Religious influences on the Abrahamic Religions

Recently I came across the fact that the three wise men who came to look for Jesus were majis from the Zoroastrian religion. I thought it might be interesting to look at this religion and its impact on the great religions of today. It influenced Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Buddhism just to name a few!


Zoroastrianism was founded by Zarathushtra (Zoroaster) in Persia around 628 BCE. Some believe he lived as much as 1000 or even 6000 years BCE. He preached what may have been the first monotheism with a single supreme god, Ahura Mazda. Zoroastrians believe in good and evil but that good, as personified by Ahura Mazda, is stronger than evil. Thus it focused on the ethical dualism within the human consciousness.
Zoroastrians worship through prayers and ceremonies that are conducted before a sacred fire which symbolizes their God. They dedicate their lives to a three-fold path incorporating: Good thoughts, good words, good deeds. The faith does not generally accept converts. It thrived most dur

ing the Persian Empire.
However it had great influence. When Zoroastrian conquerors and kings, primarily Cyrus the Great of Persia and his descendants expanded the Persian Empire to include much of the known world at that time, but never forced their religion on people of other faiths. This was a first in the area. During the first exile, to Babylon, Cyrus not only allowed the Jews to continue practicing their beliefs but returned the treasure taken out of the first temple and eventually this was used to build the second temple. The enriched cosmopolitan atmosphere of Babylon perhaps created the environment of much of the great commentaries of Judaism.
Zoroastrianism was very much the religion of Central Asia before Buddhism was introduced. In fact there is a mosque in Bukhara that has, in the foundation, the remains of both a Zoroastrian and then a Buddhist temple. In Merv, Turkmenistan, the ancient Silk Road city, there were Zoroastrian, Buddhist and Christian monestaries existing peacefully together.
The priestly cast, namely the Magi, also did their utmost to influence other people and guide them to the path of righteousness and Asha. After all, this was a moral duty, to teach others about the path of Asha, which is similar to the Buddhist Middle Way or the Golden Rule of the West. Three of these Magi, bearing gifts, skilled in philosophy, medicine and natural science, as well as astrology, believing that heaven communicated intentions through special signs such as stars. So if they saw a bright star they would have followed it. And this led them to Jesus in Bethlehem.
Some will say this story really occurred and others that it was placed there to demonstrate an auspicious birth. Nonetheless, the influence of Zoroastrianism today bears considering then and now. Adherents still exist in India and in parts of the Middle East and some of the ideas of Zoroastrianism have, through its cultural and socio-political influence, carried the seed of a world community that had previously been non-existent. Certainly the continuing dialogue on good and evil is a critical part of building a sustainable wold community as we are attempting to do at the present.
Isn't it nice to know that many of us are interconnected because of wise men of the past!

Dialogue Skills:
I am pleased to note that our own Ambassador John McDonald coined the phrase and the field of “multi-track diplomacy.” This was the subject of a 3 week course, Multi-Track Diplomacy and Conflict Transformation, I took at the University of Maryland this winter with my son David. You can read more about this great work and the work of the Institute for Multi-Track Diplocacy at www.imtd.org. The Ambassador graced us with his presence and spoke of the need for citizen diplomacy at all levels in the world's conflicts today. Later he stressed to me the great importance the spouses of diplomats can play in this arena. So you see, you are all really needed in the world today!

Outreach Idea: Interfaith dialogue
A friend of mine lives in the suburbs of Maryland. Her husband, who is Japanese and not known for being outgoing, decided that the overgrowth in back of the whole row of townhouses had gotten to be too much. He started clearing it away and the neighbors came out and began to help him with their part. They became quite neighborly. The deer now remain beautifully at a distance, and the smaller animals as well. Now they have get togethers to admire their work!

Etiquette: Watch out for Amerocentric diplomatic-centricism!
We had dinner with a Palestinian husband and wife (who I interviewed last month) in Jerusalem at our hotel. Even though I invited them to have lunch with us (so my children could meet a Palestinian family). But before I could, the husband insisted that we were their guests because we had come to their city. When I then suggested that we treat them the next time, the man asked Why? Why think that way? It is our great desire to do this. Isn't that enough? I have to chuckle every time I think of this scene. Isn't diversity wonderful?

Good Idea:
Traveling can really be a problem if you are watching your weight or needing to get in exercise. I have to really applaud my husband. Recently his blood pressure rose quite significantly so he has been losing weight and exercising regularly. He is now in Jordan and jogging every morning for 20 minutes. I think 20 minutes of exercise is so very doable. Sometimes 30 minutes seems a lot, but 20 minutes never does!