Was Christianity influenced by Zoroastrianism

I have been studying Zoroastrianism. I have heard many claims, that Judaism was influenced by Zoroastrianism. And if Judaism was influenced by it, then Christianity was. In this blog, I will be taking a look at Zoroastrianism and challenge it to see if it influenced Christianity. But before I go on with this blog, let me clarify that Judaism is older than Zoroastrianism. If the Bible is true, which I believe it to be, then the same God who created the world and the Garden of Eden is the same God Christians worship today. But this will not please one who is claiming that Zoroastrianism is older and influenced Judaism. If God really did give Moses the Torah and made his covenant with the Hebrew people, then Judaism was really created some 3000 - 3500 years ago. Zoroastrianism was started in the 6th century before Christ.


Claim: Zoroastrianism influenced monotheistic beliefs.

Response: Zoroastrianism can actually be considered a Dualist belief system. They believe in a good and evil god, something vastly different then Christian theology.


Claim: The concepts of Heaven, Hell and the afterlife are much like Christianity.

Response: Afterlife in Judaism is kind of a mystery. The Tanakh isn't really clear. It only talks about a resurrection. It may have been picked up and creeped into Christian theology, but what the Bible says totally different from what Zoroastrianism teaches. As for the rest of the Bible, Hell is translated into different words on different occasions. The hellfire Jesus was speaking about was directed to the Valley of Hinnom, which was a place outside of Jerusalem that burned garbage.


Claim: The concepts of good vs evil was taught in Zoroastrianism before Judaism.

Response: Judaism is older than Zoroastrianism. But this proves nothing. Pretty much every religion in the world teaches a good and a evil. There is no way for sure to know if this kind of thought wasn't brought on by the Biblical God and satan.

Claim: Angels were believed in Zoroastrianism before Judaism.

Response: Judaism is older than Zoroastrianism. The belief in angels were around long before Zoroastrianism. The chances of Zoroastrianism borrowing the idea of angels off of Judaism are great.


Claim: The end times, Day of Judgment, and the resurrection of the dead was taught in Zoroastrianism before Judaism.

Response: The belief in all of this, was taught in the Tanakh before Zoroastrianism.

"O that thou wouldest hide me in the grave, that thou wouldest keep me secret, until thy wrath be past, that thou wouldest appoint me a set time, and remember me! If a man die, shall he live again? all the days of my appointed time will I wait, till my change come. Thou shalt call, and I will answer thee: thou wilt have a desire to the work of thine hands." - Job 14:13-15


Conclusion: If anything, Judaism influenced Zoroastrianism.


God bless.