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how do pagans explain the As in, Constantine was a
pagan. And as a pagan, you're
not supposed to believe in the
Lord Jesus as Saviour of the
World. But Constantine saw the
cross in a vision and won a
battle.
And assuming that constantine
was a devout pagan, why would
he convert from the
god/goddesses or paganism to
the God of the Christians?
instead of "slight agnostic
Paganism" why not just
Christianity again. ^_^
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Actually you made two huge fallacious assumption. One is that Pagans cannot worship Christ or that Christ is outside the Pantheon. Many ancient Pagans ( and modern Neoplatonist ) indeed worship and regard Christ as savior .. just not as the unique savior but rather one of the many savior. In the Neoplatonist concept ( which Constantine by the way was heavily influenced by ) the material realm is displaced out of the formless realm. Souls in the materal realm are trapped. The mysteries, the philosophies, the religio, the worship, the ritus, theurgy etc.. are all meant to help the soul elevate and move out from the realm of matter back to where all the souls rightfully belong to .. the Perfect State of the One and the Many. Christ like Attis and Rhea and Mithras and Demeter and Hecate and Persephone and Horus and Isis etc.. are Gods who actually manifest into the matter realm with the aim of providing conduits for the soul to return back to their true state amidst the Gods. I like many NP believe that Christ is the physical manifestation of the Divine Logos ( Zeus ) and Sophia, a common conception by the way of many early Christians. This means that Christ is not unique but rather like Dionysius etc.. represent a line of savior deities. Christ more negative perception came only later .. but beforehand he is definitely seen as the manifestation of Sophia and the Divine Logos. And Constantine was never really a Christian .. he only got forced to accept Christ on his death bed. He was till the end it seems very much a worshiper of Sol Invictus. The reason he accepted Christianity was wholly political. However that he accepted Christ does not devalidate him being Pagan .. there are many Pagans around who worships Christ who only see him as one of the long line of savior deities. |
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Why don't Europeans ditch the The Bible is full of glory
about Israel. Europeans should
get back to paganism. No?
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Because it didn't really work out for them too well. |
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What were the similarities I'm studying Medieval art, and
the common theme I've learned
so far is that Paganism is
very similar to Christianity,
to the point where much of
Medieval art and symbolism
could easily be either Pagan
or Christian. I also read that
Pagans believed in Jesus.
But on Wikipedia, none of this
is mentioned, and Pagans are
described as believing in
multiple gods, and slightly
demonic. I'm confused...
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You need to find out the real definitions of the words Pagan and Heathen. They have little to do with the answers that you have gotten thus far. Insofar as influences on Christianity by "pagan" religions and cults, you need to look up the word "syncretism." Syncretism is the word that you are looking for because that would show you the various "pagan" beliefs that found their way into Christian beliefs. As it says in Ecclesiastes, "there is nothing new under the sun" Not only did Christianity borrow from the numerous other mystery religions that existed at the same time, it borrowed from other things more remote, like the beliefs of the Zoroasterians of Persia. One good example of this is the eternal fight between good and evil that the Bible talks about time after time - that did not exist in Judaism until it entered into it via Zoroasterianism with a Jewism cult called the Essenes. So you can look up such religions as Mithraism, manicheanism, the Cult of Isis and Osirus and a myriad of others that existed as Christianity was poking its head into the world. Now as for Medieval and Renaissance art is concerned, you will find things in it that relate to other religions. Renaissance art is where you will find the most of it because with the re-introduction of the Greek myths into the Western World with the advent of Christian Humanism, there was a movement where Greek gods were side by side with characters of Christianity. |
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How would you describe How would you describe
Christmas in your own words
and how would you describe the
paganism that is in the
holiday and the simple fact
that Jesus never said anything
about celebrating it,what are
your points of views on the
history of the holiday and
it's commercialization?
I don't care what I read about
Christmas,I will always adore
it?
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Xmas or "Yule" as I prefer, since I'm Norwegian/Laplander is one of the four primal holidays based on the turning of the four seasons and their physical and emotional effects, which man has always celebrated in one way or another since time immemorial. The others are Easter/New Year, High Summer/Independence Day, and Samhain/Halloween. I reject all mythological bases for these holidays and consider them completely natural and reasonable and their celebration important to the human psyche, which developed in close proximity to the whims of nature for hundreds of thousands of years. The simple fact of Yule is that half way through the winter (originally it was celebrated closer to the end of January) for a community to survive the winter they would have to share their excess with those who were lacking, for the mutual benefit of all when it came time to plant crops, hunt and fight other groups, and thus Xmas was born! There's nothing more to it than that: Sharing for the benefit of all. Everything else, pagan or Jesusy, which to me is the same mythology, is just window dressing on the basis for familial love, loyalty, generosity, and compassion. Well now that I've written that, my desire to follow my ancestor's tradition of ingesting amanita muscaria/fly agaric mushrooms during the Yule season, after processing it through a reindeer's urine, doesn't seem as an important requirement as I've been thinking... |
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What has happened that I don't mean Paganism has
taken over, so much that
there's so much
anti-christian/old-world
religion out in the world and
it seems that many people are
almost ashamed to admit their
faith while, when looking for
anti-pagan propaganda, it
seems non-existent. I don't
know how to ask any less
bluntly than: "why is there so
much Christian hate and so
much Pagan love?" Thanks for
any well-informed answers.
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Read Matthew Chapter 24 especially these verses where Jesus said, 9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake. 10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. 11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. 12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. |
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