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Sitaram · Site Admin Joined: 14 Sep 2005 Posts: 1079

Date: Sat Aug 9, 2003 10:40 pm
Subject: Ancient Religions om_namah_shi...

http://sulekha.com/chpost.asp?for...ilosophy&show=0&cid=68827

http://www.egodeath.com/bensonmysteryrels.htm

Esoteric Christianity: The Greek Mystery Religions and Their Impact
on Christianity From Andrew Benson's book The Origins of Christianity
and the Bible. The mysteries were cults into which a person was
initiated (taken in). The initiate was called "mystes," the
introducing person "mystagogos" (leader of the mystes). The leaders
of the cults were the "hierophantes " (revealer of holy things) and
the "dadouchos" torchbearer).

Several mystery religions existed before the Hellenistic era. Their
great period began when the Romans imposed peace upon the
Mediterranean world, during the reign of the Roman emperor Augustus,
towards the end of the first century BCE (a few decades before the
birth of Christianity). In the first century CE various mystery
religions existed side-by-side throughout the Roman empire. Almost
every city of the eastern Mediterranean had a temple dedicated to a
god or goddess of a mystery religion. These religions were so
widespread that many Roman
officials and emperors participated in them.

Here are some examples. In Alexandria Ptolemy IV Philopator (reigned
221-205 BCE) was a devotee of Dionysus. In Rome Emperor Augustus
(reigned 44 BCE to 14 CE) was an initiate of the Eleusinian Mysteries
and a devotee of Apollo. Under his rule, in 28 BCE, a splendid temple
of Apollo was built on the Palatine Hill. At about 34 BCE the Roman
general Mark Antony, after his successful expedition to Armenia,
entered triumphantly into Ephesus casting himself in the role of the
savior god Dionysus. He was received by ecstatic maenads (women
participants in orgiastic Dionysian rites). Gaius Caesar (Caligula),
the Roman emperor from 37 to 41 CE, instituted his own mystery
religion and was initiated in it. Isiac frescoes dating from the time
of the emperor Caligula were found in the ruins on the Palatine Hill
at Rome. Emperor Vespasian (reigned 69-79 CE) became a devotee of
Sarapis after he participated in a miracle (a cure of a lame hand and
a cure of a vision problem) in Alexandria (at 70 CE). Domitian
(reigned 81-96 CE) built a huge temple for Isis and adopted the
Egyptian dietary laws after the priests of Isis saved his life. The
Isis temple that the emperor Domitian erected on the Campus Martius
(the Field of Mars) in Rome at the end of the 1st century CE was a
stately building. Trajan (reigned 98-117 CE) is depicted on his
triumphal arch as sacrificing to Isis. The Roman emperors Septimus
Sevirus and Caracalla, who ruled jointly from 198 to 211 CE, were
devotees of Sarapis. Caracalla appeared on his coins as "Sarapis
Cosmocrator." He called himself "Philosarapis" (lover of Sarapis).

The cults of the mystery religions were influenced uniformly by the
ideas of the Greek philosophers. A few of them existed before the
turn of the Era, but several more appeared at about the turn of the
Era. They reached their height of popularity during the times of early
Christianity. Christianity was born during a period of proliferation.
Christianity itself in the beginning consisted of many cults that
existed independently and had very diverse doctrines. Because of such
diversity, it is debatable whether Gnosticism was just another cult
of Christianity or whether it was a separate religion.

The following features were common to all mystery religions.
Admission to the community was by a rite of initiation, a solemn
consecration. The initiation was held in secret, which explains why
they were called "mysteries." The consecrated were joined by this
mystery and were separated from the unconsecrated world, just as
Christians set themselves apart from the world.

(John 15:19) ... you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out
of the world ... (KJV)

Plato indicated that the members of the mystery communities
considered each other brothers:

"Dion attached to himself two brothers ...men whose friendship was
not derived from philosophy, but from ... mutual entertaining and
sharing in religion and mystic ceremonies."

(Acts 15:7) After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed
them: "Brothers ... (NIV)

The mystery followers were bound by an oath to keep the mysteries
secret. The actual initiation was preceded by numerous rites of
purification such as fasting, baptism, and confession. The Christian
theologian Tertullian (ca. 155-220 CE) wrote, "In certain mysteries,
e.g. Isis and Mithra, it is by baptism [Latin: per lavarum] that
members are initiated ..." Clement of Alexandria (ca. 150-211 or 215
CE) wrote, "... in the current Mysteries among the Greeks ceremonial
purifications hold the premier place."

The mystery religions practiced baptism before Christianity. The
second century Christian apologist Justin Martyr did not want to
admit that the Christians copied the pagans. He explained the pagan
origin of baptism by claiming that the demons learned about baptism
from Isaiah and taught it to the pagans: "... the demons prompted
those [the pagans] who enter their temples ... to sprinkle themselves
also with water; furthermore, they cause them to wash their whole
persons."
Plutarch mentions the confession of sins by mystery initiates during
the ritual of initiation. "When Antalcidas was being initiated into
the mysteries at Samothrace, he was asked by the priest [to confess]
what especially dreadful thing he had done during his life ..." John
the Baptist preached confession of sins before baptism: (Mark 1:4-5)
John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of
repentance for the remission of sins. And there went out unto him all
the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of
him in the river of Jordan, confessing their sins. (KJV) Confession
of sins was a common practice among the early Christians: (James
5:16) Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another,
that you may be healed.

(KJV) (1 John 1:9) If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to
forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
(KJV)

After the preliminaries, there followed the delivery of the sacred
symbol or signal. (Christians, too, used symbols, such as the fish
and the anchor.) The initiation culminated in the vision of the
deity, in which the appearance of light played an important part.
During the ceremony of initiation at the greater mysteries of
Eleusis, the initiate would see a bright light and would receive the
revelation of the mysteries. Similarly, Paul saw a bright light on
the road to Damascus. He had a vision of a deity: Jesus. He received
the gospel of Jesus by revelation. (Ephesians 3:3) ... how the
mystery was made known to me by revelation ... (RSV) Thus, Paul was
initiated to the mysteries of Christ.

With this vision the initiate of the mystery religions attained union
with the deity and thus was endowed with eternal life. (Likewise,
after Paul saw the vision of Jesus, he attained union with him and
was endowed with eternal life.) Another symbolic rite was the vesting
of the robe of the deity. By putting on the robe, the initiate "put
on the deity." Likewise, Paul "put on Christ." (Galatians 3:27) For
as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
(KJV)

The mystery initiates after their initiation adopted a new name.
Likewise, when Saul accepted Jesus he adopted a new name: Paul. Also,
Simon (a Jewish name) took the name Peter (a Greek name). (Mark 3:16)
And Simon he surnamed Peter. (KJV) Revelation states that all
believers will receive new names. (Revelation 2:17) To him that
overcomes I will give ... a new name ... (KJV)

Initially, salvation from Hell through the Zoroastrian messiah was
introduced by the Zoroastrians. This idea slightly modified was
adopted by the mystery religions during the turn of the Common Era.
The promise of salvation from the cycle of reincarnation and the
escape to a heavenly world was the main characteristic of all the
mystery religions. Only the soul that had lived a pious life three
times could be liberated from that cycle. These religions emphasized
individual salvation (an idea emphasized in Christianity).
Christianity adopted salvation from Hell, not from the cycle of
reincarnation.

