Nonsense. In 325 CE Rome assimilated and perverted Christianity with Mithraism, the secret MYSTERY RELIGION of the roman government and military, upon which Catholicism is based, and buried the teachings of Jesus under a mountain of blasphemy upon which your Church is built.
Incorrect.
I would expect better of you. I've seen some of your posts dwelling in these nonsensical conspiracy theories - and was hoping for this opportunity. Thank you.
Let's start with Mithra:
Mithra (
Avestan: 𐬨𐬌𐬚𐬭𐬀
Miθra,
Old Persian: 𐎷𐎰𐎼
Miθra) is an ancient Iranian deity of covenants, light, oaths, justice, the Sun,
[1] contracts, and friendship.
[2] In addition to being the divinity of contracts, Mithra is also a judicial figure, an all-seeing protector of
Truth (
Asha), and the guardian of cattle, the harvest, and
the Waters.
Like most other divinities, Mithra is not mentioned by name in the
Gathas, the oldest texts of Zoroastrianism and traditionally attributed to
Zoroaster himself, or by name in the
Yasna Haptanghaiti, a seven-verse section of the
Yasna liturgy that is linguistically as old as the Gathas. As a member of the Iranian
ahuric triad, along with
Ahura Mazda and
Ahura Berezaiti (
Apam Napat), Mithra is an exalted figure. Together with
Rashnu "Justice" and
Sraosha "Obedience", Mithra is one of the three judges at the
Chinvat Bridge, the "Bridge of Separation" that all souls must cross. Unlike Sraosha, however, Mithra is not a
psychopomp, a guide of souls to the place of the dead. Should the Good Thoughts, Words, and Deeds outweigh the Bad, Sraosha alone conveys the Soul across the Bridge.
The "orginal" Mithra dates back as far as 1400 BC
Now fast forward 1400 years later and Mithras cults begin to emerge around Rome....
Mithras before the Roman Mysteries
Mithras-Helios, with solar rays and in Iranian dress,
[71] with Antiochus I of
Commagene. (
Mt. Nemrut, 1st century BCE)
h-century relief of the investiture of the
Sasanian king
Ardashir II.
Mithra stands on a
Lotus Flower on the left holding a
Barsom.
[71]
According to the archaeologist Maarten Vermaseren, evidence from Commagene from the 1st century BCE demonstrates the "reverence paid to Mithras" but does not refer to "the mysteries".
[ag] In the colossal statuary erected by King
Antiochus I (69–34 BCE) at
Mount Nemrut, Mithras is shown beardless, wearing a
Phrygian cap[3][73] (or the similar headdress – a Persian
tiara), in
Iranian (Parthian) clothing,
[71] and was originally seated on a throne alongside other deities and the king himself.
[74] On the back of the thrones there is an inscription in Greek, which includes the compound name
Apollo-Mithras-Helios in the genitive case (
Ἀπόλλωνος Μίθρου Ἡλίου).
[75] Vermaseren also reports about a Mithras cult in Fayum in the 3rd century BCE
[39](p 467) R.D.
Barnett has argued that the royal seal of King Saussatar of the
Mitanni from c. 1450 BCE depicts a tauroctonous Mithras.
[ah]
Now fast forward 1400 years later and Mithras cults begin to emerge around Rome....
Beginnings of Roman Mithraism
[
edit]
The origins and spread of the Mysteries have been intensely debated among scholars and there are radically differing views on these issues.
[76] According to Clauss, mysteries of Mithras were not practiced until the 1st century CE.
[4] According to Ulansey, the earliest evidence for the Mithraic mysteries places their appearance in the middle of the 1st century BCE: The historian Plutarch says that in 67 BCE the
pirates of Cilicia (a province on the southeastern coast of Asia Minor, that provided sea access to adjacent Commagene) were practicing "secret rites" of Mithras.
[ai] According to C.M. Daniels,
[78] whether any of this relates to the origins of the mysteries is unclear.
[aj] The unique underground temples or mithraea appear suddenly in the archaeology in the last quarter of the 1st century CE.
