Zoroastrianism
by
Gary DeVaney
Intelligence is Categorical
Insanity is Contagious
A High Percentage of Stupid is Stubborn
Around 586 BC, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon (what is now Iraq) attacked and destroyed the Jewish temple in Jerusalem. Many Jews were killed. Some Jews were captured and taken to Babylon. King Nebuchadnezzar then died and his heirs took over.
In about 539 BC, Cyrus, the King of Persia (Iran) attacked and captured Babylon. Cyrus released the captive Jews and escorted them back to Jerusalem. For two centuries (200 years) the Jews remained under Persian protection in Jerusalem. During this time, Jews were exposed to Zoroastrianism which taught about Angels, Demons, Satan, the afterlife, Heaven and Hell.
These were NOT the beliefs of the Jewish religion. Traditional Jews continued to believe that God did it all, there was no Satan, no afterlife and death was “dust to dust”.
King Darius I, (reigned 522–486 BC) was the third Persian emperor. He returned the captured Jews from Babylon and helped rebuild the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem. Reconstruction of a second temple was completed during the time of Artaxerxes II in about 400 BC.
Some Zoroastrianism influenced Jews secretly wrote about Angels, Demons, Satan, afterlife, Heaven, and Hell’s Eternal-Torment. When the Jews came into contact with the Zoroastrianism preaching Persians, the notions of Heaven, Hell, rewards and punishments were seeded. Later, through Jesus Christ, those notions grew into Christianity. Jesus Christ introduced Angels, Demons, Satan, the afterlife, Heaven and Hell. So, did Jesus Christ plagiarize Zoroastrianism to create Christianity? Jesus preached Zoroastrian beliefs. Christianity came to believe Christ’s teachings.
Zoroastrianism did not seek nor allow “conversion” of outsiders to their religion. Zoroastrianism is a small religion today mostly consisting of blood heritage. They resist conversion to their Religion.
Zoroastrianism believed in liberty and freedom of choice. They promoted immortality of the soul, life after death. They believed deeds will be judged and that there are eternal dwelling for two groups in Heaven and in Hell. Zoroastrianism believed in the end of the world that the dead would revive with a fresh life and a new beginning. They claimed that the future will be transformed by “The Savior” who will perform the task of “resurrection”.
Traditional Jews did NOT believe in an afterlife, in judgment after death, in a reward of Heaven or in any retribution of Hell.
Judaism’s “One God of Abraham” did NOT have universal appeal nor a respected status at that time.
Traditional Jewish Rabbis did NOT believe in Satan or Angels or Demons. During Jesus’ time, it was the Jewish Pharisees who believed in and promoted life after death, Heaven and Hell. The Pharisees and the Essene’s were two of the groups who were influenced by Zoroastrianism. They became enemies of the Jewish Rabbis. Jesus also became an enemy of Jewish Rabbis. They arranged Jesus Christ’s crucifixion.
Throughout the Old Testament, the “One God of Abraham” consistently threatened His believers. The Biblical God’s threat was: IF YOU DO NOT OBEY ME, I WILL KILL YOU. Jesus Christ added that if you do NOT obey God AND Me, on Judgment Day, you will be judged to go to Heaven with God or you will go to Hell’s Eternal-Torment. Jesus threatened: You can only be saved through Me.
Any Old Testament stories about Satan or Demons were influenced by Persian Zoroastrians during the Jews protection and the the Persian’s assistance of building the new Jewish Temple.
Zoroastrianism influenced some late Old Testament Bible texts. Jesus Christ plagiarized and sold the beliefs of Zoroastrianism as His own. These beliefs and teaching became “Christianity”.
Zoroastrianism embraced the concept of “The Chosen Government” based on good and evil. From this, Jewish Prophets dreamed up “The Kingdom of God”. Jesus also plagiarized and capitalized on “The Kingdom of God”. Christian clergy then determined that “The Kingdom of God” is to be Jesus Christ’s Kingdom.
The members of Emperor Constantine’s “Counsel of Nicaea” (325 – 394 AD) voted on the books of the Bible. And, the members also voted for Jesus Christ to be Divine. It was THEN that Jesus Christ became God!
The Apostle Paul preached Jesus` teaching about God, Satan, Angels, Demons, Heaven and Hell. These fear-based teachings filled the churches that Paul built – due to the believer’s hypnotically programmed fear of Hell’s Eternal-Torment.
Jesus is documented to say: “I came ONLY for the Jews”.
Paul opened Christianity up to the Gentiles and to the rest of the world.
