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SYNCRETISM
Syncretism is the process
by which aspects of one religion are assimilated into, or blended
with, another religion. This leads to fundamental changes in both
religions.
In the Old Testament, God was deeply concerned with the pressure
and temptation toward syncretism. As the people of God moved into
the Promised Land they were confronted with pagan religions. The
Canaanite gods, Baal and Asherah, became objects of Israelite
devotion. Later, God's people worshiped the national gods of Assyria
and Babylon. The law of God clearly warned Israel not only against
abandoning Yahweh for other gods, but against worshiping other
gods in addition to the true God. The prophets warned of coming
judgments as the people modified their faith to accommodate foreign
doctrines and practices.
The New Testament period was one of widespread syncretism. As
the Greek Empire expanded, her gods mingled with the indigenous
gods of conquered nations. The Roman Empire also welcomed all
manner of cults and mystery religions. Christianity was not left
untouched. The church fathers not only spread the gospel but labored
to protect its integrity. Manichaecism (a dualistic philosophy
that saw the physical as evil) crept into some doctrines. Docetism
(a teaching that denied Jesus had a physical body) was a problem
even as the New Testament was being written. Many forms of Neoplatonism
made a conscious effort to combine elements of Christian religion
with Platonic philosophy and oriental dualism. The history of
the Christian creeds is the history of God's people seeking to
separate themselves from the snares of foreign religions and philosophies.
The problem is still with the church today. Non-Christian philosophies
such as Marxism or existentialism seek the power of Christianity
while giving up what is uniquely Christian. Syncretism continues
to be a powerful tool to separate God from His people.
Every generation of Christian faces the temptation of syncretism.
In our desire to be "with it" or contemporary in our
practices and beliefs, we yield to the temptation of being conformed
to the patterns of this world. We accept pagan practices and ideas
and seek to "baptize them". Even when we confront and
engage alien religions and philosophies we have a tendency to
be influenced by them. Every foreign element that creeps into
Christian faith and practice is an element that weakens the purity
of faith.
- Syncretism is the blending or mixing
of alien religions or philosophies into one.
- One of the constant problems of Israelite
religion in the Old Testament was the intrusion of pagan religions.
- The New Testament church struggled
against the influence of Greek and Roman religion and culture.
- Modern Christianity is threatened
by attempts to combine Christian thought with pagan religion
and secular philosophy.
Adapted from "Essential
Truths Of The Christian Faith"
By R. C. Sproul
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