[79](p 118)
NO "MYSTERIES" of Mithras were practiced prior to the turn of the century in Rome - meaning that it was already in direct competition with Christianity. NO CATECHISM NO SACRAMENTS - UNTIL IT WAS ALREADY BEING PRACTICED BY CHRISTIANS ALL OVER ROME.
Now if none of these things were practiced by the Persian version of Mithras Cults but all of a sudden began to be practiced AFTER CHRISTIANITY (Catholicism) WAS ALIVE AND WELL WITHIN ROME - WHAT DOES THAT TELL YOU?
"The Mithraic Mysteries had no public ceremonies of its own.
The festival of Natalis Invicti, held on 25 December, was a general festival of the Sun, and by no means specific to the Mysteries of Mithras."[4
Mithras-worship in the Roman Empire was characterized by images of the god slaughtering a bull. Other images of Mithras are found in the Roman temples, for instance Mithras banqueting with Sol, and depictions of the birth of Mithras from a rock. But the image of bull-slaying (tauroctony) is always in the central niche.
[9](p 6) Textual sources for a reconstruction of the theology behind this iconography are very rare.
[o] (See section
Interpretations of the bull-slaying scene below.)
The practice of depicting the god slaying a bull seems to be specific to Roman Mithraism. According to David Ulansey, this is "perhaps the most important example" of evident difference between Iranian and Roman traditions: "... there is no evidence that the Iranian god Mithra ever had anything to do with killing a bull."
[9](p
Mithras killing the bull likely demonstrates the advent of a new era - by "sacrificing" the "bull" of the "Old era" (Abolishing the Old way) - and by that sacrifice - the bull's life force gives life to the new age. (That's my understanding of it).
Jesus Christ DID NOT TEACH THIS.
.“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill them. 18 Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not a single letter,[
b] not even a tiny portion of a letter, will disappear from the Law until all things have been accomplished.
The assertion that Christianity borrowed from some pre-Christian Persian religion via the Roman cult of Mithras does not stand up to historical scrutiny. Far from being a pre-Christian Persian cult, it appears that Mithraism actually appeared on the scene
later than Christianity, and in Europe, not Persia. There is no real historical link between Roman Mithraism and the Persian worship of Miça; in fact, it is not unreasonable to think that to the degree Mithraism did look like Christianity (and there is no good evidence that it did), it may have in fact borrowed from the Church rather than the other way around, since the Church predated Mithraism, at least according to epigraphic evidence. The view put forth by Cumont and others that Christianity is a syncretic blend of Mithraism and other mystery religions is historically untenable. The condemnation of the view becomes stronger when we realize that many of these alleged “similarities” upon which the theory rests either do not exist or are the results of a profound misunderstanding of religion in the Roman Empire. Since the 1970’s Cumont’s views have come under increasing scrutiny, to the point that reputable scholars now say that any pre-Christian Persian connection can safely be, in the words of secular historian Ramsay MacMullen, “denied entirely”.
unamsanctamcatholicam.com
As far as the book of Revelation is concerned - That is likely in reference to the other person you like to quote in your conspiracy theories - Simon Magus. Simon Magus and his cult were adopted by the Emperor Nero - in direct contrast to Christianity. Nero despised Christians and Christians despised Nero. That said, Simon Magus became a favorite of Nero's - astonishing people with "signs in the sky" and so forth.
To conclude - I have respect for all religions - including the many religions of antiquity. They are a huge part of our civilization and history and should always be respected, in my humble opinion.
What we should realize is that Jesus Christ is indeed the Word. It is what separates his teachings from many others - His Words give life, meaning and light to billions and billions of people. They do not abolish but they bring new life and meaning to the teachings of the Prophets and the Books of the Law. No need to have "secret rituals". No need to "sacrifice an animal". His teachings teach that through faith in God all things are possible. It is through faith in God that we are healed. It is through faith and good works that God's Mercy manifests itself throughout the world.
And it is through faith, good works and God's Mercy that we should understand that God - through his prophets and through his son - is a God of Justice, Mercy, Love - he wants us to live that way. "Love God with all you heart, all your soul, all your mind and strength" "Love Your Neighbor As Yourself". God never wants us to be weak or "weak minded" but strong in what we should be doing as human beings living within and among his creation.
