tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-68507954773010012112024-02-06T19:46:30.320-08:00Jesus, The Greatest Man EverOceansnsunsetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13846008437312233108noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6850795477301001211.post-48442084785547147772012-05-14T05:24:00.007-07:002012-07-06T12:48:00.427-07:00Wars Christianity Started<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJIBYPvdufmNwAQtY8cp-Hm2qiDeJ9cDEKZdyycKj9DY2pfeD86WwUFs01pu_hn_303uXwlN-Zm7rT7v0kVPAVW_cia85sP_Zz6CRbTtmbbM_GJY_aR3jcZaF8Uhq7Vslwk0mYRspcrlQl/s1600/vvv.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 94px; height: 151px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJIBYPvdufmNwAQtY8cp-Hm2qiDeJ9cDEKZdyycKj9DY2pfeD86WwUFs01pu_hn_303uXwlN-Zm7rT7v0kVPAVW_cia85sP_Zz6CRbTtmbbM_GJY_aR3jcZaF8Uhq7Vslwk0mYRspcrlQl/s200/vvv.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5762145023536327826" border="0" /></a>What are some of the names and dates of wars that were born out of Christian convictions or teachings? I ask this, as I see many people, mainly atheists, espousing this idea that Christianity starts wars. Its often the seeming "death blow" dealt by those that want to win arguments online. I don't see it happening much in "real life." My question to an honest assertion like, "your religion starts so many wars." is, "What wars are those?" Is it a reference to the crusades fought long ago? Is it those ones that people defended against Islam trying to conquer the world, coming down around Europe and being stopped thankfully by the French?<br /><br />I am curious if it's just another slur against Christians and their belief system, when in reality we don't see Christianity starting any wars. We do see wars fought for political advantage or gain and all kinds of other things. We don't have that many "wars" fought though. The statement, your religion causes wars seems to not be based in fact, but in an untruth that is being perpetuated that really have other gripes against Christianity.If you are one of those people that think I am wrong, and care to show how Christianity did start wars, please share how, share names and dates of wars. Keep in mind, I am asking about wars that can be shown to be started by Christians, borne out of the Christian worldview and Jesus' teachings. Even the RCC has backed off its wars from so long ago, and they evidently wouldn't do that again.<br /><br />So does Christianity really start wars? I don't find that it does, except in people's minds where they keep perpetuating what seems to be something that isn't true or based in fact. I find that the teachings of Jesus, if followed, would cause the opposite of wars in the world. It would in fact bring peace and harmony to people. Loving each other, turning the other cheek, forgiving, going the extra mile, praying even for enemies. These aren't things that start wars, but rather diffuse wars and fighting. What would explain this disconnect? I think Jesus explains it in the gospels...not much else explains it other than Christianity actually. Its a different battle that seems to be being fought. Food for thought hopefully, in an effort to get more fair and honest dialogue and debate.<strike></strike>Oceansnsunsetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13846008437312233108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6850795477301001211.post-87399528902579898322011-08-18T05:52:00.001-07:002011-08-18T05:52:58.575-07:00Jesus, Inspiration for Paul's 180 degree turnaround
<br />"And Paul went in, as was his custom, and for three weeks he argued with them
<br />from the scriptures, explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ
<br />to suffer and to rise from the dead....So he argued in the synagogue with the
<br />Jews and the devout persons, and in the marketplace every day with those who
<br />chanced to be there....And he entered the synagogue and for three months spoke
<br />boldly, arguing and pleading about the kingdom of God....And he expounded the
<br />matter to them from morning till evening, testifying to the kingdom of God and
<br />trying to convince them about Jesus both from the law of Moses and from the
<br />prophets. And some were convinced from what he said, while others disbelieved.
<br />
<br />Acts 17:2-3,17, 19:8, 28:23-4
<br />RSVOceansnsunsetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13846008437312233108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6850795477301001211.post-21269020344951300862011-03-05T13:59:00.000-08:002011-03-05T14:02:59.535-08:00<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQnybeCROAM1DCj80mAtWyaOZDFJHgjZY7D5YMpo8-iw68zh0yb2aDZSjtln0y8ejuZ1ZcnXooVCysjLXNmc1uTHiKn0xwRZsR0H9-PWC2rI3E89FSNiHrJvq9rNmbH6FkRhNY9G4Du8Y3/s1600/456px-Altobello_Melone_-_Christ_carrying_the_Cross_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 305px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQnybeCROAM1DCj80mAtWyaOZDFJHgjZY7D5YMpo8-iw68zh0yb2aDZSjtln0y8ejuZ1ZcnXooVCysjLXNmc1uTHiKn0xwRZsR0H9-PWC2rI3E89FSNiHrJvq9rNmbH6FkRhNY9G4Du8Y3/s400/456px-Altobello_Melone_-_Christ_carrying_the_Cross_-_Google_Art_Project.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5580719062335795938" border="0" /></a><br />Altobelo Melone, artist's depiction of Jesus Christ carrying the cross. I am always so impressed with artists. While this is a sad depiction of Jesus, it is part of his life all the same. Oil painting on wood, and from Northern Italy. 1500 - 1580.Oceansnsunsetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13846008437312233108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6850795477301001211.post-12421890386593942352011-03-05T13:21:00.000-08:002011-03-05T13:55:40.523-08:00Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew. Messiah, Righteousness, and the CommissionThis is not a comprehensive covering of what the book of Matthew has to say about Jesus, but rather a very brief overview. First of all, Jesus is shown to be the Messiah. I know what a very bold claim that is, but Matthew clearly taught Jesus was absolutely the fulfillment of many of the Old Testament prophecies, which I sometimes refer to as the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Tanach</span> as well. I have some Jewish friends and people I converse with that call it the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Tanach</span>. At any rate, there are promises from these books of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Tanach</span> (OT) which I see as being fulfilled in Jesus. To not see it or deny it would take a leap of faith for me personally.<br /><br />For instance, you can find parallels in verses like Matthew 5:17, but especially interesting are those that show the coming Messiah. Look at Matthew 1:18 through verse 23, as well as chapter 2 verses 13-15. You might also find Matthew 8:16-17 and 21:1-9 to be of interest.<br /><br />Of course, each person needs to decide for themselves, but I do hope all at least look, for I think there is a lot to miss if you don't at least look. Keep in mind, this book of Matthew was written for Greek speaking, Jewish Christians. The book was written between A.D. 50 - 80. Many think it was written in Syrian Antioch, in the Holy Land.<br /><br />If you think there is another in the future that fits the bill better than Jesus, I would love to hear about that. Please feel free to leave comments, and thank you for reading!Oceansnsunsetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13846008437312233108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6850795477301001211.post-18444242235311618692011-02-20T20:16:00.000-08:002011-02-20T20:33:30.768-08:00Jesus and the Woman at the Well<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikg9IdQwaKAYdUcJrLeCqh6OvW3LjCL0qe9kr8Tvn5pL-wsIA0afVgF-uer-4dtStOE5gwIvTKRnlvnMVQoTBI_BjQiHIOmaJ9ZOByuBtKbmCFKgCclm-iJsiMsrxRouhjfozGtyiwbiQO/s1600/800px-Pietro_Perugino_cat73c.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 215px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikg9IdQwaKAYdUcJrLeCqh6OvW3LjCL0qe9kr8Tvn5pL-wsIA0afVgF-uer-4dtStOE5gwIvTKRnlvnMVQoTBI_BjQiHIOmaJ9ZOByuBtKbmCFKgCclm-iJsiMsrxRouhjfozGtyiwbiQO/s400/800px-Pietro_Perugino_cat73c.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5575995568257612738" border="0" /></a><br />This story has to be one of my favorites, for it shows the knowledge, love, and forgiveness of Jesus in a big way. He didn't condemn the woman for committing adultery over and over with many different men, he encouraged her to stop though, and not do it anymore. He showed amazing love, and acceptance, and a way to a better life for her. This is true for all of us, if we will just hear the words of Jesus and respond to his great love, mercy, invitation and accept what he has offered to us. Seek Him, ask for wisdom, pray and ask God anything you want. He already knows your heart, and what can it hurt? The same message that he gave to the woman, he gives to us all.Oceansnsunsetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13846008437312233108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6850795477301001211.post-62807559172389263532011-02-20T20:05:00.000-08:002011-02-20T20:09:06.777-08:00Jesus preaching in Capernaum<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilw04bQLqKdmSfGq06kCU9bA79IhRZrf6TikDnhta6NZL7WWvIuFZG9DdEBCYut4Qsi2EJ-o-t01l8RTLABFZX0WYJ4zclU_AJLWgJg3GV1QeNcoWXdX9SS-jikrEF4Pv1VHkSCVzg_-4t/s1600/460px-Gottlieb-Christ_Preaching_at_Capernaum.