Ask a Greek what Hellenism means and you may be surprised by their
response. Answers could range from anything dealing with Greek Culture,
language, or the Greek people themselves, but what of a worldview? In
modern times, Hellenism has been used by academics and Greeks alike, to
identify the totality of the Greek people and their culture, encompassing not
only ancient Greece and its civilization, but also the Eastern Roman Empire and
the Modern Greek state. However, there are some with a truly compelling argument
that would disagree with this definition. For these individuals, the moment
Greeks broke with their ancestral traditions and adopted the Christian faith,
and through it a Biblical worldview, a new legacy was born. This Greco-Roman
blending with Christianity resulted in the birth of Romiosini, which has
since masqueraded itself as Hellenism.
This philosophical split of the Hellenic ethnos came during the
early days of Christianity, when ethnic Greeks that adopted Christianity began
identifying themselves as Romioi (Romans), and in some cases Grece [1]. It is around this time
that the word “Hellene” became synonymous with those who had not converted to the new
faith, and remained loyal to their ancestral traditions [1]. Those who kept these
ancient traditions eventually began to refer to themselves as Ethnikoi [2].
Today in Greece the total number of Ethnikoi is unknown; however
some estimates claim that there are roughly 2,000 adherents to the ancient
traditions and 100,000 sympathizers [3]. Referred to simply as Hellenismos,
the movement and/or methodology for re-establishing this historical
pre-Christian “religion” of ancient Greece is known as Hellenic
Reconstructionism.
The Theology and Practices of Hellenismos
“Ethnikoi Hellenes’ perceive the Cosmos to be a self-created,
infinite, ‘ordered and adorned’ entity that arose from within itself, and that
we and everything else in existence, are but infinitely small organic parts of
this entity” [2]. Modern Hellenismos is non-dogmatic, hence in an Abrahamic
sense; it may be conceived more as an orthopraxy rather than orthodoxy. For
those unfamiliar with this terminology, for the former, maintains emphasis on
conduct, while for the latter on blind faith. This is not to say that Hellenismos
does not have a philosophical belief system, but rather that it does not stress
centralized beliefs in the form of creeds. It instead focuses on matters, such
as cultural integrity, through the transmission of traditions, a worldview, and
ethical systems.
Hellenic Polytheists worship the Hellenic Pantheon of ancestral
Gods (Olympian and Chthonic), natural divinities, and ancient heroes, as well
as honor both their physical and spiritual ancestors. As stated by the Supreme
Council of Ethnikoi Hellenes (Y.S.E.E.), “Our Gods are a multitude of
apportioned immortal beings, self-energizing and self-sufficient ‘forces’, not
personalities, that inhabit this ‘Unity’ that gave birth to itself. They are
the multiple expressions of this Unity that give substance and order to the
Cosmos and keep it interconnected and harmonious” [2].
Since ancient Greeks did not have a systematized theology or
doctrine; modern adherents synthesized their theology from a rich collection of
ancient texts and schools of Hellenic philosophy, such as Neo-Platonism and
Stoicism to name just a few. Their ethnical convictions are inspired by ancient
Hellenic virtues such as reason, reciprocity, hospitality, self-control,
moderation, and heroic self-sacrifice.
Ethnikoi Hellenes of Italy
When Greeks in the Diaspora discuss the Hellenic heritage of Italy
they immediately think “Magna Graecia” or of the Griko people of Southern
Italy. However, there is an entirely unknown, living heritage that has never
been thought of, the Ethnikoi of Italy. It is here that I would like to
introduce the reader to a young woman named, Laura Mainardi. Known as Daphne
Eleusinia by most people, Daphne is a 30 year old Hellenic Polytheist from
Milan. As a link in a forgotten chain of Italiote and Siciliote heritage, I was
curious to learn more, and was honored to have a chance to chat with Daphne
about the Hellenic Polytheists of Italy.
Interview
What leads a girl from Milan to adopt the ancient Hellenic
Religion?
