Quote:
Originally Posted by fusnik11
How much truth is there to the Moses story?
Was his childhood and birth lifted from the foundation myth of Sargon of Akkad?
Anyone studied this extensively? I know there isn't much information other than Sargon himself ruled circa 2300 B.C. and his story may have been the genesis of the Moses story just like other Mesopotamian and Sumerian stories that possible are the basis for the Torah.
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The story of the "foundling" who eventually learns his real identity as royalty and becomes a great leader is a common one in western tradition: Sargon, Moses, Paris, Oedipus, Cyrus [there are undoubtedly others that aren't coming readily to mind]. These stories, while probably not literal, employ established paradigms intended to establish and reinforce the status of their protagonists. Telling a story in a certain way, with a certain patterned structure, conveyed a wide array of meanings to the listening audience. Using this pattern for Moses led the audience to understand Moses' role in the foundation of Israel, just as it conveyed the importance of Sargon or Cyrus to their kingdoms.
One of modern society's biggest problems is reading the bible too literally (in my opinion), since many portions were clearly not meant to be understood literally.