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Encyclopedia Britannica



ENTHUSIASM

This article appears in Volume V09, Page 654 of the Encyclopedia Britannica.

Encyclopedia Britannica - Main :: EMS-EUD
ENTHUSIASM , a word originally meaning
inspiration
  by a divine afflatus or by the presence of a god. The Gr. h'Oov rtaquos, from which the word is adapted, is formed from the verb EvOovcA-ecv, to be EpO os, possessed by a god (Nos). Applied by the Greeks to manifestations of divine " possession," by
Apollo
 , as in the
case
  of the Pythia, or by Dionysus, as in the
case
  of the Bacchantes and
Maenads
 , it was also used in a transferred or figurative sense; thus Socrates speaks of the
inspiration
  of poets as a form of enthusiasm (Plato, Apol. Soc. 22 e). Its uses, in a religious sense, are confined to an exaggerated or wrongful belief in religious inspiration, or to intense religious fervour or emotion. Thus a Syrian sect of the 4th
century
  was known as " the Enthusiasts "; they believed that by perpetual
prayer
 , ascetic practices and contemplation, man could become inspired by the Holy Spirit, in spite of the ruling evil spirit, which the fall had given to him. From their belief in the efficacy of
prayer
  WV?), they were also known as Euchites. In
ordinary
  usage, " enthusiasm " has lost its
peculiar
  religious significance, and means a whole-hearted devotion to an ideal, cause, study or pursuit; sometimes, in a depreciatory sense, it implies a devotion which is partisan and is ,blind to difficulties and objections. (See further INSPIRATION, for a comparison of the religious meanings of " enthusiasm," " ecstasy " and " fanaticism.")


End of Article: ENTHUSIASM


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