Download or read book Pagan Christianity written by Frank Viola and published by Tyndale House Publishers, Inc.. This book was released on 2010-09-30 with total page 338 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Have you ever wondered why we Christians do what we do for church every Sunday morning? Why do we “dress up” for church? Why does the pastor preach a sermon each week? Why do we have pews, steeples, and choirs? This ground-breaking book, now in affordable softcover, makes an unsettling proposal: most of what Christians do in present-day churches is rooted, not in the New Testament, but in pagan culture and rituals developed long after the death of the apostles. Coauthors Frank Viola and George Barna support their thesis with compelling historical evidence and extensive footnotes that document the origins of modern Christian church practices. In the process, the authors uncover the problems that emerge when the church functions more like a business organization than the living organism it was created to be. As you reconsider Christ's revolutionary plan for his church—to be the head of a fully functioning body in which all believers play an active role—you'll be challenged to decide whether you can ever do church the same way again.
Download or read book Christian Mythology written by Philippe Walter and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2014-11-20 with total page 221 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Reveals how Christian mythology has more to do with long-standing pagan traditions than the Bible • Explains how the church fathers knowingly incorporated pagan elements into the Christian faith to ease the transition to the new religion • Identifies pagan deities that were incorporated into each of the saints • Shows how all the major holidays in the Christian calendar are modeled on pagan rituals and myths, including Easter and Christmas In this extensive study of the Christian mythology that animated Europe in the Middle Ages, author Philippe Walter reveals how these stories and the holiday traditions connected with them are based on long-standing pagan rituals and myths and have very little connection to the Bible. The author explains how the church fathers knowingly incorporated pagan elements into the Christian faith to ease the transition to the new religion. Rather than tear down the pagan temples in Britain, Pope Gregory the Great advised Saint Augustine of Canterbury to add the pagan rituals into the mix of Christian practices and transform the pagan temples into churches. Instead of religious conversion, it was simply a matter of convincing the populace to include Jesus in their current religious practices. Providing extensive documentation, Walter shows which major calendar days of the Christian year are founded on pagan rituals and myths, including the high holidays of Easter and Christmas. Examining hagiographic accounts of the saints, he reveals the origin of these symbolic figures in the deities worshipped in pagan Europe for centuries. He also explores how the identities of saints and pagan figures became so intermingled that some saints were transformed into pagan incarnations, such as Mary Magdalene’s conversion into one of the Celtic Ladies of the Lake. In revealing the pagan roots of many Christian figures, stories, and rituals, Walter provides a new understanding of the evolution of religious belief.
Download or read book The Pagan Origins of Christian Holidays written by Elisha J. Israel and published by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform. This book was released on 2013-07-04 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The intent of this book is to merely present before you the compromise that has occurred between Christianity and paganism. Under the facade of Christianity the duplicitous ancient mystery religious system that began in Babylon continues. This religion is perpetuated through the most powerful religious institution in the world- the Roman Catholic Church. How is this possible? In a strategic effort to appeal to the pagans of Rome the Universal Church simply fused the pagan customs and festivals of sun worshipers with the rites of the one true faith. The Pagan Origins of Christian Holidays is an examination of the holidays that are observed by Christians today. This book reveals a piercing truth; Satan has deceived the whole world.
Download or read book The Jesus Mysteries written by Timothy Freke and published by Harmony. This book was released on 2001-12-18 with total page 253 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Drawing on the cutting edge of modern scholarship, this astonishing book completely undermines the traditional history of Christianity that has been perpetuated for centuries by the Church and presents overwhelming evidence that the Jesus of the New Testament is a mythical figure. “Whether you conclude that this book is the most alarming heresy of the millennium or the mother of all revelations, The Jesus Mysteries deserves to be read.” —Fort Worth Star-Telegram Far from being eyewitness accounts, as is traditionally held, the Gospels are actually Jewish adaptations of ancient Pagan myths of the dying and resurrecting godman Osiris-Dionysus. The supernatural story of Jesus is not the history of a miraculous Messiah but a carefully crafted spiritual allegory designed to guide initiates on a journey of mystical discovery. A little more than a century ago, most people believed that the strange story of Adam and Eve was history; today it is understood to be a myth. Within a few decades, authors Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy argue, we will likewise be amazed that the fabulous story of God incarnate—who was born of a virgin, who turned water into wine, and who rose from the dead—could have been interpreted as anything but a profound parable.
Download or read book Cosmopolitanism Nationalism and Modern Paganism written by Kathryn Rountree and published by Palgrave Macmillan. This book was released on 2016-12-11 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume explores how Pagans negotiate local and global tensions as they craft their identities, both as members of local communities and as cosmopolitan “citizens of the world.” Based on cutting edge international case studies from Pagan communities in the United States, Poland, Russia, Ukraine, Israel, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and Malta, it considers how modern Pagans negotiate tensions between the particular and universal, nationalism and cosmopolitanism, ethnicity, and world citizenship. The burgeoning of modern Paganisms in recent decades has proceeded alongside growing globalization and human mobility, ubiquitous Internet use, a mounting environmental crisis, the re-valuing of indigenous religions, and new political configurations. Cosmopolitanism and nationalism have both influenced the weaving of unique local Paganisms in diverse contexts. Pagans articulate a strong attachment to local or indigenous traditions and landscapes, constructing paths that reflect local socio-cultural, political, and historical realities. However, they draw on the Internet and the global circulation of people and universal ideas. This collection considers how they confound these binaries in fascinating, complex ways as members of local communities and global networks.
