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Acharya S
Acharya S/D.M. Murdock is an independent scholar of comparative mythology and religion. She is the author of several books that take the mythicist position, including "The Christ Conspiracy." More information on mythicism can be found at "What is a Mythicist?", http://StellarHousePublishing.com/mythicist.html and "The History of Mythicism.
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The terms "mythicism" and "mythicist" may be new to many people, even though they have been around for a couple of centuries. "Mythicist" was first coined in German and English to describe people who doubted the historical veracity of the Judeo-Christian Bible. The word is used these days particularly to define scholars, researchers and others who investigate whether or not the New Testament character of Jesus Christ was a real, historical person or a myth along the lines of the gods, godmen and heroes of other cultures, such as Hercules, Mithra or Horus. A mythicist may also question the historicity of other biblical figures such as Adam, Eve, Satan, Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, Solomon and so on. When the religion and mythology of other ancient cultures are studied, there exists good reason to doubt that these figures are historical, especially when we possess no credible and scientific archaeological or historical evidence for their existence. The Bible is often the only purported proof we have of these individuals' alleged reality as historical personages.
Although many people may not be aware of the long-term and voluminous studies involved in what is called "mythicism," the questioning of the Bible as representing mythology goes back several centuries. Much of the major work in this field has occurred in Europe, dating back to at least the end of the 18th century, especially in France and Germany.
In France, at the end of the 18th century appeared the multi-volume work of Professor Charles Dupuis, who put together a massive amount of evidence showing that many of the ancient gods and goddesses were solar in nature and that biblical
characters such as Jesus shared numerous aspects in common with these deities. Dupuis was followed by Count Volney, both of whom taught French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, who himself supposedly once stated that the question of whether or not Jesus Christ really existed was a "good one."
In the 19th century, these French scholars were followed by Dr. F.C. Baur of the Tübingen School in Germany, along with his pupil Dr. David F. Strauss, who was attacked and lost his occupation for writing a "Life of Jesus" asserting that much of the gospel story was mythical. Strauss practically defined "mythicism" for a time, but was followed famously by Dr. Bruno Bauer, who likewise cast doubt on the Bible as "history." There have been many others since then, including Rev. Dr. Robert Taylor, who in the 1820s and 30s was imprisoned in England twice on "blasphemy" charges for lecturing about Christ as a myth. More than a few scholars, researchers and writers in the 20th century and today fall within the category of "mythicists" as well.
The mythicist position has much to offer to those who find it difficult to believe in the gospel story as "history" but who wish to know the deeper meaning behind the story. One of the major planks of mythicism is recognizing the ancient astrotheology and nature worship engaged in by the cultures of antiquity whose religions and myths contributed to the formation of Christianity. This astrotheology can be summed up in a nutshell as the reverence for and personification of the sun, moon, earth, planets, stars and constellations, as well as other celestial bodies and natural phenomena. The study of mythicism, astrotheology and archaeoastronomy reveal a very ancient body of knowledge that is both highly fascinating and far too overlooked in today's society.
Although many people may not be aware of the long-term and voluminous studies involved in what is called "mythicism," the questioning of the Bible as representing mythology goes back several centuries. Much of the major work in this field has occurred in Europe, dating back to at least the end of the 18th century, especially in France and Germany.
In France, at the end of the 18th century appeared the multi-volume work of Professor Charles Dupuis, who put together a massive amount of evidence showing that many of the ancient gods and goddesses were solar in nature and that biblical
In the 19th century, these French scholars were followed by Dr. F.C. Baur of the Tübingen School in Germany, along with his pupil Dr. David F. Strauss, who was attacked and lost his occupation for writing a "Life of Jesus" asserting that much of the gospel story was mythical. Strauss practically defined "mythicism" for a time, but was followed famously by Dr. Bruno Bauer, who likewise cast doubt on the Bible as "history." There have been many others since then, including Rev. Dr. Robert Taylor, who in the 1820s and 30s was imprisoned in England twice on "blasphemy" charges for lecturing about Christ as a myth. More than a few scholars, researchers and writers in the 20th century and today fall within the category of "mythicists" as well.
The mythicist position has much to offer to those who find it difficult to believe in the gospel story as "history" but who wish to know the deeper meaning behind the story. One of the major planks of mythicism is recognizing the ancient astrotheology and nature worship engaged in by the cultures of antiquity whose religions and myths contributed to the formation of Christianity. This astrotheology can be summed up in a nutshell as the reverence for and personification of the sun, moon, earth, planets, stars and constellations, as well as other celestial bodies and natural phenomena. The study of mythicism, astrotheology and archaeoastronomy reveal a very ancient body of knowledge that is both highly fascinating and far too overlooked in today's society.