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 307px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilw04bQLqKdmSfGq06kCU9bA79IhRZrf6TikDnhta6NZL7WWvIuFZG9DdEBCYut4Qsi2EJ-o-t01l8RTLABFZX0WYJ4zclU_AJLWgJg3GV1QeNcoWXdX9SS-jikrEF4Pv1VHkSCVzg_-4t/s400/460px-Gottlieb-Christ_Preaching_at_Capernaum.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5575989526139605426" border="0" /></a> <p><a href="http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Maurycy_Gottlieb"><br /></a></p><p><br /></p><p>By Maurycy Gottlieb. I love the different art out there, where artists are giving their rendition of what they think Jesus may have looked like. </p><p>1878–1879, though unfinished<br /></p><p><br /></p>Oceansnsunsetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13846008437312233108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6850795477301001211.post-7244173090503566842010-11-07T17:26:00.001-08:002010-11-07T17:26:43.572-08:00<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNFA1MNyObQGPiLVRufAMBIzNz7sUJj718gyYYowZtfD4PChDbtzORj186tvrUTS0yluORMtKQsrVodGqf6VGyujfv4cC1AUPbXpGLFcDBZONB0KfBZtRP14WPIWoQvmqENwtJJyllzryP/s1600/745px-M%C3%BCnchen_Alt%C3%B6ttinger_Kapelle_Kreuzweg_02.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 322px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNFA1MNyObQGPiLVRufAMBIzNz7sUJj718gyYYowZtfD4PChDbtzORj186tvrUTS0yluORMtKQsrVodGqf6VGyujfv4cC1AUPbXpGLFcDBZONB0KfBZtRP14WPIWoQvmqENwtJJyllzryP/s400/745px-M%C3%BCnchen_Alt%C3%B6ttinger_Kapelle_Kreuzweg_02.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536984220297818578" border="0" /></a>Oceansnsunsetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13846008437312233108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6850795477301001211.post-15879592464679354932010-11-07T17:24:00.001-08:002010-11-07T17:24:37.992-08:00<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjccyiO72dZrvUvnFW-7yvnOpyFuDenL9OUU1h64QWy9xiAILG1H15KGu-uHlxsVR5WaOJTll0rarkzIauvS0Aql9DTt2kpdlpGwAAJeisZKY7rAGyvjaSrSFk32i3UVfUFzxSFAD8F0_Q/s1600/458px-Hoeje_Taastrup_Kirke_Denmark_cross.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 306px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjccyiO72dZrvUvnFW-7yvnOpyFuDenL9OUU1h64QWy9xiAILG1H15KGu-uHlxsVR5WaOJTll0rarkzIauvS0Aql9DTt2kpdlpGwAAJeisZKY7rAGyvjaSrSFk32i3UVfUFzxSFAD8F0_Q/s400/458px-Hoeje_Taastrup_Kirke_Denmark_cross.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5536983652052717250" border="0" /></a>Oceansnsunsetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13846008437312233108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6850795477301001211.post-14149947733459026652010-11-07T17:18:00.001-08:002010-11-07T17:20:03.449-08:00Jesus in the scriptures of the New and Old TestamentsSomeone shared this with me, and if you do a study you can see how this list came to be. It starts with the Old Testament books in order and goes right on into the New Testament. <br /><br />Who is Jesus?<br /><br />Consider the following themes of the sixty-six books of the Bible:<br /><br /><br />In Genesis, He is the Creator God.<br /><br />In Exodus, He is the Redeemer.<br /><br />In Leviticus, He is your sanctification.<br /><br />In Numbers, He is your guide.<br /><br />In Deuteronomy, He is your teacher.<br /><br />In Joshua, He is the mighty conqueror.<br /><br />In Judges, He gives victory over enemies.<br /><br />In Ruth, He is your kinsman, your redeemer.<br /><br />In I Samuel, he is the root of Jesse.<br /><br />In 2 Samuel, He is the Son of David.<br /><br />In 1 Kings and 2 Kings, He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords<br /><br />In 1st and 2nd Chronicles, He is your intercessor and High Priest.<br /><br />In Ezra, He is your temple, your house of worship.<br /><br />In Nehemiah, He is your mighty wall, protecting you from your enemies.<br /><br />In Esther, He stands in the gap to deliver you from your enemies.<br /><br />In Job, He is the arbitrator who not only understands your struggles,<br />but also has the power to do something about them.<br /><br />In Psalms, He is your song-and your reason to sing.<br /><br />In Proverbs, He is your wisdom, helping you make sense out of life<br />and live it successfully.<br /><br />In Ecclesiastes, He is your purpose, delivering you from vanity.<br /><br />In the Song of Solomon, He is your lover, your Rose of Sharon.<br /><br />In Isaiah, He is the mighty counselor, the prince of peace, the<br />everlasting father, and more. In short, He's everything you need.<br /><br />In Jeremiah, He is your balm of Gilead, the soothing salve for your<br />sin-sick soul.<br /><br />In Lamentations, He is the ever-faithful one upon whom you can depend.<br /><br />In Ezekiel, He is your wheel in the middle of a wheel-the one who<br />assures that dry, dead bones will come alive again.<br /><br />In Daniel, He is the ancient of days, the everlasting God who never<br />runs out of time.<br /><br />In Hosea, He is your faithful lover, always beckoning you to comeback-<br />even when you have abandoned Him.<br /><br />In Joel, He is your refuge, keeping you safe in times of trouble.<br /><br />In Amos, He is the husbandman, the one you can depend on to stay by<br />your side.<br /><br />In Obadiah, He is Lord of the Kingdom.<br /><br />In Jonah, He is your salvation, bringing you back within His will.<br /><br />In Micah, He is judge of the nation.<br /><br />In Nahum, He is the jealous God.<br /><br />In Habakkuk, He is the Holy One.<br /><br />In Zephaniah, He is the witness.<br /><br />In Haggai, He overthrows the enemies<br /><br />In Zechariah, He is Lord of Hosts.<br /><br />In Matthew, He is king of the Jews.<br /><br />In Mark, He is the servant.<br /><br />In Luke, He is the Son of Man, feeling what you feel.<br /><br />In John, He is the Son of God.<br /><br />In Acts, He is Savior of the world.<br /><br />In Romans, He is the righteousness of God.<br /><br />In I Corinthians, He is the rock that followed Israel.<br /><br />In II Corinthians, He the triumphant one, giving victory.<br /><br />In Galatians, He is your liberty; He sets you free.<br /><br />In Ephesians, He is head of the Church.<br /><br />In Philippians, He is your joy.<br /><br />In Colossians, He is your completeness.<br /><br />In I Thessalonians, He is your hope.<br /><br />In I Timothy, He is your faith.<br /><br />In II Timothy, He is your stability.<br /><br />In Philemon, He is your benefactor.<br /><br />In Hebrews, He is your perfection.<br /><br />In James, He is the power behind your faith.<br /><br />In I Peter, He is your example.<br /><br />In II Peter, He is your purity.<br /><br />In I John, He is your life.<br /><br />In II John, He is your pattern.<br /><br />In III John, He is your motivation.<br /><br />In Jude, He is the foundation of your faith.<br /><br />In the Revelation, He is your coming King.<br /><br /><br />Copyright © 2004 Got It Like That, Inc.<br />All rights reserved. International copyright securedOceansnsunsetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13846008437312233108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6850795477301001211.post-15739673323250214962010-10-10T14:15:00.000-07:002010-10-10T14:16:01.854-07:00From Baths of Mithras<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIVdW-RT_uljx3cqZkPTe7mHkLBPxWgZVLr9jc8AS2OH6dEmrM_NBvjgif9S9DjYObPtoNuKXvlhy67B7O32n0Rht2pDaGGRsPioIM3NIZxGRrRdtnl53AB4STov5VGUby5BxnEI7PW9_-/s1600/450px-Ostia_Antica_Tauroctony.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIVdW-RT_uljx3cqZkPTe7mHkLBPxWgZVLr9jc8AS2OH6dEmrM_NBvjgif9S9DjYObPtoNuKXvlhy67B7O32n0Rht2pDaGGRsPioIM3NIZxGRrRdtnl53AB4STov5VGUby5BxnEI7PW9_-/s400/450px-Ostia_Antica_Tauroctony.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526529132861728834" /></a>Oceansnsunsetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13846008437312233108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6850795477301001211.post-60135263308557841712010-10-10T13:22:00.000-07:002010-10-10T14:13:39.241-07:00Is Jesus a Mithras Copycat? How about Osiris?From Please Convince me.com, J. Warner Wallace, aka Jim Wallace<br /><br /><br />"Is Jesus Simply a Retelling of the Mithras Mythology?<br /><br /> <br />Would This Bother You?<br />There are many atheists who claim that Jesus never really lived. What if I told you that there was once an ancient religion which described God as a being who:<br /><br /> <br />Was born of a virgin on December 25th, in a cave, attended by shepherds<br />Was considered a great traveling teacher and master<br />Had 12 companions or disciples<br />Promised his followers immortality<br />Performed miracles<br />Sacrificed himself for world peace<br />Was buried in a tomb and after three days rose again<br />Was celebrated each year at the time of His resurrection (later to become Easter)<br />Was called "the Good Shepherd"<br />Was identified with both the Lamb and the Lion<br />Was considered to be the "Way, the Truth and the Light," and the "Logos," "Redeemer," "Savior" and "Messiah."