About Greece - Greek Mythology

Greek Mythology
The Greeks believed in many Gods (and many generations of Gods) and believed they had both supernatural powers and human weaknesses. Probably the greatest beings in Greek Mythology are the twelve Olympian Gods who took their name from the place of their dwelling - Mount Olympus.

Zeus
The ruler of the Olympian Gods and God of the sky, thunder and justice. His weapon is a thunderbolt. Married to Hera.

Poseidon
The God of the sea, earthquakes and horses. His weapon is a trident and he is second in power to Zeus.

Hades
God of the underworld and wealth. Lord of the dead.

Hestia
Goddess of the hearth and home. The sister of Zeus.

Hera
The Godess of women, marriage and childbirth. The reigning female Godess of Olympia because she was married to Zeus.

Aris
The God of war. The son of Zeus and Hera.

Athena
The Godess of wisdom, reason, intelligent activity, arts and literature. A daughter of Zeus.

Apollo
The God of the sun, light, healing, medicine, music, poetry, prophecy, archery and truth. Son of Zeus and Leto and twin brother of Artemis

Aphrodite
The Godess of love, desire, beauty and fertility.

Hermes
The fastest of the Gods and messenger to all the other Gods. God of commerce, thieves, trade and travellers. The son of Zeus and Maia.

Artemis
Godess of chastity, virginity, childbirth, the hunt, the forest, the moon and the natural environment. The daughter of Zeus and Leto and the twin sister of Apollo.

Hephaestus
The God of fire and the forge. The son of Zeus and Hera and husband of Aphrodite.

Daedalus and Icarus
Daedalus was a famous sculptor and builder who built a great maze called "The Labyrinth" under the Palace of Knossos in Crete in which King Minos kept a monster: half man half bull (the Minotaur) in. The structure consisted of such a complicated tangle that it was impossible to get out of it. After the maze was complete, King Minos did not want Daedalus to be able to tell it's secret to anyone else, so he imprisoned him and his only son Icarus in a tall tower. Daedalus and Icarus did not like being prisoners, so started trying to think of ways to escape. After observing the birds from the windows of the tower, Deadalus decided to make wings out of bird feathers and wax for him and his son so they may fly away and be free. When tying the wings to his son Daedalus warned his son not to fly too close to the sea as the damp from the waves would wet the feathers making them too burdensome to fly with and not to fly too high in the sky as the sun would melt the wax. Icarus was so fascinated with the flight that he forgot about his father's warnings and started to soar higher and higher. As he climbed into the sky his wings started to melt, when Icarus realised what was happening he tried to fly lower again but it was too late the wings broke apart, he fell into the water and drowned.

Theseus and Ariadne
King Minos (the King of Crete) had a powerful navy of which all of Greece was afraid. He agreed with King Aegues (of Athens) that he would not attack Athens if the people of Athens agreed to send seven boys and seven girls as food for the Minotaur every year. When it became time to send the boys and girls to Crete, Prince Theseus (the son of King Aegeus) wanted to save the children and all those who may be sent in the future, so decided he would go with them to kill the minotaur. King Aegeus begged his son not to go as he was afraid his son would be devoured by the minotaur too. But Theseus was insistent and he set sail for Crete in a boat with a black sail, promising his father that the boats sail would be changed to a white one to announce if he had won and lived to come home. When they arrived in Crete they were met by King Minos and his daughter Ariadne. Princess Ariadne immediately fell in love with Prince Theseus and decided to help him with his mission. That night she gave to Theseus a sword and a ball of thread and instructed him to tie the ball of string to the door of the labyrinth where the minotaur lived and unroll it as he went through the maze so he could use it to find his was back out again once he had killed the minotaur with the sword. Prince Theseus did exactly as instructed and after he found the minotaur a big battle was fought which Theseus won by slaying the minotaur and was able to leave the labyrinth using the ball of thread to guide him.

