Greek Myth

What I think one can gain from Greek myth, even after one knows the truth of Christianity, is Greek myth as a body of influence fills you with universal types...and also depicts - which is rare - higher bodies which kind of at least gives our minds and imaginations *something*, or *some material* to think of glorification in. There is also the interaction between heaven and Earth. Greek myth actually makes all the different cosmos realms vivid. Underworld, upperworld, this world, a higher vision of this world as well. It's a unique and valuable body of influence.

From a Work perspective also you can *see* or *feel* in the very composure or constitution of certain personages depicted in Greek myth, men or women, a stability of inner world, or contact with higher centers. These are valuable things to be influenced by.

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Just a few chapters into Schwab's book on Greek myth I didn't realize how striking the correspondences to biblical events the Greek myths are. I mean the flood narrative is well known, but I didn't realize Zeus sent the flood because man had become over-the-line evil. Also, in the depiction Schwab (or Hamilton, I forget) gives of Pandora, it is more striking how you think of Eve as you're reading it. Zeus creates Pandora to be the agent of all the trouble for mankind. Eve of course is really the one who ate of the forbidden fruit then drew Adam into the act as well.

Here's one. Orpheus being told to not look back as he is exiting Hades and his wife is following him. But he does look back and his wife has to return to the realm of death. Now it's not an exact correspondence, but who doesn't think of Lot and Lot's wife looking back and being turn into a pillar of salt (probably just a metaphor for death, I would suppose) when they are told not to look back.

There are many correspondences in the Four Ages of Man. The silver age men became demons when they died. I'm not sure that in Greek thinking that meant the evil type.

Anyway, I'm not a liberal theologian who is saying: "It's all myth! The Bible, Greek myth, all of it!" No, there is a master narrative and a master source that the broken, half-remembered, dream-like myth is derived from.

But having said that, I also think the depictions of things in Greek myth can even *add* to understanding of the master narrative and master source. Not in a doctrinal or canonical way, but in a 'widening' way. An opening out way. A context way. Though that's not a statement I could make around Christians and theologians, because they would think I was giving at least a *degree* of verity or 'extra-biblical prophetic warrant' to Greek myth or myth in general, and I'm not. Not to any degree. It's just general impressions available for people who are able to discern worth in general revelation and not contaminate special revelation with it.

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There are a lot of pages on the internet about the similarity between the Bible and Greek Myth, but it's all mostly shallow, and with the usual atheist idiocy. People who think the Old Testament was written after Jesus died, for instance.

Basically what I conclude is Greek Myth mirrors Genesis 1-11 in foundational ways. I mean, it gives credence to those formative events. There of course are also Messianic themes in Greek Myth as well. Jesus Himself, and themes of sacrifice and all that.

The Bible gets really mystical though. It begins to speak of the Spirit and cosmoses (Kingdoms). Perhaps that is mirrored in Greek mystery religions.

One personal theme here in my going into this subject is the connection we have to either the Hebrew or the Greek in terms of influences. I've written about this long ago, but all literature can really be divided in 'feel' between Greek and Hebrew. I forget how I defined or explained that before, but it's just a matter of what kinds of influences you are drawn towards. It's like there's a Hebrew path up the mountain of B Influence and a Greek path. I'm having a hard time thinking of examples now too. I guess Emerson would feel more Greek whereas Thoreau would feel more Hebrew? Maybe not a good example, but you get the picture. Anyway, I have always been more of an Emerson, or Greek, type. Coming up the ranks.

So when we come to the Bible we get the full Hebrew world feel, and it can always seem a bit foreign. But that's OK, because truth doesn't have to feel comfortable. In fact it will most likely feel uncomfortable.

I think doctrinal works, Reformation era for instance, have more of a Greek feel to them. More mystical. More rational. (All these words can be defined many ways and associated with either Hebrew or Greek or whatever, I realize that, but I'm hoping what I mean is basically getting across.)