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I wish modern people would return to the thinking of ancient Greeks who denied the existence of Gods

 
 
Reply Sun 28 Aug, 2011 02:39 pm
Oh, how I wish modern people would return to the thinking of ancient Greeks, who denied the existence of "Gods." Maybe we wouldn't be suffering from the God believers who have messed up the world so badly. How were the third century BCE thinkers more smart than we are? ---BBB

Atheism
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In early ancient Greek, the adjective atheos (ἄθεος, from the privative ἀ- + θεός "god") meant "godless". It was first used as a term of censure roughly meaning "ungodly" or "impious". In the 5th century BCE, the word began to indicate more deliberate and active godlessness in the sense of "severing relations with the gods" or "denying the gods". The term ἀσεβής (asebēs) then came to be applied against those who impiously denied or disrespected the local gods, even if they believed in other gods. Modern translations of classical texts sometimes render atheos as "atheistic". As an abstract noun, there was also ἀθεότης (atheotēs), "atheism". Cicero transliterated the Greek word into the Latin atheos. The term found frequent use in the debate between early Christians and Hellenists, with each side attributing it, in the pejorative sense, to the other.

The Greek word "atheoi" ("[those who are] without God") as it appears on the early 3rd-century Papyrus 46

Classical antiquity

In Plato's Apology, Socrates was accused by Meletus of not believing in the gods.

Western atheism has its roots in pre-Socratic Greek philosophy, but did not emerge as a distinct world-view until the late Enlightenment.

The 5th-century BCE Greek philosopher Diagoras is known as the "first atheist", and is cited as such by Cicero in his De Natura Deorum. Critias viewed religion as a human invention used to frighten people into following moral order. Atomists such as Democritus attempted to explain the world in a purely materialistic way, without reference to the spiritual or mystical. Other pre-Socratic philosophers who probably had atheistic views included Prodicus and Protagoras. In the 3rd-century BCE the Greek philosophers Theodorus Cyrenaicus and Strato of Lampsacus also did not believe gods exist.

Socrates (c. 471–399 BCE), was accused of impiety (see Euthyphro dilemma) on the basis that he inspired questioning of the state gods. Although he disputed the accusation that he was a "complete atheist", saying that he could not be an atheist as he believed in spirits,[95] he was ultimately sentenced to death. Socrates also prays to various gods in Plato's dialogue Phaedrus and says "By Zeus" in the dialogue The Republic.

Euhemerus (c. 330–260 BCE) published his view that the gods were only the deified rulers, conquerors and founders of the past, and that their cults and religions were in essence the continuation of vanished kingdoms and earlier political structures.[98] Although not strictly an atheist, Euhemerus was later criticized for having "spread atheism over the whole inhabited earth by obliterating the gods".

Atomic materialist Epicurus (c. 341–270 BCE) disputed many religious doctrines, including the existence of an afterlife or a personal deity; he considered the soul purely material and mortal. While Epicureanism did not rule out the existence of gods, he believed that if they did exist, they were unconcerned with humanity.

The Roman poet Lucretius (c. 99–55 BCE) agreed that, if there were gods, they were unconcerned with humanity and unable to affect the natural world. For this reason, he believed humanity should have no fear of the supernatural. He expounds his Epicurean views of the cosmos, atoms, the soul, mortality, and religion in De rerum natura ("On the nature of things"), which popularized Epicurus' philosophy in Rome.

The Roman philosopher Sextus Empiricus held that one should suspend judgment about virtually all beliefs—a form of skepticism known as Pyrrhonism—that nothing was inherently evil, and that ataraxia ("peace of mind") is attainable by withholding one's judgment. His relatively large volume of surviving works had a lasting influence on later philosophers.

The meaning of "atheist" changed over the course of classical antiquity. The early Christians were labeled atheists by non-Christians because of their disbelief in pagan gods. During the Roman Empire, Christians were executed for their rejection of the Roman gods in general and Emperor-worship in particular. When Christianity became the state religion of Rome under Theodosius I in 381, heresy became a punishable offense.

Early Middle Ages to the Renaissance

The espousal of atheistic views was rare in Europe during the Early Middle Ages and Middle Ages (see Medieval Inquisition); metaphysics, religion and theology were the dominant interests. There were, however, movements within this period that forwarded heterodox conceptions of the Christian God, including differing views of the nature, transcendence, and knowability of God. Individuals and groups such as Johannes Scotus Eriugena, David of Dinant, Amalric of Bena, and the Brethren of the Free Spirit maintained Christian viewpoints with pantheistic tendencies. Nicholas of Cusa held to a form of fideism he called docta ignorantia ("learned ignorance"), asserting that God is beyond human categorization, and our knowledge of God is limited to conjecture. William of Ockham inspired anti-metaphysical tendencies with his nominalistic limitation of human knowledge to singular objects, and asserted that the divine essence could not be intuitively or rationally apprehended by human intellect. Followers of Ockham, such as John of Mirecourt and Nicholas of Autrecourt furthered this view. The resulting division between faith and reason influenced later theologians such as John Wycliffe, Jan Hus, and Martin Luther.