<br />Celebrated Sunday as His sacred day (also known as the "Lord's Day,")<br />Celebrated a Eucharist or "Lord's Supper"<br /><br /> <br />Would you recognize this religious figure? Sound like someone you know? Well, of course, we are describing the figure of Mithras!! What, did you think we were talking about Jesus? It sure sounds like Jesus doesn’t it? Would it shake your faith to discover that Mithraism was a popular religion in the Roman era, and actually competed with Christianity for the hearts and minds of believers? While Mithraism is no longer a viable religious belief system in our world, there are a number of atheists who are now assembling to argue that Christianity is simply a copycat of previously existing faith systems. Their argument is that Christianity is not true, and that Jesus never lived. He is simply a copied form of deity from a number of pre-existing mythologies!<br /><br />Is He Really Like Jesus?<br />A first reading of these similarities is startling and for many Christians, these descriptions have caused them to stumble and doubt the true historicity of the man, Jesus Christ. So it’s important for us to examine the truth of these claims of similarity and to also see what the REAL mythologies can tell us about the heart of man that drives us to imagine what God might be like. There can be little doubt that there are a number of pre-Christian mythologies with dying saviors, but when we examine these figures closely, we’ll see that they only foreshadow the God who truly DID come to earth. These mythologies actually SUPPORT the claims of Christ. Before we begin to examine this mythology carefully, it’s important to recognize that a significant portion of what we just read about Mithras is simply FALSE, and lacks ANY archeological support whatsoever. Much of what is seen on this list is simply the effort of atheists to make Mithras look as much like Jesus as possible. So let’s take a look at the truth and see what it can tell us.<br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br />Mithras<br /><br /> <br />The Truth About Mithras<br />There are two distinct and non-continuous traditions related to Mithras, one coming out of the areas of India and Iran, and another more recently developed (in Roman times). Many experts have struggled to try to connect these as one continuous tradition, and in so doing, have distorted or misinterpreted the basic elements of the tradition and mythology. Much of what is known about Mithras comes from pictures and murals that have NO CAPTIONS, so the vast majority of scholarly work on this character is pure speculation. Let’s take a look at the claims we have already described and separate truth from fiction, and then try to understand the underlying hope of the people who invented the god called Mithras:<br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras was born of a virgin on December 25th, in a cave, attended by shepherds<br /> Truth: Mithras was actually born out of solid rock, LEAVING a cave. He was NOT born of a virgin (unless you consider the rock mountain to have been a virgin). His birth WAS celebrated on December 25th, but the first Christians knew this was not the true date of Christ’s birth anyway, and both Mithras worshippers and the Roman Catholic Church borrowed this celebration from earlier winter solstice celebrations. Shepherds ARE part of the Mithras mythology, witnessing his birth and helping Mithras emerge from the rock, but interestingly, the shepherds exist in the birth chronology at a time when humans are not supposed to have been yet born. This, coupled with the fact that the earliest version of this part of the Mithras mythology appears one hundred years AFTER the appearance of the New Testament, points to the fact that it is far more likely that the Mithras legend borrowed from Christianity rather than the other way around.<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: Clearly men dream and think about God, and when we do that, it is reasonable for us to imagine that God must be an incredibly strong being who would emerge in our world in a way that defies the natural order of things.<br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras was considered a great traveling teacher and master<br /> Truth: There is nothing in the Mithras tradition that indicates he was a teacher on ANY kind, but he was could have been considered a master of sorts. But why would we expect ANY deity to be anything less than a great teacher and master? Most deities and mythologies describe their gods in this way.<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: If there is a god, it is reasonable to expect Him to have infinite wisdom and be the master of our lives.<br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras had 12 companions or disciples<br /> Truth: There is no evidence for any of this in the traditions of Iran or Rome. It is possible that the idea that Mithras had 12 disciples is simply because there exists a mural in which Mithras is surrounded by twelve signs and personages of the Zodiac (two of whom are the moon and the sun), and even this imagery is POST Christian, and cannot contribute to the imagery of Christianity (although it could certainly have borrowed from Christianity).<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: It is reasonable to imagine that God, if he was to come to earth, would then gather to himself disciples that would continue to share the truth with others.<br /><br /> <br /><br /> Claim: Mithras promised his followers immortality<br /> Truth: While there is little evidence for this, it is certainly reasonable to think that Mithras did offer immortality, although this is not uncommon for any God of mythology.<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: All of us have a sense that there is more than this mortal life, and if there is a God, we would expect Him to exist outside and beyond this life. We would also expect him, if he loves us enough, to want to bring us to Him in his eternal life.<br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras performed miracles<br /> Truth: Of course this is true, for what god does not perform miracles, whether true or false?<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: It is reasonable to expect that if there is a God (a true God), He would have the power to perform the miraculous and control the forces of the natural environment.<br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras sacrificed himself for world peace<br /> Truth: There is little or no evidence that any of this is true, although there is a story about Mithras slaying a threatening bull in a heroic deed. But that’s about as close as it gets.<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: It is reasonable to view God as wanting to save his children enough to come to their rescue, particularly if they are facing an eternal threat.<br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras was buried in a tomb and after three days rose again, and Mithras was celebrated each year at the time of His resurrection (later to become Easter)<br /> Truth: There is nothing in the Mithras tradition that indicates he ever even died, let alone was buried or resurrected! Now, Tertullian did write about Mithras believers re-enacting resurrection scenes, but he wrote about this occurring well after New Testament times. Christianity could NOT have borrowed from Mithras traditions, but the opposite could certainly be true.<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: It is reasonable to assume that, if there is a God, he would be powerful enough to defeat death. <br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras was called "the Good Shepherd", and was identified with both the Lamb and the Lion<br /> Truth: There is NO evidence that Mithras was ever called “the Good Shepherd” or identified with a lamb, but Since Mithras was a sun-god, there was an association with Leo (the House of the Sun in Babylonian astrology), so one might say that he was associated with a Lion. But once again, all of this evidence is actually POST New Testament, and cannot therefore be borrowed by Christianity.<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: If God was to be associated in our minds with a symbol from animal life, we would expect him to have a strong representation, such as a lion.<br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras was considered to be the "Way, the Truth and the Light," and the "Logos," "Redeemer," "Savior" and "Messiah."<br /> Truth: Based on the researched and known historic record of the Mithraic tradition, none of these terms has ever been applied to Mithras deity with the exception of “mediator”. But this term is very different from the way that it is used in the Christian tradition. Mithras is not the mediator between God and man but the mediator between the good and evil Gods of Zoroaster.<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: If there is a God, we would expect him to provide us with some way to know him, perhaps in the form of a mediator.