Christian Mythology

Christian mythology is the body of traditional narratives, that would be viewed as sacred stories by Christians, which would serve to explain or symbolize Christian themes. Mythology differs from religion in that mythology is an allegorical narrative, or a popular belief or assumption, based on the legendary heroes of a people;  while religion is a institutionalized system of beliefs, attitudes, and practices devoted to a cause, principle or philosophy held with ardor and faith.

Jesus as Myth  Paul's Presentation of Jesus  Notable Omissions  of Jesus  The Influence of the Old Testament

Jesus Myth Parallels with Religions  New Testament Bible Stories   Old Testament Bible Stories

Narrative tradition
A Christian myth is a legendary story that Christians consider to have deep explanatory or symbolic significance. A broader definition of Christian mythology can also be taken to refer to the entire mythos surrounding the Christian religion, including interpretations of the various narratives of both the Old and New Testaments. Note that the Christian religion has diverged over the centuries into many denominations, and one denomination may hold certain sacred traditional narratives that are not known or believed in, by all others.

Christian mythology includes interpretations of the core beliefs of Christianity, the body of legendary stories that have accumulated around Old and New Testament figures and elaborates upon the lives of the saints, to emphasize, explain, or embody Christian beliefs. The legendary details of the career of the disciple Peter and his founding the Christian Church is a prime example of Christian mythology (i.e., symbolically Peter was known as the "corner stone" and "rock" on which the church was built.) Many of the common themes in hagiographies are among the conventions of Christian mythography. In the culture of the ancient Semitic and Mediterranean worlds in the context of which early Christianity and its literature arose — even up to the European Middle Ages when further traditions and legends were developed — there often did not exist the separation that exists for many societies in the modern period between fact and myth or between objective truth and speculation or elaboration. Even in the modern period, Christians of many traditions (like those in many other religions) may also hold that the dividing line between "faith" and what is labeled "myth" is less than clear, when it comes to traditional beliefs and understanding.

Traditional Christian stories include many that do not come from canonical Christian texts and still do illustrate Christian themes. Other stories that are intended to foster Christian values, or address specifically Christian spiritual traditions, may be included in Christian mythology. These stories are considered by some Christian journalists, theologians, and academics (see citations below) to constitute a body of Christian mythology. Stories that were once taken as true but are no longer accepted by most Christians are most easily identified as Christian mythology, such as the tale of Saint George or Saint Valentine.


Theological and academic studies
In theological and academic studies, describing a story as myth means it is true to a culture, and mythologies are primarily those stories of a society's creation, the society's origins, their original heroes, their God(s), and their narratives of eschatology (what happens in the "after-life"). Looking at each these academic topics briefly: Christianity uses the same creation story as Jewish mythology, the stories of the Old Testament, that the world was created out of a darkness and water in seven days. Christianity may include here the miracle of Jesus' birth. Christan mythology of their society founding would start with Jesus and his many teachings, and include the stories of Christian disciples starting the Christian Church and congregations. The heroes of the first Christian society would start with those chosen by Jesus, the apostles Peter, John, James, Paul and Jesus, as well as Mary (mother of Jesus). Christianity eschatology stories of "after-life" would include the narratives of Jesus Christ rising from the dead and now acting as a saviour of all generations of Christians, the stories of heaven and a father in heaven waiting to meet them. Eschatological topics would also include the prophesies of end of the world and a new millennium in the Book of Revelations, and the prophesy of Jesus will return to earth some day. The basic Christian narratives of heaven (according to tradition) might include a nice green pasture land, a new house (per Jesus he goes to prepare them a place in heaven), and meeting a benevolent God. Myths of hell differ according to the denomination. This would be a very general and quick outline of Christian topics, of which the Christianity article may better elaborate.

Note that sometimes, but not necessarily, using the word myth implies the outside observer thinks a myth is a fiction. In common usage a myth is often used to suggest a story is not historically true. Therefore to describe Bible stories and deeply held beliefs as 'myth', can be taken as an attack on those sources and on the beliefs which are based on them.

Many Christian scholars have adopted the terminology of myths as Christian stories, and employ it without the connotation of disbelief (although almost always to distinguish their treatment of a story as a source of Christian belief, in contrast to literal history). In such a case the term myth may be applied to many Christian stories, including Biblical narrative.

