The Bible Among The Myths

Author : John N. Oswalt
Publisher : Zondervan Academic
Page : 209 pages
File Size : 52,9 Mb
Release : 2009-08-30
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9780310322429

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The Bible among the Myths by John N. Oswalt Pdf

Sixty years ago, most biblical scholars maintained that Israel’s religion was unique—that it stood in marked contrast to the faiths of its ancient Near Eastern neighbors. Nowadays, it is widely argued that Israel’s religion mirrors that of other West Semitic societies. What accounts for this radical change, and what are its implications for our understanding of the Old Testament? Dr. John N. Oswalt says the root of this new attitude lies in Western society’s hostility to the idea of revelation, which presupposes a reality that transcends the world of the senses, asserting the existence of a realm humans cannot control. While not advocating a “the Bible says it, and I believe it, and that settles it” point of view, Oswalt asserts convincingly that while other ancient literatures all see reality in essentially the same terms, the Bible differs radically on all the main points. The Bible Among the Myths supplies a necessary corrective to those who reject the Old Testament’s testimony about a transcendent God who breaks into time and space and reveals himself in and through human activity.

Author : Thomas William Doane
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 648 pages
File Size : 41,9 Mb
Release : 1882
Category : Religion
ISBN : HARVARD:32044052931698

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Bible Myths and Their Parallels in Other Religions by Thomas William Doane Pdf

Author : Bruce Louden
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 242 pages
File Size : 55,7 Mb
Release : 2018-11-06
Category : History
ISBN : 9780429828041

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Greek Myth and the Bible by Bruce Louden Pdf

Since the nineteenth-century rediscovery of the Gilgamesh epic, we have known that the Bible imports narratives from outside of Israelite culture, refiguring them for its own audience. Only more recently, however, has come the realization that Greek culture is also a prominent source of biblical narratives. Greek Myth and the Bible argues that classical mythological literature and the biblical texts were composed in a dialogic relationship. Louden examines a variety of Greek myths from a range of sources, analyzing parallels between biblical episodes and Hesiod, Euripides, Argonautic myth, selections from Ovid’s Metamorphoses, and Homeric epic. This fascinating volume offers a starting point for debate and discussion of these cultural and literary exchanges and adaptations in the wider Mediterranean world and will be an invaluable resource to students of the Hebrew Bible and the influence of Greek myth.

Author : Gary Greenberg
Publisher : Sourcebooks, Inc.
Page : 341 pages
File Size : 40,7 Mb
Release : 2002-09
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9781402230059

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101 Myths of the Bible by Gary Greenberg Pdf

In his startling book, Gary Greenberg exposes the reality behind the greatest story ever told. Learn about the Egyptian myths and ancient folklore that survive in one of history's most sacred texts, and discover how: -King David's bodyguard, not David, killed Goliath -Noah's Ark did not land on Mount Ararat -Samson did not pull down a Philistine temple -There are at least two versions of the Ten Commandments -The walls of Jericho were destroyed 300 years before Joshua arrived there -Sodom and Gomorrah were mythical cities that never existed -The story of Esther had nothing to do with the Jews of Persia -And much, much more 101 Myths of the Bible provides a new dimension of biblical studies for believers, historians and anyone who has ever wondered about the facts behind the legends. By looking deeper into history, Greenberg shows that the true story makes the Bible more interesting than ever imagined!

Author : Lloyd M. Graham
Publisher : Skyhorse
Page : 556 pages
File Size : 40,9 Mb
Release : 2012-07-16
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9781620875018

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Deceptions and Myths of the Bible by Lloyd M. Graham Pdf

Lloyd M. Graham is out to show that the Bible, both the Old and New Testaments as we know them, are not “holy” nor are they the “word of God” revealed. The stories of the Bible were set down by power-seeking priests eager to inspire awe and to gather flocks who would take part in their rites and rituals, and they weren’t very original, either. In Deceptions and Myths of the Bible, Graham reintroduces us to the true origins of Adam and Eve, who were derived from a Babylonian account; to the story of Noah’s flood, which was the result of over four hundred years of flood accounts from various ancient civilizations; to the man named Moses who was fashioned after the Syrian story of Mises; and even to the laws of the Bible, which were patterned after the Babylonian Code of Hammurabi. Graham points out the 137 similarities between the story of Jesus and the story of the Egyptian god Horus, and the hundreds and hundreds of similarities between the story of Christ and the Hindu god Krishna. For any reader interested in history or theology, Graham’s book is essential, eye-opening, and controversial reading. If you are an atheist, you’ll be eager to read these arguments in support of your beliefs. If you are agnostic, you will want to have this evidence at your fingertips as you weigh systems of belief and disbelief. If you are religious, you will want to know how your faith came into being and how a study of history might shake or support your beliefs.

