Syncretism is the Best Five Dollar Word Ever

Syncretism is the blending, or maybe we would say today, the bending, of one culture with another. Inevitably this ends up in whatever syncretized religion the culture prefers. Thus, syncretism is going on in religion today. Christian pollster George Barna has pushed the alarm button and says about 95% of the U.S. population approves of syncretism.  

I think I'm correct in saying that in sociology, the changes in beliefs and values falls under the broad category of cultural change. For example, there has been a cultural change that results in people leaving Christianity.

To someone like George Barna, interested in religion and religious views, the important thing is to follow precisely what views or cultural values have changed and give labels to the changes. Parts of academia, especially religion, is big on giving various views names. Thus, Barna plots what he finds are the various kinds on religious views that have merged with Christianity in the syncretism that is taking place. A way to summarize the Barna branch is that well over 90% of people polled in the U.S. believe there is more than one religion that allows a blissful afterlife. This opens the door to accepting or incorporating another religion into one's present religion. Barna goes further in his polling by claiming to identify which other religious beliefs have slipped into the U.S to contaminate Christianity. He is not alone. I recently read a new book by Roger E. Olson, a retired professor of religion, which tries to nail exactly the "real Christian" version of the religion. Olson criticizes the slippage he sees in beliefs.

Atheist books and IT sites are full of evidence orthodox Christianity, old time religion, is a product of slipping, sliding and merging of religious views. That is, it is itself is a product of syncretism. We can start the path with cave drawings, 30K years ago. They depict half human half animal objects. Some statues of Greek gods show part animal and part human beings. Wikipedia discusses the merging of Greek gods with Roman gods after military conquests. All the magical stories in the Bible, the virgin birth, resurrection, healing, walking on water, etc. were found in previous mythology. I've read a couple of books that study the writings of Paul and conclude he was talking at all times of a Jesus who was a sky god like those of his Greek, ancestry and not a human. Paul advocated syncretism of religions by leaving behind circumcision. Of course, the entire Christian enterprise is based synchronizing material in the OT with the cultures that followed. Christian syncretized, Jews resisted.

Perhaps Barna and all others wringing their hands over syncretism should remind themselves they are what they are because of past syncretism. They should not bite the hand that feeds them.