Was it all a lie?????

 Zoroastrianism really rattled my cage this semester. I grew up in a very Christian home, as I have stated before. I was saved (Born Again to some) and baptized not long after. I recommitted my life in high school and would do anything to ignore the pain of my early childhood passing it off as things that strengthened my testimony. All of this was based on the bible. The bible told me all I needed to know. It gave me the history of the world, the redemption of Christ and my journey to salvation. Inside were the answers to my questions and the assurances that God would always be there. His grace and mercy would always protect me despite the constant attacks of the devil.

Then I realized that if I did not deal with the pain, it would always be there hiding and resurfacing at the most inopportune moments. (At this point I felt I had been betrayed by the members of the church I was going to so my whole foundation had been rocked). I told people what I thought and did not offer forgiveness right away, especially if I didn’t feel it.  Though my journey only began a few years ago, I have learned so much about myself and my faith. I had found that faith was more important than religion and that there were other religions that believed in God, and felt more peaceful than where I had come from (less hellfire and brimstone). I thought this course would help me on this journey. And it has, don’t get me wrong, but it has not been easy.

So then we started to study Zoroastrianism. Everything I ever knew was about to be thrown out the window. This dying religion has the same principles as Christianity, believes in one perfect God and salvation for an eternity in paradise. Was it true? Did Christianity borrow all of their fundamental beliefs from Zoroastrianism (which was around long before Christianity)? I never really doubted the validity of the bible, the closest I came was to think that maybe it wasn’t for me…..but now I was discovering that it might not have been divinely inspired at all. The bible could have been ancient copyright infringement and plagiarism.

My search led me to dozens of websites that refute this notion, however, they are written by faithful Christians.  One website (gotquestions.org) seems to take a neutral approach at the beginning but them does little to defend Zoroastrianism when put head to head with Christianity. If I were to go out and start conspiracy theories, I would say that one of the reasons that Zoroastrianism is not something I ever learning about in church was because it challenges the fundamental teachings of Christianity.

I have not found answers to any of my questions, and I am saddened and disheartened by the fight to keep the precious faith of my birth pure. Someday I will find my way, and perhaps that will come with answers to all of my questions, but most importantly I hope that it brings me peace. In the meantime I am trying to find a balance, struggling to have faith that it wasn’t all a lie.

Though this movie on You Tube still left me needing to do some soul searching, it really answered a lot of questions!!