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Hellenism () in a religious context refers to the modern pluralistic religion practiced in Greece and around the world by several communities derived from the beliefs, Greek mythology, and rituals from antiquity through and up to today. It is a system of thought and spirituality with a shared culture and values, and common ritualistic, linguistic, and literary tradition. More broadly, Hellenism centers itself on the worship of Hellenic deities, namely the twelve Olympians.
Greeks who identify their religion and way of life with Hellenism are commonly referred to as Εθνικοί Έλληνες (Ethnic Hellenes). Non-Greek devotees of the Greek gods who embody Hellenic ideals commonly referred to Hellenists. Hellenism is sometimes referred to as a Pagan religion; this classification is also at times used as a pejorative for Greeks. Olympianismos (Olympianism) and Neopaganismos (Modern paganism) are used by the Greek Orthodox Church in a derogatory manner, while the term Dodekatheismos (religion of twelve gods) is used by both Christian critics and some polytheists.
Another more general name for this religion is Hellenic polytheism or paganism. This term is used most often outside of Greece.
Some academics use the term 'ancient Greek religion' as a catch-all term in Greece, in order to differentiate it from the Orthodox religion which is also sometimes presented as the 'national religion'. Followers of "ancient Greek religion" in Greece argue that the term "ancient" is not appropriate, as they claim their beliefs have been continuously practiced, sometimes secretly, and are still alive today.
Ancient Greek religion has manifested itself as 'known religion' (γνωστή θρησκεία) in Greece through the two religious names, Hellenic Ethnic Religion and Ancient Hellenic Religion. Hellenic Ethnic Religion is represented by the Supreme Council of Ethnic Hellenes (Greek language: Ύπατο Συμβούλιο των Ελλήνων Εθνικών) while Ancient Hellenic Religion is represented by Ellinais (Hellenic Ancient-Religious Holy Society) (Greek language: ΕΛΛΗΝ.Α.Ι.Σ - Ελλήνων Αρχαιοθρήσκων Ιερόν Σωματείον)
Various religious movements reviving or reconstructing ancient Greek religious practices have been publicly emerging since the 1990s. In 2006, Ancient Hellenic Religion, was granted "known religion" status by Greece. In 2017, Greece legally recognized Hellenic Religion as a "known religion." With the status of "known religion" both religions attained certain religious freedoms in Greece, including the freedom to open houses of worship and for clergy to officiate at weddings.
In the original Greek:
Thus some Hellenists use the term Hellenism or Hellenismos as a religious label in homage to Emperor Julian. The late Vlassis Rassias defined Hellenism beyond religious simplification, explaining it to be the Hellenic "way of life" , or "worldview."
The phrase "Hellenic polytheistic reconstructionism" refers specifically to the methodology used by some practitioners to recreate the religion based on academic sources, rather than the religion itself, and not all Hellenists are reconstructionists. Other organizations, such as Dodekatheon (Δωδεκάθεον), the Helliniki Hetaireia Archaiophilon (Societas Hellenica Antiquariorum), and the Thyrsos (Θύρσος) use a combination of terms interchangeably, including "elliniki thriskia" ("ἑλληνικὴ θρησκεία", "Hellenic religion"), " Hellenic polytheistic religion", and " Hellenism."
Other terms in common usage by Hellenists include "Greek reconstructionism" and "Hellenic Traditionalism," but the two are not synonymous. The American group Elaion uses the term "Dodekatheism" (, dodeka, "twelve" + θεϊσμός, theïsmós, "belief in the gods") to describe their approach to the Hellenic religion, stating that the term "has been used for some time within and outside Greece to refer to ancient Greek religion and we feel that it is important for those of us outside Greece share a common name and identity with our co-religionists in the homeland of our spirituality," and that the term 'Hellenism' is linked too closely in current use to the modern Greek nation.
