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This is a good question, and I think a man by the name of N.T. Wright has answered it best in his book, "The Resurrection of the Son of God"; I recommend picking it up.
In terms of "American religion", it is necessary to first look at Greek thought and philosophy: those ideologies are basically Platonic understandings of faith, life and the afterlife; that the body is a chamber in which the 'soul' is stored, and we as human beings must live a good life in order to free that soul in order to join the gods, or go to some form of better life in the afterlife... This is a very basic understanding, but I can recommend a few readings: Plato's Republic, Greek Philosophyby William K. Guthrie, and Early Greek Philosophy,et al, a good translation by Jonathon Barnes.
N.T. Wright argues that American religion is founded not in Christianity, but instead in Greek thought. Paul, an author of some of the scripture in the New Testament of The Bible, according to Wright, was founded in deep Jewish theology, and his understandings of the resurrection of the Christ have been lost in modern day America.
Thus, Greek religion and philosophy have influenced American religion in such a way that American religion has now become iconic, sitcom-esque and indubitably with an escapist, almost 'legalistic' approach: do not be bad, and you will escape this horrible world and go to heaven; basically, Greek religion has indeed influenced American religion, but it is all very arguable.
A few more commentators on this subject have been John D. Crossan, N.T. Wright (as I stated many times earlier), Bart D. Ehrman, and Rudolf Bultmann.
Best of luck in your studies, and hopefully you will gain a better understanding on why religion is the way it is today, and furthermore why many, many Americans think and feel the way they do about life, death and the afterlife!
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∙ 15y ago
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What is the ancient Greek word for religion?
Ancient Greek does not have a word for religion. The Greek based word theology is the study of beliefs about god or religious beliefs.
What is to amplify in ancient Greek?
Religion and the Empire.
What was ancient Greek religion as described in the Homeric epics?
Ancient Greek religion was polytheistic. There were 12 main deities which made up the pantheon. These gods were recognized by the ancient Greeks but the gods were recognized in different ways by a wide variety of Greeks.
Ancient Greek culture laid the foundatio for Western civilization in what?
Religion
What affect does the Greek history have on the American history?
Greek history was the foundation for democracy in American History.... :-)
What religion never made it to the modern world?
There are various ancient religions that have not survived into the modern world, such as the worship of ancient Egyptian gods like Ra and Isis, or the Norse gods like Odin and Thor. These religions declined with the rise of Christianity and other dominant belief systems.
Why was Greek mythology told?
It is the ancient Greek religion.
What religion believes in Greek mythology?
Ancient Greek
What is the ancient Greek word for religion?
Ancient Greek does not have a word for religion. The Greek based word theology is the study of beliefs about god or religious beliefs.
How does Cerberus the three headed dog affect the world today?
No, Greek mythology is the religion of the ancient people of Greece - not today.
How did ancient Greek history affect American history?
The ancient Greeks gave the idea of Democracy to the Americans and many of the founding Fathers have studied famous Greek Philosophers works
What was aphrodite religion?
Aphrodite is worshiped from ancient Greek religion.
What is Aphrodite religion?
Aphrodite is worshiped from ancient Greek religion.
What religion is the greek goddess phoebe?
Ancient Greek Pagan.
What significance did myths have on the Greek people?
The Greek myths were the ancient Greek's religion.
What is to amplify in ancient Greek?
Religion and the Empire.
What is athena's religion?
Athena is a ancient Greek goddess and a part of that religion.
