Ancient Greek gods' new believers
Pastor Dale Morgan
Ancient Greek gods' new believers*
By Malcolm Brabant
BBC News, Athens
Priestess at the temple
Followers say they have been persecuted for 1600 years
Followers of the 12 Greek Gods, who, according to mythology, ruled the
Ancient World from Mount Olympus, have cast a thunderbolt at their
Orthodox opponents.
After successfully staging a landmark ceremony at the Temple of Olympian
Zeus in Athens, their leader pledged to fight for the right to conduct
baptisms, marriages, and funerals according to the rites of the ancient
religion.
"We are a legitimate religion. But the authorities don't let us do this,
but we shall claim this right through the European Union," said Doretta
Peppa, the high priestess, who led the prayers next to the 15 remaining
columns of the temple.
The move is bound to aggravate the highly conservative Greek Orthodox
church, which strongly disapproves of what it regards as paganism.
First service
"They are a handful of miserable resuscitators of a degenerate dead
religion who wish to return to the monstrous dark delusions of the
past," said Father Efstathios Kollas, the President of Greek Clergymen.
Hundreds of followers of Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Artemis, Aphrodite and
Hermes stood in a circle, a mile from the Acropolis, in what was the
first official religious service allowed in the grounds of an Ancient
Greek temple.
Previous rites have been performed covertly, but the culture ministry
was obliged to grant permission for the event after a court last year
legitimised the religion, which was eclipsed 1600 years ago by Christianity.
High Priestess Doretta Peppa
Doretta Peppa led the prayers around the temple
"I feel very emotional," said Ms Peppa, a writer. "We have been
persecuted for 16-and-a-half centuries but now we are here. This is our
human right. And we shall carry on worshipping at our temples. They have
now been put to proper use.
"This is as important to us, as prayers are for Muslims, Christians or
Hindus," said Apollonius, a former taverna owner from Melbourne, Australia.
He abandoned the Church for the 12 Gods, because 'they make me feel
whole, they make me feel part of the universe."
Ancient ceremony
Ms Peppa said she turned to the ancient religion because she could not
countenance the concept of just one God outside the world.
Her co-religionists believe that the Olympian gods exist in the world
and control various elements of nature.
For example, Poseidon is the God of the Sea; Hera, the Goddess of
Marriage; and Aphrodite is the Goddess of Love and Romance.
Believe Apollonius at the temple
Apollonius abandoned Christianity for the 12 Gods
The ceremony was an attempt to emulate those carried out in Athens in
the 4th Century BC, when the Greeks were preparing for the games at Olympia.
Believers dressed as ancient warriors left their spears, swords and
shields at the entrance before entering the Temple.
This was supposed to represent the truce between warring states that
took place during the games.
And it was a symbolic message sent to the rest of the world calling for
peace in 2008 when the Olympic Games takes place in Beijing.
If we really want to say that we are democratic and we have freedom,
then we have to be allowed to practice our religion."
12 Gods follower "Artemis"
The international publicity surrounding the Temple of Zeus ceremony may
galvanise the all-powerful Orthodox Church to step up its opposition.
But one of the participants has appealed for tolerance.
Wearing a crown of daisies and a flowing white gown, a red haired woman
who identified herself only as Artemis said: "This is the land which has
given birth to freedom and democracy. If we really want to say that we
are democratic and we have freedom, then we have to be allowed to
practice our religion."