Customer Reviews

Old Stones, New Temples

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When this book was first published, I was extremely excited because it was the only book of its kind on the market. As a Hellenic Reconstructionist, I wanted to show my support for Drew Campbell and I hoped that this book would lead many others to Hellenic Reconstruction. Despite my initial excitement, the contents of this book make it a mixed bag for me.

The main problem is; this book isn't Silver Ravenwolf-bad, it's just not very good, either. Although Drew mentions in his introduction that this book was not meant for an audience of scholars, as a fellow Classicist, I found that the scholarship was shallow, misleading or downright poor. As another reviewer pointed out, instead of going to the trouble to research rituals properly, Drew seems to have concocted rituals wholecloth. As a Classicist, this is irresponsible - but, frankly, it isn't Reconstructionist, either.

In addition to the made-up cookbook-style rituals, the book has a section on incense (primarily from Scott Cunningham's books) and several feel-good exercises are suggested where you ask yourself; what is a hero (page 84) or how you feel about 'channeling' (page 64). The exercises, incense recipes, cookbook rituals and shallow scholarship really make this book a slim notch above some titles published by the rightfully-maligned Llewellyn Publications.

In many ways, this book has become a microcosm of everything that has gone awry in Hellenic Reconstruction - from the influence of new-age practices to reliance upon unsubstantiated personal gnosis at the expense of scholarship. Hopefully, responsible scholars who are also Recons can write new books that are reliable, exciting and a good foundation for those new to our religion. Perhaps Hellenic Reconstructionism will actually become *Reconstructionist* instead of thinly-veiled Hellenic Wicca/Paganism/Hermeticism etc.

This book should be top of the list for any Hellenic Pagan, and also for those who wish to know more about the religion. It is exactly what it claims to be, a beginners guide on Hellenic Paganism covering various concepts as ritual, theology, spirituality and other aspects of Hellenism. The FAQ at the book of the text is an excellent resource for the less well-informed about the religion, and factually the book is spot on and is well referenced. Any pagan knows that all too often information contained in these sort of texts are spurious and deliberately misinterpreted, however this book is very admirable in its adherence to historical correctness and its avoidance of new age & feel good concepts that characterise nearly all other Pagan resources. If you have heard the call of the Olympians at any stage of your life, I highly recommend you read this work.

I had been trying and trying to get this book for what seemed like forever. When I finally got it, it took me all of 3 days to read through it. Right off, that's not a good sign to me if it's *that* easy to read. For some, however, that might be a good point-- very reader-friendly. What disappointed me about it was 1.there was not enough research into it 2.the list of Greek words was not written in Greek font 3.there is no index and 4.just a general feel of "cuteness" that I was suprised to find. But, the good news is that there will be a new edition coming out soon, and I'm confident that the organization responsible for that (the original author is no longer working on this) will do an excellent job, and I plan to buy the new one as soon as it is available. One the whole I would recommend this book, but just don't have expectations that are too high as I did.

Old Stones gives the reader an excellent introduction to practicing the ancient Hellenic Pagan religion today. It is packed with excellent scholarly research and makes no ridiculous claims of unbroken lineage. Furthermore it briefly explores several different paradigms within the religion and has devotional activities and rituals that can be practiced today, along with information on how they were practiced in ancient times. Highly reccomended!

I was thrilled when a friend had suggested i pick up this book. having wandered my way in an effort to combine Wicca with the Ancient Greek Gods, and being thoroughly disgusted with what i read, i was pleased to find a book which does it's best to tell the reader how the Ancient Greeks worshiped their Gods.

There is a lot to this book. If you are looking for some basic mythology, it's in there. if you want basic values, it's in there. basic ritual, it's in there. holidays, it's in there. diversity of philosophy and religious practice, it's in there. links and other info, it's in there. obviously there are other books, such as Burkert's Greek Religion, which are much more in depth, but that isn't the point of this book. The point of this book is that it is an understandable introduction to Reconstructionist Hellenism. Once one has gone through this book and understands what is contained in it, perhaps s/he will be interested in pursuing Recon Hellenism further.

in response to one review....there is no book which can tell you how to incorporate religion into your daily life. that's your job. these authors can only point you in the right direction....

I bought this book with an expectation of something grandly overstated and full of redundant fact, but was surprised to find myself enjoying this book which covered so much I already knew, as well as things I had never truly thought of.

As a follower of this faith, I am proud to see so fine a work be so straight forward and to the point on our religion and not bash the faiths that surround and sometiumes oppress us.

Though not an in depth look at the religion, it is a good foundation work for anyone interested in it, from the would be follower to the simply curious to know. Our faith is a growing seed in a field of spirituality, and this book may be the water it needs to sprout and grow into a magnificent tree.

Blessings of the Gods go with you...

Isxios

An excellent, well researched, thoughtful, and organized work on how people in the modern day can honor the ancient Greek gods. From Apollo to Zeus, it's in there. This is really the best book that a Greek reconstructionist could possibly own on examples on how to make an ancient practice come alive in their day to day life. There is information in there on prayers, festivals, what herbs or incense to offer to which deities, suggestions on modern day rituals, everything! While the ritual formats are incredibly bare bones, it's a good start for someone who is looking to celebrate ancient religion in the modern day. Highly recommended!

This book is such a wonderful resource for the hellenic polytheist community. Drew goes beyond the basic "who's who in greek mythology" and goes into detail about how to actually DO the religion. This is definitely a must-have for both beginners and long-time hellenes. My hat goes off to you, Drew! Wonderful job!

A wonderful scholarly intro into traditional worship of the Greek Gods. Explinations of what Hellenic polytheism is, who the Greek Gods are, the festivals including sample rituals, funerary rites and more. We need more books like this.

This is an exceptional guide, and the first of its kind regarding the modern practice of Hellenismos. Unfortunately, it has been out-of-print for a very long time and almost impossible to find used. The best alternative at this time is Hellenismos Today by Timothy Jay Alexander.