In this Huffingon Post article Evaggelos Vallianatos discusses Ancient Greek and how we should follow "A Greek movement for a better world." Vallianatos discusses the wonders of Ancient Greece civilization. Vallianatos tells us that the Greeks provided Western Civilization with achievements in "poetry, history, philosophy, science, political theory and democracy, the civilian control of the military, secular literature, theater, and athletics like the Olympics." He then goes on to explain how their religion despite being destroyed by Christianity, "is still a world of wonder and values." He says this because despite being a polytheistic religion, the Ancient Greece religion had no dogmas, no holy books and perhaps most importantly, no clergy. It was a religion that led to discovery, yearning and curiosity.
- Do you think the Vallianatos backs up the claim that the Ancient Greece Religion is still a "world of wonder and values?"
- Do you think their is an advantage to a religion with no clergy, dogmas or holybooks?
- Is there anything that the Judea-Christian religions of our time could learn from the Ancient Greeks?
I absolutely think that there would be an advantage to a religion with no clergy, dogmas or holy books, for the exact reason that you pointed out: it leads to the search for/discovery of what you are really looking for, rather than what others WANT you to find. Religion without these things would probably be more honest at the individual level, since you can totally be yourself and not have to follow everyone else's ideas.
ReplyDeleteThere definitely an advantage to having no clergy or dogma in religion. Free thought produces innovation, which is embodied in the legacy of the Ancient Greeks, to whom we attribute many great ideas (democracy, the basis of Western thought, etc). The Christians did still promote scholarly pursuits, but many times within the contexts of their beliefs. Christians often persecuted those who did not follow this rule of thumb, calling them "heretics". The Greek religion was a product of Ancient brilliance, which we should definitely follow more closely today.
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