Tag Archives: Jesus

Christ’s Resurrection and our Redemption: A Mytho-Psychological View of Easter

Posted on April 13, 2017 by

In the last of my Easter posts from last year about the mythological aspects of the holiday, I focused on the meaning of Christ’s resurrection in mytho-psychological terms and what this means for our own spirituality, concluding that our resurrection … Continue reading →

Posted in Christianity, Mythology, Mythology of the Eden Story | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Christmas Mythology V: Luke’s Christmas Story

Posted on December 21, 2016 by

Yesterday’s post covered the mythological elements of the Christmas story unique to Matthew, so today I’m doing the same for Luke. The Story of the Shepherds and Jesus in the Manger In Luke’s story the adoration scene features shepherds rather … Continue reading →

Posted in Christianity, Holidays, Mythology, Mythology of the Eden Story | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Christmas Mythology IV: Matthew’s Christmas Story

Posted on December 20, 2016 by

Matthew 2’s Christmas story, no part of which is found elsewhere in the New Testament, contains some of our most dramatic and enduring Christmas images: the magi following a moving star to visit and venerate the young child and future king … Continue reading →

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Christmas Mythology III: Jesus and the “Birth of the Hero” Mythological Motif

Posted on December 19, 2016 by

Myths and legends feature countless hero figures, and even real history features many people whose lives have been mythologized, being elevated into larger-than-life figures. Scholars have long recognized that Jesus as portrayed in the New Testament and its apocrypha as … Continue reading →

Posted in Christianity, Holidays, Mythology | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Christmas Mythology II: What is History and What is Myth in the Nativity Stories?

Posted on December 18, 2016 by

This post is the first of several leading up to this Christmas dealing with the mythology lurking behind our Christmas stories, rituals, and holiday celebrations, starting with the stories of Jesus’s birth and leading up to our modern day. It … Continue reading →

Posted in Christianity, Holidays, Mythology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

The Mythology of Easter III: The Mythical Meaning of the Resurrection

Posted on March 26, 2016 by

In yesterday’s post I first concluded that the story of Christ’s resurrection would not have originated by transferring the earlier motif of dying and rising gods to form the epilogue to Christ’s death, but in the end concluded that they, … Continue reading →

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The Mythology of Easter II: Was Christ a “Dying and Rising God”?

Posted on March 24, 2016 by

In yesterday’s post I discussed what part of the Easter Resurrection story is history and what part is myth. Insofar as the Resurrection story is myth, it becomes important to distinguish which aspects of the myth partake of motifs common … Continue reading →

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The Mythology of Easter I: What Actually Happened and What is Myth?

Posted on March 23, 2016 by

Easter is perhaps the most mythological of our holidays, but in the Christian tradition the Resurrection of Christ is considered a historical event, without belief in which there would be no Christianity. As St. Paul put it, “if Christ has … Continue reading →

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Joint Book Review: How Jesus Became God, by Bart D. Ehrman, and How God Became Jesus, by Michael F. Bird et al.

Posted on December 7, 2014 by

Did Jesus consider himself divine? When did his disciples and other followers conclude that he was divine? According to the earliest Christians, at what stage in Jesus’ existence did he become divine? This year two controversial books were published with … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Reviews, Christianity | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments