the bible and greek mythology

Most Christians or those religions that follow the basic principles of the Bible believe in the stories told in the Bible. In fact, these stories are usually regarded not only as mere stories, but also as actual historical accounts of important people, events, and concepts of the Christian faith. However, stories of Greek and Roman mythology are typically regarded as nothing more than fictional, fantasy stories. The idea that Ancient Greeks viewed these stories to be their religion seems insane to many people of Biblical Faith. This idea seems to cast a stigma of irrationality, almost ignorance, upon the Ancient Greeks. Although placing this stigmatism on a long-dead culture may seem to be unimportant in much of the contemporary world, it is important because this long-dead culture represents the history of a large portion of the world. The Ancient Greek empire was much more vast than modern-day Greece. Just as many Americans would find it offensive to have their history as irrational and ignorant, it seems logical that Greeks might as well. Therefore, it is necessary to try and understand that both Ancient Greeks and Ancient Christians may have held similar beliefs about the world they were living in. The fact is that Greek myths contain unrealistic and unbelievable characters, events, and other elements, but upon comparison of Greek mythology stories with different Biblical accounts, it is apparent that some parallels between the two do exist, and that the Ancient Greeks view of the events of the early world are very similar to the views of both ancient and contemporary Christians.

The similarities begin with the creation stories, although these similarities are very minimal. In both the Christian creation story, Genesis, and in many accounts of the Ancient Greek creation story, the earth began with darkness and nothingness- a void, or Chaos, as known to the Greeks (Genesis 1:2; Tripp 159). This Chaos was the bearer meaning that he gave birth to of Ge; earth, Tartarus; underworld, Eros; love and sex, Erebus; darkness, and Nyx; night (Tripp 159). In the Christian creation story, God is the parallel to the Greek Chaos in that he invents the same things with the exception of an underworld; the creation of Adam and Eve and their later reproduction could be comparable to Eros as Chaos bore (Genesis 1:1-18). However, unlike Chaos, God is not a void of nothingness, but the beginning of all things. God also remains the ruler of the entire world in Biblical stories, while the Greek Chaos is displaced by several actual divine beings, the most important and permanent of those being Zeus (Tripp 606; Hesiod 2-3).

There is also a slight similarity in the separations or falls in mans relationships with God and Zeus, later chief god of the ancient Greeks. Although the offenses in each case were very different, both falls were the products of trickery, deceit, and temptation. In both cases, the temptation was in the form of food (Genesis 3:1-6; Tyrell and Brown 15). Probably the most important similarity in the two falls, however, is the negative role that Woman plays in each. In the Bible, woman actually leads man to the fall from God and as the punishment for that fall exile from the Garden of Eden, while Greek mythology cites that Woman was the punishment for the fall from Zeus (Genesis 3:6-24, Hesiod 4). In the ancient Greek culture, Woman was designed to make man miserable (Hesiod 4). Although she plays different roles, Woman eventually bears the blame for all human suffering and sorrow in both stories (Tyrell and Brown 17).

In both the Ancient Greek and Christian accounts of the early world, there exist stories of great floods that destroyed most of humankind (Genesis 7; Tripp 608). In the Bible's version of the flood, God becomes frustrated with the wickedness of the world and decides to destroy the earth with a flood, although it saddens him to do so (Genesis 6:5-7). However, God found Noah to be a good and just man, and he asked Noah to build an ark that would float upon the waters (Genesis 6:9-14). On the ark, Noah was to take his wife, three sons, their wives, and two of every living creature (Genesis 6:18-22). In this way God could be sure that the world would be repopulated. In the Greek flood story, Zeus becomes very angry with men and decides to destroy them as revenge for their impieties (Tripp 608). His intention is to destroy all of mankind. However, Prometheus, who tells his son, Deucalion, to build an ark so Deucalion and his wife could escape Zeus wrath, thwarts Zeus attempt. In this story Prometheus assures that mortal life will go on. Although the stories are different in some aspects, the parallels show that both the Ancient Greeks and followers of the Christian faith seem to agree that a great flood was a significant event in the early years of the world. As well, they both believe that someone survived this flood by building an ark and living there until the flood subsided. These people survived in order to continue human life.

