In Ancient Mesopotamia the government and religion were closely intertwined. On the other hand, here in america, the government is not closely intertwined with religion. For example, in Mesopotamia, the rulers were chosen by the gods, but here in America the president is elected by the people. Which means that America is definitely more of a democracy, unlike the time of Ancient Mesopotamia.

While reading the article i learned many things. For example, I learned that they built temples for the gods in two of their major cities, Sumer and Akkad. Also, i learned that the people believed in many gods very deeply. They also worked very hard to please the gods in order to have a successful harvest. All this and more was very interesting to me when i read the article and i did not know it before.

One way Mesopotamians practiced their religion is by burning incense for their gods.  Another way was by making offerings of food and drink to the gods.  Finally, Mesopotamians practiced divine kingship, which is the belief that rulers are chosen by the gods. 

3. Were religion and government intertwined in Mesopotamia, or were they separate? 

Religion and government were intertwined in Mesopotamia.  Mesopotamians practiced divine kingship, which is the belief that rulers are chosen by the gods.   Additionally, each city was believed to be watched over by a certain god. 

How do the religion and government in Mesopotamia differ from the religion and government in America today? 

One way that religion and government differ is that America is ruled by a democracy not monarchy. Another way that we differ is that in the social classes of Mesopotamia, slaves were on the lower tier. In America, we do not have slaves. Finally, we do not practice the same religion in America as ancient Mesopotamians did. Since America is made up of many different cultures, so we practice different religions.

The article taught me a lot about ancient Mesopotamia’s government and religion. One key detail that I learned was that Mesopotamians worshiped many gods. I didn't know that Mesopotamians were polytheistic before reading this article.  Another key detail that I learned was that a king ruled each Mesopotamian city. I originally thought that there was one supreme king who ruled over the whole of Mesopotamia.  The final key detail that I learned was that It was believed that to keep the gods happy, you must offer them food and drink.  I found this interesting because I didn't think that people practiced this for thousands of years after Mesopotamia. 

 

 

 

Closing question

In my opinion, having written language is very important, and our lives would be very different without it. It affects me by giving me books to read and even a way to write this sentence. All in all, written language has definitely affected the human race for the better. 

Take it To Writing: 

Pretend you are an archaeologist studying Mesopotamia. Today you made a huge discovery. You found a complete written journal! Write a letter to your boss explaining what you might learn from it. 

 

Dear Sir or Madam, 

 

Today I discovered a complete written Journal in the ruins of a Mesopotamian city. We can learn a lot from this Journal. Considering that we have already learned how to decipher cuneiform, this journal could tell the stock at a ziggurat, or it could tell the story of someone's life! Whatever it is, it will be a huge step forward in understanding how Mesopotamian citizens lived.  I hope that you are as interested in the findings as I am. 

 

Sincerely, 

Marina Trigo 

 

Dear Boss, 

I discovered the most amazing thing ever today! I found a journal that went all the way back to the Mesopotamia time period when they could write. Just imagine what we could learn from this. We could discover new words in cuneiform. We can see how they made sentences, and what they did to make a journal. This also could be the first and when they started making journals. They could write in it like a diary and we could write a book about it or something.  This so cool, I can’t believe I found this. I think I should get a raise or something like that. I am going to take it back to lab and do some tests on it to see exactly where and when it is from.  

                                                                   Sincerely, 

                                                             Sydney/Clara 

I just made an incredible discovery! I found an old written out journal from the Mesopotamian times! I think this is amazing, because I could use it to see what the actual point of views from the people of Mesopotamia were. We could learn lots of new things. The person wrote about everything in his daily life. I hope that you are as excited as me to share information from this journal.

Sincerely,

Sophia Pacheco