Sigalius Mýricantur; Pat Macpherson, Sheldon S., Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly Wiki
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| Ancient Goddess Asherah, Astarte, Anat, Athirat… Ugaritic texts (therealsamizdat.com) |
Pagan origins of Judaism and Christianity
"God" (YHWH, Yahweh, Jehovah) once had a wife whose name was Asherah, just like the pagan gods. But this was erased. YHWH Elohim (plural "gods") evolved from the Canaanite deity El. Judaism and Christianity are based on very old polytheistic traditions, dating back to at least Sumerian times. Sources:
- Mark S. Smith
- Michael Cogan
- Christine Hayes
- William G. Dever
- John C. L. Gibson
God had a wife: Asherah
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| Judeo-Christian Jewish/Christian God+Goddess, YHWH+Asherah (allthatsinteresting.com) |
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| Phallic Asherah (wp.unil.ch) |
William Dever's book Did God Have a Wife? (Asherah) provides archaeological evidence.
For instance, the many female figurines unearthed in ancient Israel (known as Pillar-Base Figurines or Asherah Poles) support the view that in Israelite folk religion of the monarchical period, Asherah functioned as a goddess and consort of Yahweh and was worshiped as the queen of heaven.
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Jews and Christians worship a god of war: Yahweh. Tel Arad Temple Fortress is an archaeological tel, or "mound," located west of the Dead Sea, about 6 miles (10 km) west of modern Arad surrounded by mountain ridges, divided into lower city and upper hill with the only ever "House of Yahweh" discovered in Israel.
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| Asherah (dryad?) tree/pole goddess |
Hebrews baked small cakes for her festival. Dever also points to the discovery of multiple shrines and temples in ancient Israel and Judah.
The temple site at Arad is particularly interesting for the presence of two (possibly three) massebot or "standing stones" representing the presence of deities.
This runs contrary to the biblical claim that there was only one temple, in Jerusalem, and that it was dedicated only to Yahweh.
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| Mother Goddess Asherah (tokinwoman) |
Although the identity of the deities associated with the massebot is uncertain, Yahweh and Asherah or Asherah and Baal remain strong candidates, as Dever notes:
"The only goddess whose name is well attested in the Hebrew Bible (or in ancient Israel generally) is Asherah."
The name Asherah appears 40 times in the Hebrew Bible, but it is much reduced in English translations. More
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