Abrahamic mythology
From Freepedia
Abrahamic mythology is a term used in comparative mythology to refer to the shared religious history and herritage, often classified as mythology among outsiders, of the Abrahamic religions, as distinct from the surrounding Pagan religions they developed from (or, in what some scholars would consider an anachronistic view of many adherents, as distinct from the Pagan religions that spawned in a corrupted form from it).
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Controversy of terminology
Many adherents of the Abrahamic religions reject the notion that their shared religious herritage should even be categorized as a "mythology" at all, due to the connotations of untruth that word mythology holds, especially as it has historically been used mainly in reference to Pagan mythologies, which Abrahamics regard as fictional. Though, connotations aside, there's nothing to say that a mythology can't also be historically accurate. Furthermore, those who use the term mythology may have a great deal of respect for the "Abrahamic myths" and intent no disrespect by it, while others may feel the term is inherently disrespectful; those who do find the term disrespectful include both those who are offended by its use and those who use it intentionally to offend.
The term will likely always therefore remain contentious and controversial, though its usefulness as a single term to encompass the shared religious herritage of the Abrahamic faiths cannot be wholly disregarded, nomatter one's opinion of its propriety.
Abrahamic views
The traditional perspective of adherents of the Abrahamic faiths is that there is indeed a common source and history for the world's religions, and borrowing which has produced a shared folklore, which is a kind of shared memory of the truth, partially obscured elsewhere, but preserved in Scripture by divine revelation. The view does not claim, as it may at first seem, that the pagans borrowed from Scripture; but rather the view is that Scripture directly confronts the history, folklore and religious perspectives of the surrounding peoples, contradicting its connection to idols, and in contrast re-orienting religion toward one God, creator, and ruler over all, who is described as an attentive actor in history. The constant refrain of these religions is, "remember".
This view has recently been challenged on multiple fronts, by modern scholarship, as partially described below.
(More needs to be written about how Abrahamics feel about their shared mythology)
Secular views
Although not all scholars agree on the reliability of the Old Testament, most of the scholars who use the term "Abrahamic Mythology" believe that the mythos first appeared between four to five thousand years ago, under the influence of several predecessor traditions, primarily from Chaldean mythology, and then was combined with later sources such as Zoroastrianism. Many historians, comparative mythologists, and archeologists came to hold this view, especially at the end of the 19th century, as academia became increasingly secularized and as tangible evidence of non-Abrahamic sources for Abrahamic myths began coming to light.
Typically, features of resemblance are pointed out between the Abrahamic traditions and those of far greater antiquity, in the effort to trace the borrowing and amendations that may have resulted in the Abrahamic stories. While there are obvious and striking similarities between, for example, the Sumerian myth of Enuma Elish and the later Abrahamic stories of creation, and the cataclysmic flood in the 11th tablet of the epic poem The Epic of Gilgamesh and the Noahic Deluge of Abrahamic legend, there are also a number of other, finer points of similarity shared with other Pagan religions of Middle-East. On the basis of such numerous similarities, it is theorized that the Abrahamic myths either originated in Chaldean mythology itself, or at least borrowed heavily from it, as such similarities seem unlikely to have appeared by chance. Higher critics in the academic mainstream have tended to incorporate some of these secular historical perspectives, including the point of view that the Bible, the Qu'ran and Hadiths represent a tradition of mythology, which was originally based on some true historical events that were gradually supernaturalized, incorporating a mythical and allegorical character. Consequently, theologians who have adopted this perspective might argue that if the stories are to be seen as true, they should be judged true by other standards than those of modern historical science.
Abrahamic mythology as includes (but not limited to):
Closely related, but distinct from Abrahamic mythology are:
- Babylonian and Assyrian religion
- Babylonian mythology
- Egyptian mythology
- Habiru mythology, the early Paganism of the Habiru (Hebrews) before converting to monotheism
Religions whose mythologies represent a blend of Abrahamic and Pagan myths include:
- Stregheria (a mixture of Roman Catholicism, Roman mythology, and Etruscan mythology)
- Vodun (a mixture of Roman Catholicism and African mythology)
Recent developments
In recent times, modern historical method has been applied to the sacred texts. These efforts seek to discover whether aspects of the ancient stories can be shown to be historical by the standards of historical science. For example, a leading archaeologist Kenneth Kitchen, who authored the work On the Reliability of the Old Testament, offers the opinion that the patriarchal narratives of the Bible are historical, in contrast to myth (Kenneth A. Kitchen, The Patriarchal Age: Myth or History?, Biblical Archeological Review 21:02, Mar/Apr 1995). Prominent Yale archaeologist, Millar Burrows stated the following: "On the whole, however, archaeological work has unquestionably strengthened confidence in the reliability of the Scriptural record...Archaeology has in many cases refuted the views of modern critics." [1]. Apologists working from an historical perspective, offer evidence that archaeology greatly corroborates the Bible. [2][3] [4]