DE: It is quite
difficult to reply precisely to this question, since a deep love and interest
towards the Hellenic religion has always accompanied me, since my childhood. My
first memories are full of recollections of trips to Hellas and Magna Grecia
with my parents, of Temples and of images of the Gods and of myself who used to
pray to Them, since I was a little child. After all, the first book I read was
about ancient Hellenic mythology, and all this has affected my life, and still
affects it, in a very beautiful way. I was about fifteen years old, when I
started to read seriously the dialogues of Plato, and to him I owe the greatest
debt since it was from that moment that I started to openly follow the Hellenic
religion, by saying to all people, teachers, friends, kin: "yes, I worship
the Gods, as Plato, the greatest philosopher, used to do!" So, I have
always felt as if I had received a very great gift by having come to know the
Hellenic Tradition, and when you receive such a gift, you have an infinite debt
of gratitude, a debt which I try to compensate by spreading the knowledge that
I have received and by encouraging people, from all around the world, to study,
understand, and love the Hellenic religion, history, heroes and values as gifts
to all humanity.
What type of religious up bring did you have; and what type of
reaction did you receive from your family and friends after adopting Hellenismos?
DE: My family was
moderately catholic. So I was brought up in a mildly Christian environment, but
my parents always encouraged me to find my own way, to use my brain to not
become just another sheep in the flock. Thus, I didn't have problems with my
family; on the contrary, even my father started to practice Hellenismos! Family
and friends, even those who do not follow the ancient Traditions, respect my
choice. They’ve come to see that it is not a 'fashion' or something playful,
but something very serious to which I’ve dedicated my entire life.
With Italy being such a devout Roman Catholic country, what type
of reaction do individuals that take up polytheism face?
DE: Italy is unfortunately
heavily influenced by the presence of the Vatican state, an influence that can
be seen in many fields: politics, economy and, of course, religion. And yet on
the other the other hand, the churches are almost devoid of people and very few
would define themselves as 'good Christians'. Thus we have a country which is
formally the core of Catholicism, with a population who doesn't care at all for
the dictates of the Vatican. Moreover, the Italian State has recently recognized
Hinduism and Buddhism as official religions of the country, and it is clear
that many Polytheists wish for the same acknowledgment. I have to say that we
face two kinds of reactions: one is of openness and curiosity, interest and
respect- and it's, fortunately, the prevailing one. There are also,
however, cases of great intolerance: some friends of mine have erected public
altars and found them destroyed, the stones scattered here and there, just like
in the old times when the monks and priests travelled throughout Europe to
destroy each single image and altar dedicated to the Gods: the same fanaticism.
We also face a malignant propaganda against us, which depicts us, as the pope
has said, as worshippers of Satan, evil people without values, foolish or
nostalgic persons, and so on. I think that the only way by which we can change
the mind of the population toward the ancient religions and their followers is
to demonstrate practically what we are, what our values are, and most
important, what our Ideal is. We have now a great opportunity since, as I have
said, the population is weary of the model offered by the Christianity, and is
eager to see if there is another model, and another possibility. Our duty is to
tell them: yes, there is another possibility, that of our common Ancestors!
Tell me a little about the Hellenic Polytheist community in Italy.
DE: First off, I must say
that the Hellenic community in Italy is a very particular phenomenon, because
we do not have a 'formal' association, and therefore I cannot tell you
precisely how many of us exist. I will say that we consider anyone who is a
devotee and shares the principles and ideals of the Greco-Roman world as a
member of our community.
Curiously enough, the Hellenic Community- Hellenismo- was born as
a 'virtual symposium', about three years ago. Many friends joined together
wishing to have a group/community to share knowledge, experiences, thoughts and
doubts...we wished to grow together in a spiritual way, against the degradation
and decadence of the modern world, and to motivate others interested in doing
the same. The more we worked and
the more we saw a growing demand for more knowledge, more dialogues, more
events, etc. After three years, we have an ever-growing participation from
individuals who feel an attraction towards the ancient Hellenic religion and
values. My hope is that this may be just the beginning of a more wide and
sweeping phenomenon, just like the Renaissance, whose greatness was based in
fact on the principles of the Greco-Roman world- which is precisely what is
needed now. We must first create a cultural Renaissance, and then,
naturally, will follow the religious one, because, as the Ancients said, every
ascending movement of the soul starts with the acquisition of knowledge.
