Western Civilization Themes

The Greek religion is not an independent sphere of life but interweaved in the fabric of society. It touches every aspect of Greek life like agriculture, social interaction, politics, art and architecture and entertainment. The sanctuaries are a place where these elements manifest in the form of various cult practices held to worship and connect with the divine through life sacrifice, dedication of objects, libation, prayer, consultation of oracles, art, drama, festivals and games. The existence of the sanctuary clearly shows that worship was just not a private experience but a social celebration of the divine. Sanctuaries created a sense of unity among people as they were places where people got together and in the process created an identity

Calvin believes that God deals with an individual and not a group. Hence, he chooses one depending on the plans that he has for them. The third point of Calvinism is limited atonement. This stipulates that Jesus died for the sins of each and every human being. However, their sins will be washed away by the blood of Jesus as long as they respond to the election[11].

First, Calvin argues that man is doomed with total depravity because of the original sin committed by Adam and Eve. Second, he believes in unconditional election that determines who will be saved and who will be condemned. Third, he understands there to be limited atonement, meaning that Jesus did not die for everyone. Fourth, Calvin argues that irresistible grace is offered to God’s chosen elect. And last, he states that there is a perseverance of saints, therefore all who are saved are saved for eternity.

It can be seen in the Odyssey through Odysseus’ and his men’s actions, for the most part they respected and feared the gods like every good Greek. The meaning of God is different in O Brother Where Art Thou? compared to the Odyssey, not as many people believe there is a God in O Brother Where Art Thou?, while in the Odyssey the belief was universal. An example of non-belief in the film O Brother Where Art Thou? is: Ulysses’ has a continual struggle with the existence of God.

But, in The Epic of Gilgamesh, there is no clear hero. This subject is debatable. But, a hero as described in the Hero’s Journey is someone who saves the day against a supernatural challenge, treats his people nicely, and doesn’t come back empty handed. A hero’s characteristics are perceived by the people around him. Even though Gilgamesh is the main character, his treatment of people was unacceptable and made his people hate him.

In ancient Greek ideology and mythology there is a common theme of characters ‘getting what they deserve’. In Homer’s graphic novel The Odyssey, there are several occasions where this theme of reciprocity is occurring. Revenge and justice are something that the romans held highly in their culture, so characters in their stories often had fates that was deemed fit for their ‘crime’. Odysseus crew was told before their journey to the island of Thrinacia, that they had to steer clear of this island. But when they came into view of the “sunny island” they couldn’t resist its beauty and had to board its shore.

Although The Iliad is known as an epic poem, the poem contrasts the conflict of war as the sole method to further understand wisdom in humanity. From the grief of the Greeks and the Trojans comes greater understanding of the price of war. According to “The Type of Stories Chart” the epic poem is categorized as a success story of Greeks in the Trojan war, but the poem sobers the success of the Greeks with the constant reminder of death in war. In

Therefore, his tragic flaw is hubris, or excessive pride that causes his transgression again the gods. It also marks the change from democracy to dictatorship. Some of his errors in judgement include making decisions because of narcissism, not including the gods’ law, refusing to bury the body, and condemning Antigone to death in the cave so he is not blamed for disobeying the gods’ law.

He is not seeking to add a new god to the Athenian Pantheon; he is rather seeking the Athenians’ repentance. God will no longer “overlook” this ignorance (cf. 14:16; Romans 3:25); now is the time for repentance (17:30). Just as God had made all the nations to inhabit the whole earth from one man (17:26), so God will judge the world through the one man whom God appointed (cf. Romans 5).

Not only is Proteus reminding Melanos how vital sacrifices are, he’s also suggesting the gods intended for him to return, but he robbed himself of a peaceful return with his mistakes. Melanos’ experience sets the precedent of sacrifices and offerings becoming the blueprint towards forgiveness from the gods. Humans in The Odyssey lay claim to their ability to sway the gods’ opinion as their source of power in the such a supernatural world. The power that allows mortals to control their

Apollo was not known for just one or two things like many of the other gods were. His talents covered a wide range of things. He was the god of music, light, prophecy, archery, sun, healing, truth, and many more that I could go on and on. So having all these talents it wouldn’t be hard to name your company after. Take for example Apollo theatre, they decided to go with how he was the god of good times and music something that you would want to have at your theatre to draw people in.

In Ancient Greece, people believed in diverse amounts of myths and teachings to ultimately shed light on how the earth around them came to be. They came to worship not one God, but many Gods. Their gods included the Olympian Gods, Titan Gods, Sea Gods, Sky gods, Underworld Gods, and countless others. People generally worshipped all these Gods, instead of only choosing who they wanted to be loyal to. The story of Hippolytus by Euripides, is a greek myth that really shows the control the Gods had over the people of this time, and the reality that the people in this story had no power of their destinies because the Gods already decided it for them.

Judeo-Christian Roots of Freedom in America The founding fathers considered the Christian faith to argue that we should be independent from the English throne because “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights...” It was the Christian belief that all men are equal before God that motivated the founding fathers to disregard having a king, and to forbid any royal titles to American citizens. As one looks through the documents of the early settlers and founders, it is evident that Christian values had a lot of influence on the structure of this country 's laws and values. Many of the early writings were covenants made before God, such as the

Regret, fear, and sadness were thought to be felt by the gods such as in The Epic of Gilgamesh when the gods were frightened by the flood and regretted their involvement during the Assembly (Damrosch et al., 2009, p. 93). Believing that the gods determined destiny, life, and death, humans would offer sacrifices of incense and animals to encourage abundant harvests and fortification. Ongoing communication with gods was an elemental part of the lives of humans with pleas for guidance, direction, and compassion especially when the humans disobeyed or felt anguish. Most humans believed that they were created for the benefit of the deities and were at the mercy of the gods. This acceptance and belief system caused humans to seek continuously to please the deities in order to maintain protection and secure a good fortune and

Transcendence: Basis of Biblical Here the author drives home his point when it comes down to defending monotheism between the Old Testament and Israel’s neighbors. According to history Israel was taught to believe in the One God. In the Ten Commandments God forbid them of making any graven images of things in heaven or earth to worship. Oswalt gives accurate details of how Israel believe in one divine being and goes on to name in today’s society there are only three monotheism religion ; Christianity, Judaism and Islam. These three religion have one thing in common; Old Testament.