Coolhermit Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 I am no fan of the (self proclaimed) 'apostle' Paul. I consider him devious in the extreme and the founder of a religion that has duped and spiritually (and sometimes literally) enslaved millions over the centuries. Just recently I discovered that his 'road to Damascus' conversion story was plagiarised from Euripides' "The Bacchae" "Those who believe Acts to be true might like to read this (below). Anyone interested can google, "Paul's conversion in the Bacchae" for a fuller examination pro and ante. "Luke also apparently plagiarizes from the play of Euripedes called the Bacchae. The famous 'conversion' of Paul is a good example. In ACTS, it is said that Paul hears the voice of Jesus say: "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It is hard for you, this kicking against the goads [pros kentra laktizein]" (ACTS 26:15). In the Bacchae, which is approximately five hundred years older than ACTS, the situation is parallel. Dionysis, the persected God, says to King Pentheus, his persecutor: "You disregard my words of warning... and kick against the goads [pros kentra laktizoimi]" (line 794). It is highly probable that 'Luke' has 'borrowed' this from the Bacchae, because 'Luke' retains the plural form of the noun 'kentra,' which, while maintaining the meter in the Bacchae, seems out of place in ACTS. 'Luke' also apparently plagiarized the Bacchae when constructing the jail-break scenes of Peter and Paul. When Peter is imprisoned in Jerusalem, an angel appears, saying: "Quick! Get up... And the chains fell away from his wrists. [When they appraoch the prison gate, it] opened for them of its own accord" (ACTS 12:8,10). Similarly, when Paul and Silas are imprisoned in Phillipi, "all the doors burst open and all the prisoners found their fetters unfastened" (ACTS 16:26). Both scenarios seem to be derived from the Bacchae, where the persecuted Maenads [followers of Dionysus] find that "The chains on their legs snap apart ...untouched by any human hand, the doors swing wide, opening of their own accord" (lines 447-8). Randel Helms observes that "it really is not surprising that this play should have had such a lasting effect on Luke's imagination; for it concerns a young, persecuted and misunderstood deity, the son of Zeus and a mortal woman (Semele)..." (Who Wrote the Gospels, 91)." http://www.errantyears.com/1998/jun98/002977.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The-Captain Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 Wow, very interesting paralells Hermit. Yeah even in my xian days I was never a big fan of Paul. The blithe acceptance of his hallucination and the resulting dogma as a cornerstone of the faith is probably the biggest problem with xianity, as a philosophy and a religion. He is as credible as Joseph Smith, David Koresh, Mohammed or any man who appeals to supernatrual revelation to spi their yarns. Why people are so willing to believe them is beyond me. Worse is the level of refusal by most christians to apply critical thinking to the story of Paul. It's like refusing to investigate a dirty politician or a doping athlete just because you looked up to him as a hero. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
par4dcourse Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 You're surprised that a book of myths, fairy tales, and downright lies has yet another error? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The-Captain Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 You're surprised that a book of myths, fairy tales, and downright lies has yet another error? Me? If so yeah surprised that ,if this is true, such a blatant plagiarism of theme went unnoticed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ouroboros Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 I think it's a cool fact to add to the list of correlations between pagan myths and Christian "holy book" writings. Thanks' CH. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kenny Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 I think it's a cool fact to add to the list of correlations between pagan myths and Christian "holy book" writings. Thanks' CH. Yes, yes, and yes again. I always thought Paul was an arrogant misogynist. Damn. That means I really think Dionysis was an arrogant misogynist. So much fallacy to keep up with! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grandpa Harley Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 Wasn't Dionysus linked to the Magna Mater cults as well? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ouroboros Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 I always thought Paul was an arrogant misogynist. Damn. That means I really think Dionysis was an arrogant misogynist. So much fallacy to keep up with! I think you have to remember though to separate the person from the legend. This legend story is in Acts, written by Luke, to give Paul some history. So we don't even know if Luke and Paul knew each other. Maybe Luke just made up the whole story of other reasons, and not by instructions from Paul? Who knows? It does however give more credence to the thought that there is a lot of borrowed thought from the Greek mythology and philosophy into Christianity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
par4dcourse Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 You're surprised that a book of myths, fairy tales, and downright lies has yet another error? Me? If so yeah surprised that ,if this is true, such a blatant plagiarism of theme went unnoticed. No, I meant the OP. I tend to be a bit trite, but I think the wholly babble is on par with Green Eggs and Ham and deserves the same study and analysis, so finding another error doesn't seem significant. Didn't mean to piss anyone off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The-Captain Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 You're surprised that a book of myths, fairy tales, and downright lies has yet another error? Me? If so yeah surprised that ,if this is true, such a blatant plagiarism of theme went unnoticed. No, I meant the OP. I tend to be a bit trite, but I think the wholly babble is on par with Green Eggs and Ham and deserves the same study and analysis, so finding another error doesn't seem significant. Didn't mean to piss anyone off. Green Eggs and Ham eh? That sounds like a healthy attitude to take. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grandpa Harley Posted February 14, 2008 Share Posted February 14, 2008 I do not like you 'Sam-I-Am'! Of course, you need to read it in the original Latin to get the full impact... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bellsybop Posted February 15, 2008 Share Posted February 15, 2008 Everyday I come to this site several times... everyday I leave this site more informed and enlightened to the crap of yesteryear. Thanks for sharing this information. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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