On Biblical Accounts and Pagan Myths

On Biblical Accounts and Pagan Myths

E Beachy
On Paganism
I have long been fascinated by the myths from antiquity. At times I have speculated about studying ancient history if only to fully explore a people group and know more about their culture and the stories they believed. I first encountered mythical tales when I was eight or so. Growing up in a Christian home, I do not know if I consciously saw these as alternatives to Christianity. I think I merely perceived them to be intriguing stories, and I read them as such. However as I have grown older, I see these stories as man's attempt to explain what happens in nature. But what began as a simple explanation of nature's forces became an attempt to find equality with the gods. Descriptions of natural forces led to the deification of those forces or the force behind the natural events.
I want to look at how these stories have their roots in the Christian stories. I will show that there is a common source for these stories, no matter if these stories are told on different continents. Ultimately, I want to point to humanity having a common story – a story anchored in the truth as told by the Old Testament stories.
I want to see how the Biblical stories are reflected in the myths of other religions. As a Christian, I believe the Bible to be true; therefore, I believe any myth that contains a vestige of similarity to the Old Testament speaks of the events described in the Old Testament. In this comparison, I am not content to simply use Grecian and Roman myths, but I wish to encompass the globe in my search for these myths.
In his book, The Everlasting Man, G. K. Chesterton writes a chapter on “Man and Mythologies.” In this chapter he states that man can often sense more than he can say. In other words man sees the beauty of the world around him and, to give it more personal meaning, he creates a myth.1 This myth makes the natural world more personal. The myth is an expression of a transcendent truth or force behind the natural...

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