密特拉教和基督教的关联

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There is much speculation that Christian beliefs were influenced by Mithraic belief. Ernest Renan, in The Origins of Christianity, promoted the idea that Mithraism was the prime competitor to Christianity in the second through the fourth century AD, although most scholars feel the written claims that the emperors Nero, Commodus, Septimius Severus, Caracalla, and the Tetrarchs were initiates are dubious at best, and there is no evidence that Mithraic worship was accorded any official status as a Roman cult. Except in its official form as 'Sol Invictus,' the first universal religion of the Greco Roman world.
很有可能基督教信仰是受到密特拉神信仰的影响。在《基督教的起源》里面，东罗马帝国发扬的密特拉教思想最初在二世纪到四世纪是同基督教竞争，尽管大多数学者感觉到书写声称君主尼禄，Commodus, Septimius Severus, Caracalla和一些小王领主的作品最好开始时是不确实的，也没有证据显示出密特拉教的崇拜与任何罗马官方形式的祭礼相一致。除了作为“索尔崇拜”的官方形式之外，格雷哥罗马世界的第一个普世宗教。
Bull and cave themes are found in Christian shrines dedicated to the archangel Michael, who, after the officialization of Christianity, became the patron Saint of soldiers. Many of those shrines were converted Mithraea, for instance the sacred cavern at Monte Gargano in Apulia, refounded in 493. It is hard to avoid the conclusion that the Mithras cult was transferred to the previously unvenerated archangel.
献身于天使长米迦勒的公牛和洞穴主题发现在基督教神祠上，是在基督教被官方化的后期，成为了士兵的守护神。很多神祠都更换成太阳式洞穴，比如阿普利亚区的Monte Gargano，于493年建立。这很难消除一个结论，那就是密特拉神的祭礼被转换成以前的天使长崇敬。
Bull and crypt are linked in the Christian saint Saturnin (frequently "Sernin" or "Saturninus") of Toulouse, France. The Mithraeum is retained as a crypt under his earliest church, evocatively named "Notre-Dame du Taur."
公牛和地下室与基督教圣人撒特丁（Saturnin，经常被法国南部城市图卢兹称作“Sernin”或者"Saturninus"）相关。太阳式洞穴作为一个早期教堂的地下室而保留着，唤起的名字是“Notre-Dame du Taur”。
It has also been speculated that the ancient Orobouros of Mithraism (the encircling serpent about to bite its own tail) was adapted for a Christian symbol of the limited confines of time and space. The snake around a rock also is reminscent of the Midgard serpent, J鰎mungandr, who was said to surround Midgard (the Earth) according to Norse traditions.
也推测古代密特拉教的大毒蛇标记（环绕的大毒蛇，自己的头咬自己的尾巴）后来被基督教采用，是象征着有限的时间和空间界线。环绕着岩石的蛇也是从北欧神话中的尘世的大毒蛇而来。J鰎mungandr说环绕着尘世（大地）的大毒蛇是依照北欧传统而来。
Christians would argue that because the Gospels were written mostly before 100 and that since little is known of Roman Mithraism until after 100 that it is not plausible to say that Christianity borrowed any of its doctrines from Mithraism; some Christians have suggested that Mithraism may have borrowed some elements from Christianity. Other, non-Christian scholars disagree on both the dating of the gospels and with the conclusions made.
由于直到100年之后还对罗马密特拉教知之甚少，基督徒会争辩因为福音书基本上比此早于100年写成，从而似是而非地说基督教并不从密特拉教借来任何教条；一些基督徒暗示了是密特拉教借来了一些基督教的要素。其他的非基督徒学者既不同意福音书的日期，也不同意得出的结论。
A better determinant of borrowing, is to compare core doctrines between Christianity and Mithraism. The adoption of imagery or icons or festivals is fairly peripheral (such as the adoption by christendom of winter solstice or Saturnalia festivals as Christmas) but seldom reflects basic religious tenets. A further example of this is the various gnostic cults (such as Pelagianism) which adopted the personage of Jesus or the concept of a Savior, yet did not adopt the underlying doctrinal elements.
