The Case Is Closed:Zoroastrianism Came First
There is no debate when the same standard is applied to every religion equally. Here is the evidence. The standard, stated plainly: A religion is monotheistic if it teaches that one supreme being created all things, possesses the classical divine attributes — omniscience, omnipotence, moral perfection — and that all other spiritual forces derive from or are subordinate to that supreme being. Apply this definition once. Apply it to every religion. Do not change it when the results become inconvenient. I.
What this resource contributes
There is no debate when the same standard is applied to every religion equally. Here is the evidence. The standard, stated plainly: A religion is monotheistic if it teaches that one supreme being created all things, possesses the classical divine attributes — omniscience, omnipotence, moral perfection — and that all other spiritual forces derive from or are subordinate to that supreme being. Apply this definition once. Apply it to every religion. Do not change it when the results become inconvenient. I. The Gathas Predate the Torah by Centuries The oldest surviving scriptures of Zoroastrianism are the Gathas — seventeen hymns composed by Zarathustra himself in an archaic form of Avestan so old that linguists date it to roughly 1500–1200 BCE, contemporary with the Rigveda.
Topics and source signals
Primary sources detected
Yasna · Gathas · Avesta · Dead Sea Scrolls · Hebrew Bible
Scholars detected
Mary Boyce