<br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras celebrated Sunday as His sacred day (also known as the "Lord's Day,")<br /> Truth: This tradition of celebrating Sunday is only true of Mithras followers in Rome and it is a tradition that dates to POST Christian times. Once again, it is more likely to have been borrowed from Christianity than the other way around.<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: Any true worship of God should and would involve a desire on the part of the believer to honor this God regularly<br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras celebrated a Eucharist or "Lord's Supper"<br /> Truth: Followers of Mithras did NOT celebrate a Eucharist, but they did celebrate a fellowship meal regularly, just as did many other groups in the Roman world.<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: Believers of God would reasonably want to come together to celebrate their faith and unite under the same belief system.<br /><br /> <br />So, What is Left?<br />From this quick examination of the Mithras tradition, we can see that he is formed from the rock of a mountain. His birthday celebration was later adopted at the winter solstice, just as the Roman Catholics did for the birth of Christ. Mithras was not a teacher like Jesus. He did not have twelve disciples like Jesus. He may have offered his followers immortality, as this was common for deity mythologies of all kinds. He was believed to have performed miracles, like other deities. He did not sacrifice himself for the world as did Jesus. There is no evidence that Mithras ever died, was ever buried or ever resurrected. In a similar way, there is no evidence that Mithras was ever called the “Good Shepherd” or associated with the lamb. He was loosely associated to the lion in that he was a sun-god associated to Leo. Mithras has never been called the "Way, the Truth and the Light," the "Logos," "Redeemer," "Savior" nor "Messiah." He was called a “mediator” but in a very different way than Jesus. Followers of Mithras did celebrate on Sunday in the years FOLLOWING the Christian celebration of the “Lord’s Day”, and while Mithras followers did fellowship together, they did not celebrate a Eucharist of any kind. So in hindsight, how similar is Mithras to Jesus after all?<br /><br />How Could They Have Imagined That?<br />Even with all the differences between Mithras and Jesus, it is still striking that early men would imagine a God with even a few similarities, don’t you think? How could that happen? Is it really possible that someone could imagine something that could later become a reality, even if only in part? Well, let’s take a look at another example from history. What if I told you that a man named Morgan Robertson once wrote about a British ocean liner that was about 800 feet long, weighed over 60,000 tons, and could carry about 3,000 passengers? The ship had a top cruising speed of 24 knots, had three propellers, and about 20 lifeboats. What if I told you that this ocean liner hit an iceberg on its maiden voyage in the month of April, tearing an opening in the starboard side forward portion of the ship, and sinking along with about 2,000 passengers? Would you recognize the event from history? You might say, “Hey, that’s the Titanic!” Well, you would be wrong. While all these details are identical to the Titanic, the ship I am talking about is the “Titan” and it is a fictional ship described in Robertson’s book called “the Wreck of the Titan” or “Futility” (Buccaneer Books, Cutchogue, New York, 1898). This book was written fourteen years BEFORE the disaster took place, and several years before the construction was even begun on the Titanic! In addition to this, other writers and thinkers had also started to develop a mythology about such large ships. In the 1880’s, the well known English journalist, W. T. Stead also wrote an account of a sinking ocean liner in the mid-Atlantic, and by 1882 had added the detail that an iceberg would be the cause of the disaster. There are also quite a number of recorded premonitions on the part of passengers who cancelled at the last minute before boarding the Titanic for its maiden voyage in 1912, citing that the ship would suffer a similar fate.<br /><br />How could all these people foresee something like this? How could Robertson foresee this so accurately? Well, it is quite possible that these men and women had a prophetic gift of sorts (after all, even atheists will concede that some among us are at least more intuitive than others), but it is also possible that they simply observed the world around them, thought about the possibilities, examined the history of man leading up to the era, and imagined what an ocean liner like this might be like. Clearly they did actually imagine something that was close to the truth of history. Now if a thousand years from now we were examining the truth of the Titanic in history, and we discovered the story of the Titan, do you think we would find ourselves saying, “Hey, that story about the Titanic is a lie, it was just a re-creation of a prior mythology called the Titan!” I hope not. I hope, instead, that we would evaluate the evidence related to the existence of the Titanic, read the eyewitness accounts, study the impact the event had on history, and then make a decision about the event. I would hope that a prior mythology would not stop our search for the truth. And let’s face it, the similarities between the Titan and the Titanic are far greater than the similarities between Mithras and Jesus.<br /><br />What Was in the Heart of Those Who Created Mithras?<br />So, is there also something in the heart of man that drives him to seek God and try his best to understand and know him? Is there something in the heart of man that encourages him to dream and imagine mythologies about God, just like he might imagine a boat like the Titanic? The Bible certainly maintains that God has placed the truth of his existence in the world around us:<br /><br /> <br /> Romans 1:18-20<br /> The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities-his eternal power and divine nature-have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.<br /><br /> <br />And the Bible also tells us that God has given us a conscience that testifies to his existence:<br /><br /> <br /> Romans 2:12-16<br /> All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law. For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God's sight, but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous. (Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law, since they show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts now accusing, now even defending them.)<br /><br /> <br />Why should we be surprised that as people created in the image of God, we would have a mind and a heart that dreams about the nature of our creator? If God has placed his moral truth in our heart, and hinted at his existence with the wonder of the created world around us, it is reasonable that even before anything was directly revealed in the Bible, men and women thought, imagined and dreamed about the nature of God (just like some obviously thought about large ocean liners!) We would actually expect these mythologies to bear a resemblance to the reality of God’s nature once it IS revealed to us, just as the Titan resembled the Titanic!! And that appears to be the case with Mithras. But let’s be realistic about the Mithras similarities. They are NOT all that powerful and striking; especially when we investigate them and see that the vast majority of the claims of similarity are simply not historically verified. They are lies.<br /><br />But go back for a minute and re-read the reasoning of the creators of the Mithras mythology. Think about what motivated them. They reasoned through the notion of God, based on what they saw in their environment and the seed of God’s conscience planted in their heart, and decided that if there is a God, (1) He must be an incredibly strong being who could emerge in our world in a way that defies the natural order of things, (2) He must have infinite wisdom and have the power to be the master of our lives, (3) He would love us enough to gather to himself disciples that would continue to share the truth with others, (4) He must exist outside and beyond this life, and if he loves us, he would want to bring us to Him in his eternal home, (5) He must have the power to perform the miraculous and control the forces of the natural environment, (6) If He loves us, he would want to save his children and come to their rescue, (7) He must be powerful enough to defeat death, (8) He would communicate with His children and represent himself strongly, (9) He would love his creation enough to provide us with some way to know him, perhaps in the form of a mediator, (10) His existence would result in believers who want to honor this God regularly, and (11) These believers would reasonably want to come together to celebrate their faith and unite under the same belief system.<br /><br />So, How Did God Eventually Appear?