Editing Christian mythology (section)

==Mythical themes and types==
Academic studies of mythology often define mythology as deeply valued stories that explain a society's existence and world order: those narratives of a society's creation, the society's origins and foundations, their god(s), their original heroes, mankind's connection to the "divine", and their narratives of [[eschatology]] (what happens in the "after-life"). This is a very general outline of some of the basic sacred stories with those themes.

===Cosmogonic myths===
{{main|Biblical cosmology}}
The Christian texts use the same [[creation myth]] as [[Jewish mythology]] as written in the Old Testament. According to the Book of Genesis, the world was created out of a darkness and water in seven days. (Unlike a Jew, a Christian might include the miracle of Jesus' birth as a sort of second cosmogonic event)<ref>According to Mircea Eliade, "for the Christian, time begins anew with the birth of Christ, for the Incarnation establishes a new situation of man in the cosmos" (''The Sacred and the Profane'', p. 111).</ref> Canonical Christian scripture incorporates the two Hebrew cosmogonic myths found in Genesis 1:1—2:2 and Genesis 2:4—3:24.

====Genesis 1:1—2:3====
In the first text on the creation (Genesis 1:1—2:3), the Creator is called ''[[Elohim]]'' (commonly translated simply as "God"). He creates the universe over a six-day period, creating a new feature each day: first he creates day and night; then he creates the firmament to separate the "waters above" from the "waters below"; then he separates the dry land from the water; then he creates plants on the land; then he places the Sun, Moon, and stars in the sky; then he creates swimming and flying animals; then he creates land animals; and finally he creates [[Adam and Eve|man and woman]] together, "in his own image". On the seventh day, God rests, providing the rationale for the custom of resting on [[Biblical Sabbath|Sabbath]].<ref>Exodus 20:8–11</ref>

==== Genesis 2:4—3:24 ====
The second creation myth in Genesis differs from the first in a number of important elements. Here the Creator is called ''Yahweh elohim'' (commonly translated "Lord God" or "L<SMALL>ORD</SMALL> God" (with small caps), although [[Yahweh]] is in fact the personal name of the God of Israel and does not literally mean "Lord").

This myth begins with the words, "When the L<SMALL>ORD</SMALL> God made the earth and the heavens, and no shrub of the field was yet in the earth, and no plant of the field had yet sprouted, for the LORD God had not sent rain upon the earth …" (Genesis 2:4–5 NASB). It then proceeds to describe Yahweh creating a man called Adam out of dust. Yahweh creates the [[Garden of Eden]] as a home for Adam, and tells Adam not to eat the fruit of the [[Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil]] in the center of the Garden (next to the [[Tree of Life (Judeo-Christian)|Tree of Life]]).

Yahweh also creates animals, and shows them to man, who names them. Yahweh sees that there is no suitable companion for the man among the beasts, and he subsequently puts Adam to sleep and takes out one of Adam's ribs, creating from it a woman whom Adam names [[Eve]].

A talking [[Serpent (Bible)|serpent]] tempts Eve to eat from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, and she succumbs, offering the fruit to Adam as well. As a punishment, Yahweh banishes the couple from the Garden and "placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden the cherubim with a fiery revolving sword to guard the way to the Tree of Life".<ref>Genesis 3:24</ref> The Lord says he must banish humans from the Garden because they have become like him, knowing good and evil (because of eating the [[forbidden fruit]]), and now only [[immortality]] (which they could get by eating from the Tree of Life) stands between them and godhood:
<blockquote>"The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever" (Genesis 3:22).</blockquote>

Although the text of Genesis does not identify the tempting serpent with [[Satan]], Christian tradition equates the two. This tradition has made its way into non-canonical Christian "myths" such as John Milton's ''[[Paradise Lost]]''.