Author : John Heath
Publisher : Routledge
Page : 434 pages
File Size : 52,9 Mb
Release : 2019-04-29
Category : History
ISBN : 9780429663741

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The Bible, Homer, and the Search for Meaning in Ancient Myths by John Heath Pdf

The Bible, Homer, and the Search for Meaning in Ancient Myths explores and compares the most influential sets of divine myths in Western culture: the Homeric pantheon and Yahweh, the God of the Old Testament. Heath argues that not only does the God of the Old Testament bear a striking resemblance to the Olympians, but also that the Homeric system rejected by the Judeo-Christian tradition offers a better model for the human condition. The universe depicted by Homer and populated by his gods is one that creates a unique and powerful responsibility – almost directly counter to that evoked by the Bible—for humans to discover ethical norms, accept death as a necessary human limit, develop compassion to mitigate a tragic existence, appreciate frankly both the glory and dangers of sex, and embrace and respond courageously to an indifferent universe that was clearly not designed for human dominion. Heath builds on recent work in biblical and classical studies to examine the contemporary value of mythical deities. Judeo-Christian theologians over the millennia have tried to explain away Yahweh’s Olympian nature while dismissing the Homeric deities for the same reason Greek philosophers abandoned them: they don’t live up to preconceptions of what a deity should be. In particular, the Homeric gods are disappointingly plural, anthropomorphic, and amoral (at best). But Heath argues that Homer’s polytheistic apparatus challenges us to live meaningfully without any help from the divine. In other words, to live well in Homer’s tragic world – an insight gleaned by Achilles, the hero of the Iliad – one must live as if there were no gods at all. The Bible, Homer, and the Search for Meaning in Ancient Myths should change the conversation academics in classics, biblical studies, theology and philosophy have – especially between disciplines – about the gods of early Greek epic, while reframing on a more popular level the discussion of the role of ancient myth in shaping a thoughtful life.

Author : Thomas William Doane
Publisher : Pantianos Classics
Page : 630 pages
File Size : 48,9 Mb
Release : 1882
Category : History
ISBN : IND:39000005817627

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Bible Myths and Their Parallels in Other Religions by Thomas William Doane Pdf

Thomas Doane's thorough examination of Old and New Testament Biblical myths and legends, drawing parallels to stories belonging to older traditions, such as those of ancient Egypt. The central purpose of the text is to unite, in a single compendium, analysis of all the Bible myths which bear resemblance to earlier tales. Doane's system is practical; the myths are recounted, examined and compared against their apparent forebears in chronological order. The purpose is to demonstrate that religions share much in common with one another; while their themes and the names of figures change, the character of the tales and legends remains similar or even identical across centuries of lore. At the outset, Doane acknowledges that very little of this book is entirely original; what is special and unique to this work is its arrangement, and the systematic, readable manner in which the subject is tackled. Each chapter is amply annotated, that the reader may consult both the Bible and surviving texts of other religious works, plus previous scholarly researches into ancient mythologies. Perhaps most controversially, Doane focuses upon the tale of Christ. His birthplace, the events in which he was involved, the subject and message of his sermons, and his untimely death upon the crucifix are shown to mirror aspects of previous stories concerned prophets or holy men of other religious traditions.

Author : Giovanni Garbini
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 161 pages
File Size : 45,7 Mb
Release : 2003-06-01
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9780567608864

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Myth and History in the Bible by Giovanni Garbini Pdf

The Old Testament, and biblical scholarship itself, distinguishes between mythical and historical. This book argues that only historical thing in the Bible is the Bible itself, a superb product of Jewish thought. What is narrated in the Bible is only myth. But this myth about Israel's past was still built with fragments of history, or rather with written traditions that were different from those expressed in the actual text, and obviously more ancient. These essays follow in the spirit of his controversial History and Ideology in Ancient Israel, which combine detailed philological reseaerch, a wide knowledge of ancient Near Eastern literature and Biblical Archaeology--and a radical way of understanding what the biblical text is really telling us. This is an erudite and thought-provoking book, which should not be ignored by anyone who finds the origin of the Bible a fascinating and still largely unknown phenomenon.

Author : John Bergsma,Brant Pitre
Publisher : Ignatius Press
Page : 1066 pages
File Size : 41,9 Mb
Release : 2018-09-04
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9781642290486

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A Catholic Introduction to the Bible by John Bergsma,Brant Pitre Pdf

Although many Catholics are familiar with the four Gospels and other writings of the New Testament, for most, reading the Old Testament is like walking into a foreign land. Who wrote these forty-six books? When were they written? Why were they written? What are we to make of their laws, stories, histories, and prophecies? Should the Old Testament be read by itself or in light of the New Testament? John Bergsma and Brant Pitre offer readable in-depth answers to these questions as they introduce each book of the Old Testament. They not only examine the literature from a historical and cultural perspective but also interpret it theologically, drawing on the New Testament and the faith of the Catholic Church. Unique among introductions, this volume places the Old Testament in its liturgical context, showing how its passages are employed in the current Lectionary used at Mass. Accessible to nonexperts, this thorough and up-to-date introduction to the Old Testament can serve as an idea textbook for biblical studies. Its unique approach, along with its maps, illustrations, and other reference materials, makes it a valuable resource for seminarians, priests, Scripture scholars, theologians, and catechists, as well as anyone seeking a deeper understanding of the Bible.