一个更佳的测定，就是比较基督教与密特拉教之间的核心教义。对图标，肖像或者节日的采用是相当外围的（比如基督教采用了冬至日和农神节作为圣诞节），但很少反映出基本宗教原则。这种各式各样认知上的祭礼的一个更典型例子就是采用了耶稣这个人或救世主的概念，并没有采用下面的潜在学说原理。

Parallels to Christianity
与基督教的相似之处

According to Martin A. Larson, in The Story of Christian Origins(1977), Mithraism and Christianity derived from the same sources, originally from the savior cult of Osiris. However, Larson believes that the Essenes were Jewish Pythagoreans, whose members not only gave birth to Christianity as Essenes, but were directly influenced by Zoroastrian doctrine as Pythagoreans. Mithraism, an established but exclusive sect devoted to social justice, was assimilated by state-sponsored Christianity before being disposed of in name.
根据Martin A. Larson, 在〈基督教故事的起源〉（1977）上，密特拉教和基督教是源自相同的来源，最初是源自于对救世主欧西里斯的祭礼。然而，Larson认为艾赛尼派是犹太人的毕达哥拉斯学派，成员不仅作为艾赛尼派而给予基督教诞生之地，而且还因为毕达哥拉斯而直接受到琐罗亚斯德教义的影响。密特拉教，一个已经确立后但唯我独尊的教派，专心于社会的正义，在处理名相之前就被声称的基督教发起者所吸收。
Though no texts of Mithraism survive, various fragments, inscriptions and critical commentaries show that Mithraism and early Christianity both possess similar religious doctrines. 砊he resemblances between the two churches were so striking as to impress even the minds of antiquity?(Cumont, 193). From their common Zoroastrian sources, Mithraism first held that all souls pre-existed in the ethereal regions, and inhabited a body upon birth. Life then becomes a great struggle between good and evil, spirit and body, the children of light versus the children of darkness (identical to Pythagoreanism). All souls were to be judged by Mithra (represented as a bull) with the Elect going to heaven, and the earthly and evil being annihilated in a great battle. Mithraism divided the human race into three classes: the spiritual Elect, the wicked, and those who try to be good but can't seem to overcome evil. The Elect go straight to heaven, while the good-intentioned wait until judgment to be resurrected, where the wicked will be destroyed.
尽管没有现存的密特拉教文献，但各种不同的碎片，碑铭和评论的注释都表明了密特拉教和早期的基督教都共同拥有相似的宗教教条。两者的相似性是如此地惊人，以致在古代遗物也留下思想的印记。从它们共同的琐罗亚斯德教来源，密特拉教首先持有所有灵魂最先存在于天上领域的观点，在人出生的时候居住在身体内。生命然后就变成了好与坏，精神与肉体，光明之子与黑暗之子之间的极大争斗（同样也出现在毕达哥拉斯里面）。所有灵魂都受到密特拉神的审判（以公牛作为代表），推选出上天堂的灵魂，俗世和邪恶的会在一场伟大的战役中被歼灭。密特拉教把人类分成三种类型：灵性上有福的，邪恶的，尝试变成良善但不能战胜邪恶的。被推举的会直接上天堂，有良好企图的要等待到审判，邪恶的会被毁灭。
Both Christianity and Mithraism prided themselves in brotherhood and organized their members as church congregations. Both religions purified themselves through baptism, and each participated in the same type of sacrament, bread and wine. Mithra was born in a cave; a cave is likewise the setting for the nativity of Jesus in the widely-read and influential Gospel of James, which though not canonical is the earliest surviving document attesting the veneration of Mary and claiming her continuing virginity. Both nativities were celebrated on December 25th, and each savior was visited by shepherds with gifts. Both Mithraism and Christianity considered Sunday their holy day, despite early Christianity observing the Jewish Sabbath for centuries. Many have noted that the title of Pope is found in Mithraic doctrine and seemingly prohibited in Christian doctrine. The words Peter (rock) and mass (sacrament) have original significance in Mithraism.