War was also a common characteristic of both the Ancient Greek world and of the Biblical world. For example, the Trojan War is a major event in Greek history, and is recorded most famously in Homer's Iliad. The gods always seemed to play important roles in this war, especially Zeus, Ares the god of war, and the other Olympians the gods and goddesses living on Mount Olympus (Homer 404-405). Wars between Greek city-states were also common occurrences, with gods and goddesses almost always

involved in them in some way. Similarly, the Bible accounts many stories of wars between different countries and religious groups. One of the most famous examples is the war between the Philistines and the Israelites (Samuel, 1:17). In this war, God interfered and sent the small shepherd boy David to save the Israelites (Samuel, 1:17). David does so by defeating the giant Goliath, a feat he would not have been able to accomplish without God's help (Samuel 17:46-52). These examples show the crosscultural belief that war was an important event in the ancient world, and the gods God played significant roles in these wars.

Prophecies of the overthrowing of rulers were frequent events in both Greek mythology and in Biblical stories. In both cultures these prophecies usually lead to the attempted suppression, usually murder in Bible stories, of the group that the over thrower will supposedly come from. This suppression rarely worked. For instance, the Greek god Cronus was told that one of his children would conquer and overthrow him (Tripp, 177). In a desperate attempt to prevent this, Cronus swallowed each of his children as they were born (Tripp, 177). However, through deceit and trickery, Cronus' wife Rhea manages to bear and hide the youngest child, who grows and conquers his father (Tripp, 177). This child is Zeus. He frees his brothers and sisters and then seizes his father's power, becoming chief of gods (Tripp 177, 705). The most important example in the Bible of this same type of prophecy is directed at Herod, who was King at the time that Jesus was born (Matthew 2). When three wise men tell Herod that the King of Jews was to be born that night, Herod demands that the three find where the baby was to be born and report back to him (Matthew 2:1-9). When the wise men fail to do so, he orders that all newborn boys in Bethlehem be killed (Matthew 2:16). However, Jesus escaped this fate because God tells Joseph, Jesus' earthly father, to take the baby and its mother to Egypt until the time that Herod dies (Matthew 2:13). Both the Christians and Ancient Greeks found these prophecies to be important parts of their histories.

These are only the big similarities. There are many smaller ones. The previous examples show that Christian and Ancient Greek histories of the origins and events of the ancient world are not as different as many people may think. Both have floods, wars, and prophecies. Both cultures believe in the nothingness that existed before everything else. Most importantly, both cultures have their own beliefs, the most significant of these being their gods or God.

The similarities are so parallel one must wonder as to the actual origin of these stories. They had to come from somewhere. If the Bible holds so many similarities to

Greek and Roman mythology, it causes one to question the actual relevance of the Bible. Christians believed and still believe to this day that those who worship other gods are heretical and pagan. Although Christians refuse to accept that these stories are not historical accounts written by God through man, one cannot discount the likeness of both the stories of the Greek Gods and that of the Bible. Christians may have to see that their beliefs may be more similar to Ancient Greek beliefs than what was previously thought. A historian cannot look past the facts, all of which are written in a book cherished by so many. The historian can prove that the fall of Rome was credited partly to the rise of Christianity, and the Christianity that we know today had to start from somewhere. One may even go so far as to say the stories in the bible are stories of Greek mythology changed to suit the belief system of new religion; Christianity.

Works Cited

Hesiod. Selections from Hesiod's Theogony. Trans. John Svarlien. 17 Dec. 1999. 11 Nov. 2005. <http:/classics.mit.edu/Browse/browse-Hesiod.html>. Holy Bible: The Old and New Testaments. King James Version. Nashville: Broadman Press, 1973. Homer. Iliad: Book Twenty. Classics 135-001: Greek and Roman Mythology, Fall 1998. Ed. James A. Francis. Incentives Creativity, 1998. 62-68. Tripp, Edward. The Meridian Handbook of Classical Mythology. New York: Penguin Group, 1974. Tyrell, William Blake and Frieda S. Brown. Hesiod's Myth of the Birth of the Cosmos. Foundations of the Liberal Arts: Science, Nature, Culture, Spring 1999. Acton: Tapestry Press LTD., 1999. 8-20.

