What religion existed before the Bible was created?

As I grew older, it occurred to me that our current faith was not always present. In school we would discuss things such as Greek mythology, and what people believed in back in those times. It was odd to hear a people’s faith and belief system talked about in the “past tense.” Using words like they “thought”, or “believed” that these things were true and so on. 

The teacher spoke as if it was just so clear and obvious that everything they believed in was fake. A joke, as if it never existed in the first place and now we retell these stories for sheer amusement and entertainment. It made the people of that era sound like fools who should’ve known better. I couldn’t help but think of my own people and our current beliefs. In a strange way it felt as if she was also talking about us. Were we fools as well? Hundreds or even thousands of years down the road, would all of us Christians be regarding in the same way the Greeks and Romans were for believing in these things?

Needless to say, these implied sentiments got under my skin. I took it personally. I resented the fact that someone else’s beliefs could be looked down upon so easily. Besides, how did she know these peoples’ Gods didn’t exist? I mean, sure at the time I was just an elementary school kid, but she herself was only in her twenties. She wasn’t around back then so how much could she really know?

So, the next time our class went to the library, I decided to read more about their gods. Over the next few months, I checked out as many books on the subject as I could. I read them all and eventually even paid some money to the scholastic book fair to order a complete encyclopedia of all the Greek gods and associated characters. I borrowed the money from my mom who was just shocked to see me take in interest in actually reading something else besides Charlie Brown comics.

As I read the stories of Greek mythology in depth, I was both fascinated and disappointed at the same time. I was blown away by the fantastical stories it had to offer, but at the same time I was disappointed because a lot of it did indeed seem ridiculous. I had to reluctantly admit that perhaps my teacher knew more than I originally gave her credit for, and maybe those Greeks and Romans weren’t as smart as I was led to believe.

In any case, I had completed reading everything I could about their belief system, and I had succeeded in satisfying my curiosity about the culture. What I didn’t realize at the time, was that this had become the start of my diligence towards religion. Now it wouldn’t be until some years later before these skills and passion transferred to my actual faith of Christianity, but in the end it all came together for the same purpose.

From now on, whenever I heard something that didn’t sit right with me, I didn’t just go along with it. I did the research. When needed, I always questioned what was being told to me, regardless of whether it was a Teacher, Preacher, Parent, or even the President himself. I would always seek out more if I felt it was neecessary to do so. I would not limit myself to just one person’s input, and I would always include other perspectives in my choices, beliefs, and decision making.

Now with that being said, one of the major ways this has played out is with the Bible. Hands down there is no other topic or document that has caused me to do more research literally in my life, than the King James Version. It is the main reason why I chose to even start this blog. So having said that, the question we are exploring today is “What religion existed before the bible?” So, now that we know how I arrived at this question, let’s proceed!

As I have said before in a previous blog, until Abraham and his descendants came along, the religion had not taken much form. Everyone we know of in the Bible knew of God simply because he had spoken to them directly. Just as he did with Adam & Eve in the garden. Back then there was no Bible yet, no Israelites, no Jews, no Jesus, no Pope, Priests, or Preachers of any kind. So, for those who hadn’t had the pleasure of speaking to God, what was their belief system? As we said before people have “always” believed in something, so what was the religion of the land that Abraham grew up in as a child before he was blessed with Gods presence?

The short answer is Mesopotamian Polytheism. In the Bible: Joshua 24:2, it simply says that Abraham’s father Terah worshipped and served other Gods, but it doesn’t give much information on who those other Gods were or what that religion was called. Obviously, this was not the kind of question that went over well in Bible study. These were the kind of things they wanted to move passed quickly and not dwell on. Especially if it pertained to talking in depth about other religions, you might as well have suggested speaking with the devil himself, the way some reacted about it.

Needless to say, it became clear that if I wanted answers, I would have to take things into my own hands and learn in my own time. Thankfully today, with modern technology like the internet and AI, research has never been easier, nor information been more accessible. Thanks to this we now know with a quick search of historical facts that the region Abraham grew up in was filled with polytheistic beliefs. So, as I did before, I went looking to find out more of what these beliefs were and how they differed from my own as a modern-day Christian.

After doing some research I was surprised to see that there were certain similarities between their polytheistic beliefs and our religion. Particularly within the Old Testament. Some of the main ones were as follows:

1. In the beginning of both, creation starts with separating the waters from the waters.
2. They both created mankind from the earth and gave us life.
3. In both religions, the gods decide to flood the earth due to an abundance of wickedness.
4. They also both choose a single person to build a large boat to survive the flood. Their chosen person was named Atrahasis, ours was named Noah.
5. In both religions they were given specific measurements to build the boat, and they were both told to save the animals. A male and female of each kind.
6. They were both promised by their gods, that mankind would never be flooded again.
7. Hammurabi received laws from his god similar to Moses receiving laws from our God.

There are other similarities and parallels found between the two religions, but these are the ones I felt were the most prominent. What I find interesting about it is not so much the similarities, but the simple fact that one came before the other. It just so happens that Mesopotamian Polytheism is older than Christianity. It’s also older than Judaism. Due to this fact, there is no way that they could have copied or stolen the stories of the Old Testament. It could only have happened the other way around. So, for as much as we Christians tend to avoid reading or learning about the religion of others, it’s apparent that at least “some” of the material found in our Bible, may have been inspired by other faiths. 

So even though this answered the question of “What religion existed before the bible?” It also challenged my belief in the authenticity of our scripture even more. Now I was totally determined to learn as much as I could about my faith. In any way shape or form, I was determined to keep learning.

So after hearing all this, the question I have for you all is, “How do you feel about other religions?” Do you believe them to be evil? A tool of the devil? Or do you see them as just another piece of God’s puzzle? Are the people that believe in and practice other religions doomed to go to hell? Leave me a comment and let me know your thoughts on the subject..

-J.G. Robinson