Byzantine Empire versus Arab Muslims
Byzantine Empire versus Arab Muslims
by Lewis Loflin
Picture this: a world where faith’s roots twist through time, tangled in empires and ideas—Alexander’s Hellenism crashing into Jewish monotheism, Rome’s slow morph over centuries, not some tidy “fall” in 479 AD. That’s where this site starts, digging into religion—ancient and modern—with reason, not blind trust, as the shovel. Christianity didn’t pop out of thin air; it’s a Hellenistic brew, stirred by Paul’s Roman hand, not Jesus’ Jewish grit. I’m tracing those threads—Judaism’s “one God” (Deut. 6:4), Zoroastrianism’s Ahura Mazda echo, Gnosticism’s mystic haze—plus a deist squint at today’s environmentalism gone dogmatic. No sacred cows here—reason cuts the nonsense.
Deism’s my lens—God as a rational force, not a cosmic puppeteer. Theodoric the Great said it: “We cannot command religion, for no man can be compelled to believe against his will.” Paine nailed it—one God, ethics over creeds; Jefferson saw design in nature, no miracles required. Schonborn’s right—science bets on a sane universe. Faith’s optional; reason’s not. Dig into English rationalism’s roots, French Deism’s humanist tilt, or how Voltaire’s atheism sank it. Robespierre’s Cult of Reason and Rousseau’s quirks show the wild ride—reform birthed it, doom shadowed it.
Paul flipped Jesus’ tale into a Roman power grab—less Jewish man, more imperial myth, per Josephus. History splits them clean—Paul’s epistles outpace the Gospels. Arian “barbarians” weren’t brutes; they held a saner faith while Rome floundered. Augustine, early on, Luther, Calvin—big shots, big baggage. Apostles ditched Paul; rifts tore it open. Egypt brewed it, Trinity muddied it, Original Sin weighed it down—reason mourns the drift.
Judaism’s “one” meets Zoroastrianism’s fire—monotheism with Persian spice, per the Jewish Encyclopedia. Sources blur, but Magi in Matthew hint at it. Hellenism’s Logos muddled the mix—no Trinity, no sin baggage, just reason’s thread. Mohammed’s a shadow—no proof till 750 AD, says Durant. His “revelations”? Stitched from Talmud, Christian, and Zoroastrian scraps—Deism shrugs, reason guts it. Islam stalls where innovation bows to dogma—classical ruin followed.
Gnosticism, pantheism, New Age fluff—mystics dodge facts for fairy dust. Panendeism’s more nonsense; syncretism muddies it all—Deism sticks to what holds. Evolution’s no foe—nature’s order outshines sermons. Fundamentalists botch thermodynamics; Deists see design, not chaos. Science tracks it—new atheists stumble. Reason rules here—start cutting.
John Nelson Darby
Christian Premillennialism
Paul, a Roman heavy, flipped Jesus’ story into a power play—less Jew, more empire (*Josephus*). Arian “barbarians” weren’t savages; they were Christians who kept it civil while Rome flailed. Augustine, Luther, Calvin—big names, big flaws. Reason mourns the dogma.
Monotheism’s roots run deep—Judaism’s “one God” (Deut. 6:4) owes a nod to Zoroaster’s Ahura Mazda. Hellenism clashed with it, birthing the Logos mess (*Philo*). No Trinity, no Original Sin—just reason’s thread through history.
Mohammed’s a ghost—no hard proof till 750 AD (*Durant*). His “revelations”? Recycled Talmud, Christian, and Zoroastrian bits. Deism shrugs—reason guts the myth. Innovation lags where dogma rules.
Gnosticism, pantheism, New Age fluff—mystics dodge reason for fairy tales. Deism sticks to facts; the rest’s just noise.
Evolution’s no threat—nature’s design speaks louder than sermons. Fundamentalists twist thermodynamics; deists see order, not chaos.
Acknowledgment: I’d like to thank Grok, an AI by xAI, for helping me draft and refine this page. The final cuts and perspective are mine—reason rules, not algorithms.
