Socrates: Bringing Heaven to Earth

Even among world historical figures, Socrates would be uncommon. His life was marked by an irony which brought together opposing qualities. He rarely travelled beyond Athens, yet his influence has been felt throughout the world. Though he was often invited to lavish dinner parties, he lived on a very simple diet. Possessing a towering intellectual capacity, he was more at home with everyday people. Though he wrote down none of his teachings, we possess about 35 of his dialogs. Some aspects of his life remain unclear, but what doesn’t is that his influence is impossible to overestimate. His crowning achievement in advancing God’s Story of Grace is that he took philosophy (the pursuit of wisdom) and brought it into reach for everyday people and everyday life to improve the quality of how they–even we–live. He did this because it was, as he believed, his calling from God. In so doing, he made the well-lived life something which was more possible for everyone to attain.

In this article, we will look at Socrates impact at the time he lived and how his influence moved the world further in God’s plan.

Who Was Socrates?

His Life

He lived from 469–399 B.C. He lived his whole life in Athens, other than when he travelled in the military. At its height his native city had a population of around 180,000 is 430 B.C. By his death it was reduced to about 100,000 due, in part, to ongoing war with Sparta. As a man of Athens he fought bravely in the wars with the Spartans. His friend Alcibiades said that Socrates saved his life when he was wounded by standing over him and warding off enemy attack. He was reported to be fierce in battle. There is, also, some evidence he may have been a stone mason since his father was. But his primary calling and life’s work was that he became a prophet to the Athenian people. He founded no academy like his pupil Plato. He never sought out a public platform, but instead he chose to live very simply with few clothes, meager food and basic shelter–even rejecting the gift of land which was offered to him. He felt the call of God (as he understood God) to call men to examine the meaning and purpose of their lives. Historian Paul Johnson states that he “compared himself to a gadfly, stinging the Athenian horse of state…out of its complacency and comatose inertia.” He engaged in discussions with all kinds of people concerning topics like friendship, justice, courage, citizenship, etc. He believed his most important contribution to Athenian society was to call people to virtue for only with virtuous people can a society flourish.

His Death

Overtime he became a well-known public figure. This increasing attention was not always positive. The playwright Aristophanes made a satirical and mocking drama titled The Clouds which portrayed Socrates as a money greedy corruptor of youth. This play had a negative impact on his reputation with some of the Athenian public. He remained unangered, responding: “If the criticism is just, I must try to reform myself. If it is untrue, it doesn’t matter.” Eventually jealous political forces had him arrested and convicted of presenting “different gods” and “corrupting the youth.” After being tried in a kangaroo court he was sentenced to be executed. He is famously remembered for his calm and magnanimous embrace of death, speaking to his friends about the virtuous and good life until his very last day.

What Set Socrates Apart?

He was led by God. He rejected the myth centered polytheism (belief in many gods) of his day. Like Heraclitus, he did not really criticize or show contempt for the traditional gods of the Greek world, but he did not reverence or follow them; further he called people to think beyond them. He appears to have been a monotheist who believed there is only one God. For this Athenian teacher, belief in God was not an abstract idea but a strongly felt reality. He once said, “Athenians, I cherish and you. But I shall obey God rather than you.” On another occasion he professed, “To practice philosophy has been indicated to me by God…” He felt this through such means as dreams, prophecies and other means.

His belief in divinity was also in sharp distinction to one of his sharpest debating partners, Protagoras, who gave the famous adage: “Man is the measure of all things.” As a materialist, Protagoras taught materialism which is the belief that there is nothing more than physical reality. Socrates rejected this because of his own experience as well as his belief that our deeper moral commitments require a deeper resource or basis than merely ourselves.

He believed all humans possessed an immaterial soul. He taught that the body needed to be guided by the soul. The idea of the soul was not new, but after Socrates’ the concept of the soul would be forever changed. Before the great thinker, the soul had been viewed as a ghostlike and shadowy substance which eventually gets banished to a murky existence of hades after the death of the body. After Socrates the soul was seen as the core of human intelligence, meaning and morality. With a proper philosophical understanding and training in wisdom the soul can guide one’s life to virtue and a well-lived existence. With his examination of the soul and the inner life of man, he would open the way eventually to the study of psychology.

