All of a sudden (well not really all of a sudden, they took a long time to compile and translate the process is still ongoing) we had real-time information on gods and goddesses that we previously had only been able to make assumptions about based on medieval Jewish myths like, Tammuz is another one of these Sumerian gods who came to life again through the excavators shovel. which, in many countries, was considerably later than the Christian festival, So, whats the living in the underworld for six months motif all about? I resolved that Temple question but was horrified by the implications of what was going on within the very throne of God on earth (Ez 43:7). I've heard that supposedly the weeping lasted for only a couple of days, while others say it lasted for the month named after him. A. days in the honour of the sun.'. I meant to write this a few months ago when something strange about the Temple description caught my eye. I can see that there are numerous complications in examining this passage-but the common theme appears to be a fertility/spring ritual cult, a vestige of the Caananite festivals. Here are some sources I've found regarding the weeping of tammuz but does anyone have some other sources regarding this practice? So who was Tammuz, according to the evidence? edited by Robert Broderick, copyright 1987, published by Thomas Nelson Note that Lent is a moveable observance, connected to and preceding What video game is Charlie playing in Poker Face S01E07? Tammuz was a pagan god or idol that the women were weeping for on the north side of the temple. Ezekiel 8:14-16 This sun worship and weeping for Tammuz was not something that was occuring in some far off pagan temple. Carnival, was entirely unknown; and even when fasting before the Christian Jeremiah 7:18-19 The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead their dough, to make cakes to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto other gods (on Easter), that they may provoke me to anger. Confronting a Devastating Doctrine: Are Children Is Hand Washing Commanded? Ancient peoples did not seek out scientific reasons for why the universe functioned, they assumed and promoted supernatural reasons; this is why much of the Hebrew scriptures are written in what appears to be poetic language about concepts like the pillars of the earth, especially Job. It is observed as a time of penitence other In the seasonal mythological cycle, he died early in the fall when vegetation withered. Ezekiel 8 in Context Part 2, Episode 164: Purim 2023Honor, Shame and Two Brave Queens, Episode 163: Sociology IIReligion, Weird Science, and Practical Linguistics, Episode 162 Sociology I: Groupthink, Holy/Profane and Clean/Unclean, Episode 161: The Advent of John the Baptist in Luke, Episode 160: Special Teaching #1The Advent of the Messiah in Matthew, Infertility, Barreness, Miscarriage, Stillbirth and Child Loss. weapon in his hand. And suddenly six men came from the direction of There must be a reason. My bible footnotes tells me it is a "fertility god". excluded on Saturdays and Sundays. meta.hermeneutics.stackexchange.com/questions/735/, We've added a "Necessary cookies only" option to the cookie consent popup. Passion Week and Holy Week. him told of his early death and of the descent of Istar, his bride, into However, here does not take the form found in the above citations, rather appearing in the causative: I didn't know that was required on this site and got a friendly note from the moderator as well asking me to site sources. Pg. Can I tell police to wait and call a lawyer when served with a search warrant? a trip to Europe, including Rome. several weeks. We have examples in Gen. 23:2, 37:35 & Deut 34:8 which give us the way in which it is typically used: Person weeps () for () object. down, and brake them down from thence, and cast the dust of them into the gain anew his favor -- so he would come forth from the underworld and cause How many nations were under the Assyrian Cedar Tree? Weeping for Tammuz The biblical book of Ezekiel mentions, with great disapproval, an ancient Near Eastern ritual associated with the death of Ishtar's husband Tammuz. Biblical Hermeneutics Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for professors, theologians, and those interested in exegetical analysis of biblical texts. "Such a Lent of forty days was held in spring by the Pagan Mexicans, a raven and a dove: Gen 8:6-7. Jeremiah 7:18 "The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead dough to make . days, less Sundays; the time frame did not become official, though, until Christians followed different customs -- some fasted for several days, others To conciliate the Pagans to nominal Christianity, Rome, Other sources state that the weeping only lasted 3 days but other sources Ive found state that it was on the 2nd day of the month that the weeping occurred. 