The Mystery Cults and Christianity Through shared commonalities, the mystery cults helped to anchor a place for Christianity in the Ancient Greek and Roman world. These practices paved the way for early Christianity was to be viewed in the context of a mystery cult. Only the “mystery cult” of Christianity dealt with one god instead of two or more.
There were many mystery cults in ancient times, some that may be lost to us forever. The mystery cults that focused in this paper will be the Eleusian mysteries, Dionysiac mysteries, the mysteries of Isis, Sarapis, the Mythraic mystery cult and how the commonalities of each helped to bring about an acceptance for Christianity. The common practices that were in these mystery cults and early Christianity …show more content…
After Athens incorporated Eleusis into their territory the mysteries were opened to the people of Attica. In order to receive initiation into the Eleusian mysteries one had to: make the journey to Eleusis, be able to pay for the initiation and meet the purity standards that were set by the cult. The main practices in the Eleusian mysteries that will be discussed are: a myth representing a wonderer that is suffering through something mundane only to come out as a savior, singing of hymns and fasting. The myth was centered on Hades kidnapping Persephone and taking her back to the underworld to be his wife. Meanwhile Demeter is looking for her missing daughter while neglecting her duties that leads to the death of the crops and the halting of tributes to the gods. While hunting for her daughter she disguises herself as an old lady and takes to nursing the queen of Eleusis’ son. While his nurse she decides to start the process of turning him into a god but the queen interrupted her one night became frightened by seeing Demeter purifying her son by fire and demanded she stop which upset Demeter as she felt they were being ungrateful after all she was making their son into a god. Demeter ends up revealing herself to the people after this and they build and dedicate a temple to her. Demeter goes to Zeus to try to persuade him to bring her daughter back …show more content…
They identified Isis with Demeter and her consort Osiris became Sarapis through combining Osiris with Apis. The main ideas of the mystery cult of Isis and Sarapis that will be looked at are: the myth, hymn singing, the wearing of white linen by initiates, the priesthood, fasting, bliss after death, the idea of a Savior God, imposed acts of penitence, purification and the idea of being reborn. The myth was of Osiris and Isis, in this myth Osiris’ brother, Set plots against him so he can take over Egypt. His brother Set, made a box and promised to give it to anyone who could fit into it perfectly. After getting into the box it was closed and thrown into the Nile. Isis finds the box washed up at Byblos and brings it back to Egypt where Typhon gets ahold of Osiris’ body and cuts it into pieces and spreads them throughout Egypt. Isis then goes hunting for the pieces and finds all but his genitals which she replaced with gold. Osiris then rules over the underworld. Sarapis was considered a savior god as he helped those that were sick or in danger. During the festivals of the Isis and Sarapis cult there would be a choir of boys who sang hymns during the procession to the temple. Initiates all wore white linen and the men had clean shaven heads. The devotees would also be given acts of penitence that they would bemoan outside of the temples. The temples also held facilities for the
There were many mystery cults in ancient times, some that may be lost to us forever. The mystery cults that focused in this paper will be the Eleusian mysteries, Dionysiac mysteries, the mysteries of Isis, Sarapis, the Mythraic mystery cult and how the commonalities of each helped to bring about an acceptance for Christianity. The common practices that were in these mystery cults and early Christianity …show more content…
After Athens incorporated Eleusis into their territory the mysteries were opened to the people of Attica. In order to receive initiation into the Eleusian mysteries one had to: make the journey to Eleusis, be able to pay for the initiation and meet the purity standards that were set by the cult. The main practices in the Eleusian mysteries that will be discussed are: a myth representing a wonderer that is suffering through something mundane only to come out as a savior, singing of hymns and fasting. The myth was centered on Hades kidnapping Persephone and taking her back to the underworld to be his wife. Meanwhile Demeter is looking for her missing daughter while neglecting her duties that leads to the death of the crops and the halting of tributes to the gods. While hunting for her daughter she disguises herself as an old lady and takes to nursing the queen of Eleusis’ son. While his nurse she decides to start the process of turning him into a god but the queen interrupted her one night became frightened by seeing Demeter purifying her son by fire and demanded she stop which upset Demeter as she felt they were being ungrateful after all she was making their son into a god. Demeter ends up revealing herself to the people after this and they build and dedicate a temple to her. Demeter goes to Zeus to try to persuade him to bring her daughter back …show more content…
They identified Isis with Demeter and her consort Osiris became Sarapis through combining Osiris with Apis. The main ideas of the mystery cult of Isis and Sarapis that will be looked at are: the myth, hymn singing, the wearing of white linen by initiates, the priesthood, fasting, bliss after death, the idea of a Savior God, imposed acts of penitence, purification and the idea of being reborn. The myth was of Osiris and Isis, in this myth Osiris’ brother, Set plots against him so he can take over Egypt. His brother Set, made a box and promised to give it to anyone who could fit into it perfectly. After getting into the box it was closed and thrown into the Nile. Isis finds the box washed up at Byblos and brings it back to Egypt where Typhon gets ahold of Osiris’ body and cuts it into pieces and spreads them throughout Egypt. Isis then goes hunting for the pieces and finds all but his genitals which she replaced with gold. Osiris then rules over the underworld. Sarapis was considered a savior god as he helped those that were sick or in danger. During the festivals of the Isis and Sarapis cult there would be a choir of boys who sang hymns during the procession to the temple. Initiates all wore white linen and the men had clean shaven heads. The devotees would also be given acts of penitence that they would bemoan outside of the temples. The temples also held facilities for the