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Conclusion

Athens and Jerusalem

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 July 2024

James Bernard Murphy
Affiliation:
Dartmouth College, New Hampshire
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Summary

Both Socratic Greek philosophy and biblical religion endorse the human aspiration to become as much like a god or God as is humanly possible. This fact testifies to the important role that ideals of perfection play in human life. Against this fundamental similarity, however, important differences arise. First, in Socratic philosophy, deification rests on human not divine initiative. Socratic deification is primarily the product of rational self-discipline. The Bible, however, rejects as prideful this Greek ideal of self-deification. Biblical deification rests on divine not human initiative. Second, the gods of the Socratic philosophers are personifications of reason rather than divine persons. The gods of the philosophers are paradigms to be imitated rather than persons with whom we are in relationship. Third, the gods of the Socratic philosophers are cosmic gods whom we approach through the study of the orderly motion of the celestial bodies. By contrast, the biblical God is a divine person whom we approach through loving union with other persons, divine and human. Greek salvation takes us from here to there, from earth to heaven; biblical salvation takes us from now to then, from the present to the future.

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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  • Conclusion
  • James Bernard Murphy, Dartmouth College, New Hampshire
  • Book: Deification in Classical Greek Philosophy and the Bible
  • Online publication: 10 July 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009392945.008
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  • Conclusion
  • James Bernard Murphy, Dartmouth College, New Hampshire
  • Book: Deification in Classical Greek Philosophy and the Bible
  • Online publication: 10 July 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009392945.008
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Conclusion
  • James Bernard Murphy, Dartmouth College, New Hampshire
  • Book: Deification in Classical Greek Philosophy and the Bible
  • Online publication: 10 July 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009392945.008
Available formats
×