===Ascending the mountain===
[[File:Bloch-SermonOnTheMount.jpg|left|thumb|Jesus' [[Sermon on the Mount]] depicted by [[Carl Bloch]]]]

According to Lorena Laura Stookey, many myths feature [[sacred mountains]] as "the sites of revelations": "In myth, the ascent of the holy mountain is a spiritual journey, promising purification, insight, wisdom, or knowledge of the sacred".<ref name="stookey164">Stookey 164</ref> As examples of this theme, Stookey includes the revelation of the Ten Commandments on [[Biblical Mount Sinai|Mount Sinai]], Christ's ascent of a mountain to deliver his [[Sermon on the Mount]], and [[Ascension of Christ|Christ's ascension]] into [[Heaven (Christianity)|Heaven]] from the [[Mount of Olives]].<ref name="stookey164"/>

===Axis mundi===
Many mythologies involve a "world center", which is often the sacred place of creation; this center often takes the form of a tree, mountain, or other upright object, which serves as an ''[[axis mundi]]'' or axle of the world.<ref name="leemingcreationmyths307">Leeming, ''Creation Myths of the World'', 307</ref><ref>Eliade, ''Cosmos and History'', 12</ref><ref name="every51">Every 51</ref> A number of scholars have connected the Christian story of the crucifixion at Golgotha with this theme of a cosmic center. In his ''Creation Myths of the World'', David Leeming argues that, in the Christian story of the crucifixion, the cross serves as "the ''axis mundi'', the center of a new creation".<ref name="leemingcreationmyths307"/>

According to a tradition preserved in Eastern Christian folklore, Golgotha was the summit of the cosmic mountain at the center of the world and the location where Adam had been both created and buried. According to this tradition, when Christ is crucified, his blood falls on Adam's skull, buried at the foot of the cross, and redeems him.<ref name="every51"/><ref>Eliade, ''Myth and Reality'', 14</ref> George Every discusses the connection between the cosmic center and Golgotha in his book ''Christian Mythology'', noting that the image of Adam's skull beneath the cross appears in many medieval representations of the crucifixion.<ref name="every51"/>

In ''Creation Myths of the World'', Leeming suggests that the Garden of Eden may also be considered a world center.<ref name="leemingcreationmyths307"/>

===Combat myth===
Many Near Eastern religions include a story about a battle between a divine being and a dragon or other monster representing chaos—a theme found, for example, in the ''[[Enuma Elish]]''. A number of scholars call this story the "combat myth".<ref>McGinn 22</ref><ref>Forsyth 126</ref><ref name="murphy279">Murphy 279</ref> A number of scholars have argued that the ancient Israelites incorporated the combat myth into their religious imagery, such as the figures of Leviathan and [[Rahab (term)|Rahab]],<ref name="mcginn24">McGinn 24</ref><ref>Murphy 281-82</ref> the [[Song of the Sea]],<ref name="mcginn24"/> Isaiah 51:9–10's description of God's deliverance of his people from Babylon,<ref name="mcginn24"/> and the portrayals of enemies such as Pharaoh and Nebuchadnezzar.<ref>Murphy 281</ref> The idea of Satan as God's opponent may have developed under the influence of the combat myth.<ref name="mcginn24"/><ref>Forsyth 124</ref> Scholars have also suggested that the Book of Revelation uses combat myth imagery in its descriptions of cosmic conflict.<ref name="murphy279"/><ref>McGinn 57</ref>

===Descent to the underworld===
[[Image:Harrowhell.jpg|thumb|right|The Harrowing of Hell, depicted in the ''[[Petites Heures of Jean de France, Duc de Berry|Petites Heures de Jean de Berry]]'', 14th-century [[illuminated manuscript]]]]
According to David Leeming, writing in ''The Oxford Companion to World Mythology'', the harrowing of hell is an example of the motif of the hero's [[descent to the underworld]], which is common in many mythologies.<ref name="leemingdescent"/> According to Christian tradition, Christ descended to hell after his death in order to free the souls there; this event is known as the [[Harrowing of Hell]]. This story is narrated in the [[Gospel of Nicodemus]] and may be the meaning behind 1 Peter 3:18–22.<ref>Every 65–66</ref><ref group="n">Every also sees New Testament references to the general resurrection (e.g. in John 5:25–29) as connected with the harrowing of hell, because he believes that early Christianity did not distinguish clearly between the Christ's liberation of souls from hell and the general resurrection (Every 66).</ref>

