The City of the Athenians

Today was our day to explore Athens. The Greek name for Athens is more accurately translated into the city of the Athenians. This in a way at the stage for the mindset of the three people living here. The city was truly one that belonged to the people and there was a prominence of worship to the gods, especially Athena. We left early in the morning to try and bet the crowds. Our first stop of the morning was the Acropolis. As we talked about the site at the foot of the hill, I noticed how strikingly similar the Acropolis to the temple mount in Jerusalem. We talked about the historical context and culture of the ancient Greeks that would have been using the temples on the Acropolis. On top of the Acropolis there are a multiple temples to the gods, including the Parthenon. The architecture of these temples were stunning; they are truly works of art. We learned about the process the ancient Greeks would have had to go through to build all these buildings and it showed their dedication and engineering powers. The Parthenon was built in 9 years in ancient times, and the restoration of it in modern times has lasted for decades.

We went down to Mars Hill at the foot of the Acropolis and read the account in acts of Paul preaching to the people of Athens. Again it was powerful to read this account in the place where it took place. To look up at the Acropolis from Mars Hill, you are almost overwhelmed by the wealth, opulence and the perceived power of Athens and the Greek gods. For Paul to be preaching about Jesus would have been going against every aspect of the culture. The power and truth of the gospel is so evident here when you read that some Athenians, who could see all the wealth and power the gods had in their society, have all this up for the one true God. This account in Acts 17 shows us that Paul tailors the presentation of his message to his audience. To the Athenians, a people who believed in the importance of thought and worship of the gods, Paul gives an intellectual presentation of the gospel that deals with the worship of God and how God interacts with people.

We then went down to the ancient agora, where ruins still stood and there is a museum there as well. The agora would have been a place to congregate on ancient times, to conduct business and meet. The great philosophers such as Aristotle, Socrates and Plato would have come here to have their dialogs and discussions. It amazing to walk around in a place with so much history both to our religion and to our culture and easy of thought. We had some free time to explore downtown Athens. It was nice to be able to explore the city and to get off the tourist path. I just walked around for a few hours, taking in the sights and sounds of the city. On our way back home, we stopped at the stadium of the first Olympic Games! I got to run the track and get up on the award podium, it was super cool, I was pretty pumped up the whole time I was there.

We came back home, the Athenian suburb Kifisia, had dinner and then had more free time. I decided to go out in the suburb we were staying in and have a look around. I ended up finding a gelato, coffee shop that was showing the Greece game in the World Cup. It was fun to be in the country of the team playing, especially a country that cares about soccer. Unfortunately, Greece got slaughtered, but the crowds weren’t too upset. I made my way back as the game ended in order to make it back for the Greek dance lessons we were going to have. One of the members of the church was a dance instructor and he and his wife taught us four traditional Greek dances. We learned war dances, wedding dances, and dances for all occasions. It was a blast, everyone was really into it, including the professors. I was pretty good at it, if I say so myself, I really got a hang of the snapping accompanied by hip movements. It was a really fun time!