"Paganism"

[strawberrykisses]

I have decided to do my Extended Essay on Paganism - and I'm having trouble deciding on the best question to do.

Here are the questions -
1) Why were the Ancient Greeks polytheistic?
2) To what extent were the Pagan Gods and Goddesses deifications of human attributes in Ancient ______ [Rome or Greece]?
3) [Easy way out] Analyze the factors that led to the downfall of Paganism in Ancient Greece.

Which would you suggest, and does anyone know any useful sources?

 

[duendy]

I have decided to do my Extended Essay on Paganism - and I'm having trouble deciding on the best question to do.

Here are the questions -
1) Why were the Ancient Greeks polytheistic?
2) To what extent were the Pagan Gods and Goddesses deifications of human attributes in Ancient ______ [Rome or Greece]?
3) [Easy way out] Analyze the factors that led to the downfall of Paganism in Ancient Greece.

Which would you suggest, and does anyone know any useful sources?

3 looks good, for these reasons. you can explore the difference between patriarchal paganism and earth religious paganism

For example, When the Greeks started with their myth of the Olympian gods, this was a major transition away from Goddess oriented eath paganism. For example, the gods which were close to the Earth--'chtonic'--were barred from the now-patriarchal heights of mount olympus

and then the allof gods become distanced from the people. no DIRECTLY experienced. they become humanized cartoon ghosts.....this will lead onto the idea of the distant 'father' in the sky. as Zeus was

i have some sources. but i urge you to get this book 'Shamanism and the Drug Propaganda: Patriarchy and the Drug War, by Dan Russell ISBN: 0-9650253-1-4

 

[mustafhakofi]

welcome strawberry.
could you define paganism, as all religions started as politheistic, take a look at this,http://www.sciforums.com/showthread.php?t=40933 to see my point, but they all have one main god.
it's all mythology, any way some ancient tribes, had animal spirits(animism), which lead onto to believing that the animals spirits controled them either good or bad (fetishism), which in turn lead to different clans following one animal spirit, in the form of a totem(totemism) each time they became more and more powerful, the lesser ones still being worshiped, those animal/spiritual traits became more and more human over the centurys.
you've only to look at the Mayans, and the Egyptions, etc
you see monotheism only came about because, why talk to the feet, when you can goto the head.
so they are all pagan/politheistic.

 

[marv]

Number 2 is the easiest; not much more than individual biographies. Number 1 would require extensive research delving into earlier, influencing cultures in addition to Greek culture. Number 3 is the hardest and you'd have to make supportable arguments.

 

[Leo Volont]

3) Analyze the factors that led to the downfall of Paganism in Ancient Greece.

It would be difficult to get to the Truth of that one in this Age of Skepticism, but if you were to read the Works of Anne Catherine Emmerich, Catholicism's foremost Seer and Visionary, you would find an interesting answer to that question. We are to understand that at the Advent of Christ many of the Earth Spirits and Demigods that had had an actual reality for the Pagan Priests, saw that their time was up and simply departed to the Astral Realms, abandoning their old Earthly Temples and Shrines. The Blessed Virgin took over those Temples in the West. In the East the Blessed Virgin was understood as a Goddess of various Names and attributes, but She was still related to Avators of God by whatever Name was popularly current.

The World went from a Polytheism which recognized a Pantheon of Demigods, to a construct of Worship for a Mother Goddess and a God-Hero Son because of the actualilty of the Situation. With the actual Manifestation of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin, and the Birth of the Perfect Spiritual Man, the Demigods departed. The Priests of the Various Traditions had no choice, if they truly had any Spiritual Perception, but to follow the New Spiritual Reality.

But you can understand why you could never write a Paper like that!... even if it is True.

 

[Leo Volont]

2) To what extent were the Pagan Gods and Goddesses deifications of human attributes in Ancient ______ [Rome or Greece]?

Higher Moral Development and the Civilized Sensibility came only in increments. Spiritual Sight can never go much beyond the Moral Sensitivity of the Seer. The Moral Condition of the Homeric Greek could not climb much above the Lower Astral Worlds in which the Spirits were not motivated by Inspirations much higher than the Humans who envisioned and emulated them.

When the Hellenistic World launched inroads into Ancient Persia, it became familiar with, despite itself, with the Moral Religious View of Zoroastrianism -- the Knowledge of Angels of Light against Demons of Darkness. Suddenly their old Demigods where shown in a Moral Contrast. This Infusion of a Moral Sense into Western Mythology, and Spiritual Perceptions, reflective of an actual Moral Uplift, can be seen in the Advance that Roman Mythology had over Homeric Mythology. The Devious and Cunning Greek prodded on by Trickster and Maniacl Demigods, was replaced by the Civically Responsible Roman who pursued Wisdom in that decidedly higher Astral World.