The word "atheist" - meaning "godless" - originated in ancient Greece as a derogatory term, and later as a criminal offense for those who did not acknowledge the Greco-Roman pantheon. Certain philosophers, pagans and early christians were also known as 'atheists' in the Roman Empire, at least where law and order were concerned.

This does not, however, mean that all accused atheists in the ancient mediterranean were actually just mislabeled followers of other religions. Far from it, actually.


Diagoras of Melos was an ancient Greek sophist and skeptic from the 5th century BCE, 400+ years before the birth of Christ , ~2500 years ago, and is widely considered to be one of the first known true atheists in history. While the large majority of his life, beliefs and writings have been lost to history, it is known that he was one of the students of the famous philosopher Democritus (often regarded as the 'father of modern science' for his ideas regarding an atomic theory of the universe - also a true atheist accused of atheism), who paid 10'000 drachmas to free Diagoras from prison as he was one of many Melians held captive after Athens' invasion of Melos. He was also known to be openly against religion and religious mysticism, to the point where he might even be considered an anti-theist.

He continuously challenged his peers on matters of religion, which he would ridicule in public, and would commit a series of actions that infuriated the temples and religious orders of Athens.

In the first century BCE, the Philosopher Cicero in his De Natura Deorum, writes of how Diagoras' friend attempted to convince him that gods existed by showing him ancient pictures telling stories of sailors who survived great storms by veneration of the gods, to which he replied "there are nowhere any pictures of those who have been shipwrecked and drowned at sea." A similar back-and-forth, Cicero writes, occurred when Diagoras was aboard a ship in a great storm, and the crew believed that they were experiencing bad weather because they had brought an atheist on board. Diagoras then 'wondered if the other boats out in the same storm also had a Diagoras on board'.

Diagoras constantly declared that there was no god at all, would often interrupt temple initiation rites, chopped up a wooden statue of the Greco-Roman god Hercules and used it as firewood to cook his turnips, and, much to the fury of the temples, leaked released sacred, secret religious rites such as the Eleusinian Mysteries to the wider public, to de-mystify them and spark debate.

Eventually, Athens placed a bounty on his head and accused him of atheism and impiety, but Diagoras fled the city. Although a decree was issued to bring him in dead or alive throughout the Athenian empire, meaning that his capture/death was considered a serious matter, Diagoras was never caught. Many historians believe that there was a political motive beneath the religious accusations, and that Diagoras was being targeted because he was an ethnic Melian.

Jennifer Michael Hecht, on Diagoras, wrote:

The poet Diagoras of Melos was perhaps the most famous atheist of the fifth century. Although he did not write about atheism, anecdotes about his unbelief suggest he was self-confident, almost teasing, and very public. He revealed the secret rituals of the Eleusinian mystery religion to everyone and "thus made them ordinary," that is, he purposefully demystified a cherished secret rite, apparently to provoke his contemporaries into thought. In another famous story, a friend pointed out an expensive display of votive gifts and said, "You think the gods have no care for man? Why, you can see from all these votive pictures here how many people have escaped the fury of storms at sea by praying to the gods who have brought them safe to harbor." To which Diagoras replied, "Yes, indeed, but where are the pictures of all those who suffered shipwreck and perished in the waves?" A good question. Diagoras was indicted for profaning the mysteries, but escaped. A search was out for him throughout the Athenian empire, which indicated that the charges were serious, but he was not found.

Diagonas was one of many free-thinkers of ancient Greece who challenged and probed various social institutions of morality, religion, nature and physics, and was the legacy of early Greek intellectuals, like Democritus, who increasingly explained natural phenomena by observation of nature instead of relying on religious claims of divine intervention. Democritus explained natural occurrences through cause and effect via his philosophy of an atomic theory of the universe, and dismissed the intervention of an almighty being for these occurences. Democritus believed that widespread religious belief was as a result of fear towards unusual natural phenomena that were difficult or challenging to explain.

Keep in mind that this was 2600 years ago, a time in which speaking out loud these incredibly ingenious and remarkable ideas in most parts of the world would result in torture, rape, and/or execution.

Athens at the time, had a large number of people dedicated to free thought in a world largely marred by religious fundamentalism, not unlike the world we live in today.

According to the fashion of the sophists, "[Diagonas] substituted the active powers of nature for the activity of the gods; and some isolated statements that have come down to us render it probable that he did this in a witty manner."

Greeks and the origination of almost everything

Tazdroid:
Greeks and the origination of almost everything

Yes ancient mediterranean was pretty amazing lol

And is that Zuma? lol

ancient greece was so amazing, they discovered electric charge too, from rubbing urns with amber

the name electron comes from ancient greek elektron, meaning amber

A similar back-and-forth, Cicero writes, occurred when Diagoras was aboard a ship in a great storm, and the crew believed that they were experiencing bad weather because they had brought an atheist on board. Diagoras then 'wondered if the other boats out in the same storm also had a Diagoras on board'.

I love this

"Founder of atheism" - Kingebukasblog

Some religions that were unborn at the time will jump in on this discussion screaming fowl...

hopefulLandlord:


I love this

Believe it or not, when I take public transport here in Africa, I do not reveal I am atheist to the other passengers because I do not want to be blamed if the bus has a mechanical problem or if there is an accident. Seriously. Outside of that I do not deny being atheist if asked.