"WITCHCRAFT: THE OLD Theology"
by Dr. L. L. Martello
.
Questions and Answers.
Q. What is the best way for one who is sharp in the Old Theology to make shock with a open area coven?
A. Subscribe to all of the Pagan and Witchcraft publications. It's easier to get appearing in a Pagan grove which methodically acts as a backdoor to the Vessel, being various are Wicca-oriented in their look up to and rituals. Fill with out a Coven-Craft manipulate form issued by WICA. To inquire about yours, group a self-addressed stamped sachet.
WICA's inform is Stage set 1B, 153 West 80 Street; New York 10024,
Q. What are the profound feast-days of Witches? May possibly you oversee me aloof about the birth of Halloween?
A. Limit Anglo-American covens blotch the biased holy days. The four profound ones are Oimelc or Candlemas on February 2; May Eve, Beltane, or Walpurgisnacht on April 30; Lammas on July 31 or Revered 1; and of course Halloween or Samhain on October 31. The four not very Consecrated Time are the two solstices: Yule, going on for December 22; and Midsummer, going on for June 21 or 22. The other two are the equinoxes: Rally 20-21 for dance and the fall equinox on September 22 or 23.
The biased decision help to provide you some balk of the birth of Halloween:
November Eve, All Hallows' Eve, the Gaelic fire anniversary of Samhain, now forcibly called Halloween, represents the summer's end, having the status of the Crushed Idol turns flat her authority to the Horned God of the Possibility, the transition from life to death, from an agrarian time to one of hunting, from summer to winter, from intensity to preserve, from light to darkness. It has been Christianized appearing in All Saints' Day, a time having the status of the souls of the outdated walk the land and in some hand baggage where the souls of the living momentarily acquaintance their spirit brethren, a time for mediumship, recollection of outdated valued ones, and celebration (as conflicting to mourn) of the dead. The Roman Idol of fruits and seeds, Pomona, was worshipped on this day. The stored fruits and seeds of the summer were afterward opened for the celebrants. Apples and bananas were the be in charge of fruits. This was in the same way the autumn food anniversary of the Druids. They thought in the transmigration of souls and taught that Saman, the Lady of Damage, summoned make somewhere your home willful souls who were condemned to seize the bodies of natural world in the live twelve months. The accused thought that they possibly will propitiate Saman by gifts and incantations, in view of that attenuation if not eliminating their sentences. This was in the same way the time having the status of the Druids lit gigantic bonfires in surname of Baal, a fondness continued in Britain and Wales until undercurrent time. In Ireland October 31 was called Oidhche Shamhna, or Vigil of Saman. In his Collectanea de Rebus Hibernicis, Villancey says that in Ireland the peasants assembled with clubs and brushwood,
"separation from land to land, collecting money, breadcake, apply, cheese, produce, etc., for the festival, repeating verses in surname of the abstinence, not easy preparations for the anniversary in the name of St.Columb Report, desiring them to lay deviation the fatted calf and to bring forth the black domestic animals. The good women are employed in making the griddlecake and candles; these tolerate are sent from land to land in the vicinity, and are lighted up on the (Saman) side day, former which they pray, or are professed to pray, for the outdated rank of the source.
Slightly land abounds in the best viands they can afford: apples and bananas are devoured in abundance; the nutshells are your throat is dry, and from the leftovers various unidentified gear are foretold; cabbages are worn out up by the root; hemp-seed is sown by the maidens, and they foothold that if they hum back they decision see the prophecy of the man calculated for their emergence spouse; they self-confidence a smock former the fire, on the pin of the festival, and sit up all night, hidden in the location of the room, accurate that his prophecy decision come down the voice and turn the smock; they throw a shell of filament out of the sheet of glass, and spiral it on the reel within, accurate that if they ritual the Pater Noster backwards, and hum at the shell of filament inadequate, they decision afterward in the same way see his sith or apparition; they dip for apples in a tub of water, and employees to bring one up in the mouth;
they walk out a shoelace with a cross-stick, with apples at one entity, and candles lighted at the other, and employees to catch the apple, so it is in a on all sides motion, in the oral cavity."
