Mythra Posted December 9, 2015 Share Posted December 9, 2015 If it walks like pious fraud, swims like pious fraud, and quacks like pious fraud ... then, it's probably pious fraud. Sorry for the crude analogy but religion has never been concerned about preserving "facts" about "oral history." Stories about the past aren't "history." Ancient stories about god-men are not "history." They were stories intended to teach lessons, instill virtue, inspire faith in an afterlife, unify the people, etc. There is NO reason to assume that ANYTHING in the Bible is based on "oral history." None. The anonymous writers' imaginations suffice as a far better explanation. Nobody is saying that if we just peel away all the legend and discard the supernatural, then we will have "the historical Dionysus." Any exception for Christianity, Judaism, or Islam is special pleading. These are all very late, demythologizing religions, invented in times of widespread skepticism about the gods. They were invented specifically as text-based religions, which proves their very lateness. They are all pious frauds. very good post, blood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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