This perspective does not mean that members of the community or broader Hellenic religious milieu can do whatever they please. It is acknowledged that there are certain principles, rooted in tradition, that should be followed and accepted by members. As one follower stated, "you can't be dogmatic in our circles, because we don't have a dogma laughing, ... there are of course some guiding principles that one needs to follow because they are based on tradition, these are things that you need to follow." This means that values are still present and should be adhered to. In some cases, they are openly stated in the group's texts:
It is clear that certain values are held in common within the community and should be accepted by members, but there is no such requirement for theological or philosophical beliefs. As one member stated, "it doesn't matter if you have read Homer or Hesiod. The most important is piety. To be possessed by Gods and be pious is the A and Z." Piety was mentioned by most, if not all, members as one of the most important values that people should follow in their everyday lives.
Prominent concepts include, but are not restricted to: Eusebeia (piety), Arete (virtue), and Xenia (hospitality). These are rooted in the various ancient Greek values concepts that they look to for guidance and inspiration from the Tenets of Solon, the Delphic maxims, the Golden verses of Pythagoras, Epicurean philosophy, the ethics of Aristotle, Stoic philosophy and more.
In the Iliad and Odyssey of Homer, "arete" is used mainly to describe heroes and nobles and their mobile dexterity, with special reference to strength and courage, but it is not limited to this. Penelope's arete, for example, relates to co-operation, for which she is praised by Agamemnon. The excellence of the gods generally included their power, but, in the Odyssey (13.42), the gods can grant excellence to a life, which is contextually understood to mean prosperity.
Devotees are divided upon the question of animal sacrifice. Some are fine with the practice, while others do not engage in the practice at all. Some instead offer symbolic food of the animal that is sacrificed instead of the animal, often though not exclusively fruit, bread, or cakes. Worship generally takes the form of prayer, offerings, and setting up . Altars serve as the sacred place and focal point of worship to one or more given deities, where offerings and prayers are made to the gods.
Devotees worship the Greek gods, which include Twelve Olympians, divinities and spirits of nature (such as nymphs), underworld deities (chthonic gods) and heroes. Both physical and spiritual ancestors are greatly honored. The gods exhibit both universal and local qualities. For the Greeks, "their gods were at the same time universal, found everywhere and powerful over the whole world, and intensely local, manifesting themselves in particular places."
Some Hellenists may also enrich their beliefs through metaphysical schools or frameworks of Ancient Greece and the Hellenistic world with developed cosmological systems. Amongst the most prominent of these schools are neoplatonism and stoicism.
The revival of Hellenic religious identity is typically only part of a larger social movement of re-Hellenizing Greek identity in a comprehensive way, not only religious. This re-Hellenization movement is the current iteration of previous attempts to revive Hellenism. The first to promote such effortsJames Henderson Burns, The Cambridge History of Medieval Political Thought c. 350 – c. 1450, Cambridge University Press, 1988. was the late Byzantine Empire philosopher Gemistos Plethon in the 15th century. It was in Mystras, in the Despotate of the Morea, that Plethon formed a 'circle' of students. It is through Plethon and his students that many ethnic Greeks today trace their teachings and practices and give credit for tradition's survival to the present day.
Two notable students of Plethon include the historian Laonikos Chalkokondyles and Bessarion. Bessarion, educated in neoplatonism, was considered for the Catholic Church Pope twice. In a letter recounting the news of his teacher's death, Bessarion says that Plethon has left to "dance with the Olympian Gods" (να χορέψει μαζί με τους Ολυμπίους Θεούς) and honors Plethon by claiming him to be the reincarnation of Plato based on the "teachings of the Pythagoreans and Plato about the endless ascent and descent of souls" (διδαχές των Πυθαγορείων και του Πλάτωνα περί ατέλειωτης ανόδου και καθόδου των ψυχών).
In 1458, just a few years after the death of Plethon, Michael Tarchaniota Marullus was born near the site of ancient Sparta in the Despotate of the Morea or in Constantinople. Both of Marullus's parents were Greek exiles who had fled from Constantinople when it fell to the Turks in 1453, and he always proudly called himself a Greek people. Marullus was a poet and Stratioti. Among his works, Marullus composed a collection of hymns, the Hymni naturales, in which he celebrates the Olympian pantheon. Bartolomeo Scala, his father-in-law, was a member of the Platonic Academy in Florence, Italy.
