Editing Christian mythology (section)

===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"/>