Jesus' birth isn’t the only myth associated with him. History has seen other gods or goddesses play important roles throughout human history, including Attis, Dionysus, and others. Many of the early myths about Jesus were inspired from ancient Egyptian gods. In this article, we'll take a look at a few of these figures and their stories.
Horus
There is a great deal of debate about the similarities between Horus, Jesus and others. Both deities were popular in ancient Egypt and many of their stories are similar to Jesus. But they are separate entities. While many Christians view Jesus as the "savior of humanity," many Egyptians considered Horus to be a literal savior who saved people from venomous scorpions and snakes.
Historical evidence points to the similarity of Jesus Christ with Horus. John the Baptist was the one to baptize them, but they did have no name for the Baptizer. Jesus, on the other hand, had several followers.
Dionysus
Some Dionysus stories are similar to Jesus's stories, but there are others. Dionysus wasn't crucified like Jesus. And his trials weren’t as public. Zeus and Rhea raised Dionysus from his death to bring him back to life, but Jesus did not suffer for our sins.
In addition to sharing common concerns, Jesus and Dionysus had many similarities with other ancient religions. Both shared the belief in divine birth, resurrection, celebration. Both religions also included the participation of women and children. A winnowing basket containing phallus was used as an initiation ritual in the cult. This ritual entitles a male to become an initiate or Neophyte. The initiate will then be reborn.
Attis
People have claimed that Attis stories are identical to Jesus stories. This is not true. In fact, Attis' resurrection myth is quite different. Attis' resurrection myth is Greek. He is hung from an oak tree, killed, then raised after three days. Attis is not like Jesus. His mother is a virgin goddess much like Virgin Mary.
One version of the story says that Agdistis is put to sleep by Dionysus, who puts wine in Agdistis’ water and then makes him fall asleep by wrapping a rope around Agdistis’ genitals. When he awakens, he takes fruit from a pomegranate tree. According to Attis stories, Attis’ mother Cybele was rival to Mary and mother of the gods.
Dionysus' mother
Dionysus, a Greek god, is the god fertility, ritual dancing, and mysticism. He is mysterious, contradictory, and both gentle and terrifying at the same time. Euripedes, an ancient poet called him the "gentlest and fiercest." Euripides examines the god’s relationship with the JudeoChristian tradition in this play.
Dionysus' mother, according to the Odyssey is a woman. After Dionysus was born, his mother gave birth. Semele was his mom. Her child was born to her while she was pregnant. When her husband heard of the child's existence, he sent her off into the ocean. Ino in Brasiae later discovered her dead and raised Dionysus. Later, the plain of Brasiae became known as the garden of Dionysus.
Dionysus’ resurrection
Dionysus and Jesus have similar resurrection stories to a certain point. Both deities were killed, buried, then resurrected in three days. While the myth of Dionysus's resurrection was likely to have been corrupted by some elements, the myth did contain certain aspects that were shared with the gods. Dionysus’ resurrection story is more likely based in an older myth. It involves Attis, a god that was born of Nana. He was reborn in the exact same body three days later. This is a similar story to Christian faith.
The stories of Jesus’ resurrection are very similar. However, they differ from one another. Dionysus’s resurrection story was based in part on a myth written in first century AD, over two thousand years prior to Jesus' birth. A similar story was also shared by Prometheus, a mythological god of light and fire.