Download or read book Paganism in the Roman Empire written by Ramsay MacMullen and published by Yale University Press. This book was released on 1981-01-01 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "MacMullen...has published several books in recent years which establish him, rightfully, as a leading social historian of the Roman Empire. The current volume exhibits many of the characteristics of its predecessors: the presentation of novel, revisionist points of view...; discrete set pieces of trenchant argument which do not necessarily conform to the boundaries of traditional history; and an impressive, authoritative, and up-to-date documentation, especially rich in primary sources...A stimulating and provocative discourse on Roman paganism as a phenomenon worthy of synthetic investigation in its own right and as the fundamental context for the rise of Christianity.”--Richard Brilliant, History "MacMullen’s latest work represents many features of paganism in its social context more vividly and clearly than ever before.”--Fergus Millar, American Historical Review "The major cults...are examined from a social and cultural perspective and with the aid of many recently published specialized studies...Students of the Roman Empire...should read this book.”--Robert J, Penella, Classical World "A distinguished book with much exact observation...An indispensable mine of erudition on a grand theme.” Henry Chadwick, Times Literary Supplement Ramsay MacMullen is Dunham Professor of History and Classics at Yale University and the author of Roman Government’s Response to Crisis, A.D. 235-337 and Roman Social Relations, 50 B.C. to A.D. 284
Download or read book Pagan Origins of the Christ Myth written by John G. Jackson and published by Echo Point+ORM. This book was released on 2018-12-17 with total page 42 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A classic resource that connects the cardinal doctrines of Christianity to their origins in the ancient civilizations that preceded the religion. In Pagan Origins of the Christ Myth, John G. Jackson sources the pagan origins of Christian doctrine with particular focus on the creation and atonement myths. Rooted in historical facts, Jackson’s claims are steeped in research and demonstrate how Christianity synthesizes the rituals, beliefs, and characteristics of savior gods from ancient Egyptian, Greek, Aztec, and Hindu origins. Initially published in 1941, this concise introduction remains an insightful contribution to comparative religion studies.
Download or read book Between Pagan and Christian written by Christopher P. Jones and published by Harvard University Press. This book was released on 2014-03-10 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Who and what was pagan depended on the outlook of the observer, as Christopher Jones shows in this fresh and penetrating analysis. Treating paganism as a historical construct rather than a fixed entity, Between Christian and Pagan uncovers the fluid ideas, rituals, and beliefs that Christians and pagans shared in Late Antiquity.
Download or read book Pagans and Christians in the City written by Steven D. Smith and published by Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. This book was released on 2018-11-15 with total page 405 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Traditionalist Christians who oppose same-sex marriage and other cultural developments in the United States wonder why they are being forced to bracket their beliefs in order to participate in public life. This situation is not new, says Steven D. Smith: Christians two thousand years ago faced very similar challenges. Picking up poet T. S. Eliot’s World War II–era thesis that the future of the West would be determined by a contest between Christianity and “modern paganism,” Smith argues in this book that today’s culture wars can be seen as a reprise of the basic antagonism that pitted pagans against Christians in the Roman Empire. Smith’s Pagans and Christians in the City looks at that historical conflict and explores how the same competing ideas continue to clash today. All of us, Smith shows, have much to learn by observing how patterns from ancient history are reemerging in today’s most controversial issues.
Download or read book A History of Pagan Europe written by Prudence Jones and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2013-10-11 with total page 281 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The first comprehensive study of its kind, this fully illustrated book establishes Paganism as a persistent force in European history with a profound influence on modern thinking. From the serpent goddesses of ancient Crete to modern nature-worship and the restoration of the indigenous religions of eastern Europe, this wide-ranging book offers a rewarding new perspective of European history. In this definitive study, Prudence Jones and Nigel Pennick draw together the fragmented sources of Europe's native religions and establish the coherence and continuity of the Pagan world vision. Exploring Paganism as it developed from the ancient world through the Celtic and Germanic periods, the authors finally appraise modern Paganism and its apparent causes as well as addressing feminist spirituality, the heritage movement, nature-worship and `deep' ecology This innovative and comprehensive history of European Paganism will provide a stimulating, reliable guide to this popular dimension of religious culture for the academic and the general reader alike.