<br />OK, these eleven driving motivations have clearly contributed to the thinking of those who originally created the mythology of Mithras. As humans, we can evaluate the environment around us and form a reasonable notion about the God who created it. While Mithras is MUCH different from Jesus, it is interesting to note that God eventually met and exceeded the expectations of those who dreamed about Him. Jesus is everything we might have hoped for, and so much more. He is powerful and defied the natural expectation upon his emergence into our world. He has infinite wisdom and the power to be the master of our lives. He loves us enough to gather to himself disciples that will continue to share the truth with others. He exists today outside and beyond this life, and he loves us enough to bring us to Him in his eternal home. He has the power to perform miracles and control the forces of the natural environment. He wants to save his children and come to their rescue. He is powerful enough to defeat death. He communicates with His children and represents himself strongly. He loves us enough to provide us with a way to know God the Father, representing Him as a mediator. Jesus meets the expectation that early God seekers had and exceeds their expectation in every way!<br /><br />Paul Told Them That God Was Greater Than Their Expectations<br />That really shouldn’t surprise us, because Paul told early God seekers this very thing as he was addressing the people of Athens on Mars Hill, two thousand years ago. He told these Greek thinkers and seekers that while they had imagined the nature of God (just as Mithras believers had also dreamed about God), there was actually a TRUE God, Jesus Christ, who came into the world and exceeded their expectations:<br /><br /> <br /> Acts 17:22-31<br /> Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: "Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you. "The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. 'For in him we live and move and have our being.' As some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring.' "Therefore since we are God's offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone-an image made by man's design and skill. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead."<br /><br /> <br />Paul seemed to recognize that God had an answer for all those who had been dreaming about His nature. God was not unaware of all the mythologies that preceded His appearance in the form of Jesus Christ. He knew everything that these cultures had imagined and dreamed about Him. He saw how they had shaped their gods. He knew how they had described them with miraculous powers and abilities. Why should it surprise us that God would eventually appear and prove to mankind that He was the ONE TRUE GOD by simply MEETING our expectations, point for point (and then surpassing these expectations along the way)? It should not surprise us that God might, in some way, CHOOSE to appear in a form that is consistent with the expectations of man, particularly when God wants his creation to recognize him. God could simply be saying, “Children, I know you have imagined me to be a certain way. In some small measure you have imagined correctly. In many other ways you have been very far from the mark. Let me show you who I am. Watch me meet all the expectations you had about my nature. Let me help you believe by the miraculous life that I will live among you. Let me rescue you in a way you could never have dreamed of.”<br /><br />Jesus Ends the Search<br />Maybe that’s why in the long lineage of mythologies and descriptions of God, Jesus completes the list. There are no significant mythologies that follow Jesus. Ever wonder why? Is it simply because the human race developed past such fables? Or is it because the human race developed past its own immaturity to the point and place where God finally determined it was time to appear in the flesh? Perhaps God decided that the time in which he had “overlooked such ignorance”, was now complete, so He presented himself in a way that ended all mythology. He appeared in TRUE power and glory, putting all prior mythologies to rest forever; meeting and exceeding anything we could ever have hoped for.<br /><br />Christianity Continues to Thrive<br />While there are actually very FEW similarities between Mithras and Jesus in detail, there are similarities between them in the underlying expectations early seekers had for God. Jesus simply meets the hopes and dreams of these seekers as the true incarnate God. While Mithraism is now a dead religion, Christianity continues to thrive. Why? Because the Mithras tradition is inconsistent with the geological history of our world, inconsistent with the archeological history of humanity, and unsupported by textual evidence. In contrast, Christianity still continues to speak to the minds of seekers today. It has strong geological and archeological consistency with what we see in our world and strong textual evidence to support the earliest of claims. Atheists have tried to portray Mithras as something he isn’t in order to make us believe that Jesus never existed at all. But the story of Mithras should only encourage us to believe in the God who exceeds our expectations!<br /><br />Note:<br />In researching this expansive topic, we purchased and read three important and dissertational volumes related to the Mithras Cult. These later works are far more reliable than 19th century scholarship (which is often cited by some of the conspiracy theorists who claim that Jesus is a re-working of Mithras), and we highly recommend these books for further research:<br /><br /> <br /> The Origins of the Mithraic Mysteries<br /><br /> (Cosmology and Salvation in the Ancient World)<br /> by David Ulansey (Oxford University Press, 1989)<br /><br /> <br /> Mithras, the Secret God<br /> by M. J. Vermaseren (Barnes and Noble Publishers, 1963)<br /><br /> <br /> Mithraic Studies<br /><br /> (Proceedings of the First International Congress of Mithraic Studies - 2 Volumes)<br /> edited by John R Hinnells (Manchester University Press, 1975)"Oceansnsunsetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13846008437312233108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6850795477301001211.post-31939814675060815472009-10-23T20:32:00.000-07:002010-10-10T14:11:42.237-07:00Matthew 7, more sayings from Jesus that I found interestingThis is from J. Warner Wallace, or James Wallace, from Pleaseconvinceme.com. Things to consider when trying to find out the truth behind whether or not Jesus is just a myth copied from Mithras or not. <br /><br />"Is Jesus Simply a Retelling of the Mithras Mythology?<br /><br /> <br />Would This Bother You?<br />There are many atheists who claim that Jesus never really lived. What if I told you that there was once an ancient religion which described God as a being who:<br /><br /> <br />Was born of a virgin on December 25th, in a cave, attended by shepherds<br />Was considered a great traveling teacher and master<br />Had 12 companions or disciples<br />Promised his followers immortality<br />Performed miracles<br />Sacrificed himself for world peace<br />Was buried in a tomb and after three days rose again<br />Was celebrated each year at the time of His resurrection (later to become Easter)<br />Was called "the Good Shepherd"<br />Was identified with both the Lamb and the Lion<br />Was considered to be the "Way, the Truth and the Light," and the "Logos," "Redeemer," "Savior" and "Messiah."<br />Celebrated Sunday as His sacred day (also known as the "Lord's Day,")<br />Celebrated a Eucharist or "Lord's Supper"<br /><br /> <br />Would you recognize this religious figure? Sound like someone you know? Well, of course, we are describing the figure of Mithras!! What, did you think we were talking about Jesus? It sure sounds like Jesus doesn’t it? Would it shake your faith to discover that Mithraism was a popular religion in the Roman era, and actually competed with Christianity for the hearts and minds of believers? While Mithraism is no longer a viable religious belief system in our world, there are a number of atheists who are now assembling to argue that Christianity is simply a copycat of previously existing faith systems. Their argument is that Christianity is not true, and that Jesus never lived. He is simply a copied form of deity from a number of pre-existing mythologies!<br /><br />Is He Really Like Jesus?<br />A first reading of these similarities is startling and for many Christians, these descriptions have caused them to stumble and doubt the true historicity of the man, Jesus Christ. So it’s important for us to examine the truth of these claims of similarity and to also see what the REAL mythologies can tell us about the heart of man that drives us to imagine what God might be like. There can be little doubt that there are a number of pre-Christian mythologies with dying saviors, but when we examine these figures closely, we’ll see that they only foreshadow the God who truly DID come to earth. These mythologies actually SUPPORT the claims of Christ. Before we begin to examine this mythology carefully, it’s important to recognize that a significant portion of what we just read about Mithras is simply FALSE, and lacks ANY archeological support whatsoever. Much of what is seen on this list is simply the effort of atheists to make Mithras look as much like Jesus as possible. So let’s take a look at the truth and see what it can tell us.