How Did Greek Culture Influence The Development Of Western Civilization

The culture of ancient Greece left a lasting influence on the development of Western Civilization and can be attributed with the birth of western philosophy and the concepts of politics. It was also a culture that had an interest in understanding the world around it, creating the study of science, and considering the study of science as valuable as the study of religion. The fact that science is considered highly along with religion is rather interesting considering how religious organizations in later centuries would often seek to demean the results of scientific studies. This apparent coexistence between religion, science, and philosophy in Greek culture is due to how religion was handled in ancient Greece in relation to government and society.

How did a mutual coexistence start?

Priests lacked the power to make religious and political doctrines, their main duties being temple maintenance and properly conducting rituals for various events. That lack of direct control over the government decisions allowed schools of thought develop to question Greek mythos as time went on and Greece encountered other cultures. The conflicting details concerning supernatural explanations of natural events such as floods and storms eventually lead to various thinkers to seek a more rational explanation, leading to the birth of science and philosophy. Science and philosophy often challenged religious explanations and thinking, but there was little backlash from priests due to the inability to make religious doctrines. There was one aspect of Greek culture where religion had a noticeable influence and that was the arts, but instead of causing people to become priests and saints, it often inspired people to become artists and (ironically)