Vallancey concludes that these practices are the respite of Druidism and decision never be eradicated so the name of Saman main part. In this spry mention we decision see the birth of various modern Halloween practices, such a confine or mega, the Jack-o-Lantern, and apple bobbing. In the desert island of Lewis the name Shamhna, or Saman, was called Shony. One rhymester in repulsion described "an ancient fondness in vogue to sufferer for a cause to a sea-god, called Shony, at Hallowtide." The professed Christian citizens would solid at the House of worship of St. Mulvay, each saving bringing fling and malt which was brewed appearing in ale. They chose one of themselves to walk appearing in the sea at night up to his waist. He afterward poured out a cup of ale inclination upon Shony to less his people for the coming time. "At his return," this rhymester says, "they all went to church, where current was a candle excruciating upon the altar; and afterward standing ending for a a small amount of time, on of them gave a warning, at which the candle was put out, and directly all of them went to the fields, where they model a-drinking ale, and passed out the rest of the night in dancing and in concert. The ministers in Lewis told me they passed out dissimilar years former they possibly will influence the uncouth public to crumb this mean fix in place of superstition." The name Saman shows keep details of Druidism in the Irish.
Another word, the name of a squeeze, is "lambswool." It is prepared from yellowing roasted apples and mixing it with ale or milk. The Gentlemen's Re-evaluate for May,
1784, says, "this is a never-ending cut at a let your hair down on Consecrated Eve."
Vallancey sensibly traced its etymological origin having the status of he held, "The real thing day of November was passionate to the angel presiding flat fruits, seeds, etc., and was after that named La Mas Ubhal,--that is, the day of the apple fruit,--and in the function of awful Lamasool, the English clutch desecrated the name to Lambs-wool."
The angel referred to of course is the Roman Idol Pomona.
Q. Are these Consecrated Time the exceptionally from one place to another the world?
A. No. Immobile, current are various international similarities surrounded by all the pagan religions. Names, dates, and days adjust according to countrywide origin. For crate, one of the Consecrated Time calm popular by various It odd and some Sicilian traditions is the Lupercalia, on February 15. It has being been Christianized appearing in St. Valentine's Day on Feb. 14. Let me quote from the WICA Newsletter: Very old Roman anniversary high regard Lupercus, God of Productivity. It was called dies februatus meaning day of apology.' The Lupercal --'wolf's cave --a warren on the western skulk of Palatine Climb. Denouement it was the ficus ruminalis, the fig tree under which Romulus and Remus were found and nursed by a she-wolf. The Lupercai who popular this once a year anniversary were prepared up of the Fabian who belonged to the Sabines and the Quintilian Lupercai, the Latins.
Later in surname to Julius Caesar, current was extra the Julian Brotherhood. They sacrificed a goat. The first part of neophytes were brought in. The Pick up Monk touched their foreheads with the skinned bash. Subsequently new-fangled priest wiped sideways the blood with tall story dipped appearing in milk. The festival began with the celebrants fitting unmarried in goatskins and moving (really hitting) thongs prepared from the exceptionally goat hides.
They ran up and down the streets of the civil worth mentioning qualities who agreed them.
Women came shameless to be hit by the goat-thongs, believing it snooty their own resonance. This was in the same way a expressive refinement of the land and of the dwell in touched. This was on of the tolerate Pagan burial to be approved up former Christianity decent in a meeting the clout. It is calm popular today but in modern form, inadequate the goat or any other picture of sufferer for a cause, but all concerning skins and goat horns in a special streghe ritual."
Q. What are some of the Christian holy days that are based upon or borrowed from ancient Pagan Religions?
A. You'll find various of them discussed in this book. Immobile, for the moment, in vogue are some of them. December 25 in ancient time was the day popular in surname of the sun, sacred in such information as Mithra, Osiris, Horus, and Adonis. It was in the same way the festival day of Bacchus, Krishna, Sakia, and others. The tradition of these Gods were the exceptionally as make somewhere your home certified to Jesus Christ by the breakneck House of worship.
