Dying & Rising Gods

blog.myspace.com/autodidacticus

T.N.D. Mettinger is a senior Swedish scholar who has written what is perhaps the most recent academic treatment of dying and rising gods in antiquity. He states that the scholarly consensus is that none of these pre-date Christianity and that the few scholars who think differently are viewed as an almost extinct species. Although Mettinger himself admits to going against the consensus, believing there are as many as five pre-Christian accounts of dying and rising gods, he admits that two of the five are uncertain. Of the remaining three, one is said to live again but is never seen by anyone including the gods, while another appears in a report that is unclear. According to Mettinger, only one clear account of a dying and rising god predates Christianity. However, he adds that this account is so different from the Christian account that no parallel can be said to exist.

In summary, the consensus of todays scholars agree that there are no pre-Christian accounts of dying and rising gods, and the most recent treatment of the subject is from a scholar who disagrees but adds that none are parallels to the resurrection of Jesus.

Technorati Tags: ehrman, jesus, crhistianity

Related posts:

1. MQJ in the Christian Science Monitor
2. The Spoof – New Dead Sea Scrolls Translation Prove Da Vinci Code False
3. Hannibal Rising: What a Bunch of Hooey
4. S&S proposal on reversion rights minor problem compared to HANNIBAL RISING
5. Thinking Christian on Ehrman and the “four facts”