What Extent Was The Greek Religion Monotheistic Or Polytheistic?

Most of Greek art and architecture reflected their honor and regards to the gods and goddesses they worshipped. Almost all Poleis had at least one temple in their areas. The statue of a god or goddess was placed inside of the temples, and worshipers gathered outside the temples for the rituals,sacrifices, and festivals as the temples were not a place for the people to worship (Tridimas, 2021). The Athenians devoted enormous resources to the construction of the acropolis in order to surpass the other temples of their rivals (Becker, n.d.). For this reason, one of the finest examples of Greek architecture was the Parthenon of Athens, which was a temple built in honour of the goddess Athena, who was known as the goddess of wisdom and knowledge in Greek mythology (US History, n.d.).

They were big and strong, some sculpted and chiseled to perfection, some normal-sized. Zeus, ruler of all gods and goddesses, controlled lighting, lightning that could be heard from miles. But why was the god's impact on the Greeks so significant? What part of the gods affected the people of Greece’s behavior or how they acted and saw things? Greeks had trusted them, but why did the Greeks worship these gods, how did they even

The design of the Parthenon was reflection of the then current Grecian Empire. According to Silverman (n.d.), “the Parthenon represents the tangible and visible efflorescence of Athenian imperial power. It symbolizes the power and influence of the Athenian politician, Perikles, who championed its construction”. The style and function of the building being a reflection of the culture is reflected in the Orders of the design.

Many years ago, the ancient Greek society believed in many Gods. The Gods would help or punish them. There was a God of the sea, God of love, God of farming, God of parties, and many others. The people of ancient Greece centered their lives around the Greek Gods. One God that affected the ancient Greek military was Ares.

Similarities That American Society Shares With Ancient Greece Ancient Greece produced many patterns and fashions that America has imitated. This civilization, more than any other, has molded what Americans observe and use architecturally today. Everywhere people look, they can see designs from Ancient Greece in this country. America has been inspired and influenced by the Greeks; therefore, there are replicated ideas of ancient Greece seen in many of America’s buildings. In the United States’ capital, there are buildings, especially the Capitol, which have borrowed ideas and patterns from some of Greece’s structures.

They even built idols (statues) for each of the gods. They also built temples so they can sacrifice things for the gods. The Gods the center of everything in the greek religion. The gods are the center of everything with the main leader Zeus. In greek religion they have twenty one gods.

Its numerous columns—seventeen on each side, eight at either end, and a second row of six columns inside—make it the most noticeable(“Parthenon | Definition, History, Architecture, Columns, Greece, & Facts | Britannica,” 2023) . Columns can be found in many public structures today, including churches and libraries. Columns can be found in the United SOCIETY, ART, ARCHITECTURE AND RELIGION IN GREEK CITY-STATES States Capitol, the Supreme Court Building and the Cannon House Office Building, among others. Ancient Greek architecture was designed with the gods in mind. The temples are named after Zeus, Hera, and Artemis.

Even in antiquity, its architectural refinements were legendary, especially the subtle correspondence between the curvature of the stylobate, the taper of the naos walls and the entasis of the columns." (Cooper pg 63)The basic principles of Greek Architecture can be traced back to this time. The goal of Greek Architecture was to have the greatest buildings in all of Greece in order to bring prestige and recognition to Athens. The architecture was meant to be harmonious, symmetrical, as well as aesthetically pleasing. Columns were also a large part of Greek architecture and were found in 3 different styles, Doric, Ionic, as well as Corinthian.

The Greeks were known for their love of symmetry and balance in their buildings. Most of their structures contained columns and pediments. The column, capital, and entablature are examples of Greek architectural traits that have evolved into essential elements of Western architecture. For example, the Corinthian, Doric, and Ionic columns were frequently used in the construction of governmental structures, temples, and monuments in Western architecture. Buildings gained a sense of grandeur and permanence thanks to the usage of these columns, which also served as emblems of power and stability.

They associated each of their gods with a different aspect of life or nature. For example Zeus was the king of the gods, Athena was the goddess of wisdom, Dionysus was the god of wine, and the list goes on. The ancient Greeks erected massive temples to these gods for worship. Each god or goddess had his or her own temple for sacrifices or offerings. They Greeks believed sacrifice was necessary to appease the gods and keep everyday life fruitful and peaceful.

When I hear about the Greek Gods and Goddesses, I associate their stories with the modern-day representations of them and really never studied the history behind them. In my Western Civilization class, I read a lot about the foundation of the Orthodox Church and was able to relate to my own upbringing in the Greek Orthodox Church. However, one piece of lacking information that I want to find out about is how the Greek culture of a polytheistic religion eventually became monotheistic. I decided to take a tour of the antiquities of the Gods and Goddesses to search for evidence of their existence as more than a cultural element or if there is any relation to the monotheistic religion that grew out of Greece.

As a start, the building types are many as the private houses, baths, as well as temples and theatres and these are our points; Firstly in temples, Greeks’ structures were invented to be the home of gods called Parthenon having an obsolete religion. As inside these sanctuaries they didn’t have spots of meeting, but obeying the penances and aimed to custom an individual god in them. These temples anyways were sometimes used to be storage of votive offerings. Subsequently, they are very unique in there style and very essential modeling construction. For examples, the palace of Knossos, and Athens acropolis.

Ancient people being unaware about the outside world created for themselves the hierarchy of Gods to ask for protection and support. Example: Paganism had a tendency to be polytheistic. People worshipped a variety of gods and goddesses, spirits representing national and local heroes, as well as natural phenomena. Pagans also honored their ancestry and ancestors.

In general, Greeks believed in praying to a deity, and worshiping that deity’s own sanctuary. This was known as a polytheistic approach. One would make offerings to a specific god or goddess at their individual altar, consisting of a temple and a monumental statue. The twelve major gods and goddess’ were represented throughout Athens, the richest of the Greek city states at this time.

The Parthenon in Athens and the Pantheon in Rome depict the splendor of these two cultures. Starting with the Parthenon, it was completely constructed in 432 B.C.E by the architects Iktinos and Kallikrates to honor the Athen’s patron deity, Athena, and to house her statue. It is rectangular and consisted of a series of Doric columns. However, it is a mixture of the Doric and Ionic orders. The Pentelic marble, bronze, gold, and ivory are the basic media used in this construction.