===Dying God===
{{See also|Jesus in comparative mythology}}
Many myths, particularly from the Near East, feature a God who dies and is resurrected; this figure is sometimes called the "[[Death or departure of the gods|dying god]]".<ref name="leemingdyinggod"/><ref>Burkert 99</ref><ref>Stookey 99</ref> An important study of this figure is [[James George Frazer]]'s ''[[The Golden Bough]]'', which traces the dying God theme through a large number of myths.<ref>Miles 193–94</ref> The dying God is often associated with fertility.<ref name="leemingdyinggod"/><ref>Stookey 107</ref> A number of scholars, including Frazer,<ref>Miles 194</ref> have suggested that the Christ story is an example of the "dying God" theme.<ref name="leemingdyinggod"/><ref>Sowa 351</ref> In the article "Dying God" in ''The Oxford Companion to World Mythology'', David Leeming notes that Christ can be seen as bringing fertility, though of a spiritual as opposed to physical kind.<ref name="leemingdyinggod"/>

In his 2006 homily for [[Corpus Christi (feast)|Corpus Christi]], Pope Benedict XVI noted the similarity between the Christian story of the resurrection and pagan myths of dead and resurrected gods: "In these myths, the soul of the human person, in a certain way, reached out toward that God made man, who, humiliated unto death on a cross, in this way opened the door of life to all of us."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/homilies/2006/documents/hf_ben-xvi_hom_20060615_corpus-christi.html |title=Homily of His Holiness Benedict XVI |location=Saint John Lateran |date=15 June 2006 |publisher=Libreria Editrice Vaticana }}</ref>

===Flood myths===
{{Main|Flood myth}}
Many cultures have myths about a flood that cleanses the world in preparation for rebirth.<ref name="leemingflood">Leeming, "Flood"</ref><ref name="stookey53">Stookey 53</ref> Such stories appear on every inhabited continent on earth.<ref name="stookey53"/> An example is the biblical story of Noah.<ref name="leemingflood"/><ref>Stookey 55</ref> In ''The Oxford Companion to World Mythology'', David Leeming notes that, in the Bible story, as in other flood myths, the flood marks a new beginning and a second chance for creation and humanity.<ref name="leemingflood"/>

===Founding myths===
{{Main|Founding myth}}
According to Sandra Frankiel, the records of "Jesus' life and death, his acts and words" provide the "founding myths" of Christianity.<ref name="frankiel57">Frankiel 57</ref> Frankiel claims that these founding myths are "structurally equivalent" to the creation myths in other religions, because they are "the pivot around which the religion turns to and which it returns", establishing the "meaning" of the religion and the "essential Christian practices and attitudes".<ref name="frankiel57"/> Tom Cain uses the expression "founding myths" more broadly, to encompass such stories as those of the [[War in Heaven]] and the [[fall of man]]; according to Cain, "the disastrous consequences of disobedience" is a pervasive theme in Christian founding myths.<ref>Cain 84</ref>

Christian mythology of their society's [[Founding myth|founding]] would start with Jesus and his many teachings, and include the stories of Christian disciples starting the Christian Church and congregations in the 1st century. This might be considered the stories in the four canonical gospels and the [[Acts of the Apostles]]. The heroes of the first Christian society would start with Jesus and those chosen by Jesus, the twelve apostles including Peter, John, James, as well as [[Paul the Apostle|Paul]] and [[Mary (mother of Jesus)]].

===Hero myths===
{{See also|Hero's journey}}
In his influential 1909 work ''[[The Myth of the Birth of the Hero]]'', [[Otto Rank]] argued that the births of many mythical heroes follow a common pattern. Rank includes the story of Christ's birth as a representative example of this pattern.<ref name="dundesheropattern"/>

According to Mircea Eliade, one pervasive mythical theme associates heroes with the slaying of dragons, a theme which Eliade traces back to "the very ancient cosmogonico-heroic myth" of a battle between a divine hero and a dragon.<ref name="Eliade, Cosmos and History, 38"/> He cites the Christian legend of [[Saint George]] as an example of this theme.<ref name="eliade39">Eliade, ''Cosmos and History'', 39</ref> An example from the [[Late Middle Ages]] comes from [[Dieudonné de Gozon]], third Grand Master of the [[Knights of Rhodes]], famous for slaying the dragon of Malpasso. Eliade writes:

