Hail Zeus Pateras, God the Father!

So, relatively indigenous people would like their own religion back, but the Greek Orthodox Church feels it has the right to disparage them and discriminate against them, because, in its megalomania and arrogance, it feels it alone possesses the "only truth." Well, I say, "Shove off, Greek Orthodox Church!"

As a philhellenic, I would much prefer to see Greece embrace its glorious past, including its extraordinary ancient mythology, rather than this repulsive foreign intrusion of horse hockey called Christianity. The Greek Orthodox clergy should be considered traitors to the Greek culture, frankly, as they cast aside their homegrown traditions and gods, substituting in their stead a Jewish man to be worshipped as the god of the cosmos. "Out, out, damned spot!"

Naturally, I am not one for bringing back the attendant idiocies of slavery and human sacrifice, or compulsion in worshipping these fabulous gods. Just allow them some breathing room as imaginary friends who can sit alongside the fictional Jesus Christ - or toss his sorry arse out of Mt. Olympus.

Zeus devotees worship in Athens

By Malcolm Brabant

BBC News, Athens

The temple of Zeus has not been long unattended by priestesses

Worshippers who believe in the 12 gods of ancient Greece have held a ceremony at the Temple of Zeus in Athens.

This is a landmark event to celebrate official recognition of their religion by a court last year.

The Greek Orthodox Church has said they are miserable resuscitators of a degenerate dead religion.

But the ceremony went ahead, with crowds watching priests and priestesses, who said the event was a symbol of their civic rights.

In 2003, white-clad worshippers performed an illicit ceremony at the Temple of Hephaestus, just below the Acropolis.

At that time they were chased off the site by ministry of culture staff.

Despite vigorous opposition from the highly conservative Greek Orthodox Church, a court last year officially recognised the revived ancient Greek religion.

The worshippers are loyal to Zeus and the other Olympians

One of its leaders, Doretta Peppa, a writer who calls herself a high priestess, told the BBC the temples were built to respect the gods and now they were going to be put to their proper use.

Ms Peppa said she had been given official permission to use the temple, but there were fears that the culture ministry, which administers the site, might give way to pressure from the church.

The president of the Association of Greek Clergymen, Father Efstathios Kollas, has described the followers of the Olympic gods as a handful of miserable resuscitators of a degenerate dead religion who wish to return to the monstrous dark delusions of the past.

Ms Peppa and her followers aspire to have the rights afforded to Britain's druids who worship at Stonehenge, and Danish believers in Thor and the Nordic gods who are allowed to perform marriages, baptisms and funerals.