Within the mystery communities the class distinctions of the secular
world, such as differences in nationality, race, or economic and
social position, were null and void. Free men and slaves, the
important and the insignificant, all were brethren within the
community. The early Christians adopted this practice. (Galatians
3:28) There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free,
there is neither male nor female: for you are all one in Christ
Jesus. (KJV) Except for
Mithraism (which was a man's religion), the women of the mystery
religions associated freely with men.

There is a distinct difference between the words "secret"
and "mystery." A secret is usually knowledge that is hidden. A
mystery is a truth that can be understood only by revelation from
God. The mystery is more like an enigma, a riddle, or a puzzle. The
words "secret" and "secrets," which appear in all the books of the
Old Testament (except in Daniel), refer to lack of knowledge, not to
lack of understanding. Daniel was completed during the Hellenistic
era, when mysteries were popular. In Daniel God gave a dream to
Nebuchadnezzar that included a mystery, whose explanation was
revealed to Daniel by God.

The word "mystery" (Gr. mystirion) is a key word in Christianity. It
appears in the New Testament 22 times in the singular and 5 times in
the plural. The following verses indicate that Christianity was
established as a mystery religion. (1 Timothy 3:16) Without any
doubt, the mystery of our religion is great. (NRSV) (1 Timothy 3:9)
they [the deacons] must hold fast to the mystery of the faith ...
(NRSV) (Luke 8:10) The mysteries of the kingdom of heaven. (KJV)
(Ephesians 3:9) ... the mystery, which from the beginning of the
world has been hid in God ...(KJV) (Ephesians 5:32) This mystery is
great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church.
(NASB) (Colossians 4:3) ... so that we may speak forth the mystery of
Christ ... (NASB)

Hellenistic Christianity was "the mystery of Christ," like "the
mystery of Dionysus" or "the mystery of Isis." More than once Paul
mentions "the mystery of Christ." (Ephesians 3:4) When you read this
you can perceive my insight into the mystery of Christ. (RSV) In the
following verse Paul makes it clear that Christianity is a mystery
religion. (1 Corinthians 4:1) This is how one should regard us, as
servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. (RSV) Paul
wrote that resurrection was a mystery. (1 Corinthians 15:51) Lo! I
tell you a mystery. (KJV) His gospel was a mystery. (Ephesians
6:19) ... that I may open my mouth boldly, to make known the mystery
of the gospel ... (KJV) (Colossians 1:26) the mystery hidden for ages
and generations but
now made manifest to his saints [the Hellenist Christians]. (KJV) (1
Corinthians 2:7) But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery. (KJV)
(Ephesians 1:9) Having made known to us the mystery ... (KJV)

In accordance to Paul, the Christian church father Clement of
Alexandria invited pagans to be initiated in the mysteries of
Christianity. He wrote, "Then you will have the vision of my God, and
will be initiated in those holy mysteries, and will taste the joys
that are hidden away in heaven ..." He describes Christianity
as "sacred mysteries." He talks about initiation and Jesus marking
the initiates with his seal. "O Truly sacred mysteries! O pure light!
In the blaze of torches I have a vision of heaven and of God. I
become holy by initiation. The Lord [Jesus] reveals the mysteries; he
marks the worshipper with his seal ..." The Dionysians were marked
with the seal of Dionysus, the sign of ivy leaf.

Ignatius of Antioch, (died ca. 110), bishop of Antioch, Syria, in his
letter to the Ephesians wrote, "... you are ... fellow-initiates with
[apostle] Paul ..." The mystery religions did not promise their
believers a universal resurrection. The belief that the dead will
rise and will live on this planet with their god is almost unique to
Judeo-Christianity.

The mystery followers believed in reincarnation. When a wicked person
dies his or her soul leaves the body and goes to the underworld to be
punished and purified. After that, it returns to the world and enters
the body of a newborn animal or human. On the other hand, when a
truly righteous person dies his or her soul leaves the body and joins
the eternal company of his or her god. As we mentioned elsewhere in
this book, the doctrine of reincarnation found its way into the
Wisdom of Solomon and into the Gospel of John.

Judaism was unpopular because it promised rewards only to the Jews.
But the gods of the mystery religions were popular because they
offered salvation from sin and the promise of eternal life to
everyone regardless of their nationality. So did Christianity.
(Romans 10:12) For there is no difference between the Jew and the
Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich to all that call upon him.
(KJV)

The gods of the mystery religions died and rose. So did the god of
Christianity. The mystery initiates secured immortality for
themselves by physically reenacting the death and resurrection of
their god. Paul wrote that the Christian initiates symbolically die
and rise with Jesus. (Romans 6:3, 5-6, 8) ... so many of us as were
baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? For if we
have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we will be
also in the likeness of his resurrection. ... our old man is
crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed ... if we
are dead with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.
(KJV)

Several mystery religions (such as the religion of Isis, Sarapis,
Mithra, and various Gnostic sects) originated in Egypt, Syria, and
Persia. They emphasized personal salvation. They promised to bridge
the gap between man and god, so that man would be elevated to the
rank of deity. Thus, an initiate would become sinless like his god.
Paul wrote (Romans 8:29) ... to become conformed to the image of his
son [Jesus]. (NASB)

In contrast to the Old Testament, which pointed out the gap between
God and humankind, those religions promised their believers union
with the gods. So did Christianity. (Galatians 2:20) It is no longer
I that lives, but Christ lives in me. (KJV) After his death the
mystery initiate would live in the presence of his god. Plato
wrote, "... whoever goes uninitiated and unsanctified to the other
world will lie in the mire, but he who arrives there initiated and
purified will dwell with the gods." Likewise, for Christian
believers. In the other world they will dwell with God. (Revelation
21:3) ... He [God] will dwell among them, and they will be His
people, and God himself will be among them ... (NASB) (2 Corinthians
5:8) I ... prefer rather to be absent from the body and to be at home
[in the other world] with the Lord. (NASB)

In the mystery religions this personal relationship with the deity
was also attained by the initiate through a sacred meal. The initiate
ate "holy food," and it was as though he ate the deity and thereby
became a deity. The chief ritual in the mysteries of Dionysus, Attis,
Isis, Mithra, and Orphism was this sacred meal. The meal was
shared "in association."