Validating the relationship between Hellenic ethnic religion and the ancient Greek religion for 'continuity' is difficult as an outsider to the tradition, argued Vlassis Rassias:
Though when Plethon's presentation of Zeus as the 'father' of Poseidon and Kronos is compared to the Derveni papyrus (discovered in 1962), Plethon appears less the heretic. The Derveni Papyrus recounts an Orphic cosmology, one in which the world of today is Zeus' creation. The new order of the world arises from Zeus after he swallows the severed phallus, the last act in a series of overthrowings of the ruling figure. In doing this, Zeus contained all things within himself and remade the world and regenerated all the Gods and Goddess once more, being King and 'father' to all things. This aligns with the writings of Plethon. In the Book of Laws, Zeus "existed from all eternity", "not born of any other ... he is self-father αὐτοπάτορα ... has no other father than himself ... he is the father and the eldest creator δημιουργὸν of all things." The other gods in the Greek pantheon are divided according "to divine nature θεότητι into the second and third orders, the first of which are the children of Zeus, his creations, and the second are the children of his children, the creations of his creations."
Emically speaking, "revival" accurately describes the religious activity occurring in Greece and around the world since one of the main hallmarks is group gatherings and public festival celebrations. Etic observations from a distance by classical scholars, describe contemporary practices as inauthentic and therefore irrelevant or remain open on the issue. British classicist Mary Beard criticized Greek Hellenist worshippers, saying, "until these eager neo-pagans get real and Animal sacrifice in central Athens, I shan't worry that they have much to do with ancient religion at all", later commented that, "I think I was really responding to the claims made by this group that they were reviving ancient paganism. I am absolutely ok with the idea that religions change. I was reacting to their claims to be a modern version of ancient 'paganism'." American classicist, Sarah Iles Johnston affirmed contemporary practice. "The bricolage and re-imaginings of contemporary Pagans is not entirely different from that of ancient Greek religious culture and that even classical scholars inevitably re-imagine the gods." Revivalists view the tradition as a living, changing religion. Hellenic Revivalism allows room for practitioners to decide what feels right to them, and to adapt historical religious practices to modern life.
Hellenists and other self described pagans/polytheists typically engage in reconstructionism, a methodology that attempts to accurately base modern religious practice on the imitation of culturally and historically genuine examples of ancient religious practices. The term is frequently used in the United States to differentiate between syncretism and eclecticism Neopaganism movements, and those based on the traditions, writings, history, and mythology of a specific ancient polytheistic culture. The Supreme Council of Ethnic Hellenes have made a clear distinction between themselves and the Neopagan movements, and identify some 'Hellenic' groups as "simply disguised as 'Hellenes' for reasons that exist hidden within the depths of their own minds."
Another example of an 18th-century figure who may have considered himself a Hellenist was Thomas Taylor (1758–1835), who produced the first English translations of many neoplatonic philosophical and religious texts. Taylor was widely known as the "English Platonist", and rumors existed that he had produced anonymous pamphlets advocating a return to a sort of pagan religion (these rumors have been debunked by modern scholarsAddey, Tim. "Why Thomas Taylor is not the author of A New System of Religion". Prometheus Trust.). Though the extent of his actual devotion to Ancient Greek spirituality remains unknown, brief descriptions written by others about him tend to portray him as a sincerely devout polytheist. One such sketch, written by Isaac D'Israeli, describes Taylor delaying answering his door until he has finished his mid-day hymn to Apollo, and reports that his study contained a hanging globe of clear glass, representing Zeus, that scattered sunbeams he would use to read and write, shifting his position in the room to follow them throughout the day.
His work inspired a limited number of devotees."The Survival of Paganism". Fraser's Magazine, New Series vol. XII. July–December 1875. London: Longmans, Green, and Co. The most notable was Godefroi Izarn, the Marquis de Valadi, a young member of a wealthy French family who adopted a "Pythagoreanism mode of life". In 1788, Valadi traveled to England in order to convince an unnamed "gentleman of eminence in the literary world" to become the head of a new Pythagorean sect, assuring him that Valadi would help him find numerous followers."Modern Platonism". The Annual Register, Or, A View of the History, Politics, and Literature for the Year 1797. London: 1800, pp. 438–439. He refused, and suggested Valadi learn Greek and become the head of the sect himself. Valadi began his studies at Glasgow, where he learned of Taylor, to whom he wrote in a letter:
Valadi paid Taylor to live in his house and study under him, but his tenure as Taylor's disciple was short lived. He returned to France to fight in the French Revolution in 1789 and he reportedly said, "I came over Diogenes. I am going back Alexander". He was executed by guillotine in December 1793 during the Reign of Terror.