The only problem currently is visibility. We are scarcely known
outside the sphere of Polytheists, and we need to reach more people to spread
our message. That is why I have always insisted on the opportunity given by
modern technologies, by which we can reach a wider range of people. For
example, I have decided to publish our monthly magazine online and free for all
and, after a year of publication, we have a total of thousands of readers, not
only from the Polytheistic community, but also from scholars, students and
average people…people who write comments like this: "this is our ancestral culture and heritage, this is
paideia of the soul" or "I see here everything that represents the
best of the Western civilization, the Ideal of Greece is never dead, a millennial
archetype does not vanish." These people are not 'formal' members
of our community, we do not know even their names outside the internet, but the
message has reached them, they are ready for the new Renaissance.
What other types of activities does your community do?
DE: As a community, we have
not yet begun to hold public celebrations, mostly because we live a great
distance from one another and it is almost impossible to meet on a regular
basis. We have small groups here and there who celebrate privately the main
rituals of our religion. Thus, we strongly encourage each one to undertake the
private cult in his/her oikos, following the religious calendar that we have
reconstructed- the Attic Calendar- which is not the result of inventions or
arbitrary additions, but is philologically valid and, at the same time,
perfectly applicable in our present days. The same thing holds true for
the basic manuals that we are creating for the household worship, on purifications,
libations and other various necessary rituals. At the same time, we are
convinced that we need to spread this knowledge and this is our greatest and
most important activity. We promote dialogue on our groups and blogs, we
continue to publish our online magazine that contains the results of those
dialogues and of the passionate and precious works of our friends. We have
recently started also to publish books- the last one is about the ancient poets
of Hellas, as Corinna and Erinna, which are scarcely known outside the circle
of the scholars and were never translated before into Italian.
As our conversation came to a close, I had but one question on my
mind. Did Daphne identify as an Ethniko or as an Italian Hellenist?
DE: This question it is not
easy to reply. I have often pondered this problem within myself and I have come
to this conclusion: of course I was born in Italy and I love this country, it
is such a beautiful place and full of ancient cities, culture, traditions, etc.
and all these things will always be important to me. At the same time, the only
place that I have always felt as 'homeland, land of the Ancestors' is Hellas,
so, in the end, my reply can be only "Ethniko Hellene".
The ‘taboo’ image of Hellenic Polytheism in Greek America
For many inside Greek America and the Diaspora itself, the idea of
Hellenic Polytheism seems a little too taboo. I’ve heard many Greeks say
privately, “I do not associate with those types of people” or attempt to
portray the Hellenic Reconstructionist movement as a conspiracy, in which
‘masons or other similar types of people’ are trying to divide the Greek
people. For me, this is an extremely ignorant and furthermore closed-minded
attitude, especially when we are speaking about people that are honoring the views
of our ancestors. If this belief system was good enough for the likes of Plato
and Aristotle; the cause behind the Renaissance, and the train of thought that
lead to Democracy, why should it be so taboo or thought of in a negative way?
Why should those who choose to follow it be looked at differently within our
community?
Today, the remnants of Hellenic Civilization in Italy are much
more than just the Griko people or the archaeological sites of Magna Graecia.
For the first time in generations, it is now also the Ethnikoi. Communities
such as this one are an opportunity for Greeks to connect with an entirely
forgotten and overlooked part of our Diaspora. These Ethnikoi communities
should be embraced by the entire Greek Diaspora and not only by other Ethnikoi.
Sources:
[1]Rassias, Vlassis G. TheEnglish Lexicon of Standard Terminology for Hellenismos. Translated and
adapted by Mano and Lesley Madytinos.
[2] The Supreme Council of
Ethnikoi Hellenes. Frequently asked questions about the Ethnic Hellenicreligion and tradition.
[3] Brunwasser, Matthew.
Letter From Greece: The Gods Return to Olympus. Volume 58 Number 1,
January/February 2005
Interview:
Daphne Varenya
Eleusinia, email interview, March 27th, 2013