The Qumran Essenes (many of whom joined the Jewish Christians, the
original followers of Jesus imitated the pagan associations and their
sacred meals in common. They centered many of their meetings around
their meals. The early Christian called these meals "agape meals"
or "feasts of charity." (Jude 1:12) ... in your feasts of charity,
when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear. (KJV) The
following meals are probably agape meals. (Acts 6:1-2) ... their
widows
were being overlooked in the daily serving of food. ... It is not
desirable to neglect the word of God in order to serve the [meal]
tables. (NASB)

The rest of the Jews, too, were influenced by the Greeks. They
adopted sacred meals, which are mentioned in the Mishnah (Berakot 8).
Their meals included hand washing, lighting lamps, blessing and
breaking of the bread and blessing a cup of wine. However, the bread
and wine of the Jewish meals did not symbolize the body and the blood
of their god. Likewise, the last supper mentioned in Mark 14:22-24
was a common Jewish sacred meal.

As mentioned earlier, the gods of the mystery religions, such as
Osiris, Adonis, Attis, and Zagreus-Dionysus, had died and were
resurrected. The idea of a god dying and rising is much older than
Christianity. It existed among the Canaanites several centuries
before the Hellenistic era. The Canaanites believed that their god
Baal (son of the god Dagon)] was being murdered each spring by Mot
and coming to life in the Fall.

Here is an interesting version of the myth of Baal, which contains
parallels to the passion of Jesus. The Babylonian-Canaanite god Baal
(also known in the Hellenistic era as Bel or Marduk) died and rose
again. In the Ugaritic text The Baal Epic there is a passage where
Baal fell under the power of Mot (death), so he died. The goddess
Anath found him, buried him, and mourned him. Anath seized Mot, who
personified death, and destroyed him. Because of her victory over
death, Baal revived and returned to his throne.

According to another version, Baal was arrested (like Jesus). He was
sentenced, chastised, and was sent away to die with a criminal (Jesus
was crucified with two robbers), while another criminal was freed
(Barabbas was freed in place of Jesus). According to this version, a
woman cleansed away the blood that was oozing from the heart of
Baal , which had apparently been pierced by a spear or a javelin.
Afterward, Baal was found in a mountain, where he was being watched
over. The goddess Anath prepared a nest for him and cared for him.
(Women went to the grave of Jesus to care for his body.) Finally,
Baal, or Bel-Marduk, came back alive and well from the mountain. Such
myths circulated before the birth of Christianity.

Christianity Identified as a Mystery Religion The following quotation
reveals how similar Christianity was to the Greek mystery religions.
Justin Martyr wrote, "When we say that God created and arranged all
things in this world, we seem to repeat the teaching of Plato; when
we announce a final conflagration [of the world], we utter the
doctrine of the Stoics; and when we assert that the souls of the
wicked ... after death, will be ... punished, and that the souls of
the good ... will live happily, we believe the same things as your
poets and philosophers ... When ... we assert that the Word, our ...
Jesus Christ, who is the first-begotten of God the Father, was not
born as the result of sexual relations, and that He was crucified,
died, arose from the dead, and ascended into Heaven, we propose
nothing new or different from that which you say about the so-called
sons of Jupiter." Justin wrote these lines to win pagans to
Christianity. He tried to tell them that Christian beliefs were not
much different from their pagan beliefs. The Greek mystery religions
preceded Christianity.

In the following passage Porphyry accuses Origen for copying from the
Stoics the figurative interpretation, which was the interpretation
also used by the Greek mystery religions. "... He [Origen] used the
books of Chaeremon the Stoic and Cornutus, from whom he learned the
figurative interpretation, as employed in the Greek mysteries ..."
The Greek mystery religions used allegorical interpretation before
Christianity.

Some pagans laughed at the Hellenist Christians for adopting the
ideas of Plato and the mystery religions. Tertullian wrote, "... we
are laughed at for proclaiming that God will judge, for just so the
poets and philosophers set up a tribunal in the world below." Further
on in this passage Tertullian mentions the river Pyriphlegethon,
originally mentioned by Plato. He acknowledges the striking
similarities between the pagan descriptions of eternal life and the
corresponding descriptions in the New Testament. Twice he refers to
Christianity as "our mysteries." He claims that the religious ideas
of Christianity are older that their pagan parallels. He falsely
accuses the Greek philosophers and poets for borrowing from
Christianity.. "Now whence, I ask you, do the philosophers and poets
find things so similar? Whence indeed, unless it be from our
mysteries [Christianity]. And if from our mysteries which are the
older, then ours are truer and more credible when the mere copies of
them [your mysteries] win credence. If they invented these things out
of their feelings, then our mysteries must be counted copies of what
came later, a thing contrary to nature. For the shadow never exists
before the body, nor the copy before the truth."
Justin Martyr and Tertullian claimed that the similarities between
Mithraism and Christianity were due to Mithraism's demonic imitation
of Christianity. They denied that it was Christianity who imitated
the mystery religions. Clement of Alexandria suggested that
Christianity was indeed the mystery religion with "truly sacred
mysteries." These mysteries offer the pure light and vision of the
only true God. The pagan mysteries he called shameless and corrupt.

Celsus, considered Christianity as one of the mystery religions. In
his discussion of Christianity, he mentions "the other mysteries,"
that is, the mystery religions besides Christianity. Referring to
Christianity Origen wrote "... we call them our mysteries."
Christianity was essentially one of the mystery religions of the
first century. Clement of Alexandria claimed it was the best, and
rightly so because it managed to wipe out its competitors and
forerunners.

The Eleusinians

More than five centuries before the arrival of Christianity, at
Eleusis (a small town outside Athens) the people established the
Eleusinian mysteries.There they reenacted the myth of Demeter's
search and her reunion with her daughter Persephone. Every year two
Eleusinian ceremonies were held: the Greater mysteries, in honor of
Demeter and Kori, and the Lesser mysteries, in honor of Kori alone.

The Lesser mysteries were a preparation for the Greater ones. They
were performed at Agrae on the river Ilissus (outside Athens) in the
month of Anthesterion (February-March). Because of the oaths for
secrecy we have sparse testimony of what exactly took place in the
initiation ceremony.

Something was recited, something was revealed, and acts were
performed. Also, the initiates took an oath of secrecy before
preparing for the Greater mysteries. The penalty for revealing the
mysteries to outsiders was death. The initiates of the Lesser
mysteries waited at least one year until they could participate in
the Greater mysteries, which were held at Eleusis in the month of
Boedromion (September-October). The Greater mysteries included
baptism in the sea, three days of fasting, and the completion of the
mysterious central rite. These acts completed the initiation, and the
initiate was promised rewards in the life after death.

At first, the Eleusinian mysteries were restricted to the citizens of
Eleusis and Athens. But during the Hellenistic era (which began at
about 331 BCE) they became open to non-Greeks. In the 2nd century BCE
they spread throughout the eastern Mediterranean. The Greek historian
Diodorus of Sicily (1st century BCE) wrote, "... the mysteries of
Eleusis, ... by reason of their very great antiquity and sanctity,
have come to be famous among all mankind." They survived until the
end of paganism (sometime around the end of the 4th century CE). Many
prominent Romans, including Sulla, Anthony, Cicero, and Atticus, were
initiated in the Eleusinian mysteries.

