Jesus and Zamolxis: Pagan Parallel?

http://www.mircea-eliade.com/from-primitives-to-zen/036.html

JP Holding's response - thx to AaronK

http://www.tektonics.org/copycat/zalmoxis.html

Note: Holding's response to Carrier's assertions do not address the central claim that well before Jesus' time we have a documented story wherein a healer man, revered as a god, taught a doctrine of an afterlife in a better place, disappeared from his followers for a while only to return. This is all we can know definitively - whether we want to go the Carrier route and say that this is indicative of pagan influence or the Holding route and state that these similarities are not enough is once again...a question of faith.

The fate of the library? - Here is a link with a good discussion on the fate of the Alexandrian library.

http://www.bede.org.uk/library.htm

"Judging the evidence of the ancient writers, the library was gone long before Theophilus was born and Christianity held power." - Thanks to Labarum for the info

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Tags:

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• jesus
• zamolxis
• immortality
• of
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• afterlife
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• herodotus
• influences

[labarum312]

The claim that Theophilus destroyed the Library at Alexandria is a fiction invented by Edward Gibbon in his influential Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. Gibbon went out of his way to blame the Church for every perceived calamity and used a source that claimed Theophilus burned a pagan temple and the manuscripts in it to one that he did the same for the library at Alexandria.

[labarum312]

The great library is not mentioned in any sources during the period of Roman rule in Egypt and was likely destroyed at the time of the Roman conquest. The later stories blaming it on either Theophilus or the Muslim Caliph Omar are just that - stories.

[epaminodas]

forgot to add - do you have a reference pointing this out

[epaminodas]

i was aware of gibbon's anti xtian biases but i have to admit i didnt' know he made up the theophilus claim - i'll have to look into it - thx for bringing it to my attention

PS - even if theo's off the hook on this one the book burnings aren't exactly favorable

[bamboo4tameshigiri]

I assume you have read the Epic of Gilgamesh as well?

[epaminodas]

yes i have

[MrDoremouse]

Apparently J R Hoffmann's version of The True Doctrine by Celsus (p.67) mentions that Zamolix convinced the Scythians that he had come back to life.That said, I believe Jesus did rise from the dead. If He just survived the crucixion (some people did) that wouldn't convince the disciples He'd died for our sins and risen from the dead. And He'd have told them, 'No, I survived the cross'' wouldn't He? And I don't believe Jesus went to Kashmir either coz He'd have said ''I'm off '' 2 the disciples

[dieleia7]

Thank you for posting.Congratulatios!There are so few people that can see the truth these days...

[carpatinul]

Thanks for posting. Good to see there is a lot of interest in a topic that raises many questions. The Dacians (romanian people today) have kept many of the old teachings and customs through their folkloric culture such as ritual dances, spellbinding chants and sayings, decorating thier traditional clothes and homeware with various simbols and charatcters. For instance, The Cross is found on many items, well before Jesus. More than likely, thats way Christianity was asimilated and well adapted

[q7spiz]

History repeats its self. God has revealed Himself to all the ends of the earth.

[osarbatoare]

See Evanghelia Dacilor in Romanian Language.

[1Project1Haiduc1]

Really cool video.

I did discover this as well, it certainly is interesting. There is an article on this on infidels(dot)org.

[Blurallis]

Getae believed in Zalmoxis teachings

Lactantius (240320) translated Julian Apostate who put this word in Traian mouth: "We have conquered even these Dacians the most warlike of all people that have ever existed, not only because of the strength in their bodies, but, also due to the teachings of Zalmoxis who is among their most hailed. He has told them that that in their hearts they do not die, but change their location and, due to this, they go to their deaths happier than on any other journey

[Blurallis]

Herodots: 5.6.2 Zalmoxis had a tattoo-mark on his forehead which Greek writers, unaware of its religious significance, explained by saying that he had been captured by pirates, who branded him for the slave-market

The tattoing as a mark of dedication to a god cf. also Hdt 2.113 (Egptian) Tattooing was likewise practiced by Dacians (Pliny)