christianity paganism
Thursday, February 4th, 2010christianity paganism

The Christian Sabbath.
The Bible tells us that God sanctified the seventh day Sabbath as a day in remembrance that He is the Creator of Heaven and Earth. It says, Exodus 20:8-11 "Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work...".
So if God ordained Sunset Friday to Sunset Saturday, the seventh day as the Sabbath, why do most Christians go to Church on Sunday?
Who changed the day to Sunday, and when? Did Jesus? Is it spoken of in the scriptures? Was there a new commandment written to amend the fourth commandment after Jesus died? Do we keep Sunday in honor of his resurrection?
It has been firmly established by numerous historians and theologians that the books of Matthew and Luke were written between 60 and 80 AD. This means that if the Sabbath had changed to Sunday after Jesus death, then it should have been recorded by these Bible writers. Instead though we see that rather than inform us of any change to the day, Luke instead he states in Luke 23:56, "...And they rested on the Sabbath according to the commandment."
Jesus Himself in His prophecy about the destruction of the temple, which occurred in about 70 AD, when He was talking to His Disciples said Matthew 24:20, "And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath." This shows conclusively that Jesus knew that the Sabbath would still be in existence many years after the cross.
Historians also confirm that the seventh day Sabbath was kept by both Jews and Gentiles, until around 120 AD. At this time the persecution of the Jews became so great that many Christians in some areas decided to start keeping Sunday, so as to try to differentiate themselves from the Jews, who were still faithfully keeping the Sabbath of the Lord. Some Christians began to use the excuse that it was in honor of the resurrection, as there was no scriptural basis for this change. At that time Christians in areas outside the Roman empire continued to keep the true seventh day Sabbath of God.
In 321 A.D. Constantine, who was a pagan, became Caesar in Rome. As he began to see the balance of power shift from paganism to the Church he passed the first law enforcing Sunday worship in 321 AD. Sunday of course was the day that the pagans kept holy in their worship of the Sun god. Two years after passing this law Constantine joined the Roman Catholic Church and began mingling paganism with Christianity. The pagans were very involved with idolatry, so he took many of the statues of their gods and gave them Christian names, like St Peter and Mary. It was well after 400 AD before Sunday eventually took on the name of the Lord's Day.
In many documents, papers and books written by the Roman Catholic Church, they openly take credit for moving the sanctity of the Seventh day Sabbath to Sunday, by their own authority, which they believe is above that of the scriptures. Here are some examples.
"Protestants...accept Sunday rather than Saturday as the day for public worship after the Catholic Church made the change...But the Protestant mind does not seem to realize that...In observing the Sunday, they are accepting the authority of the spokesman for the church, the Pope." Our Sunday Visitor , February 15, 1950.
"From this we may understand how great is the authority of the church in interpreting or explaining to us the commandments of God - an authority which is acknowledged by the universal practice of the whole Christian world, even of those sects which profess to take the holy Scriptures as their sole rule of faith, since they observe as the day of rest not the seventh day of the week demanded by the Bible, but the first day. Which we know is to be kept holy, only from the tradition and teaching of the Catholic church." Henry Gibson, Catechism Made Easy, # 2, 9th edition, vol. 1, p. 341-342.
"It was the Catholic church which...has transferred this rest to Sunday in remembrance of the resurrection of our Lord. Therefore the observance of Sunday by the Protestants is an homage they pay, in spite of themselves, to the authority of the (Catholic) church." Monsignor Louis Segur, Plain Talk About the Protestantism of Today, p. 213.
"Sunday is our mark or authority...the church is above the Bible, and this transference of Sabbath observance is proof of that fact." Catholic Record of London , Ontario, September 1, 1923.
"The authority of the church could therefore not be bound to the authority of the Scriptures, because the Church had changed...the Sabbath into Sunday, not by command of Christ, but by its own authority." Canon and Tradition, p. 263.
So it seems that if Christians keep the Sabbath on the seventh day, we are following the commandment of God, but if we keep Sunday, we are following the traditions of man. Does that really matter?
The Bible says in Mark 7:6-9 "Jesus answered them, "How right Isaiah was when he prophesied about you! You are hypocrites, just as he wrote: ‘These people, says God, honor me with their words, but their heart is really far away from me. It is no use for them to worship me, because they teach human rules as though they were my laws!' "You put aside God's command and obey human teachings." And Jesus continued, "You have a clever way of rejecting God's law in order to uphold your own teaching."
It seems clear that Jesus wanted us to stand firm on the teachings of the scriptures, and not on any religious traditions instituted by man.
All Bible references are from the King James Version.
About the Author
For more information on this subject please visit http://www.sabbath-truth.org
Debra Lohrere is the author of "Peace, Prophecy and False Fire" http://www.lulu.com/content/333221. Her Homepage is http://debra.lohrere.com/home.shtml
How is the conversion from Paganism and Christianity shown in Beowulf?
I have a test on Beowulf and I have of feeling that this is going to be on it. Is it because people struggled with monsters for their place and in the end the monsters are dead? Or something like that, because Paganism life was ruled by fate by many gods, but Christianity was the people's choice of good + evil? I really don't know.. :/
Beowulf the story is much older than the written manuscript we have, which dates from about 800 AD. The story was written down by monks, who tried to "pretty up" the original folk legends by inserting references to God, the Bible, Cain etc. when you know darn well the ancient Nordic people didn't even know Israel was there. So no way could Grendel originally be called "a son of Cain."
But of course, who had the skills of reading and writing? At that time, the religious communities and Christian missionary monks. They wrote down the folktales and tried to give them a Christian twist, to serve as teaching materials, just as they Christianised some English traditions of "holy wells" etc.
The battle between good and evil is not intrinsically pagan or intrinsically Christian--it is human. But the people who gave the legend its written form had an agenda that was not present in the oral tradition. In the original oral work, the emphasis is on the four pillars of Nordic society: generosity, hospitality, bravery and loyalty...both on the part of the people AND of their king towards them.
I could go on and on but there is limited space here.
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The Mists of Avalon List Price: $14.97 Sale Price: $7.48 Used From: $3.70 Average Rating: ![]() |
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Retells the legend of King Arthur as perceived by the women central to the tale, from the zealous Morgaine, sworn to uphold her goddess at any cost, to the devout Gwenwyfar, pledged to the king but drawn to another.Genre: Feature Film-DramaRating: UNRelease Date: 7-SEP-2004Media Type: DVD This adaptation of Marion Zimmer Bradley's sprawling and perennially popular book, whose retelling of the Arthurian legends focused on the role of powerful females, compresses a wealth of mysticism, family intrigue, and bloody swordplay into three hours. While the plot can meander slowly and can sometimes seem, well, mystifying, the work of three notable actresses holds the production together, and the numerous complications do eventually get resolved. As Viviane, the Lady of the Lake, Anjelica Huston endeavors to perpetuate the old religion as pagan Britain comes into contact with Christianity. The scheming Morgause, played to evil perfection by Joan Allen, conspires to her own ends. And Avalon priestess Morgaine, played by Julianna Margulies, travels the heroine's journey, overcoming tragedies, injustice, and all manner of obstacles in her duty to both "the goddess" and her younger brother, King Arthur. Although the action lags at times, the production is quite lavish for a made-for-television feature and the film is ultimately entertaining. --Robert J. McNamara |
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Exorcist - The Beginning (Widescreen Edition) List Price: $14.98 Sale Price: Too low to display Used From: $0.01 Average Rating: ![]() |
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THIS TRACES THE STORY OF FATHER MERRIN BACK TO HIS FIRSTENCOUNTER WITH THE DEVIL DURING HIS MISSIONARY WORK IN AFRICA. "This movie is cursed!" exclaimed movie-magazine headlines regarding Exorcist: The Beginning, but those dire warnings turned out to be exaggerated. Considering a tumultuous production history that actually did seem cursed, Renny Harlin's much-maligned prequel to The Exorcist is a surprisingly competent, serious-minded shocker filled with the same anxious foreboding that made the 1973 original so phenomenally effective. The story lacks focus and feels cobbled together (perhaps the result of its tortured development, which included the untimely death of original director John Frankenheimer), but Stellan Skarsgård is well-cast as Father (now Mr.) Merrin, a lapsed Catholic priest summoned to East Africa in 1949 to retrieve a demonic idol. He discovers a buried church, a vast underground cavern, demonic possession, and a legacy of carnage that preys upon guilt-ridden memories from his parish in Nazi-occupied Holland. Harlin delivers the gross-out moments that Warner Brothers demanded, but otherwise shows remarkable restraint while cinematographer Vittorio Storaro delivers doom-laden visual atmosphere. It's not the classic many were hoping for--not even close--but it's still a win-win scenario for horror fans, since it's rumored the unreleased and "abandoned" version directed by Paul Schrader will be paired with this film for its DVD release. Comparisons will no doubt prove interesting. --Jeff Shannon |
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Quo Vadis List Price: $12.98 Sale Price: $8.49 Average Rating: ![]() |