1 (1992): 5367. for Chemosh the abomination of the Moabites, and for Milcom the abomination Im working on a debunking video for the popular myths regarding the pagan source of Christmas, and this article helps. Ezekiel 8:16 And he brought me into the inner court of YHWHs house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of YHWH, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of YHWH, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east. altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple Christianity changed Passover to Easter. 283-290 (also available on JSTOR.org), https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Tammuz, https://www.worldhistory.org/image/2937/semiramis/. Tag: weeping for Tammuz. I am a chemist, and my husband is an engineer so we had to take some of the same classes, but both basic engineering and the sciences can exist without each other yet neither can exist without physics and math.). Site design / logo 2023 Stack Exchange Inc; user contributions licensed under CC BY-SA. Nimrod and Astarte (Semiramis) were responsible for the Tower of Babel (Gen 11:1-9) and were worshiped as gods. the 40 day period called Lent, then what is its origin? I, like most everyone else, decided that a Scottish Pastor couldnt possibly be fabricating evidence against the Catholic Church and misrepresenting his sources which is strange because my former area of study was the European Middle Ages and Renaissance a time of such vitriolic hatred between Catholic and Protestant that it still lingers even today in places like Ireland. urged to adopt other penitential modes during the season.". Easter is in my Bible, the day of Christ's resurrection. 1 In the book of Ezekiel, it describes women weeping for the god, Tammuz, in the Temple. Even worse, just after Hislop wrote his original pamphlets, cuneiform tablets started being dug up all through the Near East, in overwhelming numbers. Tammuz went pig hunting and was gored to death by a wild boar and that is why Pagans eat ham on Easter. The observance of Lent dates back to the Apostles. Compassionate and virtuous and self-sacrificing, the two of them (Sirtur and Gestinanna) suffered greatly in the search for their shepherd kin who unwisely agreed to be the husband of the fickle goddess Inanna (Ishtar), the Queen of Heaven who had already married (and forsaken) men, gods and even animals. Shortly after the great flood reduced the earth's population to eight souls, Satan set a scheme into motion that has had a far-reaching influence upon everyone who has lived up to the present. In this chapter, Ezekiel condemns the idolatry which he sees in the Jerusalem Temple. "Whence, then, came this observance? (EZEKIEL 8:14) Much in the same way Queen Semiramis said the evergreen tree symbolized his father's eternal life (Jeremiah 10:1-7). I only have 1 source for this and that is the Bible. She claimed by baal to have immaculately conceived bringing forth a son called Tammuz. When could a ferry-boat bound for Italy get becalmed in the Straits of Corfu after meeting contrary winds and drifting to Paxos? Little angers our Father in heaven more than embracing the idolatry of the heathen nations. - Ezekiel 8:14 (New Revised Standard Version), In Mesopotamia, in the last three days of the month of Tammuz (June/July), there was a funerary ritual called exhibition, or exposition, during which an image of the dead god Tammuz was exhibited The Gilgamesh Epic mentions the annual rite that Ishtar ordained where the technical term for lamentation occurs: For Tammuz, the lover of your youth, thou hast ordained wailing year after year.- Voth, Steven M.., Walton, John H.., Ferris, Paul W. Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary: Ezekiel. Tammuz. Also, I've heard that it was supposedly 40 days after 40 years he supposedly lived but I have yet to find any primary or academic sources regarding that. Different groups of In the fifth century, some Fathers claimed that Lent was of "Easter Sunday"! things, to shake hands. That is, there are similarities with the death of the Canaanite God Baal and Tammuz written in the In the Ras Shamra texts. Now before I go any further, please note that before I actually started doing the ANE researchyears ago I was one of the people spreading the misinformation about Tammuz that originated in the 1850s in one pseudo-archaeological book by a man named Alexander Hislopupon which many other books were later based. Easter, which is named after the Babylonian goddess Ishtar, (otherwise known as Astarte (Semiramis), who was the wife of Nimrod), was first celebrated to honor Tammuz. Then said he unto me, Have you seen this, O son of man? Ezekiel 8:16 And he brought me into the inner court of YHWHs house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of YHWH, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of YHWH, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east. 828-834 (this is an incredibly pricey book, but Van der Toorn, Ph.D. is THE man when it comes to this stuff), Nimrod Before and After the Bible, Van der Toorn, HTR 83:1(1990) pp 1-29, A Dictionary of Ancient Near Eastern Mythology, Gwendolyn Leick, Ph.D. Assyriology pp 31-36, 86-93, The Ancient Near East: An Anthology of Texts and Pictures, James B Pritchard, Ed (all of Pritchards books have impressive pedigrees, and this one is no different being the work of seventeen serious ANE scholars) pp 77-82, 404-8 (among others, there is a wealth of information about Inanna/Ishtar), The IVP Bible Background Commentary, John Walton (Ph.D. an expert in Ancient Near Eastern world) et al. The women who wept for Tammuz wore jewelry shaped like naked women and portions of the male anatomy. No Commemoration for the Resurrection 2 (Winter, 1962), pp. We are glad you stopped by and hope you stick around. by Alexander Hislop, page 104. are the daily color "It [Ash Wednesday] was established as the first day of Lent by [Pope] Some observed a total fast for exactly forty days (minus P.O. "Lent is the 40-day period (Sundays excluded) prior to Easter, which United States: Zondervan, 2009. Catholics, Lent is derived from the 40 days Yeshua spent fasting in the LORD, by the chamber of Nathanmelech the chamberlain, which was in He [Tammuz] appears to have been a god of the spring, and the myth regarding causing everyone to be jealous, but no phallic symbol that is big enough to be seen from afar could seriously be expected to make anyone jealous, especially God. In Dumuzis Dream, an alternate version, His mother and sister, Sirtar and Gestinanna, go down to the underworld searching for him and weeping for him the entire time. Tammuz was a master at love poems and he wrote love poems to Ivanna aka Isthar, asthoreth. period of fasting in the Roman Church before the sitting of the Nicene than fasting, and as a time of prayer. Azusa, CA 91702, U.S.A. be solemnly kept before Easter. "K 164 ('BA' 2, P. 635): New Light on the Mourning Rites for Dumuzi?" BOOK (Index) CHAPTER VERSE Ezekiel 8:14 "Then he brought me to the door of the gate of the LORD'S house which was toward the north; and, behold, there sat women weeping for Tammuz." King James Version (KJV) < Previous Verse Next Verse > View Chapter Ezekiel 8:14 Context The only place where a god could not function was in the underworld, so he must have been there. Today, too, a fast can be as slight the suburbs, and burned the chariots of the sun with fire. Dummelows book was published in 1909, when the study of ancient Babylonia was still in its infancy. In general, however, it is true that many of them have at least The chief seat of the cult in Syria was Gebal (modern Gebail, Greek Bublos . In one of the studies the writer observes that. and the Spring or Vernal equinox. Although people in the ancient world valued mathematics and engineering, they were not scientific (yes, math, engineering, and science are totally different. 4:2. Source: Sacred Origins of Profound Things, by Charles It was believed that Tammuz had been killed by a wild boar. Ezekiel saw them involved in a rite in which they were mourning the death of a Mesopotamian god whose myth said he was resurrected to new life, a mockery of . says YHWH: do they not provoke themselves to the confusion of their own faces? 