Originally posted by red g jacks
i see.. i've heard that there are countless mythological figures with many of the same attributes as jesus but never really looked into it too deep. one of the specific ones ive heard of was horus, from the egyptian mythology, but the only answer i've ever received from a believer in regards to this is that these stories about horus were 'not written prior to the new testament' but later adopted and added to the character's legacy.i do know that the biblical creation myth is from the babylonian story.. and that stories like the flood myth and the tower of bable have other versions in other mythologies..
i'm mostly used to discussing this with christians, and they usually respond well to arguments based on scripture since they take that rather seriously, while any argument attributing credit to another religion or mythology is instantly written off. the main argument that they seem to give for faith in jesus christ over any other form of worship is that jesus fulfilled countless prophecies and made it obvious to those that seek him that he is the real deal.. so this is a claim that i have taken some interest in
personally i like reading the religious scriptures even though i don't believe any of it.. i think spirituality is just recognizing beauty in life and applying poetic interpretations
Horus is a good example, and much of it did predate Jesus. A lot of imagery and plot from the "Christmas story" of Jesus' birth was also co-opted. Walking on water and rising from the dead are also popular motifs/stories, along with many Old Testament stories like the flood and Book of Job.
It is popular to dismiss certain myths that were contemporaries of Jesus (Mithra, for example) by saying they adopted Christian aspects, not the other way around. What I can't fathom is how you can have it one way but not the other, with the overwhelmingly most likely scenario is that a LOT of savior myths were all borrowing from each other. Sometimes this was deliberate, as you could placate former followers of one deity-figure by introducing them to similar thematic elements for your particular god or savior.
There's a lot of easily-found mythological scholarship that can put this into concrete terms, which I don't have the time, space, or patience for. Joseph Campbell is a great starting author for this stuff, and is also a personal hero of mine. His works are a great introduction into this idea without being demeaning or laden with a religious agenda. In fact, he manages to cast myths in an amazingly inspiring light, while simultaneously showing how it's silly and limiting to think of them as literal truth.