1. GREEK RELIGION

2. 4.1 Olympian gods
• Polytheistic
• Same appearance and sentiments as
humans, but they differed because of:
• immortality (they lived forever)
• exceptional powers
• They were thought to live in Mount
Olympus.

3. Do you know what a
story is called when
there is no scientific
evidence?

4. It is called a…. MYTH!!!
The Greeks had a lot of myths to explain:
1)
Human emotions (anger, love, jealousy, family
fights and battles…)
2) Natural disasters and events (famine,
earthquakes, birth/pregnancy, death…)
MYTHOLOGY = tales of gods & heroes.

5. Every culture has a creation
myth/explanation:
How does your culture
explain the creation of
the Earth???
With science?
With religion?
With myths?

6.  The universe began in a state of emptiness
called Chaos.
 Gaia (Earth), arose out of Chaos.
 Gaia mated with Uranus, producing
children who were called the Titans.

7.  Fearing his children,
Uranus confined them
within the huge body of
Gaia.
 Gaia and Cronus, the
youngest Titan, plotted
revenge. Using a sickle
provided by Gaia, Cronus
attacked Uranus
and castrated him—that
is, removed his sex
organs.

8.  Cronus then freed the Titans from
inside Gaia and became king of the
gods.
 During his reign, the work of creating
the world continued.
 Thousands of divinities were born,
including the gods or goddesses of
death, night, the rivers, and sleep.

9.  Cronus married his sister
Rhea. They had 3 daughters
& 3 sons together.
 But Cronus feared that he,
like Uranus, would be taken
over by his children. He
therefore swallowed his
first five children as soon as
they were born.
 To save her sixth child, Zeus,
Rhea hid the infant Zeus on
the island of Crete.

10.  After Zeus grew up, he
returned to challenge his
father. Zeus then led his
brothers and sisters in a
war against Cronus and
the other Titans.
 This war was called the
Titanomachy. It lasted
10 years. Zeus and his
followers finally won the
war.

12.  The victorious gods and goddesses chose
Zeus as their ruler and agreed to live with
him on Mount Olympus.

13. Who are some of the most
important Greek gods?

14. ZEUS
Roman name Jupiter
• Zeus was the
supreme god of the
Olympians.

15. Hera
Roman name Juno
• Hera was the
goddess of marriage.
She was the wife of
Zeus and Queen of
the Olympians.

16. APHRODITE
Roman name Venus
• Aphrodite was the
goddess of love,
beauty and fertility.
She was also a
protectress of
sailors.

17. ARES
Roman name Mars
• Ares was the god of
war, or more
precisely of warlike
frenzy.

18. HEPHAESTUS
Roman name Vulcan
• Hephaestus was the
god of fire and crafts
or the two together,
hence of
blacksmiths.

19. ARTEMIS
Roman name Diana
• Artemis was the
goddess of the hunt.
She helped women in
childbirth, but also
brought sudden
death with her
arrows.

20. HESTIA
Roman name VESTA
• She is Zeus´s
sister and wife
She takes care of
the Hearth and
protects homes
and born children.

21. HERMES
Roman name Mercury
• Hermes was the
messenger of the
gods and guide of
dead souls to the
Underworld.

22. POSEIDON
Roman name Neptune
• Poseidon was the
god of the sea,
earthquakes and
horses. Although he
was officially one of
the supreme gods of
Mount Olympus, he
spent most of his
time in his watery
domain.

23. APOLLO
Roman name Apollo
• Apollo was the god
of prophesy, music
and healing.

24. ATHENA
Roman name Minerva
• Athena was the
goddess of crafts
and the domestic
arts and also those
of war and wisdom.
She was the patron
goddess of Athens.
Her symbol was the
owl.

25. HADES
Roman name Pluto
• Hades was the God
of the dead and ruler
of the Underworld,
which was called
Hades after the god.
Hades abducted
Persephone, who
became his queen.

26. The Romans adopted their
religion and changed the
names of the gods.
Look at page 121. Can you see how the
Romans changed the names? Give some
examples:

27. • Greeks also believed in heroes (½ god,
½ human), like Achilles (Aquiles) or
Heracles (Hércules)

28. 4.2 Religious worship
Greeks worshipped their gods in several ways…

29. PRAYERS, OFFERINGS &
ANIMAL SACRIFICES
Took place in the temples.

30. ORACLES
The gods’ answers to human questions.
Temple of Apollo, where the
Oracle of Delphi took place

31. GAMES OR SPORTING
COMPETITIONS
Festivals dedicated to the gods.
-most important took place in Olympia in
honor of Zeus

32. Activity: Role-play!!!
In small groups (4 or 5 students), you will
create a short play based on the
Olympic gods.
You must each represent a god and invent
a myth where all the gods play an
important role.
The play should be about 5-10 minutes.
• Gods’ and their symbols are on page 121