More on Mary
> with due respect, I wonder how the analogy Mary / Venus would work.

> First of all Mary is no goddess, and was never thought to be one. ...
> She has no power over the fate of mortals

What I can't help finding more and more remarkable is how dichotomous the discourse on Mary has been and continues to be. Some take a theological line, i.e.
that Mary is no goddess and has no power over the fate of mortals. And there are all sorts of theological writings that support such completely orthodox ideas. Yet, when one looks at the social contexts and functions of devotion to Mary during the Middle Ages, it certainly appears that devotion specifically to her essentially took over the social functions that were formerly served by devotion to pre-Christian goddesses. Possibly as early as the 6th century, for example, she took over from pagan cults in the protection of Constantinople. As the early 7th-century Akathistos hymn puts it:
Unto you, O Theotokos, invincible champion, Your city, in thanksgiving ascribes the victory for the
deliverance from sufferings.
And having your might unassailable,
free me from all dangers, so that I may cry
unto you: "Hail! O bride unwedded."
And from about the 11th century onwards, very similar sentiments can be traced in western Europe, not only to Mary as an invincible military champion, but as a healer, a freer of prisoners, a protector of sailors, a holy midwife, a garantor of fecundity (both human and agricultural), a sky goddess who controls the rains, etc., etc. There is little hint that the Church protested these social roles for Marian devotion, and much evidence that they supported it. What I can't figure out is whether that makes the Church schizoid, or whether we are dealing with a classic case of double-think, or what. Whatever the case, there is no theological rationale for the remarkably common confluence of Marian pilgrimage sites and miraculous springs and wells, or grottoes, or trees. There were thousands of such combinations all over Europe. Maybe that's why another line in the Akathistos hymn claims:
Hail! to you who has redeemed us from pagan religion.

I'm beginning to believe that there was no one medieval "Mary" but that she was
(almost) all things to all people, depending on the circumstances. And sometimes she could be different things to the same people, at different times and for different reasons. And maybe even different things to the same people at the same time!
Cheers,
Jim Bugslag

Respondeo:

Yet indeed. There are of course many different levels of theological competence, and indeed general intellectual competence, at work. It happens that a year or two ago I was concelebrating with a fellow priest, on the feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary. My role for most of the Mass was to sit there looking interested. A difficulty arose during my colleague's homily when he began, "The thing to remember about Mary is that she was Immaculate, and she was Conceived." As he chuntered on, it became obvious that he hadn't any idea what the word 'conceived' meant. But he continued: "The very fact that she was Conceived made her already half-way to being God" (he really did say that).

I sat there feeling very uncomfortable for two reasons. One was that I was hearing some roaring heresies preached in the name of the Catholic religion; the other was that I had the feeling that nobody else present was aware of the fact. Were the good people in the congregation nodding and saying to themselves, "Yes indeed! She was conceived! That does make her almost God!"

I was reassured later on the second point. Some at least of those present could recognise nonsense when they heard it, perhaps because most of them were women and knew what 'conceived' meant. But my colleague continues, so far as I know, to chunter, to this day.

No doubt there were plenty of chunterers in the Middle Ages. Even now, with communications and structures that their medieval counterparts could not have dreamed of, the authorities of the Church find it impossible to silence or correct chunterers; how much more so in the Middle Ages.

Bill.

(Comment on this)

( Read more...Collapse )

(Comment on this)

Animal Speak by Ted Andrews.

(Comment on this)

DOG - Your daemon may be a dog if you are loyal and caring, and like to know what is expected of you. You probably are very family oriented, and have a small group of friends that you are very close to, rather than a large group of acquaintances. You dislike confrontation, but you will stand up and fight for the people and issues that you really care about. You may prefer someone else to take the lead in a situation, although you would rather take the lead yourself than have the situation fall apart. You probably enjoy routine and order, but that doesn't mean you don't like to have fun. If anything, your friends probably know you for getting intense, child-like pleasure in the small things in life. 645 times, 25%

RACCOON - your daemon may be a raccoon. You are a trickster. Your daemon's nimble hand-like paws can help in the creation of pranks. You may prefer the cover of darkness to pull off your stunts. You may be fascinated by gadgets, and are probably good at figuring out how things work. Independent and fun loving, you love to get the best of someone. You have no pretensions about yourself. Crafty and clever, you can adapt to any situation and find a way to make it work in your favour. 131 times, 5%