He held to and promoted moral absolutes. For example, it was exceptional that he advocated that retaliation or revenge is always wrong. He instructed an early version of “turn the other cheek.” In Greece it was largely thought that a just man is one who does good to his friends and harm to his enemies. Socrates would have none of this. In Plato’s Republic, Socrates is quoted saying: “A just man is one who does good to his friends, certainly, but also does good to those who have harmed him, thereby seeking to convert an enemy into friend.”

He lived among the common men. At this time, Athenian Greece was singular in the world because a craftsman might become a general, a wrestler a philosopher, a poet could found a colony. Though there was an aristocracy, the man of common means could still excel. Paul Johnson asserted that just as Winston Churchill perfectly reflected the spirit of Great Britain, Socrates perfectly reflected the democratic spirit of ancient Athens. He got along with all kinds of people from different classes and backgrounds, highest to lowest. He had a genuine curiosity in people. This interest he showed made people feel important, and it helped to strengthen the democratic character of the city.

Socrates Advance of God’s Story

Socrates brought the LOGOS (WORD) closer to men. In Acts 17, some 450 years after Socrates, Paul stood at the Areogapus (meeting place for political councils in Athens), the very place Socrates often deliberated. It was there that Greek philosophers wanted Paul to make a public case for his “strange ideas” (Acts 17:20) for which he was advocating. Paul, then, gives a masterclass in building a missional communication bridge with a different culture. In his introduction, one can see hints of his drawing upon Socrates’ influence as he references “an unknown god.”

²²Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. ²³For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: to an unknown god. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you.

Acts 17:22-23

Athens worshiped many gods, but Socrates did not. Athenians accepted their religious traditions, often without question. Socrates did not. He advocated a god that was not known. Perhaps it was this “unknown god” of Acts 17 Paul proclaims. Perhaps this is the LOGOS which was first proclaimed by Heraclitus, nearly 100 years before Socrates, and would eventually be declared by the apostle John, when he declared Jesus to be the Word (LOGOS) in John 1:1. As I wrote in a previous article:

LOGOS, which means Word or Speech, communicates the idea that we see indirectly an intelligible rationality behind the universe. It does so in the fact that words, whether heard through the ear (speech) or seen through the eye (writing), shows the evidence of an intentional and intelligible presence, even when we do not see a person present. This evidence of intentionality and intelligence, logically, points to a personal being behind all of this–God. Though this creative and personal being is not directly seen, his speech is. In the midst of the chaos of the world, there is behind all of it an ordered logic (e.g., math and science) and appearance of a creative purpose (e.g., love and justice). The Bible affirms this in both the Old and New Testaments.

This is seen in the Old Testament.

¹The heavens declare the glory of God;
    the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
²Day after day they pour forth speech;
    night after night they reveal knowledge.
³They have no speech, they use no words;
    no sound is heard from them. (Psalm 19:1-3)

Of those outside the Hebrew world, Socrates appeared to grasp this better than anyone before him and made this reality more accessible to the Greek and gentile world.

Socrates made a life of purposeful moral living more accessible to the common man. He is famous for saying, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” The ancient philosopher modeled how everyday men could think through moral questions and issues to live a more wise and virtuous life. Perhaps the Roman statemen Cicero best summed up the great sage’s contribution to the world historical development best:

“Socrates was the first to call philosophy down from the heavens and to place it in cities, and even to introduce it into homes and compel it to inquire about
life and standards and goods and evils.”
Cicero

For this, we can have much gratitude to Socrates for bringing the truths given by heaven more closely to us on the earth.

Greek Tragedy and the Sustaining of Democracy

In the emerging democracy of Greece of the fifth century B.C., a newly created art form of theater helped to cultivate attitudes and foster education which advanced a democratic spirit: “a government of the people, by the people and for the people.” Democracy requires a lot of hard work. The simple idea of “one person, one vote,” is hardly sufficient. If citizens who have that vote are not correctly taught or informed how to think about the larger issues related to matters they are voting on, then it will be misdirected. Furthermore, when dissent or differing viewpoints of fellow citizens are not respected, then democracy will descend into a division of the many (majority opinion) against the few (minority opinion), sometimes leading to mob action–or more extreme–civil war. For the newly birthed democratic revolution in Greece–which had no other country to serve as an example–it was vital that there would be a venue in popular culture to both educate in matters related to the state and encourage toleration of differing views. The avenue which developed was the theater where plays known as tragedies were performed. It was in this setting that as many as twenty thousand people would gather in an amphitheater, and the stories of playwrights would be acted out.

