Greek Religion
Cassandra's murder
The religious beliefs of Classical Greece can be interpreted in many different ways. Nobody can be sure how or why people believe a certain story about their gods. And different people probably have different reasons for believing a story (or a myth - myth is another word for a story). Or the same person may believe a story for several different reasons. Not everyone believes all the stories, either: different people may tell different stories. And people may tell one story in one situation, and a different story in a different situation, whatever seems to fit. Here are some of the stories that people told in Ancient Greece, and some of the reasons why they might have told these stories and not other ones.
Why did people want to punch Socrates?
Where did Egyptians bury your liver?
How old are the Rocky Mountains?
What does a half-timbered house look like?
How do you spin wool?
(a project)
To help you relate one story to another, here are some of the ways that
the Greeks thought their gods were related.
(in family trees, = means they are married, or at least they have babies
together)
| Gaia | = | Ouranos | ||||||
| Themis | Rhea | = | Kronos | Ocean | Aphrodite | |||
| Hestia | Demeter | = | Zeus | = | Hera | Hades | Poseidon | |
| Persephone | Ares | Hephaistos | ||||||
| Harmonia | ||||||||
| Minos=Pasiphae |
Semele | Epimetheus | Prometheus | Atlas | ||||
| Ariadne | = | Dionysos | Maia | |||||
| Leto (with Zeus) | Athena | Hermes | ||||||
| Apollo | Artemis |
More Greek myths - Greek stories about the gods and heroes
To find out more about Greek myths, check out these books from Amazon.com or from your library:
Greek Myths for Young Children, by Heather Amery (Usborne, 2000). My niece really likes this one. For younger children.
Greek Myths for Young Children, by Marcia Williams (1995). In comic-book format. My son loved it.
D'aulaire's Book of Greek Myths, by Edgar and Ingri D'Aulaire. For older kids.
Mythology by Lady Hestia Evans, Dugald A. Steer (Editor)(2007) - My daughter loved this one! A new book in the Fairyopolis, Dragonology, etc. series.
Pandora's Box: A Three-Dimensional Celebration of the Mythology of Ancient Greece, by Sara Maitland and Christos Kondeatis (1995). Not really about Pandora specifically, but a complex of stories, games, and puzzles about Greek mythology. All ages.
Greek Religion, by Walter Burkert (reprinted 1987). By a leading expert, for adults. He has sections on each of the Greek gods, and discusses the deeper meanings of the Greek myths, and their function in Greek society.
Teaching and Dramatizing Greek Myths, by Josephine Davidson (1990). Advice for middle school teachers on teaching Greek myths by having the students write and perform skits.
Main Greeks page
Roman Religion
West Asian Religion
Egyptian Religion
African Religion
Main religion page
Ancient Greek Religion books, costumes, toys, games and movies
Kidipede - History for Kids home page