<blockquote>
"Legend, as was natural, bestowed upon him the attributes of St. George, famed for his victorious fight with the monster. [...] In other words, by the simple fact that he was regarded as a hero, de Gozon was identified with a category, an [[archetype]], which [...] equipped him with a mythical biography from which it was ''impossible'' to omit combat with a reptilian monster."<ref name="eliade39"/>
</blockquote>

In the ''Oxford Companion to World Mythology'', David Leeming lists Moses, Jesus, and King Arthur as examples of the [[monomyth|heroic monomyth]],<ref name="leemingheroicmonomyth">Leeming, "Heroic monomyth"</ref> calling the Christ story "a particularly complete example of the heroic monomyth".<ref name="leemingchristianmythology"/> Leeming regards resurrection as a common part of the heroic monomyth,<ref name="leemingheroicmonomyth"/><ref>Leeming, "Resurrection"</ref> in which the resurrected heroes often become sources of "material or spiritual food for their people"; in this connection, Leeming notes that Christians regard Jesus as the "bread of life".<ref name="leemingheroicmonomyth"/>

In terms of values, Leeming contrasts "the myth of Jesus" with the myths of other "Christian heroes such as St. George, [[Song of Roland|Roland]], [[el Cid]], and even King Arthur"; the later hero myths, Leeming argues, reflect the survival of pre-Christian heroic values—"values of military dominance and cultural differentiation and hegemony"—more than the values expressed in the Christ story.<ref name="leemingchristianmythology"/>

===Paradise===
[[Image:Sirin Sunduk 1710.jpg|thumb|upright=1.25|In illustrations of the [[Book of Genesis]], [[Pomors]] often{{quantify|date=August 2016}} depicted [[sirin]]s as birds sitting in [[paradise]] trees. 1710]]
Many religious and mythological systems contain myths about a [[paradise]]. Many of these myths involve the loss of a paradise that existed at the beginning of the world. Some scholars have seen in the story of the [[Garden of Eden]] an instance of this general motif.<ref>Leeming, "Paradise myths"</ref><ref>Stookey 5, 91</ref>

===Sacrifice===
Sacrifice is an element in many religious traditions and often represented in myths. In ''The Oxford Companion to World Mythology'', David Leeming lists [[Binding of Isaac|the story of Abraham and Isaac]] and the story of Christ's death as examples of this theme.<ref>Leeming, "Sacrifice"</ref> [[Wendy Doniger]] describes the gospel accounts as a "meta-myth" in which Jesus realizes that he is part of a "new myth […] of a man who is sacrificed in hate" but "sees the inner myth, the old myth of origins and acceptance, the myth of a god who sacrifices himself in love".<ref>Doniger 112</ref>

===Eucharist===
{{Off topic|date=July 2020}}
Related to the doctrine of [[transsubstantiation]], the Christian practice of eating the flesh and blood of [[Jesus Christ]] during the [[Eucharist]] is an instance of [[theophagy]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Smith |first=Preserved |title=Christian Theophagy: An Historical Sketch |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2014 |doi=10.5840/monist19182828 |journal=The Monist |volume=23 |issue=2|pages=161–208 |url=https://zenodo.org/record/1450260 }}</ref>

===Transference of evil===
The theological concept of Jesus being born to [[Atonement in Christianity|atone]] for [[original sin]] is central to the Christian narrative. According to Christian theology, by Adam disobeying God in the Garden of Eden, humanity acquired an ingrained flaw that keeps humans in a state of moral imperfection, generally called "original sin". According to Paul the Apostle, Adam's sin brought sin and death to all humanity: "Through one man, sin entered the world, and through sin, death" (Romans 5:12).

According to the orthodox Christian view, Jesus saved humanity from final death and damnation by dying for them. Most Christians believe that Christ's [[sacrifice]] supernaturally reversed death's power over humanity, proved when he was [[Resurrection of Jesus|resurrected]], and abolished the power of sin on humanity. According to Paul, "if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God's grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many" (Romans 5:15). For many Christians, atonement doctrine leads naturally into the eschatological narratives of Christian people rising from the dead and living again, or immediately entering heaven to join Jesus.

