The Pagan World

Ancient Religions Before Christianity

By: Hans-Friedrich Mueller, The Great Courses

Narrated by: Hans-Friedrich Mueller

In The Pagan World: Ancient Religions Before Christianity, you will meet the fascinating, ancient polytheistic peoples of the Mediterranean and beyond, their many gods and goddesses, and their public and private worship practices, as you come to appreciate the foundational role religion played in their lives. Professor Hans-Friedrich Mueller, of Union College in Schenectady, New York, makes this ancient world come alive in 24 lectures with captivating stories of intrigue, artifacts, illustrations, and detailed descriptions from primary sources of intriguing personalities.

In the ancient Mediterranean area, religion was not separate from daily life. To the contrary, religion was daily life. The many dozen gods of this ancient world were everywhere, with spirits inhabiting every crack and crevice of life. These polytheists believed they had a strict contract with their deities: If they took care of their gods, their gods would take care of them (or at least not harm them). Consequently, they built extraordinary temples to honor their deities, brought food and wine to them, sacrificed animals for them, and held sacred meals with their gods. In fact, they followed numerous rules and regulations that circumscribed almost all aspects of life both inside and outside the home - anything and everything to keep the gods happy. Consequently, the religious practices of the ancient Mediterranean make a wonderful lens through which to develop a deeper understanding of their world.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2020 The Great Courses (P)2020 The Teaching Company, LLC

Interesting and Engaging

The material was very interesting and engaging. Unfortunately, I found the occasional mispronunciations of proper names of people and places a distraction in the midst of masterfully-written scholarship.

A great listen!

This is truly a great journey through the old world of paganism. It was truly a very enlightening lecture.

Love it

Very deep and well put. Keep this type coming. I would if audible can send me more great books lije this

Good topic, lackluster performance

Great and interesting topic, just not so thrilled with the instructor. He very much read his lectures and it was very apparent, almost like he was seeing it for the first time. And his mispronouncations? Don't get me started! If someone who teaches pagan religion can't properly pronounce "apostate," they should probably find a new profession.

However, the topic is quite interesting and I did learn a few things, altho much of it was kind of basic.. Worth a listen if you are scrambling for something or not really familiar with the subject, but not sure I'd go out of my way.

Excellent oration and a captivating study!

I was impressed with the professor's ability to present the factual data (with a bit of dry humor mixed in) while distancing his presentations from personal narrative. l Enjoyed the listen very much!