Happy Day of Blood

[JesusA (imported)]

In the ancient Mediterranean world, March 24 was celebrated as the Dies sanguinis, or Day of Blood. Some theologians believe that the holiday is the precursor/origin of the Christian holiday of Good Friday.

Dies sanguinis was the festival day on which worshipers and priests of the goddess Cybele, the Mother of the Gods, slashed themselves and bled to sprinkle pine boughs and the Mother’s statue with their blood. This was also the day on which young men castrated themselves to become priests to the goddess, to become Galli.

The day following Dies sanguinis was the celebration of Hilaria, the “Day of Joy” (also known as Hilaria Matris Deûm). This was a celebration of the day of resurrection of Attis, the consort of the Mother of the Gods. It was a day for the celebration of fertility and the return of springtime to the world.

The site for the largest ceremony in Rome for Dies sanguinis was later taken over by Christians to erect the Papal Basilica of Saint Peter at the heart of the Vatican. The testicles of those castrated in honor of the Mother of the Gods were ritually interred at a site that was later covered by the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore†, the largest church in Rome dedicated to the “Mother of God.”

The faith in the Mother of the Gods was the most powerful rival to early Christianity in the empire. It has been argued by scholars of early Christianity (see especially Susan Elliott in the Bibliography (http://www.eunuch.org/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=17583) on the Non-Fiction Board) that Paul’s Epistle to the Galatians was written largely in reaction to the prevalence of the faith of the Mother of the Gods in Galatia. Its attempt to dissuade Christians from circumcision is seen as a way to distance Christians from the Galli who were castrated as an article of their faith. (Roman law equated castration and circumcision as, apparently, did many early Christians and castration was practiced by many of the early Christian faithful, some of whom thought that all true Christian males should be castrated.)

FOOTNOTE:

† Cardinal Bernard Law, who presided over the Boston Archdiocese for nearly 20 years while he ignored repeated pleas from the mothers and aunts of abused children, coddled offending priests, and demanded silence from victims until — after the number of cases exceeded 500 — he was forced in 2002 to resign his post, was then reassigned as archpriest of the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome.

[moi621 (imported)]

How do we celebrate it?

Ask River

Maybe some "Blood Wine"?

Seriously, it makes sense. The Euros were all hung up on their Goddess. There advancing rationality caused problems with their polytheism. They liked Judaism except for the circumcision laws, the dietary laws, and in true revisionist fashion molded Judaism into their Christianity complete with the inclusion of the Goddess/Mary. Suitable for worship, along with Jesus and associated saints. Voila, Polytheism reborn.

But, somehow it doesn't rank as being, Pagan although most of them consider Judaism as such.

It doesn't even count as polytheism.

To paraphrase W. C. Field's. "It is a matter of whether the word controls the religion or the religion controls the word." The word always loses.

For a good time, watch the Joseph Campbell/Bill Moyers interviews.

Moi

Spiritualist. When you are "drafted", ie. messages,

it takes no faith!

[hungrycat (imported)]

Thank you for the info. ^-^

I have been looking into religion and Christianity allot recently because of the current interest in the UK on Gay marriage. I found that lots of similarities with previously established faiths and also how people have changed the meaning of the Bible over time, either through bad translation or lack of understanding of how people thought at the time.

I found that the qura.n and the bible are linked via reference. The qura.n makes reference to the people of "Lut" or Lot for example. The most interesting thing is that these passages in the King James Bible are both out of context and translated badly.

I love reading about history and this info is great. I will defiantly be looking more at the points you raised ^-^

Ryan xx

[Matthew 19:12 (imported)]

Thats what the worshippers of Baal did in the Bible, slashed themselves and bled. Its quite a funny story what the outcome was.

i dont know where the catholic church get 'good friday' as the day Jesus was crucified, since you can easily work out from the Scriptures that it was Wednesday. But the catholic church is pure paganism, so what do you expect.

[Dave (imported)]

You know, I getting a little pissed off at some of these posts on religion. I ignore the threads and posts mostly but I do have a limit.

I am not the best Catholic, far from it. I can find the faults of the Catholic hierarchy easily and post them if I wanted to do such a thing.

However, this is Easter Week and yes, Friday is the commemoration of the Crucifixion. It is the most sacred of all weeks in the year. Trashing the Catholic Church as paganism is over my limit of wrong and just plain ignorant and stupid.

So stop this. I don't care how interested you are in religion. None of these posts have actually dealt with the "teaching" of religion. Many have merely stood as sideways cheap shots at calling religion bad or stupid or some such other thing. I don't care and I'd rather not hear anyone calling religion ignorant and taking the cheap shots.

Wise up and be a little polite.

[moi621 (imported)]

Is discussing Joseph Campbell, impolite?

[Dave (imported)]

No discussing Joseph Campbell is not wrong but this is stepping beyond the bounds of discussion:

But the catholic church is pure paganism, so what do you expect.

[moi621 (imported)]

No discussing Joseph Campbell is not wrong but this is stepping beyond the bounds of discussion:

"

But the catholic church is pure paganism, so what do you expect.

"

Good. Not one of mine.

Okay, even if I go for the Trinity explanation - a product of the isolated Irish Church in the Middle Ages, - - - -

praying for the intercession by numerous Saints or Mary is, and meaning no offense, paganism. Polytheistic.

Is it a battle between the English Language and Church Faithful?

Some define pagan as "not Christian". They classify Jews as Pagan by this definition.

I find Pagan synonymous with Polytheism. Let's use that definition. Ok?

Again I mean no offense and hope for an education.

Moi

Gnostic

[transward (imported)]

But the catholic church is pure paganism, so what do you expect.

I was under the impression that there was a rule around here about bad mouthing other peoples ' religion. (though frequently ignored regarding Islam)

In any case it's impolite.

Transward

[Matthew 19:12 (imported)]

Its pure historical fact. The emperor constantine wanted to please the pagans and Christians both, so he took the pagan holidays like xmas (saturnalia), Easter (Ishtar) etc. , and slapped a Christian veneer on them. Also he took the pagan gods, and turbed them into catholic saints to be prayed to, so like the pagan 'queen of heaven' got transfered to Mary, the statue of Jupiter got worshipped as saint Peter etc. Thats why there's a huge pagan egyptian obelisque at Rome, inside a hindu sun-wheel/ buddhist dharma chakra. And thats why the pope likes pagan religions, and kisses the quran things, and why the pagans all bowed down to him at Assisi, such as

buddhist, hindu, muslim, Jewish, snake worshippers etc. Its only Christians who wont bow down to the pope, which is why they killed over 50 million Christians, and thats

historical fact! If you were caught with a Bible, you were burned alive at the stake! Even Hitler was a catholic, since when he died, the Vatican published in a Spanish newspaper i think it was, 'Adolf Hitler, son of the catholic church, died defending Christianity'. Interesting that 'anti-Christ', the word 'anti' means 'against', OR 'another, on the place of', so

literally anti-Christ means 'another Christ, in the place

of Christ'. And they call the pope 'vicar of Christ', literally meaning 'substitute for Christ, or in the place of Christ'!!! hid title literally means anti-Christ! ill never

bow down to that wicked pope. The catholic church has shed

more innocent blood than any organisation in history. Of course this comment will be removed so as not to offebd weak willed delicate sensibilities, which is kind of funny!