Christian mythology

Japheth ( Yép̄eṯ, in pausa Yā́p̄eṯ; '; ; ') was one of the three sons of Noah in the Book of Genesis. In the biblical narrative he plays a role in the story of Noah's drunkenness and the curse of Ham, and subsequently in the Table of Nations, he is named as the ancestor of the peoples of the Aegean Sea, Anatolia, Caucasus, Greece, and elsewhere in Eurasia.

thumb|The Devil in Christianity|Devil whispers to the Antichrist; detail from Sermons and Deeds of the Antichrist, [[Luca Signorelli, 1501, Orvieto Cathedral.]] In Christian eschatology, Antichrist, or in broader eschatology, Anti-Messiah, refers to a kind of entity prophesied by the Bible to oppose Jesus Christ and falsely substitute himself as a savior in Christ's place before the Second Coming. The term Antichrist (including one plural form) is found four times in the New Testament, solely in the First and Second Epistle of John. Antichrist is announced as one "who denies the Father and the

Cain is a biblical figure in the Book of Genesis within Abrahamic religions. He is the elder brother of Abel, and the firstborn son of Adam and Eve, the first couple within the Bible. He was a farmer who gave an offering of his crops to God. However, God was not pleased and favored Abel's offering over Cain's. Out of jealousy, Cain killed his brother, for which he was punished by God with the curse and mark of Cain. He had several descendants, starting with his son Enoch and including Lamech.

thumb|Hands with stigmata, depicted on a Order of Saint Francis|Franciscan church in [[Lienz, Austria]] thumb|Catherine of Siena|St Catherine fainting from the stigmata by [[Il Sodoma, Church of Saint Pantaleon, Alsace, France]]

thumb|upright=1.2|Depiction of a succubus in "My Dream, My Bad Dream" by , 1915 A succubus () is a female demon who is described in various European folklore as appearing in the dreams of male humans in order to seduce them. Repeated interactions between a succubus and a man will lead to sexual activity. The establishment and perpetuation of such a relationship enables the production of a hybrid child known as a cambion, but at the expense of the man, whose mental and physical health will deteriorate rapidly, eventually resulting in his death if the succubus continues courting him for a protra

narrative from the Gospel of Matthew

celestial phenomenon that according to the New Testament revealed the birth of Jesus to the Wise Men

concept of the cross upon which Jesus was crucified

tree of forbidden fruit of knowledge in first biblical narrative, book of Genesis

thumb|Depiction of incubi, Vincenz Georg Kininger, 1879 An Incubus () is a male demon who is described in various folklore as appearing in the dreams of female humans in order to seduce them. Repeated interactions between an incubus and a woman will lead to sexual activity, a bond forming between them, and ultimately sexual intercourse, as he requires vaginal ejaculation discharge to survive. The establishment and perpetuation of such a relationship enables the production of a hybrid child known as a cambion, but at the expense of the woman, whose mental and physical health will deteriorate ra

in Christianity, the transition of the first man and woman from a state of innocent obedience to God to a state of guilty disobedience

thumb|Illustration from the Rabbula Gospels, AD 586: Longinus is labelled "". Longinus (Greek: Λογγίνος) is the name of a Roman soldier who supposedly pierced the side of Jesus with a lance, who in apostolic and some modern Christian traditions is described as a convert to Christianity. His name first appeared in the apocryphal Gospel of Nicodemus. The lance is called in Catholic Christianity the "Holy Lance" (lancea) and the story is related in the Gospel of John during the Crucifixion. This act is said to have created the last of the Five Holy Wounds of Christ.

creation myth of both Judaism and Christianity

thumb|300px|A woodcut of Belial and some of his followers from a German edition of Jacobus de Teramo's book [[Consolatio peccatorum, seu Processus Luciferi contra Jesum Christum (1473).]] Belial (; , Bəlīyyaʿal) is a term occurring in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament which later became personified as the devil in Christian texts of the New Testament. Alternate spellings include Baalial, Balial, Belhor, Beliall, Beliar, Berial, Bylyl and '''Beliya'al'. Early usage of Belial'' referred to "wickedness" or "worthlessness", occurring several times in the Old Testament. Later, in the Dead Sea Scrolls

In Christianity, the period of time between Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection, during which he saved souls held captive in the underworld

term used in the Hebrew Bible

cultural motif

body of myths associated with Christianity

thumb|An 18th-century painting of God the Father painting the image of [[Our Lady of Guadalupe, an unusual Marian image]] ' are Christian icons that are said to have come into existence miraculously, not created by a human. They are also called icons made without hands'. Invariably, these are images of Jesus or Mary, usually the Virgin and Child. In Eastern Orthodoxy, the most notable examples are the Mandylion, also known as the Image of Edessa, and the Hodegetria.

supernatural war described in the Book of Revelation

serpents in biblical narrative

cleansing myth

6th–7th century Syriac Christian text providing a theological history from the creation of Adam to the coming of Christ, presenting Adam and the patriarchs as prefigurations of Christ and incorporating local Mesopotamian traditions

thumb|230px|right|This T and O map, from the first printed version of Isidore's [[Etymologiae (Augsburg 1472), identifies the three known continents (Asia, Europe, and Africa) as respectively populated by descendants of Sem (Shem), Iafeth (Japheth), and Cham (Ham).]]

thumb|Blockula in the thumb|Witches' Sabbath at the Blocksberg, Johannes Praetorius, Leipzig, 1668 thumb|Detail of the stone labyrinth on the Swedish islet of Blå Jungfrun Blockula (, ) was a legendary island where the Devil held his Earthly court during a witches' Sabbath. It was described as containing a massive meadow with no visible end, and a large house where the Devil would stay.

In Greek mythology, Acherusia ( or ) was a name given by the ancients to several lakes or swamps, which, like the various rivers called Acheron, were at some time believed to be connected with the underworld, until at last the Acherusia came to be considered to be in the lower world itself. == Locations of the lakes == The lake to which this belief seems to have been first attached was the Acherusia in Thesprotia, through which the river Acheron flowed. Other lakes or swamps of the same name, and believed to be in connection with the lower world, were near Hermione in Argolis, near Heraclea in

informal name for the gateway to Heaven according to some Christian denominations

figure equated with Satan in Christianity

Witch's supposed ritual greeting upon meeting with the Devil

witch on flying broomstick at Eastertime within older folklore

Christian relic

thumb|upright=1.35|right|The Creation, beginning of the Antediluvian (i.e., Pre-Flood) world. (Artist's rendition by James Tissot.)

comparative mythology study of Jesus Christ

belief the serpent mated with Eve in the Garden of Eden, and the offspring of their union was Cain

Mythological queen of Galicia

thumb|Stephaton, to the right of Jesus, in the earliest crucifixion in an illuminated manuscript, from the Syriac [[Rabbula Gospels, 586. Unlike Longinus, he is not named here]] thumb|James Tissot's depiction. Here, the hyssop stick is used as a kind of straw, and "Stephaton" squeezes the sponge. (, [[gouache over graphite on grey wove paper)]] Stephaton, or Steven, is the name given in medieval Christian traditions to the Roman soldier or bystander, unnamed in the Bible, who offered Jesus a sponge soaked in vinegar wine at the Crucifixion. In later depictions of the Crucifixion, Stephaton is