Author : Dexter E. Callender, Jr.
Publisher : Society of Biblical Lit
Page : 322 pages
File Size : 52,6 Mb
Release : 2014-07-02
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9781589839625

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Myth and Scripture by Dexter E. Callender, Jr. Pdf

!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" html meta content="text/html; charset=ISO-8859-1" http-equiv="content-type" body An interdisciplinary collection for scholars and students interested in the connections between myth and scripture In this collection scholars suggest that using “myth” creates a framework within which to set biblical writings in both cultural and literary comparative contexts. Reading biblical accounts alongside the religious narratives of other ancient civilizations reveals what is commonplace and shared among them. The fruit of such work widens and enriches our understanding of the nature and character of biblical texts, and the results provide fresh evidence for how biblical writings became “scripture.” Features: Essays that explore how myth sheds light on the emergence of scripture Examples drawn from the Ancient Near East, Hebrew Bible, New Testament, and Greco-Roman world Articles by experts from a range of disciplines

Author : Philippe Walter
Publisher : Simon and Schuster
Page : 224 pages
File Size : 55,6 Mb
Release : 2014-11-20
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
ISBN : 9781620553695

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Christian Mythology by Philippe Walter Pdf

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.

Author : T. W. Doane
Publisher : e-artnow
Page : 616 pages
File Size : 53,7 Mb
Release : 2020-12-17
Category : Social Science
ISBN : EAN:4064066393427

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Comparative Study of the Bible Myths and their Parallels in other Religions by T. W. Doane Pdf

Comparative Study of the Bible Myths and their Parallels in other Religions is a study the Old and New Testament Myths and Miracles being compared to mythologies of other nations and religions of ancient times, taking in considering their origin and meaning. Comparing biblical myths to those of other nations of antiquity the author shows that many of the Bible tales, mainly about Jesus, and of other legends, are often copied or borrowed from the myths of other religions. The book gives a good history of how long the idea of the mythological nature of the Jesus in the New Testament has been noted.

Author : Northrop Frye,Jay Macpherson
Publisher : University of Toronto Press
Page : 492 pages
File Size : 44,9 Mb
Release : 2004-01-01
Category : Literary Criticism
ISBN : 0802086950

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Biblical and Classical Myths by Northrop Frye,Jay Macpherson Pdf

Combines a 1981-82 series of twenty-four lectures by Canadian literary critic Northrop Frye and Canadian poet and classicist Jay Macpherson's "Four Ages: the Classical Myths" published in 1962.

Author : Elijah Hixson,Peter J. Gurry
Publisher : InterVarsity Press
Page : 404 pages
File Size : 49,7 Mb
Release : 2019-11-05
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9780830866694

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Myths and Mistakes in New Testament Textual Criticism by Elijah Hixson,Peter J. Gurry Pdf

Biblical Foundations Award Finalist and Runner Up Since the unexpected popularity of Bart Ehrman's bestselling Misquoting Jesus, textual criticism has become a staple of Christian apologetics. Ehrman's skepticism about recovering the original text of the New Testament does deserve a response. However, this renewed apologetic interest in textual criticism has created fresh problems for evangelicals. An unfortunate proliferation of myths, mistakes, and misinformation has arisen about this technical area of biblical studies. In this volume Elijah Hixson and Peter Gurry, along with a team of New Testament textual critics, offer up-to-date, accurate information on the history and current state of the New Testament text that will serve apologists and Christian students even as it offers a self-corrective to evangelical excesses.

Author : Robert Graves,Raphael Patai
Publisher : Rosetta Books
Page : 414 pages
File Size : 55,5 Mb
Release : 2014-05-15
Category : Religion
ISBN : 9780795337154

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Hebrew Myths by Robert Graves,Raphael Patai Pdf

The I, Claudius author’s “lightning sharp interpretations and insights . . . are here brought to bear with equal effectiveness on the Book of Genesis” (Kirkus Reviews). This is a comprehensive look at the stories that make up the Old Testament and the Jewish religion, including the folk tales, apocryphal texts, midrashes, and other little-known documents that the Old Testament and the Torah do not include. In this exhaustive study, Robert Graves provides a fascinating account of pre-Biblical texts that have been censored, suppressed, and hidden for centuries, and which now emerge to give us a clearer view of Hebrew myth and religion than ever. Venerable classicist and historian Robert Graves recounts the ancient Hebrew stories, both obscure and familiar, with a rich sense of storytelling, culture, and spirituality. This book is sure to be riveting to students of Jewish or Judeo-Christian history, culture, and religion.