Re: heathens in ukrc

In article <5pKdnQe5BObcPb7anZ2dnUVZ8v2vnZ2d@xxxxxx>, mark wrote:
"Emma Pease" <emma@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:slrnfi7456.39u.emma@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
In article <F4CdnQ6VyNnPHb7anZ2dneKdnZydnZ2d@xxxxxx>, mark wrote:
"Roger Pearse" <roger_pearse@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:1193497540.292743.178820@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
On 25 Oct, 16:42, "mark" <no-oneh...@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:


Hmm. You're not confusing this festival withMithras, are you....??
After all, he WAS born on december 25th

There is nothing in the historical record that links Mithras with
December 25th, however. The idea that there is originates from
confusion of Mithras with Sol Invictus.

There most certainly is. The whole notion of the *invincible sun*,
Mythras and the winter solstice falling on december 25th is precisely
where
the idea orignated and was celebrated.

To be accurate

1. We don't know when or if the birthday of Mithras was celebrated.


Thank you.
However......

And which of them are written by a trained and respected scholars in
that particular field and giving the actual evidence (e.g., ancient
texts)? Personally I looked in google scholar not google.

A review of R. Merkelbach's book "Mithras"
"That hoariest of "facts" about Mithas is once again deployed (141):
that he was born on December 25th. In truth, the only evidence for it
is the celebration of the birthday of "Invictus" on that date in the
Calendar of Philocaulus. "Invictus" is of course Sol Invictus,
Aurelians' sun god. It does nto follow that a different, earlier, and
unofficial sun god, Sol Invictus Mithras, was necessarily, or even
probably, born on that day too."
R. Beck, Phoenix, 1987. p.299 (Beck appears to be a prof emeritus at
the U. Toronto specializing in Mithraism and related areas)

In other words real scholars dispute this.

As for your references:

http://www.geocities.com/spenta_mainyu_2/mithras.htm

No evidence the writer is such a scholar.

http://www.vexen.co.uk/religion/mithraism.html

Is flat out wrong. Aurelian declared December 25th as the day for Sol
Invictus not Mithras.

http://www.meta-religion.com/World_Religions/Ancient_religions/Mesopotamia/Mithraism/mithraism_and_christianity_i.htm

Cites Cumont and Ulansey but doesn't say which one claimed this or the
evidence they used to support it.

and so on

http://www.jesuspolice.com/common_error.php?id=2
http://culturalvision.net/html/merry_mithras.html
http://www.benbest.com/history/xmas.html
http://30ce.com/mithras.htm
http://www.dusharm.com/content/view/32/2/

....to name a few. They are lengthy but all are clear about the birthday of
mithras.

And all are tertiary sources at best and none given the hard evidence


2. We do know the natalis of Sol Invictus was celebrated on December 25.

Yes.

3. Sol Invictus and Mithras were not the same character but were
associated in some cults.

Yes.

Equated is not the same as associated. Note that even being equated
doesn't necessarily lead to December 25th being Mithras' birthday (one
scenario, cult A celebrates Sol Invictus natalis on Dec 25 but doesn't
equate him with Mithras, cult B equates the two but doesn't celebrate
Dec. 25 as the birthday). It is possible it was celebrated as
Mithras's birthday, it is also entirely possible it wasn't.

Note that Christians adopting a day in celebration of Sol Invictus is
no better (or worse) than adopting a day in celebration of Mithras.
However we should be accurate in our evidence and not overstate the
case.



--
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|\* | Emma Pease Net Spinster
|_\/ Die Luft der Freiheit weht
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Relevant Pages

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