Christian Polytheism

[vorlon13]

And the consequences, logical inconsistencies, and confusion engendered be damned.

That's what you get when you are making shit up as you go along as opposed to God dictating his actual missive.

Just peruse LDS for a more recent foray into 'making shit up as you go along' if you want.

[abaris]

Hinduism basically has the same trinity concept going, and Mithras from Hinduism has a similar life to Jesus. So it's quite possible that christianity just borrowed from hinduism or something like that. Or maybe it was zoroastrianism.

If it is the same Mithras the Romans adopted (The jury is still out on that), there's a very real possibility they took it from there. The Roman Mythras cult was very popular in the first and second century, just when the gospels were written.

[Chad32]

This is what's so great about archaeology. You get some historical information that fits all the pieces together, and explains so much. Unfortunately for the theists, it disproves more than it proves when it comes to the holy books.

[Brian37]

This is what's so great about archaeology. You get some historical information that fits all the pieces together, and explains so much. Unfortunately for the theists, it disproves more than it proves when it comes to the holy books.

All religions try to pull this crap. They will co opt archaeology when it points out to real people and real places thinking that proves they are the one true religion with the one true god.

We can go see Superman movies that depict cities like New York but no one believes a human man can fly like that. Holy books do contain provable people and places, but that does not mean magic men exist or have a personal cosmic bat phone to an invisible being.

[Drich]

No polytheism says there is more than one God.
Even Catholics say there is only one God. But at the same time we have been given three distinct deities identified as that one God. That simply means God is a title and not a name. As in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

That is how three indivisuals can be only one God.

Missing the point and proving my point.

No one is arguing the Catholic god as their fans interpret him as being polytheistic.

What we are arguing is the behavior of praying to multiple icons stems from polytheism. The reason is that back in that time early Christianity was literally competing with polytheism. That is why you have a three headed/entity that is one. On top of praying to Mary and Saints. Just like the Greeks and Romans, prayed to more than one god.

The trinity motif is actually NOT unique to Christianity or Catholics. The divine family of the Ancient Egyptians was three headed too. Rey or "Ra" the head god was the top deity, and under him was Osirus and Horus. And they also had that trinity in Judgement of the dead where all three sat in judgment of humans.

Even today in Mormonism you have Joseph Smith and Jesus sitting in final Judgment.

Catholics pray to Marry, and Jesus and Saints just like the Egyptians prayed to the Sun, to Osirus and Horus.

How about you consider that humans make up religions and the only reason that any religion exists is because humans compete to create new ones and get their ideas from prior and surrounding religions.

Yes the Catholic god as the followers view it IS monotheistic. But the act of praying to different icons within the religion stems from the reality at that time that they were competing with polytheism.

You may have gone off on this tangent, but the OP Specifically asks the question I just answered.

[strawdawg]

Hinduism basically has the same trinity concept going, and Mithras from Hinduism has a similar life to Jesus. So it's quite possible that christianity just borrowed from hinduism or something like that. Or maybe it was zoroastrianism.

Up until the time of Isiah the Jewish religion was a purely polythetic religion. There were many gods one of whom was Yahweh and he had a wife named Asherah. For what ever reason the scribes edited out all the polytheism and adopted a monothetic view.

Now that Christianity has come along It's one God but actually 3 people (polytheism). In Catholic school we were told, you don't have to understand it just believe it by faith.

[Neo-Scholastic]

Unfortunately, the English word ‘person’ connotes the idea of individuality which causes the confusion. This is not the case with the Latin word ‘persona’, which means mask. This etymology makes clear that the original concept is that of the One presenting itself in three distinguishable ways. In New Church theology, the Father refers to His Being-In-Himself, the Son is the image of the One presented to us, and the Holy Spirit is what God does.

[pocaracas]

One god, with multiple personality disorder.
Also, if you're into catholics, there's a ton of saints, or semi-gods.

Mankind finds it difficult to accept the notion of one single entity controlling the whole of the cosmos... I can't blame them.

[abaris]

Unfortunately, the English word ‘person’ connotes the idea of individuality which causes the confusion. This is not the case with the Latin word ‘persona’, which means mask. This etymology makes clear that the original concept is that of the One presenting itself in three distinguishable ways. In New Church theology, the Father refers to His Being-In-Himself, the Son is the image of the One presented to us, and the Holy Spirit is what God does.

All fine and dandy and that's how I heard it when being young.

But it doesn't really add up. Jesus, being god and Holy Spirit is constantly talking to or about someone up above. And the ultimate ludicrous element is his sacrifice, which would have been to himself, being one of the three images presented.

[Minimalist]

One of the single largest factors in my deciding the xtianity was a huge pile of dogshit.

Obviously, not bad enough for Drippy or the rest of the sheep, though.