Pandora's Box
According to greek mythology Pandora was the first woman on earth and was created by the God Zeus in an act of revenge against man. He instructed Hephaestus to create a beautiful woman who the Gods endowed with every charm (together with curiosity and deceit) and sent her to earth as a present for Epimetheus, who fell in love with her and they married. As a wedding gift Zeus sent Pandora a beautiful box which he told her never to open and gave the key for the box to Epimetheus. Over time Pandora became very curious about the contents of the box and several times begged Epimetheus to let her open it, but each time he said 'No'. Finally one day when Epimetheus was asleep Pandora stole the key and opened the box. As she lifted the lid to take a peek inside terrible things flew out of the box, every kind of disaster man had never know before: disease, despair, malice, greed, hatred, violence, cruelty and war. Unable to catch all these things before they flew away Pandora slammed down the lid and turned the key, keeping only the spirit of hope inside which Zeus had included to help keep people going when the nasty things got them down.

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The Greek population is composed of 97% Christian Orthodox (with the remaining 3% comprising of Roman Catholic, Muslims and Jews). Accoring to the history of Orthodoxy it was St Paul who first came to the Greek world to preach Christianity in 49AD. But the real founder of Orthodoxy was Emperor Constantine the Great, who converted to Christianity in the 4th century. Officially and as in all European countries the Greek State and the Orthodox Church are separate, however the Greek Orthodox Church has great power in Greek society.

Baptism
Children of Orthodox families are normally baptized shortly after birth. Orthodoxy sees baptism as more than a mere washing but a rebirth. Baptism is by full immersion because the word "baptizo" means - to immerse. During the service the water is blessed and the infant fully immersed in the water three times in the name of the Holy Trinity. According to the Holy Tradition of the Orthodox Church ONE name of Orthodox Christian origin should be given to the child at the time of baptism. The child is anointed with olive oil and then dressed in the new clothes especially purchased for this occasion alone. Four locks of hair are cut from the child's head in the sign of the cross. The role of the God parents is an important one, since the infant is unable to make the necessary confession of Faith, the Godparents stand and accept the responsibility.

Marriage
Within the Orthodox Church marriage is seen as an act of God in which he sanctifies the joining of two people into one. Marriage in the Orthodox Church has two distinct parts: The Betrothal and The Crowning.

The Betrothal includes: The exchange of the rings, the procession, the declaration of intent, and the lighting of candles. The priest blesses the rings, holds them in his right hand, and makes the sign of the cross over the Bride and Grooms heads. The exchange of rings symbolizes the unbreakable bond of Christian Marriage and the rings are placed on their right hands, for it is the right hand of God that blesses and it was the right hand of God to which Christ ascended.

The Crowning includes: The readings from the epistle and gospel, the Blessing of the Common Cup, the Dance of Isaiah, and then the Removal of the Crowns. The focal point of the crowning ceremony is the exchanging of the wedding crowns (stefana) which are joined by a ribbon symbolizing the unity of the couple and the presence of Christ who blesses and joins the couple and establishes them as the King and Queen of their home. The priest takes the two crowns and blesses The Bride and The Groom, in the name of the Father, and the Son, and of the Holy Spirit and then places the crowns on their heads. The Koumbaro (best man) then steps behind the Bride and Groom and interchanges the crowns three times as a witness to the sealing of the union. Wine is then drunk by the couple from the Common Cup which serves to impress upon the couple that from that moment on they will share everything in life. Whilst three hymns are chanted the priest leads the Bride and the Groom in a circle around the table (the Dance of Isaiah) on which the Gospel and the Cross are placed. The circle symbolizes eternity and the triple circling honours the Holy Spirit. At the conclusion of the Ceremonial Walk, the priest removes the crowns thus ending the marriage ceremony.
There is no exchange of vows. There is a set expectation of the obligations incumbent on a married couple, and whatever promises they may have privately to each other are their responsibility to keep. Finally there is the greeting of the couple. Divorce is rare in the Orthodox Church.