As mentioned earlier, the secret observances of the Eleusinian
rituals included things recited, things shown, and things performed.
According to Hippolytus (ca. 170-235 CE), a leader of the Roman
Church, in certain Eleusinian mystery rites among the things shown to
the initiates was a single head of grain. This grain was beheld in
silence as a manifestation of the life in it, which symbolized the
life in all. Paul compared the mystery of death and resurrection to
the planting and the sprouting of a seed. (1 Corinthians 15:36-37)
What you sow does not come to life unless it dies. And what you sow
is not the body which is to be, but a bare kernel, perhaps of wheat
or of some other grain. (RSV) (John 12:24) ... unless a grain of
wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it
dies, it bears much fruit. (NASB)

The Eleusinian initiates were crowned with wreaths. Likewise, the
twenty-four elders in Heaven have crowns of gold. (Revelation
4:4) ... [they] had on their heads crowns of gold. (KJV)

The writers of the New Testament did not only borrow ideas and themes
from the Eleusinians but they also used the Eleusinian lingo. (2
Peter 1:16) ... but were eyewitnesses of his majesty ...(KJV) The
word "eyewitnesses" in the Greek text
is "epoptae." "Epoptes"(singular) was a key term in the Eleusinian
mysteries. On a visit to the Greater mysteries the initiate reached
the grade of "epoptes," that is, "one who has seen." After that,
being endowed with "good hope," he looked to a brighter future in the
next world. The mystery religions used such expressions as "the
assembly (ekklesia)," "the voyage of life," "the ship," "the
anchor," "the port," "the wreath" of the initiate, etc. The
Christians adopted most of such terminology.

To avoid the place of punishment after death and go to the better
world, the Eleusinian initiates (also the Dionysians and the Orphics)
wore white garments, avoided sex indulgence, and practiced
asceticism. The white garments were not common in pre-exilic Judaism.

The Essenes were known to wear white garments, emphasize celibacy,
and live an ascetic life style. During the Hellenistic era white
garments were the "blue jeans" of the righteous. They were popular in
the New Testament. During his transfiguration Jesus' clothes
became "as white as the light." According to Revelation, the elders
in Heaven wear white garments.

During the initiation ceremony at the Eleusinian mysteries in the
dark room of initiation the priest would produce a crown of light
with tongues of fire around his head. First they shaved the head of
the priest and covered it with a protective ointment. Then, they
attached to the top of his head a circular metal container with
alcohol, which was set aflame in the dark and would shine for a brief
time. The crown of flame on the head of the priest was like a tongue
of fire. This
imagery was borrowed by the writer of Acts. (Acts 2:3) They saw what
seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on [the
head of] each of them. (NIV)

A short history of Baptism: From the Eleusinians to Christianity
Long before Christianity the Eleusinians instituted the ritual of
baptism as part of initiation into the mystery. The initiates were
required to undergo a preparatory purification; they marched in a
procession to the sea and washed their sins away by baptism. The
Roman historian Livy (64/59 BCE to 17 CE) mentions that ceremonial
washing preceded initiation into the mysteries of Dionysus. Through
baptism they secured glorious immortality in the afterlife. Their
message was
"new life grows out of every grave."

For the Eleusinians being born again and securing forgiveness of sins
by submersion in water was a mystery. Baptism symbolized the
purification of the soul. Tertullian wrote, "... in the
Apollinarian and Eleusinian rites they are baptized, and they imagine
that the result of this baptism is rebirth and the remission of the
penalties of sins ..."

The mystery religion ritual of baptism was adopted first by the
Essenes and then by the Christians. The Essenes borrowed the ritual
of baptizing either from the Eleusinians or the Pythagoreans. During
their initiation they made a covenant with God, which included
baptizing
and repentance. The Manual of Discipline (a.k.a. Rule of the
Community) required sincere repentance before baptism and entering
the covenant. (1QS 5:13-14) "Those [candidates] will not enter into
the water [of baptism] ... for they are not purified except they
repent from their
wickedness." The Manual describes the procedure of entering the
covenant. (1QS 3:8-9, 12 ) "... through the submission of his soul to
all God's ordinances ... he may purify himself with the water-for-
impurity and sanctify himself with rippling water ... this will
become for him a covenant of eternal Communion [with God]."

Ritual purification with water was part of early Judaism. For the
most part it involved ceremonially washing the hands, while in a few
instances it required washing the whole body. It was done to remove
uncleanness after touching something unclean, such as a corpse. There
are distinct differences between the Hebrew rituals and the Essene
rituals of baptism. The Hebrews washed their bodies whereas the
Essenes practiced total immersion. The Damascus Document forbade
baptism in bodies of water insufficient for immersion. The Hebrews
did not perform
such ritual for those who entered Judaism whereas the Essenes did.
Sometime during the first century CE proselyte baptism was introduce
to Judaism.

The Essenes and John the Baptist practiced baptism before the early
Christians. John was in many ways was an Essene. He lived like the
Essenes of Qumran and preached similarly. Mark indicates that he did
not baptize "in the name of Jesus Christ." John was not a Christian,
yet Mark implies that the sins of his converts were forgiven. (Mark
1:4) John did baptize in the wilderness, and preach the baptism of
repentance for the remission [forgiveness] of sins. (KJV) Josephus,
too, wrote that John the Baptist urged the Jews to baptize for the
remission of sins and the purification of the soul. Baptism for the
forgiveness of sins was an established practice before Jesus. The
early Christians borrowed baptism from John the Baptist.

Like the mystery followers, early Christians conducted baptizing at
the time of initiation. Peter ordered baptizing as soon as they
repented. (Acts 2:38) Then Peter said to them, Repent, and be
baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the
remission of sins ... (KJV)
Christianity was a continuation of pre-existing beliefs. As we will
further examine, it was created by the fusion of Judaic and Greek
beliefs. Such syncretism was common during that era.

Religions were put together using elements of other religions. All
mystery religions shared common beliefs. People were not offended by
such inter-borrowing. The mystery religions were not competing with
one another. They got along harmoniously. People belonged to several
mystery religions simultaneously. Only Christianity prohibited its
converts from belonging to other religions. This was not a problem in
the beginning. However, when Christians grew in numbers (in the
second century CE) the other religions became offended by
Christianity's
competitiveness and its lack of sharing. As a result, they started
persecuting the Christians.

The Dionysians

Related to the Eleusinian mysteries were the cults of Dionysus (the
Greek god of fertility) and the Orphics. In the Dionysiac mystery the
initiates would go into a temporary sacred madness and their soul
would wing its way to unite with the god Dionysus. The soul would
be "with god" or "in god." The initiates became "e n qeoi " (enthei),
that is, they dwelled "in god." The idea of dwelling "in god" appears
in John's letter. (1 John 4:15) Whosoever will confess that Jesus is
the Son of God, God dwells in him, and he in God. (KJV) Paul often
used the expression "in Christ." (Galatians 3:28) for you are all one
in Christ Jesus. (KJV) (Romans 16:7) ... my fellow prisoners ... who
also were in Christ before me. (KJV) (2 Corinthians 5:17) Therefore
if any man be in
Christ, he is a new creature. (KJV) "In Christ" is equivalent
to "dwell in Christ." It reflects the Mystic Union or the Mystic
Communion, which was practiced in the mystery religions of that
period.

