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Pagan Origins
NOTE! This article reflects the views of the author and, except where the author is quoted as being the UPCoA, does not necessarily represent the views or policies of the UPCoA. The following is based on historical fact and/or verses contained in the Holy Bible or other relevant religious text(s). It is not intended to indcate or promote an intolerance towards any religion or belief system. Pagans, and the UPCoA, believe in the right of every person to find and follow their chosen path, regardless of what religion that path may be. We only request that others offer us the same courtesy. Religious intolerance and vilification is wrong and should not be tolerated by any person. If you feel that this article is unfair or intolerant of other religions, to a level that is or would be offensive to any reasonable person, you may lodge your protest with us using the Intolerance Report Form (recent script errors that prevented this form from working have now been rectified).
Many people would be surprised if they knew the full extent of influence ancient Pagan religions have had on many modern day traditions. Here are just a few:
Olympic Games
The Olympic Games began in 776 BCE as a Pagan festival during Olympia’s Zeus festival, dedicated to the Pagan god Zeus. There were athletic games all over Greece, but because of the sanctity of Zeus, the Olympics quickly became revered. The first games had just a single foot race, which was won by the cook Koroibos. After this, when Greeks flocked to the Olympia’s sanctuary every four years to honour Zeus, they would stay for the games. Nike was well known even in these ancient games, however in this instance Nike was the Pagan goddess of victory and not a sport shoe!
Further evidence of the Pagan origin of the Olympic Games comes from the Roman Emperor Theodosius who, in 393 CE, baned the games, along with a number of other celebrations, becuase they were “too Pagan”.
References: National Geographic News
About.com
Christmas
The date for Christmas was set in the 4th century in Rome. Until this time the celebration of the birth of Jesus had been celebrated at different times in different locations. At this time Pagan Rome already celebrated the birth of a Pagan god on the 25th December. The entire period around the winter solstice had been a cause of celebration in Pagan Rome for many years, at times including a week long celebration to the birth of the Pagan Sun God (also Sol Invictus). By the 4th century CE this had changed to a celebration of the birth of the god Mithras on December 25.
Early Christians, desperate to entice the Pagans to join the new religion, realised that fighting this massive celebration would be pointless and so, rather than trying to fight the celebrations, they chose to use the festival to celebrate the birth of Jesus. Many Pagan traditions including a decorated ever-green tree, holly, mistletoe, and the giving of gifts, were also transferred across from the existing Pagan traditions. Around the 12th century, the remnants of the former Saturnalian traditions of the Romans were transferred to the Twelve Days of Christmas (25 December – 5 January).
References: Religious Tolerance.org
Wikipedia
Jesus figure
The origin of the figure of Jesus is not a simple history; it was not directly copied from one single Pagan deity but rather created based on existing concepts of what a God-man should be like. There are therefore similarities between aspects of the Jesus story and aspects from number of pre-Christian gods. An example of this is the story of the Pagan god Mithras:
- He was thought to be the “Son of God”
- He was buried in a tomb from which he rose again from the dead. This was celebrated annually.
- Each year at winter solstice the Son of God was once again born. On December 25th the temple of Mithras was lit with candles by priests wearing white garments who would burn incense.
- He was born in a cave on December 25th, of a virgin mother.
- He came from heaven to be born as a man in order to redeem men from their “sin”.
- He was known as “Savior”, “Son of God”, and “Redeemer”
- His followers kept the Sabbath holy, eating sacramental meals of bread and water or bread and wine, which was symbolic of the body and blood of the sacred bull
- Baptism was conducted in the blood of the bull (early Christian baptism was in the blood of the lamb, later replaced with water)
- The Mithras festivals celebrated his birth at the winter solstice (December 25) and his death and resurrection at the spring equinox (late March).
Any of that sound familiar?
Easter
Even the Catholic Encyclopedia admits that the name Easter was an adaptation of the Celtic Pagan goddes Eostre, whose celebration was set during the vernal equinox in March and was a symbol of death and rebirth. Some of the symbols used in the Pagan traditions were coloured and decorated eggs, rabbits (hares), and small cakes or buns decorated with a cross on the top.
