People used to believe in Goddess of Fertility, or God of Thunder etc etc etc.
Mainly because they didn't have the ability to explain such phenomena yet. Even so, in modern times these beliefs are considered to be Mythology. Why is modern religion treated so differently? Do you not think that in years to come Christianity, Hinduism, and Islam ect may also come to be viewed as mere Mythology?
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The word mythology is originally derived from the Greek word "Mythos" meaning "History." Originally the word was simply used to describe reality, or what they regarded to be reality- so for them this was the Titans, Gods, Hero's etc.
However the meaning of the word progressed with time. Whenever one religion overthrew another they regarded the old religion as a Fairy Tale. The word used to term these disregarded religious stories was "Myth" taken from our original term "Mythos."
This is where Myth differentiate's from Religion. Myth's are stories taken from a belief, generally religious which has largely lost its popularity and credibility. A Religion on the other hand is a belief system which is still followed by many. If people were to stop believing in, say Christianity Bible stories, rather than being considered Religious teachings would become by definition Myth.
choko_canyon
Religion is mythology that is believed in by a sufficient number of people that those people can exert social pressure and political influence. That's the difference. All myths started out as common beliefs, and only became myths when people outgrew those beliefs. That will happen with today's religions also, but probably not for a few generations.
Anonymous
Every institution has a mythology from LDS and its origins, to USA history. The small man fighting the big machine is a mythology.
Religion is a human institution with a common vocabulary, understanding of history, and symbolic representations of reality that enables two people to share spiritual ideas and insights. This communication because of these commonalities permits communication across distances and historical periods.
Mere mythology doesn't exists. There is mythology whose message is so ingrained into society that we call it common sense. There is mythology that has not contemporary application. You should really examine your ideas of mere mythology more completely. Be sure to include what is said about human relations more than expectations of technology.
philosophyangel
Mythology is not religion and the gods of polytheism are personifications of natural principles. Mythology is both highly symbolic and metaphorical and also sometimes just soap operatic stories about gods for the sake of entertainment. Religion is full of observances, doctrines, and rituals that may or may not tie into mythology. And Christianity is actually full of mythology that people prefer to belief is fact At least polytheists did know the difference between their religion and their mythology.
BBagwinds
All religious stories are mythology.
The use of the word "myth" to mean "untrue" and applied to mostly dead religions is simply a popular use of the word.