• Adderbox76@lemmy.ca
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    11 months ago

    Things aren’t suddenly called mythology once they’re not believed by a lot of people.

    No…that’s pretty much exactly how that happens.

    Religion is ritual devotion to a higher being. Full stop. The fact that the Greeks and Romans worships a pantheon instead of a single god makes no difference whatsoever.

    I majored in Near Eastern Classical Archaeology and that came with a heavy does of anthropology. What you’re saying is meaningless pedantry that ONLY comes from people who are too insecure to admit that their own Monotheistic religion is in fact just a made up mythology like every other faith that’s ever come and gone on the planet.

    • Stamets@lemmy.worldOP
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      11 months ago

      No. You are flagrantly wrong in this case.

      The term religion defines a system of formally organized beliefs and practices typically centered around the worship of supernatural forces or beings, whereas mythology is a collection of myths, or stories, belonging to a particular religious or cultural tradition used to explain a practice, belief, or natural phenomenon.

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      There is an extremely popular belief that the term “mythology” refers to any religion that is no longer practiced. This belief seems to be especially popular among atheists. I’ve often heard atheists use the expression “Today’s religions are tomorrow’s mythologies.” This belief, however, is wrong. The terms “religion” and “mythology” refer to two completely different things. A religion does not turn into a mythology when it stops being practiced.

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      Mythology refers to a collection of myths, especially one belonging to a particular religious or cultural tradition. Religion is a specific system of belief and/or worship, often involving a code of ethics and philosophy.

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      Mythology is defined as a set of stories belonging to one culture or group of people. These stories are supernatural in nature and are often meant to be inspirational, but they do not impose morality. Religion is a set of beliefs and practices combined with the belief in and worship of a god, gods or a superhuman controlling power. Followers generally believe in abiding by guidelines detailed within their religion’s holy or sacred text.

      Source

      Religion and Mythology are two terms that are often confused when it comes to their connotations, even though, there is some difference between the two terms. First let us define the two terms in order to understand the difference, as well as the relation between the two. Religion can be defined as the belief in and worship of a God or gods. Mythology, on the other hand, refers to a collection of traditional stories from early history or explaining a natural event especially involving supernatural beings.

      Source

      I’m more inclined to believe trusted experts than I am a commenter like yourself.

      • Adderbox76@lemmy.ca
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        11 months ago

        Dude you literally just said it yourself;

        “formally organized beliefs and practices typically centered around the worship of supernatural forces or beings”

        What do you think is taking place when they are sacrificing a bull or a lamb to Zeus, or visiting the temple of Dionysus. Romans (since we’re using them as an example) had very structured forms of worship around their gods. So how exactly is that NOT a religion in your brain?

        • Stamets@lemmy.worldOP
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          11 months ago

          Because we are talking about mythology not religion. I have never stated that mythology cannot be a part of religion or that they are mutually exclusive. I am merely stating that they are different. Anything else is something you’re adding onto it yourself.

          I don’t get what’s so difficult to understand about it. They’re not mutually exclusive but you keep compounding them into the same thing. Religion can have mythology and I’ve never said that it can’t. I’ve merely said that they’re different which is true. You’re arguing that the liver and the immune system is the same thing. I’m merely saying that they work together.

          I have provided sources. You can educate yourself on your own time, not mine. I’m not interested in continuing this conversation. You clearly don’t know what you’re talking about. You keep claiming you have an education in this yet every single source contradicts you and proves you wrong. You, on the other hand, haven’t provided a single source beyond “I have a diploma”. I don’t trust your education. I trust sources and experts. Considering you have failed to provide a single shred of evidence to back up your claims, I’m going to stick to stuff that has been proven over your random claims based off of your own insane misunderstanding of what is even being talked about in the first place, claims that you have not once backed up at any point in this thread.

          Good luck with whatever that behavior is. If you even do have a diploma I feel so incredibly bad for your professors that you didn’t learn rule number 1: Provide sources and don’t believe blindly.

          • Adderbox76@lemmy.ca
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            11 months ago

            A degree in classical archaeology is more than enough education versus someone who read a couple of articles online. But keep on believing what you want. Enjoy your day.

    • barsoap
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      11 months ago

      Religion doesn’t require devotion to a higher being, or even ritual. What about, say, Zen?

      The whole distinction between philosophy, religion and, heck, even psychology is a very very Abrahamic/western-centric view.