Halloween
Halloween originated as the Celtic Pagan celebration of Samhain (sow-wyn), which was the beginning of the new year. It was believed at this time of the year the veil between the worlds of the living and dead were at their thinnest, allowing spirits to cross over into our world. Pagans would often celebrate by dressing in animal skins.
Following Christianisation of the Celts this celebration became known as All Souls Day with the night before (October 31) eventually becomming All Hallows Eve, later shortened to Hallows Eve then Halloween. It was introduced into the USA by Irish immigrants in the 1920’s.
Pontifex Maximus (the Pope)
The Pontifex Maximus was the High Priest of the ancient Pagan Roman “Collegium Pontificum” or College of Pontifs, the most important priesthood of ancient Rome, believed to have been founded by the second king of Rome, Numa Pompilius. The collegium was tasked to act as advisers of the king in all religious matters, with the pontifices holding their positions for life. The collegium was headed by the Pontifex Maximus, the highest office in the Roman polytheistic religion. The word “pontifex” literally means “bridge-builder”, with “maximus” literally meaning “greatest”. Although it may have originally held literal meaning, it was no doubt also understood for its symbolic meaning where the pontifices would “smooth the bridge between gods and men”.
Without quoting its source, the Encyclopædia Britannica attributes to Pope Leo I (440-461 CE) the assumption of the title Pontifex Maximus. This was a time when the declining Roman Empire was in transition from Pagan to Christian religion.
References: Wikipedia
Answers.com
Crucified figure on cross
Originally the well known figure of Jesus on the cross was not a symbol used by the early Christian Church. A pre-Christian figure of the Roman Pagan god Bacchus (equivalent to the Greek god Dionysus), positioned on a cross would influence the decision of the Church in the 6th century to adopt the figure of Christ on the cross. The use of the crucifix was adopted into general use at the Sixth Ecumenical Council in 680 CE.
Fish symbol
The fish symbol has been used for many thousands of years as a religious symbol associated with the Pagan Great Mother goddess, and is regarded as an outline of her vulva. The fish was often drawn using two very thin crescent moons, the first representing the crescent shortly before the new moon, the other shortly after this when the moon is only just visible. The moon has long been associated in Pagan circles with the goddess, with the sun a symbol of the god.
The use of the fish as a symbol for the goddess in Pagan religions can be found in many areas of the ancient Pagan world:
- In Greece the Greek word “delphos” meant both fish and womb. The word is derived from the location of the ancient Oracle at Delphi who worshipped the original fish goddess, Themis. The later fish Goddess, Aphrodite Salacia, was worshipped by her followers on her sacred day, Friday. They ate fish and engaging in orgies. From her name comes the English word “salacious” which means lustful or obscene. Also from her name comes the name of our fourth month, April. In later centuries, the Christian church adsorbed this tradition by requiring the faithful to eat fish on Friday - a tradition that was only recently abandoned. In ancient Rome Friday is called “dies veneris” or Day of Venus, the Pagan Goddess of Love.
- In Egypt, Isis was called the Great Fish of the Abyss
- In India, the Goddess Kali was called the “fish-eyed one”
- In China, Great Mother Kwan-yin often portrayed in the shape of a fish
- Throughout the Mediterranean, mystery religions used fish, wine and bread for their sacramental meal.
- In the Middle East, the Great Goddess of Ephesus was portrayed as a woman with a fish amulet over her genitals.
- In Scandinavia, the Great Goddess was named Freya; fish were eaten in her honor. The 6th day of the week was named “Friday” after her.
Mother and Son
For thousands of years before Christianity images and statues of Isis with her infant son, Horus, were found throughout the Pagan religions. In the 4th century CE these were absorbed into the Christian Madonna “cult” and the images became assosiated with “Mary and child”.