In this article we will examine how the theater with its tragedies helped to sustain the spirit and practice of democracy in ancient Greece. This art form deepened the Story of Grace in which God matured humanity to become more like the Trinity where personal dialog and mutual understanding were increased in order to maintain a life-giving unity.

The Birth of Tragedy

Theater and the Promotion of Democracy

Here are four ways that Greek tragedies helped to promote and nurture democracy:

An Image of Aeschylus, the Greek Tragedy Writer

The first theaters with plays were produced and performed in Athens. These plays were known as tragedies because they emphasized the inevitability of a heroic downfall because of the fragility of human limits and moral error (pride, anger, lust, etc.). Emerging in the wake of Athens’ democratic revolution, people could identify with these plays because Greece had arisen from tremendous amounts of conflict and loss. Further, (like today) they could take comfort that their heroes were all too human like they were. These plays demonstrated anew the fragile balance between order and chaos which grew from the aftermath of the democratic revolution. So popular were these tragedies that over a thousand were produced in the fifth century B.C. Today we only possess some thirty of them which were composed by three authors: Sopholocles, Euripides and (who) The Greek experience was critical because they founded democracy at a time when it had never existed.

Four Ways Greek Theater Cultivated Democracy

Plays nurtured a common civic culture. The outdoor amphitheaters in ancient Greek city-states were places citizens would gather together from different classes and backgrounds as equals. They sat next to each other and participated in the same grand experience. In this setting social walls were broken down, and they came together as one people. For democracy to work the citizens must acknowledge that other citizens are our equals and are entitled to an equal say. This view point is not natural and has to be nurtured in order to be maintained.
Plays encouraged citizens to engage in deeper conversations. After watching plays, citizens would often have more in-depth conversations about moral and political issues which impacted all people. If democracy was to function well, citizens must do a lot of thinking and talking about moral issues related to their political life. As storytellers and as political philosophers, the tragedians educated theater audiences in vital issues. They structured their plots around conflicts of law and justice, mortal men and divine gods, male and female, family and the state, the insiders and outcasts. This exposed the audience to the issues which impact the real nature of debate, dialog and disagreement which occur within democracy.
Plays modeled dialogue. With their often-used rapid form of question-and-answer dialogue to explore issues, plays showed how conversations needed to take place. To learn this skill was essential to the deliberation which was required in democracy. It modeled for them, in certain instances (like Aeschylus’ Oresteia), how to embrace civility in difference and dissent, creating a more open society.
Plays challenged ideas which threatened democracy. For example, in Sophocles’ famous tragedy Antigone, revolves around the question of political supremacy. Pericles, the great Athenian democratic ruler, initiated new policies which elevated political allegiance to the state above all else, including above the allegiances owed to individuals and to one’s family. The all important theme of the power of the state in relation to the individual and family is undertaken. In the Suppliants by Aeschylus, tells the story of fifty fictional women, having fled their homeland of Egypt, pleaded for asylum in a Greek city-state. These suppliants were outsiders in every sense of the word. Yet as women, and as foreigners, they were determined to be treated with state protection and dignity in a land where such a fundamental right was denied to foreigners. (This is an ever relevant discussion in many parts of the world today.) Prometheus Bound concerns the role of the limits of human advancement; Oedipus Rex relates to the power of authority and the fall pride brings, just to name a few. All of these topics, among others, were (and still are) urgently important to think about when it comes participation in the life of the state as a responsible citizen.

The Enduring Legacy

Tragedy is still alive for the very reason that it relates to the challenges of our human condition. We are a mix of heroic action and mortal deceit. We attain great heights of achievement only to be toppled by inevitable flaws. This is why today film with tragic themes like The God Father, Titanic, Breaking Bad or Batman are so popular. There are two ways that God advanced his Story of Grace through theater.

