Quote DAnneMarc:In a religious sense, however, one may conclude that this Greek Creation Myth was around at the time of Christ.

And in a historical sense, as well, because it definitely was around at the time of the Christ myth. All of the old myths were pretty well known and the prophesied new saviors had to compete with the old ones. They not only had to be believed to be capable of similar stunts but they had to out do them. There were others professing magic at the time of the Jesus myth trying to woo the believers.

Everyone, then, all knew that the creators of the Jewish myths had foretold of a coming savior that would lead them out of bondage of the Romans. I kind of favor the idea that the whole Jesus story was created by the Roman Piso family as a way of trying to keep the rebellious Jews in their place.

And so, as you pointed out, new stories are made from old ones. But there are some parallels that just cannot be explained away by begging the sociological similarities associated with just being human. Yes, we are all born, we all eat, we all love and hate, fear and loathe, kill and try to get along, fratricide and matricide as well as infanticide has been around since the beginning. But when you get into more specialized themes like born of a virgin, born in a cave (or manger), birth attended by 3 wise men guided by a star, turning water into wine, feeding the masses with a couple loaves of bread, having 12 disciples, walking on water, casting demons out of swine, raising a man from the dead, healing the sick, dying on a cross, arising 3 days later...etc...then it is pretty apparent that plagiarism was done.

Most modern believers are so certain that those stories in the bible are literally true yet they, in many cases, don't even know about the plagiarism...or they don't want to know. Many devout believers don't even know what's in their bibles. They don't even know, or want to know, all of the sick stories, and the many contradictions, in their bibles. The catholic church hid well many of those things that might be questioned by someone who could read the bible...which was kept largely in latin for over a thousand years. Believers don't care too much to do much thinking...they just want to believe...or they have been brainwashed to believe.

And talk about eating one's young...a more modern account than the Kronos myths was that of Josephus' Cannibal Mary that he wrote about in Antiquities of the Jews.

The year was 70AD during the Roman seige of Jerusalem where many of the Jews in the countryside and surrounding towns were all taking refuge in that city...the population may have reached about 3 million. There were marauding bandits going door to door looking for, and stealing food. People were starving. Mary, daughter of Eleazar of Bathezor, a very wealthy and distinguish family, now with a baby boy, and no apparent husband, was constantly hit on for her food. She had nothing left. So, one day, knowing that she would be raided once again, she cooks her baby and eats part of it. When the raiders got there she invited them in to eat what remained. The raiders were so upset and freaked out that they left in horror never to bother her again. "Eat this flesh of my flesh...and drink this blood of my blood".

Josephus was a Jewish military leader who, while hiding in a cave, while his men got slaughtered by the Romans, was captured and eventually won approval, by the Romans, for his imagination and writing and story telling ability and obsequious flattery. Josephus' imagination and creativity often shows in various references to his works...but then..he gained favor from the wealthy and powerful Roman families because he told them what they wanted to hear...anything that would diss the Jews, perhaps?

Ritualistic cannibalism, as practiced by our modern churches, has been copied for thousands of years.

Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you" (John 6:53)

But then, maybe old Josephus with the help of the Piso family, in creating the new myth of Jesus, was just having a little bit of humorous fun...a little tongue in cheek...an inside joke...was Cannibal Mary's young baby son named Jesus? Was Cannibal Mary jokingly referred to when they created the Virgin Mary...no one knows how Cannibal Mary came to have a child.