Noah and the flood
The story of a great flood is not something that exists only in Christian stories. There have been flood myths in many Pagan beliefs, some many thousands of years before the creation of the well known flood of the Holy Bible.
One of these stories is the Epic of Gilgamesh, which dates back to the third millenium BCE. The Sumerian cuneiform writing has been dated to around 3300 BCE, with other versions of the story found on stone tablets from 2000 BCE and 670 BCE. The story also exists in ancient Babylonian and Assyrian civilisations
The Epic was composed in the form of a poem. The main figure is Gilgamesh, and the Sumerian King List shows Gilgamesh in the first dynasty of Uruk reigning for 126 years. This length of time is not a problem when compared with the age of the pre-flood patriarchs of the Bible.
The story starts by introducing the deeds of the hero Gilgamesh. He was one who had great knowledge and wisdom, and preserved information of the days before the flood. Gilgamesh wrote on tablets of stone all that he had done, including building the city walls of Uruk and its temple for Eanna. He was an oppressive ruler, however, which caused his subjects to cry out to the “gods” to create a nemesis to cause Gilgamesh strife. After one fight, this nemesis became best friends with Gilgamesh. The two set off to win fame by going on many dangerous adventures in which Enkidu is eventually killed. Gilgamesh then determines to find immortality since he now fears death. It is upon this search that he meets Utnapishtim, the character most like the Biblical figure of Noah.
In brief, Utnapishtim had become immortal after building a ship to weather the Great Deluge that destroyed mankind. He brought all of his relatives and all species of creatures aboard the vessel. Utnapishtim released birds to find land, and the ship landed upon a mountain after the flood. The story then ends with tales of Enkidu’s visit to the underworld. The following table shows some of the similarities, and differences, between the two stories:
Comparison of Genesis & Gilgamesh
| Story Aspect | Gensis circa 950 - 540 BCE* | Gilgamesh circa 3,300 BCE |
|---|---|---|
| Extent of flood | Global | Global |
| Cause | Man’s wickedness | Man’s sins |
| Intended for whom? | All mankind | One city & all mankind |
| Sender | Yahweh | Assembly of gods |
| Name of hero | Noah | Utnapishtim |
| Hero’s character | Righteous | Righteous |
| Means of announcement | Direct from God | In a dream |
| Ordered to build boat? | Yes | Yes |
| Did hero complain? | Yes | Yes |
| Height of boat | Several stories (3) | Several stories (6) |
| Compartments inside? | Many | Many |
| Doors | One | One |
| Windows | At least one | At least one |
| Outside coating | Pitch | Pitch |
| Shape of boat | Rectangular | Square |
| Human passengers | Family members only | Family & few others |
| Other passengers | All species of animals | All species of animals |
| Means of flood | Ground water & heavy rain | Heavy rain |
| Duration of flood | Long (40 days & nights plus) | Short (6 days & nights) |
| Test to find land | Release of birds | Release of birds |
| Types of birds | Raven & three doves | Dove, swallow, raven |
| Ark landing spot | Mountain -- Mt. Ararat | Mountain -- Mt. Nisir |
| Sacrifice after flood? | Yes, by Noah | Yes, by Utnapishtim |
| Blessed after flood? | Yes | Yes |
* Of course most conservative Christians view the Genesis account as the inerrant word of God, having occured around 2349 BCE and recorded by Moses circa 1450 BCE, with Gilgamesh being the copied version stolen by the Pagans (this doesn’t really explain the view that Gilgamesh dates back as far as 3300 BCE, but never mind!). Liberal Theologians however believe that Genesis was actually assembled over a 4 century period, circa 950 to 540 BCE by authors from a variety of traditions. Whilst there are some differences between the above stories, the similarities are evidence that both stories share some common origin. Given the historical evidence that Gilgamesh was recorded in writing as early as 3300 BCE, with Genesis being written between 950 and 540 BCE, it is most likely that the story of Noah was taken and adapted from the pre-existing Pagan myths of the time.
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