4. The Interaction between Norse Mythology & Christianity

Because of the great impact of the Northern tribes on European history, their beliefs and mythology bear an even closer looking at. Although the Scandinavian pantheon of Gods has faded into oblivion and did so quickly, just as the Greek gods did, their subliminal influence remains. In fact one of the primary thrusts of this work is to discover these subconscious links so that they can be rooted out. As long as the belief system is subliminal - as long as they are internal - there is no control. Their effect is automatic and unconscious. We are trying to bring these subconscious beliefs to the surface. Exposed to the light of day, they will eventually wither and die a natural death - for the good of all humanity. A set of subliminal constructs that informs our political behavior is associated with Norse mythology. Indeed we shall attempt to establish that the aggressive Norse beliefs, founded around a warrior cult, are still at the foundation of our Anglo/European society. We will even go further to say that the world view presented by the Viking mythology is a more accurate reflection of prevalent standards than is the Biblical mythology, especially of the New Testament of Jesus. While the characters names have been changed their motives remain the same.

Norse Warrior Mythology

Originally there were the fertility gods, who were gods of harvest and peace. Then came the gods of war, the Aesir gods, ruled by mighty Odin, who were jealous of the knowledge of the fertility gods[i]. They battled to a standstill. The warrior gods tricked the fertility gods into an uneven exchange, which left the fertility gods crippled. Odin was the head god of the Vikings. Wotan was his Saxon name. The Germanic tribes and the Vikings shared a similar mythology, as we will demonstrate. Odin was the father of all the gods, but he was not a jealous god. He honored any cultural belief system. It wasn t only through him that you reached heaven. As such the invading Norsemen were incredibly tolerant of the local tribes and customs. In no way did Odin demand absolute loyalty. In fact there was a whole pantheon of gods to choose from. Indeed although Odin was respected, he was not the most popular god, maybe not even in the top 10. His son, the thunder god Thor, was quite popular but was not considered to be that smart. His strength and courage were what he was primarily known for. The Viking life was perilous, transitory, and short. Die in battle. Go directly to Valhalla, Odin s great hall, (literally Hall of the Slain ) where you get to battle all day, die, and then be reborn again at night ready for the big feast and excessive drinking.

Thor was admired partially because he could consume such large quantities of food and wine. The ultimate jock and the roots of our alcoholic culture. Eventually through many adventures the violence of these warrior gods grows increasingly wild and ferocious symbolized by the great wolf Fenrir. This energy inevitably turns upon itself destroying everyone and the 9 worlds. This is Ragnarok, the End of the World. Ygdrassil, the giant tree growing from the center of the Earth and the Ocean, survives to generate a new race of peaceful gods and men. This illustrates another element of the Viking Gods. They were mortal, subject to the finality of Death, at Ragnarok, the end of the world. This reflects the Viking warrior mentality. Humans must die in battle to reach their warrior heaven. Similarly the gods, as a reflection of this worldview, must also die in battle at the end of the world to reach their heaven. Life is a battle for gods and humans alike. While humans battle for life, the gods battle for existence itself. Interestingly this implies another layer of gods or god who might be in charge of these divine battles.

Both Balder and Jesus die and are reborn

The tragic Balder was reputed to be the most popular of all the gods. When Loki tricked Balder s blind brother into killing Balder with a mistletoe dart, the gods were so grieved that they attempted to rescue him from the Underworld by showing that everyone in the world loved him. Only jealous Loki, in disguise as a Frost Giantess, refused to say he loved Balder. This doomed Balder to the Underworld, which triggered Ragnarok, the End of the World, which inevitably led to Balder s rebirth. This story links easily into the Jesus mythology of the Bible. Just like Jesus, Balder dies and is reborn. Just as in Christianity there is an End of the World. Balder died and went to the underworld guarded by Hel. As mentioned the only way a Viking reached heaven, Valhalla, was by dying in battle. Those who died of sickness or old age went to the underworld, guarded by Hel, an old hag. Hel was the daughter of Loki and a frost Giantess, Angrboda. Loki, the trickster God, the son of two Fire-Giants, was warned about this mixed union, but he went ahead and had three unnatural children. These creatures were grotesque monsters. One, Jormungand, a great serpent biting its tail, encircled the seas causing great grief to sailors. The second Fenrir was a ferocious wolf that was to kill Odin, king of the gods, at the end of the world, Ragnarok. The third child was female and named Hel. She guarded the Underworld, a terrifying place of horrible fires and frigid ice. Not even the gods could always escape this horrifying place. From her name, we get our word, hell. The similarity of the

