Any Pagans Out There?

[thesoapycauldron]

Hi Jarremachine,

I hope I can answer your questions and no, no offence will be taken by me!

I don't celebrate Chrismas or Easter, however I do aknowledge them. I feel it is important for my children to understand why these celebrations take place as we live in a Christian country In fact, I would hazard a guess and say that my kids probably know the Christian origins better than most of their peers!!

We celebrate the Sabbats, there are 8 a year, 4 Major and 4 Minor. These are as follows (with the significance taken from my Book of Shadows)

Yule (22-23rd December, Winter equinox)<--Chrismas equivalent!
Celebration of the Sun God, Born of the Goddess and God. Yule is the time of the greatest darkness and has the shortest days of the year. Fires and canles are lit (hence Yule log) to welcome the return of the Sun God, while the Goddess rests after her labour and delivery.

Imbolc (2nd Feb, Feast of Torches, Candlemas)
Marks the recovery of the Goddess as she sleeps and the maturity of the Sun God as he grows in strength to become the new light of the year. His light regenerates the earth, and though he is still young and lusty, his power can be felt in the lengthening days. His warmth fertilises the Earth and causes seeds to srout and new buds to form as Spring appears.

Ostara (21st March, Spring Equinox) <--- Easter equivalent!!
Celebrates the return of the Goddess. Warmed by the light of the sun, She wakes from her sleep and blankets the Earth with fertility. Days and nights become equal as light overtakes darkness. The God reaches maturity. He walks the fields and forests delighted with the abundance of light. He and the Goddess impell all creatures out of hibernation, to mate and reproduce.

Beltane (30th April, May eve)
Marks the courtship of the Goddess and God, the renewal of the ancient marriage of polarity. As the God emerges into manhood, he desired the Goddess and they fall in love. They unite and the Goddess becomes pregnant of the God.

Litha (21st June, Midsummer Solstice)
The beginning of summer, marking the longest days of the year. The god is in his prime and the powers of nature reach their highest point. The earth is awash with the fertility of the Goddess and God.

Lammas (August 1st, Feast of Bread
A celebration of the bounty bought to the earth by the Goddess and God. The time of first harvest as te pants of spring wither and die. They drop their fruits for our consumption and their seeds to ensure future harvest. The God begins to die as the light decreases and the nights draw in. The Goddess looks on in sorrow and watches the God dying, but with joy realises that he lives on inside her, her unborn child.

Mabon (21st Sept, Autumn Equinox)<--- Harvest Festival \equivalent!!!
Completes the harvest. The days and nights are equal. The God dies as King Of Harvest, and travels to the underworld to await his rebirth of the Goddess. Nature declines and drawws back its bounty for the winter and time of rest. The Goddess sees the weakenimg sun, and a fire burns within her womb as she feels the presence of the God. She prepars for her own journey into the Underworld, to search for him again.

Samhain (31st October, Feast of the Dead- Hallowe'en, Celtic and some northern traditions New Year)
A Farewell feast to the God, who as the King of the Hunt sacrificed himself as his animals are slaughtered to provide sustenance throughout the winter months. The Goddess begins her descent into the Underworld in search of the God.

And so the cycle of the Year begins.

Each Sabbat is marked with a ritual, which includes wine, a simple feast of whatever food is appropriate at the time (eg samhain would be apples, pomegranatesetc, Beltane would be Almond cakes and Marigold Custard- yummy!!). Our rituals aren't observed by all Pagans, the above are generally followed by those with Wiccan leanings and some Celtic origins.

It is very hard to escape Christmas in this country, the build up starts now and it is everywhere. Sadly though, the message is largely lost on the general public, and many people view it as a time to spend obscene amounts of cash on the latest fad.

I have spoken to many Christians that refuse to aknowledge that Christianity 'Borrowed' from Paganism, but the simple truth is that t did. When Christiaity was bought to these shores it had a HUGE Pagan following to compete with; whay better way to start than by absorbing some of the already established traditions to make it more palateable?

For example- There is NO evidence to suggest that Jesus was born on Dec the 25th, in fact there is some evidence that His birth may have been in September time.

Blimey, I just looked back at this post and it's reeeealy long- if you have any more questions I am more than happy to postulate- Religion is my favourite subject (aside from Soap, of course... )

Take care and Blessed Be )O(

The Soap Dragon xxx

[jarremachine]

Wow! That's some interesting information there

I agree with you about christmas and yes, christendom had incorporated paganism into the truth about God & Jesus. When on earth Jesus illustrated that the seed of truth would be choked out by the weeds, e.g. false religion/teachings.

Is Christmas a celebration based on the Bible?

Date of the celebration

M’Clintock and Strong’s Cyclopædia says: “The observance of Christmas is not of divine appointment, nor is it of N[ew] T[estament] origin. The day of Christ’s birth cannot be ascertained from the N[ew] T[estament], or, indeed, from any other source.”—(New York, 1871), Vol. II, p. 276.

Luke 2:8-11 shows that shepherds were in the fields at night at the time of Jesus’ birth. The book Daily Life in the Time of Jesus states: “The flocks . . . passed the winter under cover; and from this alone it may be seen that the traditional date for Christmas, in the winter, is unlikely to be right, since the Gospel says that the shepherds were in the fields.”—(New York, 1962), Henri Daniel-Rops, p. 228.