====Atonement in canonical scripture====
{{Off topic|date=July 2020}}
Paul's theological writings lay out the basic framework of the atonement doctrine in the New Testament. However, Paul's letters contain relatively little mythology (narrative). The majority of narratives in the New Testament are in the Gospels and the Book of Revelation.

Although the Gospel stories do not lay out the atonement doctrine as fully as does Paul, they do have the story of the Last Supper, crucifixion, death and resurrection. Atonement is also suggested in the parables of Jesus in his final days. According to Matthew's gospel, at the [[Last Supper]], Jesus calls his blood "the blood of the new covenant, which will be poured out for the forgiveness of many" (Matthew 26:28). John's gospel is especially rich in atonement parables and promises: Jesus speaks of himself as "the living bread that came down from heaven"; "and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world" (John 6:51); "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit" (John 12:24).

====Atonement in non-canonical literature====
The sacrifice and atonement narrative appears explicitly in many non-canonical writings as well. For instance, in Book 3 of Milton's ''Paradise Lost'', the [[Son of god#Jesus as divine|Son of God]] offers to become a man and die, thereby paying mankind's debt to [[God the Father#Christianity|God the Father]].

The [[Harrowing of Hell]] is a non-canonical myth extrapolated from the atonement doctrine. According to this story, Christ descended into the land of the dead after his crucifixion, rescuing the righteous souls that had been cut off from heaven due to the taint of original sin. The story of the harrowing was popular during the Middle Ages. An Old English poem called "The Harrowing of Hell" describes Christ breaking into Hell and rescuing the Old Testament patriarchs.<ref>Russell, p. 136–38</ref> (The Harrowing is not the only explanation that Christians have put forth for the fate of the righteous who died before Christ accomplished the atonement.)<ref>For example, according to Russell, pp. 205–6, the medieval [[Scholasticism|scholastic]] theologian [[Abelard]] believed "that the just pagans had all been illuminated and saved by the Word during their lives". Russell also suggests another possible explanation that the scholastic theologians did not consider: "Christ died for all human beings wherever they are in space or time. His sacrifice was built into the plan of salvation for all eternity, and it affects those who come after the incarnation no more than those who came before".</ref>

In modern literature, atonement continues to be theme. In the first of C. S. Lewis's ''[[The Chronicles of Narnia|Narnia]]'' novels, ''[[The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe]]'', a boy named Edmund is condemned to death by a [[White Witch]], and the magical lion-king [[Aslan]] offers to die in Edmund's place, thereby saving him. Aslan's life is sacrificed on an altar, but returns to life again. Aslan's self-sacrifice for Edmund is often interpreted as an allegory for the story of Christ's sacrifice for humanity; although Lewis denied that the novel is a mere allegory.<ref group="n">A letter to a child fan named Patricia, printed in ''The Essential C. S. Lewis''.</ref>

===Eschatological myths===
[[Christian eschatology|Christian eschatological]] myths include stories of the afterlife: the narratives of Jesus Christ [[resurrection|rising from the dead]] and now acting as a [[wiktionary:savior|saviour]] of all generations of Christians, and stories of heaven and hell. Eschatological myths would also include the prophesies of [[apocalypse|end of the world]] and a new millennium in the [[Book of Revelation]], and the story that Jesus will return to earth some day.

The major features of Christian eschatological mythology include afterlife beliefs, the Second Coming, the resurrection of the dead, and the [[last judgment|final judgment]].

====Immediate afterlife (heaven and hell)====
[[File:Good shepherd 02b close.jpg|thumb|right|''Jesus as the Good Shepherd'', painting on ceiling of S. Callisto catacomb, early Christian art, mid 3rd century A.D.. Example of earliest Christian art showing a pastoral scene in the afterlife.]]

Most Christian denominations hold some belief in an immediate afterlife when people die. Christian scripture gives a few descriptions of an immediate afterlife and a heaven and hell; however, for the most part, both New and Old Testaments focus much more on the myth of a final bodily resurrection than any beliefs about a purely spiritual afterlife away from the body.

