Followers of Ancient Gods Have Gripes

The Athens Olympics has helped shine a spotlight on ancient Greek beliefs, but those who still hold those beliefs aren't happy. Why? Because their beliefs haven't been treated with the respect and dignity they think is appropriate.

According to BeliefNet:

This should be a glorious time for the few thousand members of the Committee for the Hellenic Religion of the Dodecatheon - meaning the 12 main gods of Mount Olympus. The Olympics were a central festival of worship and Hellenic culture across the ancient, Mediterranean world. And now the games are back where they started nearly 2,800 years ago.

The corporate sponsorship alone is enough to make them wince. But what's really soured them to the Olympic homecoming are the two big-footed 2004 mascots: Athena and Phevos. They can cope with the smiling figures, inspired by a 7th century B.C. terra cotta doll. It's the names they hate. Athena was the goddess of wisdom and protector of Athens. Phevos is another name used for Apollo, the god of light and music. "It's insulting," said Apostolos Amyras, publisher of the monthly Hellenic Religion magazine, which promotes the mysticism of antiquity. "They took the names of two of our gods and they demeaned them."

All of this may seem silly to many, but when you get right down to it they aren’t asking for anything that isn’t typically accorded religions which are still followed by large numbers of people. Should religious beliefs be respected merely because they are popular? Of course not. If Christianity deserves respect, then so do these beliefs. If it’s OK to poke fun at these beliefs, then Christianity needn’t be respected. It’s just that simple.

Read More:

• Religion 101
• Theism 101
• Does God Exist?