Christianity in parallel with other religions

[Universalist Catholic]

I could not help noticing that many non-Christian religions have many of the same themes as the Bible.  They seem to focus on righteousness, salvation, afterlife, love, and some type of great uniting force. 
I just want to make one thing clear, I do not endorse the belief that the bible is copied from Pagan Mythologies. 

However I have noticed that most religions had some type of God-Man figure who miraculously came to earth to save people, and ended up dying a horrible death, and being restored to Life.  Osiris, the Egyptian God, Vishnu from the Hindu Trinity, Hercules, and some other figures. 

There have been many creation stories surprisingly similar to the one from Genesis, along with every culture having some type of flood story.

Those cultures had a heavy emphasis on blood sacrifices.  Most cultures sacrificed animals, and believed that by sacrificing their own blood, they could become close to God. 

They believed in good and evil spirits(Angels and demons)

Their moral codes were very similar at its core, despite many became highly legalistic. 

I could not help but wonder why.

[Cardinal]

 :cloud9: Because it all happened in the beginning, if not literally, spiritually, and the souls of men are the "glass" we all see (perceive realities) thru darkly (in a darkened spiritual state, ie. without the mind of Christ).

It's like all the souls of mankind saw the same "movie" at the beginning of time, and depending on how hard they pressed into the spiritual aspect of their being, all retrieved some sort of fragment of what their soul saw.

They then promptly regurgitated it as "religion", and tried to make everyone else within earshot worship the God they "saw" or face the consequences, whether real or imagined.  :laughing7: My :2c: Blessings....

[WhiteWings]

Cardinal I think it's more about copyrightwrong issues :winkgrin:


Hi UC,
A few bits and pieces I found.
Summary it orginates from Daniel.
You should also ask the question: Who copied who?
For example is Christianity copied from Zoroasterism or the other way around?
http://bdsda.wordpress.com/2009/02/01/untimely-figs/

"Thomas Hyde, an eminent Orientalist (1636-1703), writing on the
ancient religion of the Persians, quotes from ABULFARAGIUS
(an Arab Christian Historian, 1126-1286), who says that ZOROASTER,
or ZERDUSHT, the Persian, was a pupil of Daniel the Prophet, and that
he predicted to the Magians (who were the astronomers of Persia), that
when they should see a new star appear it would notify the birth of a
mysterious child, whom they were to adore. It is further stated in the
Zend Avesta that this new star was to appear in the sign of the Virgin." (1)

http://www.biblicalfulfillment.org/id8.html

But how, we still may ask, did the heathen Magi, followers of the
  teachings of Zoroaster, hear about the prophecy Isaiah pronounced to
  the "house of David" more than seven hundred years before? Well,
  today we know for sure Zoroaster, the founder of the Persian
  religion that is called after him, lived in Babylon from about 560
  BC., at a time, when the Jews stayed in the Babylonian Captivity.
  The Jews obviously told Zoroaster about Isaiah's prophecy of the
  birth of the Messiah from a Jewish virgin of the house of David.
  Even the Syrian scholar Abu'l Faragius (1226-1286) states that when
  Zoroaster was in Babylon he became a pupil of the prophet Daniel,
  who was deported to Babylon from the land of Judah by Nebuchadnezzar
  II in 605 BC. And in his History of Dynasties Faragius further
  writes that Zoroaster had predicted to the Magi a "new star" would
  appear in the skies and signal the birth of a wonderful boy whom
  they were to adore. According to the Avesta, the bible of the
  Zoroastrians, the redeemer would be born of a virgin. When the new
  star appeared in the womb of the celestial Virgin (ERUA), the Magi
  knew the Messiah was born from a Jewish virgin, and immediately
  started on their long journey to Jerusalem in order to adore the
  new-born "King of the Jews."
But how, we still may ask, did the heathen Magi, followers of the
  teachings of Zoroaster, hear about the prophecy Isaiah pronounced to
  the "house of David" more than seven hundred years before? Well,
  today we know for sure Zoroaster, the founder of the Persian
  religion that is called after him, lived in Babylon from about 560
  BC., at a time, when the Jews stayed in the Babylonian Captivity.
  The Jews obviously told Zoroaster about Isaiah's prophecy of the
  birth of the Messiah from a Jewish virgin of the house of David.
  Even the Syrian scholar Abu'l Faragius (1226-1286) states that when
  Zoroaster was in Babylon he became a pupil of the prophet Daniel,
  who was deported to Babylon from the land of Judah by Nebuchadnezzar
  II in 605 BC. And in his History of Dynasties Faragius further
  writes that Zoroaster had predicted to the Magi a "new star" would
  appear in the skies and signal the birth of a wonderful boy whom
  they were to adore. According to the Avesta, the bible of the
  Zoroastrians, the redeemer would be born of a virgin. When the new
  star appeared in the womb of the celestial Virgin (ERUA), the Magi
  knew the Messiah was born from a Jewish virgin, and immediately
  started on their long journey to Jerusalem in order to adore the
  new-born "King of the Jews."
http://www.biblicalfulfillment.org/id8.html

[shawn]

20 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 people are without excuse.

I have asked this question myself.  I doubt any of us have the answers to this question but obviously there is a underlying common knowledge within man.  I believe that to be God placed.  The above passage supports we have all seen God's divine nature...clearly by the creation that surrounds us.  So, it doesn't shock me that many cultures/religions would share similar values and even stories.

[thinktank]

There is great information one can obtain from the cosmos, the creation of God. The creation of God is so complicated that one canot obtain mysteries of the universe from it. These shamans, mystics, story tellers, are able to tap into the mysteries far more than the average guy. Because though they do not have christ and his spirit to guide the information they pick up via dreams etc, can be anything and they can apply an unlimited amount of meaning behind it, the same way in which you can report a dream to someone and every person will try to expain your dream differently.

Without the holy spirit the truth will be fragmented and scattered.

:2c:

[Paul Hazelwood]

I could not help noticing that many non-Christian religions have many of the same themes as the Bible.  They seem to focus on righteousness, salvation, afterlife, love, and some type of great uniting force. 
I just want to make one thing clear, I do not endorse the belief that the bible is copied from Pagan Mythologies. 

However I have noticed that most religions had some type of God-Man figure who miraculously came to earth to save people, and ended up dying a horrible death, and being restored to Life.  Osiris, the Egyptian God, Vishnu from the Hindu Trinity, Hercules, and some other figures. 

There have been many creation stories surprisingly similar to the one from Genesis, along with every culture having some type of flood story.

Those cultures had a heavy emphasis on blood sacrifices.  Most cultures sacrificed animals, and believed that by sacrificing their own blood, they could become close to God. 

They believed in good and evil spirits(Angels and demons)

Their moral codes were very similar at its core, despite many became highly legalistic. 

I could not help but wonder why.

Gods image can be found in many things besides the bible.  Realizing that can only glorify God, the bible was never meant to be worshipped, nor should it be.