In Greek tragedy, humanity more clearly sees its need for grace. The work of God’s grace to mature humanity through the millenniums has been remarkable given humanity’s tragic fallenness. Only God’s grace could overcome the level of brokenness which sin has brought. But this maturing has been a work of grace, in which God’s power guided by love, is progressively overcoming humanity’s sin and depth of brokenness. God, in his grace, has led humanity to such discoveries as language (Babel), navigation (Phoenicians), science (Medes), and now democracy (Greeks). As Paul wonderfully declares:

“But where sin increased, God’s grace increased even more.”
Romans 5:20

Greek tragedy showed the inevitability of sin. For the Greeks, this was their power of the law to show humanity of his need to be delivered from the tragic implications of human selfishness. Yet, the tragic nature of tragedy is just that, it provides no answers to the broken human condition. This deliverance will be ultimately discovered in the life and death and resurrection of Christ.

In Greek tragedy, humanity sees more of the value and viewpoints of others. This creates more of a spirit of toleration. As the audience watched the plays, they experienced a deep sense of pathos (Greek word for suffering) which stirred emotions for the plays character such as sorrow, joy, elation, fear. These made the stories engaging and relatable. These emotions which were wedded to moral lessons helped the Greeks to think and to feel in greater moral categories. Aristotle wrote that this was very healthy for a community. In this new art form, the dynamic and interchangeable love within the Trinity is more fully realized at a larger scale. This identification with one another is more fully reflected in the life of the Trinity which is mirrored in the church. Paul expressed it as follows:

“If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored,
every part rejoices with it.“
1 Corinthians 12:26

Salamis and the Miraculous Battle For Freedom

So rarely has the consequential unfolding of history been so on the line as the Battle of Salamis (480 B.C.). On this battle held the fate and destiny of Western Civilization itself. On the one side is the massive Persian military under Xerxes with an army considered the largest ever assembled-2,641,000 fighting men, according to Herodotus. Humorously he tells us that when “Xerxes armies drank the whole river ran dry.” The mass of this army is not surprising given that the Persian Empire, the largest to have ever existed at the time, had 70 million inhabitants living within 1 million square miles. This colossal power was intent on crushing the often warring and fractious Greek city-states which had 2 million inhabitants bordered in 50,000 square miles. The Persians were affluent with nearly unlimited resources in contrasts to the Greeks who, by comparison, were poor. This supersedes by any measure a David and Goliath analogy. At stake in this confrontation is the furtherance of personal freedom toward self-determination (represented by Greece), and the authoritarian and absolute rule over the masses by a very few (represented by Persia). In this battle is the literal determination of whether people will be able to form more closely into the image of the Trinity, where there is a heightened empowerment to personal freedom leading to a greater communal unity.

David (Greece) vs. Goliath (Persia)

Cyrus the Great led the Persian Empire into its rapid expansion starting in 550 B.C. Before Cyrus, Persia was a small state under the control of the Medes (an ancient Iranian people). But as the map shows, Cyrus controlled most of modern day Iran, parts of Turkey and Mesopotamia by 540 B.C. This is all in one decade. Five kings and fifty years later, by 490 B.C., the Empire expands to more than 2 million square mile (as seen by the map below)–the largest the world has ever known.

Now with Xerxes (485-465 B.C.) in power, his aim is to expand their territory into Greece, which is at the furthest edge of their northeastern border. Xerxes father, Darius (522-486 B.C.) sought to conquer Greece in the Battle of Marathon (490 B.C.). This resulted in a major defeat for the Persians. Xerxes followed his father as monarch and inherited his father’s burden of expanding the Empire toward Greece. To accomplish what Darius had been unable to do, Xerxes inherited the largest and best equipped army at the time. With four years of preparation, in 480 B.C., he headed off to Greece with approximately 1 million men, along with an elite force of 10,000 warriors known as the immortals. It was here that Xerxes would conquer much of mainland Greece, even conquering and burning the great city of Athens, whose 10,000 men were no match for the invading horde. With victory over all of Greece assuredly in his grasps, Xerxes heads toward the isthmus of Salamis.

He is deceptively lured there by Themistocles. This ruse was led by the Greek general, Themistocles. From a young age he prepared himself for political life. He came from a family where governmental influence would not have been open to him. But under the new system of government, he was able to advance as he was motivated by a tremendous sense of ambition and guided by a charismatic personality and daring vision. He used his charm and gifting to ascend to the place of military general. The Greek form of democracy was the only place in the world which allowed a larger number of people like him to climb the social ladder. And it was now under threat of being crushed by Persia.