Plato wrote that during the initiation, the initiates "search eagerly
within themselves to find the nature of their god, they are
successful, because they have been compelled to keep their eyes fixed
upon the god ... they are inspired and receive from him character and
habits, so far as it is possible for a man to have part in God." The
mystery initiates believed that through the secret rituals they would
gain secret knowledgeand thus accomplish a mysticalunion with the
divine.This idea is clearly reflected in the following verses. (John
6:56) Whosoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and
I in him. (NIV) This is not something that the historical Jesus would
have said. Even in a symbolic way, this statement is contrary to the
law of Moses,
which Jesus upheld.

Uniting with God was also an idea shared by the Stoics of that era.
Seneca (ca. 4 BCE to 65 CE) wrote, "God is near you, he is with you,
he is within you." Paul wrote (Colossians 1:27) ... Christ in you ...
(KJV)

Here is a parallel between the mysteries of Dionysus and
Christianity. The account where God miraculously loosened the fetters
of Paul and Silas and opened the doors of their prison resembles an
episode of Euripides' play Bacchae where Dionysus miraculously freed
his followers (the Bacchae) by undoing their fetters and opening the
doors of their prison:

"The captured Bacchae you [Pentheus]
did put in ward, and in common prison
bind with chains, they have fled to the
meadows, loosed from bonds ... the
fetters from their feet self-separated fell;
doors, without mortal hand unbarred
themselves. Yes, loaded with many
miracles this man [Dionysus] ..."

(Acts 16:26) And suddenly there was a great
earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison
were shaken: and immediately all the doors
were opened, and every one's bands were
loosed. (KJV)

Even the places of worship were similar. The Dionysians worshipped in
caverns. Early Roman Christians worshipped in catacombs, subterranean
cemeteries.

The idea of God placing seals on the bodies of his followers did not
come from the Old Testament. Yet it appears in the New Testament. It
came from the Greek mystery religions. At the time of Antiochus the
followers of Dionysus carried the seal of Dionysus on their bodies.

The seal of Dionysus

http://www.dubjockey.co.uk/the_third_book_of_maccabees.html

(3 Maccabees 2:29) those who are
registered are also to be branded on
their bodies by fire with the ivy-leaf
symbol of Dionysus ... (RSV)

The seal of God

(Revelation 9:4) ... those men which have not the seal of God in
their foreheads. (KJV) (John 6:27) ... on Him the Father, God, has
set His seal. (NASB) (2 Corinthians 1:21-22) But it is God
who ... has put his seal upon us ... (RSV)

(Psalms of Solomon 15:6) "For God's seal is on the righteous for
their salvation." This book was influenced by the Greek culture. It
was revered by the early Church. The transfer of the Dionysian
beliefs into Christianity was accomplished partly by Philo and the
Alexandrian Jews who joined Christianity, partly by the Essenes, and
partly by those who before joining Christianity worshipped Dionysus.
As we will see further on, the religion of Dionysus was popular in
Palestine before the advent of Christianity. Justin Martyr
wrote, "... we [Christians] who, from every nation, once worshipped
Bacchus [the Roman name for Dionysus], the son of Semele, and
Apollo ... and Proserpine [Persephone] and Venus [Aphrodite] (...
whose
mysteries you also celebrate), and Aesculapius [or Asclepius], or any
one of the other so-called gods, now, through Jesus Christ, even
under the threat of death, [we] hold these [gods] in contempt ..."

The Orphics

The Orphics worshipped the infant god Zagreus-Dionysus, the son of
Zeus from a mortal woman named Semele. Hera, the wife of Zeus, being
jealous of her husband's infidelity, sent the Titans to slaughter and
cut to pieces the newborn Dionysus. In one version of the myth the
goddess
Rhea gathered the limbs of the infant and Dionysus was resurrected.
The Orphics commemorated with yearly rites the passion and
resurrection of Dionysus, the son of God. Christians, too, have been
commemorating every Easter the passion and resurrection of their god
Jesus.

The Orphics (and the Dionysians) practiced the mystery of communion
long before Jesus. They had sacramental communion with their god,
Zagreus-Dionysus, who had suffered, died, and arose. Justin Martyr
reported that they used wine and bread in their communion: "For when
they say Dionysus was born of Zeus' union with Semele, and
narrate ... that he was torn to pieces and died, he arose again and
ascended to heaven, and when they use the wine in his mysteries, is
it not evident that the Devil has imitated the previously quoted
prophecy ...?" Justin Martyr acknowledged that the Dionysians were
practicing communion before the Christians, but, he explained, they
did so because the Devil imitated an ancient prophecy of the Old
Testament.

Through the mystery of communion, the Orphics became one with their
god. The Christian communion is almost identical to the Orphic
ritual. (John 6:55-56) For my flesh is real food, and my blood is
real drink. Whosoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in
me, and I in
him. (NIV)

The Orphics spread the idea that the world under the power of evil
and that the body is a burden and a bondage for the soul, whose
destiny is to escape this bondage and arrive at eternal and blessed
life. They also promoted the belief that man's efforts to win
salvation were powerless without divine assistance.This idea appears
in the following verse of John. (John 6:44) No one can come to me
unless the Father who sent me draws him. (NIV)

There are further parallels between the Orphics and the Hellenist
Christians. The Orphics believed that Dionysus, being born from the
divine Zeus and the mortal woman Semele, had a two-fold nature.
Likewise, Jesus had a two-fold nature, divine and human. Dionysus was
persecuted and murdered, yet was resurrected and became victorious.
Jesus was persecuted, murdered, and was victorious through his
resurrection. Late texts reflecting Orphic eschatology put an
emphasis on the role of Dionysus as king of the
New Age. When Jesus returns he will be the king of the New Age.
Though a child, Dionysus was
made to reign over all the kings in the universe. Jesus is the king
of kings.Dionysus was called
"Lord." Jesus, too, was called "Lord." (Acts 2:36) God has made this
Jesus, whom you crucified,
both Lord and Christ. (NIV)

