In early 1984, I met one of the greatest figures of philosophical reflection of the 20th century, Evangelos Moutsopoulos.
I met him in the National Archaeological Museum. The scene of the meeting remains unforgettable to me. The professor was standing in front of the statue of “Aphrodite and Pan” and was analyzing the metaphysical properties of Pan to a group of young students with a philosophical fervor that literally magnetized me.
I took part in the group's dialogues, we met, he showed particular interest in our meeting and we made an appointment at his house, on Ypsilantou Street, in Kolonaki.
I remember it was evening, it was raining non-stop, when I rang the doorbell of his apartment and climbed the stairs one by one. He opened the door for me himself and led me to a small room in his ultra-elegant residence. He sat in his office chair, I on the other side, the visitor's, and we began a conversation about Socrates that literally marked my life.
The respected professor of Philosophy spoke to me, looking me deep in the eyes, with earthly words and heavenly meanings.
– The passing of Socrates, my dear Mr. Pisano, from the Life of Athens left the imprint of a personality dominated by a heavenly "demonic essence", which with the living example of everyday life, with his exhortation, with his moral teaching but also with his ethos, awakened in me, in a unique way, the need for a completely new Life.
At some point, Moutsopoulos stood up and was talking to the ceiling, as if he was unaware of my existence in his office.
– My grandfather and grandfather of all modern Greeks, Socrates, in fact, passed with indelible letters into History, Greek and World, for two important reasons: he became the Founder of Dialectic and the incomparable Proteptikos, that is, the preacher, of a truly Ethical life.
– Is his Dialectic connected to his Ethics? I asked the Professor.
– Of course! With the method of Dialectic, Socrates becomes the founder of an autonomous morality based exclusively on Logic. In this way, Ethics is freed for the first time from the monstrous power of habit and from ancestral religion and is more securely fortified in the shadow of Proof.
I listened, speechless, thoughtful, deep in the depths of his lofty thoughts. The professor was unstoppable.
– Socrates, the man of “nothing,” hid in the depths of his consciousness, in the secret roots of his soul, the Belief in an Absolute Ethics that Good and Evil are both absolute. In this way, the great sage recognizes a Moral Law that extends over all of humanity, which is completely independent. This Law is required to be enforced by the punishment of evil.
I remember Evangelos Moutsopoulos who emphasized at the close of his report on Socrates:
– The Ethics of Socrates, my dear Mr. Pisano, with all its rigor and rigidity, has nothing ascetic about it because it does not set aside, does not ignore the need of human nature. It does not oppress the individual with the fear of unspeakable punishment. Nor does it pervert the tendency towards natural human pleasures. It only directs it, based on Logic, to its true destination.
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I spoke to the leading Professor, that evening, about the Vision of Delphi, the Heptapolis, describing the goals of the existence of a spiritual City whose sunrise would illuminate the sunset of time. He showed his absolute respect, unequivocally declared his participation in every way in the struggles of the OLYMPUS Association, became a founding member, then joined the Board of Directors, collaborated in an excellent manner with all the members of the Councils until the end of his life, leaving behind him the mark of a true Philosopher, who did not only serve the Academy of Athens or the Kapodistrian University and, subsequently, the Association "OLYMPUS, World Spiritual Center". He served, with all the strength of his soul, the soul of the Greeks with his unwavering struggle to understand Greek Philosophy.
In the philosophical schools of the world, the name of Evangelos Moutsopoulos has illuminated and illuminates, today and forever, their Academic deltas.
photo https://www.fpress.gr/ellada/story/73305/pethane-o-akadimaikos-eyaggelos-moytsopoylos
