# Where did this "Moon god" nonsense come from? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 15, 2015, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111 "2015-05-15T15:30:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 6:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/101 "2015-05-18T06:36:00Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > I’m glad somebody understands what I’m saying. I’m astonished that anyone would disagree. Of course the Christian God is the “same” as the Jewish God. The Christians’ Bible contains the Jewish scriptures. It’s like trying to say that the “Jesus Christ” of the Latter Day Saints isn’t the “same” Jesus Christ of the Catholics. They may be heretics to each other, but they still are talking about the same person, the bloke who was crucified on Good Friday nigh on to a couple millennia ago. The specifics of the doctrines are incompatible. Well, if that’s all it takes, there are some fifty or more different Abrahamic “Gods,” from the Gnostic demiurge/creator (Ialdabaoth,) to the Eastern Orthodox God, to the Jewish God, to the Sunni and Shi’ite versions of Allah, to the hate-filled God of Fred Phelps to the love-filled God of Robert Schuller, and on and on. Every single Protestant denomination would have its very own! ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 7:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/102 "2015-05-18T07:51:15Z")
> [@Trinopus](#): > > You’re quite wrong. The Christians took over the Jewish God, lock, stock, and Old Testament. They scraped off some of his attributes and added others, but he’s still the same guy who created Adam and Eve, flooded out everyone but Noah, etc. He’s the same figure, the same person. You can’t just go around appropriating other people’s beliefs, changing them radically, and then claim with a straight face they’re the same and not expect people to raise a fuss. The line is subjective on when you declare two gods with a common mythological history too dissimilar to be the same. Lumper/splitter psychology plays a part I’m sure. But at some point you have to draw a line. Otherwise you might as well just declare all gods to be avatars of the one true god. Because everyone loves being told their god is the emanation of some other dude. As an aside, I think it’s funny when Christians think Judaism is just some quaint older version of Christianity – “Judeo-Christian” values doncha know – and Jews are like a hipster religion or something. Then they come face to face with it and realize it’s completely different than their own goofy pagan fusion faith. > [@](#): > > Yes, the two versions of the entity have incompatible characteristics attributed to him. The Trinity is incompatible with the unity of the Jewish God. But that just means that at least one of the two dogmas is wrong. It doesn’t mean that the two Gods are separate entities. That’s dumb: how many Adams and Eves, how many Noahs, how many Moseses, how many Abrahams do you think there were? Is that a trick question or are you just talking in metaphors? Forget religion, if you’re a believer, how about fairy tales and folk hero tall tales? Lots of different versions. Most share common elements, but others change things dramatically. In many ways it’s fair to call them “the same.” But if in one the hero is a pacifist who escapes using trickery and in the other they’re a murderer are you really going to say they’re the same character? I hope you wouldn’t be confused and ask if there were 20 different Little Red Riding Hoods running around. ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/103 "2015-05-18T07:59:42Z")
Too late to edit: You can also add in controversies over modern day interpretations of long running fictional characters, ranging from the “that’s not _my_ Superman” people to the two different versions of Han Solo. The real one shot first, of course. The fervor and clannishness often reminds me of religious arguments. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 10:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/104 "2015-05-18T10:12:14Z")
> [@Fenris](#): > > Hey, look! You made a post without telling us that you were from Spain. And you wasted it being a pedantic twit. > > I’m willing to bet that most other people here understood the point regardless of your ability to find a nit to pick:rolleyes: Dude, what the fuck? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Shin\_Ji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Shin\_Ji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shin_Ji)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/105 "2015-05-18T13:03:19Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Dude, what the fuck? 😕 I’m just glad to see someone remembers we’re in the PIT. Gosh darn it, can we get some dander up in here or something? ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/106 "2015-05-18T13:20:52Z")
Of course, the etymology of “Allah” or the history of pre-Islamic religion in Arabia has nothing to do with what god Muslims today worship. Some Muslims believe that Allah [split the moon](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Splitting_of_the_moon) (or will do so sometime in the future). > [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](#): > > Golly. The Virgin Mary in that Chick tract sure looks like Kate Middleton! You’re thinking of the Church of England, and it’s the Queen _they_ worship. (We need more religious art with corgis in it) > [@Nava](#): > > So Jews don’t believe in China? Sure we do! We have at least two sets of china, one for milk and one for meat, and maybe more for Passover. ---
**Author:** ![Find\_Friends](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c37758/32.png) [@Find\_Friends](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Find_Friends)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/107 "2015-05-18T13:25:47Z")
> [@andros](#): > > :rolleyes: > > You are either an asshole or trolling. You can claim otherwise until you’re blue in the face, but your words speak as loudly as, well, your words. > > The fuck? THIS says it all! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/108 "2015-05-18T13:59:25Z")
> [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > Sure we do! We have at least two sets of china, one for milk and one for meat, and maybe more for Passover. Excuse the hijack, but I’ve wondered at times: is it ONLY the dishes? Or do you need separate silverware? Pots and pans? Knives and spatulas and all that? For that matter, can you use the same glasses and cups to drink milk and, um, chicken broth? ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/109 "2015-05-18T14:04:10Z")