The Orphics abstained from meat. Their vegetarianism had a deep
religious justification. (They believed in reincarnation. They did
not want to eat their ancestors.) Plato wrote, "... their offerings
to the gods consisted not of animals but of cakes of meal and
grain ... and other such bloodless sacrifices, and from flesh they
abstained as though it were unholy to eat it ... those ... men ...
lived what is called an 'Orphic life,' keeping wholly to inanimate
food and ... abstaining wholly from things animate." By refusing to
eat meat the Orphics (and the Pythagoreans) abstained from blood
sacrifices, which were obligatory in the official cult of the Greeks.
(In this they differed from the Dionysians, who conducted public
sacrifices.) With this refusal, the Orphics expressed their decision
to detach themselves from the city (set themselves apart) and
renounce the world. They proclaimed their rejection of the Greek
religious system. Likewise, the
Hellenist Christians abstained from the Judaic blood sacrifices and
renounced the world. (John 15:19) ... you are not of the world, but I
have chosen you out of the world ... (KJV)

Orpheus (from whom the Orphics received their name) and Dionysus went
to Hades and returned. Jesus did likewise. Plato wrote, "Orpheus ...
they sent back ... from Hades." The 1st century BCE Greek historian
Diodorus of Sicily wrote "... he [Orpheus] dared the amazing deed
of descending into Hades, where he entranced Persephone ... and
persuaded her ... to allow him to bring up his dead wife from Hades,
in this act resembling Dionysus; for the myths relate that Dionysus
brought up his mother Semele from Hades." (Several demigods and
heroes, like Pollux, Theseus, and Hercules, went down to Hades and
came back. Jesus' story was modeled after them.)

The Belief of Praying for the Dead
The belief of praying for the dead is mentioned in the 12th chapter
of 2 Maccabees (written sometime around 104 to 63 BCE). As mentioned
earlier, this passage describes a number of Jewish soldiers who
supposedly had committed a mysterious sin, and who were killed. After
their death Judas Maccabeus ordered prayers on their behalf for their
salvation. Inspired by the verses of 2 Maccabees, the Catholics
believe that sins can be forgiven after death and that the prayers of
the living are an effective way to accomplish this. The idea of
saving people "on the other side" originated in the mystery religion
of the Orphics. Orphism exerted influence on the Hellenistic culture
of the eastern Mediterranean long before Christianity. Although it
was at its low point during the inception of Christianity, Orphism
goes back to the 6th century BCE.

In The Republic, Plato mentions the Orphic doctrine of expiating the
sins of the dead. He wrote, "...that they by means of sacrifices and
incantations have accumulated ... power ... that can expiate and cure
with pleasurable festivals any misdeed of a man or his ancestors ...
they produce a bushel of books by Musaeus and Orpheus ... and these
books they use in their ritual, and make not only ordinary men but
states believe that there are really remissions of sins and
purifications for deeds of injustice by means of sacrifice and
pleasant sport for the living, and that there are also special rites
for the dead, which they call functions, that deliver us from evils
in that other world ..." "... the rites for the dead have much
efficacy ..."

Diodorus of Sicily, while traveling in Egypt around 60 BCE, was
struck by the following funerary customs that depict praying for the
dead. As soon as the casket was placed on a floating bark, the
survivors called upon the infernal gods and beseeched them to receive
the soul of the
deceased to the place reserved for pious men. The rest of the funeral
crowd added its own cheers to the pleas of the survivors so that the
deceased would be allowed to enjoy eternal life in Hades,
in the society of the righteous.

The Mysteries of Isis and Osiris

The religion of Isis had its roots in the Egyptian religion of
Osiris, which existed more than 2300 years BCE. According to the
Pyramid Texts (ca. 2350-2100 BCE), Isis mourned for her murdered
husband, the god Osiris. Osiris was a central deity of ancient Egypt.
He was the god of
the dead and the underworld. With his sister-wife, Isis, and their
son, Horus, he formed the great Trinity of Abydos. During the
Hellenistic era Egypt fell under the rule of the Greek kings, the
Ptolemies, the successors of Alexander. To unite the Greeks with the
Egyptians the Ptolemies promoted the syncretism of Greek and Egyptian
religions. Consequently, the Egyptian religion of Osiris was fused
with the Greek mystery religions. The result of this syncretism was
the mystery
religion of Isis and Osiris (better known as the mysteries of Isis).
Frank C. Babbit wrote, "That the worship of Isis had been introduced
to Greece before 330 BC is certain from an inscription found in the
Peiraeus [the port of Athens], in which the merchants of Citium ask
permission to found a shrine of Aphrodite on the same terms as those
on which the Egyptians founded a shrine of Isis [in Peiraeus]. ... In
Plutarch's own town [Chaeronea, Boeotia] ... have been found two
dedications to Serapis, Isis, and Anubis ..." The mysteries of Isis
were established before the Christian era and became widespread
around the Mediterranean during the first century CE. Josephus
mentions that there was a temple of Isis in Rome at the time of
Pilate.

In another account he mentions that Caesar Tiberius (reigned 14-37
CE) destroyed the temple of Isis and threw Isis's statue into the
river Tiber to punish the priests of Isis for something wrong they
had done. The fact that at about the time of the fall of Jerusalem
(70 CE) Isis appeared on Greek and Roman coins signifies that this
religion was widespread. Isis became identified with the Greek
goddess Artemis. When Paul preached in Ephesus she was popular there.
According to Acts, the Ephesian craftsmen who made miniature temples
of Artemis-Isis started a riot against Paul because Paul's preaching
was detrimental to their business.

During the formative years of Christianity the mysteries of Isis drew
converts from every corner of the Roman empire. Her priests were
dedicated missionaries, like soldiers crusading for her "hallowed
name." "Isiswas tender hearted" as a mother. "The friend of slaves
and sinners ... and the downtrodden." She was a savior goddess, like
Jesus.
Here is a miracle shared by Christianity and the mystery religion of
Sarapis. The historian Tacitus mentions that while Vespasian, the
Roman emperor (69-79 CE), was in Alexandria he was called to perform
a miracle in the name of Sarapis. He was given secret instructions by
the local medical experts to make a blind man see by moistening the
blind man's cheeks and eyes with his spittle. Vespasian did as he was
told and won a reputation as a wonder-worker. At about the time of
Vespasian Mark wrote the following. (Mark 8:23) ... when ... [Jesus]
had spit on his eyes, and put his hand upon him, he asked him if he
saw [anything]. (KJV) Using spittle to perform miracles was a common
technique of the current magicians. Because Jesus used this technique
the Jews accused him of being a magician. Tertullian
wrote, "confronted by his power, they [the Jews] counted him a
magician." Justin Martyr wrote, "Yet, though they [the Jews]
witnessed these miraculous deeds with their own eyes, they attributed
them to magical art; indeed, they dared to call him a magician."

Osiris (during the Hellenistic era was identified with Sarapis) was
the god and king of the underworld while his posthumous son Horus was
the god and king of the living. Osiris mummified represented
resurrection into eternal life. His body was customarily wrapped in
white funeral clothes. (As mentioned earlier, in the New Testament
white clothes are the clothes of the righteous.) The only complete
account of the Osiris myth occurs in Plutarch's Moralia: Isis and
Osiris. Egyptian fragments support much of Plutarch's version. The
wicked god Seth-Typhon managed to kill his brother, the good god
Osiris, and put his body in a coffin. He threw the coffin into the
river Nile. The coffin floated all the way to the Phoenician city of
Byblos. Isis, the wife of Osiris, searched for her dead husband,
found the coffin, and brought it back to Egypt. However, Seth managed
to get his hands on the coffin and cut Osiris' body into fourteen
pieces, which he scattered. Isis found all the pieces, put them
together, and resurrected him. This story has motifs that appear in
the New Testament: the baptism, the death, and the resurrection of a
good god, and the evil god (the devil), who tried to
destroy the good god.