Viking and Christian concept of Hell made for an easy transition from Norse to Christian mythology. Interestingly the Norse drew their conception of Hell from real life. In Iceland, the land of ice and fire, there are great fissures into the center of the earth, due to the fact that it is located on the top of an ocean fault, which reflects the grinding of two tectonic plates. Indeed when the Europeans first started traveling to Iceland they thought they were actually seeing Hell below the surface in the middle of the Earth. From the above discussion it s evident that there are three major congruences between the Viking mythology and Christianity. First there is the death and rebirth of a divinity. Second there is an end of the world. Third they both have a hell.

Hell is Norse, not Biblical

Note that the concept of hell is not based in the Bible. However Augustine, a popular and influential early Christian writer, wrote persuasively about sinners and the eternal damnation of hell from which there was no return. This is strikingly similar to the Norse concept of hell. However there is no real mention of Hell, as a place of damnation, in the Bible. The Hebrew and Greek words (Gehenna) that are translated as hell in the Catholic Bible designate the common grave of dead humans. Instead of being an otherworldly location, hell was just a dump on the outskirts of the city where criminals and poor people were cremated and burned without gravestone or honor. Sulfur, fire and brimstone were used to cremate their bodies. In effect the Bible is saying: If you lead a bad life you will end up in a common grave, without honor or respect, while if you follow the Law you will be honored and mourned for after you die. By following the Biblical message the follower would be saved from this fiery ignominious fate. The main Biblical message about the after life is simply: From dust we came. To dust we shall go. There is no mention of afterlife. Instead it is just the opposite. The whole concept of heaven, hell, and mortal life is not Biblical, but pagan. Indeed the Jews, who base their religious beliefs around the Old Testament, don t believe in an afterlife.

Syncretism of Christian Church for Survival

While the Old Testament doesn t support the idea of an after life, the Christian Church adopted the idea, somewhat because it was a common belief of the pagans it was trying to convert. The church in its syncretism - in its desire to convert as many

people as possible to Christianity - in order to increase its wealth and prestigeabsorbed many local beliefs. In so doing they became overwhelmed by the pagan religions they were trying to overcome. The Church would allow any pagan custom as long as these pagans would recognize the supremacy of Jesus Christ as the head god, with the Pope as his agent on earth. An example of this syncretism: in Christianity, as well as Judaism and Islam, there is only one God. The angels were only heavenly manifestations, while the saints were just human intermediaries to the one true god. To accommodate the local religions based in polytheism, the pagan gods became Christian saints. The local population was allowed to worship them as intermediaries to the Trinity of Jesus, Jehovah God, and the Holy Ghost, the Three in One: three parts to the same god. What s the difference between polytheism paganism and monotheistic Christianity? Only words. All gods, or saints, or angels, are just manifestations of the one true god, who has at least three acknowledged forms, in Christianity, at least. As we shall see the syncretism of the Christian Catholic Church became a point of contention with Islam as well as Protestantism. While it is easy for Biblical literalists, whether Jewish, Islam, or Protestant, to criticize the syncretism of Catholicism, it enabled Western European culture to survive and spread. A commonalty of beliefs constitutes a culture. This common belief system is much more important than are the sources of the beliefs. As we ve seen Christianity has very little to do with the pacifism of Jesus and much more to do with creating a cultural identity. This differentiation creates the illusion of Us and Them that has proven to be so devastating for humankind. It was politically pragmatic to abandon the pacifism of Jesus when cultural survival was at stake. Cultural survival became more important than beliefs. Thus the beliefs that furthered survival and growth came to the fore. Those beliefs that were true to the founder of the religion were quickly abandoned when they were perceived to be counter-productive to survival. As we shall see the aggressive belief system of the invaders from the North was quickly overlaid on the indigenous belief system of the European Christians. This cultural syncretism, while untrue to the beliefs of Jesus, allowed the culture to thrive and survive, while, as we shall see, those that held onto the pacifism of Jesus perished. The Fairy Tale is Over.