The Catholic Religion follows the Apostle Paul’s teachings considerably more than Jesus Christ’s teachings. Paul’s written teachings disagree with many of Jesus’ verbal teachings. By the way, Jesus Christ WROTE absolutely nothing.
This is from James, a slave of God and Jesus Christ: James 2:10 For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all.
So, if you are guilty of breaking just 1 of the Biblical God’s 1,003 commandments (Old and New Testaments), you are equally guilty of breaking them all.
Conclusion:
Zoroastrianism started in what is known today as Persian Iran. The Jewish (One God of Abraham) religion had no afterlife, no Satan, no Heaven or Hell. Zoroastrianism had all that plus. In 586 BC, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon (today’s Iraq) attacked the Jew’s temple in Jerusalem – killed Jews, destroyed their temple, and took captives back to Babylon. After King Nebuchadnezzar died, Iran attacked and defeated Babylon. They then escorted the Jewish captives back to Jerusalem. Over the next 2 centuries (200 years) the Zoroastrian Persians helped the Jews rebuild their Jewish temple. Hardcore Jews never bought into Zoroastrianism, but some other Jews did. Then, a new Prophet preached afterlife, Heaven & Hell, et al. He was known as Jesus Christ. Christ preached Zoroastrian beliefs and a new religion was started – mostly by the Apostle Paul and the Roman Emperor Constantine. Zoroastrianism, by design, was forgotten. Paul used the fear of Hell and salvation to fill the churches he built. It continues today. What insanity!
Cyrus the Great & Darius the Great.
King Cyrus, who was not religious, let conquered people maintain their religions. It was Darius who helped finish building the original Jewish temple. Darius was a believer in Mazda, the Zoroastrian God, The Zoroastrianism religion influenced secs of Jews and inspired Jesus Christ, whose teachings created Christianity.
Zoroastrians believed “The Savior” will appear at the End of Time.
Traditional Zoroastrians continue to oppose outsider conversion to their ancient faith. They mostly attempt to keep it within their bloodline. The social argument against conversion relies on the idea that Zoroastrianism is a strictly ethnic religion. In the traditionalists’ historical view, Zarathustra was not an innovator, but a reformer who practiced the priestly traditions of his ancient Indo-Iranian people. Zoroastrianism, then, does not break traditions, but continues them – reformed from polytheism to monotheism by the divinely inspired prophet, Zoroaster. For a conservative Zoroastrian, especially those with a more extreme outlook, only those who are Indo-Iranian Zoroastrian, with an unbroken blood lineage unmixed with any non-Zoroastrian heritage, can be true Zoroastrians.
A non-Zoroastrian married to a Zoroastrian will always be at a loss to understand things his / her spouse takes for granted. And the non-Zoroastrian spouse will bring elements from his / her own culture that are alien to the Zoroastrian culture. It is better never to marry outside the culture, as conflict will always follow. The Zoroastrian religion is worshipped as a precious heirloom, which will only be misunderstood and adulterated by outsiders. Intermarriage is seen as a threat – which will result in the dilution or even the extinction of the precious culture.
The third set of reasons that Zoroastrian traditionalists give for their opposition to conversion is both emotional and psychological. Zoroastrianism, ever since the Muslim conquest of Iran, has been a minority religion. Zoroastrianism has been persecuted in Iran for centuries.
There seems to be a series of good arguments for banning conversion to Zoroastrianism. The trouble is that the number of “true” Zoroastrians continues to decrease. There are many reasons for this: a low birth rate, economic problems, the difficulty of finding qualified mates and raising families with a high standard of living, emigration, intermarriage, and simple apathy or ignorance of the faith.
The resistance to any religious change has alienated many Zoroastrians, who question ancient laws and practices that they say were appropriate for the agrarian society of the past but have no relevance in a modern, technological world. If Zoroastrianism does not accept converts, say these questioners, it risks going the way of near-extinct sects such as the Shakers, whose inflexible practices (in the case of the Shakers, maintenance of celibacy and thus non- procreation) made it impossible to continue as a group.
It must be added that most of the anti-conversion sentiment in the Zoroastrian world comes from the Indian Parsis. Iranian Zoroastrians are much more likely to accept converts, marriages to non-Zoroastrians (who are then welcomed into the community) and people of mixed ancestry. The problems with conversion in Iran are mainly political: converting someone away from Islam is an offense against the Islamic Republic and may be seriously penalized. Therefore, conversions in Iran are done very quietly.
Religion is primitive politics.
Email gary@gdevaney.com