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"Welcome to Nero's House of Women" greets a concubine to a slave girl, Lygia (Deborah Kerr). Later this self-same greeter reveals that she, too, like Lygia, is really a fellow Christian neophyte. And it's that mixture of tawdry Hollywood sex and a strong Christian message that makes this film an enjoyable "gentiles and gladiators" flick. Marcus Vinicius returns home after conquering the Britons to find that Rome is infected with a crazy new sect called Christians and that his beloved emperor Nero (Peter Ustinov, roly-poly and wicked) has become increasingly wacky. Marcus tries his centurion wiles on Lygia, and she's smitten, but she's also a Christian convert and begs Marcus not to force her to choose between him and her god. The Christians have a tough go of it, with martyrdom in the Coliseum as punishment for belonging to the new religion in town. Though three hours long, director Mervyn LeRoy's film always has something going on. It could help you enjoyably kill any rainy Sunday afternoon. --Keith Simanton NTSC/Region 0. Starring, Mervyn LeRoy, Robert Taylor, Deborah Kerr, and Leo Genn. Castaways. 2007. |
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Christianity for Modern Pagans: Pascal's Pensees List Price: $16.95 Sale Price: $10.39 Used From: $8.50 Average Rating: ![]() |
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Peter Kreeft believes that Blaise Pascal is the first post-medieval apologist. No writer in history, claims Kreeft, is a more effective Christian apologist and evangelist to today's uprooted, confused, secularized pagans (inside and outside the Church) than Pascal. He was a brilliant man--a great scientist who did major work in physics and mathematics, as well as an inventor--whom Kreeft thinks was three centuries ahead of his time. His apologetics found in his Pensées are ideal for the modern, sophisticated skeptic. Kreeft has selected the parts of Pascal's Pensées which best respond to the needs of modern man, and offers his own comments on applying Pascal's wisdom to today's problems. Addressed to modern skeptics and unbelievers, as well as to modern Christians for apologetics and self-examination, Pascal and Kreeft combine to provide a powerful witness to Christian truth. |
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The Path of a Christian Witch List Price: $15.95 Sale Price: $9.54 Used From: $9.82 Average Rating: ![]() |
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A unique mix of memoir and how-to that includes practical daily Pagan rituals, this inspiring book shows how one woman blended Christian traditions with the magic and beauty of a Wiccan practice. Raised in the Catholic faith, yet strongly drawn to Paganism, Adelina St. Clair spent many years questioning and soul-searching before she found a way to blend aspects of Wicca and Christianity into a vibrant and loving belief system. Filled with personal anecdotes, this book tells the story of St. Clair's journey of self-discovery and revelation, from her initial fear and guilt to her ultimate sense of peace and joy. With warmth and heartfelt reverence, St. Clair discusses vital aspects of Witchcraft and Christianity, as well as the commonalities between the two. â Monotheism vs. polytheismâ Magical practiceâ The teachings of Christâ Goddess worshipâ The femininity of Godâ The Wheel of the Yearâ Praying the rosaryâ Sacred space |
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Among the Gentiles: Greco-Roman Religion and Christianity (The Anchor Yale Bible Reference Library) List Price: $32.50 Sale Price: $16.25 Used From: $21.13 Average Rating: ![]() |
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The question of Christianityâs relation to the other religions of the world is more pertinent and difficult today than ever before. While Christianityâs historical failure to appreciate or actively engage Judaism is notorious, Christianityâs even more shoddy record with respect to paganâ religions is less understood. Christians have inherited a virtually unanimous theological tradition that thinks of paganism in terms of demonic possession, and of Christian missions as a rescue operation that saves pagans from inherently evil practices.  In undertaking this fresh inquiry into early Christianity and Greco-Roman paganism, Luke Timothy Johnson begins with a broad definition of religion as a way of life organized around convictions and experiences concerning ultimate power. In the tradition of William Jamesâs Variety of Religious Experience, he identifies four distinct ways of being religious: religion as participation in benefits, as moral transformation, as transcending the world, and as stabilizing the world. Using these criteria as the basis for his exploration of Christianity and paganism, Johnson finds multiple points of similarity in religious sensibility.  Christianityâs failure to adequately come to grips with its first pagan neighbors, Johnson asserts, inhibits any effort to engage positively with adherents of various world religions. This thoughtful and passionate study should help break down the walls between Christianity and other religious traditions. (20090914) |
Biblical evidence of Pagan Parallels(The challenge video with Funk, Ayers, and Kirk)~!