The Encyclopedia Americana informs us: “The reason for establishing December 25 as Christmas is somewhat obscure, but it is usually held that the day was chosen to correspond to pagan festivals that took place around the time of the winter solstice, when the days begin to lengthen, to celebrate the ‘rebirth of the sun.’ . . . The Roman Saturnalia (a festival dedicated to Saturn, the god of agriculture, and to the renewed power of the sun), also took place at this time, and some Christmas customs are thought to be rooted in this ancient pagan celebration.”—(1977), Vol. 6, p. 666.

The New Catholic Encyclopedia acknowledges: “The date of Christ’s birth is not known. The Gospels indicate neither the day nor the month . . . According to the hypothesis suggested by H. Usener . . . and accepted by most scholars today, the birth of Christ was assigned the date of the winter solstice (December 25 in the Julian calendar, January 6 in the Egyptian), because on this day, as the sun began its return to northern skies, the pagan devotees of Mithra celebrated the dies natalis Solis Invicti (birthday of the invincible sun). On Dec. 25, 274, Aurelian had proclaimed the sun-god principal patron of the empire and dedicated a temple to him in the Campus Martius. Christmas originated at a time when the cult of the sun was particularly strong at Rome.”—(1967), Vol. III, p. 656.

A simplier way to determine Jesus' birth is to go by the age he died. According to the bible, Jesus was 33 and a half years when he died around March/April. Half a year is six months and counting back from March/April will bring us to the approximate time that he was born at around the time you mentioned, September/October

The church also know this and one vicar was quoted as saying when asked if he was gonna get up in his pulpit and tell his congregation the truth, in reply he said "Well no, not really, it's the busiest time of the year, it's when we make the most money!!!". It is also interesting to know that the church in england, is the second most richest in this country....next to the Queen!

Think council tax and then think parish council and that is just one source of income, some of it comes from land ownership, but most from christmas/easter celebrations, both paganistic and none of it to do with the true teachings of God & of his son, Jesus!

You said:
I have spoken to many Christians that refuse to aknowledge that Christianity 'Borrowed' from Paganism, but the simple truth is that t did. When Christiaity was bought to these shores it had a HUGE Pagan following to compete with; whay better way to start than by absorbing some of the already established traditions to make it more palateable?

That is so, so true! When on earth Jesus put down the religious leaders of the day, calling them "Offspring of vipers", he also called them "The blind leading the blind" and so it is no wonder that those christians will not believe the truth behind it all!

Now I've gone on and on Sorry about the long reply, but I also find it all interesting

[thesoapycauldron]

LOL, that's okay- Theology is my most favourite subject! I could talk and learn about it all day...

Though I'm a Pagan, I find some of Jesus' teachings very close to my own personal beliefs. My biggest belief is 'Tread Lightly Upon The Earth', and my favourite thing to refer to when I'm feeling low is the Desiderata- Google it if you haven't come across it. It applies to people of ALL faiths, and is so affirming.

I keep meaning to read up on Janeism, that fascinates me. When I was in Hong Kong I learned loads about Buddhism too.

Catharism is another interesting religion, as is Hinduism. Wow, I can ramble LOL

Better get some work done, and if ou have any more questions about Paganism, just holler!!

The Soap Dragon xxx

[0ctavias0fferings]

Hi Soapy, I must get a chat with you about the cards you were mentioning for Sabbats and Esbats. Hope it's ok to get in touch after we get back from the wedding this weekend.
Wedding is taking place at a standing stone, will be interesting.
Hope you have a great day.

[GXT]

Hi Soap Dragon,

Just thought I'd let you know that I took your advice and googled the Desiderata as I'd never heard of it before and I feel a whole lot better for reading it!

It's almost like stopping, taking a deep breath and remembering what really matters, or perhaps just as importantly, what doesn't really matter.

Thank you for improving my evening!
The Toad

[thesoapycauldron]

Aww, any time GXT, glad it has the same effect on you as it does me!

0ctavia, I am offline for a while but I can check in every now and then. I'm looking forward to chatting with you about it! Have a fabby time at the wedding, If I ever marry again I would like to do it at a magickal place (first time was in a huge church at my fiances request, I'm shocked I didn't melt PMSL). A glade appeals to me, Dryads and all that :-D

Take care and Blessed Be everyone!

The Soap Dragon xxx

[thesoapycauldron]

Bumpety Bump :-D

The Soap Dragon xxx

[djinn1]

Hi;
Just to let you know-You cant claim or just say your Druid!
I am the Guardian of the Druids & we dont take kindly to faulse ways!
I understand your path & you want to be peacefull!
To be druid--its a Birth rite!
Its not like religon & you can choose!

Hi everyone! Just wondering if there are any fellow Pagans out there, and if so what path you follow?

I am an Earthwitch (sort of a cross between a Wicca and a Druid lol), and have been learning and practicing the Craft for about 8 years now. I have 4 children that I raise as Pagans, though if they decide on a different path when they are older thats fine by me- after all I was raised a Christian

I would love to hear from anyone,

Blessed Be

The Soap Dragon xxx

[daviegin]

All Christians are pagans they just haven't clicked yet, how they were enticed to church in the first place.

[djinn1]

The Day is a day!You can give it to any day!
The actual Christ was born late June or ealy July!
Dec was the only month with no holliday so they decided
with the card cocktail comps that it will make money & cards if they call it X-mass & have Santa Clause & other icons to
faulsely represent this holliday that dont exist!
So grab your toys-presants ect--Have a day of life & joy!
Be glad your alive & not named after a holliday!