Solar Iconography and Imagery

[Steel Tiger]

Another thread brought up the Japanese goddess Amaterasu, a solar deity. It got me thinking about things which resulted in a question. Why didn't the early Christian church adopt solar imagery?

I can understand the reasons behind the fish and the cross, but given the broad and powerful symbol the Sun is why not take it up as well?

Thoughts anyone?

 

[Carol]

Christianity has implicitly adopted solar imagery.

In the first five lines of Genesis, the sun is not mentioned as the sun, it is mentioned as light.

Genesis 1:1-5; English Standard Version

1:1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
3And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

Christian imagery is replete with "light" as a metaphor for "good" or "godly".

The first Ecumenical gathering of Christian churches occured in AD 381 at Nicea. Less than 4 centuries after the crucifixion of the Christ, the early church had splintered, and the very definition of God had even begun to vary amongst certain groups.

Resulting from the Council at Nicea was the Nicene creed, which offers an encapsulation of faith. The creed begins:

We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
one in Being with the Father.


There are references, explicit and implicit forbidding sun worship:

Deuteronomy 4:19; English Standard Version
19 And beware lest you raise your eyes to heaven, and when you see the sun and the moon and the stars, all the host of heaven, you be drawn away and bow down to them and serve them, things that the Lord your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole heaven.

Ezekiel 8:16; English Standard Version
16 And he brought me into the inner court of the house of the Lord. And behold, at the entrance of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men, with their backs to the temple of the Lord, and their faces toward the east, worshiping the sun toward the east.

While practices from other religions have been adopted in to Christian celebrations (Christmas Trees, Easter Eggs), it seems logical to me that there is too much wording in the Bible against sun worship to support solar imagery.

 

[Steel Tiger]

Christianity has implicitly adopted solar imagery.

In the first five lines of Genesis, the sun is not mentioned as the sun, it is mentioned as light.

Genesis 1:1-5; English Standard Version

1:1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
3And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

Christian imagery is replete with "light" as a metaphor for "good" or "godly".

The first Ecumenical gathering of Christian churches occured in AD 381 at Nicea. Less than 4 centuries after the crucifixion of the Christ, the early church had splintered, and the very definition of God had even begun to vary amongst certain groups.

Resulting from the Council at Nicea was the Nicene creed, which offers an encapsulation of faith. The creed begins:

We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is seen and unseen.
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
one in Being with the Father.


There are references, explicit and implicit forbidding sun worship:

Deuteronomy 4:19; English Standard Version
19 And beware lest you raise your eyes to heaven, and when you see the sun and the moon and the stars, all the host of heaven, you be drawn away and bow down to them and serve them, things that the Lord your God has allotted to all the peoples under the whole heaven.

Ezekiel 8:16; English Standard Version
16 And he brought me into the inner court of the house of the Lord. And behold, at the entrance of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men, with their backs to the temple of the Lord, and their faces toward the east, worshiping the sun toward the east.

While practices from other religions have been adopted in to Christian celebrations (Christmas Trees, Easter Eggs), it seems logical to me that there is too much wording in the Bible against sun worship to support solar imagery.

Well the evidence from Deuteronomy and Ezekiel is quite explicit, and I can see why the Hebrew peoples would have had specific directives to be careful of worshipping the Sun. They were surrounded by Sun worshipping cultures.

But I wonder how many new Christians knew of these biblical passages. Christianity did develop out of a culture known for its lack of religious imagery generally, and yet chose to use certain very mundane symbols. Perhaps it is the very mundain nature of a fish and a cross that was important. Solar imagery of the time would have been epic and monolithic.

Interestingly, if you look at Christian imagery, especially Gnostic and Orthodox, there some solar-like items. Particularly the halos and glowing balls of light that surround saints' heads. These soughts of things were adopted after the Bible's contents would have become somewhat more widespread. Or perhaps it just takes advantage of the whole "light is holy and good" angle.

 

[Carol]

Well the evidence from Deuteronomy and Ezekiel is quite explicit, and I can see why the Hebrew peoples would have had specific directives to be careful of worshipping the Sun. They were surrounded by Sun worshipping cultures.

But I wonder how many new Christians knew of these biblical passages. Christianity did develop out of a culture known for its lack of religious imagery generally, and yet chose to use certain very mundane symbols. Perhaps it is the very mundain nature of a fish and a cross that was important. Solar imagery of the time would have been epic and monolithic.

Interestingly, if you look at Christian imagery, especially Gnostic and Orthodox, there some solar-like items. Particularly the halos and glowing balls of light that surround saints' heads. These soughts of things were adopted after the Bible's contents would have become somewhat more widespread. Or perhaps it just takes advantage of the whole "light is holy and good" angle.

That's an excellent point.

The cultures that surrounded Hebrew people were sun worshipers but an interesting difference is that the cultures didn't view the sun (only) as light; the sun was viewed as fire. Many of those cultures (e.g. the Zoroastrians) either worshiped fire or held fire to be in high esteem.