Resurrection was the main theme of the religion of Isis. "Born again"
meant a mystical death that was followed by a spiritual birth (much
like the Christian idea of "born again"). The Isiac followers
believed in the symbolism of the seed that has to be buried and has
to die for a new plant to spring up with more seeds. Plutarch wrote
that in Egypt wooden boxes in the shape of Osiris were filled with
earth and planted with seed of corn. The boxes were placed in tombs.
The sprouting corn in this funerary context represented new life.
(John 12:24) I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to
the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies,
it produces many seeds. (NIV)

The initiates of the mystery of Isis (a.k.a. mysteries of Isis) were
expected to confess their sins before their initiation. This was
commonly a part of the initiation ceremony. The candidates recounted
at length the misdeeds of their life (up to the time of their
baptism) in front of a community of devotees who listened to the
confession. Then they were baptized. They believed that the rite of
baptism would wash away all initiate's confessed sins. They believed
that from then on his or her life would be changed for the better
because he had enrolled himself in the service of the savior goddess
Isis. Apuleius (born ca. 124 CE, died probably after 170 CE), in his
book Metamorphoses, wrote, "the act of initiation was performed in
the manner of voluntary death and salvation obtained by favor."
(Ephesians 2:8) For by grace you are saved through faith;
[salvation] ... is the gift of God. (KJV)

The followers of Isis practiced 10-day fasting and abstinence from
sex. Plutarch wrote, that the initiates practiced asceticism and
abstinence from "lusts of flesh." Apuleius wrote, "the abstinence
required by the rules of chastity was quite strenuous." Paul
recommended abstinence
from sex. (1 Corinthians 7:1, 9) It is good for a man not to touch a
woman. But if they cannot contain, let them marry: for it is better
to marry than to burn. (KJV)

An interesting small statue found at Cyrene (modern Shanhat, Libya)
shows a female initiate of Isis. The bottom part of the woman is
wrapped like a mummy, but the upper part is free. The woman is
wearing the crown of Isis on her head. Thus, the statue portrays how
an initiate during the initiation would first die and then rise in
triumph. Likewise, Paul died through the law and rose through the
death of Jesus. (Galatians 2:19-20) For I through the law am dead to
the law, that I might live to God I am crucified with Christ. (KJV)
He told the Colossians that they were buried and risen with Jesus.
(Colossians 2:12) Buried with him in baptism, wherein also you are
risen with him through ... faith ... (KJV)

Themes on Christian caskets, like the figure of the Good Shepherd
carrying his lost sheep, were taken over from pagan craftsmanship.
(The Phrygian god Attis and the Canaanite god Baal were shepherds.)

Plutarch, in his book On Isis and Osiris, wrote that Horus
corresponding to Jesus), trying to avenge the death of his father
Osiris (corresponding to God, the Father of Jesus), pursued Seth
(corresponding to Satan). Seth escaped capture by turning himself
into a crocodile (corresponding to the dragon, or serpent, of
Revelation). Plutarch wrote that Seth was the enemy of Horus. (Satan
was the enemy of Jesus.) He wrote that Seth was "the power of
darkness." In Colossians the "power of darkness" is a term associated
with Satan. (Colossians 1:13) Who [Jesus] has delivered us from the
power of darkness ... (KJV) Plutarch wrote that Seth turned into a
fire-red colored ("pyrrhos") crocodile. Diodorus, who lived in the
1st century BCE, concurs that Seth/Typhon was red. A fire-red dragon
appears in Revelation.

(Revelation 12:3, 9) And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and
behold a great [fire] red [Gr. pyrrhos ] dragon ... And the great
dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and
Satan ... (KJV) In the 12th chapter of Revelation the pregnant woman
is fleeing to the desert to escape this fire-red dragon.

(Revelation 12:4, 6) ... the dragon stood before the woman which was
ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was
born. And the woman fled into the wilderness ... (KJV)

These verses may have been inspired by the Alexandrian tradition of
the pregnant Isis fleeing into the marshes of the delta to escape
Seth. In Revelation the woman was given two wings of a great eagle so
she could escape to the desert from the dragon. (Revelation 12:14)
And to the
woman was given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into
the wilderness ... from the face of the serpent. (KJV) Isis is known
to have two great falcon wings with which she blew air into the
nostrils of Osiris and resurrected him. Plutarch wrote that Typhon
(Seth) is the lord of the storm, who spits, roars in the sky, and is
associated with the desert. The woman in Revelation escaped to the
desert, and the dragon spit a river of water. (Revelation 12:15) Then
from his
mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to overtake the woman
and sweep her away with the torrent. (NIV) The Greek text reads: to
make her "potamophoreton." The word "potamophoretos" was a well-known
title of Isis.

It is believed that Revelation was written somewhere in Asia Minor,
either at Ephesus or the island of Patmos, which is across from
Ephesus. Ephesus was a major center for the religion of Isis-Artemis.
Here is another parallel between the mystery of Isis and Revelation:

Isis

"In Sais the Statue of Athena, whom they believe to be Isis, bore the
inscription: 'I am all that has been, and is, and will be ..."

God

(Revelation 1:8) I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending,
says the Lord, who is, and who was, and who is to come ... (KJV)

The legend of Horus has inspired Christian iconography. Saint George
was associated with Horus. He was often depicted winning a fight
against a crocodile-like dragon. A work in the museum of Louvre known
as Horus St. George, possibly of the 4th century CE, depicts a man
with the head of a hawk (Horus was portrayed in Egyptian frescoes
with the head of a hawk) piercing with his spear a crocodile (Typhon-
Seth) on whom his horse is trampling.

The Gnostic Christians mingled Horus with Jesus by blending several
symbols of Christianity with the symbols of Isis and Horus. A bas-
relief on the wall of an early Egyptian church belonging to the
Memmonium at Abydos portrays Jesus sitting on a throne with the
horned disc of Horus and holding a staff or crook similar to that of
Osiris.

The influence of Isis is found in non-biblical Christian writings as
well as in the New Testament.

Paul's expression "I have become all things to all men"is a slogan of
the mystery religion of Isis. Isis was known as "all things to all
men."

The Mysteries of Attis

The Phrygian (Anatolian) god Attis was identified with the Phoenician
god Adonis. God Adonis died and was resurrected. Theocritus (born ca.
300 BC, Syracuse, Sicily --died 260 BC) wrote about this in his play
the Idylls.