Download or read book The Paganism in Our Christianity written by Arthur Edward Pearse Brome Weigall and published by . This book was released on 1928 with total page 300 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Pagans Christians written by Gus DiZerega and published by Llewellyn Worldwide. This book was released on 2001 with total page 268 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Although Christianity is still a major religious force, there are growing numbers of people in other faiths, including the various Pagan traditions. Some Christians have responded to this trend with fear and derision, while some Pagans have reacted to that fear with anger and mistrust. Much of the problem is due to misunderstandings and lack of communication. This can change with Gus diZerega's Pagans & Christians. Here you will find a penetrating and illuminating comparison, showing that neither path has the single correct approach to the Divine. Rather, either or both can be authentic and legitimate expressions of the appreciation of the Ultimate Source of All. Pagans & Christians is an ideal way to help bridge what at time seems a wide chasm between Christian and Pagan beliefs. By sharing core ideas of both paths, this book provides a way to give deeper mutual understanding and unity among the religions of the world. Although Pagans & Christians accepts both paths as valid, the book provides a more in-depth explanation of Paganism ó the minority religion because in some ways, Paganism demands a greater defense and explanation of its beliefs and ideas to dispel misunderstandings. The author is a Third Degree Gardenerian Elder and in Pagans & Christians has presented nothing less than a brilliant defense of Paganism, clearly showing how it should stand beside all of the major religions of the world as an equal. As part of this defense, diZerega gives a listing of biblical contradictions and Christian philosophical difficulties which can help any Pagan responding to a negative attack, and will help any Christian to view his or her religion as a way, not the way. Winner of the 2001 Coalition of Visionary Resources (COVR) Award for Best Non-fiction Book
Download or read book Pagans and Christians written by Robin Lane Fox and published by HarperCollins Publishers. This book was released on 1988 with total page 808 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The author recreates the world from the second to the fourth century A.D., when the gods of Olympus lost their dominion, and Christianity, with the conversion of Constantine, triumphed in the Mediterranean world.
Download or read book From Jesus to Christ written by Paula Fredriksen and published by Yale University Press. This book was released on 2008-10-01 with total page 286 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Magisterial. . . . A learned, brilliant and enjoyable study."—Géza Vermès, Times Literary Supplement In this exciting book, Paula Fredriksen explains the variety of New Testament images of Jesus by exploring the ways that the new Christian communities interpreted his mission and message in light of the delay of the Kingdom he had preached. This edition includes an introduction reviews the most recent scholarship on Jesus and its implications for both history and theology. "Brilliant and lucidly written, full of original and fascinating insights."—Reginald H. Fuller, Journal of the American Academy of Religion "This is a first-rate work of a first-rate historian."—James D. Tabor, Journal of Religion "Fredriksen confronts her documents—principally the writings of the New Testament—as an archaeologist would an especially rich complex site. With great care she distinguishes the literary images from historical fact. As she does so, she explains the images of Jesus in terms of the strategies and purposes of the writers Paul, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John."—Thomas D’Evelyn, Christian Science Monitor
Download or read book Pagans written by James J. O'Donnell and published by Harper Collins. This book was released on 2015-03-17 with total page 211 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: “Trenchantly interprets how an oddball religious cult became the official faith of Rome. . . . It makes for a thoughtful tour of Rome.” —New York Times Book Review Pagans explores the rise of Christianity from a surprising and unique viewpoint: that of the people who witnessed their ways of life destroyed by what seemed then a powerful religious cult. These “pagans” were actually pious Greeks, Romans, Syrians, and Gauls who observed the traditions of their ancestors. Religious scholar James J. O’Donnell takes us on a lively tour of the Ancient Roman world through the fourth century CE, when Romans of every nationality, social class, and religious preference found their world suddenly constrained by rulers who preferred a strange new god. Some joined this new cult, while others denied its power, erroneously believing it was little more than a passing fad. In Pagans, O’Donnell brings to life Roman religion and life, offers fresh portraits of iconic historical figures, including Constantine, Julian, and Augustine, and explores important themes—Rome versus the east, civilization versus barbarism, plurality versus unity, rich versus poor, and tradition versus innovation—in this startling account. “Mr. O’Donnell tells the familiar story of Christianity’s heroic age of expansion, from Constantine to Theodosius, with verve and wit.” —Wall Street Journal “Multilayered, erudite and dense.” —Cleveland Plain-Dealer “An engaging view of antiquity few of us have seen. —Booklist “O'Donnell offers an iconoclastic history of religion that tells an exciting new story that is deeply relevant to the way we think about religion in our own time.” —Washington Book Review
Download or read book ChristoPaganism written by Joyce Higginbotham and published by Llewellyn Worldwide. This book was released on 2009 with total page 337 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The chilling story of the 1942 "Vel' d'Hiv" Roundup in France comes to the screen in this cautionary historical drama starring Jean Reno and Melanie Laurent. The Weismanns were a typical Montmartre from a tight-knit Jewish neighborhood. But on that fateful morning of July 16, 1942, this family and many others would face the worst horror imaginable when they, and 13,000 other Parisian Jews, were systematically arrested by French police, and corralled into a stadium under the orders of their Nazi occupiers. As the unsuspecting prisoners are prepared for deportation, a Jewish doctor (Reno) and a Protestant nurse (Laurent) attempt to provide adequate care for their patients while bearing witness to one of the most shameful atrocities ever committed by man. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
Download or read book The Origins of Pagan and Christian Beliefs written by Edward Carpenter and published by . This book was released on 1920 with total page 324 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