Christian imagery did not follow suit; fire represented Hell (evil). The Gospels even delineate between the imagery of fire and the imagery of light:

Matthew 16:40-43; English Standard Version
40 Just as the weeds are gathered and burned with fire, so will it be at the close of the age. 41 The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all law-breakers, 42 and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.

Other lines from the New Testament emphasize that the path of Hell/evil is fire/fiery.

Matthew 25:40-43; English Standard Version
40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ 41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.42 For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’

Luke 16:23-24; English Standard Version
23 and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. 24 And he called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.

2 Thessalonians 1:5-8; English Standard Version
5 This is evidence of the righteous judgment of God, that you may be considered worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are also suffering— 6 since indeed God considers it just to repay with affliction those who afflict you, 7 and to grant relief to you who are afflicted as well as to us, when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels 8 in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.

 

[Kembudo-Kai Kempoka]

I read an interesting sun-worship iconoigraphy correlation to the cross, particularly as with a circle in the cross-hairs.

Vertical bar = spiritual realm...from above, down, and all that. The horionatal bar = the physical realm...all contained within the horizon. The two forming a cross = spiritual and physical in communication. Add a circle as a rising sun, and it would be on the horizon...an expression of the divine will of life, as seen through the life-giving ability of the sun, which can only exist when the two are in communion: A cross with a circle at the intersect.

There is a faction of folk who make a better case for judaism and christianity being long-lost descendants of Egyptian astrology; 12 houses of the zodiac becomes 12 tribes of Israel, 12 disciples, etc. Like all claims by people who weren't there over the long hauls to personally witness the unfolding of events, it's really only conjecture.

D.

 

[heretic888]

Another thread brought up the Japanese goddess Amaterasu, a solar deity. It got me thinking about things which resulted in a question. Why didn't the early Christian church adopt solar imagery?

Because they did.

The Cross of Light, the Halo, the Ascension to Heaven. These are are examples of solar iconography. If we extend the examples to include the dates of particular holidays (most notably Christmas and Easter), we see they are re-workings of holidays devoted to earlier pagan solar gods.

Then, of course, there is the rhetoric of the Gospel of John.

 

[Kembudo-Kai Kempoka]

Because they did.

The Cross of Light, the Halo, the Ascension to Heaven. These are are examples of solar iconography. If we extend the examples to include the dates of particular holidays (most notably Christmas and Easter), we see they are re-workings of holidays devoted to earlier pagan solar gods.

Then, of course, there is the rhetoric of the Gospel of John.

I'm reminded of an equinox in which the sun appears to stop for three days, then "rise from the dead" by gettin' a move on again. Should ring bells for christians celebrating the rebirth of jesus rising from the dead after 3 days in a tomb.

 

[heretic888]

There is a faction of folk who make a better case for judaism and christianity being long-lost descendants of Egyptian astrology; 12 houses of the zodiac becomes 12 tribes of Israel, 12 disciples, etc. Like all claims by people who weren't there over the long hauls to personally witness the unfolding of events, it's really only conjecture.

The "12 disciples" have no significance beyond their numerological value (as an analogue to the 12 tribes of the Old Testament). You will notice that every single apostle depicted in the Christian gospels are narrative stick figures (i.e., they have no real personality or extensive history) except for the three --- Peter, James, John --- mentioned by Paul's letters. Well, gee, imagine that. It gets even worse when we realize that the names of the 12 change from gospel to gospel.

This shouldn't surprise, though, as the first Christian gospel, the one attributed to Mark, was an allegorical midrash of Old Testament tales and motifs. Jesus was typologically linked to Moses (and, at other times, to Elisha/Elijah).

As for the 12 tribes, I would suggest archeologists Neil Silberman and Israel Finkelstein's work on Old Testament history. While the stories may have been based on some form of oral tradition, the end result clearly reflects anachronisms of a much later period (such as there being a camel-based trade route during Abraham's time) and was most likely written as a political tool for King Josiah (circa 7th century BCE).

Conjecture? Nah.

 

[Steel Tiger]

Because they did.

The Cross of Light, the Halo, the Ascension to Heaven. These are are examples of solar iconography. If we extend the examples to include the dates of particular holidays (most notably Christmas and Easter), we see they are re-workings of holidays devoted to earlier pagan solar gods.

Then, of course, there is the rhetoric of the Gospel of John.

OK, I can see that the imagery is there now, but when was it adopted. The early Christians used the fish as a symbol, something which slipped away and made a recent return to popularity.

Looking at the history of the Gnostic faith, the halo would appear to quite old. Were these symbols adopted before the gospels were written, or were they something that came with them? Perhaps they were adopted at the Council of Nicea? I don't really know, but the early Church was quite deliberate in the development of the appearance of Christianity.

 

[heretic888]

OK, I can see that the imagery is there now, but when was it adopted. The early Christians used the fish as a symbol, something which slipped away and made a recent return to popularity.

