Syncretism

Syncretism describes the mixing, blending or combining of beliefs, practices, and traditions from one religion to another, or in certain cases between multiple religions, that result in the creation of complicated individual and group religious identities. Syncretism has become a term used almost exclusively in religious studies, although it may also exist in culture, politics, and philosophy. Syncretism is often a way for religious identity to grow or expand, sometimes without official sanction of religious authorities, and finds its greatest expression in such practices as saint veneration, mysticism, and folk belief and practice.

Before the rise of more or less strictly monotheistic religions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) that believed in one god to the exclusion of others, nearly all religions had a marked syncretistic character. For example, Greek and Roman religions in the Greco-Roman period (about 332 BCE to 640 CE) borrowed from each other and the varied cultures with which they had contact. The native Greek and Roman religions adopted practices, beliefs, and dogmas from Egyptian, Persian, and Near Eastern religions, among others. Local religions, such as the worship of Isis in Egypt, reached the scope and level of Mother-Goddess worship found in most ancient Mediterranean cultures, and had a wide appeal throughout the Roman Empire. Mithraism, a religion from Persia, was adopted by Roman soldiers and carried all throughout the empire, where it picked up elements from different religions. Isis worship and especially Mithraism, which were both deeply syncretistic religions, had some influence on the rise of Christianity and the shape it took.

Yet, syncretism has not been confined to ancient religions and has influenced the monotheistic religions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. For instance, syncretism played a vital role in the formation of early Christianity. Members of early Christianity, or the Jesus movement, moved increasingly away from their Jewish roots in the 1st and 2nd century of the Common Era, and syncretism was one of the factors that helped the new religion expand its reach. For example, early Christians borrowed heavily from their rival religions, including Mithraism, and even adopted Mithra's birth date in December as Christ's. Ancient Roman religions also helped give form and substance to early Christianity, making it more appealing for Greek-and Latin-speaking peoples. Christian identity in its formative years was deeply syncretistic, borrowing heavily from the rich and diverse range of Greek and Roman religions and philosophies, even as they supplanted those same religions and philosophies to become the official religion of the Roman Empire in 380 CE.

During the long periods both before and after the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem in 70 CE, Jews adopted and adapted their faith as they traveled to new lands. For example, for much of their recorded history, the Jews of Morocco venerated Jewish saints, a practice not widely found in other Jewish communities. Moroccan Muslims also venerated saints, and the custom [Page 814]probably dates back to the practices of the pre-Islamic, Berber native religions. Moroccan Jews made pilgrimages to saints’ shrines to venerate, feast, and pray. The shrines were usually in semi-isolated places, and their locations were most often near prominent rocks, trees, or wells, which also points to the pre-Islamic origin of Jewish saint veneration: The rock, tree, or well was once the sacred object of the pilgrimage, and the Jews of Morocco simply adopted the local landmark into their version of Judaism, creating an overlay of syncretistic identities by blending elements of Judaism, Moroccan Islam, and the nature worship of native Berbers.

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