Attis was a very handsome shepherd (Jesus was portrayed as a
shepherd) with whom the goddess Cybele fell in love. Attis betrayed
her and entered into a love affair with a nymph. In her anger and
jealousy Cybele killed the nymph. This caused Attis to go insane and
kill himself. Cybele, who still loved Attis, mourned for him and
resurrected him. This legend was handed to us by a pagan, Firmicus
Maternus, who became a Christian in the 4th century CE.

The religion of Attis was first established in Phrygia, and in 204
BCE the goddess Cybele was formally welcomed into Rome. After that,
the worship of the Great Mother became prominent in the Roman world.
The worship of the Great Mother Cybele in Rome, along with the
worship of
the goddess Isis (the mother of Horus) in Rome, played a key role in
inspiring the worship of Mary (the mother of Jesus) by the Catholic
Church of Rome.

According to the mysteries of Attis (as handed to us by Firmicus
Maternus), an initiate had to take part in the dying and rising of
the god Attis. He went to the sanctuary that was in a dark
cavern. He was symbolically slain and buried into the ground up to
his neck. Then the congregation of the cult sang songs of mourning
over the victim while in the dark. Suddenly, the cavern became
illuminated by a bright light and the mystic priest called in a low
voice, "Rejoice mystai! Lo, our god appears as saved! And we will
find salvation, springing from our woes [pains]." By this ritual, the
initiate who was buried became the god Attis during his initiation
and, like Attis, the initiate symbolically suffered torments, was
slain, and rose again. Inscriptions found read: "en aeternum
renatus," that is, "he rose to eternal life." (Colossians 2:12)
Having been buried with him in baptism ... you were also raised up
with him. (NASB)(Galatians 2:20) I am crucified with Christ:
nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me. (KJV) (Romans
8:17) we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together
[with him]. (KJV)

We know that this religion preceded Christianity, but we do not know
whether the above mentioned rite did also.

The Mysteries of Mithra

Mithraism had connections with Zoroastrianism, but its exact origin
is not certain. It involved the worship of the ancient Indo-Iranian
god of light, Mithra (or Mitra). Herodotus mentions Mitra as a god of
the Persians. The Persian god Mithra was the chief ally of the
Zoroastrian god Ahura Mazda. However, the worship of Mithra west of
Anatolia had few connections with Zoroastrianism except for its
emphasis on the eternal struggle between good and evil (dualism).

Mithraism appeared in the eastern Mediterranean at about the same
time as Christianity. It did not become popular until after 100 CE
when it spread from Syria and Anatolia throughout the Roman empire,
reaching into Gaul and Britain. It became early Christianity's most
serious rival.

So far, we do not have any historical facts that establish Mithra's
influence on Christianity. To some extent the common beliefs of the
two religions may have been the result of interborrowing.

But it is important to note that such beliefs existed before the
establishment of either religion and were widespread in the eastern
Mediterranean. The study of Mithraism confirms the widespread
religious syncretism of the Roman era.

Mithraism was the official religion of Roman soldiers. They acquired
it during the 1st century BCE (before the time of Jesus) from the
Parthians during their campaigns in northeast Asia Minor. We do not
know how fast it spread in the beginning within the Roman army. It
seems that it was established at about the time of the fall of
Jerusalem (70 CE). Josephus recounted recounts the speech of Titus,
the Roman general (the son of Emperor Vespasian), during the siege of
Jerusalem. In his exhortation to his soldiers Titus spoke about life
after death: "... the immortality of those men who are slain in the
midst of their martial bravery. ... those ... that ... die in time of
peace ... their souls are condemned to the grave, together with their
bodies. ... [on the other hand], those souls which are severed from
their fleshly bodies in battles by the sword ... are placed among the
stars."The belief that the soldiers who died in battle became
immortal while the civilians were all condemned to the grave was
unique to Mithraism.

The mysteries of Mithra remained popular among the military (Mithra
personified such soldierly values as victory, courage, and loyalty)
and merchant classes. Women could not join Mithraism.

By the 4th century it became one of the most powerful religions of
the Roman empire. Along with other non-Christian sects, it suffered
persecution by Christianity and was gradually eliminated after
Emperor Constantine declared Christianity the state religion.
(History shows that Christianity was established mainly by Emperor
Constantine's power, by destroying its competitors, and by securing
the monopoly of religion in the Byzantine Empire and subsequently in
the West.)

The completion of seven levels of Mithraic initiation conferred
immortality. The ritual usually mimed death and resurrection. It was
usually held in caves. It began in darkness and ended with torch
light. The darkness and the torch light signified death and
resurrection. In a certain ritual the initiates were buried or shut
inside a sarcophagus. In another ritual the heart of a victim,
supposedly a child, was roasted and distributed among the
participants for eating. This, again, is similar to the Christian
communion: eating the flesh of the god Jesus. The early second
century apologist of Christianity, Justin Martyr, claimed that the
Mithraists copied the Christians: "... Jesus ... took bread and,
after giving thanks, said: 'Do this in remembrance of me ... In like
manner, he took the cup, gave thanks, and said: 'This is my
blood; ... The evil demons, in imitation of this, ordered the same
thing to be performed in the Mithraic mysteries. For as you know ...
bread and a cup of water, together with certain incantations, are
used in their mystic initiation rites." This quotation confirms that
sometime in the beginning of the second century communion was a
widespread ritual among the followers of Mithra. The followers of
Mithra believed that Mithra will descend from Heaven to conduct the
final battle against Ahriman and his forces. The dead will rise from
their graves and Mithra will judge them, separating the good from the
evil. Ohrmazd (the Father God of Mithra) will send down an
annihilating fire upon the evil, upon Ahriman, and upon his demons.
An endless reign of happiness and goodness will follow. These beliefs
are similar to the teachings of Revelation.

The greatest festival of the Roman mystery religion of Deus Sol
Invictus was held on December 25, at the time of the winter solstice.
Also, Mithra's birthday was on December 25. He was the god of light.
After December 25 the length of each day begins to increase. Thus,
December 25 was regarded as the day of the rebirth of the god Sol
(Sun) and of the renovation of life. Hellenist Christians borrowed
this date and declared it as Jesus' birthday. (According to Luke,
Jesus was
born during a night of warm weather; probably not in the middle of
winter. The shepherds were out in the fields keeping watch over their
flock.)

In the mysteries of Mithra, bread and wine gave the initiates
strength and wisdom in this life, and a glorious immortality in the
afterlife. Such was the Mithraic ritual of communion. In a rare
quotation that survived from an ancient text called the Liturgy of
Mithra there is a passage that has a parallel in Christianity:

"Today, having been born again be ... out of so many myriads. ...
Born again for rebirth of that life-giving birth."

(John 3:3) Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he
cannot see the kingdom of God. (NASB)

The Jews, too, adopted the pagan idea of rebirth at the time of
conversion. The second century Jewish Rabbi Jose ben Halafta said, "A
proselyte who embraces Judaism is like a new-born baby."

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