Looking at the history of the Gnostic faith, the halo would appear to quite old. Were these symbols adopted before the gospels were written, or were they something that came with them? Perhaps they were adopted at the Council of Nicea? I don't really know, but the early Church was quite deliberate in the development of the appearance of Christianity.

The first thing you have to understand is that there we have no Christian iconography before the 3rd century or so. It just ain't there. And, the earliest iconography we do have generally depicts Jesus as a beardless, short-haired magician or hierophant (with a magic wand!). In actuality, he looks very much like earlier iconography of Apollo.

Of course, the fish itself is something of a solar symbol. It refers to the sign of Pisces within the Western Zodiac. Just so you know...

As for when Christians adopted the cross, the halo, and all that: well, no idea. Like I said, we don't have any Christian iconography before the 3rd century or so, so its really difficult to say. I suspect a lot of this stuff was relatively late adoptions (people like Marcion and Justin Martyr in the 2nd century don't mention them), but really there's no way to know.

The history of the early Church is mostly legend and propaganda, much of which didn't predate the 4th century.

 

[Steel Tiger]

The first thing you have to understand is that there we have no Christian iconography before the 3rd century or so. It just ain't there. And, the earliest iconography we do have generally depicts Jesus as a beardless, short-haired magician or hierophant (with a magic wand!). In actuality, he looks very much like earlier iconography of Apollo.

Of course, the fish itself is something of a solar symbol. It refers to the sign of Pisces within the Western Zodiac. Just so you know...

As for when Christians adopted the cross, the halo, and all that: well, no idea. Like I said, we don't have any Christian iconography before the 3rd century or so, so its really difficult to say. I suspect a lot of this stuff was relatively late adoptions (people like Marcion and Justin Martyr in the 2nd century don't mention them), but really there's no way to know.

The history of the early Church is mostly legend and propaganda, much of which didn't predate the 4th century.

Thanks for that, it very interesting. Especially the Apollo connection. Christianity is not really my thing, but I do find it intensely interesting.

A somewhat off topic question. When were the Gnostic gospels excised from the Catholic collection in the second or third century? In other words when was the modern structure of the New Testament first established?

 

[heretic888]

Thanks for that, it very interesting. Especially the Apollo connection. Christianity is not really my thing, but I do find it intensely interesting.

A somewhat off topic question. When were the Gnostic gospels excised from the Catholic collection in the second or third century? In other words when was the modern structure of the New Testament first established?

The New Testament in its final form was not established until the 9th or 10th century. Lots of Christians had problems with the Revelation of John, apparently.

The Council of Nicea made the determination as to which of the gospels were canonical, but the four they chose were among the most popular and widely circulated in the empire (even Gnostics like Valentinus made use of them), so that doesn't really surprise anyone.

Prior to the Nicene Council (circa 330 CE), there was no "canon". A few bishops like Marcion and Irenaeus declared their own canons, of course, but these were in no way binding on anyone outside of their particular constituents. If you want to go by who did it first, that'd be Marcion.

 

[Steel Tiger]

The New Testament in its final form was not established until the 9th or 10th century. Lots of Christians had problems with the Revelation of John, apparently.

The Council of Nicea made the determination as to which of the gospels were canonical, but the four they chose were among the most popular and widely circulated in the empire (even Gnostics like Valentinus made use of them), so that doesn't really surprise anyone.

Prior to the Nicene Council (circa 330 CE), there was no "canon". A few bishops like Marcion and Irenaeus declared their own canons, of course, but these were in no way binding on anyone outside of their particular constituents. If you want to go by who did it first, that'd be Marcion.

Thanks again.

 

[tellner]

Jewish icnonography and imagery are pretty well documented. Even allowing for the fact that what is now mainline Orthodox Judaism dismisses every historical variant as "not really Jewish" we know quite a bit. And He Whose Name is Neither Spoken nor Written is definitely not a solar deity. Unless Christianity had a few centuries where it went off on a particularly solar kick I really doubt that it ever went down that road.

 

[heretic888]

Jewish icnonography and imagery are pretty well documented. Even allowing for the fact that what is now mainline Orthodox Judaism dismisses every historical variant as "not really Jewish" we know quite a bit.

Perhaps so, but this doesn't change the fact there is no specifically Christian iconography in the historical record until the 3rd century or so. And, of all early Christian iconography, Jesus is consistently depicted as an Apollo-esque young man wielding a magic wand.

And He Whose Name is Neither Spoken nor Written is definitely not a solar deity. Unless Christianity had a few centuries where it went off on a particularly solar kick I really doubt that it ever went down that road.

As evidenced by Paul's letters, Christianity originally began as a Jewish adaptation of the Mystery Schools. These cults consistently revolved around a dying and resurrecting god-man often fixated about solar cycles (i.e., the Zodiac). The specific details of the Christian god-man, of course, were culled from a midrash on Jewish scripture (typologically linking Jesus to Moses, Elijah, and Elisha) --- but the bare skeleton of the faith is without doubt that of a dying-and-rising solar god.