Nondogmatic Apologetics - Parallel Myths

Nondogmatic Apologetics

Why are there parallel myths to the biblical narrative in other religions? (NCFCA)

Analyze and respond to the statement, "The Bible is simply the work of a great conspiracy, where people sought to create a religion of their own." — Anonymous (NCFCA/Stoa)

Why is this topic challenging?

Floods are unpredictable and terrifying... are flood legends simply the result of cultures trying to give a meaning to them?

Mithras, a god similar in to Jesus in legend, predates Christianity. Did Christians steal the ideas from Mithraic theology?

What are some possible perspectives?

The Veritas Forum

Sean Kelly (professor of Philosophy at Harvard) and N.T. Wright (chair of New Testament and Early Christianity at the School of Divinity at the University of St. Andrews.

Jesus is distinctly different from the way other gods are portrayed in myth and culture.

Peter Enns

M.Div. from Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and an M.A. and Ph.D. from Harvard University.

Mythicized history doesn't reduce core moral and spiritual truths of the Bible.

Possible Arguments

Parallel myths aren't coincidental

Dr. Guy Darshan (earned his academic degrees at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (BA, Bible and Classics 2002; MA, Bible 2006, both summa cum laude) and completed his Ph.D. in 2013), "The Biblical Account of the Post-Diluvian Generation (Gen. 9:20-10:32) in the Light of Greek Genealogical Literature," https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/43894064.pdfab_segments=0%252Fbasic_SYC-5187_SYC-5188%252F5188&refreqid=excelsior%3A279f319e5373e2f90ce6ede2132ea145

Guy Darshan's main idea is that the Biblical account of the generation following the flood narrative shares elements with the Greek Table of Nations, which it does not share with Ancient Near Eastern accounts. These motifs suggest that this unique genre was borrowed from the Greeks between the second and first millennium B.C.E.

Darshan shows the genealogy of Noah following the flood and the Table of Nations both attribute ethnic and geographical lineages to the post-diluvian generation. “In both cases, the contents comprise part of a distinctive literary- genealogical scheme that includes a list of the earliest human beings, first inventors, and eponymous fathers.” In addition, they both include a story of the flood hero planting a vineyard to delineate the beginning of civilization. In conclusion, these parallels are more than a coincidence, they suggest an influential relationship.

The Bible was written "for us, but not to us."

Dr. Jackson Wu (PhD in applied theology from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary), "The Doctrine of Scripture and Biblical Contextualization: Inspiration, Authority, Inerrancy, and the Canon," https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/themelios/article/the-doctrine-of-scripture-and-biblical-contextualization/

Dr. Wu affirms “the importance of contextualization and identifies biblical boundaries for contextualization which stem from and evangelical view of the Bible.” He argues the God revealed himself through culture and history to convey the truth, especially existing institutions for his theological purposes. This, Wu contends, explains the similarities between Old Testament and Ancient Near Eastern religious writings.

Likewise, the Bible needs to be understood within its particular context as John Walton reminds: “the Bible was written for us, but not to us.” Wu also notes that the Bible was recorded in a culture which passed down stories orally and reassures Christians that “accuracy or biblical fidelity depends on how precise their words match their written Bible.” He concludes by sharing that the canon, the written text that we have now, is purposeful because it creates a collective identity for those who believe in its stories.

The Bible doesn't borrow from pagan myths

Dr. Timothy Jones (PhD [The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary], associate vice president and C. Edwin Gheens professor of Christian family ministry at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary), "Do the Gospels Borrow from Pagan Myths?," https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/gospels-borrow-pagan-myths/

Timothy Jones defends against the claim that the Gospels borrow from pagan myths regarding a virgin birth or a deity who is resurrected from death. He argues that when these claims are compared against the New Testament Gospels, the supposed parallels aren’t true parallels, and because they confuse later Christian practices with the affirmations in the New Testament Gospels.

To his first point, Jones compares the claims of Jesus and those of Mithras, the Iranian god of the sun, justice, contract, and war, who was worshiped in the Roman Empire. However, he shows that there is a paucity of evidence to support any claims regarding Mithras, while there is plenty supporting those of Christ. For his second point, Jones uses Christmas to show how New Testament claims and later Christian practices are confused. Critics point to pagan festivals which occurred around the time when Christians later celebrated Christmas to show that they borrowed pagan holidays. However, the New Testament never suggests a date for Jesus’ birth. “Christians probably arrived at a date near the winter solstice because of an early tradition that Jesus was conceived on the same date that he died, and nine months after Passover landed the birthdate in late December.”

