Rubin Farr Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 Being the month of the Solstice, and seeing how the ISIS thread has generated several Secular vs Religious comments, I thought now would be a good time to have an academic discussion of the Christian mythological background, and history. It's no secret that Christmas was moved from Summer (Somewhere around Jesus' birth on June 17) to the Winter Solstice around 336AD, during Constantine's reign. Just like what Gospels were included in the Bible, the Christian Church has done some revisionist history here and there for the past several thousand years.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winter_solstice And you can't mention Christmas since the 20th Century without mentioning Santa Claus, based on Father Christmas, who was based on St. Nicholas of Myra. He lived in the late 3rd Century til around 343AD according to historical texts. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_Nicholas Not being religious myself, it still fascinates me as a fan of anthropology how humans revise what they believe in to suit the times they live in. The dark-haired, dark-skinned Jewish Rabi Jesus of Nazareth was retconned by the Catholic Church into a long blonde-haired blue-eyed Caucasian with great abs. He also became more asexual, born of divine conception, and never having married Mary Magdalene, or having any children with her, or having Siblings himself. What other facts are the members on here familiar with? Educate me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YO303 Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 http://forum.watmm.com/topic/89293-reality-check-was-jesus-a-dwarf/?fromsearch=1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rubin Farr Posted December 21, 2015 Author Share Posted December 21, 2015 http://forum.watmm.com/topic/89293-reality-check-was-jesus-a-dwarf/?fromsearch=1 LOL I hadn't heard that theory, did he still have great abs? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spunktronics Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 Similarities between Pagan and Christian practices The early Christians and Pagans shared many rituals and practices. Authors Freke & Gandy appear to assume that all of the copying was done by Christians from Pagan sources. 3 However, some might have gone in the opposite direction. During the 3rd century CE, Mithraism and Christianity were the main competitors for the religious affiliation the citizens of Romans. Some Christian practices might have actually been picked up by the Mithraites, rather than vice-versa. Many early Christians celebrated Jesus' birthday on JAN-6. Armenian Christians still do. In Alexandria, in what is now Egypt, the birthday of their god-man, Aion, was also celebrated on JAN-6. Christians and most Pagans eventually celebrated the birthday of their god-man on DEC-25. According to an ancient Christian tradition, Christ died on MAR-23 and resurrected on MAR-25. These dates agree precisely with the death and resurrection of Attis. Baptism was a principal ritual; it washed away a person's sins. In some rituals, Baptism was performed by sprinkling holy water on the believer; in others, the person was totally immersed. The most important sacrament was a ritual meal of bread and wine which symbolize the god-man's body and blood. His followers were accused of engaging in cannibalism. Early Christians initiated converts in March and April by baptism. Mithraism initiated their new members at this time as well. Early Christians were naked when they were baptized. After immersion, they then put on white clothing and a crown. They carried a candle and walked in a procession to a basilica. Followers of Mithra were also baptized naked, put on white clothing and a crown, and walked in a procession to the temple. However, they carried torches. At Pentecost, the followers of Jesus were recorded as speaking in tongues. At Trophonius and Delos, the Pagan priestesses also spoke in tongues: They appeared to speak in such a way that each person present heard her words in the observer's own language. An inscription to Mithras reads: "He who will not eat of my body and drink of my blood, so that he will be made on with me and I with him, the same shall not know salvation." 1 In John 6:53-54, Jesus is said to have repeated this theme: "...Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day." (KJV) The Bible records that Jesus was crucified between two thieves. One went to heaven and the other to hell. In the Mithras mysteries, a common image showed Mithras flanked by two torchbearers, one on either side. One held a torch pointed upwards, the other downwards. This symbolized ascent to heaven or descent to hell. In Attis, a bull was slaughtered while on a perforated platform. The animal's blood flowed down over an initiate who stood in a pit under the platform. The believer was then considered to have been "born again." Poor people could only afford a sheep, and so were literally washed in the blood of the lamb. This practice was interpreted symbolically by Christians. There were many additional points of similarity between Mithraism and Christianity. 2 St. Augustine even declared that the priests of Mithraism worshiped the same God as he did: Followers of both religions celebrated a ritual meal involving bread. It was called a missa in Latin or mass in English. Both the Catholic church and Mithraism had a total of seven sacraments. Epiphany, JAN-6, was originally the festival in which the followers of Mithra celebrated the visit of the Magi to their newborn god-man. The Christian Church took it over in the 9th century. http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_jcpa1.