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Special Guest: Colin Wadey on the nature of religion in the ancient and modern world
Manage episode 473281355 series 3622287
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In this episode of the Bristol Grammar School Classics Podcast, Andy Keen and Dan Watkins are joined by Colin Wadey, teacher of Philosophy and Ethics, for a wide-ranging discussion on the nature of religion in the ancient and modern world.
The conversation explores the differences—and similarities—between Greek and Roman polytheism and the monotheistic traditions of Judaism and Christianity. They examine how religious practice in antiquity was more about action than belief, and how ideas of sacrifice, afterlife, and the divine evolved across time. Topics include the transactional nature of ancient worship, the development of cults like Mithras and Asclepius, and the mythic versus historical framing of sacred stories.
Along the way, they reflect on the role of myth, paradox, and meaning-making in religious thought, question whether we're really so different from the ancients, and consider whether searching for truth might be more important than finding it.
Chapters
1. Introduction (00:00:00)
2. Polytheism (00:01:25)
3. The "Problem of Evil" (00:06:55)
4. Practice and belief (00:11:18)
5. Temples and sacrifice (00:11:58)
6. "do ut des" (00:15:40)
7. Hero cults and state religion (00:19:56)
8. 597 BC in Babylon (00:23:00)
9. "May I sing it?" (00:26:54)
10. What is a "myth"? (00:29:11)
11. Resurrection, the underworld, and katabasis (00:31:32)
12. Do you believe in love? (00:35:33)
13. The trolley problem and paradoxes (00:39:34)
14. Final thought: Wittgenstein and the ancient mind (00:42:15)
31 episodes
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