Another example is seen in the private letters that the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley and his friend Thomas Jefferson Hogg wrote to each other. In one letter written in 1821, Shelley wrote to Hogg:
While not exactly a Hellenist, the sociologist and practicing Wiccan Margot Adler stated in her book on Wicca titled Drawing Down the Moon that when she was a child, she had a great interest in the Greek gods and goddesses and that she also devised her own rituals to perform in dedication to them. Many years later when Adler found out about Wicca, she converted to that religion because she felt that it confirmed her earlier childhood experiences, though Adler also notes that with regards to her conversion "I never converted in the accepted sense. I simply accepted, reaffirmed, and extended a very old experience."
During the 1970s, some began to reject the influence of Hermeticism and other heavily syncretic forms of Greek religion in preference of practices reconstructing earlier or more original forms of Hellenic worship. Early revivalists of Hellenic religion tended to be individuals working alone, and early attempts to organize adherents into larger groups failed. The first successful revival attempt was made by the Supreme Council of Ethnikoi Hellenes (or YSEE). In 1993, a variety of adherents to the Hellenic religion in Greece and elsewhere came together and began the process of organization. This resulted in a "Hellenic National Assembly", initiated at a gathering in southern Olympus on 9 September 1995. The process culminated with the formal establishment of the YSEE as a non-profit in Greece, in June 1997.
The first modern Hellenic temple dedicated to the Twelve Olympians was started in 1994 just outside Thessaloniki in the village of Oraiokastro and completed in 2009.
Another temple, dedicated to Alexander and Dionysus opened in the nearby village of Mesaio in 2019.
A third temple, and the first in the Peloponnese, dedicated to Zeus, Dionysus and Pan, opened in the village of Kalliani, Arcadia in 2025.
A modern Hellenic temple in Athens is still in the planning stages, and worshippers meet at a temporary temple at the headquarters of the Supreme Council of Ethnikoi Hellenes (YSEE) at an apartment building on Aristotelous street in central Athens.
Another active organization based in Greece, the Labrys (Λαβρύς, ) religious community was founded in 2008. Labrys has focused primarily on the religious aspects of Hellenism or Hellenic polytheism, avoiding anti-Christian rhetoric and politics, establishing weekly public rituals and engaging in other aspects of practical promotion of polytheism like theater and music. Labrys has also promoted among Hellenes worldwide the need to actively practice household worship and the idea that family and community should be the starting points of religious practice. The community has been organizing since 2008 the largest festival in Athens and also actively participates and supports the religious aspects of the oldest Hellenic festival in Greece, Prometheia which is held every year on Mount Olympus. The Labrys religious community has published a book. (2014). 9781503121881, Createspace. ISBN 9781503121881
Another American group, Elaion, was founded in 2005 after members of other groups grew dissatisfied with what was, in their view, a de-emphasis on Hellenic ethics, philosophy, poetry, and art, and a re-emergence of "occult" doctrines among some practitioners. Elaion aimed to create an organization that emphasized ethics, piety, and "right-living", which they initially termed "Traditionalist Hellenismos". No reported numbers for current membership levels are known to exist. Among the various modern Stoic philosophical groups, many equate Zeus with Divine Providence, or Divine Logos. Among the modern Epicurean philosophical groups, Society of Epicurus accepts the ancient, naturalistic, polytheistic view of the Epicurean gods as one of three legitimate modern interpretations of Epicurean theology.
In Brazil, there are some religious groups, in different states. In addition, in Portuguese language, there is the website of RHB – Reconstrucionismo Helênico no Brasil, built since 2003 by Brazilian members of Hellenion and other international groups, such as the American Neokoroi and the Greek Thyrsos.
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