The Higher Aspects of Greek Religion by L.R. Farnell
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| The Higher Aspects of Greek Religion |
Higher Aspects of Greek Religion (1911–1912) is a series of Hibbert Lectures exploring how Greek religion evolved from primitive animism into a sophisticated system of civic, familial, and ethical practices. It emphasizes the blending of Aryan and Mediterranean traditions, the centrality of family morality, and the political role of religion in the Greek polis.
The author begins by discussing the general features and origins of Greek religion, highlighting its evolution from a theistic creed to a social-political system. Greek religion, according to Farnell, was centered around the worship of personal individual deities who were seen as ethical personalities rather than mere nature forces.
The concept of anthropomorphism was a predominant bias in Greek religion, although it also retained many primitive features of animism or animatism.
Farnell explores the gradual progress of Greek religion, noting that it did not undergo a violent break with its distant past. He also discusses the fusion of the element of magic with religion, although it was not the predominant aspect.
The author argues that Hellenism and Hellenic religion were a blend of two ethnic strains - one North-Aryan and the other Mediterranean, mainly Minoan-Mycenaean.
Farnell provides criteria for distinguishing the various influences of these two strains and emphasizes the value of Homeric evidence in understanding Greek religion.
In the second lecture, Farnell focuses on the religious bond and morality of the family in Greek society.
He explains that the earliest type of family in Hellenic society was patrilinear and discusses the importance of the cult of the hearth and Zeus, the God of the household, in early religious practices. Marriage, according to Farnell, was a religious ceremony consecrated to Zeus and Hera, serving as a sacrament or mystery. He also explores the connection between marriage and the agricultural life in Greek society.
Key Themes in Farnell’s Work
- Origins of Greek Religion
- Early Greek religion was theistic, worshipping personal deities rather than abstract forces.
- Strong anthropomorphism shaped gods as ethical personalities.
- Primitive animism and magic persisted but were gradually integrated.
- Greek religion blended North-Aryan traditions with Minoan-Mycenaean Mediterranean influences.
- Family Morality
- The hearth cult and worship of Zeus as household god anchored family life.
- Marriage was a religious rite consecrated to Zeus and Hera, seen as a social-religious duty.
- Sexual offenses were treated as religious wrongs, but virginity was not exalted.
- The Erinyes and higher deities enforced family purity.
- Civic Religion
- Families formed clans and tribes, with cults of ancestral heroes and kinship deities.
- The polis was often conceived as a religious entity, like a large family.
- Civic cults emphasized Zeus, Apollo, and Athena as political powers.
- Greek religion was unique in its political character, binding citizens through shared worship.
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