“Those of us who aren't religious find ourselves confused at Easter. We feel a need to mark time by annual festivals but we don't want to dance naked up a hill with an amorous goat chanting pagan tosh.”
permalink source: Jasper Gerard, The Times, London, Easter Sunday 2004In general the Greeks' attitude toward their deities was extremely negative: Whoever did not propitiate the gods could expect punishment.... the average Greek was more interested in warding off the potential mischief of the gods than in praying to, or maintaining a personal relationship with, any of them.
permalink source: Norman Cantor, Alexander The Great: Journey To The End of the Earth, 7-8