Luke J. Wilson | 25th April 2023 | Apologetics

Welcome to the next instalment of my series looking at the ancient mythological gods and how they compare to the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. Mithras is yet another popular ancient god that people like to compare with Jesus and make wild claims about, proposing that they are the same deities with different names. But is this even remotely true? This article has ended up being a bit longer than anticipated as it’s one of the few ancient religions that was contemporary to the birth of Christianity which was seen as somewhat of a rival belief system, so there’s a lot of interesting things to cover! The Origins Mithras has his roots in ancient Persia, where he was known as Mithra, a god associated with the sun and light. The Romans adopted and adapted Mithras into their own religious pantheon, creating the secretive cult of Mithras, which was particularly popular among Roman soldiers, who admired his association with bravery, strength, and the sun. The idea of the blood sacrifice of the bull feeding the earth also played a role in the minds of the soldiers shedding their own blood on the battlefields. The earliest literary references we have to Mithraism are between AD 80–100 from Latin poet Statius, and also from Plutarch, a Greek philosopher and priest. Ulansey’s hypothesis (The Origins of the Mithraic Mysteries: Cosmology and Salvation in the Ancient World.) suggests that Mithraism was introduced around 60 BC by captured pirates from Asia Minor, where it was associated with the Perseus myth. This idea highlights the idea that Mithraism was a fusion of numerous diverse beliefs and symbols. Birth Stories The birth of Mithras is quite intriguing; he was born from a rock or stone, fully formed and wearing a Phrygian cap, often holding a torch or a dagger. This miraculous birth is known as the “petra genetrix” or the “rock-born.” Jesus’ birth is celebrated by Christians as a divine miracle, with the virgin Mary giving birth to him in a hu...

Luke J. Wilson | 22nd April 2023 | Apologetics

If you've ever found yourself immersed in the world of ancient Egyptian mythology or perhaps watching a documentary on the subject (or even just browsing social media around Christmas time), you might have come across the claim that the story of Jesus shares striking similarities with the story of Horus, an ancient Egyptian deity. While it might seem convincing at first that there's a direct connection between the two, it's essential to understand that the similarities are often exaggerated in popular culture, and many scholars consider them vastly different. In this article, we'll explore the life of Horus, his birth, the miracles he performed, and the truth behind the alleged similarities between Horus and Jesus. The (non-virgin) Birth of Horus Horus, the falcon-headed god of the sky and kingship, has an intriguing birth story that never fails to capture people's imagination. In ancient Egyptian mythology, Horus is the son of Osiris, the god of the afterlife, and Isis, the goddess of magic and healing. Osiris was murdered by his jealous brother Set, who dismembered his body and scattered the pieces throughout Egypt. Isis, determined to bring her husband back to life, searched for and reassembled Osiris' body parts. Using her magical powers, she temporarily revived Osiris, and during this brief period, she conceived Horus without engaging in sexual intercourse by taking the form of a bird and hovered over Osiris' reassembled body, receiving his “seed” and becoming pregnant with Horus. Afterward, Osiris died again and descended to the underworld, where he became the god of the afterlife. This miraculous conception has led some people to draw comparisons between the birth of Horus and the virgin birth of Jesus, although once you consider how Horus was conceived, it becomes clear that there are no real similarities at all. There's also no connection to December 25th with Horus. Horus' Miraculous Life As a powerful god, Horus was believed to perform various...