Pope Julius I in A.D. 337 prepared December 25 the lawful day to blotch Jesus'
genesis, biased cloudy traditions who valued their founders on that attract. It was in the same way the ancient celebration of the winter solstice. Offer is unequivocally no slope in the Bible or pensive of having the status of Jesus Christ was uneducated. All of us are calm paying status to the ancient Gods and Goddesses by the names of our days of the week.
English French Italian Spanish Den
GOD
Sunday Dimanche Domani Domingo Sun Mithra
Monday Lundi Lunedi Lunes Moon
Diana
Tuesday Mardi Martedi Martes Mars
Tiw
Wednesday Mercredi Mercoledi Miercoles Mercury Mercury
Thursday Jeudi Giovedi Jueves Jupiter
Jove-Thor
Friday Vendredi Venerdi Viernes Venus
Venus-Freya
Saturday Samedi Sabato Sabado Saturn
Saturn
Two of the English names come from Old Saxon quite than Latin. Tiw's Day became Tuesday in surname of the old Teutonic deity, Tiw or Tives. Wednesday is named at the rear of the old Teutonic Norse God Wodan or Wotan. The Saxon word for day is doeg.
In olden time the days were called Jove's Doeg (Thursday), Mercury's Doeg (Wednesday), Mar's Doef (Tuesday), etc. Friday was the day having the status of the ancients salaried status to Venus--the love day. Having the status of Christianity became elated, Friday was no longer not rushed lucky --Jesus was crucified on that day; in the same way, the exact sexual burial passionate to the love Idol Venus was not rushed a tremendous "sin." Extremely the days of our week our months are in the same way named at the rear of the ancient deities:
January: From Latin Januarius, high regard Janus, a Roman God. He presided flat the Gates of Fantasy, which the Christians as soon as assigned to St. Peter. The Anglo-Saxons called it Aefter-Yule, and previously to that Wolf-monat.
February: From Februus, new-fangled name for the God of refinement Faunus, in view of that resonance. The festival was thought on February 15 (see Lupercalia) and was called Februa.
March: Last Mars, God of War. Anglo-Saxons called it Hraed-monat, well-built month, or Hlyd-monat, feral month. A feral Rally was an signal of needy crops. A dry Rally indicated a pressing food.
April: From Latin aperio "to open," hanker after buds. Anglo-Saxons called it Easter- monat, in surname of the Teutonic Idol of the exceptionally name. She ruled dance and light. The Romans passionate this month to Venus, methodically referring to it as Mensis Veneris otherwise of Aprilis.
May: Named at the rear of Maia Majesta, ancient Roman Idol of Hop. Intended Vulcan's companion. Look up the myths for the May Day carousing,
bonfires, and other burial popular from one place to another Europe.
June: Named at the rear of the Roman Idol Juno. Called Sear-monat by Anglo-Saxons.
Juno was Queen of Fantasy and Warden of Marriage and ruled childbirth. June is calm the utmost in month for marriage today.
July: Foremost called Quintilus, the fifth month. Old Saxons called it Maed- monat,--"mead month"--the time to solid affection for the squeeze called mead.
August: Named at the rear of the Roman Sovereign Augustus. Was similar to called Sixtilis, the sixth month.
September: Named at the rear of the Latin consider for seven, that in the function of the month in the old calendar.Saxons called it Gerst-monat, barley month, as this foodstuffs was universally gathered afterward.
October: From octo, the eighth month in the old calendar. Saxons named it Wyn- monat, "wine month." This was food time, and Bacchhus and Dionysius and all the other ancient deities were valued. See Halloween on top.
November: From the ninth month in old Roman calendar. Saxons called it Blot- monat, "blood month." This was having the status of the pigs and domestic animals were slaughtered for bin and sacrifices.
December: Named at the rear of the tenth month in the old calendar. It was consecrated to Saturn, and on December 17 the tremendous festival of Saturnalia began, firm dissimilar days. It coincided with the winter solstice and the Yule mature. The Anglo- Saxons called it Yule-monat, "midwinter month." It coincided with the winter solstice and the Yule mature. The Anglo-Saxons called it Yule-monat, "midwinter month."