Much of the Old Testament does not express a belief in a personal afterlife of reward or punishment:<blockquote>"All the dead go down to Sheol, and there they lie in sleep together–whether good or evil, rich or poor, slave or free (Job 3:11–19). It is described as a region "dark and deep," "the Pit," and "the land of forgetfulness," cut off from both God and human life above (Psalms 6:5; 88:3–12). Though in some texts Yahweh's power can reach down to Sheol (Psalms 139:8), the dominant idea is that the dead are abandoned forever. This idea of Sheol is negative in contrast to the world of life and light above, but there is no idea of judgment or of reward and punishment."<ref>Tabor</ref></blockquote>

Later Old Testament writings, particularly the works of the Hebrew prophets, describe a final resurrection of the dead, often accompanied by spiritual rewards and punishments:<blockquote>"Many who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake. Some shall live forever; others shall be in everlasting contempt. But the wise shall shine brightly like the splendor of the firmament, and those who lead the many to justice shall be like the stars forever" (Daniel 12:2).</blockquote>
However, even here, the emphasis is not on an immediate afterlife in heaven or hell, but rather on a future bodily resurrection.

The New Testament also devotes little attention to an immediate afterlife. Its primary focus is the resurrection of the dead. Some New Testament passages seem to mention the (non-resurrected) dead experiencing some sort of afterlife (for example, the parable of [[rich man and Lazarus]]); yet the New Testament includes only a few myths about heaven and hell. Specifically, heaven is a place of peaceful residence, where Jesus goes to "prepare a home" or room for his disciples (John 14:2).<ref>"In My Father's house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you" – Jesus. John 14:2 NASB 1995.</ref> Drawing on scriptural imagery (John 10:7, John 10:11–14), many Christian narratives of heaven include a nice green pasture land and a meeting with a benevolent God. Some of the earliest Christian art depicts heaven as a green pasture where people are sheep led by Jesus as "the good shepherd" as in interpretation of heaven.

As the [[doctrines]] of heaven and hell (and also Catholic [[purgatory]]) developed, non-canonical Christian literature began to develop an elaborate mythology about these locations. Dante's three-part ''Divine Comedy'' is a prime example of such afterlife mythology, describing Hell (in ''Inferno''), Purgatory (in ''Purgatorio''), and Heaven (in ''Paradiso''). Nowadays, conceptualizations of hell differ quite widely across various denominations.

====Second Coming====
[[File:Wandering jew - Gustave Doré.jpg|thumb|right|''The Wandering Jew '' by [[Gustave Doré]].]]
The [[Second Coming]] of Christ holds a central place in Christian mythology. The Second Coming is the return of Christ to Earth during the period of transformation preceding the end of this world and the establishment of the Kingdom of Heaven on Earth. According to Matthew's gospel, when Jesus is on trial before the Roman and Jewish authorities, he claims, "In the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven."<ref>Matthew 26:64</ref> The legend of the [[Wandering Jew]] concerns a Jew who taunted Jesus on the way to the Crucifixion and was then cursed to walk the earth until the Second Coming.

====Resurrection and final judgment====
Christian mythology incorporates the Old Testament's prophecies of a future resurrection of the dead. Like the Hebrew prophet Daniel (e.g., Daniel 12:2), the Christian Book of Revelation (among other New Testament scriptures) describes the resurrection: "The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them; and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds."<ref>Revelation 20:13</ref> The righteous and/or faithful enjoy bliss in the earthly Kingdom of Heaven, but the evil and/or non-Christian are "cast into the lake of fire".<ref>Revelation 20:15</ref>

