Athena, Demeter and Dionysus | The Worship of Ancient Gods before Christianity

For thousands of years before the time of Jesus, pagan religions flourished and gave rise to some of the most vibrant cultures the world has ever seen. While Greco-Roman worship of Athena took place publicly, mystery religions, such as the worship of Demeter and Dionysus, required secret initiation away from the public. The tolerance of the polytheistic state did not always permit, and sometimes even persecuted, such worshippers, especially those who followed Dionysus—the god of intoxication. This video is episode nine from the series The Pagan World: Ancient Religions before Christianity, presented by Hans-Friedrich Mueller. Watch the full series at https://www.thegreatcourses.com/youtube. 00:00 Civic Cults and the World of Mystery Religions 00:51 How Athena Earned Her Epithet 02:07 How the Goddess Ge Was Conceived 03:10 Birth of the Panathenaic Festival 04:15 Contests in the Panathenaic Festival 05:28 The Procession and Animal Sacrifice 08:30 Demeter, Goddess of Grain 08:40 The Greatest Example of Exclusively Female Worship 10:35 What Are the Eleusinian Mysteries? 13:00 What is a Mystagogos? 15:00 What is the Highest Grade of Initiation? 17:00 The Worship of Dionysus 18:20 Depiction of Dionysus in The Bacchae by Euripides 20:00 What Are Maenads? 22:00 What Was the General Stance toward Polytheism? 23:30 Advantages of Joining a Non-State Cult 25:25 Why Did the State Sometimes Object to Cults? 26:00 Similarities/Differences between Mystery Religions and Christianity ------------------------------------------- Welcome to The Great Courses on YouTube. Here, you can enjoy a diverse sampling of educational videos from our extensive library of courses, all taught by some of the world’s greatest professors and subject matter experts. If you are enjoying these videos, you can discover more amazing Great Courses content with ad-free, unlimited streaming of thousands of lectures on subjects ranging from history, science, art, philosophy, and literature to professional development, health and wellness, world travel, hobbies, and so much more with The Great Courses streaming services. With four services to choose from, there’s a Great Courses membership that’s right for you. Discover your perfect fit at https://www.thegreatcourses.com/youtube.