Religion and Ethics and Health BBS

Religion and Ethics and Health BBS
[ Religion and Ethics and Health BBS ]

So the Greek gods were invented and worshipped long before...

Posted by Skye on November 3, 2026, 1:05 am

the Jewish, Christian or Muslim god was invented and worshipped, and surprise... the Jewish god still has/had a lot of the same characteristics that the Greek gods had... immortal, all-powerful, self-centered, jealous, vengeful, petty, etc... So what's new?

Long before.

Posted by Mugwump on November 5, 2026, 7:07 am, in reply to "So the Greek gods were invented and worshipped long before..."

Not before the Hebrew Religion came into existence.

Posted by DFM on November 3, 2026, 9:36 am, in reply to "So the Greek gods were invented and worshipped long before..."

If Exen was 6,000 years ago, that timeline at least parallels the other fake gods.

Posted by Phooey on November 3, 2026, 10:15 am, in reply to "Not before the Hebrew Religion came into existence."

The difference is the Hebrew God is singular. Not made up of a panoply of other lesser gods. All of the fakes rolled into one. And it just makes logic that the entire creation is one act by one Creator. The Hebrews got it right. And that is why God answered them and directed their history to where humanity finds itself today. Amen.

So you're one of those Young Earthers, eh?

Posted by Damnation Bound Shaman *= on November 3, 2026, 10:29 am, in reply to "If Exen was 6,000 years ago, that timeline at least parallels the other fake gods."

🙄

Plenty of religions long before yours was formulated...

Posted by Damnation Bound Shaman *= on November 3, 2026, 10:01 am, in reply to "Not before the Hebrew Religion came into existence."

...and plenty more since.

Classical Greek religion is roughly contemporaneous with Original Hebrew religion.

Posted by DFM on November 3, 2026, 11:12 am, in reply to "Plenty of religions long before yours was formulated..."

https://www.worldhistory.org/timeline/Greek_Religion/

c. 1500 BCE
First temple to Demeter & Persephone is built at Eleusis.

https://www.thoughtco.com/ancient-eras-of-ancient-jewish-history-117403

Patriarchal Era (ca. 1800–1500 BCE)

That may be true, but....

Posted by Skye on November 4, 2026, 2:22 pm, in reply to "Classical Greek religion is roughly contemporaneous with Original Hebrew religion."

"Pagan" Texts (Mesopotamian & Egyptian) — c. 2400 – 2100 BCE

If we define "pagan" in its broadest sense (ancient polytheistic religions outside of the Abrahamic faiths), these are the undisputed oldest religious texts in human history.

Hebrew and Greek texts emerged roughly around the same era (8th to 6th centuries BCE), long before the Romans compiled theirs."

What about the world away from the middle east and North Africa?

Posted by Damnation Bound Shaman *= on November 3, 2026, 5:30 pm, in reply to "Classical Greek religion is roughly contemporaneous with Original Hebrew religion."

It's a big world.

It seems like religious views of God have evolved and improved.

Posted by Ken C on November 3, 2026, 2:17 am, in reply to "So the Greek gods were invented and worshipped long before..."

"what's new" ... The new testament is new. When I was religious I mainly learned about that God. I learned God is Loving, immortal, all-powerful, but NOT jealous, vengeful, or petty.

Granted, the 'new testament' Christian god may seem like an improvement...

Posted by Skye on November 3, 2026, 5:49 am, in reply to "It seems like religious views of God have evolved and improved."

but it is still tied to the same old testament god as well as the judgment, vengeance and pettiness that is still there in the new testament. Otherwise, it wouldn't have included the threat of eternal "hell fire" for nonbelievers or those who don't repent or believe all the 'right' things. So there is still the doctrine of fear and punishment for even the slightest transgression or error in not believing, worshipping or asking for forgiveness from the Christian god... which is, afterall, supposedly the same god as the Jewish god. And remember... if there is a flood, fire, sickness or whatever, it is still attributed to an "act of god" very much as it was in the days of the Greek gods. So what has changed, really?

The most common characteristic of all of these gods

Posted by Maverick on November 3, 2026, 8:14 am, in reply to "Granted, the 'new testament' Christian god may seem like an improvement..."

is the ability to perform supernatural feats. I don't believe the supernatural exists so it follows I don't believe in any gods.

The OT god is a god capable of great anger and violence. The NT god is softer but his love is still conditional. He only saves those who declare him the one and only.

I don't see much difference in all the gods whether you are talking about Greek, Roman, Egyptian, Middle Eastern.

the Greeks and Romans

Posted by Trish on November 4, 2026, 6:33 am, in reply to "The most common characteristic of all of these gods"

knew how to thow a party. Even the Gods are depicted as playing tricks on each other and having drinking contests.

Details and personality differences exist but

Posted by Maverick on November 4, 2026, 8:30 am, in reply to "the Greeks and Romans "

the stories are basically the same.

Supernatural beings that interact with humans, have their favorite humans, have offspring with humans, cause weather events and other happenings to occur which are just fantastic. Religions adopted ideas from one another and influenced one another. Yes details morphed and changed from religion to religion but its all the same after a while: supernatural beings doing a lot of hocus-pocus stuff and humans marveling at it or running in fear of it. Myth and fairy tales, not reality.

When Mankind created God, it was clearly in their own image.

Posted by Mugwump on November 5, 2026, 7:14 am, in reply to "Details and personality differences exist but"

And as mankind changed so did their gods.

Posted by Maverick on November 5, 2026, 8:26 am, in reply to "When Mankind created God, it was clearly in their own image."

Another common characteristic of all religions is some kind of collection plate...

Posted by Damnation Bound Shaman *= on November 3, 2026, 10:04 am, in reply to "The most common characteristic of all of these gods"

...passed among their sheep.🐑

The collection plate to help those in true need is one thing.

Posted by Maverick on November 3, 2026, 4:43 pm, in reply to "Another common characteristic of all religions is some kind of collection plate..."

But religion is too often used as a vehicle of exploitation. Money buys power, favor and luxuries. There are some mighty rich TV evangelists out there.

their depitctions, myths, folklore all reflect eras and cultures

Posted by Trish on November 4, 2026, 11:57 am, in reply to "The collection plate to help those in true need is one thing."

stories are very telling about how people think and perceive...

even fictional ones can teach lessons or make us think

It must always be kept in mind

Posted by Maverick on November 5, 2026, 8:40 am, in reply to "their depitctions, myths, folklore all reflect eras and cultures"

that writers often distort the truth to favor or support their own personal views. They will even lie. Poetic license? To some degree perhaps. Religious writings are not famous for objectivity. While these legends and myths may offer a window into the mind of the writers they can also lead someone astray. A good foundational education in the culture and times from which religious literature sprang is essential to have a good grasp on understanding said literature.

True

Posted by Skye on November 3, 2026, 8:49 am, in reply to "The most common characteristic of all of these gods"

I think part of it is the ‘god of the gaps’ thing, to explain things in the natural world that people didn’t or still don’t know or understand.

The ability to perform miracles kinda goes hand in hand with immortality, since it goes against what we see in the natural world but wish could be different. Naturally people don’t want to suffer or die, so it’s nice to believe in an immortal god(s) who can defy the laws of nature and grant protections, miracles or answers to our prayers or wishes… especially for life everlasting and a reward for the ‘faithful’ in the hereafter. It also works nicely for earthly rulers who need soldiers who believe they will get their reward or pie-in-the-sky for being faithful and loyal even unto death on the battlefields to advance or expand their kingdoms or territories. Very convenient…

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