The Religious beliefs of Critias the Sophist: Rational Theology or Atheism?

Abstract

Sextus Empiricus (Adv. Math. IX. 54. = B 25 DK) has preserved a fragment of a work attributed to the sophist and tyrant Critias. This fragment has long been considered a manifesto not only of atheism but also, perhaps, the first text in which religion is a purely political matter and the work of men's hands. Nevertheless, this text is still very problematic, because, taking into account the evidence of the primary sources, there is no real reason to believe that a) its author is precisely Critias who lead the Thirty Tyrants, b) that this is the fragment of the play "Sisyphus", c) that the "Sisyphus" is a satyr-play, d) that its author is not Euripides, and e) that it is indeed the manifesto of atheism and not a rational theological system that is completely loyal to everyday religious beliefs, which, without belittling religion, on the contrary, postulates its permanent benefit for any society. Whoever the author of this hypothetical "Sisyphus" might have been, he acted as a true sophist and rhetorician - by influencing one of the most important existential human experiences - the feeling of fear. And he had done it using logos and persuasion. The philosophical and moral issues of the fragment in question are entirely within the scope of intellectual debate in the second half of the fifth century BC. And one of the most important topics is the possibility of committing a secret crime that would not be detected not only by the law of the city of Athens but also by the gods.