Lectures - How Zoroastrian Is Judeo-Christianity?

Did Zoroastrianism shape the way we think about good and evil, the afterlife, and the end of the world? How much of modern Judaism and Christianity can be traced back to this tradition? The reforms of the ancient Iranian religion by the prophet Zarathustra led to the foundation of Zoroastrianism, which many religious studies scholars identify as the first “world religion.” Zarathustra focused the faith on the worship of the supreme God known in the Avestan language as Ahura Mazda (“Lord Wisdom”). Ahura Mazda is nevertheless opposed by a cosmic devil named Angra Mainyu (“Evil Spirit”), which accounts for the existence of evil in the world. This struggle is predicted to continue until the end of the world, when a savior will appear, resurrect the dead for final judgment, and establish a new world where evil has no place. While ideas like a cosmic devil, resurrection of the dead, the Apocalypse, final judgment, and an afterlife in heaven and hell were absent in Judaism in the First Temple Period, they became central to many sects of Judaism in the Second Temple Period—after the Persian conquest of Babylon allowed the Judean exiles to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the temple under Persian rule. Nevertheless, dating Zoroastrian practices remains difficult due to limitations in historical sources. In this lecture, John Hamer of Toronto Centre Place surveys the available evidence to assess the extent to which Zoroastrian beliefs and practices influenced the development of Jewish and Christian traditions. Join the livestream to participate in the discussion and to ask questions to our lecturer during the Q&A. 📚 Browse our catalogue of free lectures at https://www.centreplace.ca/lectures Your generous support allows us to offer these lectures at no cost. Please consider a making donation (tax deductible in the US and Canada): ❤️ https://www.centreplace.ca/donate ️ #lecture #christianity #judaism #bible #biblestudy