> [@StarvingButStrong](#): > > Excuse the hijack, but I’ve wondered at times: is it ONLY the dishes? Or do you need separate silverware? Pots and pans? Knives and spatulas and all that? It’s not just the dishes. We have two sets of all of those things. > [@](#): > > For that matter, can you use the same glasses and cups to drink milk and, um, chicken broth? You can use the same glasses, if they are made of glass (and of course if you wash them between uses), but not if they are made of plastic or china. Of course, as with any question about keeping kosher, observance is going to vary between denominations, and between individuals. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/110 "2015-05-18T14:46:39Z")
> [@Flyer](#): > > The “idiots” merely take note of the fact that Catholics pray to Mary, a practice that BY DEFINITION means that they are worshiping her. Catholics can claim otherwise until they’re blue in the face–it does them no good. Actions speak louder than words. > > On the issue of Muslims, it is self-evident that their god is not God. If it were, they would be Christians, not Muslims. No, Catholics pray for Mary to intercede for us with one or more of the Trinity and are quite aware that Mary is not God. Which god is God will be a matter that may or may not be resolved to our satisfaction after our deaths. Until such time as one has actually experienced death and the afterlife, which god or gods are the true God or Gods isn’t a matter of fact, it’s a matter of opinion. ---
**Author:** ![StarvingButStrong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/starvingbutstrong/32/335_2.png) [@StarvingButStrong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StarvingButStrong)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/111 "2015-05-18T16:17:10Z")
> [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > It’s not just the dishes. We have two sets of all of those things. > > You can use the same glasses, if they are made of glass (and of course if you wash them between uses), but not if they are made of plastic or china. > > Of course, as with any question about keeping kosher, observance is going to vary between denominations, and between individuals. Okay, thanks for the answers. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/112 "2015-05-18T16:30:08Z")
I actually worship Mary, but I do it ironically. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/113 "2015-05-18T16:38:06Z")
As an atheist, I disbelieve in God and Jesus, but I believe in Mary. Does that clarify anything? ---
**Author:** ![Kimballkid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b5a626/32.png) [@Kimballkid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimballkid)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/114 "2015-05-18T16:44:17Z")
I believe in the gospel according to The Three Stooges. Therefore I believe in Larry, Moe and Curly. Our official prayer ending is: ‘Nyuk, nyuk, nyuk’. Our blessing is: ‘Soitenly!’ And our god is a: ‘Wise Guy, eh.’ ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/115 "2015-05-18T16:46:31Z")
I believe Jesus, Mary, and Muhammad existed but I don’t believe they had any divine or supernatural status. I doubt Abraham existed as an actual person and I’m on the fence about Moses. ---
**Author:** ![bengangmo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@bengangmo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bengangmo)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/116 "2015-05-18T16:47:51Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > You can denigrate any religion by taking its beliefs out of context. Saying Muslims worship a meteorite is like saying Christians worship two pieces of wood that are nailed together. > > The basics are that the Grand Mosque in Mecca was an established religious cite prior to Muhammad’s lifetime. It used to be a pagan temple with some form of moon god worship. So people that want to attack Islam claim that Muslims are worshiping in a temple dedicated to a moon god. But the old use of the site has nothing to do with its current use. There are plenty of Christian churches that were intentionally built on the sites of older pagan temples, including some that reuse the older buildings. > > \*\*The other “fact” is that the word Allah means God. So a Muslim will call God Allah but will also use the word Allah when speaking of other gods. \*\*A Muslim would say, for example, that the ancient Greeks worshiped an allah named Zeus just as a Christian would say they worshiped a god named Zeus. But neither is acknowledging Zeus as a real divinity. The allah that Arab pagans worshiped before Muhammad’s lifetime has nothing to do with the Allah that Muslims worship now. this part isn’t entirely true - there was a Malaysian case recently where Christians weren’t allowed to use the word Allah in a translation of the bible - specifically because it was “reserved” for Muslims. ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/117 "2015-05-18T16:59:16Z")
> [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > I wouldn’t be too surprised if there were Muslim batshittery claiming that Christians and/or Jews don’t worship the same god as Muslims. I would be kind of surprised to see much of it in English. Maybe you’re not seeing it because you don’t regularly read sites in Arabic. Oh, I’m sure there is. I’ve heard many Muslims argue that Christians are basically polytheists, worshiping three gods rather than one (and indeed many anti-Trinitarians within Christianity have made the same argument). To Muslims it is the most abhorrent of blasphemies to raise any other entity to equality with the one true god, however it is festooned round with theological jiggery-pokery. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/118 "2015-05-18T17:07:34Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > As an atheist, I disbelieve in God and Jesus, but I believe in Mary. I don’t believe in Beatles. I just believe in me. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/119 "2015-05-18T17:10:23Z")
If Catholics claim that they don’t worship Mary, and Muslims claim that they don’t worship a moon god, I’m willing to take their word for it. It doesn’t make much difference to me anyway, since I have no interest in becoming either Catholic or Muslim. I still want to see some Anglican icons that incorporate corgis, though. Because icons with corgis would just be 🆒 > [@BigT](#): > > Or you could be Muslim, since Jesus is a prophet and son of Allah. I thought Muslims thought of Jesus as a prophet but not a god or a son of Allah. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2015, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111/120 "2015-05-18T17:58:24Z")
> [@Ukulele\_Ike](#): > > “Moon god” ? > > I would worship the FUCK out of the Moon. I think it would be “goddess,” though. Everyone knows the Sun is a guy, the Moon is a chick. That might depend on what language you speak. Some languages that have grammatical gender say the sun is masculine and the moon feminine (the Romance languages have this setup). Some have it the other way around- German, for example. Some mythologies have moon gods, some have moon goddesses. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-did-this-moon-god-nonsense-come-from/720111.md?page=7)