57-58. . According to T.Jacobson page 100 in Toward the Image of Tammuz and Other Essays, the myth was that Tammuz died and went to the underworld. Powered by Tengine The second option is that they, as in other cultures, are sympathetically casting their tears upon the ground that has been cursed with no rain because Tammuz is in the underworld. Source: The New Question Box Learn more about Stack Overflow the company, and our products. When he brought the prophet to the north gate of the visionary Temple, he saw women sitting there weeping for Tammuz (Ezekiel 8:14). voice, I will not hear them. Ezekiel 8:17-18, Then He called out in my hearing with a loud voice, saying, Let of the Messiah, which lasted some three years, and was not connected What does Ezekiel 26:14 mean by 'Tyre shall never be rebuilt'? fasting in the wilderness, but it is admitted that the observance of Lent This is a substantial answer and I have up-voted it. Hope of Israel Ministries -- Taking a Lead Eating of Ham: Tammuz (son of the sun god) was killed by a pig and in order to bring him back to live, no meat was eaten for 40 days (LENT) but at Easter Sunday, a pig was killed and eaten in revenge. The 27th of Duuzu was the day of releasing; it was also a day on which a (funerary) display was made in Aur Nineveh, Kalu and Arbela. (The New Question Box - Catholic Life for the Nineties, copyright 1988 by John J. Dietzen, M.A., S.T.L., ISBN 0-940518-01-5 (paperback), published by Guildhall Publishers, Peoria Illinois, 61651., page 554. Weeping for Tammuz was a 40 day mourning period for a pagan sun deity that which God castigates Israel for whoring after in Ezekiel 8:13-16. Psalms 82 they were real. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Please consider supporting this ministry, which is offered free of charge in order to help newcomers understand Biblical context and develop good spiritual fruit. Hi Tau, I'm just seeing your comment. The entire period Similar feasts are found throughout pagan peoples of antiquity. of the LORD, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the 8:12-14] He called it an abomination. "Such a Lent of forty days was observed in Egypt, as may be seen on consulting My hand has now been forced by my need to clear my JSTOR bookshelf and so I need to do something with all these Tammuz articles. Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible, Karel Van der Toorn, et al. Easter, providing forty fast days when Sundays are excluded. Again, as far as a length of days, it seems improbable to determine that clearly. According to . 4:3-4). was of apostolic origin, but historians fix its establishment at a later . (which can occur any time between February 4 and March 11, depending upon Easter is celebrated on a day specified only by the Two possible explanations, the first is that they are sympathetically acting out the role of the faithful Sirtar and Gestinanna as they wept for their son/brother (notice that no men are involved, only women, so this is plausible). Germany: Penn State University Press, 2000. an indirect connection with the pre-Christian [pagan] feasts celebrated pursuing its usual policy, took measures to get the Christian and Pagan years old. To begin, @lasersauce made the correct observation that. and Christianity -- now far sunk in idolatry -- in this as in so many other It would be an in your face image that would provoke jealousy. Joseph, Rachel and what they teach us about how to deal with life. Moses pleads for Israel 40 days on Sinai: Deu 9:18-25, 10:10. It would appear that the crying lasted some time after the initial event of Ezekiel 8:14 as noted below: And He said to me, Have you seen this, O son of man? This mourning Tammuz was celebrated in Babylonia by women on the 2nd day of the 4th month, which thus acquired the name of Tammuz. 540 "For we have not a high priest who is unable to In olden And He called to the man to the diversity of opinion, saying: "some think they ought to fast Topological invariance of rational Pontrjagin classes for non-compact spaces. The Resurrection of Tammuz. greater abominations. Ezekiel 8:6 . Church, however, Lent begins eight weeks before Easter, since fasting is times these forty days were observed with weeping, fasting, and self chastisement -- to Thanks for this article. What video game is Charlie playing in Poker Face S01E07? It only takes a minute to sign up. behold, at the door of the temple of the LORD, between the porch and the Could it be an offering of water (tears) to the soil in the absence of the fertility that Tammuz brings? I have heard it said that it must be a big phallic symbol causing everyone to be jealous, but no phallic symbol that is big enough to be seen from afar could seriously be expected to make anyone jealous, especially God.