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On the Nature of the Gods: Cicero and the Philosophical Approaches to God

About this episode

In 45 B.C., the Roman statesman and philosopher Cicero embarked on an almost impossible task... He wrote a philosophical dialogue trying to understand the gods, their nature, how they interact with the world of human beings... and indeed, if they care about humans at all! 

On the Nature of the Gods (De Natura Deorum) tries to answer these eternal questions through the ancient philosophical approaches of Epicureanism, Stoicism and Skepticism. While Cicero is present in all the dialogues, he does not participate... instead three speakers represent the three differing perspectives and help illuminate his thoughts. 

Containing profound psychological and moral insights, this seminal text - recently translated by George J. Thomas (with the pen name Quintus Curtius) - is a compelling testament to the necessity of human agency in an indifferent universe.

But what do these approaches say... and what can they teach us today?  

Famed translator George J. Thomas and Professor of Classics at Cornell University, Michael Fontaine, discuss the Nature of Gods and how ancient philosophy can help us understand the divine. 

You can enjoy George's new annotated translation here: https://qcurtius.com/books/on-the-nature-of-the-gods/

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On the Nature of the Gods: Cicero and the Philosophical Approaches to God

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