====The Kingdom of Heaven on Earth====
Christian eschatological myths feature a total world renovation after the final judgment. According to the Book of Revelation, God "will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or mourning, wailing or pain, for the old order has passed away".<ref>Revelation 21:4</ref> According to Old and New Testament passages, a time of perfect peace and happiness is coming: <blockquote>"They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. One nation will not raise the sword against another; nor will they train for war again."<ref>Isaiah 2:4</ref></blockquote> Certain scriptural passages even suggest that God will abolish the current natural laws in favor of immortality and total peace:
*"Then the wolf will be a guest of the lamb, and the leopard will lie down with the kid. The calf and the young lion will browse together, with a little child to guide them. […] There will be no harm or ruin on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with knowledge of the LORD as water fills the sea."<ref>Isaiah 11:6, 9</ref>
*"On this mountain, [God] will destroy the veil that veils all peoples, the web that is woven over all nations: he will destroy Death forever."<ref>Isaiah 25:7–8</ref>
*"The trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed."<ref>1 Corinthians 15:52</ref>
*"Night will be no more, nor will they need light from lamp or sun, for the Lord God shall give them light, and they shall reign forever and ever."<ref>Revelation 22:5</ref>

====Millennialism and amillennialism====
When Christianity was a new and persecuted religion, many Christians believed the end times were imminent.<ref>Eliade, ''Myth and Reality'', p. 67</ref> Scholars debate whether Jesus was an apocalyptic preacher;<ref>McGinn, p. 35</ref> however, his early followers, "the group of Jews who accepted him as messiah in the years immediately after his death, understood him in primarily apocalyptic terms".<ref>McGinn, p. 36</ref> Prevalent in the early church and especially during periods of persecution,<ref>Eliade, ''Myth and Reality'', p. 67; McGinn, p. 60</ref> this Christian belief in an imminent end is called "[[millennialism]]". (It takes its name from the thousand-year ("millennial") reign of Christ that, according to the Book of Revelation, will precede the final world renovation; similar beliefs in a coming paradise are found in other religions, and these phenomena are often also called "millennialism")<ref>"millennialism"; Eliade, p. 67-72</ref>

Millennialism comforted Christians during times of persecution, for it predicted an imminent deliverance from suffering.<ref>"millennialism"; Eliade, p. 67</ref> From the perspective of millennialism, human action has little significance: millennialism is comforting precisely because it predicts that happiness is coming no matter what humans do: "The seeming triumph of Evil made up the apocalyptic syndrome which was to precede Christ's return and the millennium."<ref>Eliade, p. 67</ref>

However, as time went on, millennialism lost its appeal.<ref>According to Eliade, ''Myth and Reality'', p. 67: "After becoming the official religion of the Roman Empire, Christianity condemned millennialism as heretical, although illustrious Fathers had professed it in the past. [...] The ''eschaton'' was no longer the imminent event that it had been during the persecutions." According to ReligiousTolerance.org, the specific variant of millennialism condemned was "Historical Premillennialism", which many Christians believed in during the first three centuries C.E.; the Roman Church's official anti-millennial stance is called "Amillennialism", and was largely established by [[Augustine of Hippo]] (Robinson). Even some of the Church Fathers who accepted historical premillennialism doubted the imminence of the End, as Christ's coming seemed less and less likely to be immediate. According to McGinn, p. 62: "Like both Irenaeus and Hippolytus, Tertullian thought (at least for most of his career) that the end was not near."</ref> Christ had not returned immediately, as earlier Christians had predicted. Moreover, many Christians no longer needed the comfort that millennialism provided, for they were no longer persecuted: "With the triumph of the Church, the Kingdom of Heaven was already present on earth, and in a certain sense the old world had already been destroyed."<ref name = "bfvqcq">Eliade, ''Myth and Reality'', p. 68</ref> (Millennialism has revived during periods of historical stress,<ref name = "bfvqcq"/> and is currently popular among Evangelical Christians.)<ref name = "vaqsrr">Robinson</ref>

In the Roman Church's condemnation of millennialism, Eliade sees "the first manifestation of the doctrine of [human] progress" in Christianity.<ref name = "bfvqcq"/> According to the amillennial view, Christ will indeed come again, ushering in a perfect Kingdom of Heaven on earth, but "the Kingdom of God is [already] present in the world today through the presence of the heavenly reign of Christ, the Bible, the Holy Spirit and Christianity".<ref name = "vaqsrr"/> Amillennialists do not feel "the eschatological tension" that persecution inspires; therefore, they interpret their eschatological myths either figuratively or as descriptions of far-off events rather than imminent ones.<ref>According to ReligiousTolerance.org, Amillennialists interpret the myth of Christ's [[Second Coming]] literally, although they do not expect Christ to come soon, and they often interpret the [[Antichrist]] figuratively.Robinson</ref> Thus, after taking the amillennial position, the Church not only waited for God to renovate the world (as millennialists had) but also believed itself to be improving the world through human action.<ref name = "bfvqcq"/>