基督教和密特拉教都以他们自己的兄弟会为自豪，像教会集合那样组织他们的成员。两种宗教都通过洗礼来净化自己，都参与同种类型的圣餐，面包和酒。密特拉神出生在洞穴里，而洞穴又放置在广泛传阅而有影响力的《雅各福音》的耶稣诞生上，虽然在玛丽亚崇拜和声称她的持续童贞性方面，这并不是早期规范的文献。两者都在12月25日庆祝出生，各自的救世主都收到牧羊人带来的礼物。密特拉教和基督教都把星期日作为他们的圣日，尽管早期基督教有数个世纪是留意犹太人的安息日。很多人也留意罗马教宗的头衔也在密特拉的教义上找到，表明上地在基督教教义是禁止的。彼得（岩石）和弥撒（圣礼）这些词在密特拉教都有原始重要性。
Both Mithraism and early Christianity considered abstinence, celibacy, and self-control to be among their highest virtues. Both had similar beliefs about the world, destiny, heaven and hell, and the immortality of the soul. Their conceptions of the battles between good and evil were almost identical, with Christianity adopting millennial epochs that were integral to Mithraism from Zoroastrianism. "They both admitted to the existence of a heaven inhabited by beautiful ones奱nd a hell peopled by demons situate in the bowels of earth." (Cumont, 191) Both religions placed a flood at the beginning of history, and both believed in revelation as key to their doctrine. Both awaited the last judgment and resurrection of the dead after the final conflagration of the universe. Christ and Mithra were both referred to directly as the "Logos" (Larson 184).
密特拉教和早期基督教都认为节欲，独身生活和自我控制是他们的最高美德。两者对世界，命运，天堂和地狱和灵魂的不朽都有相似的信仰。他们善良与邪恶之间的战役的观念几乎是同一的，基督教采用一千年的周期是密特拉教完整地取自于琐罗亚斯德教的。“他们都承认存在着天堂，是美丽的族类居住的地方，邪恶的人所处的地狱是在地底之下。”两种宗教都在历史之起始放置了大洪水，都相信启示是作为他们教义的钥匙。两者都等待宇宙大火灾之后的最后审判和从死亡中复活。基督与密特拉两者都直接地提及到“逻各斯（Logos，道，道体，道成肉身）。”
It is probable that Christianity emphasized common features that attracted Mithra followers, perhaps the crucifix appealed to those Mithra followers who had crosses already branded on their foreheads. In art, the halo was a well-known depiction of Mithra, a true sun god, but which also depicts Christ in the same way. However, the similiarities were an embarrassment, and differences such as star gazing were persecuted as heresy. Trypho wrote that 矹ustin Martyr declared that in a certain cave near Bethlehem奙ary brought forth the Christ妕hose who presided over the mysteries of Mithras were stirred up by the devil to say that in a place called among them a cave, they were initiated by them?(LXXVIII). Tertullian seems to have feared the parallels between Mithraism and Christianity the most, demonizing Mithraism as a perverted truth planted by the devil.
很可能是基督教强调的普遍特征吸引了密特拉教追随者，可能是苦像吸引了那些密特拉追随者去在前额上打有烙印。在艺术上，光环是众所周知地描绘密特拉，一位真正的太阳神，但同样也描绘基督。然而，相似性是一种困窘，差异性，比如星星的凝视是作为异端而受迫害。Trypho写道，殉道者贾斯丁声称在伯利恒附件的某个洞穴里，玛丽亚带来了基督，那是主持密特拉神秘性的地方，被恶棍煽动去说在一块地方上，呼吁他们的是一个洞穴，他们受到他们发动？(LXXVIII)（这里的翻译不清楚）。特土良看来是害怕看到密特拉教与基督教之间大部分的相似性，使密特拉教成为由魔鬼策略的不正当真理。