Only the God of Abraham created the seven day week.
9 comments
i bet he was the bugger what named the days after Tyr, Odin, Thor, and Freya, too.
Let's see what Friend Wikipedia thinks:
The seven-day week seems to have been adopted (independently) by the Persian Empire, in Judaism and in Hellenistic astrology, and (via Greek transmission) in Gupta India and Tang China. The Babylonian system was received by the Greeks in the 4th century BC (notably via Eudoxus of Cnidus).
It then goes on to describe how a 7-day cycle, related to the phases of the moon, was a staple of timekeeping in the reign of Gudea of Lagash, a Mesopotamian ruler c. 2144-2124 BC. So it appears to be a very, very old idea indeed.
Apparently he worshipped the Norse pantheon with a dash of Roman for flavor, then, since he apparently chose to honor their gods in the naming of the days. He must be a pretty shit mathematician, too, since there's a little over a day extra left over when you divide a year into weeks. Then again, this is the god that thought pi equaled an even three.
How generous of him to name the days after the Norse pantheon, then.
I've often thought that religion's most significant benefit to humans is the concept of the weekend.
Confused?
So were we! You can find all of this, and more, on Fundies Say the Darndest Things!
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