htm#rea

Answer 2

First, thanks for the question because I hadn't heard of the movie before.

Well, understand that there is always a little bias, and different authors view the same evidence through different filters of bias

Also, this is a huge area of study....ancient history, geography, mythology, the history of religion, etc. You have to read a lot !

101 Myths of the Bible....by Gary Greenburg goes into the Egyptian connections in a lot more detail (actually the title is miseading, as it's mostly from Genesis) He really makes a good case that the Israelites were the result of some exiled Egyptians mingling with one of the Semitic tribes and fusing their cultures.

Secret Origins of the Bible...by Tim Calahan is very good and covers the religious beliefs of many other ancient cultures that predated the Israelites. Also has lots of art and architecture to see where the symbols we associate so strongly with Christianity really come from something else. The cross, the martyr god, the mother and child, the lamb and the lion, rising from the dead and ascending into the heavens.

If you want more on the New Testament mythology, Randall Helms has written several books. "The Bible Against Itself"
is the most recent and general one. He has written several on the Gospels as well.
The link to the sites sources has several other good ones I've read as well

Answer 3

I think the LACK of unbiased sources of the information presented in Zeitgeist should be a big indication of the factual foundations of the movie.

Also, pay close attention to how the English homonyms Son/Sun are used and then ask your self what where the ancient Egyptian, Aramaic, Hebrew, Greek, and Latin words for the same.

I can't prove or disprove many of the facts in that movie, but color me highly skeptical.

Answer 4

I have four accounts that date back to the 1st Century AD.

You will find that Jesus was a Jew, a Jewish rabbi, claim to be the Jewish Messiah (only the Jews had a Messiah), King of the Jews a title given by the Romans at his execution.

Jesus minister to the Jews. You can see His scriptural reference in the Gospels + Acts.

Answer 5

Just get a mythology book that is targeted more at a literary audience. That way there is no slant to it, as bookies usually look at the interaction between the characters, not of how they are Jesus under another name. I hear the OTHER BIBLE is good.

Answer 6

Good on ya' for wanting to dig deeper. Unfortunately, there is no single source for all this, as there are mountains of it scattered all over historical journals.

But, you can find some excellent translations of all known early Christian documents at

http://www.earlychristianwritings.com

(earlychristianwritings.com)

The internet infidels library http://www.iidb.org also has a ton of that sort of stuff.

For a general summary of such things by someone who is qualified to give it, try Karen Armstrong's book, "A History of God".

Answer 7

There is The Jesus Mysteries. I have not read but will someday maybe but I have read that the description of Jesus dying on the cross isn't made up. They would have left out his, ''Why have you forsaken me" and the detail would have not been there for a made up story. Also, they would not have him dying on the cross for that type of death was an embarrassment in those days.

Answer 8

if youre counting on "unbiased" youre not gonna find it... but i would suggest a book if youre interested in educating yourself by taking in several different accounts and forming your own opinion from there... one book i would suggest is JESUS THE MAN: decoding the REAL story of Jesus and Mary Magdelene by Barbara Theier

Answer 9

I saw that movie, and the information in it is accurate, but it's not like there's just one book you can find.
Try going to your library, and looking up books about world myths.

Here are the sources for the information used in the movie:
http://zeitgeistmovie.com/sources.htm

Answer 10

I would say, take your time and digest what I C U has recommended... very thorough...