4.0.4 The Great Western Religions - Overview

Version 1.3 March 2013                                                              (Previous Version)

The teachings of the prophets, recorded in the sacred books of the great western Eurasian religions, each contain some wonderful stories and inspiring passages. Like the sacred texts of the East, they also contain passages that were reflections of the times but are no longer appropriate as guides for our behaviour today.  People from these faith backgrounds will sensibly approve of some selected texts and ignore others, and obtain additional inspiration from other traditions and sources.

Zoroastrianism’s great teacher was Zarathustra, who perhaps lived about 1000 BCE, and is recorded in the Avestan texts, the Yasna Haptanghaiti and the Gathas hymns.  It sees the human condition as the struggle between aša (truth) and druj (lie), a dualism like God and the Devil.  Zoroastrianism influenced Judaism and Greek philosophy.

Judaism’s dominant prophets were Moses and Isaiah, recorded in the Tanakh (which Christians call the “Old Testament�) from around 600 to 100 BCE. The two different creation stories in the book of Genesis reflect how the different authors saw the world at their different times.  Commandments against lying, stealing and murder are laudable, but the death penalty for many ‘sins’, such as working on the Sabbath, is not.  We must move beyond focus on divine Law, that the Jews are God’s chosen people, and that Jews have a divine right to the land of Palestine.

Christianity’s great teacher was Jesus of Nazareth, who they call the Christ, whose life is recorded, and interpreted, in the “New Testament� of the Bible.  We may be inspired by the story of this man who, like many others, was willing to sacrifice himself for the sake of others.  We can be inspired by parables such as the Good Samaritan.  However, we must, as Jesus did, interpret the rules from the Old Testament, such as the Ten Commandments, liberally.  We can no longer take the stories of a virgin birth or bodily resurrection as reflecting reality.  We should move beyond the notion that one sacrifice thousands of years ago somehow absolves people now of responsibility.

Islam originated in the 600s CE with the Prophet Mohammed, whose revelations are recorded in the Qur’an.  His teachings and actions are recorded in the Hadith.  We may be inspired by talk of a compassionate and merciful God, and discount excessive calls to violence.  But we can't take literally out-of-date rules governing the sexes, and should move beyond the notion that one Prophet, hundreds of years ago, had the last word on how we should behave.

The Bahá'í faith is a monotheistic religion founded by Bahá'u'lláh in 19th-century Persia.  Bahá'ís believe in a series of divine messengers, including Abraham, the Buddha, Jesus, Muhammad and most recently the Báb and Bahá'u'lláh, each of whom established a religion that was suited to the time, and Bahá'u'lláh's life and teachings supposedly fulfilled the promises of previous scriptures.

   more                                                             Statement 24

We can all learn from some of the stories from western religions, ignoring the scientific errors, and applying our sense of goodness, compassion and mercy; just as we can learn from other great literature.  We learn these theistic narratives don't ultimately provide meaning and purpose.