The Distinctions of East and West

Democracy had been in Greece since 510 B.C, which has been introduced to Athens through the reforms of Cleisthenes. At this point, democracy is about 30 years old. This spirit of democracy allowed for public deliberation by the citizens regarding policies which effected their lives. Further, they were allowed to be critical of their leaders. Property was more widely and freely held. There could be no execution without a proper trial. They had the ability to freely write and speak their opinions. These freedoms in Persia were unknown. The absolute rule of millions were in the hands of a very few. The king and his small court of relatives, which were “the eyes and ears” of the king, thrived through substantial collections of taxes and the vast ownership of estates. The largest farms in Greece were a hundred acres, but in Persia the farms were in the thousands. Criticism or oppositions of the king and his administration would certainly be met with a cruel death. When a nobleman asked Xerxes that his son be exempted from war, he had the nobleman’s son cut in half and required the father to walk between the severed pieces of his body. It is at this historical juncture that we see the formative development of the conflicts of East (Persia) versus West (Greece).

The Persian fleet (in red) entered from the east (right) and confronted the Greek fleet (in blue) within the confines of the strait.

As the Battle of Salamis was to commence, it is nearly impossible to understand how impossible it was from the outmatched Greeks to win. The city of Athens has been abandoned and is going up in flames. There is no mainland to fight from in this area, so a land battle is an impossibility. The only option is a sea battle, yet its recently built fleet of 200 ships, of its 378, was unwilling to engage the enemy’s nearly 800 to 1,000 fighting vessels. (Herodotus and Aeschylus estimate that the Persian armada consisted of over a 1,000 ships with approximately 200,000 men.) A naval battle in the open sea would have led to a crushing defeat for the Greeks. So, Themistocles was convinced that the only hope of victory lay in the straights of Salamis where the superior numbers of the Persians would be less effective. Yet, he could not mobilize the military to confront the imperial giant because many of the commanders believed it to be a suicide mission.

To motivate the fearful leaders, Themistocles sent his slave, Sicinnus, to trick Xerxes into attacking the Greeks. Sicinnus delivered a message to Xerxes that said the Athenians were afraid and going to run away. The message also claimed that the Allied commanders were fighting among themselves. Xerxes believed the message and attacked the Greeks. With this attack, the fearful naval commanders were left with no choice but to defend themselves. Themistocles risky maneuver of trickery and deceit paid off. The Persians were defeated in the narrow straight of Salamis in the 12 hours of fighting. The more easily navigated triremes (Greek ships) were much more suited for this narrow warfare than the heavier ships of their enemies. The Persians were defeated with a loss of 200 ships and the Greeks with a loss of 40.

Legacy of Salamis

The Motivation of Freedom Is Advanced

The Greeks were able to fight and win because of freedom. Freedom created a greater morale and incentive to defeat the enemy. This was the understanding of Herodotus who commented:

As long as the Athenians were ruled by a despotic government, they had no greater success at war than any of their neighbors. Once the yoke was thrown off, they proved the finest fighters in the world.

After the victory at Salamis, Herodotus again tells us, that when the Persians attempted to mediate an agreement with the Athenians, they responded:

We know of ourselves that the power of the Persians is many times greater than ours. There is no need to taunt us with that. Nevertheless in our zeal for freedom we will defend ourselves to the best of our ability.

A year after the Salamis, Dirodorus tells us that the men in the Greek army were required to swear an oath beginning, “I shall fight to the death, and shall not count my life as more valuable than freedom.” Again, the same author records, that the Greeks dedicated a monument at the sanctuary of Dephi with the inscription, “The saviors of wide Greece set up this monument, having delivered their city-states from this loathsome slavery.”

As the Greeks were considering whether or not to continue in battle with the Persians, the leaders and citizens would engage in frenzied debate, disagreements and discussions. Herodotus characterized these constant deliberations as a “war of words,” and Diodorus described it as an “unrest of the masses.” This required the military’s generals and civic leaders to keep their thumb on the pulse of public opinion in relation to their decisions. In contrast to this, it was unthinkable for those in the Persian empire to express their opinions to Xerxes. This could very well lead to their death. The problem with this is that it shut out many good ideas, and blinded them to many mistakes and errors to avoid. In this major battle, freedom was confronted with a great test and came out the victor. The idea, meaning and reality of freedom was advanced.