The Renaissance did much to expand the scope of freethought and skeptical inquiry. Individuals such as Leonardo da Vinci sought experimentation as a means of explanation, and opposed arguments from religious authority. Other critics of religion and the Church during this time included Niccolò Machiavelli, Bonaventure des Périers, and François Rabelais.
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Chights47
 
  1  
Reply Mon 29 Aug, 2011 08:36 am
@BumbleBeeBoogie,
To answer you question of: How were the third century BCE thinkers more smart than we are? I actually believe that to be deceptively false. It may seem as though they were smarter, but that's not the case, there are just more dumb people around now it make it seem that way. If you haven't seen it already, I would advise that you watch the movie Idiocracy. It goes into what will happen to the world because stupid people breed more than smart people, thus over time, the average IQ of people will significantly drop.
BumbleBeeBoogie
 
  1  
Reply Mon 29 Aug, 2011 09:28 am
@Chights47,
Thanks for the suggestion.

BBB
0 Replies
 
rosborne979
 
  1  
Reply Mon 29 Aug, 2011 09:58 am
@BumbleBeeBoogie,
BumbleBeeBoogie wrote:
Oh, how I wish modern people would return to the thinking of ancient Greeks, who denied the existence of "Gods." Maybe we wouldn't be suffering from the God believers who have messed up the world so badly. How were the third century BCE thinkers more smart than we are? ---BBB

I think that the lens that we view history through is a bit deceptive. For one thing, the behaviors and beliefs of a bulk of the population was lost in time because it wasn't recorded. The only slice that was recorded was probably skewed toward the more highly educated portions of the population (those who could read and write and get their thoughts recorded).

The Internet age in particular is unusual because it's so easy to spread information even from obscure sources. Also, we're living in it, so it shines brightly to us.

But I also think there are moments in history where the general belief structure shifts back and forth in preference for one group of ideas over another. I have no idea what causes these ebbs and sways. Could be pure random chance... Particular individuals of charismatic influence who happen onto the stage for a time and alter something, then pass away.
Setanta
 
  1  
Reply Mon 29 Aug, 2011 10:12 am
@rosborne979,
There are other lenses, too. One is to overrate the influence of individuals such as those named above. Isocrates (the one known to history as Socrates) was considered to be a corrupting influence on youth, and so he was ordered to take his own life. The man who made him known to the world, Plato, greatly admired the Laconic state (Sparta), and praised this most brutal of all the Greek slave states, especially the system which produced the generations of warriors who kept the slave state going.

Many "great men" of the ancient world deplored slavery and organized religion, and then blithely stated that both institutions were necessary for the maintenance of society. The brilliant lunatic Pythagoras thought that Greek society had become corrupt because it had turned away from religion, and despite some beliefs we might applaud, such as the equality of men and women, he used his considerable influence to re-establish the worship of the gods, along with a startling catalogue of truly goofy beliefs, such as that eating beans was a sin, as was looking into a mirror while standing by a light.

Some few of the ancient Greeks denied the existence of the gods. It is completely false to claim that the ancient Greeks, as though they were a monolith, were atheistic.
0 Replies
 
BumbleBeeBoogie
 
  1  
Reply Mon 29 Aug, 2011 10:24 am
@rosborne979,
The gods whose existence they denied are the same as today's religions that are mostly devices to control people, accumulate and protect their power, accumulate and protect their wealth, accumulate and protect their fame. The United States, especially in the "Bible Belt", is full of con job ministers for the same purposes.

These are enough to satisfy my opinions about their ancient intelligence.

Critias viewed religion as a human invention used to frighten people into following moral order.

Euhemerus (c. 330–260 BCE) published his view that the gods were only the deified rulers, conquerors and founders of the past, and that their cults and religions were in essence the continuation of vanished kingdoms and earlier political structures.

The Roman poet Lucretius (c. 99–55 BCE) agreed that, if there were gods, they were unconcerned with humanity and unable to affect the natural world. For this reason, he believed humanity should have no fear of the supernatural.

BumbleBeeBoogie
 
  1  
Reply Tue 30 Aug, 2011 08:14 am
@BumbleBeeBoogie,
I posted a new book - Absolute Monarchs: A History of the Papacy

http://able2know.org/topic/176712-1
0 Replies
 
 

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