Hellenism – how could one word cast such a long shadow over our New Testament? It is difficult to comprehend that a Roman Empire could be so dominated by Greek thought.
I define Hellenism as the spreading of Greek culture throughout the lands conquered by Alexander the Great. Many scholars (and there is room for debate) date the Hellenistic age from 323 BC (with the death of Alexander) to either 30 BC (when Rome conquered Egypt) or until sometime around 300 AD. Regardless of which terminating point one chooses, it is readily apparent that this age overlaps the time frame in which Jesus Christ was born, the early church was founded, and the New Testament was written.
Alexander, tutored by Aristotle, believed Greek philosophy offered the key to enlightenment for the barbarians. Thus, he became a “missionary” for Hellenism. People in Egypt spoke Greek as their lingua franca. The language leaves its mark on the first century with words like synagogue and ecclesia to denote houses of worship.
What is the Christian response to Hellenism? Is this culture, this worldview, compatible with Christianity? Matthew Arnold stated, “The final aim of both Hellenism and Hebraism, as of all great spiritual disciplines, is no doubt the same: man’s perfection or salvation…[quoting Peter’s passage concerning us as partakers of the divine nature, he continues]… These are the words of a Hebrew apostle, but of Hellenism and Hebraism alike this is, I say, the aim.”
In seeking to answer the question on the compatibility of Christianity to Hellenism, a further question must be answered: “Is any earthly culture totally in sympathy with a divinely revealed religion?” Rather than argue that Christianity and Hellenism are at odds, perhaps one should view Hellenistic culture as a tool by which the early church communicated the Gospel. Many illustrations from Paul are drawn from a Hellenistic culture – indicating that Paul did not see this particular culture as something that must be totally shed when he accepted Christ.
While there is merit in the culture as a tool to express Christian thought, the danger that one must be aware of is that the message does not become culturally driven. The Gospel must also be preached to those who have not been influenced by Greek philosophy. Christians are ambassadors of Christ; not of culture. Missionaries attest to the fact that the Gospel can be plainly understood by any of the cultures of the world with time, prayer, and work.
This summary has found Hellenism, as with other cultures of today, can be compatible with Christianity as long as culture does not take the rightful place of Christ. Cultural references, manners of life, and philosophical paradigms can serve as tools or starting points to communicate the Gospel. (The approach of Christ with the Samaritan woman would be different than His approach with the Rich Young Ruler; Paul’s approach at Mars’ Hill was different than his approach in Philippi. Knowing the audience and the culture in which one is attempting to evangelize earns respect for the soul winner as he works to present Christ.)
With a background in place, it is now time to demonstrate from the New Testament where knowledge of Hellenism can help with interpretation. Hellenism influenced Christianity from two manners: directly and indirectly. Directly, it affected Jewish culture, especially those Jews in the Diaspora. Indirectly, Hellenism left its mark on Judaism, which influenced Christianity.
An example where a background of Hellenism is useful is found in Acts 17:22-34. In this passage, Paul is both defending the validity of the message of Christ as well as evangelizing people to his faith. One quickly notes that this event is taking place at the Aeropagus in Athens. This passage is loaded with terms that point us to Hellenistic thought: the Epicureans and Stoics are speaking and polytheistic religion with all of the idols is found here.
To fully understand what Paul is battling here, it is necessary to visualize how this Hellenistic city looked during Paul’s visit. Davies, in his book St. Paul in Greece, describes the city:
“We learn from Pliny that at the time of Nero, Athens contained over three thousand public statues, besides a countless number of lesser images within the walls of private houses. Of this number the great majority were statues of gods, demi-gods, or heroes. In one street there stood before every house a square pillar carrying upon it a bust of the god Hermes… Every street, every square, nay, every purlieu, had its sanctuaries, and a Roman poet bitterly remarked that it was easier in Athens to find gods than men.”
Kistemaker points out that with the polytheistic mindset of the Greeks, they believed that Paul was presenting two deities, Jesus and his female companion, Anastasia (resurrection). With all the idols, having two more gods was not really needed in Athens.
They had not heard about Jesus and had no teaching on the resurrection; hence their comment that Paul “seems to be a proclaimer of foreign deities.” Paul quickly lets this crowd know that this is not a question of “foreign deities / strange gods.” Rather, it is a proclamation of the One True God, the one that they had called, “Unknown.”
In verse 28 of Paul’s sermon, he states, “In him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, ‘For we are also his offspring.’” Here, Paul is using the Hellenistic culture as a tool to point his audience to Christ. Two Greek poets are quoted here, each of them extolling the virtues of their god, Zeus. The first one is the Cretan poet, Epimenides. The second quote comes from Aratus, a native of Cilicia. The Greek pyramid of gods had Zeus at the top. It was from him that the Greeks “live and are moved, and have our being.”
While this is only a brief survey of Hellenism’s shadow, another example is also provided: Colossians 2:18. The whole of Colossians is written to arm Gentile Christians against the pervading Hellenistic thought that dominated Colossae. Specifically, Colossians 2:18 mentions the “worshipping of angels.”
The worshipping of angels/messengers was not uncommon in the Hellenistic world. It is possible that the philosophy of Colossians 2:8 was a syncretic fusion of Hebraic and Hellenistic thought being adapted by the Christians at Colossae. Dunn observes that “these angels could be seen within the “philosophy” as either benevolent, and therefore to be worshiped to attain their blessing, or malevolent, and therefore to be appeased.” Gill comments on this passage by stating that this practice “very early prevailed among some that were called Christians, and for a long time continued in Phrygia and Pisidia.” House, in Bibliotheca Sacra, (149, April 1992) deals with Colossian syncretism of Hellenistic cults and Jewish mysticism in detail.
What should be gleaned from these two biblical illustrations? Namely, that beneath the words of inspired text, Paul is alluding to practices that were very common in those areas influenced by Greek thought. The danger the early Gentile Christians (and to some extent, the Jewish Christians, especially those that were Hellenized Jews) faced was to create a smorgasbord religion that took parts of Jewish, Greek, and Christian thought and fused them together. In some ways, this is exactly what has happened with the Catholic Church. Rather, Paul was advocating that Jesus was not just another god, He is THE God. He is not just someone to add to your current belief system; He is THE Way, the Truth, and the Life – He is the only mediator between God and men (and hence, worshipping of angels would definitely be illegitimate, especially if Paul is taken to be the writer of Hebrews where the Father commands the angels to worship the Son.)
This false philosophy was pervasive in the early church. It is still pervasive in elements of our culture today. As Christians, we must constantly be careful to not read our culture into the Scriptures – lest we become guilty like those at Colossae. We must allow our culture to be informed by Scripture instead.