<br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br />Mithras<br /><br /> <br />The Truth About Mithras<br />There are two distinct and non-continuous traditions related to Mithras, one coming out of the areas of India and Iran, and another more recently developed (in Roman times). Many experts have struggled to try to connect these as one continuous tradition, and in so doing, have distorted or misinterpreted the basic elements of the tradition and mythology. Much of what is known about Mithras comes from pictures and murals that have NO CAPTIONS, so the vast majority of scholarly work on this character is pure speculation. Let’s take a look at the claims we have already described and separate truth from fiction, and then try to understand the underlying hope of the people who invented the god called Mithras:<br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras was born of a virgin on December 25th, in a cave, attended by shepherds<br /> Truth: Mithras was actually born out of solid rock, LEAVING a cave. He was NOT born of a virgin (unless you consider the rock mountain to have been a virgin). His birth WAS celebrated on December 25th, but the first Christians knew this was not the true date of Christ’s birth anyway, and both Mithras worshippers and the Roman Catholic Church borrowed this celebration from earlier winter solstice celebrations. Shepherds ARE part of the Mithras mythology, witnessing his birth and helping Mithras emerge from the rock, but interestingly, the shepherds exist in the birth chronology at a time when humans are not supposed to have been yet born. This, coupled with the fact that the earliest version of this part of the Mithras mythology appears one hundred years AFTER the appearance of the New Testament, points to the fact that it is far more likely that the Mithras legend borrowed from Christianity rather than the other way around.<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: Clearly men dream and think about God, and when we do that, it is reasonable for us to imagine that God must be an incredibly strong being who would emerge in our world in a way that defies the natural order of things.<br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras was considered a great traveling teacher and master<br /> Truth: There is nothing in the Mithras tradition that indicates he was a teacher on ANY kind, but he was could have been considered a master of sorts. But why would we expect ANY deity to be anything less than a great teacher and master? Most deities and mythologies describe their gods in this way.<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: If there is a god, it is reasonable to expect Him to have infinite wisdom and be the master of our lives.<br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras had 12 companions or disciples<br /> Truth: There is no evidence for any of this in the traditions of Iran or Rome. It is possible that the idea that Mithras had 12 disciples is simply because there exists a mural in which Mithras is surrounded by twelve signs and personages of the Zodiac (two of whom are the moon and the sun), and even this imagery is POST Christian, and cannot contribute to the imagery of Christianity (although it could certainly have borrowed from Christianity).<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: It is reasonable to imagine that God, if he was to come to earth, would then gather to himself disciples that would continue to share the truth with others.<br /><br /> <br /><br /> Claim: Mithras promised his followers immortality<br /> Truth: While there is little evidence for this, it is certainly reasonable to think that Mithras did offer immortality, although this is not uncommon for any God of mythology.<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: All of us have a sense that there is more than this mortal life, and if there is a God, we would expect Him to exist outside and beyond this life. We would also expect him, if he loves us enough, to want to bring us to Him in his eternal life.<br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras performed miracles<br /> Truth: Of course this is true, for what god does not perform miracles, whether true or false?<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: It is reasonable to expect that if there is a God (a true God), He would have the power to perform the miraculous and control the forces of the natural environment.<br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras sacrificed himself for world peace<br /> Truth: There is little or no evidence that any of this is true, although there is a story about Mithras slaying a threatening bull in a heroic deed. But that’s about as close as it gets.<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: It is reasonable to view God as wanting to save his children enough to come to their rescue, particularly if they are facing an eternal threat.<br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras was buried in a tomb and after three days rose again, and Mithras was celebrated each year at the time of His resurrection (later to become Easter)<br /> Truth: There is nothing in the Mithras tradition that indicates he ever even died, let alone was buried or resurrected! Now, Tertullian did write about Mithras believers re-enacting resurrection scenes, but he wrote about this occurring well after New Testament times. Christianity could NOT have borrowed from Mithras traditions, but the opposite could certainly be true.<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: It is reasonable to assume that, if there is a God, he would be powerful enough to defeat death. <br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras was called "the Good Shepherd", and was identified with both the Lamb and the Lion<br /> Truth: There is NO evidence that Mithras was ever called “the Good Shepherd” or identified with a lamb, but Since Mithras was a sun-god, there was an association with Leo (the House of the Sun in Babylonian astrology), so one might say that he was associated with a Lion. But once again, all of this evidence is actually POST New Testament, and cannot therefore be borrowed by Christianity.<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: If God was to be associated in our minds with a symbol from animal life, we would expect him to have a strong representation, such as a lion.<br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras was considered to be the "Way, the Truth and the Light," and the "Logos," "Redeemer," "Savior" and "Messiah."<br /> Truth: Based on the researched and known historic record of the Mithraic tradition, none of these terms has ever been applied to Mithras deity with the exception of “mediator”. But this term is very different from the way that it is used in the Christian tradition. Mithras is not the mediator between God and man but the mediator between the good and evil Gods of Zoroaster.<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: If there is a God, we would expect him to provide us with some way to know him, perhaps in the form of a mediator.<br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras celebrated Sunday as His sacred day (also known as the "Lord's Day,")<br /> Truth: This tradition of celebrating Sunday is only true of Mithras followers in Rome and it is a tradition that dates to POST Christian times. Once again, it is more likely to have been borrowed from Christianity than the other way around.<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: Any true worship of God should and would involve a desire on the part of the believer to honor this God regularly<br /><br /> <br /> Claim: Mithras celebrated a Eucharist or "Lord's Supper"<br /> Truth: Followers of Mithras did NOT celebrate a Eucharist, but they did celebrate a fellowship meal regularly, just as did many other groups in the Roman world.<br /><br /> <br /> The Reasoning Behind the Mithras Mythology: Believers of God would reasonably want to come together to celebrate their faith and unite under the same belief system.<br /><br /> <br />So, What is Left?<br />From this quick examination of the Mithras tradition, we can see that he is formed from the rock of a mountain. His birthday celebration was later adopted at the winter solstice, just as the Roman Catholics did for the birth of Christ. Mithras was not a teacher like Jesus. He did not have twelve disciples like Jesus. He may have offered his followers immortality, as this was common for deity mythologies of all kinds. He was believed to have performed miracles, like other deities. He did not sacrifice himself for the world as did Jesus. There is no evidence that Mithras ever died, was ever buried or ever resurrected. In a similar way, there is no evidence that Mithras was ever called the “Good Shepherd” or associated with the lamb. He was loosely associated to the lion in that he was a sun-god associated to Leo. Mithras has never been called the "Way, the Truth and the Light," the "Logos," "Redeemer," "Savior" nor "Messiah." He was called a “mediator” but in a very different way than Jesus. Followers of Mithras did celebrate on Sunday in the years FOLLOWING the Christian celebration of the “Lord’s Day”, and while Mithras followers did fellowship together, they did not celebrate a Eucharist of any kind. So in hindsight, how similar is Mithras to Jesus after all?