CAT - your daemon may be a cat if you are independent and comfort loving. You follow your heart and do what you want to do - no matter what others think. You have a strong sense of your own worth, and an inner dignity. You may be loving and generous in one moment, and then lash out at someone in the next. You have as many moods as there are colours in a rainbow, and you wear them all brilliantly. You always know what you want right now - although in five minutes you may change your mind and set your sights elsewhere. You like to do things with style and flair. When someone else orders you to do something, do you feel an unholy urge to do exactly the opposite? That just might be your inner daemon talking. 416 times, 16%

MOUSE - Your daemon may be a mouse. You keep your self hidden away, not because you are ashamed of it, but because you are afraid the world may not understand it, and may hurt it. Isn't it strange how people can be so cruel to such a small and helpless creature? You want to keep that very inner part of your psyche private and close to you, perhaps in your shirt pocket, next to your heart. 168 times, 7%

SNAKE - your daemon may be a snake. You are intelligent, and are willing to resort to intimidation to protect yourself or get what you want. Unfortunately, sometimes you might intimidate people accidentally - you are often misunderstood. You might be good at adapting yourself to situations and getting yourself out of tight fixes. You are a survivor. 92 times, 4%

EAGLE or HAWK - your daemon may be some kind of bird of prey. Yours is a strong spirit, and a fierce sense of liberty. You cannot be confined. You may be shrewdly observant, and like to be aware of everything that goes on around you. You will fight fiercely for the things that are most important to you, and you are definitely a force to be reckoned with. Still, you are not vicious by nature and would prefer to be left in peace. You probably value your solitude very highly - not that you don't enjoy company, but sometimes you just need to be alone - otherwise you begin to feel caged in and confined. You might want to take a drive on your own, just to feel the road beneath you, or to sit alone on your balcony, watching the world go by. 409 times, 16%

BUTTERFLY - Your daemon may be a butterfly. It is ironic that the butterfly traditionally represents the psyche, yet it is one of the least emotive physical forms that your daemon can take. It is very hard to tell what a butterfly is feeling, and perhaps that is why you feel so comfortable with this form. You have many, many friends and a beautiful soul, but you don't like to reveal what your innermost feelings are. You aren't afraid to be yourself - you are vibrant and colourful. But at the same time, you don't like to wear your heart on your sleeve. 182 times, 7%

PANTHER - Your daemon is one of the big cats - perhaps a puma, or jaguar, or maybe a leopard. You are brave, proud, and graceful. You let nothing stand between you and the things that you want. You are cool-headed and you like to be in charge of the situation. You do not take orders. You work best on your own, because the incompetence of others just impedes your ability to get things done. You are the true king of the jungle. 67 times, 3%

SONGBIRD - Your daemon may be a song bird if you are a true free spirit. You don't do any harm to anyone, but go along your merry way. You work hard and you play hard. You may be very talented and you use your talent to add happiness to the world. You may be a hopeless romantic, and probably put your family and significant other before anyone else. You might be a little vain at times, but no one can ever fault your for it. 83 times, 3%

RAVEN - Your daemon may be a member of the crow family. You are intelligent, observant, and gregarious. Just as a crow or raven picks shiny objects out of the dirt, you pick up tidbits of information or ideas and store them away. You have a good sense of humour, but sometimes lose patience with people who are antipathetic to your nature. You are swift to alert others when you find the truth, and you have no tolerance for those who would hide it. 349 times, 14%

(Comment on this)

Etymology of vampir and lampir
Date: Fri, 16 Dec 2005 12:18:08 +0100
From: "Endymion" <pmmcof@EUnet.yu>
Subject: Etymology of vampir and lampir

I've been reading Milan Budimir's "Sa balkanskih istocnika" (Srpska knjizevna zadruga, Beograd, 1969), and I have found the following...

The author identifies the original root as *amp-uri (dangerous demon), which has its relatives in Greek: Empousa (apparition), empis (mosqito), epiolos (moth). Epiolos, on the other hand, has its parallels with psyche (soul, spirit, butterfly), psychos (winter).

Lampir, which is another word for vampir and according to the author older one, is a derivative of lampyris, which in Greek means moth (there is even a moth with its Latin name "Cicindela lampyris").

The author also says that the Romans had certain butterflies or moths - Papilio feralis -engraved on their tomb stones to bind the souls of the dead not to roam the earth.

Trance-and-dance,
e.

(Comment on this)