===Witches===
{{Off topic|date=July 2020}}
{{See also|Malleus Maleficarum|Martin Delrio|Jean Bodin|Summis desiderantes affectibus}}
[[File:Albert Joseph Pénot - Départ pour le Sabbat (1910).jpg|thumb|A witch departing for [[Witches' Sabbath]] on a broomstick — a motif included in ''Errores Gazariorum'' ("Errors of the Gazarii") written in 1437, probably by a Savoyard inquisitor]]
In the [[Early modern Europe|early modern period]], distinguished Christian theologians developed elaborated witch mythologies which contributed to the intensification of [[Witch trials in the early modern period|witch hunts]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Levack |first1=Brian P. |title=The Oxford Handbook of Witchcraft in Early Modern Europe and Colonial America |date=2013 |publisher=Oxford University Press |pages=48–49 |isbn=978-0-19-515669-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Lum96_FPZp0C&pg=PA48}}</ref> Major works in [[Christian demonology]], such as [[Malleus Maleficarum]], were dedicated to the implementation of [[Book of Exodus|Exodus 22:18]] of the [[Old Testament]]: "You shall not permit a sorceress to live."<ref>{{cite web|title=Britannica: Malleus Maleficarum|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Malleus-maleficarum |archive-date=2018-09-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180924230442/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Malleus-maleficarum}}</ref> The concept of [[witches' sabbath]] was well articulated by the 17th century. Theologian [[Martin Delrio]] was one of the first to provide a vivid description in his influential ''Disquisitiones magicae'':<ref>{{cite journal|last=Young |first=Francis |year=2015 |title=review of Martin Delrio: Demonology and Scholarship in the Counter-Reformation, (review no. 1763) |journal=Reviews in History |url=https://www.history.ac.uk/reviews/review/1763 |doi=10.14296/RiH/2014/1763 |doi-access=free }}</ref>
<blockquote>
There, on most occasions, once a foul, disgusting fire has been lit, an evil spirit sits on a throne as president of the assembly. His appearance is terrifying, almost always that of a male goat or a dog. The witches come forward to worship him in different ways. Sometimes they supplicate him on bended knee; sometimes they stand with their back turned to him. They offer candles made of pitch or a child's umbilical cord, and kiss him on the anal orifice as a sign of homage. Sometimes they imitate the sacrifice of the Mass (the greatest of all their crimes), as well as purifying with water and similar Catholic ceremonies. After the feast, each evil spirit takes by the hand the disciple of whom he has charge, and so that they may do everything with the most absurd kind of ritual, each person bends over backwards, joins hands in a circle, and tosses his head as frenzied fanatics do. Then they begin to dance. They sing very obscene songs in his [Satan's] honour. They behave ridiculously in every way, and in every way contrary to accepted custom. Then their demon-lovers copulate with them in the most repulsive fashion.
</blockquote>

===Legend and folklore===
{{main|Folk Catholicism|Folk Orthodoxy}}
{{see|Christian views on astrology}}

* [[Legendary (hagiography)|Legendary]]
* [[Prester John]]
* [[Saint George and the Dragon]]
* [[Wandering Jew]]

====Legendary creatures====
{{Expand section|date=May 2021}}
Numerous legendary creatures are attested in Christian mythology. These include the [[Behemoth]], [[Leviathan]], [[Angel]]s, [[Demon]]s, [[Nephilim]], [[Re'em]], [[Ziz]]<ref>{{Cite web |last=Blanch |first=Jorge |date=2024-07-15 |title=The Mythic Cross |url=https://themythiccross.com/ |access-date=2024-11-24 |website=The Mythic Cross |language=en-US}}</ref> and [[dragon]]s.