The Power of Freedom is Advanced

Georg Hegel in his Philosophy of History reflects on the historic and momentous nature of the Battle of Salamis:

Oriental despotism—a world united under one lord and sovereign—on the one side, and separate states—insignificant in extent and resources, but animated by free individuality—on the other side, stood face to face. Never in history has the superiority of spiritual force over material bulk—and that of no contemptible amount—been made so gloriously manifest.”

It is of importance to remember that the idea of freedom was a couple of centuries old, and democracy itself was around three decades old. The practice of freedom was shared by only a few hundred thousand people in the backwaters of the Mediterranean. Had Salamis been lost by the Greeks it would have ended the eventual rise of Western civilization and its distinct institutions based on freedom altogether. Yet, now with Salamis won, the virus of freedom would be released and spread, and the strongest forces of oppression could not ultimately extinguish it.

The Meaning of Freedom Will Advance

It is not insignificant that when Christ came into the world, he was born at a time which had been greatly influenced by the Greeks.

Paul declares:

But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, Christ came in the fullness of time.

Galatians 4:4

It was the Greek influence which allowed the apostles to have language and idea which could more clearly express the realities they experience with the revelation of Jesus and the expanding of the kingdom of God in the church. The New Testament was mainly written in Greek. Many ideas such as the logos (word), ecclesia (church/assembly), psuche (soul) express more of a Greek understanding. The early theology of the church would borrow heavily from Greek categories of thought.

God has ordered all of the nations of the world that they should come into the fullness of his purposes which are designed to advance the Story of Grace which is being written in the world.

²⁶From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. ²⁷God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. ²⁸‘For in him we live and move and have our being.

Acts 17:26-28

Cleisthenes And Democracy From the Athens

In 508 B.C. the city state of Athens was in an uproar. The common people turned on their ruling elite because of the oppression and tyranny they had been experiencing. What sets this time apart from all that had gone before is that this was the very first uprising where the common people successfully overthrew their rulers. This action was unprecedented and would pave the way for the governmental democracy–“a government of the people and for the people.” But this was not accomplished through mob action. It would require a highly skilled and wise design to make this work. As this overthrow was taking place, the skill and leadership of Athenian nobleman, Cleisthenes, would be called upon. He would become a central figure in the development of democratic ideas and practices.

In this article, we will see how in God’s Story of Grace, divine providence continues to shape humanity toward increased freedom and dignity after the image of God in the Trinity (the balance of unity and diversity-the three in one). In another current of divine movement, God’s sovereignly works to introduce democracy from the West.

Why Democracy in Greece?

Geography

What were the conditions which allowed democracy to develop in Greece and Athens (which became the dominant city) in particular? One major factor was the geography of Greece. As a country it is comparable in size to Alabama in the U.S. or England in Europe. Yet, the landscape is riveted with approximately 300 mountains which separated the many city-states such as Athens, Sparta, Corinth, Thebes and Delphi. This made it very difficult for one king or monarch (like Cyrus of Persia) to rule the entire territory. This landscape naturally fostered a greater degree of local independence and fierce identity among each urban territory. This setting uniquely provided fertile ground for people to adopt and be governed by self-rule.

Olympic Games

Another important factor which allowed for democracy to germinate and grow in Greece was the Olympic games. Once every four years men gathered to compete in athletic skills. The competitions had been founded 200 years prior to the founding of democracy. What made these games stand a part was that they were open to all so that anyone could compete and win. These were also very popular with as many as 40,000 Greeks gathered to watch the sporting events. This environment created the idea of meritocracy where all could participate and be involved.

Economic Growth

Farming of olives prospered in Athens because of the amount of olive trees there. Economically olives provided oil, soap, and lubricants which became in increasing demand. The ancient Mediterranean had the greatest market place around the world providing an economy for Athens to flourish in the sale of olives and olive-based products. This caused Athens to economically prosper. In addition, Athens produced exceptional pottery. Though potters were the lowest of the low in society, pottery became of staple of the kitchen and transportation. The potters were very competitive wanting to outdo each other. This led to the capacity for extraordinary achievement among those considered to be in the lower class. It was for this reason that Athens was ripe to discover democracy among the city-states of Greece.