Christian God, a powerful nation-building military god

Another aspect that is important for the spread of a culture or religion is the notion of political power. This has nothing whatsoever to do with beliefs. It was obvious to the

pagans that the Old Testament God was more powerful than their gods because he had allowed these conquerors, whether Romans, Muslims, Franks. Europeans, or Americans, to win the war. In primitive religion the god who grants his followers the greatest worldly power is the strongest god. And it was obvious that the Christians had a mean ass God. Look how Jehovah destroyed Sodom & Gomorrah - how he destroyed the walls of Jericho and how he allowed his people to be persecuted when they turned away from him and started worshipping the graven images of the lands they had conquered with His assistance. In modern times we have a similar awe for success. A subliminal thought that underlies our beliefs is: The successful have a superior world view to the unsuccessful. Since most people equate success with power and wealth, the next logical statement becomes: The belief system of the powerful and wealthy is superior to those who are powerless and weak. A related doctrine is the Gospel of Wealth, which holds that God is on the side of those who are wealthy. This American doctrine originated early in the 20th century to justify the exploitation of the poor, nationally and globally. Although explicit then, it is the implicit justification for the atrocities of neo-Colonialism perpetrated by the powerful countries of the first World. While a commonalty of beliefs holds a culture together, it is political power based upon military strength that allows for its spread and survival. Although many discuss belief systems interminably, they are secondary to the military technology, which includes the social system, in the determination of the strength of a culture. As such Christianity is a name applied to a culture which has very little to do with Jesus of the New Testament and much more to do with the militaristic nation building of the Old Testament. Jehovah, as a powerful nationalistic monotheistic war god, inspired the Jews, the Roman Christians, the Moslems, the Franks, the European powers, and the United States to conquer the world through military strength, combined with the ideology that created it.

The Merger of Old Testament and Norse Mythologies

While Jehovah, the Old Testament God, promised land and a nation, he did not promise loot. However, this was part of the mythology of the northern raiders. The violence of the Norse gods was frequently directed towards taking from others by force of arms. This mentality has remained with our leaders even unto modern times. The wealthy have so much money that it makes the kings of old appear poverty stricken and yet they battle for more. Why? They say for Catholic, Christian, Moslem, or Jewish values; take your pick. However looting was not an excuse for war in the Old

Testament. This raider mentality is instead reflected in the Nordic/Germanic mythology, which is at the root of Western Civilization. The astute leaders of the European/American military aristocracy, frequently with genetic ties to the Germanic/Nordic raiders, have employed the Old Testament concept of the Divine Nation as a means to increase their loot. The kings, presidents, tsars, and prime ministers of the myriad political entities trick their subjects into war rather than lead them in just causes. Through the omnipresent propaganda the leaders successfully attempt to identify the emotions of their subjects with the good of the country. This is called patriotism and is considered a good emotion. Then the citizens are called upon to defend their country, which frequently means to attack another country. The leaders are not stirring up patriotism as a means of defense and cultural self-esteem, as much as they are goading their people on to acts of brutality against another culture. As we shall see this strategy was successful beyond expectations in the Crusades at the beginning of the 2nd Millennium, as well as in Iraqi Wars 1 and 2 led by the Bush Presidents at the beginning of the 3rd. As is evident our leaders have successfully employed this merger of the Divine militaristic nation building of the Old Testament with the Divine looting of the Scandinavian mythology to become rich beyond imagining and simultaneously attribute it to God s Will. Another example of the human species amazing ability to rationalize disgusting behavior.

[i]

Fertility vs. Warrior Gods The topic of the preceding fertility gods and the propaganda associated with this is

tackled in the next section entitledEvolution of the Gods.