RE: Is Christianity unique or not?
July 25, 2018 at 12:45 pm
(This post was last modified: July 25, 2018 at 12:47 pm by Neo-Scholastic.)
Comparative religion is a highly subjective endeavor. Viewed from 3000+ years removed, a modern perspective may see superficial similarities between ancient beliefs compared to how the various ancient cultures actually understood and practiced their religions. IMHO there are better places to engage in this kind of debate.
For example, it would be difficult to argue that Hellenistic philosophy did not influence Christian dogma during the Medieval period. A defender could suggest that the Scholastics clarified or uncovered doctrines already implicit in Scripture. An opponent could assert that Greek philosophy imported novel concepts into Christian belief. Both positions have points in their favor. I believe reasonable people can disagree.
My own opinion is that the character of Christian belief and practice did indeed change, but only by degrees and not in kind. In other words, different parts of Scripture were given greater scrutiny while others were de-emphasized, reflecting cultural-political circumstances and the intellectual environment. It makes sense that a marginalized and persecuted religious minority from the underclass would emphasize eschatology whereas a comfortably established theological hierarchy composed of university scholars would have time to speculate on the ontological status of angels.
For example, it would be difficult to argue that Hellenistic philosophy did not influence Christian dogma during the Medieval period. A defender could suggest that the Scholastics clarified or uncovered doctrines already implicit in Scripture. An opponent could assert that Greek philosophy imported novel concepts into Christian belief. Both positions have points in their favor. I believe reasonable people can disagree.
My own opinion is that the character of Christian belief and practice did indeed change, but only by degrees and not in kind. In other words, different parts of Scripture were given greater scrutiny while others were de-emphasized, reflecting cultural-political circumstances and the intellectual environment. It makes sense that a marginalized and persecuted religious minority from the underclass would emphasize eschatology whereas a comfortably established theological hierarchy composed of university scholars would have time to speculate on the ontological status of angels.
<insert profound quote here>
