The
fifth S.A.H.S. Symposium held
on Saturday November
5, 2005
at E.E.A.M.A. in Melbourne's
Southbank, was an enormous success. At the Symposium, a
crowd of more than 120 witnessed, with a great deal of
interest, all of the eight speakers who covered, in a
liberal and impressive manner, the topic:
''Is
religion necessary to modern man?''
The
speakers, in order of appearance, were: Cathy Alexopoulos,
Voula Lousta, Joanna Liakakos, Dimitris Kalodimos, Dina
Amanatides, Iakovos Garivaldis, Nikos Vournazos and Kostas
Vitkos. Initially the potmen and banqueters were welcomed by
the President of the Society George Kourtides Members of the
theatrical group ΑΘΜΑ
(Hellenic Independent Theatre of Melbourne and Australia)
also participated, presenting an adaptation of folk text by
Yannis Dimakakos. Toast-master was the educator Thomas
Iliopoulos.
All of the speakers, after
analysing the topic extensively, tried to present a hoilstic
and well-studied answer to a rather crucial problem that
preoccupies the minds of all thinkers. At the same time,
they put the audience into deep thought about a number of
areas it had never considered before. The answers were
profoundly given, all covering both sides of the debate.
Regardless of where each speaker's research leaned and how
it was approached, all speakers appeared perturbed by the
subject matter, all covering both sides of the argument, and
using logic. The spirit of the whole debate was not
antagonistic, but one of co-operation and everyone, from his
point of view, made decisions based upon personal criteria.
What was common to all was support for the idea that
everyone has the right to decide for himself here.
The
debate that followed, which was opened for discussion to the
whole of the audience, also moved within similar confines. The audience co-operated in an unprecedented open
discussion, rare, not only in Melbourne
but also in Greece
itself. However, a scathing assailment of religion's
dominating trends and the exploitation that takes place by
the so-called organized religions in light of the threat of
their demise was also noted.
Finally,
the aims of the Society were fulfilled, since the ancient
and free Hellenic debate reached an orgasmic height while
everyone had a chance to express their opinion according to
their own standards.
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