However those Christians who do not accept the Bible as a literal history may accept those parts which they do not consider literal as symbolic myths.


Selection of  Mythical Stories

Stories from the apocryphal books.
Traditional stories such as that of Abgarus of Edessa.
Stories about artifacts such as the Holy Grail, Spear of Destiny and Shroud of Turin.
According to the more skeptical, the miraculous events in scripture itself, including virgin birth, necromancy, and water walking.
Elaborations or amendments to Biblical tales, such as the tales of Salomé, the Three Wise Men, or St. Dismas.
Names and biographical details supplied for unnamed Biblical characters: see List of names for the Biblical nameless
Literary treatments of traditional Biblical lore, such as Paradise Lost and Paradise Regained by John Milton
Literary treatments of themes from Christian theology or eschatology such as the Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri
Tales of saints (hagiographies) whose historicity is doubtful, like Saint Christopher or St. Catherine of Alexandria
Miraculous stories of saints such as are found in Jacobus de Voragine's Golden Legend.
The legends of King Arthur and other tales of medieval chivalry, especially the Quest for the Holy Grail.
Legendary history of the Christian churches, such as the tales from the Crusades or the paladins of Charlemagne in medieval romance.
Stories about angels, guardian angels, devils, and tales of making pacts with the Devil (see e.g. Faust).
Legends of the Knights Templar and the Priory of Sion.

Narrative fictions
Narrative fictions with Christian content sometimes fall within the category of Christian mythology. A case in point is the historical and canonized Brendan of Clonfort, a 6th century Irish churchman and founder of abbeys. Round his authentic figure was woven a tissue that belongs more to legend than mythology, the Navigatio or "Journey of Brendan". In this narrative Brendan and his shipmates encounter sea monsters, a paradisal island and a floating ice islands and a rock island inhabited by a holy hermit: literal-minded devotés still seek to identify "Brendan's islands" in actual geography. This voyage was recreated by Tim Severin, suggesting that whales, icebergs and Rockall were encountered.[2]

Many fictions written to personalize Christian themes are regarded as allegory. Examples of these include:

Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan.
Hind's Feet on High Places by Hannah Hurnard
Some Christians discover Christian themes in The Lord of the Rings and other works by J.R.R. Tolkien. Though the author adamantly denied that his story was to be taken as an allegory, he admitted to influence from his own experience, which included devout Catholicism. The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis are also often incorrectly called allegories, but a true allegory has everything in it representing something else, and that is clearly not true of the Chronicles. Although in The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, Lewis used many symbols including the death and resurrection of Aslan, and the breaking of the stone table to represent the breaking of sin's power over man. (Lewis also did write a full allegory, Pilgrim's Regress.)



Mythology in secular Christmas stories
Christmas-themed popular music, television, and cinema:

The concept of Santa Claus is often seen as a secular saint who has supernatural powers and uses them to magnanimously deliver gifts to children around the world. This idea is based on a folk tradition of Saint Nicholas but was given an amplified mythological identity in the Clement Moore poem Twas The Night Before Christmas.

In the 1950s, several Christmas cartoons emerged that deliberately adopt elements of Christian stories to convey the "true meaning of Christmas" in allegorical terms.

An early film, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (TV special) based on a Gene Autry song, involved a rejected and mocked reindeer that ends up leading the other reindeer through the help of a misfit elf and misfit toys.

Similarly, Frosty the Snowman contains several Christian motifs, is the story of a snowman who comes to life for a time, melts (dies) but also reassures his childlike followers that he will "be back again some day." The television special developed from this song invents the concept of Frosty being made from "Christmas snow" which entails that he can never completely melt away and thus has an eternal essence.

Following these early television Christmas specials, there have been countless other Christmas TV specials and movies produced for the "holiday season" that are not explicitly Christian but seek to describe "true spirit of Christmas" beliefs, such as "togetherness," "being with family," charitable acts, and belief that even bad people or situations can be redeemed. While many sundry examples of Christmas films exist, examples of films with Christian mythical elements include: How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (film), A Charlie Brown Christmas, and various adaptations of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. With the exception of A Charlie Brown Christmas, which features a reading from the Gospels by Linus, they have little to do with the biblical Christmas.

These conceptions of the "true meaning of Christmas" are also sung about in Christmas albums that may have nothing to do with Christianity

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