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I am not a Greek, but I am an Hellene. What do I mean by this statement? By birth I am of mixed ancestry. My mother's family is predominantly Sicilian, with one great grandparent of Welsh extraction. On my father's side, I am Blackfoot Indian and Polish. Yet, the religion that I practice is modeled after that of the Ancient Greeks, and the Gods that I worship are ostensibly Greek Gods. I have been told that I cannot worship the Greek Gods because I am not a Greek or because I do not speak the Greek language. I have been told that while the Gods of Greece were to some extent the Gods of Italy, I should only worship them under their Latin names, and should call myself an Italic Pagan because I am of Italian descent. I have been told that the Gods can only be worshipped in their native lands, and that here, in this modern age and in the United States of America, it is impossible and ignorant to think that I am worshipping the Greek Gods in anything like the manner that the Greeks did. First I'd like to say to my detractors: what the Hell is your problem? Don't you have enough things to worry about in your life, that you've got to take on my problems as well? What does it matter to you what, who, or how I worship? Isn't that between me and the Gods? Why do you feel the need to butt your nose into my problems? Sheesh, get a life! Whew. Now that that's out of my system, I will proceed to address these questions. First, the Gods are not Greeks. They do not belong to any one tribe, nation, culture, or geographical area. They are beyond the limits of language and regional constraints, and in their perfect forms, they do not, as Xenophanes pointed out, have "snub-noses and black skin like the Ethiopians" or "red hair and blue eyes like the Thracians" although we imagine that they do, and when they appear before us, they often put on pleasing forms. Homer (Odyssey 9.552, 269-78) asserted that the Gods belonged to all people, whether Greek or Barbarian, whether stranger or slave, and he even showed the Trojans calling upon the Olympians, who definitely were not Greeks. Secondly, as I have said in another essay, Hellenism, then as well as now, is not about ethnicity, as much as it is about a shared culture. G. W. Bowersack in his book Hellenism in Late Antiquity, has this to say about it: "Hellenism represented language, thought, mythology, and images that constituted an extraordinarily flexible medium of both cultural and religious expression. It was a medium not necessarily antithetical to local or indigenous traditions. On the contrary, it provided a new and more eloquent way of giving voice to them." Hellenism was born when Alexander of Macedon made his first steps beyond the rugged Greek hills, seeking to extend the borders of his father's kingdom into the vast reaches of the East. With him he carried Greek culture, and the peoples whom he made subject came to embrace the new ideas and language, clinging to it long after the remnants of Greek Empire had crumbled. One can see the Hellenic influence in the architecture and plastic arts of places as far apart as England and India, and Greek thought even permeates the work of the Jewish authors of such Biblical texts as Ecclesiastes and the Maccabbean Books, not to mention Philo Judaeus, one of the great Neoplatonic philosophers. Isocrates said, "Greek is defined not by race but by education. All of us, whatever our time and place, who have been shaped by Greek books are in this sense Greek." If the Gods are truly universal and trans-cultural, why are you making an effort to learn the Greek customs, language, and forms of religion? Won't they hear your prayers and respond to whatever you do, regardless of what you do? And why do you insist on calling on the Greek forms of the Gods? Why not just use the God for your situation, regardless of where it came from, since all of it is really just a mask for the one God/dess? It is precisely because I believe in the Gods that I am making an effort to learn the ways that were once sacred to them. I believe that Divinity is both multiple and various; that each God and Goddess is a unique individual, for whom some things are pleasing and some things are displeasing. By attempting to learn those things, and by making an effort to practice my religion in a manner that was at one time pleasing to them, I am showing both my fidelity to my ancestors and my loyalty to the Gods. This is a difficult thing for most Modern Pagans to accept. They believe in the primacy of the individual, and that to "do your own thing" is the height of spirituality, since, in the words of Robert Heinlein "thou art God". But to acknowledge a power greater than oneself, and to freely submit yourself to it - this is more in keeping with the ancient Ethos. I need to insert a word of clarification here. To freely submit oneself to a deity is not the same thing as the Abrahamic submission through the suppression of the will. Rather, it is like an Homeric hero consenting to follow the decree of his Chief, and in so doing gaining glory and renown. There is no abasement, no groveling, merely an acceptance that sometimes the greatest good can be accomplished by serving one greater than yourself. And indeed, the Gods are greater than us, and in following their ways, we are made better, fuller, and more wise. It is a common practice today among Modern Pagans to pick and choose elements from cultures and faith traditions, and to combine them in a sort of inchoate mish-mash called "eclecticism". I find this to be a most reprehensible practice. It is both shallow and demeaning to the culture, especially if that culture is still a thriving and living one such as the Celts, Native Americans, and Ethnic Greeks. Culture is not something you pick up from books. It isn't simply a matter of this or that practice or some kind of MetaIdea such as the Greeks believe in Freedom, the Egyptians believe in an Afterlife, and the Norse believe in Honor. Rather, it is a subtle tapestry of shared experiences and common histories. It is language and art and religion and politics. It is songs, dances, jokes, food, and special clothing. It is festivals and holidays and customs so old most people have forgotten their exact meaning, but which everyone still takes part in. It is surviving the horrors of war, of ethnic cleansing, of much more subtle atrocities like alcoholism, poverty, and institutionalized racism. Culture is blood, and soil, and dreams, with roots that reach down to the very heart of the earth, so deep and interwoven that you cannot simply pull one part out without bringing up the whole of it. This is why I practice a culturally-specific form of Paganism. I sought to worship the Gods alone, in isolation - but they would have no part of it. They dragged me through the Labyrinth, kicking and screaming and resisting at every turn. But soon I came to see their greater wisdom, and realized that all of the rest wasn't just a remnant of the past, no longer necessary in our modern age, and quite a hindrance in my attempt to worship the Gods - but that, quite to the contrary, it was the proper way to worship them. So now I consciously incorporate as many elements from
the ancient worship as I am able to, or as is desirable. I
practice sacrifices and libations. I stand at prayer, with
my arms upraised when to the Ouranian Gods, and downwards
when I seek to honor the Chthonic Ones. I do not call
Quarters or Cast Circles. I recite verses from Homer or
Hesiod or compose my own. I do not celebrate the Sabbats or
Esbats, but try to observe the Hellenic Festivals when I
can. I am learning Greek, slowly, but surely, and
incorporating what words I have when it is appropriate. More
than that, I try to see the world in the way that the
Ancient Greeks did, to cultivate the ancient vision which
Edith Hamilton described as "The ability to rejoice in life,
to find the world beautiful and delightful to live in. Not
hiding from the pain, but embracing the joy." I read the
Poets and Philosophers, and am beginning, I hope, to even
think as they thought. I believe that the Gods have noticed
my efforts, and that they have responded accordingly. I know
that my religious life is both fuller and more meaningful
since I began practicing Hellenic Polytheism - and really,
that's all anyone can ask of their religion, now isn't
it? |