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cwmbrancity Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 timing, Rubin out driving earlier this whole subject was part of a BBC Radio4 program w/Professor Ronald Hutton himself, 1 of Britain's more articulate and eccentric (pre)historians he does for religious studies, archaeology & paganism what AJP Taylor did for modern history,,,,,,, crackin broadcast although u'll prob have to proxy it if yer abroad http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06s8bpt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rotwang Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 Not being religious myself, it still fascinates me as a fan of anthropology how humans revise what they believe in to suit the times they live in. The dark-haired, dark-skinned Jewish Rabi Jesus of Nazareth was retconned by the Catholic Church into a long blonde-haired blue-eyed Caucasian The blonde, blue-eyed Jesus is an atheist strawman. Virtually no Christians believe in it. That's not to say you can't find images of Jesus with blonde hair and blue eyes (though I don't recall ever having seen one), but you can also find images of Asian Jesus, Hispanic Jesus and Black Jesus. People tend to draw Jesus as a member of their own race because it doesn't matter what race he was. He also became more asexual, born of divine conception, and never having married Mary Magdalene, or having any children with her Hi Dan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rubin Farr Posted December 22, 2015 Author Share Posted December 22, 2015 Go to any Protestant Church in the US and you'll see the Aaron Funk Jesus up on the cross. for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haste Posted December 22, 2015 Share Posted December 22, 2015 i like to picture jesus as a mischievous badger Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
azatoth Posted December 22, 2015 Share Posted December 22, 2015 I think many people's idea of what Jesus looked like is based on Warner Sallman's Head of Christ painting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rubin Farr Posted December 22, 2015 Author Share Posted December 22, 2015 http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3359548/Is-real-face-JESUS-Experts-use-forensics-reveal-Christ-looked-like.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triachus Posted December 22, 2015 Share Posted December 22, 2015 That picture is so old, 10 years perhaps at least, has nobody really ever seen it before? How has it been resurfaced into the clickbait atmosphere as a "shocking totally new thingy that you won't believe!" thing ? edit: found, its from this show from 2001 => https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Son_of_God_(TV_series) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweepstakes Posted December 22, 2015 Share Posted December 22, 2015 i like to picture jesus as a mischievous badger I do too, now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Candiru Posted December 23, 2015 Share Posted December 23, 2015 Jesus makes Cosby look like a polyamorous pansexual aquatic genderqueer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rubin Farr Posted December 23, 2015 Author Share Posted December 23, 2015 Jesus makes Cosby look like a polyamorous pansexual aquatic genderqueer. Have you ever read about the fucked up sexual practices of Mohammed? He was a character Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cwmbrancity Posted December 23, 2015 Share Posted December 23, 2015 i dunno really, having been to Lourdes & doing the whole stations of the cross, public bath/healing weirdness as a kid, with sketchy touchy rapey priests and other shadey dealings, its prob been 1 of the main reasons for studying prehistoric Europe, shamanism, animism, the Neolithic transition, cos they did strange shit in prehistory bull skulls in house foundation layers composite mummies in knees up bundle poses in Scotland the Anglicization of Britain Neolithic monuments like Wayland's Smithy & the stones of Stenness/Brodgar complex, Newgrange burial complex in Eire is an experience if you dont get a sense of wonder at some of these sites,,,,,,, its these older traces, in language, culture, genetics & landscapes that pull the complexity of previous traditions into focus and its interesting when/where christianity appropriates & colonizes, factoid the Isle of Wight was entirely pagan until about the 7th or 8th Century AD and then the entire population was slaughterd. The Romans did exactly the same to the Druids on Anglesey/Ynys Mon centuries earlier rather than try n derail things more just a side note that Julian Cope's Modern Antiquarian is a ripping yarn, anything by Richard Bradley specifically 'The Idea of Order: The Circular Archetype in Prehistoric Europe 2012' and anything by Amanda Aldhouse-Green on the Druids & Celtic Gods. You see the timelines, patterns, archetypes, symbols, systems, power, death, place, landmarks, performance, ritual, networks, war, whole civilizations rise & fall time n again but just imagine Rust Cohle @ Avebury Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cwmbrancity Posted December 23, 2015 Share Posted December 23, 2015 ps not that the Angles were prehistoric just too early in the a.m to get fuck all right Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LimpyLoo Posted December 23, 2015 Share Posted December 23, 2015 http://www.12news.com/story/news/2015/12/21/arizona-legislator-who-believes-earth-6000-year-old-leads-education-committee/77715744/ Sent from my pee-pee using poo-poo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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