The Moral of the Story

Lessons from The Odyssey

The Greek Textbook and Bible

• For the Greeks, The Iliad and The Odyssey were the foundation of their education.

• For Greek schoolboys, these books were their:– Textbooks– “Bibles”– Entertainment

Training Young People

• Teachers and parents would use these stories to raise the new generation.

• What lessons do you think they could teach from The Odyssey?– Think.– Pair.– Share.

Lessons for Each Stop

• Each adventure Odysseus can be used to teach a lesson.

• We will look at some of them.– Lotus Eaters– Cyclops / Aeolia– Circe– Hades– Sirens– Scylla and Charybdis– Helios’s cattle

Lotus Eaters

• Narcotics are dangerous and addictive.

• Distractions can cause us to never want to complete our goals.

Cyclops and Aeolia

• Curiosity can be dangerous.• Often you need to think your way out

of a situation, rather than fight your way out. Brain and brawn.

• Follow through on your objectives.– Don’t almost finish. Finish.

Circe

• Lust can turn people into animals.• You can get too comfortable.• Stay loyal amid the worst

temptations.

Hades

• You sometimes need to experience the worst to get the best.

• We can always learn from the past.– Heb. 12:1

Sirens

• Some things sound good but aren’t.• Find a way to avoid temptation.– Don’t simply trust your strength to

withstand it.

• Keep going. Do not rest on past accomplishments.

Scylla and Charybdis

• This is where we get the expression “between a rock and a hard place.”

• Sometimes you have to decide between two tough options.

• Avoiding one problem may lead you to another.– Trust God to get you out.

Helios

• Obey the rules.• Remember your responsibilities.– Don’t allow other people to ruin things

for you.

• Seemingly small actions can have huge consequences.

Main Lesson

• Life is about having a goal and overcoming obstacles to reach that goal.

• Obstacles come in different ways.– Some are self-inflicted.– Some are from other people.– Some are from “the gods.”

Overcoming Obstacles

• Some obstacles are self-inflicted.• What are examples from The

Odyssey of self-inflicted obstacles?– Odysseus’s pride.– Others?

• What are examples from our lives of self-inflicted obstacles?– Procrastination

Overcoming Obstacles

• Some obstacles come from others.• What are examples from The

Odyssey of other people being obstacles?– Cicones. Aeolus’s winds.– Others?

• What are examples from our lives of obstacles that others present?– Betrayal, drama…

Overcoming Obstacles

• Some obstacles come from the “gods.”

• What are examples from The Odyssey from the gods?– Storms, Helios’s cattle?– Others?

• What are examples from our lives of obstacles that we cannot help?– Our birth, our circumstances…

Overcoming Obstacles

• How does Odysseus overcome the obstacles in his path?– The gods help? His own efforts?

• How can we overcome the obstacles in our lives?