A Weaker God
Oxford's English Dictionary defines god as "1. A being conceived as the perfect, omnipotent, omniscient ruler and originator of the universe, the principal object of faith and worship in monotheist religions. 2. A being of supernatural powers, believed in and worshipped by a people." The first definition reflects Modern America's connotation of the word god. The latter recalls the Ancient Greco-Sumerian ideal of a being greater than man. While both definitions are equally valid in literature, many perceive the word only in the first view. However, the Iliad, the Odyssey, and the Epic of Gilgamesh portray gods with limits and weaknesses. The contemporary Christian god is able to demand things of his followers, readily expecting wholehearted and unquestioning obedience. This was not the case with his ancient counterparts. Rather than exacting demands upon their followers, occasionally the ancient gods were limited to requests. Often they were refused. In the Odyssey, the goddesses Circe and Calypso both expected lifelong commitments from the mighty Odysseus. Both promised great things to the hero, including godhood. Odysseus was able to refuse both goddesses. Human obstinacy beat out the whims of goddesses. If the Protestant god wer
e to make sexual demands upon his followers, more than likely, he would not be refused. One could argue, though, that Odysseus did give in to the goddesses by bedding them. Always though, his focus eventually shifted to returning home and reuniting with his mortal wife. Homer portrayed a man who refused immortal beauty for true love: "She is mortal after all, and you are immortal and ageless. But even so, what I want and all my days I pine for is to go back to my house and see my day of homecoming. And if some god batters me far out on the wide blue water, I will endure it, keeping a stubborn spirit within me, for I have already suffered much (93-94)." Thus, the mortal Odysseus was able to deny the temptations of the goddesses multiple times. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, another goddess' whims are put down. Ishtar, goddess of war and love becomes attracted to the mighty but mortal Gilgamesh. But rather than jumping right into the sack with the goddess, Gilgamesh thought it out and refused. Thus, a second hero also refuses a god. Sometimes the gods only wanted honest opinions from the humans. In the events leading up to the Iliad; Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite all contend to be the fairest of the goddesses, but out of prudence, no god will endorse them with the distinction. When Zeus refers them to the mortal shepherd, Paris, the three instantly cease to expect an honest opinion. The question loses importance and the goddesses begin a persuasion match in which each goddess offers the shepherd great things. In the end, Paris chooses Aphrodite's gift, and Her and Athena become bitter and spiteful because of the judgment. If the goddesses were equivalent to the Christian god, they would already have either the instant wisdom to know who was the fairest. Also, their infinite power would give them each the ability to make themselves infinitely beautiful. Finally, the modern god would not need to ask the opinion of the human because his omniscience would already give him the opinion. The current Christian god is omnipotent and in turn never feels threatened by the an
Some common words found in the essay are:
Epic Gilgamesh, Athena Aphrodite, Circe Calypso, Homer's Odyssey, Otos Ephialtes, Odyssey Poseidon, Trojans Aphrodite, English Dictionary, Christianity Humans, Sumerians Homer, christian god, epic gilgamesh, ancient gods, demands followers, shepherd paris, odysseus able, ant-like humans, god saved, contemporary christian god, contemporary christian,
Approximate Word count = 1394
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)
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