The Historical Cycle of Tyranny

In this background of a rising meritocracy and wealth of the Athenian population, the common people experienced increased discontent with their rulers. The common people were no longer content to be subjugated at the hands of their rulers. They demanded more of a voice in their civic affairs and were no longer content to be subjected to the ups and downs caused by the good and bad rulers of their city-states. Good rulers provided relief by way of tax reform, fair trials, debt relief during times of poor harvests, etc. Others provided hardship by increased taxation, harsher laws, land confiscation, abuse of rights, etc. People experienced the cycle of ups and downs that came from good and bad rulers, though mainly bad. During the year 508 B.C. the people of Athens were ready for the cycle to come to an end. They revolted, overthrowing their rulers. To guide them in constructing a government which gave agency to the people, they turned to Cleisthenes.

Cleisthenes and Democracy

Cleisthenes was born around 570 B.C. He was from his earliest days an aristocrat, an elite person separated from the common people. Aristocrats controlled everything and held power against everyone else. For example, the center of Athens was the Council of the Areopagus, which consisted of rulers called Archons. Nine archons were chosen each year by lot among the elite and wealthy classes. This ensured that the office of Archon perpetuated aristocratic rule. Sometimes good men would become an Archon and exercise positive reforms. One such ruler was a man named Solon who influenced the adoption of many laws which helped the poor: expanded citizenship, reforming weights and measures, forgiving debts of slaves, etc. The challenge which always occurred was that there were eventual problems of tyranny wiping out the reforms of the good rulers. So, whether the rulers were good or bad, the people were powerless in the cycles of ups and downs.

This brings us to 508 B.C. After the end of another tyranny, two factions competed for power to reshape the government of Athens. One was led by Isagoras, whom Aristotle calls a “friend of the tyrants.” The other was led by Cleisthenes who sought to befriend the lower classes. Isagoras won a victory by getting himself chosen as Archon in 508 B.C. In their rivalry, Isagoras called on the Spartan king Cleomenes to help him evict Cleisthenes from the city. When the Spartans occupied the city and tried to disband the government and expel all opposition, the Athenians rose up against them and those allied with Isagoras and drove them out. This was the very first time in history where the people stood against their leaders and overthrew them. With the overthrow of Isagoras and those allied with him, Cleisthenes was free to impose his reforms. This marks the beginning of classical Athenian democracy which fundamentally redefined how the people of Athens saw themselves in relation to each other and to the state.

For Cleisthenes the task was given to create a government which could escape from the pointless cycle of violence and tyranny. He must now give people a say in their future. He could not put in a tyrant or Aristocrats. He had people meet at the Acropolis. Rich and poor alike could address their fellow citizens. Government was not decided by the sword or class but by persuasion and voting. To accomplish this, it required several innovations:

Cleisthenes help to foster a common political identity. He managed to convince the Athenians to adopt their city-name into their own. So, where formerly an Athenian man would have identified himself as “Demochares, son of Demosthenes;” after Cleisthenes’ reforms he would have been more likely to identify himself as “Demochares from Athens.” Using identification with the city name de-emphasized any connection (or lack thereof) to the old aristocratic families and emphasized his place in the new political community.
Each city had a “demarch,” like a mayor, who was in charge of its most important functions: keeping track of new citizens. As young men came of age, the demarch kept track of all citizens from the city eligible to participate in the Assembly, and selecting citizens from the city each year to serve on the Council.
He arranged the central and most populous part of Greece into regions where representatives would meet as a council. This helped citizens to take an interest and be concerned beyond regional issues. This caused people to work together beyond their own families and tribes.

All of these reforms constituted a remarkable re-shaping of Athenian society along new lines. Old associations, by region or according to families, were broken. Citizenship and the ability to enjoy the rights of citizens were in the hands of immediate neighbors, but the governing of Athens was in the hands of the Athenian people as a whole, organized across boundaries of territory and clan. The new order was sealed as citizens adopted their city-names into their own names.

Through the work of Cleisthenes, God’s Story of Grace makes a remarkable step forward in bringing the ordered unity of the whole with the greater personal dignity of the many.