St. Paul and the Mystery-Religions (Biblia.com)

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An invaluable book of exceptional history, H. A. A. Kennedy identifies and examines the relationship of Pauline theology and the religious cults that co-existed in the Roman Empire. A revealing exploration of the religious atmosphere Paul found himself proclaiming the Gospel in, it catalogs the various religious communities Paul visited and deciphers the beliefs and customs practiced therein.

spiritual foundation for the unio mystica is traceable in that pantheistic Element-mysticism, resulting partly from ancient physico-religious speculations, partly from Pythagorean and Stoic versions of these, which teaches that men reach the vision of God which deifies by means of the “elements” in them, of which the first principles exist in the deity.1 This is a favourite doctrine of Hellenistic religion. Sextus Empiricus (vii., 93) quotes a saying of Posidonius that “light is apprehended by the

Pages 204–205

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