<br /><br />How Could They Have Imagined That?<br />Even with all the differences between Mithras and Jesus, it is still striking that early men would imagine a God with even a few similarities, don’t you think? How could that happen? Is it really possible that someone could imagine something that could later become a reality, even if only in part? Well, let’s take a look at another example from history. What if I told you that a man named Morgan Robertson once wrote about a British ocean liner that was about 800 feet long, weighed over 60,000 tons, and could carry about 3,000 passengers? The ship had a top cruising speed of 24 knots, had three propellers, and about 20 lifeboats. What if I told you that this ocean liner hit an iceberg on its maiden voyage in the month of April, tearing an opening in the starboard side forward portion of the ship, and sinking along with about 2,000 passengers? Would you recognize the event from history? You might say, “Hey, that’s the Titanic!” Well, you would be wrong. While all these details are identical to the Titanic, the ship I am talking about is the “Titan” and it is a fictional ship described in Robertson’s book called “the Wreck of the Titan” or “Futility” (Buccaneer Books, Cutchogue, New York, 1898). This book was written fourteen years BEFORE the disaster took place, and several years before the construction was even begun on the Titanic! In addition to this, other writers and thinkers had also started to develop a mythology about such large ships. In the 1880’s, the well known English journalist, W. T. Stead also wrote an account of a sinking ocean liner in the mid-Atlantic, and by 1882 had added the detail that an iceberg would be the cause of the disaster. There are also quite a number of recorded premonitions on the part of passengers who cancelled at the last minute before boarding the Titanic for its maiden voyage in 1912, citing that the ship would suffer a similar fate.<br /><br />How could all these people foresee something like this? How could Robertson foresee this so accurately? Well, it is quite possible that these men and women had a prophetic gift of sorts (after all, even atheists will concede that some among us are at least more intuitive than others), but it is also possible that they simply observed the world around them, thought about the possibilities, examined the history of man leading up to the era, and imagined what an ocean liner like this might be like. Clearly they did actually imagine something that was close to the truth of history. Now if a thousand years from now we were examining the truth of the Titanic in history, and we discovered the story of the Titan, do you think we would find ourselves saying, “Hey, that story about the Titanic is a lie, it was just a re-creation of a prior mythology called the Titan!” I hope not. I hope, instead, that we would evaluate the evidence related to the existence of the Titanic, read the eyewitness accounts, study the impact the event had on history, and then make a decision about the event. I would hope that a prior mythology would not stop our search for the truth. And let’s face it, the similarities between the Titan and the Titanic are far greater than the similarities between Mithras and Jesus.<br /><br />What Was in the Heart of Those Who Created Mithras?<br />So, is there also something in the heart of man that drives him to seek God and try his best to understand and know him? Is there something in the heart of man that encourages him to dream and imagine mythologies about God, just like he might imagine a boat like the Titanic? The Bible certainly maintains that God has placed the truth of his existence in the world around us:<br /><br /> <br /> Romans 1:18-20<br /> The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities-his eternal power and divine nature-have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.<br /><br /> <br />And the Bible also tells us that God has given us a conscience that testifies to his existence:<br /><br /> <br /> Romans 2:12-16<br /> All who sin apart from the law will also perish apart from the law, and all who sin under the law will be judged by the law. For it is not those who hear the law who are righteous in God's sight, but it is those who obey the law who will be declared righteous. (Indeed, when Gentiles, who do not have the law, do by nature things required by the law, they are a law for themselves, even though they do not have the law, since they show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts now accusing, now even defending them.)<br /><br /> <br />Why should we be surprised that as people created in the image of God, we would have a mind and a heart that dreams about the nature of our creator? If God has placed his moral truth in our heart, and hinted at his existence with the wonder of the created world around us, it is reasonable that even before anything was directly revealed in the Bible, men and women thought, imagined and dreamed about the nature of God (just like some obviously thought about large ocean liners!) We would actually expect these mythologies to bear a resemblance to the reality of God’s nature once it IS revealed to us, just as the Titan resembled the Titanic!! And that appears to be the case with Mithras. But let’s be realistic about the Mithras similarities. They are NOT all that powerful and striking; especially when we investigate them and see that the vast majority of the claims of similarity are simply not historically verified. They are lies.<br /><br />But go back for a minute and re-read the reasoning of the creators of the Mithras mythology. Think about what motivated them. They reasoned through the notion of God, based on what they saw in their environment and the seed of God’s conscience planted in their heart, and decided that if there is a God, (1) He must be an incredibly strong being who could emerge in our world in a way that defies the natural order of things, (2) He must have infinite wisdom and have the power to be the master of our lives, (3) He would love us enough to gather to himself disciples that would continue to share the truth with others, (4) He must exist outside and beyond this life, and if he loves us, he would want to bring us to Him in his eternal home, (5) He must have the power to perform the miraculous and control the forces of the natural environment, (6) If He loves us, he would want to save his children and come to their rescue, (7) He must be powerful enough to defeat death, (8) He would communicate with His children and represent himself strongly, (9) He would love his creation enough to provide us with some way to know him, perhaps in the form of a mediator, (10) His existence would result in believers who want to honor this God regularly, and (11) These believers would reasonably want to come together to celebrate their faith and unite under the same belief system.<br /><br />So, How Did God Eventually Appear?<br />OK, these eleven driving motivations have clearly contributed to the thinking of those who originally created the mythology of Mithras. As humans, we can evaluate the environment around us and form a reasonable notion about the God who created it. While Mithras is MUCH different from Jesus, it is interesting to note that God eventually met and exceeded the expectations of those who dreamed about Him. Jesus is everything we might have hoped for, and so much more. He is powerful and defied the natural expectation upon his emergence into our world. He has infinite wisdom and the power to be the master of our lives. He loves us enough to gather to himself disciples that will continue to share the truth with others. He exists today outside and beyond this life, and he loves us enough to bring us to Him in his eternal home. He has the power to perform miracles and control the forces of the natural environment. He wants to save his children and come to their rescue. He is powerful enough to defeat death. He communicates with His children and represents himself strongly. He loves us enough to provide us with a way to know God the Father, representing Him as a mediator. Jesus meets the expectation that early God seekers had and exceeds their expectation in every way!<br /><br />Paul Told Them That God Was Greater Than Their Expectations<br />That really shouldn’t surprise us, because Paul told early God seekers this very thing as he was addressing the people of Athens on Mars Hill, two thousand years ago. He told these Greek thinkers and seekers that while they had imagined the nature of God (just as Mithras believers had also dreamed about God), there was actually a TRUE God, Jesus Christ, who came into the world and exceeded their expectations:<br /><br /> <br /> Acts 17:22-31<br /> Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: "Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you. "The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. 'For in him we live and move and have our being.' As some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring.' "Therefore since we are God's offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone-an image made by man's design and skill. In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead."<br /><br /> <br />Paul seemed to recognize that God had an answer for all those who had been dreaming about His nature. God was not unaware of all the mythologies that preceded His appearance in the form of Jesus Christ. He knew everything that these cultures had imagined and dreamed about Him. He saw how they had shaped their gods. He knew how they had described them with miraculous powers and abilities. Why should it surprise us that God would eventually appear and prove to mankind that He was the ONE TRUE GOD by simply MEETING our expectations, point for point (and then surpassing these expectations along the way)? It should not surprise us that God might, in some way, CHOOSE to appear in a form that is consistent with the expectations of man, particularly when God wants his creation to recognize him. God could simply be saying, “Children, I know you have imagined me to be a certain way. In some small measure you have imagined correctly. In many other ways you have been very far from the mark. Let me show you who I am. Watch me meet all the expectations you had about my nature. Let me help you believe by the miraculous life that I will live among you. Let me rescue you in a way you could never have dreamed of.”<br /><br />Jesus Ends the Search<br />Maybe that’s why in the long lineage of mythologies and descriptions of God, Jesus completes the list. There are no significant mythologies that follow Jesus. Ever wonder why? Is it simply because the human race developed past such fables? Or is it because the human race developed past its own immaturity to the point and place where God finally determined it was time to appear in the flesh? Perhaps God decided that the time in which he had “overlooked such ignorance”, was now complete, so He presented himself in a way that ended all mythology. He appeared in TRUE power and glory, putting all prior mythologies to rest forever; meeting and exceeding anything we could ever have hoped for.<br /><br />Christianity Continues to Thrive<br />While there are actually very FEW similarities between Mithras and Jesus in detail, there are similarities between them in the underlying expectations early seekers had for God. Jesus simply meets the hopes and dreams of these seekers as the true incarnate God. While Mithraism is now a dead religion, Christianity continues to thrive. Why? Because the Mithras tradition is inconsistent with the geological history of our world, inconsistent with the archeological history of humanity, and unsupported by textual evidence. In contrast, Christianity still continues to speak to the minds of seekers today. It has strong geological and archeological consistency with what we see in our world and strong textual evidence to support the earliest of claims. Atheists have tried to portray Mithras as something he isn’t in order to make us believe that Jesus never existed at all. But the story of Mithras should only encourage us to believe in the God who exceeds our expectations!<br /><br />Note:<br />In researching this expansive topic, we purchased and read three important and dissertational volumes related to the Mithras Cult. These later works are far more reliable than 19th century scholarship (which is often cited by some of the conspiracy theorists who claim that Jesus is a re-working of Mithras), and we highly recommend these books for further research:<br /><br /> <br /> The Origins of the Mithraic Mysteries<br /><br /> (Cosmology and Salvation in the Ancient World)<br /> by David Ulansey (Oxford University Press, 1989)<br /><br /> <br /> Mithras, the Secret God<br /> by M. J. Vermaseren (Barnes and Noble Publishers, 1963)<br /><br /> <br /> Mithraic Studies<br /><br /> (Proceedings of the First International Congress of Mithraic Studies - 2 Volumes)<br /> edited by John R Hinnells (Manchester University Press, 1975)"Oceansnsunsetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13846008437312233108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6850795477301001211.post-82216006755933953602009-10-08T21:14:00.000-07:002009-10-19T21:04:07.405-07:00All of John 3, instead of John 3:16. Good stuff<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7HBuZx_i-PFQzU3e-e6kr9VnDTpFEbI06gV0xsRfUoPpMkHMlqG16It72wDY8d-YdePvk8cIzcsl8EvDI8FyBAt2sQi1bIkfRGJYEGc9Xh-Elyg1Kuhc-Tn8ykVtpmb3-xfgoFjJ39l99/s1600-h/536px-Bloch-SermonOnTheMount.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 357px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7HBuZx_i-PFQzU3e-e6kr9VnDTpFEbI06gV0xsRfUoPpMkHMlqG16It72wDY8d-YdePvk8cIzcsl8EvDI8FyBAt2sQi1bIkfRGJYEGc9Xh-Elyg1Kuhc-Tn8ykVtpmb3-xfgoFjJ39l99/s400/536px-Bloch-SermonOnTheMount.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5394527934083650610" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br />There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.<br />This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, "Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him."<br />Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."<br />Nicodemus said to Him, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?"<br />Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.<br />That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.<br />Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.'<br />The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit."<br />Nicodemus answered and said to Him, "How can these things be?"<br />Jesus answered and said to him, "Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things?<br />Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and you do not receive Our witness.<br />If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things?<br />No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, [that is], the Son of Man who is in heaven. <br />And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up,<br />that whoever believes in Him should not perish but [fn] have eternal life.<br />For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.<br />For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.<br />"He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.<br />And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.<br />For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.<br />But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God."<br />After these things Jesus and His disciples came into the land of Judea, and there He remained with them and baptized.<br />Now John also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was much water there. And they came and were baptized.<br />For John had not yet been thrown into prison.<br />Then there arose a dispute between [some] of John's disciples and the Jews about purification.<br />And they came to John and said to him, "Rabbi, He who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified--behold, He is baptizing, and all are coming to Him!"<br />John answered and said, "A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven.<br />You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, 'I am not the Christ,' but, 'I have been sent before Him.'<br />He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled.<br />He must increase, but I [must] decrease.<br />He who comes from above is above all; he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all.<br />And what He has seen and heard, that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony.<br />He who has received His testimony has certified that God is true.<br />For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the Spirit by measure.<br />The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand.<br />He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him."Oceansnsunsetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13846008437312233108noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6850795477301001211.post-41656508685858220672009-10-08T21:03:00.000-07:002011-02-20T20:14:22.778-08:00Jesus, the greatest man ever!In my opinion, and based on my studies and understanding, I think Jesus is the greatest man who ever lived, and lives :) That is the reason for the name of this blog. I am dedicating this blog to some of my favorite sayings of Jesus, as well as some quotes I found, about Jesus. Feel free to leave your thoughts, add more, or share whatever you like. Thanks so much! Ocean :)<br /><br /><br />Mark 11:22 "So Jesus answered and said to them, "Have faith in God."<br /><br />One of the first verses I came across..... It is as appropriate now as it was then, if not more so perhaps. <br /><br />"And Jesus answered and said to them: "Take heed that no one deceives you." Matthew 24:4<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><script src="http://www.gmodules.com/ig/ifr?url=http://gwidgets.com/lig/gpa/charles447/jesus-christ.xml&up_category=jesuschrist&synd=open&w=320&h=150&title=Words+of+Christ&border=%23ffffff%7C1px%2C1px+solid+black%7C1px%2C1px+solid+black%7C0px%2C1px+black&output=js"></script><br /><br /><br /><iframe title="YouTube video player" width="480" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/s6zpySZDBo0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Oceansnsunsetshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13846008437312233108noreply@blogger.com