He concludes his essay by saying that even if parallel myths existed, they would only prove that God “Chooses to reveal himself in ways the people in that particular culture could comprehend.” To combat myth criticism, he prescribes:

(1) locating the primary source;

(2) determining whether the supposed parallel precedes or succeeds the New Testament; and

(3) determining whether the supposed parallel connects to the New Testament or to later traditions.

Parallel myths probably originated from one source

Dr. Gopal Stavig (PhD), "India and the Pentateuch," https://www.jstor.org/stable/41694578

Gopal Stavig argues that the plethora of parallels between the Biblical and Indian flood narratives suggests that one may have influenced the other. He sites many references, allusions, and parallels between the Pentateuch and Indian stories including but no limited to: the Babylonian, Hebrew and Indian floods all occurred in the thirty-second century C. E.; there is a corresponding Indian story to Moses’ mother putting Moses in a basket and the parting of the Red Sea; and the last five of the Ten Commandments correspond to Hindu, Jain and Indian Buddhist moral precepts.

Despite all of the similarities, Stavig admits several differences: the Indian religion places more emphasis on a transpersonal god rather than a personal one, personal intuition rather than divine revelation, world cycles rather than linear history, and reincarnation rather than one human life to name a few.

In conclusion, because of a lack of historical records the original dates of the Indian religious narratives are unknown, and, therefore, it is difficult to determine in what locality these ideas originated.

Similarities and differences in myths can help us understand ancient cultures

Dr. Aryeh Amihay (professor of Judaism and Religious Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara, PhD in Religion from Princeton University), "Biblical Myths and the Inversion Principle: A Neostructuralist Approach," https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.15699/jbl.1373.2018.290931

Aryeh Amihay identifies two ways of reading ancient texts: (1) the inversion principle and (2) the mirror narrative theory. The mirror narrative theory can tell us where the values of certain cultures coincide by drawing parallels between protagonists. The inversion principle not only looks at the parallel elements between stories, but it also places emphasis on "inverted" elements, which can highlight differences between cultures.

While critics say that inverted elements may not be intended by the author (and thus not actually reflective of differences), Amihay spends the bulk of her essay citing examples in which the inversion principle and mirror narrative help bring out deeper meaning within the texts. As applications, she studies the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah and its relationship to the flood story and the parallel accounts of Noah, Enock, and Utnapishtim. In conclusion, these methods are useful because they rely on combinations of elements rather than isolated elements to best understand myths.

Applications

Myths can be referenced as an apologetic tactic

Dr. John Collins (B.A, M.A. University College Dublin Ph.D. Harvard University, D. LITT (Hon) University College Dublin), "Noah, Deucalion, and the New Testament," https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/42615121.pdf?ab_segments=0%252Fbasic_SYC-5187_SYC-5188%252F5188&refreqid=excelsior%3Af52b8a61ddbdf58632b28433de70fdcb

John Collins explains that New Testament authors and early church leaders used the similarity of non-Jewish myths to show that the Bible's account is plausible. Collins argues that early Christian authors do not reject the Gentile flood stories, “but instead draw parallels with them” to show the Bible’s historicity. For example, “Origen allows that both the Noah and Deucalion stories are about the same events, though he is of course clear that Moses has told it truly.” And “the church historian Eusebius of Caesarea, in his Preparation for the Gospel, aims to show that the Gentile flood stories supply a confirmation to the biblical version.”

Myths provide context that must be considered during study

Dr. Richard Averbeck (BA, Calvary Bible College MDiv, MA, Grace Theological Seminary PhD, Annenberg Research Institute, Dropsie College), "Ancient Near Eastern mythography as It Relates to Historiography in the Hebrew Bible: Genesis 3 and the Cosmic Battle," https://www.academia.edu/14523269/ANE_Mythography_and_the_Bible

Richard Averbeck explains that Ancient Near Eastern people used mythology to tell creative and imaginative stories. Myths reflected the values of the real world. By comparing biblical stories to other Ancient Near Eastern accounts, one has more context in which to understand its meaning. Averbeck uses Yahweh’s cosmic battle with the Leviathan to exemplify his point. He argues that Biblical writers tailored Ancient Near Eastern motifs to speak about “the distinctiveness of their belief in One God who is the creator of all and to whom Israel was to show loyalty at all cost.” He concludes by saying that these myths were not treated in a monolithic way by biblical authors, but used in various ways depending on the concept.

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