if SOME christians believe it is their duty to convert the 'pagans.'?

Question

Why do many of them not purge originally pagan legends from the Bible, e.g. the Babylonia flood myth, Bacchus turning the water into wine, or the death and resurrection of Osiris?
Is there any difference between believing in Vishnu and Shiva on the one hand, and believing in Abraham/ Saturn or Enoch/Hermes on the other?

[To be fair, I know that many Christians DO recognise the pagan origins of much of the Bible, which is only natural, as all religions are influenced by surrounding cultures.]

Lucky S, what you are suggesting is a fair point, but is is unlikely, because it would mean that just one ethnic group had influenced all those other, highly advanced civilisations. The Babylonians are unlikely to have appreciated the ideas of their subjugated exiles. And the clay tablets of the Flood have been proven to be OLDER than the Hebrew Bible. And so on... also there is the almost universal consensus of scholars, most of whom have no religious agenda to pursue.

The article you have suggested at Christian Research Library says:
"Advocates of the mystery cults believed their "sacraments" had the power to give the individual the benefits of immortality in a mechanical or magical way, without his or her undergoing any moral or spiritual transformation. This certainly was not Paul's view, either of salvation or of the operation of the Christian sacraments. "
This is a clearly biased assumption against initiates of the mystery religions, and very below the belt. Initiation required very high moral standards. Also: I think a MUTUAL influence is very likely in early Christianity. Yet the essay does not even allow for this possiblity.
Also, it does not mention the pagan influences on the early Hebrews, e.g. Ezekiel's astronomical vision.

The article you have suggested at Christian Research Library says:
"Advocates of the mystery cults believed their "sacraments" had the power to give the individual the benefits of immortality in a mechanical or magical way, without his or her undergoing any moral or spiritual transformation. This certainly was not Paul's view, either of salvation or of the operation of the Christian sacraments. "
This is a clearly biased assumption against initiates of the mystery religions, and very below the belt. Initiation required very high moral standards. Also: I think a MUTUAL influence is very likely in early Christianity. Yet the essay does not even allow for this possiblity.
Also, it does not mention the pagan influences on the early Hebrews, e.g. Ezekiel's astronomical vision.
[Quotation copyright 1994 Christian Research institution.]

I have read the whole article, and although I appreciate the link, it is poorly reasoned throughout. e.g.
1. Claims Paul would not have used pagan themes. Why the pagan vocabulary then?
2. Claims the sources on Greek mysteries are very late. Maybe so... but one may at least imagine a high degree of conservatism in these religions. Every word, every gesture being sacred, it is unlikely that they would be open to much change.
3. Claims that Christianity was based on assent to HISTORICAL FACTS such as the literal death and resurrection of Jesus are anachronistic, as they interpreting the potential beliefs of the early Christians by later standards. And yet they accuse the 'liberal scholars' [loose use of language] of anachronism! I am afraid that on the whole, the writer of this article suffers from the same flaws he attributes to 'liberal scholars.'

Answer 1

God is God. Same God, different faces. Pagan beliefs offer an older image of the divine, Christian beliefs a newer one. I don't think that there as any need to "purge" anything from anyone's religion (not based solely on whether or not there are parallels between that and what some other religion believes).

Then again, I also don't believe in trying to convert people. Your religion, your business. Not mine.

Answer 2

I am a Pagan who has Christian friends as well as Pagan. Both my Christian friends go to church, every Sunday and are very devout. But they also believe in me and my beliefs and feel that they have probably learnt more from me than I from them (I was a Christian many years ago) about the roots of belief and how some of their own traditions came about.

Nor have I found a Christian try to convert me, not that it would get them very far :-D

Thankfully I've never had someone say I was evil to my face, infact many are really interested and fascinated by my beliefs.

As for the devil thing...well as a Pagan I don't believe in him anyway. And the image of the devil was taken from the Pagan horned greek god Pan and the celtic god Cernunnos. And beileve me, although many want, there's nothing evil about them.

Answer 3

The real thing is, if christianity was really as great as the masses wnat you to believe, there wouldn't be any need to try to convert anyone. An intelligent adult should be able to understand the purpose of myth, which is what the christians miss. I am glad that Pagans/Heathens do not proseltize, there are way too many people out there that I wouldn't want to share my practice with. Most of them christian or muslim.

Answer 4

I want all of those non secular nuts might want to easily enable human beings to coach regardless of they opt for. those are those that provide another non secular individual a foul image. i'm no longer Pagan, yet see no longer something incorrect with it. I easily have had many a lot of human beings attempt to remodel me to the "top" faith (Christianity for the most section) and that i can thoroughly sympathize with the inflammation those human beings have led to you. I easily have by no skill felt that anybody faith or idea gadget become more suitable ideal or more suitable maximum ideal than yet another. I want human beings might want to verify issues in addition.

Answer 5

The first Christian attempts to convert the pagans involved mass murder, imprisonment, and torture (see the late roman empire when xtianity became the official religion). Such hypocrites. I hear of the martyrdom of the "brave Christians" by the Romans, but I rarely hear about the turned tables.

Answer 6

There was one Christian at work who found out I was a pagan.She talk to me as if I was a devil worshiper.I told her I didn't believe there is a devil and she started quoting the bible to me every time she got near me.I finally got tried of it and told my supervisor that she was discriminating against my religion and it bothered me.She finally shut up,but she goes around telling people I am a devil worshiper.I don't think people believe it.There's some nice Christians where I work.

Answer 7

Well, if you have to do that...is nothing, so to speak, sacred? And if it isn't, on what are one's beliefs then founded?

And most of them celebrate Christmas with evergreens and mistletoe and stuff too...

Edit: Wow, nice link to a pseudo-scholarly article posted from the person above me. Impressive.

Answer 8

As a Christian it is not my duty to convert anyone.
As a Christian I know that I can not change anyone's heart.
It is only by revelation of God that any man is changed.
As a Christian it is my pleasure to share the good news with everyone.

Answer 9

Unfortunatly for christians on the path to converting pagans. I am happy to state that this is one pagan that will never be converted to chrisianity.

Answer 10

Biblegracespirit, What you are talking about is a cosmic conspiracy...

Sounds a lot like the evil genius problem in Cartesian philosophy. And that doesn't really help your platform