Early religions are considered pagan and cults by many

[Angry Dragon]

What seperates the Christian religion from these religions??

[Skittles]

1. nothing

[Swede Atlanta]

2. Even as a Christian I say nothing.............

Each faith community adheres to certain beliefs, rituals and traditions. Many view their tradition as exclusive to eternal life or wisdom or nirvana.

I am very tolerant of other faith traditions as long as their practices do not negatively affect others. Unfortunately as we know many of their beliefs can have devastating effects on women, children and minorities (e.g. gays) that exist within their communities.

[izquierdista]

3. Let's ask Pastor Deacon Fred

[saras]

4. Power. The same thing that separates Islam and Hinduism from Mithraism and Jainism

It's not anything to do with the content of the religions, except that one has something another disagrees with.

[ZombieHorde]

5. Lots of cults use Eastern religions as a basis, or an add-on. nt

[Angry Dragon]

7. The question was about early religions

the ones before the Christian religion

[dmallind]

8. Which certainly includes several Eastern ones.

"Pagan" religions run the gamut from fairly thorough adoption of a cohesive earlier faith about which much is well-understood and which has a meaningful historical trajectory - variants of Hinduism for example, to silly made up pastiches of genuine but unconnected old beliefs and never-were modern fantasies, with Gardnerite Wicca being foremost here. In between might be affectations based on presumptions about dead faiths such as Norse theology, where almost all we know comes from one written work created long centuries after such faiths were supposedly relevant, or hit-and-miss adoption of bits from older faiths which, while fairly well documented per se, are too fragmentary to create a viable faith system such as Egyptian or Babylonian mythologies, or Druidism.

Very very few people who are Pagan by affirmation can honestly say they follow an older faith about which we have a fairly full understanding and which exists today as a cohesive belief system. Hindus and Buddhists on the other hand follow faiths that predate Christianity and which have been viable complete belief systems throughout history, while of course changing as all such religions do.

[AlbertCat]

11. The question was about early religions the ones before the Christian religion

Like Judaism and Hinduism and Buddhism and Shinto......

[msongs]

6. considering that every single element of christianity was borrowed or co-opted from previous

belief systems, there is not that much to seperate them except for what christians leave out or ignore

[cleanhippie]

9. Only the amount of hypocrisy that they will admit to.

[Humanist_Activist]

10. Because it was Christians in the late Roman period that labeled...

traditionalists as country dwellers, and the term cult only developed an outright negative connotation in the past 40 years or so.

Many older religious sects actually are called cults, not out of anything inherently negative in the term, but to refer to their size and dedication of their members, the Cult of Isis, for example, which was popular at one time with women. The Cult of Mithras was popular with Roman soldiers, etc.

What separates Christians from these groups? Not much, indeed Christianity, was, just like religions before it, adaptable, and like them, co-opted imagery and beliefs from the religions around it to attain popularity.

[AlbertCat]

12. co-opted imagery and beliefs from the religions around it to attain popularity.

Not to mention killing those who didn't believe.

[tama]

16. Pagans

My English vocabulary is limited, but the negative connotation (among smart urban dwellers) of pagans/rural folks as "redneck hillibilly hicks" or something similar goes way back.

[Humanist_Activist]

20. Exactly, Christianity was, for a long time in the Roman empire, the "new thing" in the urban areas..

those in the country were more conservative and slower in adopting the new religion. Remember, their religions weren't banned for many years after Constantine edict which legalized Christianity.

[cbayer]

13. Which ones?

Judaism? Hinduism? Buddhism? Taoism? Confucianism?

Which of these is considered paganism or a cult?

[Angry Dragon]

14. Druid, Native American, Ra

any religion that prayed to objects is considered Pagan by Christians

[cbayer]

17. So now I really don't understand your question.

You don't want to compare christianity to the major religions that preceded it and still exist, but to more obscure smaller religions, some of which were (and are) practiced by aboriginal peoples from specific areas.

Or perhaps the question was not asked in good faith to begin with?

[Angry Dragon]

22. I wanted to know how others felt about

pagan and heathen religions and if they felt Christianity was any different

All questions I ask are in good faith .........

[AlbertCat]

18. any religion that prayed to objects

like a cross

[Odin2005]

15. A religion is a cult that has brainwashed enough suckers to be socially accepted.

[Starboard Tack]

19. Not much. Why do you ask?

Some are monotheist, some pantheist.

[Angry Dragon]

21. Just curious on how others felt and thought

[edhopper]

23. Rank and file Catholics

follow a religion. The Catholic Church, i.e. the clergy, appear to be a cult for all intents and purposes.